Taste of Kiwi: Blog of Author Shelley Munro

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!

Just do the following:

~ Grab your current read

~ Open to a random page

~ Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

~ BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

~ Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Here’s a teaser from Dark Inheritance: Fallen Empire by K Reed.

Like an eviscerated body, the guts of the capital had spilled onto the streets. With what stealth they could manage, they navigated through the clear roads to avoid the piercing howls of rioters tearing through the hollowed buildings.

page 1, Dark Inheritance: Fallen Empire

BLURB:

The once glittering ballrooms of Regency England now lay desolate. A plague has ravaged the countryside. The government has fallen. What vestiges of order remained have been consumed by the endless funeral pyres.

Grayson, once the Baron of Harwich, sought only to protect his people. Rescuing a half-dead woman was not among his plans. But something about her pulled at him. Perhaps it was her beauty, still evident beneath the pallor of loss. Perhaps it was the recently fired rifle at her side. Or maybe he was simply tried of death. All he knew was that the plague had taken too much already. He couldn’t let it take her as well.

Lady Juliette Adair had been ready to die with her brother. She didn’t expect to be shown mercy in a world that had no room for mercy. When Grayson saved her she questioned his motives but soon found herself intrigued by him, drawn to him.

Societal rules were a thing of the past, dead along with the ton. Juliette had no manner by which to measure her growing closeness to Grayson any longer. But when she discovers he may not be the man she thought she knew more is at stake than just her heart. The secrets she carries could make a king or destroy one.

REVIEW:

I chose to read this book because it’s a Regency Dystopian story, something very different from what I’ve seen to date when it comes to historical romances. This is a straight historical with no paranormal elements in sight.

The setting is London 1804. The combination of plague and civil disorder has taken its toll on the people. Those who are still alive struggle to survive with food shortages and finding somewhere safe to live. The glamorous houses and balls of the past are no longer, the plague being a great leveller. The author has taken the English v French war and given her own neat twist and this forms part of the plot. The setting is like another character in this story, bleak and dangerous, and I really liked this aspect of the story.

Grayson Merrick, Baron of Harwich finds Lady Juliette Adair, the sole survivor of the plague at Colonel Bulger’s estate. From the first, he is taken with her, and when she survives, he takes a special interest in her. Grayson is strong and determined to keep the people on his Harwich estate alive. He’ll do anything to ensure his people are safe, yet Juliette is something he wants for himself. I liked Grayson a lot. He’s an honorable man. Although he feels a little guilty at first for taking Juliette into his bed, he comes to rely on her for solace. She is the only thing in his life that’s good and pure, a big contrast to the horror and desperation in the outside world. He falls in love with Juliette and thinks of her as his helpmate.

On the other hand, I didn’t feel as much sympathy for Juliette. She irritated me with her distrust, and I wanted her to just go to Grayson with her suspicions. I cheered when she finally behaved in the manner I thought she should. Toward the end of the story she redeemed herself in my eyes.

There were times when I felt the plot dragged a little, but the story ended with a bang and a satisfactory conclusion. This is the first book in the series, and it will be interesting to see where the author takes her characters in future.

So, would I recommend this story? Yes, if you want an original setting and something a little different you’ll probably like this story. I rate it somewhere between 3 – 4 stars. A good read.

Purchase Dark Inheritance: Fallen Empire

Note: I received this book from the author and Goddess Fish Promotions in exchange for an unbiased review.