Queen of My Hart (Headstrong Harts Book 2)

Dexter Hart beats Alderly at cards, winning everything he owns. Alderly insists on a chance to win it back, so Dexter makes a proposition: they will draw for the high card. If Alderly wins, his riches are restored. If Dexter wins, he gets the hand of Alderly’s eldest daughter in marriage, with his blessing. What nobody knows is the beautiful but shrewish Elizabeth whom he desires is the second daughter. The eldest daughter is one hidden away because she is a bastard. She is learned, but not in the ways of society. So Dexter’s enemy thinks he has the last laugh. Meggie is beautiful, sweet and understanding. Dexter is stoic, cold hearted, but loyal and fair. Meggie has dark secrets she must keep from Dexter who insists on transparency and truthfulness in their marriage, yet there are those lurking who are about to expose her.

“Queen of My Hart” introduces the reader to Dexter Hart, a blacksmith’s son who has worked his way up to being one of the most influential bankers in London. Meggie is a Viscount’s daughter, born out of wedlock, so she has been forced to scrounge her entire life. When Dexter and Meggie are thrown together against their will, sheer magic begins to bloom and unfurl as each chapter is revealed. The backdrops to the story are realistic and can easily be pictured. Ms. Royal masterfully makes the reader feel the emotions of all her characters in the story, both good and evil. Even the secondary characters are delightful, as Meggie pulls them back into the family. This beautifully written tale should grace every romantic’s library.

Belinda Wilson