A Rogue to Remember (Hellion Club #1)

Douglas Ashton, Lord Deveril, has a bad reputation, making his nickname of Devil appropriate. Youthful indiscretions had him banished to military service until the death of his father brings him back to his childhood home, which is empty of his sister Alice’s presence. Finding her leads to making him responsible for his traumatized young niece Marina, who needs more emotional help than Devil knows how to give. Governess Wilhelmina Marks is a graduate of the Darrow School run by the illegitimate daughter of a powerful duke. Willa specializes in dealing with challenging circumstances. She and Marina are the perfect match of caregiver and recipient except for one thing: Willa doesn’t trust Devil. 

There are many moving parts in this tightly constructed love story that uses the tension between the overarching threats of failure and scandal to focus on Willa’s and Devil’s daily struggles to reconcile family disasters from their pasts with potential for happiness with each other in the present. Marina’s unethical father and his villainous cohorts are vicious in pursuit of their criminal intentions, which forces Willa and Devil to work as partners to protect his niece. Although each major story pivot is easily predicted, that doesn’t weaken the compelling emotional appeal of Willa and Devil’s love story. Emotionally complex characterizations, smart dialogue, nuanced secondary characters, and brisk narrative pacing make “A Rogue to Remember” a love story to savor and a new series with future installments to anticipate. 

Cardyn Brooks