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When Max, Earl Blakehurst, meets Verity he sees a downtrodden servant. He doesn't recognize her as the daughter of a colonel under whom he used to serve, the girl he'd once helped years before. The life Verity's now living is untenable. So he proposes a shocking solution -- he will set her up... read more

Summary edit see section history

15 year old Verity Scott has just lost her father to suicide. She meets Max, Earl Blakehurst, who served under her father in the Napoleonic Wars, at her father's gravesite. He helps her plant bluebells as a token to remember her father's resting place and helps Verity get through the rest of... read more (warning: may contain spoilers)

15 year old Verity Scott has just lost her father to suicide. She meets Max, Earl Blakehurst, who served under her father in the Napoleonic Wars, at her father's gravesite. He helps her plant bluebells as a token to remember her father's resting place and helps Verity get through the rest of the evening until her relatives can come for her. Five years pass and Verity is forced into the role of a servant and nanny in the house of her Aunt and Uncle Farringdon. She is mistreated and has been made to change her name to Selina Dering, so that the Faringdon's can try to claim her inheritance by claiming Verity has also died. Max, is invited to a party at their country estate and only comes with the intention of checking into the well-being of Verity. But while there, he becomes attracted to Selena, not recognizing her as Verity, and upon witnessing the attacks from the Farrindon's son asks her to become his mistress in order to escape an even worse situation. Verity has loved Max since he helped her when she was 15, and although not the type of proposal she would have liked to receive from him, she realizes that her current situation is very likely to worse and accepts his offer. However, on the eve of their departure Max discovers her true identity and insits they get married. However, Max vowed to his dying mother never to get married or have children, so that the title would pass to his twin brother, Richard, who was injured in a horse-riding accident when they were children. As a result Max feels as though Verity was purposely disguising herself to trap him into marriage. The rest of the story revolves around Max and Verity working through their communication issues and discovering the feelings they have for each other.

Characters/People edit see section history

  • Max, Earl of Blakehurst: Lead male character, served under the command of Verity's father in the Napoleonic Wars; loving protective and boorish,
  • Verity Scott: Lead female protagonist; Wonderful character
  • Celia Faringdon: Cousin to Verity Scott
  • Godfrey Faringdon: Cousin to Verity Scott
  • Lord Faringdon: Uncle of Verity Scott, becomes her guardian after her father's death; father to Celia and Godfrey
  • Lady Faringdon: Aunt of Verity Scott and guardian, mother to Celia and Godfrey
  • Richard Blakehurst: Twin brother of Max, injured in a horse-ridding accident when they were children leaving him almost crippled.
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First Sentence edit see section history

Verity huddled into the murk by the chimney stack, watching through the shifting veil of rain as the two men, little more than dense shadows in the pouring blackness, carried their grisly burden from the cottage to the cart.

Table of Contents edit see section history

Chapter 1 - 17

Series & Lists edit see section history

This is book 772 of 1065 in Harlequin Historical. (publisher series)

Preceded by A Season of the Heart, and followed by The Ranger and the Redhead.

This is book 772 of 46 in Harlequin Historical - 2005. (publisher series)

Preceded by A Season of the Heart, and followed by The Ranger and the Redhead.

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

  1. Elizabeth Rolls (Author)

First Edition edit see section history

Original Language: English
Publisher: Harlequin
Country: USA
Publication Date: 2004
ISBN: 0373293720
Page Count: 299

Classification edit see section history


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