NEVER TRUST A PIRATE

Two rogues in disguise are bested at their own game after meeting—and falling in love.

In what reads like a sexy version of Les Misérables, Bowman's (The Legendary Lord, 2016, etc.) latest opens with a scene that will keep readers on the edges of their seats—and never relents for a page. Doubling the pleasure, the tale of Cade Cavendish (an alleged pirate and spy) and Danielle LaCrosse (a rogue investigator disguised as a lady’s maid) also explores a mystery: why has Cade returned to London after 10 years, and why has Danielle been paid to spy on him? Bowman increases the tension of the story, and the future romance, by placing the protagonists in different social classes—Cade is the brother of a viscount, and Danielle serves as lady’s maid to the viscount’s wife. Both Cade and Danielle find it hard to trust other people, so when they share a bottle of wine one night in the viscount’s parlor, they’re shocked and intrigued to find themselves sharing a few secrets, too. Danielle reveals a snippet of her mysterious past in Paris and Cade suggests that his late nights out are more than just tavern visits. Is Cade the infamous pirate and jewel thief known as the Black Fox? While their conversation sometimes drags, most of the time their banter is entertaining. However, it takes a little more than suspension of disbelief to accept that Cade’s brother, a former war spy, is so slow to discover his secret identity.

Thrilling, delicious, and suspenseful.