Tempting the Scoundrel by Tracy Sumner

Below stairs is where the romance begins..

As the most distinguished watchmaker in England, Christian Bainbridge believes in accurate timepieces, not love. He secretly offered his heart years ago, and he’s never gotten it back. When Raine Mowbray stumbles into his life again, Christian realizes the woman he’s worshiped from afar is still the woman he desires above all others.

Raine Mowbray needs solitude and employment, not love. A housemaid forced to flee a loathsome earl’s grasp, the last thing she’s seeking is a man’s amorous attention. When she finds herself unexpectantly paired with a gorgeous watchmaker in need of an assistant, she’s unnerved by his wit, kindness—and clandestine devotion to her.

If you like spirited heroines who fight falling in love and charmingly arrogant heroes who think they know best, then this is the book for you! Snuggle up with Tempting the Scoundrel, a steamy second chance, love-at-first-sight Regency Romance!

This is a Downton Abbey-ish novella at 98 pages and 25K words.

Review

Most Regency romances focus on the ton. It's refreshing to read a romance below stairs - sort of. Christian considers himself as somewhere in the middle - a self-made man who is cousin to an earl. While staying with said earl, he spies a beautiful maid reading by lamplight and falls in love instantly. Too young and shy to even introduce himself, he leaves the next morning to begin an apprenticeship as a watchmaker.

Ten years later, he's the famous guest of a duke and she is the newest maid. Sparks fly - but can Christian convince Raine that the gap between them is not so impossible to bridge?

I really loved these two together - Christian is smart and determined, but terrible with expressing his long-held feelings. Raine is well-educated for a maid but is understandably wary of men of the nobility. There's an interesting theme of class - it's not exactly front of mind for us today, but back then there was a strong feeling about staying in your class and not looking above one's station. 

I'm not a huge fan of insta-love and think this would have been better if it had been expanded, perhaps over a longer timeframe for initial crushes to grow into a deeper love.

If you're looking for a short and steamy Regency read with a different hero and and heroine, give this a try.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from NetGalley, all opinions are my own.