A Deal at Dawn
In this moving second-chance Regency romance, Katherine Wilcox and Jahleel, Duke of Torrance, reckon with the short marriage that resulted in a secret daughter, Lydia, whom Torrance brings to his London home. Katherine, torn between pride and humility, attempts to redeem herself by nursing Jahleel through an episode of the blood sickness (to us, sickle cell anemia) and upholding the bargain that makes her his mistress. But further complications plague these two: Katherine’s family’s coal business is threatened by the conniving parents of her second, now deceased husband, and Jahleel navigates the treacherous terrain of London society as both an English peer and a Russian noble descended from the Black Russian prince Gannibal.
Katherine’s sisters, heroines of the first two books, provide support and advice while Katherine and Jahleel ride an emotional roller-coaster through scenes of torment and tenderness, probing the emotional complexity of their situation from every angle. Fortunately, the former lovers reconnect despite hostile in-laws and their own harrowing secrets, and their rekindled love is made more precious for their difficult pasts, the painful realities of prejudice and chronic illness, and the uncertain future that awaits. Riley twists the familiar historical romance tropes into something truly unique.
