Wicked Lies
Historical romances taking place during America’s colonial era are relatively scarce. American readers seem to prefer medieval Scotland and Regency England, or at least publishers think they do. This latest work by Laura Renken also has the advantage of a mystery plot of sorts. Catherine Bellamy’s husband, who was somehow involved with the rebellious Sons of Liberty, has been murdered, and she and Patrick’s half-brother, smuggler and British navy captain Lord Blackmoor, are determined to find the killer, unbeknownst to each other.
In fact they spend much of the first 70 pages manacled to each other as escaped prisoners, neither one knowing the other’s identities. The story line that follows is quite complex, and the author seems to work harder than she should to keep from revealing things too soon. The story’s still suspenseful and entertaining, but I never felt very comfortable with some of the more obvious machinations of the plot. Maybe it’s a gender gap.
