I'm always a little bit nervous, trying a book by an author that I've "met" online. Lydia Joyce has been posting about this book for so long, how could it possibly be anything but anticlimactic? But how could I resist a book that promised my favorite tortured hero angst?
The Veil of Night by Lydia Joyce
(2005, Victorian) 4/20/05
Grade: 4.5
The heroine goes to visit the mysterious Duke of Raeburn to persuade him to forgive her brother’s debts - and she ends up agreeing to a week of sensual pleasure. (She’s already ruined, so why not take one last chance for pleasure?) Raeburn finds out Victoria’s secrets and grows to care for her, but he will not - cannot - reveal the secret that keeps him forever in darkness.
A well written, interesting book that has a few pacing problems, but it shows a lot of potential for a first time author. The book seems to be divided into thirds - the first third is a sensual, languid gothic, which made me want to savor every word. Maybe a little overly atmospheric in places, but rich and compelling. (Almost a hybrid of Ivory and Schone.) But then the book seemed to lose its way - the secret went on too long and the plot became predictable. The characters seemed stuck. But just before I put the book down in frustration, it picked up again, and I eagerly turned the pages until the end, although it became a more traditionally written and plotted romance in the last third. Not quite a keeper, but definitely an author to watch.
It's always fun to find a new author who is worth watching. It's lovely to find a current book that revels in darkness, and even better, a publisher who doesn't think every book should be the same. I wonder which direction her next books will take - this one seemed like two different books grafted together. I look forward to finding out.
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