ARC Review: Hidden Hart (Headstrong Harts #3) by Emily Royal
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Series: Headstrong Harts #3
Author: Emily Royal
Published February 25th 2021 by Dragonblade Publishing, Inc.
Goodreads Synopsis
A lasting friendship, a dream sacrificed, a life destroyed.
Major Devon Hart, the ultimate rake, had women flocking to his bed, until a street brawl four years ago left him scarred, inside and out. His once-handsome face now damaged beyond recognition, he remains hidden, except at night, when he dispenses his own brand of justice on the streets of London. He has nothing to live for except his friendship with Colonel Fossett, who saved his life, and his love for Lady Atalanta Grey, a woman he can only hope to admire from afar.
Lady Atalanta longs to be loved for something other than her wealth and beauty. Her life holds no excitement, until the night she’s set upon by thieves. The masked stranger who comes to her aid stirs delicious passions with tender words and scorching kisses, but he disappears before she can identify him.
Devon believes that Atalanta could never love the scarred, bitter man he’s become. But when Fossett asks for Devon’s help in wooing her, Devon must choose between sacrificing his dream of happiness, or betraying the man to whom he owes everything.
When a man has little to live for, will he sacrifice his dreams for the sake of a friend?
Goodreads
Review
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher, via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.
After nearly dying on a battlefield in Burma, Major Devon Hart has returned his commission, and is living alone in London. Knowing that his past of cuckholding his fellow soldiers, and sleeping his way across the years, has left him ruined inside, he finds himself scarred beyond belief, when he saves a prostitute from being raped and murdered on the dockside. Thinking it to be divine intervention for his past transgressions, he hides himself behind a mask - both figuratively and literally - and roams the streets at night, protecting those in need, under the guise of the Beast of Belgravia. One person he protects is the beautiful Lady Atalanta Grey, who he spotted in the hospital while recovering from his injuries, and has fallen in love with. Thinking no one would ever love someone like him, who was so scarred, he holds himself back, but when his best friend asks him to help woo her, he is torn in two.
After reading the other two books in the series, I was intrigued by Devon and his story, and was more than happy with it all. Reading Hidden Hart was such a quick read, and I loved both of the main characters. Devon really surprised me - I thought I would dislike him for his whoring and his blunt way, but he was actually really sweet inside, and definitely cared for Atalanta, and his friends, Fanny and Fossett. He did have his hang ups, especially around his visage, and it got a bit grating at times, but I really liked his story line - even when it went in directions I wasn't expecting. Atalanta blew me away though. She's the only child of a wealthy Earl, and expected to marry well and is the most sought after heiress of the season. However, she doesn't care for all that, and would rather train to be a doctor, a surgeon, and help those less fortunate than herself. Her parents let her work with a local doctor, until she marries, and this freedom is almost too much, but meeting Devon, loving him, makes her realise that she will do anything to be with the one she loves, and nothing will stop her. The conclusion was perfect, though perhaps I would've liked the epilogue to have been set a little more in the future. I'm not sure if this is the final book in the series, but I hope it isn't, because I want to learn more about the other two Hart siblings.
Dates Read:
February 21, 2021
Rating
3 Stars
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