When Declan and Paulette meet in her bookstore, they are both drawn to each other. When they might have resisted, Paulette makes a connection with Declan's young daughter, who hasn't spoken since the night her mother died. He returns to the store again and again, to make Mara happy, but also to see Paulette. When they finally give in to their passions, they think they're hiding it from everyone, but someone knows their secret and is willing to go to any lengths to end their affair.

I enjoyed TO TEMPT AN IRISH ROGUE in part because we get a glimpse into the running of a Victorian bookstore. Kaitlin O'Riley did a splendid job of weaving Paulette's daily work into the story without getting too bogged down in details. The mystery is well thought out and really kept me turning the pages.

This is the fourth book in the Hamilton Sisters series, and while I'd be interested in reading the other sisters' stories, I didn't feel like I was missing anything important by having started towards the end. For the most part O'Riley did a nice job filling in new readers on who everyone was, but as the book went along, it got a bit repetitive about re-introducing characters who'd been out of the picture for a few pages.

I would recommend TO TEMPT AN IRISH ROGUE to readers who enjoy Victorian fiction and appreciate a little mystery with their love stories.

Book Summary