GALLANT MATCH

Author: Jennifer Blake ISBN: 9780778326199 2/2009 HISTORICAL Publisher: MIRA
Time Period: Victorian, 1846

Kerr Wallace has spent years studying swordplay, preparing to challenge his sworn enemy and avenge his brother's death. The scoundrel Rouillard, now living in Mexico as a profiteer, has decided to take a wife, and the lady requires an escort to Veracruz. Kerr seizes his chance—he will deliver the bride... and dispatch the groom. If only it were so easy. Headstrong Sonia Bonneval will do anything to escape this doomed marriage to Rouillard. Coquettish ploys cannot melt the iron resolve of her damnable escort, however, and the voyage with Kerr becomes an exhilarating battle of wills. But a very real declaration of war forces them into even closer quarters—and greater temptation—in a fight for survival. Before the end, both must choose between duty and freedom—vengeance and passion.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

Jennifer Blake's A GALLANT MATCH is a tale of love and honor that kept this reader turning the pages long after the lights should have been out! I enjoyed this passionate tale of romance, honor and redemption so much that I couldn't put it down. Very well done, and highly enjoyable.

Rarely does a reader of historical romances see a heroine as headstrong as the one in A GALLANT MATCH. It is a refreshing change of pace from the endless stream of hand-wringing, overwrought females that often people stories set in this era. While Sonia Bonneval does conform—to a degree—with society's dictates, she is intelligent and witty, a true match for the man she finds herself thrown together with. From the start, Sonia tries to outmaneuver the men who plot the course of her life. She goes behind her father's back and tries to dissuade Kerr from accompanying her to Mexico. She pleads her case, and might have been successful had Kerr not had an agenda of his own that drove him to force her to make the journey.

Oh! And what a journey it is! The romance grows more intense between this pair of "traveling companions" once they are on board the vessel that will take Sonia to her intended husband. Sonia knows Rouillard is a brute, but even though she's told Kerr he is the kind of man who tortured kittens for sport when he was young, Kerr will not let her escape her fate. What she doesn't realize is that Kerr also knows Rouillard is despicable, and fully intends to avenge a family tragedy.

With emotional, intense dialogue and endearing secondary characters (Sonia's aunt is perfect!), A GALLANT MATCH is a story that shows that love can heal even the most hardened hearts. The ending left me smiling and I think it will do the same for others.

Kay James