A Night Like This
(Libby/OverDrive eAudiobook)

Returning to England from an enforced three-year sojourn in Europe after crippling a friend in a duel, Daniel Smythe-Smith, Earl of Winstead, arrives just in time for his family's annual musicale and is instantly captivated by a breathtakingly beautiful woman at the keyboard—a woman who is definitely not one of his relatives. But Anne Wynter, governess to Daniel's three young cousins, is a lady-in-hiding from a dangerous, scandal-tainted past—a past that returns to threaten both their evolving relationship and their lives. A cruel, sadistic villain adds a dash of uncharacteristic violence, making this intriguing story darker than Quinn's usual lighthearted fare. VERDICT Once again fans are swept up in the offbeat antics of the Smythe-Smith clan and will be rewarded with lively humor, delightful romance, and surprisingly thrilling suspense. Romance Writers of America Hall of Famer Quinn (Just Like Heaven) lives in the Pacific Northwest.

Long-time Quinn fans remember the Smythe-Smith family from her popular series about the Bridgertons. In this second book in the more recent series (after Just Like Heaven), she focuses on the burgeoning relationship between Daniel, the lone Smythe-Smith brother, and governess Anne Wynter. VERDICT A governess and an exiled Earl? This is, of course, the perfect pairing for a Quinn novel, as usual full of fantastic characters and a sweet and spicy romance.

With her last two books Quinn has begun to follow a family who played a cameo role in her beloved Bridgerton novels. The Smythe-Smiths are renowned for their lack of musical talent, displayed to the polite endurance of the social elite each year in a concert that has become a running joke in Quinn‚ ôs universe. In her latest Regency-era romance, Quinn introduces the head of this clan, the Earl of Winstead, Daniel Smythe-Smith, who has been living in exile as a result of a badly managed duel. When he is finally allowed to return to England, he encounters Anne Wynter, who is hiding out as governess to his cousins in order to avoid the sadistic plans of a minor figure in the gentry. The two slowly (Daniel more quickly than Anne) fall in love through a courtship that has flashes of the best of Quinn‚ ôs work (The Viscount Who Loved Me, When He Was Wicked, Romancing Mister Bridgerton, and It‚ ôs in His Kiss). The novel is fun, gentle, witty, and light, while Daniel‚ ôs determination to court and protect Anne is charming. The first Smythe-Smith novel is Just Like Heaven, but readers don‚ ôt have to read the two in order. — "RA Crossrads" LJ Reviews 7/5/12 (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.