From Amazon.com
There's something
Slightly Shady about Lavinia Lake. First of all, no decent woman would go into trade, even when an unscrupulous employer leaves her stranded abroad with her young niece. But the capable Lavinia has landed on her feet, peddling dubious reproductions of ancient artifacts in Rome to earn passage home. When a madman ransacks her shop, accusing her of aiding and abetting a murderous gang of thieves, Lavinia and her niece Emeline return to London, where Lavinia once more takes lemons and makes lemonade, becoming a private investigator. In the course of her first discreet inquiry for a wealthy aristocrat with secrets to hide, Lavinia runs into her madman once more, standing over the recently deceased body of a blackmailer. Not exactly your usual beginning for a relationship, but Mr. Tobias March is hardly an ordinary man. In fact, he's quite extraordinary, Lavinia very reluctantly admits to herself. When threats to Lavinia's safety force her into an unlikely partnership with the mysterious Mr. March, the fur--and a petticoat or two--flies. A heady combination of passion and the shared thrill of the hunt for a depraved murderer may lead Lavinia and Tobias to form a partnership of a more permanent kind. Lively suspense with a healthy dose of passion, Amanda Quick's
Slightly Shady is truly addictive storytelling.
--Alison Trinkle
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
From Publishers Weekly
Spirited heroines and sardonic heroes populate this sexy Regency-era thriller by the ever reliable Quick, alter ego of Jayne Ann Krentz. This time out, Quick offers the parry and thrust of danger and romance, as embodied in resourceful Lavinia Lake and roguish Tobias March. Lavinia first encounters Tobias when he bursts into her antiques shop in Rome, trashing her wares, all the while claiming to be on the trail of a murderer and warning Lavinia that she is in danger. There's also talk of treason, a criminal organization known as the Blue Chamber and an evil mastermind named Azure. Despite her skepticism, Lavinia returns with her niece, Emeline, to London, where she is caught up in more intrigue. She sets herself up as a private detective and even though stubbornness on both sides leads to an oil-and-water pairing, she soon finds herself in business with Tobias, attempting to foil a blackmail scheme, locate the culprit in a series of murders and identify the surviving member of Azure's organization. Arch humor and the expert removal of bodices are Quick's stock in trade, and the old formula still works splendidly. As usual, the novel's outcome is visible a mile off, but familiarity, after all, is golden in literary franchise land. Major ad/promo. (Apr. 10)
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
