⇒ PDF A Lady Undone A Mad Passions Novella A Penguin Special from Signet Eclipse edition by Máire Claremont Romance eBooks

A Lady Undone A Mad Passions Novella A Penguin Special from Signet Eclipse edition by Máire Claremont Romance eBooks

Download As PDF : A Lady Undone A Mad Passions Novella A Penguin Special from Signet Eclipse edition by Máire Claremont Romance eBooks

A Lady Undone A Mad Passions Novella A Penguin Special from Signet Eclipse edition by Máire Claremont Romance eBooks

I didn't realize I had missed this novella & had to remedy this situation! This was about the very young widow of the heroine's father in Lady in Red, with her hero being the man who helped save the heroine in The Dark Lady. Clare thinks she is completely closed off to ever being with a man, due to the abuse she had suffered, most recently in her marriage to a horrible older man. Byron was ready to settle down, but was completely surprised by his instant attraction to Clare. He breaks her down gradually, with empathy & eventual love. This was a short, but action packed & very satisfying love story.


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A Lady Undone A Mad Passions Novella A Penguin Special from Signet Eclipse edition by Máire Claremont Romance eBooks Reviews

"A Lady Undone" by Maire Claremont is the 2.5 novella in the "Mad Passions" series. It's the story of Clare, Duchess of Duncliffe, stepmother to the heroine Mary from the second book "The Dark Lady".

When we met Clare in "The Dark Lady" she was a very young bride set to marry the evil Duke of Duncliffe. And by evil I mean, he's suspected of killing his wife (he did) and then institutionalized his own daughter for witnessing the crime. Right? I read the previous book back when it came out in October so the details are a little sketchy for me. I remember Clare being very young wide-eyed at marrying a duke and then realizing what a bastard he was after they were married. He's evil pure and simple.

Readers of the previous novel will know Clare's deep secret. We know of the act she committed at the end of the previous book. I wonder how new readers will react to that when it's revealed in the novella. (I admit I was a little underwhelmed by the reveal. It's so quick without any question that I was a little disappointed because that was such a big thing to happen in the second book.) It's so easy to forget just how young the heroines are in Claremont's book. I think Clare was 17 or so when she married the Duke and is in fact younger than her stepdaughter.

As a widow and a Duchess, Clare has been using her resources for good. She's helping women who have fallen on bad times (that's an understatement) and trying to give them a better life. She lives in the East End and when she's threatened, her uncle goes to her son-in-law, the Duke of Farleigh (the hero from the second book) for help. He in turn goes to the Earl of Wyndham for help. (He once helped out the characters from the first book, but I don't remember him. Time for a reread?) He used to work for the Crown and wants the quiet life of retirement, but Farleigh knows Wyndham is the right man to protect Clare and suss out who is threatening her. He doesn't meet a meek woman, instead he meets a tough as nails duchess who reluctantly accepts his help.

Attractions fly of course. Wyndham had the intentions of starting a family, but with his contributions to the war things never got started. So when he sees his empty home he immediately thinks of Clare. When Clare tells Mary she never intends to marry after the nightmare of her marriage, she thinks of Wyndham and the possibilities that could happen. They both recognize how nuts they must seem to even think they could love one another after only knowing each other for 12 hours. But they both awaken the feeling that they could be happy. Wyndham questions whether it could really be love at first sight. What helps is that without saying they both understand one another. They recognize the other person's strengths and they each crave what the other person can offer.

A lot is jammed packed in this novella. It's not as dark and as angsty is the previous novels because there isn't the time for it. It's written in a way that new readers won't feel lost, but will feel curious as the previous events of the series and current readers will know more about Clare and her background (I think we got POV sections from her in the previous book). It's a nice conclusion to Clare's story and I'm eagerly anticipating the third book in the series.
Book #2.5 in Máire Claremont’s dark and dramatic Mad Passions series, featuring vulnerable gentlewomen tyrannized by cruel and manipulative men, only to rise up strong and survive in the face of all odds.
Máire Claremont is a wonderful new voice to the historical romance genre with her strong debut last year, The Dark Lady, and the first book in her Mad Passions series. Claremont’s books remind me a lot of the works of Lorraine Heath, and not just because both set their stories firmly in the Victorian era. The stories have undercurrents of melancholy—think of the Bronte sisters’ Wuthering Heights or Jane Eyre. The fashions were heavy and thick, not to mention the voluminous undergarments which were stifling and constrictive and, while women were still under the iron power of men, society was becoming more socially aware of abusive marriages, the state of the poor and destitute, while the aristocracy was undergoing massive social changes. This makes the era rich in history and perfect for bleak and sensational plots.
Clare Ederly, the Duchess of Duncliffe, is the wealthy, young widow of the older Duke of Duncliffe, Mary’s horrible father from The Lady in Red. Both abused by the duke, Clare and Mary forged a bond and now Clare has dedicated her life to helping other women escape their abusive situations. But her life is in danger due to the nature of her work so her uncle—yet another overbearing and controlling man—convinces her to accept a protector to keep her safe.
Edward, Mary’s loving husband, asks his good friend, Byron, Lord Wyndham, for his help in protecting Clare and also in pursuing the threat to her life. Byron is a former soldier who has seen the horrors of war but has determined to put the past behind him and live his life to the fullest. Despite his reluctance to delve into intrigue, he is honorable and wishes to help a woman in need. He, like Clare, is also a survivor. He is also unlike many men of his class; he doesn’t take lovers or mistresses carelessly.
It’s instant attraction on both sides but Clare is wary and distrustful while Byron perceptively reads Clare’s reticence and approaches her cautiously. But while protective of Clare, he also wants to help her get on with her life and not give up. I love how he declares his attraction to her without fear, much to her shock and secret gratification.
As Byron closes in on the threats to Clare’s life, the two get to know each other. Their cozy time in Byron’s lovely hideaway cottage sparks their romance and inspires Clare to confess to him her painful secret, one she’s sure will prevent any man from ever fully loving her.
There is some nice humorous touches in this love story. When she enters the cottage and gets trapped by her hoops, for example. Or when he tries to get her to laugh with his exaggerated poetic overtures.
This is a beautifully written and sweet story. I love how Byron—aptly named—quotes poetry to Clare and refuses to give in to her hopelessness. She needs him and their romance is both sweet and sexy.
Memorable Moments
”’Infuse everything with a sense of lightness?’ ‘The world is dark enough as it is, madam,’ he said gently.”
“‘All the better to laugh, unless you wish we sit beside the road and weep?’”
“‘I…I’ve no real idea how men and women talk in private.’”
A lovely novella, a nice little treat to savor before the next book in the series, The Dark Affair.
I just loves reading this Novella! Byron and Clare, were perfect! I just wished there was more to this story!! This book inspires the "True Romantic."
I start with my bias for Maire Claremont novels. I love them. I usually read them in one setting. Clare married young to a man over twice her age and cruel beyond belief. After his death she opens a home for abused women. Some are not pleased with her work. In walks Byron, the Earl of Wyndham a spy for England. Love abounds and obstacles are overcome in a matter of hours possible due to the shortness of the novel.
This is the third story of this series, it is almost as good as the others. I liked how Byron got Clara to be able to trust and love. However, I would have liked to know Byron's character more, and seen them together after the wedding.
I didn't realize I had missed this novella & had to remedy this situation! This was about the very young widow of the heroine's father in Lady in Red, with her hero being the man who helped save the heroine in The Dark Lady. Clare thinks she is completely closed off to ever being with a man, due to the abuse she had suffered, most recently in her marriage to a horrible older man. Byron was ready to settle down, but was completely surprised by his instant attraction to Clare. He breaks her down gradually, with empathy & eventual love. This was a short, but action packed & very satisfying love story.