Review: Deception by Kris Kennedy

From the Back Cover:

A dashing con man

Breaking and entering to reclaim her corrupt late father’s ledger comes surprisingly easily to Sophia Darnly. But is it mere coincidence that her misdeed unexpectedly reunites her with Kier, the outlaw lover who abandoned her years ago?

A lady skilled in trickery

Time has not erased Sophia from Kier’s heart, nor tamed her fiery spirit. She boldly insinuates herself into his plans. But Kier is on a mission of revenge, and can’t allow even the woman he once loved to stop him.

A game that could get them both killed

The danger mounts as they lure the leader of a powerful consortium who needs the fabled Darnly ledger—and all its damning details about the wealthiest merchants of England— to execute his nefarious plan. Their rekindled passion burns hot, but when they discover they too are the targets of a deadly deception, the fate of their love, and of England itself, lies in the balance.

My Thoughts:

This is going on my Best-of-2012 list, and no one could be more surprised than me! I didn't make it very far into Kris Kennedy’s first novel, The Irish Warrior, and I was hesitant when this one showed up unsolicited for review. But I'm happy to say that Ms. Kennedy has come a long way in three novels, and I was really impressed with Deception.

England, 1294. After five years spent living a quiet life in hiding as a minor silk merchant in a minor town, Sophia Darnly’s on the run for her life. Her father’s nefarious past has found her, and the man he betrayed will stop at nothing to get his hands on the fabled Darnly ledger. Sophia doesn’t have the ledger, but she knows who does, and when she breaks into Tomas the Moneychanger’s office in the middle of the night to retrieve it, she’s not terribly surprised to discover she’s not the only one there to steal it, but the other thief’s identity shocks her.

Kier. The man to whom she gave herself—body, heart, and soul—and who walked out of her life five years ago and never looked back. Tall, dark, and sexy Kier, looking as good as he always did and still making Sophia’s heart flutter, much to her dismay. What she doesn’t know is that Kier has spent the past five years coming back from the dead, and planning his revenge on the men who tried to kill him, and those men just happen to be the same men after Sophia and her ledger.

After a little bit of cat and mouse and a whole lot of sexual tension, the former lovers agree to work together to bring down the powerful ring of corrupt merchants who wronged them both, and who are continuing to wrong their King on the eve of war. As Sophia and Kier infiltrate the commenda, setting the various stages of their bold and dangerous plan in motion, drawing a net around their prey, the stakes get higher and higher, and their passion sizzles off the charts. But is it safe to trust in a relationship based on revenge, or to trust in each other in a world based on greed, fortune, and temptation?

This book has all the hallmarks of a winner for me: great characters, a tight plot, an atmospheric historical setting, and of course, true love. And smokin’ hot sex. I was hooked from the first page and could not put it down. I loved the characters and their relationship, and I really liked that the time period and story were so different from just about any other romance I’ve read. It’s got a fast-paced plot that kept me on my toes and there was a wicked twist I didn’t see coming. I’m bumping this down a notch because I think the writing style is on the choppy side, but it was easy to overlook in the face of such a gripping and satisfying story.

My Rating:  4.5 Stars out of 5

This review was also posted to the Romantic Historical Fiction Lovers Blog!

*Please Note: Though I received this book from the publisher for review, these are my honest and unbiased opinions and I was not compensated in any other way for reviewing this book.