Lord Anguish (Beastly Lords Book 2)

Sydney Jane
Baily
Genre: 
Historical

Miss Margaret Blackwood is looking forward to her London season. Previously without prospects, this season she has all manner of beau vying for her hand after the marriage of her elder sister to an earl. She is partial to John Angsley, Earl of Cambrey, but what does she know of men, and what does he feel about her? A series of misunderstandings leaves both of them unsettled. Before John can lay matters clear, he is felled by a carriage accident that leaves him with broken bones. With her brother-in-law by her side, Maggie visits the earl and before her visit ends, they are engaged. When she next returns, Margaret discovers that her beloved earl has become dependent on the laudanum he uses for pain control. Maggie is willing to fight for their love, but can John break from the allure of the drug to once again be the man he was?

"Lord Anguish" tackles the issue of drug addiction with sensitivity and compassion. Sydney Jane Baily expertly weaves in the pervasiveness of laudanum addiction in Victorian England, and the effects of that addiction on the earl. While Maggie is a typical debutante focused on her looks and the men dancing attendance on her, she truly comes into her own as she is faced with an enemy that will destroy the man she loves. The misunderstandings between the two at the start slowed the story down at the beginning. However, "Lord Anguish" keeps readers entertained and engaged. It's a keeper!

Tricia Hill