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The Rakes Beyond Redemption #2
How to Ruin a Reputation
Ashton Bedevere: renowned libertine who can ruin a reputation quicker than other gentlement can drink their brandy
After years in Italy, honing his skills in the delicious art of seduction, Ashe returns to London's high-class establishments—preceded, of course, by his reputation for lavish opulence and unashamed wickedness.
Then his scandalous ways are abruptly ended by his father's death. To claim what is rightfully his, notorious lothario Ashe must do the inconceivable—take a wife!
But who could possibly even think about marrying such a man? Certainly not the lovely Genevra Ralston. After all, she'd be finished in polite society. Wouldn't she? Yet Ashe's notorious charm and practiced touch could prove irresistible….
After years in Italy, honing his skills in the delicious art of seduction, Ashe returns to London's high-class establishments—preceded, of course, by his reputation for lavish opulence and unashamed wickedness.
Then his scandalous ways are abruptly ended by his father's death. To claim what is rightfully his, notorious lothario Ashe must do the inconceivable—take a wife!
But who could possibly even think about marrying such a man? Certainly not the lovely Genevra Ralston. After all, she'd be finished in polite society. Wouldn't she? Yet Ashe's notorious charm and practiced touch could prove irresistible….
288 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published September 18, 2012
23 people are currently reading
268 people want to read
About the author
Bronwyn Scott
337 books167 followersBronwyn Scott writes historical romances for Harlequin, Mills and Boon. She has 50 titles currently in print with them.
Bronwyn's 2018 release, Dancing with the Duke's Heir was RITA finalist.
Bronwyn's 2009 novel, The Viscount Claims His Bride was a RomCon finalist for best short historical, as was her 2011 release, A Thoroughly Compromised Lady.
Bronwyn's 2018 release, Dancing with the Duke's Heir was RITA finalist.
Bronwyn's 2009 novel, The Viscount Claims His Bride was a RomCon finalist for best short historical, as was her 2011 release, A Thoroughly Compromised Lady.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
February 5, 2017
Tengo que decir que nunca antes había leído un libro de esta colección y que no estaba muy convencida de hacerlo. Sin embargo, me he llevado una agradable sorpresa, pues me he encontrado con una historia que ha conseguido engancharme.
January 2, 2015
Very good book. When Ashe returns home after his father's death he is dismayed to find out that to have control of the estate, he must marry Genevra. He doesn't want to marry, but he will do so to save his home. He and Neva are immediately attracted to each other but there are things keeping them apart. There is also the mystery of why the estate's funds disappeared so rapidly, and who is behind the problems. I really liked both Ashe and Neva. Ashe had stayed away from the estate and his father because of an argument they had had when he was twenty. When he came back to his home he was filled with guilt and swore to make things right. At first he didn't trust Neva, but soon came to learn that she had been a great support to his family. He also quickly realized that his intense attraction to her could be a good thing, though he came on a little strong at first. I liked the way that he tried to protect her from his cousin. It took him awhile to realize that the happiness and contentment he felt with Neva was love, and almost left it too late. Neva was a good strong woman. She was a widow who had discovered too late in her marriage that her husband had been a fortune hunter and swore never to be in that position again. She had purchased the estate next to Ashe's and had plans to turn it into a home for women. She had become friends with Ashe's father and was stunned to find that she had inherited part of the trusteeship of the estate. She was not happy about her attraction to Ashe because she compared him to her late husband. After some time she realized he was different, that there was a good man under the rake on the surface. When he proposed a business marriage she accepted, and soon discovered she was falling for him. I liked the way that she was able to help him with the estate, and also that she cared enough to get him to talk about his past. I really enjoyed the final resolution to the mystery, though I felt bad for Ashe's brother. I'm looking forward to the final book in the series.
March 14, 2019
A good read. 3☆
March 17, 2018
A really good book. As usual with this author, she fuses the characters with interests/hobbies - In Ashe with his passion for playing and building pianos and in Neva, well, her all out passion for creating something from the ground up; whether that be decorating, designing or gardening, she is up for the task. I loved Ashe and Neva together and following them through hardship to a well-deserved HEA.
Bronwyn Scott is easily a favourite of mine when it comes to regency romances. Her stories are character-driven and all I've read have a real sense of place. I love that her characters often have knowledge of the world outside England and do travel quite bit.
"‘I wanted to be a pianist. I wanted to study in Vienna, I wanted to go to Italy and study piano-making. I wanted to make the grandest pianos of them all.’ Ashe shook his head..."
Bronwyn Scott is easily a favourite of mine when it comes to regency romances. Her stories are character-driven and all I've read have a real sense of place. I love that her characters often have knowledge of the world outside England and do travel quite bit.
"‘Venice is wonderful. East meets west—it’s the gateway to the Adriatic, to Istanbul, to Egypt."
August 31, 2025
3,5 - Di poco migliore del precedente volume, grazie al fatto che c’è un po’ di trama.
Quando muore il vecchio conte, si scopre che Alex l’erede ha avuto un tracollo nervoso ed è perciò rinchiuso in una pseudo-clinica. Perciò il vecchio lungimirante ha previsto una tutela congiunta nel testamento, divisa tra Ash, il secondogenito bonazzo e nullafacente, un cugino malvagio e interessato, un’ereditiera estranea con la dote necessaria per salvare la tenuta.
Nel mezzo degli intrighi stile soap- opera, nessuno che pensi a scoprire se il povero Alex stava veramente male (e magari era solo un esaurimento enfatizzato) o è stato fregato ed etichettato come “matto”…
Finisce proprio così: il conte è morto, viva il conte. Evviva la sensibilità familiare e i fratelli!!
Quando muore il vecchio conte, si scopre che Alex l’erede ha avuto un tracollo nervoso ed è perciò rinchiuso in una pseudo-clinica. Perciò il vecchio lungimirante ha previsto una tutela congiunta nel testamento, divisa tra Ash, il secondogenito bonazzo e nullafacente, un cugino malvagio e interessato, un’ereditiera estranea con la dote necessaria per salvare la tenuta.
Nel mezzo degli intrighi stile soap- opera, nessuno che pensi a scoprire se il povero Alex stava veramente male (e magari era solo un esaurimento enfatizzato) o è stato fregato ed etichettato come “matto”…
Finisce proprio così: il conte è morto, viva il conte. Evviva la sensibilità familiare e i fratelli!!
March 25, 2018
Buscaba una novela romántica de época, con una pareja interesante, una historia atrayente y que se leyera muy rápido. Eso es justo lo que me he encontrado en esta historia. Es verdad que me hubiera gustado que la relación de ellos fuera algo más tirante, que hubiera más juego, más diálogos inteligentes, pero no siempre la trama nos lleva por donde nos gustaría. Lo mejor, la pequeña intriga que les rodea y que se lee en una tarde.
No descarto leer más novelas de esta serie
Pronto opinión completa en el blog
No descarto leer más novelas de esta serie
Pronto opinión completa en el blog
November 21, 2017
I ended up being quite captivated with the first one, so I decided it’d be a good idea to read the rest of the series.
This book, as well as the first one, had all I needed to escape everyday life. I love the time in which the story is set, I love the language of the time and so on.
The plot is very nice as well and of course we have a love story in the midst of all the action and so on.
I would recommend this to anyone who would like to escape to another time and everyday life for a while.
This book, as well as the first one, had all I needed to escape everyday life. I love the time in which the story is set, I love the language of the time and so on.
The plot is very nice as well and of course we have a love story in the midst of all the action and so on.
I would recommend this to anyone who would like to escape to another time and everyday life for a while.
July 28, 2021
Wow Wow Wow! !!
This is the best book I've read in a long time! It was perfect. Loved all the characters and superbly written and the finale was fast but still heart wrenching. The secrets, danger, mystery, and steamy sex not to mention the perfect love. The story grabbed me from the very start and didn’t want to put it down. It continued to grip my mind as I read and tried to guess what would happen next. The author nailed it! Bravo!
This is the best book I've read in a long time! It was perfect. Loved all the characters and superbly written and the finale was fast but still heart wrenching. The secrets, danger, mystery, and steamy sex not to mention the perfect love. The story grabbed me from the very start and didn’t want to put it down. It continued to grip my mind as I read and tried to guess what would happen next. The author nailed it! Bravo!
June 1, 2025
i sadly didn't enjoy this book as much as the last one. it take me longer to read the last 100 pages where good though. i would like to have seen more the hero brother and the aunts.
i am looking forward to the next one in the series hope its good
i am looking forward to the next one in the series hope its good
July 27, 2018
Fast paced interesting story but pretty cheesy ending.
February 13, 2020
Una historia sin muchas sorpresas también...
December 26, 2018
Major de lo que me esperaba de la historia , el resumen no le hace justicia y la verdad el titulo tampoco, pues el protagonista solo busca lo mejor para su familia y el condado , como bonus tiene hasta intriga de por medio.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 26, 2012
Oh, you’re going to love Ashton Bedevere. Estranged from his father for years, a rake of the first water during that time, a man who knows how to seduce and pleasure a woman, returns home when he learns of his father’s death, realizing he wasted too much time in making things right between himself and his father. On top of that, his older brother, the rightful earl, has had a break with reality and cannot take over. Then what Ashe learns once he arrives at Bedevere Hall only fuels his ire and his self-blame higher.
This is a man who loves his family. You see it in everything he does. Thus he takes the blame for all that has gone wrong in his absence. If he’d come home sooner, if he hadn’t left in the first place, if he’d been a better man – the ifs go on and on in his conscience. Therefore, Ashe is determined to bring his home back to its glory days to atone for his indifference since the break with his father. What he doesn’t expect is the manner in which his father plays games from beyond the grave. Leaving Ashe only a portion of the estate and the controlling interest to an American woman, who has to be here for her own purposes, makes him question the old earl’s sanity. But that isn’t going to stop Ashe from doing what’s right for his family and the estate.
Genevra is finally getting back on her feet after the death of her husband and the stigma associated with the tragedy back in Boston. Seaton Hall is well on its way to being restored and her ideas for it will make money, though she doesn’t need anymore on top of what she’s already got. Discovering she now owns the majority share in Bedevere Hall comes as a shock, but she’ll not let the earl’s confidence and trust in her go to waste, despite the fact the man’s son causes myriad feelings and sensations to run through her whenever he’s near. And despite the fact she knows Ashe doesn’t completely trust her.
There’s a third person involved in their lives, all due to the old man’s maneuvering – Cousin Henry, who has always been jealous of Alex and Ashe and who believes he deserves more than a measly four percent of the estate. So after already giving up a year of his life kowtowing to everyone’s wishes but his own, Henry has to turn his friendship with Genevra into a romantic relationship headed toward marriage – the only way to get his hands on the entire estate for his and his cohorts’ nefarious plans. Ashe is in the same boat, needing to marry Neva for her money, but at least he’s straight-forward about it. Seduction is his plan, and the woman is not immune to him.
I so enjoy that seduction. Ashe is quite adept at pushing a woman’s pleasure buttons. What I also enjoy is that these two give in to their desires rather early on, and not just once but a number of times. I rather like this departure from the sexual tension being strung out for three-quarters of a book, one lovemaking scene, and then we get nothing more before the end of the story. Ashe and Genevra delight in each other and you get to be part of that, as well as see the change in them as their feelings grow. Their marriage of convenience takes on a new definition, once they acknowledge those growing feelings.
Another wonderful part of the book is Ashe and Alex’s relationship. Ashe takes steps to get Alex out of the facility Henry has put him in, paying off a doctor to keep him there. I had in mind that Alex would be perfectly healthy, everything he reportedly went through would be hoax, but Ms. Scott heaps on the surprises as far as Alex is concerned, including at the end of the book. But in the meantime, the love between these brothers is very palpable and that’s a joy to read.
Bronwyn Scott has a hit on her hands with these sexy and sensitive rakes she’s created. I am really looking forward to How to Sin Successfully, which features our third rake, Riordan. There’s definitely room in my heart for the redemption and subsequent fall of another English lord who never knows what hit him until it’s much too late.
See my complete review at http://www.goodbadandunread.com
This is a man who loves his family. You see it in everything he does. Thus he takes the blame for all that has gone wrong in his absence. If he’d come home sooner, if he hadn’t left in the first place, if he’d been a better man – the ifs go on and on in his conscience. Therefore, Ashe is determined to bring his home back to its glory days to atone for his indifference since the break with his father. What he doesn’t expect is the manner in which his father plays games from beyond the grave. Leaving Ashe only a portion of the estate and the controlling interest to an American woman, who has to be here for her own purposes, makes him question the old earl’s sanity. But that isn’t going to stop Ashe from doing what’s right for his family and the estate.
Genevra is finally getting back on her feet after the death of her husband and the stigma associated with the tragedy back in Boston. Seaton Hall is well on its way to being restored and her ideas for it will make money, though she doesn’t need anymore on top of what she’s already got. Discovering she now owns the majority share in Bedevere Hall comes as a shock, but she’ll not let the earl’s confidence and trust in her go to waste, despite the fact the man’s son causes myriad feelings and sensations to run through her whenever he’s near. And despite the fact she knows Ashe doesn’t completely trust her.
There’s a third person involved in their lives, all due to the old man’s maneuvering – Cousin Henry, who has always been jealous of Alex and Ashe and who believes he deserves more than a measly four percent of the estate. So after already giving up a year of his life kowtowing to everyone’s wishes but his own, Henry has to turn his friendship with Genevra into a romantic relationship headed toward marriage – the only way to get his hands on the entire estate for his and his cohorts’ nefarious plans. Ashe is in the same boat, needing to marry Neva for her money, but at least he’s straight-forward about it. Seduction is his plan, and the woman is not immune to him.
I so enjoy that seduction. Ashe is quite adept at pushing a woman’s pleasure buttons. What I also enjoy is that these two give in to their desires rather early on, and not just once but a number of times. I rather like this departure from the sexual tension being strung out for three-quarters of a book, one lovemaking scene, and then we get nothing more before the end of the story. Ashe and Genevra delight in each other and you get to be part of that, as well as see the change in them as their feelings grow. Their marriage of convenience takes on a new definition, once they acknowledge those growing feelings.
Another wonderful part of the book is Ashe and Alex’s relationship. Ashe takes steps to get Alex out of the facility Henry has put him in, paying off a doctor to keep him there. I had in mind that Alex would be perfectly healthy, everything he reportedly went through would be hoax, but Ms. Scott heaps on the surprises as far as Alex is concerned, including at the end of the book. But in the meantime, the love between these brothers is very palpable and that’s a joy to read.
Bronwyn Scott has a hit on her hands with these sexy and sensitive rakes she’s created. I am really looking forward to How to Sin Successfully, which features our third rake, Riordan. There’s definitely room in my heart for the redemption and subsequent fall of another English lord who never knows what hit him until it’s much too late.
See my complete review at http://www.goodbadandunread.com
October 24, 2013
It's been on my shelf for a year, out of nowhere I just felt like reading it and I loved it!
I didn't realized it's a second book of the trilogy. Why, I bought it merely because I liked the title and the cover. Hah!
Ashe's brother, Alex, reminded me of Ian Mackenzie (the asylum thing, not the character. Both Alex and Ian were totally opposite). I was kinda hope there'd be a story about Alex, but in the end, it vanished. Why? Why?
Anyway, I loved both Ashe and Genevra and their characters. Their relationship was quite sweet (although I'm not sure that was the author's intention ;)
The plot was pretty entertaining although it left no mystery, and well, quite predictable. There's nothing really new. And it left me wondering a bit about the title, since the story itself didn't really emphasize about a ruined someone's reputation. At least I didn't see it as a main problem in this book.
But somehow I really enjoyed reading it that I couldn't put it down.
I also hoped to catch a glimpse of Merrick and Riordan in this book, but well, I guess I have to get to know them by reading their books. ^^
I didn't realized it's a second book of the trilogy. Why, I bought it merely because I liked the title and the cover. Hah!
Ashe's brother, Alex, reminded me of Ian Mackenzie (the asylum thing, not the character. Both Alex and Ian were totally opposite). I was kinda hope there'd be a story about Alex, but in the end, it vanished. Why? Why?
Anyway, I loved both Ashe and Genevra and their characters. Their relationship was quite sweet (although I'm not sure that was the author's intention ;)
The plot was pretty entertaining although it left no mystery, and well, quite predictable. There's nothing really new. And it left me wondering a bit about the title, since the story itself didn't really emphasize about a ruined someone's reputation. At least I didn't see it as a main problem in this book.
But somehow I really enjoyed reading it that I couldn't put it down.
I also hoped to catch a glimpse of Merrick and Riordan in this book, but well, I guess I have to get to know them by reading their books. ^^
December 14, 2016
I listened to the audio version by Penelope Rawlins and her American accent was horrible. I almost gave up on the book after the first chapter or so. I'm an American, not a very young one either so I've heard a lot of accents in my day, and I've never heard one like that. Although, wait. Actually, I have. From other British readers and/or actors. I don't know what region in the US they are attempting to portray, but its god-awful. Please people, if you're not from the US and think we sound like that, you are unfortunately misled.
The book is still only about 3.5 stars. I didn't take anything off for the audio, which would not have been fair IMO.
The book is still only about 3.5 stars. I didn't take anything off for the audio, which would not have been fair IMO.
October 18, 2012
3.5 out of 5 rounded UP to 4.
I was thoroughly enjoying this up until the end. When the book focused on Ashe and Genevra, it moved at a brisk pace. The chemistry sizzled, and I loved Genevra did not bother to fight the attraction. Ashe was a wicked rake carrying his own pain. I found the ending rushed, and the subplot fell a little flat, but that's me. Love the cover (I gushed about it on FB) and I do recommend~the H/H make this a very good read, too bad the bit at the end deflated me a little~
February 27, 2013
I absolutely enjoyed this book! I loved the hero and heroine, and I must say its nice to see an American character in a regency that isn't the butt of jokes. Neva was everything a lady should be and brought some of America's best ideals back to England with her, making her a very interesting match for the scapegrrace Ashe. Ashe was also a wonderful hero, secretly sensitive in a way that made me adore him. Highly recommended!
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December 27, 2014Miniseries: Rakes Beyond Redemption
Category: Historical Romance
"Sexy, seductive, satisfying. Book two in Scott's Rakes Beyond Redemption trilogy is another keeper, with strong characters and well-written story. This rake has met the one woman who is not afraid of him and who rouses his passion as never before." RT Book Reviews, rated 4 stars
Category: Historical Romance
"Sexy, seductive, satisfying. Book two in Scott's Rakes Beyond Redemption trilogy is another keeper, with strong characters and well-written story. This rake has met the one woman who is not afraid of him and who rouses his passion as never before." RT Book Reviews, rated 4 stars
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September 2, 2012Miniseries: Rakes Beyond Redemption
May 24, 2013
Brilliant
February 27, 2014
There isn't much to say about this novel, good characters, good plot, good standard regency romance.
Good. As I may have mentioned. Just good.
Good. As I may have mentioned. Just good.
April 11, 2014
Pretty good short read
This was pretty good, but I must warn that the cousin is perhaps one of the most irritating characters ever written.
This was pretty good, but I must warn that the cousin is perhaps one of the most irritating characters ever written.
August 24, 2015
No está del todo mal, un poco lento en el desarrollo de la trama, pero al menos, al llegar al final las cosas se pusieron interesantes y eso siempre dejará un buen sabor de boca.
February 24, 2016
beautiful
September 28, 2013
3,5 stars
review is comming
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May 19, 2014Ashe and Genevra (American)
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews