Clouded Innocence

Clouded #1

by D.C. Gambel

Francesca de Bella's normally peaceful world is turned upside down when her stepbrother, Steven, returns home for a visit and brings with him a surprise guest. No one has ever affected Francesca the way Conner Edwards does. Not only is he incredibly handsome but there is something else that draws Francesca to him, but she knows her father would never approve of Conner. Conner has nothing to offer her but his heart. She soon learns that her doubts are not the only problems standing in her way, when her father announces her impending engagement to Nicholas Jackson, the son of a prominent business partner. With the whirlwind of events pulling her in a multitude of direction, Francesca anchors herself to the only constant in her world, Conner.

A historical romance novel. Contains sexual content - recommended for ages 17+

Genres: Romance

280 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2013

About the author

USA Today bestselling author D.C. Gambel is a hopeless romantic. From Historical to Paranormal, she's either reading it or writing it. When she isn't lost in imaginary worlds creating the perfect happily ever after, she's a military wife, mother of two and connoisseur of chocolate and coffee.

Reviews

[Karissa Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was given this book by the author for an honest review. And I have to say I really enjoyed it. I'm not normally a reader but this book drew me in and I couldn't put it down. Almost from the beginning you could feel the attraction between the characters. The emotion between Conner and Francesca had me laughing and crying and yelling throughout the story. The romance scenes were hot! After I was finished I had to go through and reread it again because I enjoyed it so much. I even did a giddy dance. Word to the wise, do not read this when surround by legos. Killed my foot for a week.

[amanda s. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book's pretty much predictable. I can see the ending right away, not that I hate it, it's just.. It made this book quite ordinary. I can't say I liked Fran, because she's just a teenager. And for a teenager, claiming to feel that kind of love, I can't help but feel scared for her, because one day she might regret what she did, for not living her teenage life.

So yeah, this book is not as good as I expected it would be. I enjoyed it, yes but definitely not my favorite. But overall, it's good.

[Elaine · Rating 3 out of 5]

So I've been wanting to read this for 3 years and it wasn't really that bad. I expected it to be really triggering but it wasn't like that.
It wasn't that good either. It was just good.
H is not a virgin. h and H were talking once and he said he thought in love once and when the h asked him if he had been with her he said that just once. There are no other mentions of any other sexual encounter so I preferred to assume that he had sex just once. Although, I appreciate that later he mentioned he wish he would've saved himself for the h (this is not second chance, he was faithful to the h since he saw her).
The h was a virgin. H was her first everything.
There are some unwanted attention from o/w and o/m, however imo, it was not that mild, but that actually was the main issue.
This o/w was h's cousin. At first I was so annoyed at first with her, but I didn't blame this girl at all because she didn't know about h and H's secret relationship, although she did suspect it, however she didn't pay that much attention because she thought the h was interested in this o/m. Nothing romantic happened between this H and this woman. She did go once to the H's bedroom at night but H dismissed her immediately. She didn't really give up tho, but once she found the H and h together she was actually supportive of their relationship, so she wasn't that annoying after all.
This o/m was a guy who was interested in marrying the h and h's father approved. He did fight the H when he found the main couple together, but then he accepted it and backed away. Nothing ever happened between h and him either.

What I didn't like was that the H and h seemed weak. For example, there was this ball and H took this o/w because h was going with this o/m , but what annoyed me was that the h found out from the o/w and when she asked the H, he said that he didn't tell her because he knew how she was going to react and because he was a "gentleman", the fuck, just say that you agreed because h was going with this o/m and you didn't want anyone to suspect about their relationship, I understood some of it tho because it was around the 1880-ish. Also, they finally opened their mouths when h's father found out that the h was pregnant, so those events really annoyed me.
They did say they loved each other almost instantly.
Other problem was that the H wasn't enough Alpha for me.
But overall, it was a sweet story, do I recommend purchasing it tho? Yes and no, yes if you want some kind of forbidden love, and no because the story itself isn't THAT special, but it was a good one. I just read it because I've been wanting to since 3 years ago.

[Meredith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think I'm in love with Conner Edwards. The things he does to Francesca... (Fanning myself from the rush of heat I'm getting from just thinking about it) Not to mention the love he has for her. In his eyes, she is perfect. Wishing for a little of what these two shared. I would have finished it faster if I hadn't needed to work. As it was I was up later than I should have been. Love it love it love it!!!

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just finished it, towards the end I kinda predicted where it was going but it didn't disappoint me. Conner and Francesca have everything working against them but they still persevere. I can't wait till the next book I jut hope it's a continuation on Conner and Francesca's story and not one of those spinoff stories.

[Callie · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG! I loved it. I'm not normally into historical romance books, but fell in love with this book and its characters. I couldn't stop reading until I finished. You get to see the love between the characters grow and they don't let anything stand in their way of being together. Definitely looking forward to reading more about Conner and Francesca and more from this author.

[Martha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just finished it, I'm not a big historical romance reader but this book really drew me in. Conner and Francesca have everything working against them but they still persevere. This book will not disappoint.

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book. Ending surprised me, not where I thought it was going. Look forward to the next in the series.

[Jessica Burnham · Rating 5 out of 5]

D.C Gamble did amazing with this book. She makes you feel like your in the story watching as everything is going on. I laughed and cried and was smiling at the end. She did amazing.

[D.C. · Rating 5 out of 5]

As the author, I'm sure my opinion is bias, but if the author doesn't show confidence in their own work, why would anyone else? Clouded Innocence is my first full length novel. It is also the first book in the Clouded series. It's a historical romance novel based in the late 1800s where Francesca de Bella falls in love with her stepbrother's best friend, Conner. Their friendship starts out innocent enough until Francesca realizes she's playing with fire. But no matter how hard she tries she can't seem to stay away from Conner. When her father announces her impending engagement to Nicholas Jackson, the wisest choice is for Conner and Francesca is to stop, but they simple can't. Their love blooms into something that neither of them can live without, circumstances be damned.

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good love/romance historical novel. I've not read one of these for some time.

It took me over just 2 hours to read it. Its full of a good promising series although for me, the `love at first sight` was a bit overwhelming and some things I would have calmed down on and dragged out a little to make it more believable.

As always, reviews are feedbacks and opinions with no malice intended but an honest opinion of my reflection on this story.

3 stars for me means its good, good potential but just lacks the credibility for me.

[Jackie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. What an amazing read. Francesca loved Conner so much that she broke every rule to be with him. Not only was their love something I personal have dreamed about but their love scenes were panty melting hot. A must read for all romance and erotic lovers combined.

[Elena · Rating 5 out of 5]

D.C. Gambel did a wonderful job. Not only were her characters compelling but her plot enticed me that I couldn't put it down forcing me to stay up into the early morning because I had to know how this erotic love triangle ended. I look forward to more from this author.

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ready for the next one. I want to know more.