Elizabeth's Rake

Dancy #2

by Emily Hendrickson

A Passionate Pursuit

Beautiful Elizabeth Dancy thought she had escaped the amorous attentions of Lord David Leighton when she left London. Surely the most notorious and irresistible rake in the realm would not abandon his many pleasures in the city to follow her to the quiet Surrey countryside. How wrong Elizabeth was. The heartbreakingly handsome Lord Leighton had arrived in Surrey, even more eager than before to break down Elizabeth's resistance...and now there was nowhere for Elizabeth to flee except into the most dangerous place of all-the arms of love....

Genres: Regency, Historical, Romance, Regency Romance, Historical Romance, Fiction

224 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1993

About the author

Doris Emily Hendrickson lives in Reno, Nevada, with her husband, a retired airline pilot. Of all the many places she has traveled around the world, England is her favorite, and the most natural choice as the setting for her novels. In addition to her Regency romances, she has written a Regency Reference Book.

She is also the recipient of the Romantic Times award for the Best Regency of 1993 for Elizabeth's Rake and the Colorado Romance Writers 1997 Award of Excellence for The Debonair Duke. She is a nominee for the Romantic Times Career Achievement Award for Regency Romance.

Emily also enjoys stamps and stamping, and several of her flower designs, originally created for bookmarks for her Regencies, have been made into stamps.

Many of my books were re-published in England by Robert Hale Publishing House of London. My publisher requested that I use three pseudonyms for my English hard cover books. I chose the names: Emily Hendrickson, Emily Johnson, and Emily Harland.

Reviews

[Katja · Rating 4 out of 5]

This started out a bit jumpy and disjointed, it felt like there was some backstory that I was missing and the romance part wasn't very compelling. (Why is he considered a rake? I have no idea.) But it gets better once the mystery subplot kicks in.

[Jean · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the Fashionable Spy, I was intrigued by Leighton and Elizabeth's antagonism so I couldn't wait to read their story. At first, the beginning was a bit boring and I really was annoyed with Hyacinth, Elizabeth's cousin. I suspect her role in the story only served to generate interest in a subsequent novel where she is featured but she seems spoiled and self-centered in all her appearances in this story. However, once we get passed the intro, the story begins to pick up especially after Elizabeth mistakenly shots Leighton while he breaks into her bedroom seeking her help.

The remainder of the story involves the mystery of Leighton's father whose health has been mysteriously declining for no real reason whatsoever. Leighton enlists her help to investigate the mystery. The mystery part is great. Everyone is a suspect. In fact, the intrigue part of the story is so good that the romance part is barely a part of the story though it's better developed than in some of her other novels. I really enjoyed this novel and reading about the Dancy sisters' story. While this novel is not as light as the previous ones, still not too heavy either. It's a nice distraction.

[Sharyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Took this to Disneyland to read in line (yes Disneyland is open) . It is a perfect book for reading in line and I finished just as the sun went down. A romance mystery, with a good ending. I missed the first book, but I do have the next in the series. Though I enjoyed it, I only gave it 3 stars as the heroine got on my nerves.

[Donnalee · Rating 1 out of 5]

Eh--tontine crime

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an okay story. There was enough I liked about the story to finish reading it.

Content: mentions of mistresses and the like

[H2bourne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a nice, light read. It's like empty calories, pleasant but not long-lasting. I had read this earlier but forgot about it so I decided to reread it. This has a good storyline but for some reason it did not engage me. I never felt a connection with the characters. There wasn't much chemistry between Elizabeth and David although it felt like there should have been. I'm not sure what it is but something seems to be missing to really draw the reader into the plot and to care what happens. It's a nice way to pass the time but it's not a must-read. Better than average but that's about it.

[Sylvia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Regency

[Frances · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ugh

[LemontreeLime · Rating 3 out of 5]

So much intrigue with so few characters! It was fun.

[Rachel Crain · Rating 5 out of 5]

A slow start but a good mystery romance. I like it! Probably more than other reviewers. I like Elizabeth and identified with her character! David’s teasing was endearing.