His at Night

“Forced into a marriage of convenience, Elissande and Vere are each about to discover that they’re not the only one with a hidden agenda. With seduction their only weapon – and a dark secret from the past endangering both their lives – can they learn to trust each other even as they surrender to a passion that won’t be denied?”The Marquess of Vere, to most people, is a man that should not be taken too seriously. It’s common knowledge that Lord Vere was a brilliant man in his younger years. A riding accident that occurred while Vere was in the prime of his life left him addled in the head. Vere was never quite the same. Most people perceive him to be an idiot but what most people do not know is that Lord Vere prefers it that way. Lord Vere works for the Crown and is a spy. The guise of the idiot allows him to learn vital information without raising suspicions. His latest case is against Edmund Douglas, a man who earned his wealth from a diamond mine in South Africa. Douglas is now suspected of extorting the diamond jewelers of Antwerp.Elissande Edgerton has been kept under lock and key in her uncle’s home for the past eight years. Her Aunt Rachel is her only solace. Most would see Aunt Rachel as a burden as she is unable to care for herself and is addicted to laudanum. Elissande dreams of the day when she and Aunt Rachel will escape the evil clutches of her Uncle Edmund. Uncle Edmund demands that he be shown the love and respect that are due him and so Elissande plays the part of the doting niece to survive.Vere and his associates plan a rat infestation in a home near Douglas’ hoping to be allowed to stay at Douglas’ home and gather incriminating evidence against their host. The infestation occurs during one of Douglas’ business trips and Elissande sees an opportunity to escape. Elissande allows the party to stay in hopes of catching a husband and escaping Uncle Edmund forever. Elissande ends up with more than she bargained for when she starts her entrapment.For starters, she sets her sights on Lord Vere. His title and wealth could protect her from her uncle. After their first discussion together, Elissande decides that she must settle for Lord Vere’s younger brother Freddie. Thankfully, she does have an infatuation with Freddie so even though he isn’t titled she can still have a good relationship with him. She asks Freddie to meet with her in the library long after every one has gone to bed in the hopes of setting up her trap. In the end, she ends up entrapping Lord Vere.What follows is a wonderful love story about two people who don’t know anything about the other except the masks that they wear. Along the way, they learn each other’s hopes, fears and secrets.This is my first book by Sherry Thomas but it certainly won’t be my last. Thomas brilliantly brings together two people who are so alike and yet neither one knows it. Both Vere and Elissande wear masks and no one gets to see what is behind them. Watching these two grow and learn about each other is a treat. Edmund Douglas, Thomas’ villain is evil and gives you chills but he isn’t larger than life. There could be an Edmund Douglas in your own city and that in my opinion is what makes him all the more terrifying. If you consider yourself a fan of historical romance I strongly suggest that you do not pass this novel by.

Despite the breathless, bodice-ripper title this is an intelligent novel with interesting characters and nice flashes of humor.

I wanted to shake the hero a time or two for behaving foolishly (not as part of his disguise, just genuinely in his life choices, =D), but overall I was entertained. This couple is well suited to each other, and they were written in a relatable way. I liked each book in this trilogy, and I look forward to reading others by this author.

You know when you are down to your last serving of a beloved dessert and kind of keep cutting pieces off. First you take half, then smaller and smaller servings? Well.This is my last Sherry Thomas historical aside from her Lady Sherlock series, which I kind of gave up on. She's not always a slam dunk, you know, but it had me feeling things about being caught up with her histrom and wondering if there will be more. If there's not, I'm ok. Because I started with her when I started reading historical romance in earnest, and I still haven't found the time to revisit that book. I'm ok because I love a reread almost more than an initial read and I can revisit nearly all of her books.I'm not going to review this. As usual, Sherry Thomas gives us a complex story of two people connected by fantasy but pretending and lets the facade slip little by little. I didn't connect to this like I do to others, but I still loved it.

What a fun romp! Elements of intrigue, sexiness, and heartbreak... Both H and h have realistic moments of assholery, and ill-advised actions and thoughts. I highly recommend this one!

This is the first romance I've read in a few months, and the first with a Victorian setting that I've read in ages. When a character in a Regency era historical seems too modern, it throws me off, but here in the Victorian era it seemed much more natural.

The plot in this book revolved around the various characters' lies and cover-ups. It was well-paced, and high tension by my standards (which aren't very high-tension) and I thoroughly enjoyed it, but I don't think it's going to be a classic.

Sherry Thomas is an excellent writer, and if my "star system" was based on literary merit, this book would be a 4 or 5. My system, however, is based solely on how much I enjoyed a book, so I'm constrained to give it a 2.

The premise was just too unbelievable: a very intelligent marquess who fakes being a dolt in order to be a better undercover cop. For 16 years! And why does he do this? Besides wanting to be of service to Queen and Country, he's mad at his late father for killing his mother. That's it.

Our heroine is much easier to understand. She's led a miserable life under the thumb of her cruel uncle, and she'll do anything to escape it.

The plot/action was actually very good, except I couldn't get past the whole idiot marquess business. And, I never felt the heat between the two. When and why did they fall in love with each other? I dunno.

Perhaps this book is too deep for me. Perhaps if I read it again, more carefully, I would appreciate it more. If that ever happens, I'll update this review.

My favourite of Sherry's books so far. Why I read it: I've read Ms. Thomas' 3 previous releases and enjoyed them all. Plus, I thought they kept getting better so I was excited to read this new story. I read the excerpt on her website and I knew I was in for a treat.What it's about: (here's the blurb from the author's website)Elissande Edgerton is a desperate woman, a virtual prisoner in the home of her tyrannical uncle. Only through marriage can she claim the freedom she craves. But how to catch the perfect man?Lord Vere is used to baiting irresistible traps. As a secret agent for the government, he’s tracked down some of the most devious criminals in London, all the while maintaining his cover as one of Society’s most harmless—and idiotic—bachelors. But nothing can prepare him for the scandal of being ensnared by Elissande.Forced into a marriage of convenience, Elissande and Vere are each about to discover they’re not the only one with a hidden agenda. With seduction their only weapon against each other—and a dark secret from the past endangering both their lives—can they learn to trust each other even as they surrender to a passion that won’t be denied?What worked for me: In short, just about everything. I think this is my favourite kind of story. Vere is a hero in the true sense of the word - he serves Justice (always written in the book with a capital J) and he solves crime and he doesn't get any accolades for it - and, whether he initially wants to or not, he rescues Elissande from a terrible situation (and Elissande's Aunt Rachel too). I'm a sucker for a good rescue - it's my very favourite thing to read about. I don't enjoy that a character is in trouble, but in a strange way, the direness of the situation is almost directly proportional to the amount of enjoyment I get when the rescue happens. In this book, there are some situational rescues along the way but really, the whole story is one big rescue story. He kissed her on the forehead. "I'm sorry, my love. We should not have come. And you need never return here again."and He had been here, as he'd promised. And she had not been alone. Such simple words but in the context of the book... oh my... *fans self*.Plus, because I'm uncomfortable with the idea of only the hero doing the rescuing, Elissande does a "Pretty Woman" and rescues Vere right back. He is broken and damaged inside and she inspires him and encourages him to rise above. *sigh* I enjoyed the secondary romance between Freddie and Angelica too. It was brief and cute and sweet and it did serve as some light relief in a book which was filled with a terrible (and delicious) tension. I've read all the other books Ms. Thomas has written, I think I liked Private Arrangements (bk1) slightly better than Delicious (bk2) and I liked Not Quite a Husband (bk3) quite a bit more - but I'm talking like, B, B- and A- here - each of them had their own pleasures. But, this one? This is the best one yet. I love it. This author keeps getting better. I liked that she tried something new and went with what I'm going to call a "linear"" storyline - she started at the beginning and told the story through to the end. In her other books, there have been a series of flashbacks so we get to know the backstory slowly. I have liked it but it was nice to see Ms. Thomas trying something different. Not only that, but kicking ass in the process. I devoured this book in just over a day. As much as I tend to take my time reading the words Ms. Thomas writes and I did for this book too, I HAD to keep reading. The tension was too much and I just had to know what happened. I read this in paper format and I had my trusty highlighter out many times so I could go back to passages that grabbed me for one reason or another. I can't share them all (or I'd just have to reproduce most of the book) but I've picked out some of my favourites to illustrate the beauty this author creates. She has such a lyrical way with words. Like this: She smiled again, a smile luminous enough to serve as God's own desk lamp.I enjoyed the subtle humour of the book too. She had been married four hours. She'd describe her marriage thus far as hushed. She'd also describe it as long.and sometimes, hilariously, not subtle at all "Yes," he [Vere] said. "I am what you would call, well, not an heiress - I know that's a woman - but what is a man heiress?"Vere makes such a delightful idiot.What didn't (work for me): Um, it ended? I had to stop? If I tried hard enough, I could probably come up with some little nitpicks but I'm on a high from the book at the moment and I just don't wanna. No, it wasn't the perfect book (is that even possible?) but from an emotional point of view, it hit all the right spots for me. I wasn't thrown out of the story, I totally connected with the characters, I cared about them and I was caught up in how they were going to get their HEA. Why nitpick? Actually, on reflection, there was one little (tiny really) thing but I don't know how to mention it without giving away a significant spoiler. I just wanted to know how a certain character had known something about a certain other character - how's that for vague. If you read the book, you'll probably understand. Or not!What else: It's not hard to pick out the theme in this book. It's all about hiding and masks and acting and, ultimately, truth. I'm sure it's not an accident that the hero's name is Vere - it comes from the root word meaning truly. (I looked it up because I thought I might have a relationship to veritas which I know is Latin for truth.) There's a delightful irony in Vere's name. He lies all the time. There are only a handful of people who know the truth about him and he doesn't socialise with them - they're his agent-for-the-crown colleagues. Even his brother Freddie doesn't know the truth. He hides and he acts and he dreams of his perfect woman. His perfect woman who happens to have Elissande's smile but who doesn't know him either. As much comfort as he draws from his ideal woman, she doesn't know him. At heart, I think Vere doesn't think he's worth knowing. Elissande however, acts and wears a mask of smiles and gaiety out of fear of her Uncle. He's a monster and his vileness is portrayed in small snatches - he doesn't take over the book at any point and his awfulness isn't gratuitous. We know what we need to know and there is an air of palpable fear about Elissande and Aunt Rachel - the tension you feel in the best thrillers when you're scared when the cupboard is opened for fear of what's inside. Even the investigation in the book is about diamonds, both artificial and real. Vere recognises in Elissande a fellow actor - he sees her mask quite quickly, Oh, she was good. So very good. Were he truly an idiot he would be thrilled.but misunderstands her reason for wearing it. Once he does, you'd think that, him being the hero and all, all the conflict is gone between them and it would just be the external threat to them that needs to be resolved. Ha! Think again! Vere has to face himself, his own fears and decide whether he wants to stay in the shadows with only a perfect dream for company or whether he wants to life a true life without a mask - taking the risk that life is not perfect. Elissande tempts him but he's scared of living in the open. He wanted milk and honey; nourishing, sweet, wholesome. She was laudanum; potent, addictive, occasionally helpful in forgetting his troubles, but dangerous in large doses. It is that struggle which makes Vere so extra delicious to me. All the time he's doing the heroic rescue thing, he's broken inside. He needs Elissande to show him what he's missing and he needs her to give him the courage to change. He wants her to see him, truly, but is fearful of it also. "Open your eyes and look at me". She did. He withdrew and reentered her, slowly, slowly going deeper, deeper. And when she thought he couldn't come any farther into her, he did. She gasped with the pleasure and depravity of it - his possession of her, while his eyes held hers. "No pretending," he said softly. "do you see who is fucking you?"**and a little later, her reply "I never pretended it was anyone but you."See, I told you she rescues him right back. Vere sees in her, a woman who has come through some terrible times undaunted. She's bent like a sapling in the wind so she didn't break. She's strong and heroic and Vere admires her. Theirs is not a relationship where she's just grateful. They are both equals and that is what makes me believe in their HEA. Oh, damn. I wish I hadn't read it yet. Because then I'd be able to read it and experience it for the first time again. Grade: A**Even when reading this passage, the profanity is so sudden and unexpected that it made me sit up and open my eyes. It was beautifully used to convey the self loathing Vere has; his desire to be known and his fear; to push Elissande away while at the same time wanting her as close as it is possible to be.

I absolutely love Sherry Thomas. Her characters are intelligent and a far cry from the stereotypical watered down Damsels and Hairy Chested Dudeds.

Highly enjoyable. There's a satisfying plot but what really makes this story is the depth and complexity of the main characters, whose emotional arcs are truly and emotionally satisfying. The novel is only a little let down by occasional slips in tone from the author, whose characters sometimes sound rather more like modern Americans than the 19thC upper class English characters they are meant to be.

If you can suspend your disbelief that the hero fools nearly everyone, including his closest friends and family, for 13 YEARS about his true mental capabilities, then you may enjoy a really fun and steamy historical romance.I found that if I imagined this book as a screwball comedy then it worked and was extremely enjoyable. If I tried to analyze it and think about whether it was realistic, it fell apart. The hero and heroine are a great fit, Sherry Thomas has a great knack for depicting a couple's chemistry (or lack thereof) on the page. This isn't my favorite of her books (that would be Delicious) but I read it over a weekend and wasn't disappointed. People who are sensitive to reading about abusive relationships should be aware that there are a couple of scenes they may find triggering. Lastly, I loved the quick reference to Leo Marsden, the hero of Not Quite A Husband, towards the end.

An agent for the crown spends most of his life prentending to be an idiot in order to work undiscovered. While on an investigation he meets a woman desperate to escape her uncle's harsh rule.Sherry Thomas has a unique writng style for a historical romance authot. Her characters have hidden depths that are unexpected and propels the reader to want to get to the ending to make sure everything turns out for the best. This book however was forgettable. The hero Vere's idoicy is annoying at times.It is hard to believe that he could keep up the role for so long and show no hints of his true personality to those who are closest to him.Elissande is motivated by fear to trap Vere in to marriage which he resents deeply even though he thought she was the woman of his dreams when he first saw her. They didn't have enough chemistry. All through out the book there was a feeling that something was missing. That being said the book was a decent read but its not memorable. I do enjoy Sherry's work and will continue to read her books.