Barely a Lady by Eileen Dreyer review and giveaway

HE CAN’T REMEMBER…………………..
WHAT SHE CAN’T FORGET………………………

Olivia Grace has secrets that could destroy her. One of the greatest of these is the Earl of Gracechurch, who married and divorced her five years earlier. Abandoned and disgraced, Grace has survived those years at the edge of respectability. Then she stumbles over Jack on the battlefield of Waterloo, and he becomes an even more dangerous secret. For not only is he unconscious, he is clad in an enemy uniform.

But worse, when Jack finally wakes in Olivia's care, he can't remember how he came to be on a battlefield in Belgium. In fact, he can remember nothing of the last five years. He thinks he and Olivia are still blissfully together. To keep him from being hanged for a traitor, Olivia must pretend she and Jack are still married.

To unearth the real traitors, Olivia and Jack must unravel the truth hidden within his faulty memory. To save themselves and the friends who have given them sanctuary, they must stand against their enemies, even as they both keep their secrets.


My Thoughts:

What would you do if you found the man who divorced you and left with nothing bleeding and half dead lying on the battlefield in the uniform of a traitor?

Olivia’s actions may surprise most women, stripping him of his French uniform and redressing him with the English colours, she is set to save the man who once caused her world to fall in around her. Although the Jack that she rescued from the battlefield is not the Jack she remembers. He is now dark and needy, and without any memory of the last 4 years. Jack still believes that he is married to Olivia and she must put aside the abuse that she has endured for the sake of his health. Together the two must navigate the twists and turns of his memories, while they get reacquainted with each other.

Will Jack be able to stomach the truth the once it comes out and will he still love Olivia? Or will he once again turn his back on the woman who saved his life?

I believe that this is my favorite romance novel of all time. Barely A Lady has all the qualities that a romance novel should have, while also adding in that special something that others are lacking. You are guaranteed to fall in love with this delightful cast of characters, while the leading two will steal your heart as they fight to reclaim Jacks memory. The plot is simply riveting with its ups and downs, and many of the revelations will surprise the reader. Although I do have one complaint, it simply was not long enough. Barely A Lady is one those books that I did not want to see end, although I am glad that this is the first book in the Drake’s Rakes Series and I cannot wait to read the others. The snip-it of Never a Gentleman has left me craving more.

I do have to say that with this being Eileen Dreyer’s first foray into in Historical Romance one would believe that she has been writing historicals all her life.


Oh and one more thing that will draw your attention to this book, the cover is stunning.

Want read the back-story for Barley A Lady? Then check out these short stories

The Wedding Night

The End

Want more information on the Wyndham family?

Take a look at their family tree

Meet the characters

Want more……………………
Take a look at the open book

Here are Five Fun Facts about the book and the author

1. I have written 25 contemporary romances as Kathleen Korbel and am a member of the RWA Hall of Fame.

2. Hugh Jackman and Kate Winslet were the models for Jack and Olivia.

3. One of the characters is an homage to the Richard Sharpe books, which were my first gateway into the Regency period (if you know the series—immortalized by Sean Bean on BBC— you should be able to guess).

4. All my characters did their own stunts.

5. Olivia's name was originally Annie. My characters' names tend to change as I write the book and get to know them better. And Olivia wasn't an Annie. I try and make sure all the names are corrected in editing, but occasionally, I miss one or two.

Book Details:
Category: FICTION, ROMANCE
Format: MASS MARKET
Edition: FOREVER SPECIAL RELEASE
Publish Date: 7/1/2010
Price: $6.99/$8.99
ISBN: 9780446542081


About the author
Born and raised in Brentwood, Missouri and a product of Catholic Schools, she lives in St. Louis County with husband Rick and her two children. She has animals but refuses to subject them to the glare of the limelight.
Dreyer won her first publishing award in 1987, being named the best new Contemporary Romance Author by Romantic Times. Since that time she has also garnered not only five other writing awards from Romantic Times, but five RITA Awards from Romance Writers of America, which secures her only the fourth place in the Romance Writers of America prestigious Hall of Fame. Since extending her reach to suspense, she has also garnered a coveted Anthony Award nomination for her last paperback, Bad Medicine. She has over three million books in print world wide, and has made regular appearances on the Waldenbook and B.Dalton bestsellers list, and now the USA Today list.
A frequent speaker at conferences, she maintains membership in Romance Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America, and, just in case things go wrong, Emergency Nurses Association and International Association of Forensic Nurses, for which she is the unofficial mascot.
Eileen is an addicted traveler, having sung in some of the best Irish pubs in the world, and admits she sees research as a handy way to salve her insatiable curiosity. She counts film producers, police detectives and Olympic athletes as some of her sources and friends. She's also trained in forensic nursing and death investigation, although she doesn't see herself actively working in the field, unless this writing thing doesn't pan out.


Please Check out the authors website, I found several amusing things there.













I have 5 copies of this delightful book to giveaway:

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Also I would love to know what’s your favorite type of romance book and why?

Contest ends July 30th