Arrogant, cold, acerbic, and at times disconcertingly seductive, Vaughn works on Mary’s last nerve at every meeting. But she is up to the challenge and meets him jab for jab. The two grow closer as they have to increase the number of their public appearances together in hopes of catching the Black Tulip’s eye. They’re banking on the spy’s penchant for dark-haired beauties (of which Mary is an excellent specimen) to lure him into their trap.
What they didn’t anticipate was the growing attraction between Vaughn, who has sworn off marriage forever, and Mary, who has been clear from the first that she is only looking for a wealthy husband. You can guess where the story goes from there.
What’s really interesting about The Seduction of the Crimson Rose, and all of The Pink Carnation books, is how they are told. Through alternating chapters, Willig shifts perspective between the events taking place in Napoleonic London and those happening in modern-day London with Eloise Kelly, an American PhD student who is researching these spies for her dissertation.
On her path to discovering who The Pink Carnation and The Black Tulip really are, Kelly becomes involved with the Selwick family, who are descendants of one of the spies in this twisty tale. The ongoing flirtation between Kelly and Colin Selwick comes to a head in this installation of the series, and an additional, somewhat nefarious, character is thrown into the mix.
Writing one story of intrigue and romance is hard enough; writing two that intertwine is certainly a feat. I’m undecided as to whether it works for the book, though. It took me a little while to figure out what was going on with the change in perspectives. I knew the story was a historical romance, so when I started reading and found myself in the head of a 21st century woman, I was kind of put off. Then the heart of the story began and it became more clear what the author was doing.
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