In Bed with the Earl

The exceptional first Lost Lords of London Victorian era romance by Caldwell (the Heart of a Scandal series) circles an intriguing central mystery. Thirty-year-old newspaper reporter Verity Lovelace searches for a long-missing earl in order to secure a scandalous story and ensure her spot at the paper and the income that supports her, her sister, and their childhood nursemaid. Malcolm North, the Earl of Maxwell, was kidnapped as a child and has not been seen since. Twenty years later, Malcolm has no memory of his lofty origins, having grown up among a society of street fighters and scavengers in London’s sewers. Caldwell wastes no time establishing her vivid, distinctly stratified vision of Victorian London, pulling readers in to the world of her formidable protagonists. As desperate, determined Verity struggles to hold her own within the male-dominated newspaper office, Malcolm navigates the London underworld and slowly realizes the truth of his identity. When Verity’s investigation leads the pair to meet, their sexual tension is palpable, but more impressive is the heartwarming emotional connection that grows between them. This series launch is an intoxicating romp sure to delight fans of historical romance. (Mar.)