My Lord Murderer

By: Elizabeth Mansfield

Narrated by: Jane Copland

Length: 8 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

In this enthralling Regency romance by award-winning author Elizabeth Mansfield, a young woman vows not to fall in love with the nobleman who killed her husband.

A dashing stranger sweeps Lady Gwendolyn Rowle onto the dance floor. She is living every woman's fantasy until she discovers who her romantic waltz partner really is: Viscount Andrew Jamison - the man who killed her husband.

From the moment he saw her glide into the ballroom, Drew was captivated by the ravishing beauty. Finding out she is the widow of the blackguard he killed in a duel puts something of a damper on the evening, especially with all of London calling him a cold-blooded villain. To quiet the gossip, Drew devises an ingenious scheme. The only person standing in his way is the lovely Gwen, who has no intention of marrying her husband's murderer. But then she does something far more dangerous: She falls in love with him.

©1980 Paula Schwartz; This edition published in 2015 by Open Road Integrated Media, Inc. (P)2015 Audible Inc.

Absolutely Delightful!

Any additional comments?

Finally, a Regency romance akin to those of the great Georgette Heyer. Sadly, the author of this book has passed away, but Audible.com listeners are now fortunate in that her work has been recently added to Audible's collection.

This is a charming story, well-timed and well-written with wit and humor. The characters are most engaging, the dialogue is excellent and the narration wonderful.

Some of the so called Regency romances I've listened to lately have been awfully dull with way too many sex scenes, not enough dialogue, modern characters completely out of step with Regency times, and badly in need of a good editor.

Highly recommended.

I tried to like the story, but...

One review listed this author as a new Georgette Heyer, but I have to disagree. This heroin is so stupid! She continually thinks the worst of the hero, based on one person's report, and disregards the score of opposite reports from trustworthy people. And she still wants to believe the villain's version - even after he has kidnapped her! What!!????
And all the male characters are supposed to be immune to tears, but cave at the first sign of them.
Secondary female admits to being a gossip, but continually pouts and whines when her ability to keep a secret is questioned.
I forced myself to finish, but it wasn't a great read. Very sad, because there was potential here.

In Praise of Stephanie Laurens ...

... Who Didn't Write This Book

My Lord Murderer makes me really appreciate Stephanie Laurens. I am an erratic reader of romance novels. My problem with them, especially historical romance is that the heroine is usually an insipid addle brain. By the end of most books, it is difficult to see why on earth the hero would waste a moment, much less the rest of his life on a such a stupid, vacuous character. That is why I appreciate Stephanie Laurens books. The underlying plots might be impractical or unbelievable, but there is always a plot, a storyline distinct from the will she/won't she tug of the heroine. The ratio of sexual activity to everything else might be extremely high, but at least the reader has proof that the characters like and desire each other. In most of Lauren's books the heroines are as equally strong and intelligent as the heroes and while they do still act irrationally at times, so do the men.

My Lord Murderer was the perfect example of a plot totally dependent upon the idiocy of the heroine. If she isn't ridiculously gullible and prone to making the exact opposite of the decision any reasonable woman would make, then there is no point to the book. It is totally implausible that the hero would desire her, another woman would be her friend or her family would tolerate her. This is the kind of book that gives romance's a bad name. A silly waste of time.