Heartless (Georgian #1) by Mary Balogh (1995)

Synopsis: 

Life has taught Lucas Kendrick, Duke of Harndon, that a heart is a decided liability. Betrayed by his elder brother, rejected by his fiancée, banished by his father, and shunned by his mother, Luke fled to Paris, where he became the most sought-after bachelor in fashionable society.

Ten years later, fate has brought him back home to England as head of the family who rejected him. Unwilling as he is to be involved with them, he must assume responsibility for his younger siblings, the family estate he once loved—and the succession. He faces the prospect of marrying with the greatest reluctance—until he sees beguiling Lady Anna Marlowe across a ballroom one night.

Anna, far from being the bright-eyed innocent Luke takes her for, is no more a stranger to the shadows of a painful past than he is. But for her, marriage cannot so easily solve what is wrong in her life—not when a tormentor stalks her to the very doors of Bowden Abbey, where Luke and Anna must learn to trust in each other or risk any chance they may have for a happy future.

Review:

Lucas Kendrick has no wish to be back in the country of his birth, much less have anything to do with the family which rejected him ten years before. He certainly has no wish to marry. And yet, within the space of a week he does all this: returns to London, reacquaints himself with his mother and remaining siblings, and marries Anna, god-daughter of his uncle's long-term lover.

If he must marry, why not Anna? She's attractive, engaging, intelligent, and best of all, she treats him like a man rather than like a duke. He makes no claim to be in love with her, nor does she with him; however, they have engaged in several highly enjoyable flirting sessions in public. Marrying would solve the problem of who gets a say, as to how Bowden Abbey is run. At present, it's a tug-of-war between his mother, and his older brother's widow (a woman who betrayed him and is at the center of all the misfortune that befell him).

Anna knows she's never going to marry, and even though she shouldn't, she does. (We don't get an explanation for why she's so reticent until most of the way through the book, but it's clear that something bad happened.) The stalker behind it all has said that he will come back for her one day (as he strangled her imitating a noose). He also told her that no man would want her as a wife, since she isn't untouched (what that means isn't quite clear for most of the book, and it wasn't some thing that happened voluntarily).

On their wedding night, Anna discovers that lovemaking can be beautiful and very pleasurable. Unfortunately, Like is experienced enough to know that she's not a virgin. He feels betrayed, particularly when he confronts her about it and she gives no explanation, leaving him to believe that she has a lover that she left behind. This leads to their marriage becoming, at least in the beginning, a shallow affair in which neither talks of their real feelings. It's duty during the day, pleasure at night. (And, of course, there's a lot of pleasure, because he's a historical romance hero.) And yet, even as they hide their secrets from each other, the man who believes himself incapable of love slowly realizes that his heart wasn't buried after all.

Luke is far from being heartless. And Anna, for all her secrets, has been honest with him from the start. (The more we get her backstory, the more we understand how legitimate her fear is. I mean, she was tied to a bed and raped with a stick while her stalker watched.) But, learning to trust is difficult for them both. For Luke, it means letting himself be vulnerable again: to his family and to the woman he loves. As well as resolving his relationship with Anna, he has to rebuild his relationships with his younger brother and sister and discover the truth surrounding his older brother's betrayal. For Anna, it means letting Luke close enough to know the truth about her past.

Balogh is good about giving us hints regarding Luke's past and Anna's stalker. It turns out to be even more twisted than you might expect. But, in true HR fashion, things are resolved so the couple can live happily ever after. The bad guys are revealed. The dangers resolved. And best of all, Luke and Anna admit their love for each other. I almost fave this a 3.5, but the sheer creativity surrounding our villains lead me to give it a 4.

My rating: 4 out of 5.