Review: The Wild One by Danelle Harmon

Where to Buy the Book:
Amazon Kindle
BN Nook
Smashwords
Kobo

Gareth de Monforte is known as the Wild One in his family and he's also the nominal heir of his brother, Lucien, the Duke of Blackheath, one of the most powerful men in England -- except, Gareth doesn't want the honor or the responsibility that comes with the position. He's happy carousing with his friends, the Den of Debauchery.

And then he meets Juliet Paige, and does a heroic thing by saving her and her fellow passengers from a band of highwaymen.

And then he realizes who Juliet is -- she's his dead brother Charles' betrothed and has come to England to ask the de Montfortes' help in raising her daughter, Charlotte.

Juliet brings out a different side of Gareth -- a side, he didn't think he had and so Gareth agrees to his brother, Lucien's bargain: he'll let Juliet stay with the de Montfortes and maybe consider making Charlotte his ward if Gareth behaves himself.

But one misstep sends Juliet and Charlotte packing and heading to London to make their own way. Gareth does something surprising -- he follows them to London. And even more surprising, he does the noble thing and offers marriage to Juliet.

Gareth and Juliet are wonderful characters that are easy to sympathize with. She's courageous and stands up for herself and for her daughter, Charlotte. She's not afraid of hardship or work and she's willing to endure both for the sake of her little family.

Gareth is the third of four sons and he's always been searching for his place in his family. He's not a natural leader like his brother, Lucien or is intelligent as his brother, Andrew. He knows how to have fun and his moniker "The Wild One" is apt -- but he knows he wants to be something more and has waited for the opportunity to make something of himself. And the opportunity arrives with Juliet.

He slid back beneath the covers, smiling like a fool. It was rather nice, being the hero of the hour... and there were no words to describe how he'd felt when Miss Juliet Paige had come in to say good night to him and bent down to touch her cool, sweet lips to his brow. He sighed and lay back in bed with a happy grin. Such attentions made him feel quite special, indeed. And, appreciated.

He wasn't used to anyone appreciating him.
- p. 34

In the beginning, Gareth sees Juliet and Charlotte as his obligation to his late brother, Charles. The beloved one of the family. But, Gareth cannot deny the sparks that exist between the two of them. And neither can Juliet. It's heartbreaking to see Juliet so torn about her emotions -- is it truly an attraction to Gareth or a remainder of her feelings for Charles?

Same romantic eyes. Same kindness in their depths, same concern for other people. Oh, God... help me.
- p. 15

When everything falls apart, when they lose their money and are desperate for a place to stay and have no one to turn to, when Gareth is tested and forced to step outside of his comfort zone and lay down his pride -- he realizes all that he is capable of and what it is he truly wants.

This is an endearing story about a man and a woman clearly out of their element but who are willing to find a way for the sake of love.

The Wild One is the first book in Danelle Harmon's The de Montforte Brothers series. All four books have been republished in e-format. To find out more about the author and her books, visit her website. She's also on Facebook.

Danelle will be starting her Blog Tour on July 23 to promote The de Montforte Brothers series. She'll be visiting Love Saves the World on August 1. To see her tour stops, click here.

Disclosure: Review copy provided by Goddess Fish Promotions. Yes, this is an honest and sincere review.

Final note: This is the moment I fell in love with Gareth:
At their wedding, as he is about to slide his ring on Juliet's finger, they both realize that she was still wearing Charles's ring (which looks exactly like Gareth's ring) --

Wordlessly, he pulled his dead brother's ring from her finger. His hand tightened around it, and for one long, awful moment Juliet thought he was going to hurl the thing across the room to send it clink, clink, clinking beyond the far pews. But no. Instead, he bent his head and in a gesture so humble, so selflessly noble that it brought a single tear pooling in her eye, he quietly slid Charles's ring onto her right forefinger -- and put his own on her left ring finger, where it belonged.
- pp. 71-72