Mischance (Corsets and Carriages, #1) by Carla Susan Smith Published by Lyrical Press on January 9th 2018
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“The Hall . . . the estate . . .”
“Will all have to be sold.”
After her fortune is squandered by her drunken gambler of a father, Catherine Davenport must accept the charity of a cousin she has never met. But the household of Phillip Davenport is anything but welcoming. Catherine barely survives a brutal attack that shatters her body and severs her memory. A harrowing rescue on the London docks takes her into the home of two brothers: Rian and Liam Connor.
“Trust him . . . he will not hurt you.”
Mystery and scandal surround Rian, recently returned from a plantation in the Americas. As Catherine struggles to reclaim her identity, she must fight her overwhelming desire for the man who saved her life. But Rian, she learns, has come home for a wedding, and Catherine fears her enigmatic rescuer is already spoken for. How can a woman with no memory, no family, no home, hope to win the heart of London’s most intriguing rogue?
~~Reviewed by AnnMarie~~
Mischance is the first book in the Corsets and Carriages trilogy by Carla Susan Smith.
After Catherine Davenport’s father passes away leaving nothing but debts she is forced to move in with a cousin, Philip Davenport, who she never even knew existed. The family solicitor found him in an effort to do all that he could for Catherine to make sure she didn’t end up on the streets.
Philip is a depraved pig of a man, abusive to his wife in every conceivable way. When he sets his eyes on Catherine and sees how beautiful she is he salivates at the thought of the debauchery he would force her to endure. It isn’t long before he gets her alone and nearly beats her to death, which he considers arousing! Thankfully with the help of his wife, she manages to escape and is discovered at the docks by Rian Connor.
Rian takes her back to his and his brother’s home and the long journey begins trying to bring her from the brink of death. When physically she is much better and death is no longer a worry, she still suffers because she has lost her memory. She knows her first name, but nothing else. During her time spent at Rian’s home, they both find themselves feeling attracted to each other. Their chances of a relationship aren’t promising. Not only does Catherine have no memories, but she also discovers that Rian has come home from America for a wedding. Then there is the fact that she is unaware of, and that is that Rian has a very jealous, possessive mistress. A mistress that refuses to let him go and will do anything to get him to marry her and no other.
Will Catherine’s memories return, and if it does, will it help or hinder any chance of a relationship with Rian. Will his wicked mistress have her way and keep him to herself. What of Philip Davenport, will he show his face again? I hope you don’t mind, but you won’t get any answers in this instalment of the trilogy. YES, this book ends with a cliffhanger, and you will have to wait until the next book ‘Resolve’, out on the 30th of January, to get your answers.
Will the next book be worth the wait? If this one is anything to go by, then absolutely. I enjoyed this story and how the author introduced us to each character by giving them their own chapter in the book where we learned who they are and how they fit into the main character’s lives. The minute you learn what Philip Davenport is like you just know that it’s not going to end well for Catherine. BUT, oh boy, the scenes involving those two characters were harsh to read, I could have cried for poor Catherine. You can’t help but feel the whole gamut of emotions reading this book because the author really sets the scenes well and gets you to either love or hate the characters. I cannot wait to read the next book to see what happens next.
I voluntarily reviewed an advanced readers’ copy of this book.
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About Carla Susan Smith
Born in England a very long time ago, I now call South Carolina home where I live with my wonderfully supportive family, who have come to learn that meeting deadlines translates to pizza for dinner! When not writing, I’m just like everyone else, trolling the internet looking for recipes (I love rhubarb) checking out cute animal videos (who knew baby owls were so adorable?) and trying to get through my never-shrinking stack of to-be-read books!
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