Review: Again The Magic by Lisa Kleypas

    

       Title: Again The Magic

      

       Author: Lisa Kleypas

       

       Release Date: October 4, 2012

       

       Publisher: HarperCollins

       

       Category: Historical Romance

       

       Type: Paperback/Audio/Kindle/Hardcover

       

       Click Here To Buy NOW!

       

       Ms. Kleypas’s Website

  

Blurb:

She gave him her innocence . . .Lady Aline Marsden was brought up for one reason: to make an advantageous marriage to a member of her own class. Instead, she willingly gave her innocence to John McKenna, a servant on her father's estate. Their passionate transgression was unforgivable -- John was sent away, and Aline was left to live in the countryside . . . an exile from London society . . .and he took her love.

Now McKenna has made his fortune, and he has returned -- more boldly handsome and more mesmerizing than before. His ruthless plan is to take revenge on the woman who shattered his dreams of love. But the magic between them burns as bright as ever. And now he must decide whether to let vengeance take its toll . . . or risk everything for his first, and only, love.

Excerpt:

“He uttered a curse that startled her with its foulness, and gripped her head between his hands, forcing her to stare at him. His voice was savage. "For twelve years I have been in constant torment, wanting you in my arms and believing it would never be possible. I want you for a thousand reasons other than your legs, and...no, damn it, I want you for no reason at all, other than the fact that you're you. I want to shove myself deep inside you and stay for hours...days...weeks. I want morning and noon and nightfall with you. I want your tears, your smiles, your kisses...the smell of your hair, the taste of your skin, the touch of your breath on my face. I want to see you in the final hour of my life...to lie in your arms as I take my last breath.” 

Dialogue Highlight:

“I'm sorry." Her voice cracked. "McKenna-"
"Not sorry enough." He pressed his wet face to hers, his mouth rubbing over her cheeks and chin in feverish, rough half kisses, as if he wanted to devour her. "Not nearly enough. You say you've had to live without your heart...how would you like to lose your soul as well? I've cursed every day I've had to live without you, and every night that I spent with another woman, wishing that it was you in my arms-"
"NO-" she moaned.
"Wishing," he continued fiercely, "for some way to stop the memories of you from eating away at me until there was nothing left inside. I've found no peace anywhere, not even in sleep. Not even in dreams..." He broke off and assaulted her with hungry, shuddering kisses. The taste of his tears, his mouth, made Aline disoriented and hot, her head reeling from shocks of pleasure. McKenna seemed possessed by a passion that bordered on violence, his lungs wracked with hard breaths, his hands tightening with a force that threatened to leave bruises on her tender flesh. "By God," he said with the vehemence of a man to whom entirely too much had happened, "In the past few days I've suffered the torments of the damned, and I've had enough!” 

Review:

I generally include a much bigger excerpt and dialogue highlight in an effort to give everyone reading this review a glimpse of the writer’s style. However, with these “bigger” authors (if you will), it can be difficult to ferret out snippets to share without typing straight from the book and infringing upon copyright. Therefore, I chose to go with short paragraphs to share. I discovered Ms. Kleypas by accident on a camping trip of all things and have never looked back since. When I am lucky enough to come across a book I have not read, I snatch it up immediately. Such was the case when I located this book. While I very much enjoy Ms. Kleypas’s books, I did suffer just a bit with the over-the-top pain and agony the two main characters needlessly put one another through. But I will get to that in just a bit.

Aline is a member of elite society; born and bred for nothing more than to find the most advantageous match in marriage. When her heart is captured by none other than the magnificent stable boy, she knows that their love must be kept a secret. Their secret lasts for years from childhood into young adolescence until they are found out. Ordered by her father to end the affair or suffer McKenna’s ruin, Aline chooses to chase McKenna away in a naive effort to protect him. The only way to ensure his departure is to effectively crush his heart with an elaborate portrayal of a snotty heiress who has merely toyed with McKenna’s affections and has tired of him, now ready to cast him aside. Task completed, Aline sinks into a miserable depression, followed by a disfiguring, near-death experience.

McKenna, broken-hearted and betrayed in the worst way, sets out to make something of himself. Driven by a need for revenge against Aline, he eventually makes his way back to her life. His focus is to seduce her, force her to fall in love with him, and leave her dejected. Just as she toyed with his emotions, so too will he exact his revenge in the same way. But he notices differences as he carries out his plan. Old feelings begin to kindle. But his hardened heart and need for revenge keep him from seeking out the truth in what lies just beneath his nose.

A wonderful companion to the story, is the sub plot provided by Aline’s sister, Livia and McKenna’s business partner, Gideon. These two are nothing short of opposites, but ultimately complement one another in every way. Had we not been provided the story of these two, the endless feud and misdirected anger between McKenna and Aline would well have made the book unbearable. I enjoy the tortured, brooding hero and misunderstood heroine just as much as anyone, but these two could have put an end to a lot of unnecessary torment several chapters prior to the end of the story. While the two connect, they do maintain a stagnant distance between them. The division between the two provided the needed angst in the story, but extends to overkill several times. As a reader, I wanted to feel sorry for the mistreatment of McKenna, as well as the ridiculous requirements that society forces in Aline’s behavior. However, with the supportive family seemingly at Aline’s fingertips, I wondered why the strife had to drag on for so long.

That said, the story is still one of enduring love that obviously can overcome all obstacles, even when the hero and heroine are too stubborn to just crash into one another and trust that the other would catch him or her. And ultimately any romance reader would find the story enjoyable. Paired with the fact that you can pretty much never go wrong in choosing Kleypas, I am confident that readers will find this agonizing love story entertaining. My time was well spent and as always, I look forward to the next Kleypas book.

(Paperback purchased for private collection)