I like this trilogy well enough so far. I still feel like there is some spark missing, but the women are all awesome. They are not giggling debutantes, and their romances are more adult. (It helps that two are widows.) I wanted to smack the hero upside the head a few times, and I'm not sure the culture clash was quite correct. Overall, however, I liked the pairing -- especially at the end when it all came together. ( )

Livia Lacy has inherited a London house from a distant relative. Initially she moved in with two friends but one has since married. Livia meets Russian Prince Alex Prokov and marries him never knowing that he is a spy for the Russian Czar. She cannot understand the strange happenings in her home and is having trouble adjusting to her new husband’s autocratic ways. I did not like Alex, but then I did not marry him, Livia did. If one can get past Alex’s personality, the book contains romance, adventure, and humor, all things necessary for a good read. ( )

I'm in the process of reading it now, but so far it doesn't hold much appeal. The names of the women are quite confusing. Livia (Livy), Aurelia(elly) and Cornelia(nelly). In the first few chapters the author switches out the given name with the nicknames and it's quite difficult to keep track of who is who. It would have been much easier to comprehend if the women had been given names that weren't so alike to each other. Update - well I finally finished it. It took much longer for me to read than I normally take with a book. I just really couldn't get into it. The plot line, the confusing characters and the ending was quite dissatisfactory. It didn't tie up loose ends; I imagine it would be so you're compelled to buy the final book in the trilogy. But to be honest, this is a totally forgettable book and by the time the third book is released I won't remember the original plot. ( )