Queen of Diamonds

Author: Barbara Metzger
Published: June 6, 2006 (Signet)
Category: Historical Romance
Series: House of Cards Trilogy #3
Rating: 6/10

It was the final and in my opinion, a big disappointment after how much I enjoyed the first two books in the House of Cards trilogy. The Endicott brothers have been searching for their long-lost little sister, Lady Charlotte and they've made some inroads in their investigation, finding out that she was raised under the name of Queenie Dennis. The young woman in question was lied to about the whole situation, thinking that she was an orphan used for blackmail purposes because she looked so much like Lottie. And she believed the lies told by one of the men who killed her mother, thinking that she'd be hanged for being a part of the scheme. Because of that, she ran away to France to learn how to become a trendsetting modiste.

Queenie Dennis, a diamond in the rough, just might be the famous Lottie. And fate takes a turn when she returns to the swirl of the beau monde under an assumed identity as a dressmaker fresh from France. Queenie quickly becomes the talk of the ton and catches the eye of the handsome Lord Harking, who has come to London in search of stolen family heirlooms. As Queenie's desire for him grows, her lies begin to catch up with her. Will Harking call her bluff, or will love hold the winning hand?

I was too annoyed with Queenie's lack of common sense to enjoy Queen of Hearts. She knew that Ize, the criminal, was not to be trusted, but believed his transparent cover story about how she's definitely not the missing Lottie and that if she goes to the Endicotts, they'll throw her in jail. Never mind the fact that she had nightmares about the carriage "accident" and kept shrugging it off.

Lord Harking on the other hand, made the book bearable because he was such a good guy. He was on the trail of his wastrel of a brother-in-law who'd stolen the Harking diamonds and met Queenie in the course of the investigation. And so he became the hero who's more interested in furthering the relationship than the heroine, as Queenie feels that all her lies and her "criminal" background would prevent her from marrying Harking.

Ugh. It could've been so much better if I didn't want to strangle the heroine so badly.