Never Lie to a Lady - Liz Carlyle

Publication
2007, Pocket Books

In short
The notorious Marquis of Nash is a creature of the night; his wealth and his title provide but a tenuous entrée into polite society. With his Eastern European manners and dark elegance, Nash tempts women even as he tempts the scandalmongers. Rumors abound of the men he has bankrupted and the hearts he has broken. But when Nash leaves his lair for a rare foray into the ton, and enjoys a moment of heated passion with a mysterious lady in the dark, he develops an obsession which will lead him into the hellish world of smugglers, spies, and political intrigue as the Continent edges nearer to war.
Xanthia Neville has arrived in London to expand her family’s most lucrative business holding - Neville Shipping. With her brother Rothewell all too happy to waste his life in debauchery, Xanthia opens up shop in London’s grimy Docklands, and sets about expanding the family fortune, all the while flaunting the ton’s silly strictures about how a lady ought to behave. But London, she soon learns, is not Barbados. And when the British Government approaches Rothewell to ask the family’s help in exposing a dangerous arms dealer, Xanthia must enter society after all, only to find her loyalties torn. Someone in London is fueling the conflict on the Balkan Peninsula by smuggling illicit weapons into the Aegean - and there is only one likely suspect. The Marquis of Nash has the resources, the contacts and, quite possibly, the deeply divided loyalties. But can Xanthia’s subterfuge prove him a traitor to the Crown before her heart is broken?

In words
After enjoying several other novels by Liz Carlyle I was sadly disappointed by this one. There were a few plot points which I found a bit hard to believe but - worse - the whole book seemed stand-offish, I could not feel a connection with anyone or the story, even though the plot itself was alright. I did get to know Xanthia a bit, but Nash not at all and therefore can't truly believe in their relationship. A certain sex scene makes this book a 'hot' one, but to me it felt totally out of place and almost turned it into a D-. I'll give it the benefit of the doubt, it's not a bad book, but it just doesn't work for me.

In numbers
Voice - 1 (max 3)
Characters - 2 (max 3)
Romance - 1 (max 2)
Plot - 1 (max 2)
No minus points
Total - 5
C- = 6/10 = 3 stars