The Heartbreaker

By Rexanne Becnel

The London Tattler - February 6
An ugly rumor has arisen, only to be proven no rumor at all, but rather, the unadulterated truth. It seems the proper Lord Farley has behaved in a decidedly improper manner...

James Lindford, Viscount Farley, has returned from the Orient, feted and celebrated ...until his past catches up with him. It seems his lordship's randy ways have resulted in the juiciest scandal of the season, producing endless fodder for the gossip mill. Now, his beleaguered lordship has shut himself up in his country estate, with more than a handful of trouble to cope with. Worse, the most tempting woman on earth is right next door...

Phoebe Churchill's peaceful country life, tending her cottage and rearing her abandoned niece is disrupted when Viscount Farley becomes her new neighbor. Undoubtedly, his powerful build and sensual charm have lured countless women to abandon all reason...except for Phoebe-she's far too wise to be seduced by a heartbreaker. But when she agrees to help James manage a household growing more riotous daily, she finds herself drawn to the man whose lingering kisses leave her yearning for so much more. And before she knows it, a stunning twist of events will lead her toward an impossible task: teaching a notorious heartbreaker the true meaning of love...

• Language: English
• Publisher: Macmillan Publishers
• Release date: Nov 17, 2003
• ISBN: 9781250011183

Rexanne Becnel

Rexanne Becnel is the author of more than twenty historical romance and contemporary mainstream novels, many of which appeared on the USA Today bestseller list. With the publication of her first novel, My Gallant Enemy, Becnel won the Waldenbooks Award for Best First-Time Romance Author and the Romantic Times Award for Best Medieval Romance by a New Author. While growing up, Becnel lived for a time in Germany and England, where she became fascinated by medieval history. After studying architecture at the University of Southwestern Louisiana, she worked as a building inspector for the Vieux Carré Commission, the agency of the City of New Orleans charged with protecting and preserving the distinct architectural and historic character of the French Quarter. Becnel lives in New Orleans with her husband and two children.

Reviews for The Heartbreaker

[sugarbeat · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The Heartbreaker is the fourth story in a series of 4 books written by Rexanne Becnel. It tells the story of the relationship between James Lindford, Viscount Farley, a recovering rake and Phoebe Churchill, a country woman with a good heart. Although this book has the above hero and heroine, they seem to play second fiddle to three little children. In James’s attempt to mend his rakish ways, he hunts down his various illegitimate children and essentially buys them from their mothers. When the story starts he has managed to acquire potty-mouthed Clarissa (Izzy), a 10 year old that he rescues from the stews and has seen the evil side of life, and Leya, a chubby, blue-eyed baby with dark skin whose mother died in India. James’s open acknowledgement of his illegitimate children causes his fiancee to break their engagement and therefore James’ hope of a political career. Izzy’s shenanigans drive most of James’ London staff away and finally he escapes the gossips by decamping to his country estate.Phoebe has spent the last eight years taking care of her mother and her sister’s illegitimate daughter, Helen, on the family farm. They barely make ends meet and when things start disappearing, Phoebe is determined to catch the thief. When she discovers that her thief is the 10 year old daughter of the Viscount Farley, she marches Izzy to Farley Park to meet him. Phoebe, who has never felt much attraction to men finally feels the lust her mother has always warned her about upon meeting James. Over the next few days, Phoebe quickly finds the solution for Leya’s stomach upset and starts to show progress with Izzy’s behavior. James is determined to have Phoebe as governess to his girls despite his growing attraction. He is actually determined to make Phoebe his mistress as well as his girl’s governess. At this point, I feel, the story falls apart. Several reviewers comment on the fact that if James is indeed trying to mend his rakish ways and has learned his lesson, he wouldn’t even be considering trying to make Phoebe his mistress, he would be trying to find some way to marry her, despite the class differences.To add insult to injury, Phoebe’s sister shows up and we find out that her daughter, Helen, whom Phoebe has been raising, is actually James’s 3rd illegitimate daughter. Is there anyone James hasn’t slept with?? To make matters worse, his ex-fiancee shows up again wanting him back - or at least not wanting to marry the old man her father is pushing on her. She doesn’t seem like much of a catch and doesn’t even seem to react negatively to Phoebe being the object of James’ affections.What starts out a wonderful, meaningful story about a rake trying to reform seems to be derailed about 2/3rds of the way through and even the inevitable happy ending doesn’t completely recapture the feeling at the beginning of the story!