HOPE'S BETRAYAL by Grace Elliot illustrates the smuggling problem in England during the Napoleonic war and highlights the social problems that led to its appeal. Even though the story is a good one, there were so many editing issues that I have to give the novel 3 stars.
In HOPE'S BETRAYAL, Hope Tyler is arrested under suspicion of smuggling after being caught on the beach in the middle of the night, with suspected smugglers rowing away from shore. Captain George Huntley, heir to his brother's title, has been reassigned temporarily to the Excise Office while his ship is being refitted, tasked to destroy the smuggling ring in the Southwest and ferret out any traitors in the Excise office. Given Hope's injuries sustained while fleeing George's arrest, George takes her to his family estate nearby for medical attention and then, after she regains consciousness, for interrogation.
Even though sparks fly between them, George is determined to treat her as a criminal. George's mom intervenes and offers Hope employment as her secretary, remembering Hope's mother from her youth. George learns of some vicious gossip about Hope and him, which has been spread through the Excise Office and the local community, and he requests a transfer to another area to maintain his reputation. After being wounded during a pivotal skirmish, George goes home to convalesce, but with Hope still working for his mother and the leader of the smuggling ring still at large, George's recovery is anything but peaceful.
I enjoyed HOPE'S BETRAYAL. The plot unfolds at a nice pace and is sufficiently complex to keep the reader interested. The characters are likeable, though as with many other Regency romance novels, Hope rejects George's suit even though she is in love with him. The romance overall is believable, and while it may be spicy in a few places, the novel is still okay for teens aged 16 and older.
On the technical side, there were enough irksome typos, redundant descriptions, funky sentence structure, grammar issues and punctuation problems that the novel really needs another revision with a fresh set of eyes. Otherwise, HOPE'S BETRAYAL was a nice read, and I recommend it to any lover of Regency romance.
*Review originally written for The Romance Reviews.com at http://www.theromancereviews.com/viewbooks.php?bookid=10969.
