A Rake's Vow (Cynster Book 2)

My rating: 3.5 stars, rounded up to 4 stars.This book is well-written, because Stephanie Laurens is a talented writer. I read it several years ago, but recently decided to re-read the entire Cynster series, since I had enjoyed them all. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I still like this book -- maybe not quite as much as the first read, but I still liked it a lot.Vane was likable, but I often got irritated with Patience. She was just so judgmental, and sure that Vane was just like her father -- therefore could not be trusted. She did apologize to him for her first rude outburst, but still couldn't seem to get past her pre-conceived notions that "elegant gentlemen" could not be trusted.It was also annoying that Patience was OK to sleep with Vane, but would not even consider marrying him. I get that his first declaration that they would be married left much to be desired, but Patience still should have given him her true reason for not wanting to marry him. She never once told him that she needed to know if he loved her. He only found that out after talking to his godmother.I did like when Vane finally told Patience he loved her. That scene was sweet.There was a mistake in this book, which should have been caught in editing. In the first book, Devil's Bride, the twins Amanda and Amelia are described as having chestnut hair. But in this book, now they have pale blonde hair.My rating system is below.1 star -- Hated it, or did not finish. I usually only give this rating if some of the content is truly objectionable to me, like if one of the main characters does something really awful, and gets away with it.2 stars -- Didn't like it. This rating usually means that I thought the writing wasn't very good, the editing was terrible, I didn't like the characters, or it had other major flaws.3 stars -- I liked it, but had some minor issues with it. This rating means that there were minor editing issues, the story needed more character development, it was just too unrealistic, or had some other fairly minor issue. The majority of books I read get this rating – I do not consider it a bad rating.4 stars -- I liked it a lot. This is a high rating for me, and I rarely give a higher one.5 stars -- I loved it, and will probably read it again. Very few books are good enough to get this rating from me. The ones that do are usually classics.

Not really too bad, but the story really did seem to drag on. Patience really annoyed me. Character didn’t seem realistic

The afternoon passed; the shadows slowly lengthened. Guests started to take their leave, then the bulk left in a rush. The long day drew to a close with Vane and Patienceon the front porch of the Place, waving the last of the guests away. Even the family had departed. Only Devil and Honoria remained at the Place—and they’d retired to their apartments to play with Sebastian, who’d spent much of the afternoon with his nurse. As the last carriage rumbled away down the drive, Vane glanced at Patience, close by his side. His wife. The four-letter word no longer shook him, at least, not in the same way. Now, in his head, it rang with possessiveness, a possessiveness that satisfied, that sat well with his conqueror’s soul. He’d found her, he’d seized her—now he could enjoy her. He studied her face, then raised one brow. And turned her back into the house. “Did I tell you this place has an extremely interesting conservatory?”

This book turns to Devil’s closest friend among his cousins, Spencer “Vane” Cynster, older son of George, third son of the fourth Duke of St. Ives. Not being noble he’s vowed not to encumber himself with a wife; Devil has a son, and appears likely to have a few more given that his son was clearly conceived before his wedding. And his uncle Arthur’s son Simon also stands ahead of him in the ducal succession. Patience Debbington has also vowed to eschew mar-riage, because her father had made her mother miserable by spending very little time with her and her children before his death six years after his son Gerrard (who later turns up as the male lead in The Truth About Love, the first Barnaby Adair mystery) was born. Their mother died some years later, and to a considerable degree Patience, who is nine years older than Gerrard, had raised him and still, at 26, feels responsible for him. As the story opens Patience and Gerrard are staying with their aunt Arminta “Minnie” Bellamy in her stately home, when Vane—Minnie’s godson—arrives to take shelter from a storm that catches him on the road. Lots of sparks between the two of them from the start, and lots of sex from fairly early on in the book, but though Vane breaks his vow and proposes to her frequently, she turns him down even though she’s entirely willing to be bedded by him at any opportunity (and beds aren’t essential…). There’s a mild mystery element in this one, though nothing like a murder; people at the estate have seen lights at night flitting around the ruins of an old abbey on the property, odds and ends of jewelry and other small items have disappeared, and Gerrard was knocked unconscious, though not seriously hurt, while sketching near the ruins. The romance is much more emphasized than the mystery, and there’s no real surprise in whodunit, so I’d categorize this as more of a straight romance than a mystery as I do Devil’s Bride.

What a joy it is to discover an author with a long backlist ! I particularly like long series with a whole dynasty unfolding. So this was my 2nd Stephanie Laurens book. I found it a bit disjointed, especially at the beginning, not as smoothly entertaining as Devil's bride - a clear 5 stars!Vane's godmother's entourage was difficult to credit, and when the Sceptre and thief are discovered, it felt a bit of a let down. Their motivation was particularly unconvincing I thought.Many reviewers have commented on the large number of bedroom scenes. I agree with this, particularly as they lacked originality and were very similar. "Where did you learn to do that? i heard the maids talk..." A bit lame!Still, I look forward to reading what happens to the other members of the Bar Cynster.

This book starts where the previous one ended....with Vabe leaving town after his cousin and Bar Cynster pack leader, had fallen and shackled himself to his new wife. He is running from fate without realizing he is running towards it....kkkk. Patience is trying to raise her younger brother and she fears Vane Cynster is not a good influence due to his reputation and tells him so. However she soon realizes she made a mistake and finds herself unable to resist their mutual attraction and embarks in a passionate and scalding sexual relationship. Patience is seeking nothing more than exploring her sexuality for the first time and is shocked to find out the rake wants more. He wants forever!!!! Another fantastic read with a good plot though not as good as the Devil's bride. Highly recommended!!

This is a well-written book by Stephanie Laurens - the second in a 15 book series. I had read a later book, but that did not really cause any problems. There is an interesting twist to the simple Regency Romance in that there is a mystery to be solved of a 'Spectre' roaming the grounds of Bellamy House, and there was also a thief who stole little items apparently at random. There was an ill assorted group of 'house guests' to choose the culprit from, who were mainly poor or distant relations of Lady Bellamy or her late husband, although the hero was her godson, Vale Cynster, and the heroine was her niece, Patience.I enjoyed the story, reading it with only a few necessary stops (like going to bed!), and I will certainly be adding the others in this series to my List. I would, however, comment that I felt that there were rather too many 'bedroom scenes'. I know that a few are expected, and undoubtedly flow from the genre being a Romance. But I did feel that a couple could have been pruned a bit, to stop too much repetition.

The second of the Cynster novels, this is in many aspects a much better effort than the first one. Central to all of them (or at least the first six) are the Bar Cynster: six men of around the same age, all brothers or first cousins and all in want of wives, even if they do not know this or want to admit to it.This is Regency England, shortly after the Napoleonic Wars, and the Cynster clan encompasses your typical alpha males. Outwardly they are perfect gentlemen, always turned out to perfection and looking frightfully dashing. They are arrogant to their fingertips, never prepared to admit that they are wrong or to bow down to anyone, certainly not a woman. The leading male in this book, Vane, summarises this to the leading lady early in the book: "I am not a gentleman," he drawls confidently to her. "I am a conqueror."If you can handle your men this testosterone-laden, then this book is a joy to read. Vane is much the same as his cousin Devil (subject of the first book), but thankfully our heroine, Patience Debbington, is sufficiently different from Devil's wife Honoria, and this isn't just a repeat of book one but with different names. The whodunit subplot is also much better handled, in that this time I didn't figure out the culprit until much, much later in the book.The plot is pretty simple. Vane, on his way to somewhere or other, is forced to seek shelter with his godmother Minnie by an unexpected thunderstorm. As an aside, this appears a popular theme with this author: book one featured a thunderstorm, and there is another thunderstorm later in this book. I'm wondering whether this is a veiled way of showing that the Cynsters only bow to forces of nature, but I digress.Minnie always plays hostess to a variety of people, and this time her strays include her niece Patience, who has taken her seventeen-year-old brother Gerrard with her to prepare him for introduction into the aristocratic ton. Vane sees Patience, desires her, and the rest is pretty easy to predict. The subplot revolves around a petty thief who steals objects of minor value and someone wandering the ruins at night with a light, but it's all just window-dressing to the centrepiece of Vane and Patience's building desire for each other. I found most the secondary characters fairly interchangeable, which wasn't helped by two of them being called Edgar and Edward, so I could never remember who was who, but again this did not detract from my overall enjoyment of the book.The romance is sizzling, the sex is searing. I'm always curious as to how the men in this era manage to be so confidently experienced in the carnal arts when a woman is considered fallen if she has sex outside of marriage, but I haven't often seen the whole `experienced man with green virgin' trope this well-executed. I must also give Vane credit for actually being able to utter the words `I love you', since Devil was too much of an alpha to do so.All in all a gem of a romance, even if most of the other characters take second or even third fiddle, and while I hope that the whole range of manly Cynster men won't start to get boring, I'm very much looking forward to the next book in this series.

"A Rake's Vow" continues to introduce the reader with the charming Cynster Bar males in Regency England.This is the story of Vane Cynster, best friend of Devil Cynster whose story is wonderfully delivered in "Devil's Bride" by this author. Vane Cynster is just as handsome as his cousin and he has a special commanding presence about him that makes him stand out among the other aristocrats. He is more than sure that he will never marry and he decides to leave the matchmaking mamas in London and takes refuge in his godmother's country house. Bellamy Hall is full of weird and also interesting inhabitants. Vane arrives in the middle of a storm to meet the most beautiful and most stubborn woman he has ever met. Patience Debbington is a very intelligent and independent young lady. She knows what she wants and she definitely knows whose company is troublesome and undesirable. She doesn't like Vane despite of their mutualattraction. She considers him one of the ton's most dangerous representatives "an elegant gentleman". She wants him to leave Bellamy Hall as soon as possible and protect her younger brother from his "bad" influence. Vane is intrigued. He is powerfully pulled to Patience and he picks up the challenge of conquering her. Bellamy Hall has its own mysterious happenings and Vane stays to investigate and of course to woo Patience. Their battle of the sexes is very passionate and full of witty dialogues and humorous interference from the other residents. In the meantime the reader gets to meet the Cynster family. They are a very family-orientated lot and they look after each other. The author is very good with her fascinating characterization and she manages to introduce both the leading duo and the supporting cast as humans with all their beauty and follies.A RAKE'S VOW is a fabulous historical romance combining a passionate love story with an exciting mystery. It also gives us another insight into the life of a proper and caring aristocratic family in Regency England. I look forward to reading more about them in the next book and highly recommend it to all readers.