Want a NOOK? Explore Now
#1 New York Times bestselling author Johanna Lindsey's "mastery of historical romance" (Entertainment Weekly) takes center stage in her eagerly anticipated new novel of the aristocratic Malory family — a passionate, witty, and high-spirited tale that provides startling new information about a prominent member of the family.
After her mother died, vivacious Katey Tyler fled her dull Connecticut town, hoping to meet her relatives in England and find adventure and romance on a grand tour of Europe. She had no idea that her life-changing travels would have both in spades — as well as danger and intrigue — when she catches the eye of ship owner Boyd Anderson and inadvertently stumbles upon a high-stakes kidnapping.
When Sir Anthony Malory's young daughter is abducted from London's Hyde Park, her kidnapper mistakenly sends the ransom note to the home of Sir Anthony's brother, James. With James and his wife, Georgina, in the Caribbean, the demands are received by their houseguest — Georgina's youngest brother, Boyd Anderson. Searching for the girl with Anthony, the notoriously hot-headed American sea captain fully intends to make the foolhardy villain pay. But he hardly expects to find exquisite Katey Tyler, recently a passenger on his ship, at the center of the plot!
Little does Katey realize that in having caught the attention of Boyd Anderson — and in meeting up with the Malorys — she's about to experience more excitement than the typical young lady encounters on a grand tour, and her life will never be dull again. A multitude of surprises await Katey, from the startling truth about her mother's early life to the lengths a man will go to win the affections of a lady who has every reason to despise him — but who can't resist the seductive, impassioned love he has to offer her.
With the delightful humor, lovable characters, and tempestuous passions that have placed Johanna Lindsey's eight previous Malory novels among the best-loved and most widely read romantic novels of our time, No Choice But Seduction sweeps readers away on an irresistible adventure that is as bold and charming as the heroine at its heart.
Experience "Lindsey's mastery of historical romance." — Entertainment Weekly
Experience "Lindsey's mastery of historical romance."
— Entertainment Weekly
Spirited Katey Tyler leaves Connecticut and heads to Europe for an adventurous grand tour and a stopover in England in hopes of connecting with her late mother's estranged family. Before her "adventure" even starts, she attracts the attention of sexy shipowner Boyd Anderson, rescues a young girl from a kidnapper, and lands herself smack-dab in the middle of the powerful Malory family! In typical Lindsey fashion, untold secrets, hidden relationships, fascinating family interaction, steamy passion, and an intricate plot add to the mix. Set in 1826, this is the ninth in Lindsey's Malory-Anderson series (beginning with Love Only Once, 1985). While the story stands on its own, because of the many continuing characters, readers would benefit from reading some of the earlier stories. Lindsey (The Devil Who Tamed Her) lives in Hawaii.
Chapter 1
London, England, 1826
The note was delivered by a scruffy child who didn't know he had the wrong house. The mistake wasn't his fault. He hadn't been told there were many different Malory houses in London. He'd come to the first one he'd been directed to, pleased that it hadn't taken long to earn the few coppers in his pocket. And just as he'd been told to do, he'd run off before Henry could question him.
Henry and Artie, two crusty old sea dogs, had shared the job of butler at James Malory's house ever since James had retired from his life at sea and they'd both retired with him. But recently James had gone back to sea, briefly, to rescue his brother-in-law Drew Anderson, who'd got himself into a coil when according to one of his crewmen who'd managed to escape, pirates had stolen his ship right out of London harbor! With him on it! Henry and Artie had tossed a coin to see who would sail with James for the rescue. Henry had lost.
Henry tossed the note without reading it onto the mountainous pile of calling cards and invitations that had come in from people who didn't know the Malorys of this particular household weren't in residence. A normal butler would never have let the tray on the hall table overflow with invitations and letters. But in the eight years since Henry and Artie had begun sharing the job, neither of them had learned how to be a proper butler.
That afternoon when Boyd Anderson returned to the Malory house in Berkeley Square, he found the note on his tray, along with a few other cards that had slid off the larger pile next to it. He didn't usually have a tray of his own in his sister Georgina's house, but then he usually only visited for a week or two, never as long as several months as this visit had turned out to be. Nor was it the first time Georgina's mail had got mixed up with his.
Despite having given it a lot more thought, Boyd still hadn't made up his mind yet about settling in England. But that wasn't why he was still here. He hadn't returned to sea yet because he was doing his sister a favor. Although Georgina had married into the large Malory family and any one of her numerous in-laws would have been delighted to take care of her children while she was gone, Georgina's seven-year-old daughter, Jacqueline, balked at joining her young twin siblings at the country home of their cousin Lady Regina Eden, because she didn't want to be that far away from her best friend and cousin, Judith. Other Malorys in London could have taken her, but since Boyd was staying at her London house, Georgina had asked him to keep an eye on Jacqueline until he sailed again.
He would have preferred to go along for the rescue. That would have been a fine bit of work to tease his brother Drew about. But he had, in fact, done Georgina another good turn by not insisting on going, since her husband didn't get along well with any of her brothers, himself included. The man didn't even get along with his own brothers. And there was no way he and James Malory wouldn't come to blows if they ended up on a ship together. Besides, the look on James's face when Boyd had suggested accompanying him, well, it had made Boyd glad he had an excuse to stay behind after all.
"We all know where she'd rather stay," Georgina had remarked. "But Roslynn mentioned in passing that she might be enceinte again, so she needs peace and quiet in her household just now, which won't be the case with Judy and Jack in residence. When you're ready to sail will be soon enough to deposit her there."
Roslynn Malory turned out not to be pregnant. Boyd ended up not sailing as expected. And Jack, as her father had named her at birth, was happy enough where she was, since she still got to visit with her cousin Judith as often as she liked.
Boyd wasn't exactly worried about Drew, anyway. Georgina did enough worrying for all of them. But Boyd knew his brother well and had no doubt that he'd extricate himself from whatever trouble he'd gotten into long before Georgina and her husband arrived to help. Hell, considering how long they'd been gone, he was beginning to suspect they hadn't even caught up to Drew's ship yet!
Georgina hadn't expected Boyd to stay in London this long. No one had, himself included. But when his ship, The Oceanus, returned from the short run he'd sent her on, instead of leaving with her, he sent her off again. And gave more thought to giving up the sea for good.
The Andersons' family business, Skylark Shipping, also had an office in London now. While the family had avoided England for many years due to the old war and the hard feelings that had ensued from that, they were once again firmly entrenched in trading with the English. In fact, now that England was central to all of their newly acquired routes, the London office had grown considerably in the last eight years. Boyd wouldn't half mind taking over the running of it.
Become landlocked? God, why didn't he just do it already? Because oddly enough, he loved the sea. He just hated what it did to him.
Georgina had introduced him to London society more than once on his visits here. He even kept a wardrobe at her house specifically for his London stays that was more appropriate for a gentleman, since the English dressed quite a bit more fancily than sailors did! He didn't go excessive in frilly cravats or lacy cuffs as some of them did. In fact, he took a cue from his brother-in-law, James — well-tailored, but subdued and even open-collared. And he had a few velvet jackets that spruced him up for evening social events.
On this extended visit he'd been receiving invitations to balls and soirées from Georgina's acquaintances that knew he was still in town, and he'd occasionally accepted. He wasn't actively looking for a wife, but if the right woman showed up, that would be incentive to settle down. He'd thought he'd found her. Katey Tyler would have been the perfect woman for him — if she wasn't already taken!
God, how did he let her sneak into his mind again? Once she did, it took days and a good bout of drinking to get her out again. But only briefly. She was somewhere in his thoughts more often than not. It seemed that knowing he couldn't have her because she already had a husband made him want her even more! He'd never been able to figure out what exactly it was about Katey Tyler that had twisted him inside out on that voyage. She wasn't even the kind of woman that usually caught his eye.
She was too tall for one thing, only a few inches shorter than he was. He preferred to feel tall where his women were concerned, and Mrs. Tyler didn't give him that feeling when she stood eye to eye with him. But it didn't matter. One look at her lushly abundant curves and nothing else mattered.
She could talk a lot — about nothing. That was a remarkable feat. Even more remarkable, he'd never found that annoying! Her dimples often made her seem like she was smiling when she wasn't. And she contradicted herself a lot, which could be quite confusing, but he actually found that endearing. It made her seem charmingly absentminded. Her nose was slim, almost patrician, her brows rather thin, her mouth — he could never think about her mouth without becoming aroused.
No woman had ever affected him like that before, or stayed in his thoughts this long.
Gabrielle Brooks had caught his interest though. What a relief that had been, assuring him that he wasn't a lost cause! She could have banished Katey from his mind — well, that had been his original hope. Gabby had arrived in London at about the same time he did and had become Georgina and James's houseguest because her father, an old friend of James's, had asked James to sponsor her for the Season.
A pretty thing, Gabby could have turned his thoughts toward marriage if Drew hadn't been taken with her, too. Not that his carefree brother ever intended to get leg-shackled, as the English put it. But Gabby seemed to be fascinated with Drew, too, so Boyd had stopped thinking about her as a possible wife. Besides, she was the daughter of a pirate, as it turned out, and Boyd would have had a hard time getting past that simple fact. Pirates were the nemesis of honest sailors.
He glanced at the two invitations on his tray that were actually for him and carefully put back the four that were addressed to his sister. He opened the folded note since he couldn't tell whom that was for. He had to read it twice before the meaning sank in. And then he was bolting up the stairs shouting his niece's name.
When he found Jacqueline in her room, the color returned to his cheeks and his heart slowly returned to its normal beat. He read the note once more.
I have your daughter. Start gathering a fortune if you want her back. You'll be told where to bring it.
Boyd shoved the note in his pocket, deciding it had obviously been delivered to the wrong house. He wondered if any of Georgina's neighbors had daughters. He didn't know, but he'd have to take that note to the authorities.
"What's wrong, Uncle?"
Glancing at Jack's woebegone expression, Boyd replied, "I could ask you the same thing."
She started to shrug, but then she sighed and said, "Judy's riding her first horse today in Hyde Park. Not a pony, a real horse Uncle Tony bought her."
"And you weren't invited to watch?" he guessed.
"I was, but — I think only Uncle Tony should share that with her. He's so been looking forward to it."
Boyd managed to stifle a grin. His niece was only seven years old, but sometimes she amazed him with her insight and consideration for others. She obviously wanted to be in the park watching her best friend ride her first real horse, but she'd taken the girl's father's feelings into account instead.
Boyd had known about the outing and had been afraid that Jack would feel left out. He'd actually considered buying her a horse as well, but then he realized his sister might have a fit if he did. Actually, it was James's likely reaction that had decided him against it. If Sir Anthony had been looking forward to seeing his daughter's excitement upon riding her first real horse, James was probably looking forward to the same.
"Besides," Jacqueline added. "Judy's coming over tonight to spend the weekend, so I'll be hearing — "
She didn't finish because Henry burst in completely out of breath, as if he'd run up the stairs just as Boyd had done. Without saying what had brought him upstairs in such a hurry, he glanced at the daughter of the house then motioned for Boyd to come out into the corridor. Henry knew that small children had big ears, and this was one thing he was going to make absolutely sure Jack didn't overhear.
"A messenger just came from Sir Anthony," Henry whispered urgently in Boyd's ear. " 'E's asked for every man in the 'ouse to come and 'elp 'im search for 'is daughter. She's gone missing in the park."
"Damn," Boyd said, and pulled Henry downstairs with him before he showed the old salt the note.
It made sense now. The note hadn't been delivered to the wrong house on the street, just the wrong Malory house, which mistake happened frequently with eight separate Malory households in the city.
"A search isn't going to be necessary," Boyd said grimly. "But I need to get this note to Sir Anthony immediately."
"Bleedin' 'ell, the cap'n is going to be furious 'e ain't 'ere to 'elp."
Boyd didn't doubt that the captain Henry referred to was James Malory. The two younger Malory brothers were quite close, just as Boyd was close to Drew and Georgina, they being the three youngest in their family.
"Then I'll just have to represent him," Boyd said as he rushed out of the house.
Copyright © 2008 by Johanna Lindsey
Anonymous
Posted Mon Aug 04 00:00:00 EDT 2008
As an avid Lindsey fan who is completely enamored with the Malory Clan, I was thoroughly disapointed with the book. Katie and Boyd are completely flat and written out of character for Lindsey's traditionally compelling heroine and hero. Where is Boyd's hot-temper and teasing personality that his been a part of other novels? While the twist was a nice addition, I was disapointed in the sudden change in Anthony's character by changing his past. The storyline insinuates that Katie's Mom was his long lost love that got away and shoved his love for Rosylnn into a dimming light. Another change from her previous work. I never felt like you truely got to know the main characters with all of the constant rehashing of every detail of the other Malory's lives.
5 out of 6 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Yes I do know all about the Malory and ther series. I think that the family is funny and enjoyable. However, this was suppose to be aboul Boyd and his love interest. Eveything was drag out and wasn't upbeat or looking forward to turning the page. The next page was boring more than the first. There was nothing to look forward to in this book.
When it was found out that she is Anthony daughter it just became more depressing. Didn't like it at all. Miss Lindsey is one of my top writters. I love her style, but I have to say that this one isn't to my liking.
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Wed Jul 23 00:00:00 EDT 2008
I was extremely disappointed in this novel. I have read all of the Malory novels and this one lacks spice between the characters. It made Boyd Anderson seem like a love sick puppy and mindless. The book referenced that Boyd was staying with Jack while James and George went to rescue Drew, but there was no reference of the twins. I guess I expected if you bring up some character try to incorporate something of the others if only briefly. Of course you cannot help but enjoy Tony and James going at each other and the Anderson¿s. It was problem trying to keep track of the daydreams from the rest of the novel. The novel seemed to jump around too much. However the novel lacked so much in the quality that a reader has come to expect from Johanna Lindsey. Usually I have a problem putting down a Malory novel, but this time it took me forever to read it.
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.TomsgirlPA
Posted Mon Sep 14 00:00:00 EDT 2009
If you love the saga of the Mallory family, you are sure to enjoy the latest story. It's fun to see how the characters interact with each other and the new characters. This is romance at it's finest.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.This tale touches on the Anderson side of the Malory family. Two Americans, with different goals, meet at the wrong time.
This story allows us to revisit the Malorys and Andersons. It was fun to see where they are now and how they support an heroic stranger.
This makes me want to go back to the beginning of the saga and start reading it, again.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Wed Feb 18 00:00:00 EST 2009
I must agree...the book didnt focus on Boyed and Katey and their love story as much BUT I loved the book and all the surprises it had :) If you like the Malory's, you'll love this book. There is a lot of Anthony and James in and it is hillarious!!I could not put the book down!!Will absolutely recommend this book :)
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Fri Jul 18 00:00:00 EDT 2008
I gave up peeling potatoes to be distracted by this? The story was underdeveloped, the characters lacked every facet to make them remotely interesting or intriguing. Katie reminded me of a petulant 14 year old with no real clue as to what she wanted. Her character was flat. Boyd held a sliver of potentially becoming a rounded character until he uttered 'marry me'. The book was more about the Malory clan. The title really should have been 'Malory Memory Lane'. I have been disappointed to many times, I highly doubt that I will buy any of her future books.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Wed Jul 02 00:00:00 EDT 2008
Wow, I was really hoping that this summer's newest Johanna Lindsey book would recapture the romance and adventure from her previous works. However, once again it didn't work out. This plot in this newest Malory book was thin 'to say the least' and the spark just wasn't there between the characters. In the past few years, I've stopped purchasing the newest Lindsey books because they aren't worth the money. I really hate to say this, but Lindsey needs to either take more time to write books that are worthy of her name or just stop writing all together. Sorry, but that's how I feel and I'm seeing by other reviews, many people feel the same way too.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Thu Jun 12 00:00:00 EDT 2008
I absolutely love the Mallory Family. I love James the most and Anthony second. This story has all three. The story starts with the abduction of Anthony's daughter Judith. Boyd, Georgina's youngest brother is in residence since James and Georgina are chasing pirates in the Caribbean. Boyd and Jeremy rescue Judith. Boyd recognizes his former passenger, the married woman he wanted to marry. The lust for Katey continues throughout the book. Katey is extremely innocent and doesn't understand the lust completely. She falls into the traps of her own lusts. The story is great because it is the Mallorys with James and Anthony for comic relief, but I do hope Johanna breaks out into a different area soon. We readers accepted the first bastard son of Jason. We liked the second bastard son of James, but pulling a third bastard daughter? Anthony's bastard daughter? That is enough bastards in the Mallory family. Yes, you like Katey for her innocence, love of animals, and need for a large family. You still think the third bastard is a bit much. The reuniting with long lost family is getting old as well. If editors think this is what we want from Johanna, they may be wrong. We love Johanna for her humor, humorous characters, and her creative new stories. I will always read Johanna, but I like creative new stories. Are you listening Brick and Mortar Editors? Let Johanna create!
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Fri Aug 01 00:00:00 EDT 2014
I love all her books
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Fri Aug 01 00:00:00 EDT 2014
But I don't write reviews. I only read authors I like-- Nora Roberts, J.D. Robb, Catherine Coulter, Jude Deveraux, Kay Hooper, Iris Johansen, Stephanie Laurens, Johanna Lindsey and Rachel Lee to name a few.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.meme55
Posted Fri Jul 25 00:00:00 EDT 2014
Great book, always love the Malory Family series.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.I love Johanna Lindsey's Malory books. This book kept up with the Malory family, but I felt like it moved too fast over Boyd Anderson and Katey Tyler's love affair. While I love any interaction between Anthony and James Malory, the book focused too much on Anthony. Basically, it should have been longer. Overall, still a great read, just fell short of the Malory standard.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.7094229
Posted Sun Jun 12 00:00:00 EDT 2011
I+absolutely+love+J.+Lindsey%2C+but+this+book+was+so+boring+that+it+took+me+nearly+a+week+to+finish+it%2C+%28+and+that+is+like+a+whole+year+for+me%29.+I+did+not+get+enough+of+the+two+main+characters+and+Anthony+being+Katey%27s+father+was+just+rushed+and+changed+my+view+of+him+and+his+wife%27s+story.+I+hope+her+next+novel+meets+her+standards.+Because+this+one+did+not.+Ugh.
1 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Luadri
Posted Thu Mar 04 00:00:00 EST 2010
I love all the Malory Novels, but sad to say this one was very disappointing. The romance was nowhere to be found and the relationship was rushed. The protagonists spent less than half of the novel together.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Thu Jul 24 00:00:00 EDT 2008
I am a hugh fan of Johanna Lindsy. I collect all her books. This was a hugh disappointement and poorly written. I have completely enjoyed all the others in the Malory Series. This one could and should have been written better.
1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Mon Jun 30 00:00:00 EDT 2008
Johanna Lindsey is an exceptional historical romance novelist-I have read every one of her novels! Most are intriguing, humorous, and deliciously spicy! However, I must say this was not one of Lindsey's best works. The biggest downfall was the lack of character development of the main heroine Katey, as well as Boyd Anderson(her beau). I agree with other disappointed fans that the main emphasis was placed on the Mallory family ties. Most fans love the infectious humor of the Mallory clan but we would like to read about more than the classic Tony and James feuds! If you enjoy reading about the Mallorys but prefer better character development, I would suggest 'Captive of My Desires' as a much better read.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Sun Jun 22 00:00:00 EDT 2008
This book really let me down. The characters lack a connection that can be found in her previous works. The book jumps around and focuses more on the mallory family than the love story building between boyd and Katey, in truth they hardly interact at all. Compared to the other mallory novels this book is very disapointing. :(
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Sun Jul 13 00:00:00 EDT 2008
Like the other reviews, I was looking forward to reading the newest Lindsey book but was disappointed. It was a quick read & I always enjoy the Mallorys & Andersons. I just wish she had developed the realtionship between Katie & Boyd better. I also felt there was no real plot line.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted Mon Aug 11 00:00:00 EDT 2014
love anything Lindsey does. So it was a no brainer.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.
Overview
#1 New York Times bestselling author Johanna Lindsey's "mastery of historical romance" (Entertainment Weekly) takes center stage in her eagerly anticipated new novel of the aristocratic Malory family — a passionate, witty, and high-spirited tale that provides startling new information about a prominent member of the family.
After her mother died, vivacious Katey Tyler fled her dull Connecticut town, hoping to meet her relatives in England and find adventure and romance on a ...