Once More, My Darling Rogue (Scandalous Gentlemen of St. James Book 2)

It takes a very talented author to take an immensely unlikable and spoiled heroine and transform her into someone caring, likable, and deserving of her HEA. Lorraine Heath has always been a favorite of mine and with this second installment in her Scandalous Gentlemen of St. James series she shows just such a talent by transforming the extremely nasty and spoiled Ophelia into Phee who's good to both people and animals and works hard when tasked with living a life foreign to her.Ophelia has been taught not to associate with those of the lower class by a cold and commanding father. She carries an air of superiority and doesn't hesitate to lord her status over others, particularly made man Drake Darling. Her comments are cutting and hurtful and make her immensely unlikable as the story starts until a dramatic event changes her life, her attitude and continues to put her in jeopardy from demons from her past. Ophelia is a strong-willed woman who knows what she wants and what she wants is freedom and her promised inheritance to acheive that. With the family coffers dwindling though desperate times call for desperate measures and a near-drowning in the river with a bout of amnesia courtesy of a mysterious figure along with brief, painful glimpses from the past don't bode well for her future. Being rescued by Drake leads to an eye-opening experience as he convinces her that she's his maid. She learns that the lower class aren't what she was taught and neither is Drake. She becomes a more caring and appreciative person, learns to love and find freedom in acceptance of herself and ultimately Drake. Throughout this journey Drake's there keeping her safe from her past and those seeking to harm her future which allows for a friendship to morph into a love that will be put in jeopardy once she discovers that he's been lying to her ever since he rescued her.Drake started out a boy on the streets who witnessed his father killing his mother and believes his father's darkness taints his soul. He was rescued by a man of wealth and is grateful for all he's been given in life though he doesn't feel worthy. He longs for a deep connection with someone but the darkness in him has him keeping his distance. Though their relationship started out bitterly he finds himself drawn to Ophelia. At first he just wants to bring her down a notch through his lie but discovering her deeper layers while she's in his home has him finding a soul similar to his. Theirs is an unlikely connection but a deep one of complete acceptance. I liked Drake immensely as he was charming and loyal to his friends and family. He worked hard to rise above his circumstances. He knew his lie to Phee was wrong but keeping her safe was worth the ramifications. He knows he's not a good man but he is a man worthy of a HEA and he finds it with the most unlikely of women.Ms. Heath surprised me by making me like the new Ophelia. She made her into a real person who was easy to relate to. Discovering what made her the shrew she was at the start of the story, through foreboding references at first and then the discovery of how she was trained as a child by her father, lead to great sympathy for her. Though I couldn't completely forgive her as she was a bit hypocritical in her thoughts regarding Drake early on. I adored Drake in the previous book and his protectiveness of his adopted sister Grace, Ophelia's friend. He might be rough around the edges but I found him charming and could forgive his lie as I too wanted Ophelia to learn a lesson. These two bruised souls formed a surprisingly satisfying connection and their romance was both sweet and sensual and progressed at a believable pace. The secondary characters were again delightful and showed support towards one another that only people who've been through hardships could understand. I look forward to more stories from this band of brothers. The mystery surrounding Ophelia was another intriguing part of the story and Ms. Heath juggled its issues both past and present perfectly to add surprising layers to her character. I was doubtful at the start of the story but Ms. Heath's talent shown through and took me on a delightful and satisfying journey to HEA between two very different people joined in their inner pain. This was another entertaing installment in the Scandalous Gentlemen of St. James series that can be read on its own but with such a strong cast of characters you won't want to miss any of their stories.

Once More, My Darling Rogue was an entertaining, sweet, sometimes dark, and slightly comedic historical romance. The tale of Drake Darling, a commoner raised by a duke, and his nemesis, Lady Ophelia "Phee" Lyttleton, was romping genuine fun in the vein of the late 1980's comedy Overboard. I was weary to try this one after recently reading While the Duke was Sleeping (inspired by While You Were Sleeping) which failed my tastes because the subject matter just didn't fit into the time period as written. "Once More, My Darling Rogue" suffered from similar ailments but made it work in a way that enabled me to suspend belief long enough to just enjoy the ride. I haven't read anything from Lorraine Heath to confirm this book as being inspired by the movie, but clearly there is inspiration found here too large to be ignored.In Rogue, Phee is a spoiled, rotten, cold ice princess of an earl's daughter of the most pampered variety. She has been trained since childhood to regard anyone lesser than nobility as being far beneath her and was once beaten for even communicating with a commoner... who happened to be family friend Drake Darling. (Side note... Darling never does discover this sad account, which would have gone a long way in explaining her behavior toward him. I wish it had come up in the story.) Drake Darling was raised by a duke, but was their adopted son. He was a child of the streets until the age of eight, his father being an abusive murderer, and his mother a victim of said abuse. Darling has all the traits of a gentleman, but he's still a commoner. Phee is forced to dislike him and treats him like trash, though can't help but torment him; Darling comes to despise her for it, while still secretively craving her approval.The story, if you've seen Overboard, is a slightly comedic one. But even that movie had a darker side to it that, if you over-analyze it or question it, will rapidly lose its charm. It's actually NOT very funny to trick a woman into thinking that (in the case of the movie) she has children, when in reality she doesn't, or to even go to bed with her under the pretense that you're her husband. Wowser is that disturbing. Somehow it worked in the movie though, and it's a beloved romantic comedy. In this book version, Phee is made to believe that she's Darling's housekeeper, so at least we're saved from the children/husband situation. It becomes its own story that way too, while being a nod to the concept discussed (like... in this one we have a trough scene instead of a water barrel scene).Luckily there are lots of new concepts to explore here, such as their individual childhood struggles, which have become a huge part of their acting lives as adults. The love is believable, though it is rushed. Lots happens in just about a week, and I wish there had been more time allowed to believe that the two had fallen for each other, and the two had evolved from their deep-rooted issues. The suspension of belief comes in to believe that a woman who can't wash her own hair can learn to cook meals in just a few days. That being said, there was a ton more here that was really worth reading, like the amazing friendship that develops between two women, who would otherwise be unlikely candidates for acquaintance.Amnesia-themed romance is largely problematic but I felt Heath did a good job of handling the subject matter, though the treatment is not perfect (Darling waits way too long to seek the help of a doctor, as one example, unknowing what sort of issue Phee is suffering). But it wasn't as perfectly handled as some other stories I loved with the theme, such as Kleypas' Someone to Watch Over You, or Stealing Heaven by Jaclyn Reding, or, perhaps my favorite, Sweet Fire by Jo Goodman, and contemporary novels Run to Me by Christy Reece and Another Woman by Margot Dalton, the Harlequin book that inspired the movie Another Woman featuring Justin Bateman. Clearly I like this theme and it's the plot of quite a few of my keepers. Rogue isn't quite as good as those, but it's very good.Overall I found this to be a hugely entertaining story on many levels, and I was cheering for Darling and Phee to find each other. Beyond the obvious nod to the 80s classic, this had lots of unique plot points that I found enjoyable. It's not a perfect story, or flawless, by any means, but it works well enough to rise above several historical romances I've read recently.

I loved this book could not put it down.... I've read a number of books from this author this is one of her best.....if I have one little thing to complain about and it is only a little thing it's that Drake paid £100 for some second hand clothes for Phee even today that would have been a lot of money and then to say that he then handed over the coins....just how many coins that would have been I dread to think....but it was still a good book

I loved this story. When I read the synopsis I thought I might not like it, I worried the hero would be really awful to the heroine, but it wasn't like that at all. He was so nice to her and really she took advantage of him rather than the other way around. Lovey, sweet story.

One of my favourite books ever, I'm so glad I brought it, I've been reading the series and by far this is my favourite.

Everything she writes is worth reading. A good story.

excellent which is as always from lorrane heath