Evie’s life has been dictated by her overly controlling mother who would never allow her perfect daughter to fall in with a man with no name, no family and no prospects. Now, Evie sees Crosby for who he really is – a swindler up to no good – and she cannot afford to let him divert her again or get herself caught up in whatever mischief he’s making. To see him again excites Evie but his failure to remember her name and their previous kiss shatters her illusions about the man.

He was attractive, funny and had singled her out before disappearing from town, leaving her heartbroken. Lady Evangeline Green is certain that the man introduced as Lord Crosby is the same person she knew as Lord Barnish while her family was in Bath the previous summer. While her name might escape him and she could spell trouble if she recognizes him, Ash can’t help but steal a kiss. The debut of Lord Crosby goes perfectly for Ash until he is confronted by a beautiful young woman with a familiar face. James and his Spare Heirs Club to give him a home base while in London but also to get him invited to the right parties and introduce him to the people most likely to influence his true target, Lord Rightworth. Selling shares in a fictional company on the cusp of a technological breakthrough played well in smaller society circles but with a few gentlemen getting suspicious Ash has to be at the top of his game.

What none of them know is that Lord Crosby doesn’t exist!Īsh Claughbane has come to London with the sole purpose of pulling off the biggest con of his career one that will settle him for life and exact revenge on the man who ruined his family many years before. All of the business-minded lords are eager to meet with Crosby and the ladies are curious if he’s attached to anyone or looking for a wife. Arriving from an extended jaunt on the continent he is in town to gather investors for his company which is ready to introduce a personal-sized steam engine to the market. Handsome, charming Lord Crosby has made quite the splash in London society.

Ash Claughbane may be a swindler by trade but when he meets the right woman he becomes a true gentleman at heart. An unusual main character is one of the many things I enjoyed about The Rebel Heir, book two of Elizabeth Michels’ The Spare Heirs series. Romance is full of rakes and rogues but I’ve never before run across a con-artist as a hero.

The Rebel Heir by Elizabeth Michels