Devil You Know Book

My hopes for The Devil You Know were set too high because of the great reviews I had read here and in Amazon. However, I had only read one book by Carlyle so far, My False Heart, and I wasn't impressed with her style.

It turns out I was right to be wary after all; the book had so much potential but finally it did not deliver, not for me at least. The premises were interesting: The hero, Bentley, and the heroine, Frederika=Freddie, spent a night of passion which results in her pregnancy. When Bentley finds out he does the honorable thing and demands that she marry him. Freddie is hesitant since Bentley is a known rake and afraid he'll make a terrible husband and father but in the end she accepts. Shortly after the marriage they depart for Bentley's country house, owned by his brother, Lord Treyhern. As soon as they arrive there, it becomes obvious to Freddie that the relationship between Bentley and his brother is strained to say the least. Also, the usually carefree, frivolous Bentley starts having depression spells that he refuses to explain to his wife. Although the passion and attraction between them becomes stronger every day, Bentley refuses to trust her with his secrets and that is a cause of arguments between them. Will Freddie break through Bentley's defenses and cure him from his troubles? Because if she can't, there probably won't be any future for the two of them.

My impression is that Bentley Rutledge's character is very close to that of Sebastian St Vincent from A Devil In Winter: a very handsome, charming rake who has slept with more women than he can count but with a gold heart underneath. Certainly, this should be a good omen, since I love DIW.

However, there are a few problems with this book:
Many important parts of Bentley's past are described in previous books and are here only briefly mentioned, which leaves the reader who hasn't read the previous books in a confused state. His character is not fully developed, especially his rakinesh(!); instead the reader of TDYK meets a sweet, caring but deeply hurt young man but she's told that he was a famous and even dangerous rake.
Also, my worst peeve, is that Bentley talked and acted in a way a man never would; he was just too sweet and romantic to be believable, and IMO, his attitude was that of a lovestruck teenager and not that of a man. Of course, my peeve is probably many a reader's best aspect of the story:)
The number of secondary characters and pets(!) is overwhelming; readers who have not read Carlyle's previous books, will be lost in her universe, and the use of unsual and/or jawbreaking names for most of them, didn't make them particularly memorable. People who want to fully appreciate this one, should at least read Beauty Like The Night and No True Gentleman (I haven't) for an insight at Bentley's past, since he's the star in this one; Freddie is more or less supportive cast.
And finally, I strongly believe that Carlyle is too prone on melodrama in order to create angst in her books. I love angst in my romance novels, I adore it, but somehow both in this one and in My False Heart, it seems forced and fake and somewhat over the top.

All things considered, the plot was interesting, Bentley's actions justified after his big secret was revealed. Also the story picked pace in the last 100-150 pages and Bentley's character became more consistent. I'm sure that less cynic or younger readers, will fully appreciate the romance and sweetness of it anyway; however, reading her previous books before this one is highly recommended.
Since I have another book by Carlyle in my TBR, Never Romance A Rake, I decided to read that one before I reach a final verdict about how I feel for her style. I'm feeling though that she's too flowery and melodramatic for my tastes.