Revenge Wears Rubies Book

Renee Bernard's Revenge Wears Rubies has the blurb- "This luscious tale will enthrall you" from author Sabrina Jeffries. This tale of revenge didn't enthrall me in any form, even though it didn't have great promise.

Galen Hawke wants revenge against a woman who was so cruel and cold, who dared to become engaged to another man so quickly after the death of her beloved killed in Bengal, India. Galen and eight other English gentlemen from all walks of life, known as The Jaded, suffered at the hands of a raja. But only seven came back alive. The man who died went on and on about the lovely Miss Haley Moreland before his death. Galen will make this witch pay for not spending enough time in mourning. He'll seduce her and leave her ruined. And then his revenge will be complete!

But Galen doesn't know the real story about Haley and why she's engaged to a bore of a man who will give her stability, but not the passion and love she longs for. That's where Galen comes in. Even though Galen rubs Haley the wrong way, she finds herself attracted to him and throws all caution to the wind. This caution, that is bound to get her in trouble, is having Galen sticking his hand up under her ball gown. Because Haley feels an inferno of "white-hot coil inside her that unravels in an ecstatic explosion", she ends up sneaking out late one night and goes to Galen's house unaccompanied for him to finish what he started. Not only does Haley not really like Galen, but as a proper virginal miss, engaged to be married, has no regards to losing her innocence with Galen because he is so skilled at love making. The reason makes perfect sense for Haley since she has to deal with her drunk of a father and is so fed up where she finally wants to "be ruled by passion and risk ruin."

Haley's actions didn't ring true to me at all and Galen is this poor, woes is me hero who really has no pleasing personality or any thing else to recommend. He sneaks around from scene to scene, lurking in the shadows, trying to catch Haley so he can have his wicked way with her and lead her to ruin just because she dare to not mourn the allotted year for a man who loved her, but who she may have had no clue about. Revenge is not worn well in this lacking historical romance from Renee Bernard.