Tempt Me at Twilight

by Lisa Kleypas Book 3 in the The Hathaways series.

First published 2009

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4.2(57,199)

Poppy Hathaway wants a calm and ordinary marriage, but hotel owner Harry Rutledge decides that he wants her and manipulates events to remove a rival. Their marriage begins under compromised circumstances, forcing Harry to learn that control and acquisition cannot substitute for trust.

The setting reflects the growth of luxury hotels, railway travel and self-made commercial fortunes in Victorian Britain. Poppy’s position also shows how quickly a woman’s reputation could narrow her choices after a public misunderstanding.

Harry’s manipulation of Poppy’s courtship gives the marriage an ethical problem that affection alone cannot erase. Wealth and ownership of the hotel give him unusual power over information and circumstance, while Poppy’s large family provides emotional support but cannot undo the legal reality of marriage. The romance therefore turns on whether control can be replaced by trust once the deception is understood.