Book Review: A Cunning Plan by B. Snow

Reviewed by Heather C

Title: A Cunning Plan
Author: B. Snow
Heroes: Alec Whittlesey & Morgan Villenie
Genre: M/M Historical Romance
Length: 53,576 words
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: November 29, 2013
Available at: Dreamspinner Press, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf at: Goodreads & Booklikes

Blurb: Alec, Earl of Whittlesey, lives a dull and reclusive existence, rarely mingling with society and, to his mother’s regret, refusing to marry. But his mother and society do not know he harbors a secret: a kind of madness that is driving him to deadly despair.

When Alec meets the commoner Morgan Villenie, he finds the man’s cheer and wit hard to resist, despite his own dark moods. Alec warms to Villenie, but Villenie has secrets of his own. If these two men are ever truly to be together, they must trust each other enough to reveal those secrets—even if they both believe the truth could tear them apart.

Review:

Well THIS was different!

Alec Whittlesey has been battling a “madness” within himself for years; drowning it out with alcohol and seclusion.  When he finally reaches his breaking point one night and walks out into the lake attempting to drown himself, a white fox appears and saves him from that final mistake.  The next morning, Alec meets Morgan Villenie, a dear friend of Alec’s mother.  Alec has gotten himself into a bit of a pickle and Villenie has the perfect plan: for Alec to marry Villenie’s sister, Penelope…  I don’t want to go into all of the plot details because then I will just be spoiling all of the fun!  (Trust me when I say that there is no silly love triangle with a woman in this story)

What I loved about this novella:

The snappy dialogue.  It really drove the pace of the story and I couldn’t put it down!

The characters.  Alec and Villenie both have their secrets…secrets that have nearly broken them.

The sexual tension.  Oh man, poor Alec’s self denial was torturous!  There aren’t many smexy scenes here but the intensity at which Alec’s innocence is lost…hot!

The deceptions.  Okay, I felt a little silly at the end when all the pieces starting fitting into place, but for the life of me, I couldn’t settle on one theory of what Villenie was really up to until it was revealed.  I mean, it crossed my mind, but along with several other theories, too.

What needed a bit more focus:

The paranormal aspects.  They are subtle at first, but really are the foundation of the entire story.  Personally, I would have loved for those parts to have been a bit more prominent.

In the end:

I had a lot of fun reading this, even with all the darkness, there was a bit of humor in there to lighten it up.  Yeah, these two will have a HEA.

This is B. Snow’s debut novella and I’m definitely interested in seeing what she releases next.

Overall Impression: I Liked It!

*I purchased my own, personal copy of this book for review.*