Lady Wild by Maire Claremont 
Released: May 13, 2013
Historical Novella
Self Published

Reviewed by Mandi

This book isn’t only about the hero and heroine falling in love, but dealing with a beloved mother and her slow terminal illness. For a novella, it packs quite a punch.

Blurb: Lady Ophelia longs to be independent, daring and bold, but her mother’s illness has stolen the last of her creative fire. Condemned to an isolated country cottage after the death of her idealistic father, she and her mother are forsaken by family and all of society. Disappointed by those she once trusted, Lady Ophelia lovingly nurses her dying mother knowing that her own dreams of being an artist will never be realized. That is until she meets a devilish aristocrat who reawakens her desire to be wild. 

Viscount Stark has never known love. Reputed to be a rebel and a rake by all, at heart he is anything but. When he meets Lady Ophelia, he is struck by her haunting presence, dignity, and honor. Will he continue to play his wicked games and risk ruining the last of Lady Ophelia’s wounded heart? Or will he dare to be the gentleman he always wanted to be and unveil a love he never thought possible

Ophelia and Stark meet as Ophelia is in waist deep, cold water contemplating her life. Having lost most of her family, and with a terminally ill mother, she is quite lost. Living in a small cottage that her half-brother will snatch away as soon as her mother dies, her dreams of becoming a model for artists is drifting away. But Stark, a stranger she meets while in the water will change her life. He takes an immediate interest in her. This is one part I wish would have been explored more – just why he fell so hard for her right then and there. But anyway, he convinces her to get out of the water and helps her back home, where he realizes how dire her situation is. Her mother, although ill is a bit of a firecracker and the two of them conspire  to use Stark’s wealth to move them to London where Ophelia can work as a model and her mother can live out her days having an adventure. Ophelia of course is opposed to all of this, but it’s hard to deny her mother anything, and she is eventually convinced.

Stark is an interesting hero – he is dark, feels a little tormented in life, and falls hard and deep for Ophelia. When he realizes Ophelia actually comes to London, his glee over the situation is almost boyish. Ophelia brings light into his life that is sorely missing. And Ophelia desperately needs Stark. Her mother, whom she loves so much is slowly dying. Ophelia can’t cope with this, but Stark shows her how to live her own life and yet still be a big part of her mother’s life.

The proceeds of this novella are going as a donation to Hospice, so a large part of this story revolves around the ailing mother. But there is plenty of page time devoted to the romance. Overall a nicely done story. One final note, we briefly meet Stark’s friend Andrew and oh does this man have secrets. I can’t wait to get his book.

Rating: B

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