I'm huge fan of Beauty and the Beast tales, and this one was a perfect example of this theme. Adding to the fact that Julia London is a favorite author of mine, it isn't a surprise that I ended loving this.

Greer goes to Wales to find her late uncle and persuade him to sign over her inheritance, modest as it may be. In her trip there she meets Mr Percy who convinces her to go on, even when her companion dies and she discovers that her uncle is dead. Together they arrive at the Prince's of Powys castle, who's a distant cousin of Mr Percy but a recluse and as Mr Percy's informed her, a possible murderer. Greer is initially scared of the Prince, who's older than her and not attractive at all in his ragged appearence. Percy fills her mind with stories about how ruthless the Prince is, feeding her terror. However, when she finds herself close to him, she surprisingly discovers that she's attracted to him. At some point Percy leaves the castle with Greer behind, who now is left alone with the Prince and her reputation in tatters. Slowly she comes to trust him more and more and her fear lessens but they both hide facts from each other which make their relationship difficult. They find themselves reluctantly attracted to each other, but their distrust makes them fight regularly. Could this tender, kind-hearted man Greer has come to know, be actually a murderer? And is this clever woman whom she claims to be or is she really a swindler out to get his money?

My heart ached for the Prince! I'm a sucker for tortured heroes and he was a perfect example of one. Having survived some tragedies in his life, insecure about his appearance, especially compared to beautiful Greer, he has trouble opening his heart. In the end, the attraction he felt for her was too much to ignore and when Greer hurt him, I ached so much for him, it brought tears in my eyes.

I know that this book was not perfect: Greer was introduced as the witty of the three cousins but she rarely acts like it. Prince's attraction to her seems to be mainly based on her lovely bosom for the most part of the book, rather than her clever mind or kind nature. Greer was too harsh with him near the end, causing too much pain to both of them, but especially him. But not one of those facts made me think of rating it with less than 5 stars. My emotions were engaged fully during the entire time, I got misty eyed more than once and read some lines, some exceptionally tender and emotional lines were the hero thinks or talks to Greer, at least three times trying to memorize them. I also love the fact that London, in all her books, spends a great deal of time writing the story from the hero's perspective and offering unique insights to what he's actually thinking at any time.

This one goes to my keeper shelf and I expect to re-read it soon!