NEW REVIEW: Luck Is No Lady by Amy Sandas

"You should not have kissed me," she replied breathlessly.
"I do a lot of things I shouldn't. It does not mean I won't do them again."

Gently bred Emma Chadwick always assumed she'd live and die the daughter of a gentleman. But when her father's death reveals a world of staggering debt and dangerous moneylenders, she must risk her good name and put her talent for mathematics to use, taking a position as bookkeeper at London's most notorious gambling hell. Surrounded by vice and corruption on all sides, it is imperative no one discovers Emma's shameful secret or her reputation-and her life-will be ruined.

But Roderick Bentley, the hell's sinfully wealthy owner, awakens a hunger Emma cannot deny. Drawn deep into an underworld of high stakes gambling and reckless overindulgence, she soon discovers that in order to win the love of a ruthless scoundrel, she will have to play the game...and give in to the pleasure of falling from grace.

"An engaging and unusual historical romance. Beautifully sensual love scenes are woven into this intriguing romance."-Night Owl Romance, TOP PICK on Reckless Viscount

I'd like to take a moment to thank the book gods, and express my appreciation of my bookworm instincts... I've been toiling through some unsuccessful reads since Friday night, and its been awhile since I've read a 5 star book. I mean, 4 stars are great but nothing beats the exhilarating feeling you get when you finish a 5 star read! And boy did this book blow me away. It had everything I look for in a memorable book, a tortured hero, a strong heroine, a great romance, sexual tension and a healthy dose of some good old fashioned angst.

What's even more surprising is the fact that this was a flippin' wordy book and I generally don't like those, bit there I was reading those detailed scenes and being aware of the fact that I should be losing interest but enjoying them thoroughly! It was like some kind of out of body experience. Apart from the surprises, I loved the fact that the heroine was a nerd. She loved maths and used it to save herself and her sisters from the trouble the were in. I keep saying this but this is the year for strong heroines for me.

“Numbers never lied or caused disappointment. There was infinite beauty in the consistency of mathematics.
This here was what she understood."

Back to the story.

The heroine, Emma finds herself the guardian to her 2 younger sisters after the death of their father, their mother having dodd a few years prior. Their father left her heavily in debt, the lost worrying of the debt being to a pugilist turned bookie by the name of Hale. Emma's most important goal is to have her sisters marry so that when Hale finally finds her they are unaffected by the backlash.

To help with their financial situation she finds work at a gaming hell as a bookkeeper under an alias . Which brings us to Roderick Bentley, the own of the gaming hell and the bastard son of an earl. Shunned by polite society, he lives in between 2 worlds.

“His voice when he spoke was laden with raw sensuality. “You want to give yourself to me, then you give it all. If we do this…I will not hold back. It is all or nothing, sweetheart.”

What starts an employer and employee relationship between Emma and Roderick quickly becomes so much more. There was so much yearning in this book. Emma who realised her intense feeling for Roderick holds back because she fears any association with him would affect her sisters coming out into society. And while Roderick feels just as deeply for her, he struggles with feelings of unworthiness.

I thoroughly enjoyed this gem of a book and then next book is sounding just as promising as the first. I think I may have found myself an automatic buy author!