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Patricia Bray
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An Unlikely Alliance Kindle Edition

by Patricia Bray (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 793 ratings
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Her identity is false, but her love for the earl is all too real—and so is the danger that engulfs them both . . .
 
Gypsy fortune-teller Mademoiselle Magda has taken London by storm with her uncanny predictions—and only Lord Kerrigan suspects that she is not what she claims to be. And he is right, for poverty has led seamstress Magda Beaumont, the child of a French physician and a Russian gypsy princess, to pass herself off as a tarot reader to the ton. But lacking her mother’s powers, Magda drew the wrong card and made an enemy of the earl, who causes her pulse to race whenever he’s near. He sets out to expose her, only to find himself captivated by the beautiful young woman.
 
But when Magda’s predictions threaten to expose a villainous plot, she finds herself in mortal danger. Now Magda and Lord Kerrigan must join forces to solve a decade-old murder, and Magda fervently wishes she could indeed predict the future—to see if her deception will cost her a love that promises bliss . . .
 
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  1. Print length
    191 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Diversion Books
  5. Publication date
    February 17, 2015
  6. File size
    4549 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B07H18R6KY
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Diversion Books (February 17, 2015)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ February 17, 2015
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 4549 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 191 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 793 ratings

About the author

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Patricia Bray

Patricia Bray

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Patricia Bray is the author of a dozen novels, including Devlin's Luck, which won the 2003 Compton Crook Award for the best first novel in the field of science fiction or fantasy. A multi-genre author whose career spans both epic fantasy and Regency romance, her books have been translated into Russian, German, Portuguese and Hebrew. She's also spent time on the editorial side of the business, as the co-editor of After Hours: Tales from the Ur-Bar (DAW, March 2011) and The Modern Fae's Guide to Surviving Humanity (DAW, March 2012).

Patricia lives in a New England college town, where she combines her writing with a full-time career as a Systems Analyst, ensuring that she is never more than a few feet away from a keyboard. To learn more visit her website at: www.patriciabray.com.

Customer reviews

4 out of 5 stars
4 out of 5
793 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

WindRider
5.0 out of 5 stars An Innocent Mistake Starts it All
Reviewed in the United States on May 6, 2015
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Gypsy fortune teller Mademoiselle Magda has taken London by storm with her uncanny predictions--and only Lord Kerrigan suspects that she is not what she claims to be. And he is right, for poverty had thrust seamstress Magda Beaumont, the child of a French physician and a Russian gypsy princess, into passing herself off as a tarot reader to the ton. But lacking her mother's powers, Magda drew the wrong card and made an enemy of the Earl,he sets out to expose her, only to find himself captivated by the beautiful young woman.
But when Magda's predictions threaten to expose a villainous plot, she finds herself in deadly danger. Now Magda and Lord Kerrigan must join forces to solve a decade-old murder. And as Kerrigan comes closer to discovering the truth, Magda fervently wishes she could predict the future--to see if she will lose a love that promises splendid bliss.
Wow, I really enjoyed this story; I just literally flew through it. It just flowed so well and kept me involved. There were so many villains to uncover too. About the time you got them all exposed, you realized, "wait a minute, there's something deeper going on. There IS another enemy." I also liked the fact that Magda was not the perfect little debutante being chased by a wealthy noble. Even nicer was the fact that Lord Kerrigan really didn't even think that much of her at first. She was only the way to get the information that he needed. Made the story easier to believe. Her character was so much deeper as were her troubles. She didn't have any idea of all the schemes going on around her. Even worse why someone would want to silence her?
I liked some of the secondary characters, especially Luke. A nice clean read. Well...there will be murders. So not clean that way, but at least they aren't grotesquely detailed. Now that I would have had a problem with.
I definitely liked how this author wrote and would enjoy reading more books from her.

I received a copy of this book from Diversion Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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Roberta
4.0 out of 5 stars Engaging read kept me going from start to finish in a day
Reviewed in the United States on June 17, 2022
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This welcome distraction from COVID kept me entranced with interesting and honorable characters trying to uncover the villains behind attempts on heroine Magda’s life. The lowly seamstress with impeccable manners and a ladylike bearing confounded Lord Alexander, her self proclaimed protector, who rescued her once and wouldn’t let her go. A much appreciated clean read that I heartily recommend.
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Amazon Customer
3.0 out of 5 stars Regency-Lite for those who aren't sticklers; not painful to read, but not a "keeper"
Reviewed in the United States on December 13, 2015
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This is an attempt at a well-plotted Regency romance/mystery, but the author seems to be learning her trade. Tough she has her plot well thought-out, it is fanciful in the extreme - and her bows to the social norms/conventions of the Regency period are made only when it suits her - e.g. she has an Earl who has "offices" & employees, and is clearly engaged in business in a manner that would have been rather exceptional for a male of his standing; she has an unlikely scenario introducing a young lady (former seamstress/fortune teller) to the ton - and some eye-brow raising "sleep-overs." Writing in the 3rd person, the author (who I believe is promising, & could perfect her craft) tells us what the characters are thinking & feeling, rather than letting their behaviour & speech/dialogue reveal their thoughts, feelings, character. There is much that is trite, &, though the author does lay some groundwork for later developments in the story-line, a lot seems too much deus ex machina - like the discovery of the Russian Count grandfather...All-in-all, the plot is good, the characters consistent but superficial & not well developed, the writing smooth but lacking subtlety; it struck me as a fantastic outline for a great story that the author can write after honing her skills rather more. I won't be keeping it - but I will keep an eye on Patricia Bray, sampling her newer work now & then. ...And the Earl's Indian servant has great potential - another great idea that could be wonderfully well developed in later work [think a combination "Pink Panther"/Peter Sellers Valet & Holmes's Watson.]
4 people found this helpful
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Biggle Bop
5.0 out of 5 stars Extremely Well Written; Excellent Book
Reviewed in the United States on March 15, 2015
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First of all, An Unlikely Alliance is not my usual genre of reading material. I'm not all that fond of European novels set in the 18th and 19th centuries. Therefore, when I selected this book (it was free, by the way) I really didn't think it would hold my interest that much. Boy, was I wrong! The book is so well written I was forced to abandon my customary speed reading/scanning habits almost immediately, to digest every single word that was written. I love reading books like that! Patricia Bray is very talented, prescient, and gifted, and possesses a strong command of literary genius that makes this book difficult to put down. The plot and theme of her story has an overall consistency, and the host of characters are interesting and have depth.

The story's setting takes place in London, England, situated in the midst of English nobles and aristocratic elites. The protagonists are initially placed at opposite ends of the social spectrum, with seemingly nothing at all in common. When the heroine of the story is almost kidnapped and witnesses the brutal murder of a male acquaintance she has hired to protect her, she and the hero must form an alliance to apprehend the assailants. There are plenty of twists and turns, murder suspects, and even love blooming on the horizon. This is a very enjoyable read, full of action, mystery, adventure and romance, wrapped in one awesome book.
2 people found this helpful
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C. Boyd
4.0 out of 5 stars A romance and mystery with just the right amount of suspense and tension.
Reviewed in the United States on March 22, 2015
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I thoroughly enjoyed this period romance and mystery. Magda is a poor seamstress who fills in for a gypsy fortune teller at a party for the London gentry. When she correctly predicts the outcome of a horse race, the Lord who owns the never beaten horse is suspicious that the race was rigged and that she is somehow involved. He sets out to prove this but finds himself protecting the young woman from those he believes are trying to kill her to prevent the truth from being revealed. But the plot is much more sinister and reaches back into the history of Magda's mother, a renowned psychic who was murdered when she was a child. This is a romance that, while predictable, is very well told. The story has just the right amount of suspense and tension.
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Top reviews from other countries

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whua
3.0 out of 5 stars Predictable story, but entertaining nonetheless. 3.5 stars
Reviewed in Australia on October 29, 2017
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This was a good "Regency" romantic mystery. I put Regency in quotes as it was rather light on the history, speech and mannerisms of the time. The storyline was intriguing and clean (no sex), although rather predictable. The characters were not that well developed and despite knowing what the H and h thought of each other, there was no chemistry between them. I found the h a little too independent for the time, and couldn't really relate to her. Perhaps the author should have set the story in Victorian times rather than Regency - it would have made more sense. I wasn't sure if this was a first draft release (I actually got it for free) as there were numerous typos, missing words and strange inconsistencies. However, the author has potential and I was entertained by the story, especially the character of Luke! I'll be giving this author another try for sure.
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E
3.0 out of 5 stars A good writer, but too flat.
Reviewed in Canada on February 23, 2015
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The story itself was ok, the writing was easy to read, but there wasn't enough 'showing' (no, that doesn't have anything to do with the lack of sex scenes ;)
The characters fell in love (you knew that, it's a romance novel, so no spoiler alert needed), but the author simply told us they did. She didn't show it happening- not enough anyway. I felt like their actions and dialogue were odd because of it. I would have liked them to have had a little more fun together (again, NOT a sexual innuendo, get your minds out of the gutter peeps).
Overall, it was a quick read, at a very low price I would recommend it as an ok option to keep you from checking Facebook too many times.
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Inma Guzman
4.0 out of 5 stars Inma Guzman
Reviewed in Spain on March 11, 2015
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Una buena mezcla de intriga y amor que acaba con final de feliz y contra todas las reglas sociales. Recomendable
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Wendy Wombat
4.0 out of 5 stars A simple predictable tale
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 9, 2015
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A bed-time read. A nice simple tale to lull you to sleep! I thought the continuity of the story lacked as it jumped from scene to scene....but an OK non-demanding book.
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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 14, 2020
Verified Purchase
A very exciting clean romance, lovely characters and lots of intrigue. I particularly liked the background history surrounding Magda and she was obviously much more than a mere seamstress.
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