Great Bancroft Brothers sequel - wandering rake meets responsible down-on-her-luck country girl and falls in loveTaming Rafe is the second of Suzanne Enoch's Bancroft Brothers books, the sequel to By Love Undone. I really enjoyed it, but I would also highly recommend reading the prequel - it's the better of the two and one of Enoch's best IMO.SUMMARY:Rafael Bancroft (28), the younger brother of Quin Bancroft (hero in By Love Undone) and the son of the Duke of Highbarrow is the "bad boy" of his family. They despair of him ever settling down or taking on any responsibilities (though this isn't really accurate, since he spent 7 years in the military). Rafe, wanting to cut his dependency on his family and find his own funding for his latest adventure - which he'll start in either China or India - is ecstatic when he unexpectedly wins an estate in a card game, figuring he'll quickly sell it and use the money to finance his travels. Unfortunately, upon his arrival he doesn't find what he expected, but instead ... a rundown estate with a house that is falling apart (and a west wing that has literally caved in), along with the two sisters of the man who gambled away Forton Hall who are completely unaware that their home is no longer theirs.To his great surprise, Rafe is inexplicably drawn to Forton Hall - and it's lovely residents, Felicity (22-23) and May (8) Harrington. Before he knows what he's about, he's making plans to tear down the stable and then building a new one, designing a new west wing and trying very hard to get rid of Felicity's far-too-friendly neighbor and would-be-suitor. A delightful hero and heroine with pretty good chemistry (isn't Enoch's best), interesting relationship development with obstacles to overcome that are realistic and well portrayed, *utterly charming* younger sister, and a bad-guy subplot involving a secret loan combine to make Taming Rafe an enjoyable read.CHARACTERS:Felicity is strong and independent; she's only 22 but has a great deal of responsibility, in charge of Forton Hall and raising her younger sister, Meg (one of the *best* characters of the book!). Her twin brother, Nigel, is basically good-for-nothing and only does harm to the family's finances and situation. When the book starts, part of the house has collapsed, they're buying everything on credit in the local village, and Felicity and Meg take care of all of the cooking, cleaning, etc. because they've had to let go of all of the servants.Rafe is a great "soon-to-be-reformed rake" hero (scar and all); he's intelligent, charming, friendly, and can be deliciously possessive and jealous. As Felicity points out at one point in the book, his problem isn't so much that he's not interested in anything or never has goals, but rather he is never allowed by his family to get fully involved with anything, because they're always dragging him back home, making him feel that everything he does is insignificant (his father didn't want him in the military). His relationship with Meg is absolutely adorable and one of the highlights of the book; she's so entertaining - especially when she's using slang and later starts imitating Rafe and using curse words.COMPLAINT:The living arrangement of the hero and heroine throughout the book is *completely* unrealistic - it's bad enough when Rafe, a complete stranger, sleeps in the stable (while the unmarried and unchaperoned Felicity and her younger sister are living alone right next door in the house), but when he then moves into the house with them ... Yes, there is some (very little!) gossip/eyebrows raised, but not really, which doesn't fit at all with the times. It's not even like Felicity is "firmly on the shelf" - she's only 22! However, I think slightly unbelievable plot aspects can be overlooked if the book is good enough and Taming Rafe is on the whole a great read.
Rafe has classic Peter Pan syndrome. He doesn't want to grow up- just have adventures around the world. His brother (who has his own story that I didn't know about), and father,( the Duke )are usually disappointed by his extreme behaviors and use their influence to remove him from dangerous situations. Rafe gambles and wins an estate which he plans to sell to finance a trip to China or somewhere just as far away from England. When he gets there he sees a manor that has collapsed on itself and is managed by Felicity and her little sister May. They live without servants- eeking out an existance while waiting for brother Nigel to return with his gambling winnings. Nigel is worthless and never returns. Rafe hesitates to throw out the sisters who don't believe he is the owner. Rafe decides to repair some of the manner and is entranced by Felicity's strength and beauty and May's exuberant behavior. He and Felicity are attracted and in love but he won't give up his dream and she won't except help. Rafe finds home is where Felicity is and she finally feels safe although her trust in him is not 100%. Funny elements in book 2 of a series. It is not necessary to read book 1. I didn't, and until the end didn't realize there was another book that preceded Taming Rafe.
What do You think about Taming Rafe (2013)?
This is a great book to read if you want to see just how far Suzanne Enoch has come as a writer. She's fabulous now, and it's easy to tell that this is one of her earlier works.The writing itself is eh, and the historical accuracy is ... wanting. The hero and heroine spend most of the book living together in the same house, without much in the way of scandal. Rafe is all right, and Felicity for the most part is okay, although she does have REALLY annoying moments where she'll ask him about his travels and then flip out when he says something complimentary, and be like, WHY DON'T YOU JUST ADMIT THAT THIS PLACE IS BORING AND YOU HATE IT HERE AND EVERYTHING IS TERRIBLE. And that gets old really, really fast. She's basically one of those country misses that seems to hate the rest of the world because she's terrified that it's grander than the surroundings she's known all her life. Little May, her 8yo sister, though, steals the story. She's a delight.
—Huma Rashid
This was a pretty good book. Having read [Book: By Love Undone], I was looking forward to Rafe's book. It seemed like Rafe was a little bit in love with Maddie in the previous book and a little bit more tortured than his brother, so I was eager to read this. I like how Rafe's story turns out - with him realizing the root of his desire to travel and his restlessness and coming into responsibility. Rafe is good people. Felicity and her sister May are living in the house he won from their brother's
—Maura
Author: Suzanne EnochFirst published: 1999Length: 373 pagesSetting: Cheshire, England. Regency-era.Sex: not significant. Infrequent.Hero: Second son wanting to make his way in the world with adventures.Heroine: Left by twin brother to care for their broken down estate. No money. No future.Almost Cheating: H is with another woman when book opens. h meets his previous paramours.A solid story but... The unwillingness of the MCs to commit to the relationship wore at my patience. And our climatic finale was initiated by h's TSTL beliefs and actions.I find her lack of trust... disturbing.It's a good read with a little pain.Bancroft Brothers:By Love Undone - Madeleine Willits and Quinlan Bancroft, Marquis of WarfieldTaming Rafe - Rafe Bancroft and Felicity HarringtonReferences:Author's website: http://www.suzanneenoch.com/books_tam...(ISBN 978-0-380-79886-5)-CR-
—Cruth
