Review: Reckless in Red (The Muses' Salon #4) by Rachael Miles

Print Length: 384 pages

Publisher: Zebra Publishing (October 29, 2019)

From Goodreads.com:  Lena Frost is a force to be reckoned with. A woman who has made her way in society without family or fortune, she's about to realize her first big success as an artist... Until her business partner makes off with her money, leaving her with little more than her hopes—and a dead body in her studio. Now Lena is at the mercy of a strikingly handsome stranger demanding answers she dare not reveal...

Is it her seductive eyes, or his suspicion that she's up to no good that have Clive Somerville shadowing Lena's every move? Either way, his secret investigation for the Home Office has him determined to uncover Lena's hidden agenda. But the closer he gets to her, the more he longs to be her protector. Is she a victim of circumstance? Or a dark force in a conspiracy that could destroy everything Clive holds dear? Discovering the truth could have dire consequences, not only for Lena, but for his heart...

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My Rating: 3 stars out of 5

This was one of those novels that while well written, was also a bit confusing. It wasn't confusing because it was the fourth in a series, let me be clear on that, it was confusing because a lot of it just didn't make sense. 

I can get behind the fact that no one recognized Lena despite her name changes. Moving around the way she did makes sense. I didn't quite understand why her inheritance was merely a house, but even without that, the moment she moved to collect said inheritance, it would have put her right back in the crosshairs of the people she was trying to avoid so doing what she did made the whole thing seem unnecessary. Especially when you factor in what it did to Clive.

Another flaw that I found with this story is that at times, it drags on. Even with the fact that it changes points of view in certain areas, I didn't feel utterly captivated by this story. I did enjoy Lena's firey survivalist personality, and I thought it meshed well with Clive's. Despite the fact that they both harbored some pretty serious secrets and were slow to trust anyone, those qualities made their eventual trust of each other more believable (and more endearing). 

All things considered, I know there are people who will enjoy this story more than I did, and I would definitely read more from this author as I have read other works in this particular series and enjoyed them. 

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.

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                                  Reckless in Red is available from Amazon.com