Help A Bitch Out

HaBO-Thon: Dueling Musicians?

This request comes from Tanya, who thinks this may be a recent book:

I’m hoping you can help, I think it will be easy but I
read this book not too long ago (maybe within the last 2 years?) and pretty
sure that is has come out recently but can’t recall title or author –
here’s what has stuck in my mind:

Hero is somewhat tortured and plays an instrument (violin/cello?) but not
for public enjoyment and the heroine is also a musician, piano I’m pretty
sure. They play a duet at a house party, some of which is music she herself
composed, though it is a family secret/shame that she composes (and is very
talented!) and she has a hang up about that. He is surprised/impressed with
her playing and the pieces but she doesn’t ‘fess up since she is so hung
up about it.

Music is very important to her. He also lies about why he is
consenting to play with her and her sister finds this info intriguing. I
also seem to recall that they are related by marriage – they are both
siblings to a couple, whose story was the first in the series.

Also, this book (and I think this author) has a theme of “competing” story
lines/romances, theirs might have been the secondary one. It’s a
Regency/historical romance, hence the bluestocking “shame” that she is
hung up about.

That sounds really quite entertaining – anyone recall this book? Was it recent?

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  1. tas says:

    sounds possibly like an eloisa james novel, duchess by night. The H/H are married, but separated when the story begins.

  2. cleo says:

    @tas – I think you mean Your Wicked Ways by eloisa james – I thought of that one too, but I don’t think the details match up.  The heroine Helene is a pianist and musical composer but the hero Rees (her estranged husband) writes comic operas instead of playing an instrument.  I don’t think there’s a house party.  I love that book.

  3. Jess says:

    Oh I’ve read this one!! But can’t think of the title. It is recent, i’m searching through my goodreads list now.

  4. Amanda Blair says:

    I also thought of Your Wicked Ways which I love but the details do seem just a bit off.  Not to mention I think the fact that they’ve estranged for ten years would be a detail that someone would remember.

  5. Jess says:

    So I just looked through my bookshelf and can’t place it. I have a really bad memory. Sorry I could find it.

  6. Lindlee says:

    I can’t say for sure bc I’m not at home to check my book but this may be Lessons From a Scarlet lady by Emma Wildes.

  7. I’m on a roll with these today! It’s like blind items on dlisted, all or nothing… this is Lessons from a Scarlet Lady by Emma Wildes. The story she lists is actually the sub-plot, but it was my favorite of the two storylines as well, MUCH more memorable than the “main” storyline.

  8. ocelott says:

    It sounds a lot like Carrie Lofty’s Song of Seduction.

  9. Theresa says:

    This is definitely Lessons from a Scarlet Lady by Emma Wildes.  The couple she mentions are the secondary storyline in the book but probably had about 50% of the pages.  I normally don’t like that much of a book devoted to a secondary couple but felt it worked well since the main couple was already married.  Anyway, in the secondary storyline, the duke’s brother (the duke is the main hero) plays the cello but not publicly and finds himself in the company of the heroine’s best friend.  The best friend plays the piano and composes music (not a ladylike vocation so she does it in secret).  It’s a spicy book and hooked me on Emma Wildes.

  10. Diana says:

    Yes it is from Emma Wildes “Lessons From A Scarlet Lady”.

  11. Faellie says:

    If anyone is looking for something which seems pretty similar to this HABO, there’s The Diabolical Baron by Mary Jo Putney.

  12. Sandra says:

    You might also want to check out Laura Lee Guhrke’s “His Every Kiss”. A composer becomes suicidal after developing tinnitus, but is saved by a down-on-her luck cellist.  It’s part of her series set in William IV’s reign.

    hair87: God, no!!! I do not want to remember what hair was like in ‘87.

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