Cassandra Braxton has had nothing but grief from her marriage to Lord Reddington.  Even his demise in France brings her no respite.  His will stipulates that unless she has a child or is with child at the time of his death she will lose the inheritance.  This is a particularly dastardly clause since he never consummated their marriage. 

Refusing to go down without a fight, Cassandra comes up with a plan to hide her husband’s death for 3 months, in which time she will do what she can to remedy her situation.  She has the perfect man in mind to proposition for help. 

A bastard son of a duke has more difficulty than a normal gentleman in the search for marital bliss.  Mark Foxwood learns this lesson in the most painful of ways.  Having sunk low from the rejection of his love’s hand in matrimony, he is intent to hide away in the countryside to nurse his wounds. 

Providence has different plans for him.  When a tempting beauty makes him an offer he does not wish to refuse, he finds himself on a dangerous path with this fascinating woman.  Danger lurks not only for their lives, but also for their hearts. 

Ms. Violet pens some truly lovable characters in this work.  Cassandra is a heroine we can admire for her resolve to battle against being a victim.  Her experience of an unhappy and abusive marriage seems good motivation in her fight for what she wants from life.  It is great fun to see her indomitable spirit set against the will, the threat of death, and at times even the hero himself.  Also, the appeal of the hero is fabulous in that he is strong and protective balanced with vulnerability.  Watching Mark and Cassandra come to terms with their love for each other will melt readers’ hearts. 

One is desperately hoping for the story of two secondary characters introduced here.  Scenes with the heroine’s sister Amanda and the hero’s good friend Rhys keep gently hinting towards a possible tale to tell. 

Mystery and suspense wends its way through this very enjoyable regency romance.  Details of the shady business in which Reddington was involved are brought to light early and the others involved are eventually exposed through investigation of the underbelly of society.  However, we never actually come to truly understand why the heroine had become a target. 

Readers familiar with this author’s other works will find the sex scenes in A Carnal Agreement to be less extreme but no less erotic.  It is a sensuous sumptuous taste of times past.

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