After the Kiss by Suzanne Enoch.

I admit that I haven't read one of Suzanne Enoch's books in a long while. I have this horrible habit of glomming books once I like an author, and this can be tragic. I get tired of the books. And there were quite a few title of hers that I did like. I loved A Matter of Scandal, The Rake, and London's Perfect Scoundrel. Then came England's Perfect Hero and although I loved the story of the soldier suffering from war fatigue (shell-shock, post-traumatic stress...), I didn't buy the romance angle of the story as much. 

So I took a break. I haven't read any of her contemporaries or the entire Griffin Family series. I may have read Sin and Sensibility, but by that point I was so glommed out that I don't remember too much of it. 

So, it was with much trepidation that I read review on Enoch's After the Kiss, the first book in a trilogy. Oh, the romance trilogy! But I found that people actually read it. And the more I read what they wrote, the more intrigued I became. 

Sullivan Waring is a well-respected horse breeder who also happens to be the illegitimate son of a marquis--and the Mayfair Marauder. His mother's legacy, left to him after her death, had been stolen from him by her landlord, who is also the father who won't recognize him. Sullivan wants his items back, and is willing to steal to get back what is rightfully his. One night he comes across Lady Isabel Chalsey. In an effort to get away, he kisses her. 

This moment changes both of their lives. Lady Isabel recognizes him, but instead of turning him in she chooses to find out why he stole from her house. She buys a horse from him and demands that he train the mare and teach her to ride the horse. 

I loved this book. It brought me back to the With This Ring series I first read. Waring is not bitter that his father won't recognize him, and he doesn't want a thing from his father but the items that were stolen from his mother's home. He is proud of his own accomplishments while accepting of his place in society. 

Isabel is young, still 19, and she makes reckless decisions. She takes responsibility for them, though, and all she wants is to be with Sullivan. I loved how her family had not one evil member among them, but was rather supportive over all. 

I'm not sure if I'll read the rest of the books in the series, I enjoyed this one so much. I'll wait to read the reviews. :)  A-.