New York Times Bestseller Lisa Kleypas : Dreaming of You

Dreaming of You

She stood at danger's threshold -- then love beckoned her in.

In the shelter of her country cottage, Sara Fielding puts pen to paper to create dreams. But curiosity has enticed the prim, well-bred gentlewoman out of her safe haven -- and into Derek Craven's dangerous world.

A handsome, tough and tenacious Cockney, he rose from poverty to become lord of London's most exclusive gambling house -- a struggle that has left Derek Craven fabulously wealthy, but hardened and suspicious. And now duty demands he allow Sara Fielding into his world -- with her impeccable manners and her infuriating innocence. But here, in a perilous shadow-realm of ever-shifting fortunes, even a proper "mouse" can be transformed into a breathtaking enchantress -- and a world-weary gambler can be shaken to his cynical core by the power of passion...and the promise of love.

Lisa's comments: This is my all-time favorite novel, and it seems to be regarded as a favorite by many readers, although I never expected it to be. The hero, Derek Craven, in many ways is an anti-hero, as he is of extremely low background and character (and was actually born in a drain-pipe from a prostitute mother). Not only does Derek own a gambling club, but he has a dark past that includes such heinous behavior as thievery, prostitution and grave-robbing. Not exactly your typical aristocrat! I paired him with an extremely moral and innocent heroine, Sara Fielding, a novelist from a small country village. I guess the fun for me was in exploring how two such different characters could find true and deep love for each other. Derek's most redeeming quality is his awareness that he is not nearly good enough for Sara, and he suffers mightily because of this. And I've always loved it when a hero suffers from tormented love *wicked grin*.

"Dreaming of You" is one of the best historical romances I've read. The storyline is excellent and very original set in Regency London. Sara Fielding an innocent country girl arrives in London to thoroughly research her next novel. She is a succesful novelist writing about the hard life of the low classes of society, prostitutes and gamblers. One night she rescues a handsome men from the hands of two ruffians. He is bleeding but he is still able to shout orders at her in his strong Cockney accent. Sara is terrified and excited at the same time when she finds out that the victim is Derek Craven the owner of London's most exclusive gambling club.She wants to tour his club and take notes for her new novel. Derek is against it and he wants to send her packing immediately back to her little village in the country. He feels from the beginning that she is trouble and he wants to save her from everything especially from himself.He is a handsome ( even with a scar ) hard and very cynical young man who has more money than he can count and he knows everything about everybody. Women are throwing themselves at him hoping that they will be the one to make him fall in love. He's had a very hard and painful childhood, he survived in the rookeries of London and he succeeded in building a powerful empire. He thinks he has no heart and he is indifferent to every woman. His reaction to Sara terrifies him. He gets more and more attracted to her and he is scared because he can't control his desire and feelings for her. Sara feels the attraction too. She has always thought of herself as a practical country girl who will marry Perry in the village and live happily ever after.
But meeting Derek awakens her heart and her passion.They have many passionate and witty confrontations. Sara in her innocence doesn't understand Derek's behaviour. They learn a lot about each other and about their mutual needs and expectations from life.Derek fights his feelings until the end. He thinks Sara is too good for a Cockney scoundrel like him even if he is a millionaire.Their finding the way to each other is very emotional, very touching and memorable.The reader feels with them and it is hard to put the book down before the end.
The characterization of these two wonderful people is very powerful.Ms. Kleypas has a rare talent to make her characters alive and very realistic.Some characters from the author's other book "Then Came You" appear in this one too.You will find Lily and Alex Raiton as interesting as in the previous novel.

DREAMING OF YOU is a beautifully written historical romance which will touch your heart. The story is full of realism, romance and soul. The author lets us have some interesting glimpses into the world of gambling, prostitutes and the careless life of the ton in Regency London.The author's writing style is brilliant and her research of the era is satisfying.
This is a beautiful historical romance which clearly stands out of the masses of other similar books.