Book Review: Scandal of the Year by Laura Lee Guhrke

At First Sight: Julia, Lady Yardley survived 12 years of a hellish marriege, gaining he freedom by tangling into an affair with Aidan Carr, Duke of Trathen; which forced her husband to divorce her. Months later, and once her divorce is final, Julia is ready to re-enter society, she knows she's notorious but she's trying her best to quiet down the scandals, for the sake of her family as they stood by her through it all. 

Aidan is not happy, his affair with Julia - which he can never quite remember - cost him his second fiance. So now, at 30, he has been jilted twice. And he is also re-entering society, ready to look for a new fiance. But, during his first sojourn into society, he encounters Julia. 

It seems to him he can't scape her. Certainly, in their 13 year long acquittance, he has never been able to forget her. Everything about her so vivid in his mind, much as he wishes that weren't the case. 

Aidan knows that tangling with Julia again might make them the scandal of the year, two years in a row, but he also knows that it might just be worth it.

Second Glance: Julia survived a lot during her marriage and developed quite a thick skin, but Aidan has always had a way to get under it. If she feels anything other than elation about her divorce, is a bit of guilt for the part Aidan played unwillingly. Aidan has a hard time admitting it, but Julia has always been able to get to him. She ruffles him and confuses him in ways he shouldn't like, but he does.

I really liked the chemistry between Aidan and Julia, I could see a bit of it during Wedding of the Season, but in Scandal of the Year this is explored more fully, the book has many flash backs, taking us back to the fateful day when Aidan and Julia met when they were both 17, how they saw each other again 10 years later, still able to recognize each other at a glance but with a world of experience keeping them apart.

I felt the ending was a bit abrupt, but I loved how it was that Julia came to her final choice, the reason why she does what she does, in the end. And I was quite happy about it.

Bottom Line: This is the second book in the Abandoned at the Altar series, and I have to say I liked it more than it's predecessor. There is a lot of chemistry between Aidan and Julia and it was fun to see how they chipped at each other's defenses to get to the core beneath. It's a very enjoyable book and I definitely plan on reading the next (and last) book of the series Trouble at the Wedding (2012)

Favorite Quote:“We all have our weaknesses, petal. Yours is your fine, upstanding character.”-Julia