Ms. Michels expertly sets the bait and reels in readers. Isabelle and Fallon are caught in a war. With dueling hearts, secret agendas and suffocating danger, it's no wonder they have time for all the suspense thrown their way. Yet somehow they manage to overcome the obstacles and ensnare readers in the process. The Wicked Heir teases the heart, awakens the senses and boggles the mind. Intensely passionate and dangerously sweet. ( )

I've received an eARC via NETGALLEY in exchange for an honest review.

Review in Portuguese: http://pepitamagica.blogspot.co.uk/2017/07/livro-wicked-heir-de-elizabeth-michel...

I really enjoyed reading this book but, in the end, I questioned myself about how long would this relationship last.

Fallon St. James is the “boss” of the Spare Heir Society, and he tries to control and know everything – not in a bad way, but simply because he started out alone and got used to having all the weight of the world on his shoulders, not trusting anyone else – queue Isabelle. She showed him that he didn’t need to do it all alone, that he must enjoy the good things in life and not only see it in the eyes of others.

Isabelle is an innocent and a naïve young lady, who believes in the good and sees it even if it’s not there – she always wants to believe a person is its better version. And she loves art, so she spends her afternoons at the British Museum, looking after her family’s collection, especially a painting that will be part of her dowry.

And in the middle of all of this, Isabelle is caught between the vengeance of a former member of the Spar Heir Society, being manipulated and deceived. For good and bad, this is what hurts her. Even if they thought they were doing it with her best interest in mind, Isabelle isn’t dumb and she deserved to know the truth from the start.

But Fallon doesn’t give up trying to take care of her, even knowing he doesn’t fill her list of requirements for a husband. In the end, Isabelle discovers that the only thing she really wanted was someone that would love her and take care of her, and that would allow her to do the same for her loved one.

With mystery and revenge, art and romance, this book took me to a sweet world, one of which I plan to keep being part of by reading the rest of the books in this series – soon, hopefully! ( )

'You're smile lacks meaning.'

And just like that Fallon St. James' life takes a different course.
I really liked St. James but struggled with Lady Isabelle Fairlyn. In someways she seemed too childlike for St. James. At moments I found it hard to relate to her. She seems so young with a head (and diary) full of a young woman's dreams. We're told her diary is full of swooping letters with 'silhouettes of flowers and swirls of ink fashioned into vines.' However there are moments when Isabelle is no shrinking violet. (And that's when I like her). She is searching for her true love. At about the age of sixteen she fixated on another Spare, Mr. Kelton Brice, as that person. Isabelle is now three years older. To her Brice is the epitome of the perfect partner. She has plans for him!
His friend and fellow Spare, Fallon St James, just doesn't cut it. He's too serious and brooding in appearance and manner. He doesn't smile and he can be quite off putting. But appearances can be deceptive and Isabelle discovers previously unlooked for depths in this gentleman she terms piratical.
St James is the leader of the Spare Heirs Society, a secretive organization that has influence spread in all sorts of places. He needs to focus on the Society and its various tentacles to ensure its profitability.
When Isabelle is threatened by Reginald Grapling, a man who has mysteriously escaped from prison; a man previously hunted and brought to justice by the Heirs, Fallon must act quickly to find him and at the same time protect Isabelle. Fallon may be trying to save Isabelle but who will save him from the powerful attractions he feels for her?
In the end their story is one of action, mystery and a reluctant romance.
Isabelle's twin sister Victoria has her own story, that plays out somewhat here. She seems to me to be a very interesting character. I am looking forward to her involvement with the Spares.

A NetGalley ARC ( )