Lost in a Royal Kiss (The Renegade Royals #0.5) by Vanessa Kelly

With her widowed mother working long hours as governess to the royal children, Linnet St. Clare must look after her siblings and run the household. Now she must add to her worries the fate of Dominic, a poor orphan who has inspired the wrath of the king himself. Clearly Linnet has no time to consider her own desires—much less notice the attentions of a certain handsome, powerful magistrate…

Sir Anthony Tait is at a loss for how to capture Linnet’s interest. If only she would be still long enough for courting. Outright seduction seems the only answer. But will his kisses be enough to persuade her—or might Anthony have something to learn from young Dominic about matters of the heart? And in saving the boy’s future, might Anthony and Linnet at last create their own?

Type: Historical Romance, Novella
Heat: 2.5 out of 5
Rating: 4 out of 5

Amazon Goodreads

I gotta hand it to Kelly. She creates some flat out amazing characters and doesn't waste any time making you fall for them. Lost in a Royal Kiss was a great little read that had me hooked on Linnet and Anthony from pretty much the first paragraph as they drive each other crazy...and fall in love.

Anthony and Linnet. These two...I absolutely adored them both. Anthony was just so freaking cute. The man is smitten with Linnet and wants to be her husband...passionately. And she has absolutely no clue. LOL He's a good guy, sexy, responsible and lordy he pretty much loses all his smooth when it comes to Linnet. I just love a flustered man on the chase.

And Linnet, she's really an amazing heroine who truly cared for others and was an absolute force to be reckoned with. She's no delicate flower and has no problem setting men straight or pinning them with 'the look' to get them in line. I loved the fire in her and that she was also rather proper in some regards even if she was a bit unconventional in other ways.

Deceptively petite, sweetly plump, and with the face of an angel, she'd fooled many an unwary man into thinking she had the personality of a celestial being, as well.

How wrong they were.

But where some saw a managing female, Anthony saw a woman determined to make the world a better place, especially for those she loved. 

These two, well, they're kind of adorable together. They've known each other for a while now, have great chemistry--even if they're butting heads and just fit nicely together. What really did me in was Anthony and that he loved Linnet for exactly who she was--stubborn, feisty and bold--and treasured her. If he could only get her to stay put long enough to woo her and make her his--something she's making oh so very difficult for him until circumstances have them joining forces to help two young teenagers in a heartbreaking situation.

I really enjoyed how things played out for Linnet and Anthony--they didn't have the smoothest of courtships but it was definitely worth the bumps in the road. And while the secondary storyline really made my blood boil it was nicely done as well and touched my heart. All in all, Lost in a Royal Kiss was a quick read but a satisfying one-- it that had me laughing, made me tear up a little and really peaked my interest in the series to come.

Have you read Vanessa Kelly? What did you think?