Gillian Ranson, Lady Wright is in love – but not with her husband!  The love she felt at first sight of her husband, Brian, was killed by years of inattention while Brian was off at war.  Not to mention on their wedding night Brian told his love struck bride that he was in love with his mistress.  Now Gillian lives happily at her cousin’s estate and wants nothing more than a divorce from her husband so she can marry Andres Ramigio, Barón de Vasconia.

What Gillian doesn’t know is that things have changed.  Brian is home for good and he’s determined to have Gillian at his side.  He’s surprised and intrigued when he discovers that his lovely wife isn’t the shy young woman he married.  Brian needs Gillian’s help with matters at home, so he strikes a bargain with her: Gillian will play the loving wife for thirty days and then he will set her free to be with Andres.  But the earl is not going to give in so easily.  His wife loved him once and he’ll stop at nothing to claim her heart as his own once more.

Love gets a second chance in the utterly charming The Earl Claims His Wife.  Brian is a man who made many mistakes early in his marriage, and he knows it.  While he wasn’t the best of husbands, he is a good man through and through, so I cheered his determination to change his ways and win Gillian’s love once more.  What he isn’t aware of is that Gillian, despite her internal struggle on the matter, does still love him.  What I liked about her is that she was honest with herself and her feelings for her husband.  She didn’t easily fall into his arms, not when he had never wanted her before.  But she isn’t obstinate either.  Neither Brian nor Gillian are the people they were when they married, but some relationships need the people in them to mature before they are ready for happily ever after; this is the case in The Earl Claims His Wife.

Cathy Maxwell continues to deliver sensual, entertaining treats in her Scandals and Seductions series.  Though it’s the second book in the series, The Earl Claims His Wife stands on its own.  I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am extremely excited for the next installment in this delightful series, The Marriage Ring, when my favorite character of Ms. Maxwell’s, Grace McEachin, will get a love story of her own.