Published synopsis:
Two years prior, Irishman Aaron O'Connel took his life from rags to riches. Chance and wits have kept him alive in 1850'S New York City. But no amount of money or success can bring his love Cathlene back from the dead. When a thief sneaks her way into his mansion, the last woman he expects to find absconding with his belongings is his long lost wife.Abandoned on New York's shores, a widowed, penniless, and ruined Cathlene O'Connel was left to fend for herself in an unfamiliar world. Fear and circumstance drove her to a life of thieving in order to survive, but her heart risks the biggest danger of all when Aaron hands her a scandalous proposition: A son in exchange for her freedom.
Now that he has her back, Aaron doesn't intend to let Cathlene slip between his fingers. He'll do whatever it takes to regain her trust and love. But when an enemy from Cathlene's past resurfaces, Aaron not only faces battling for Cathlene's heart, but also her life.
Review:
Abandoned by a husband who jumped ship, one who convinced her to give up her society life in Ireland and travel to this new land, Cathlene O’Connel has had to shed her life as a lady and become someone she hardly even recognizes. Desperate to save herself from the life that most destitute women fall into, she takes to thieving to keep herself off the streets.Aaron O’Connel lost the love of his life, his wife Cathlene, two years ago. He has searched desperately for her to no avail. When chance brings her to him in the form of a thief, he knows that fate has given him a second chance with her. If only he can convince her that he did not abandon her. It breaks his heart to see the hardened shell she has put around herself to survive, and he is determined to find a way to make her stay. Even if he has to create a fantastical compromise to make it happen. He needs time to figure out what she is hiding from him, and how to make her love him again.
His Fifth Avenue Thief by Abbey MacInnis is a novella about love, betrayal and sacrifice. These two characters, so much in love at one time until fate intervened, wrenching them apart, desperately want to be on the same path again. But learning to trust once more is not easy. Love is a fragile thing, easily bruised and destroyed, regardless if it was a series of misunderstandings and the intervention of others that caused its demised. Abbey MacInnis’s characters are strong, determined and not easy to trust. Perfectly understandable considering their recent past. She has given them a depth that many romance characters lack. They do not rush back into each other arms right away, they think and reason, and try to lead with their minds instead of their feelings.
Readers are brought on an emotional journey that has you wanting desperately to let them find a way to be together again, yet appreciating their reluctance. Even though the rags to riches aspect of the novel seems a little much, the interactions between Cathlene and Aaron make this novella an excellent story of hope and forgiveness. I thank the author for a review copy and I give the book four and a half stars.
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