Twenty five years of Viola Thornhill is presented to the reader as a very sweet, caring woman. But one third into the book the reader discovers that she has a secret past. She had been one of London's most celebrated, most sought-after, most expensive courtesan. Now I figured when I read this, there must be a catch. The heroine in a romance novel is never a whore. I imagined that she must be the identical twin of this courtesan. Boy, was I surprised! Viola had a tragic past which forced her into this profession but regardless her past, it turned me off. The hero, Lord Ferdinand Dudley, falls in love with her. He turns out to be a twenty seven year old virgin. Half way through the book, I had enough.