This is one of those romances that you want to go back to again and again because it's just so sweet and heart warming. What makes it even better is that neither the hero nor the heroine are perfect and seeing them warm to each other and overcome their own personal obstacles was adorable. Izzy, full name Isolde Ophelia Goodnight, is a woman in desperate straits. Her father made his money writing adventure tales in which she herself figured prominently as a young, wide-eyed girl eager for stories. So everyone knows her but they only know her as a child, not a grown woman who after the death of her father is left without a house to live in or enough money to feed herself. When she finds out that a fan of the stories has left her a bequest, she spends the last of her meager money to get to a ruined castle. Upon arrival, she finds that the castle is occupied by a duke named Ransom who has been in seclusion since losing his eyesight in a duel and is less than pleased to find out that his castle has been sold out from under him. Izzy, in order to have a place to live in and food in her belly, is hired as Ransom's secretary so he can find out what the hell happened. Izzy is my kind of girl, practical but not cynical and far from girly. She's smart but has her own issues to work out (like a very understandable fear of darkness, which is a problem in a castle that badly needs repairs). Ransom is a bit like Beast from Beauty and the Beast, all growls and intimidation with a soft heart underneath. What I like best is that Ransom is never a total asshole and even when he's angry, he doesn't take advantage of Izzy. It's nice to see a romance where the guy doesn't just do whatever he wants and to hell with how it'll affect the heroine. All in all, a funny, very sweet story that just makes your heart melt. I will definitely be picking up more of Tessa Dare's books in the future!