Regency London...Brendan Townsend is a young man who is very loyal to his friends. So when Tony - his best friend, occasional lover, and a complete screw-up - comes to him in trouble, Brendan is determined to help. Tony is being blackmailed by the owner of a "molly house", the private club that Tony - and other like-minded gentlemen - frequent in order to indulge their entertainment needs.
Brendan is disappointed in his friend, but goes to seek the help of his older brother's military commander. Philip Carlisle is a gentleman to Society, and also a man Brendan's brother trusted completely and told his younger brother to seek out if he ever was in trouble. Philip is a 40-year-old widower, and finds himself charmed, for the first time, by an attractive young man. Brendan is likewise besotted with hero-worship, especially when Philip turns the tables on the blackmailer and saves the day for many of Society's closeted sons. What follows is a tale of desire, regrets, cross-country pursuit, hidden identities, lovers torn asunder then reunited, clever cover stories, and the requisite pistols at dawn.
Review
Brendan Townsend is the hero of Tangled Web. He is the kind of guy who loves his friends and stays loyal to them. When Tony, his best friend and once-in-a-while lover needs help, Brendan is there for him. We learn that Tony is the victim of blackmailers and even though Brendan is disappointed in Tony, he decides to help and goes to see his own brother's military commander, Philip Carlisle. Philip is 40 and a widower who is immediately enamored of Brendan as is Brendan with him. Quite naturally things will become messy and we have a story of desire and regret.
The plot is set in Regency London and Lee Cowan gives us some wonderful characters and a little taste of British history. Here is a novel that is filled with romance and masculine eroticism. We understand the love between Brendan and Philip and the writing is reminiscent of Georgette Heyer books. And the twists keep the plot moving and the reader interested. Everything seems to work just fine.
