Mine Till Midnight (The Hathaways, Book 1) Mass Market Paperback – October 2, 2007

Amelia Hathaway, doing what she must to keep her family together, is on a mission to save her brother. The de facto head of the family after her parents' deaths, Amelia has her hands full with her siblings. After coming into an unexpected inheritance and title, her brother Leo's behavior has become even more self-destructive than before. When Leo disappears yet again, Amelia feels she must find and save him. This leads her to Jenner's, the notorious gaming hell, and to Cam Rohan.Caught between two worlds, Cam is feeling discontent in his life. As the manager of a successful gaming club with a keen mind and untold luck for investments, Cam has secured his financial future. However, his Romany heritage has always kept him just outside polite society. Increasingly, Cam would like to throw off 'civilized' society and return to the wandering, free Gypsy ways.With Cam's help, Leo is found and saved from himself...for the time being. Before the night is over, however, Cam and Amelia give into temptation and share one explosive kiss. Both are moved by this, but it is little more than a stolen moment. Their lives are moving in different directions, or so they think.When the pair meets up again in the country, their attraction has only grown. Cam finds that freedom might not be the only thing his life is missing. Amelia might just be what he needs. She is drawn to Cam as well; however, she is independent and not ready for Cam's assistance, especially where her family is concerned. Cam's persistence slowly pays off, but it will take more to win over Amelia.Since first meeting Cam Rohan in The Devil in Winter, I have been not-so patiently waiting for his story. Cam is everything you could want in a hero--strong, intelligent, and oh so sexy with a touch of mystery. Add in Lisa Kleypas' talent for creating amazing leading men, and you have a winner! Amelia is a good match for Cam. Innocent, but with strength of her own, she can easily stand toe-to-toe with Cam. Amelia is not without her faults. At times she seemed needlessly contrary, and while that was a bit trying, it wasn't out of character.A rich tale with vivid characters, Mine Till Midnight is as much about the secondary characters as it is about Cam and Amelia. The Hathaway siblings produce more than their share of drama and are sure to spawn more wonderful stories. Leo is set up nicely as the wastrel in need of reformation. Younger sister Win and the not-quite adopted brother Romany Merripen are also ready for their installment. However, with this many other detailed and dominating characters, Cam and Amelia's plot line took a back seat at times. After waiting this long for Cam, I couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed. I wanted more of him! This is not to say I wasn't totally engrossed and didn't read it from cover-to-cover in one sitting. Ms. Kleypas is a victim of her own success. She has penned many of my all-time favorites, and that might be too high of a bar for any author to hit every time. In the end, I did enjoy Mine Till Midnight and eagerly look forward to the next. Ms. Kleypas' fans will definitely want to pick up this start to a charming new series.Cherylreviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

The first time I looked at this book, I read the preview chapter and wasn't really drawn in, so I passed on it. I ended up reading volume 5 of the Hathaway series, Love in the Afternoon, and absolutely loved it. I was so charmed by the warm family atmosphere that pervaded Love in the Afternoon, that I decided to start the series from the beginning to read more about this family, and I'm glad I did. This particular volume wasn't as fresh or emotionally-engaging as Love in the Afternoon, dealing with the old "level-headed strong-willed miss meets dark mysterious passionate man with will of iron" device, and I would say it doesn't really have much to offer as a romance story, apart from Ms. Kleypas' polished writing; but it does provide a very organic introduction to the Hathaway family that will help lend further emotional depth to the stories that follow. The most enjoyable part of this novel is by far the family interactions, and getting to know the Hathaways. We do not get to know all of them to the same depth, but you will find yourself wanting to read more about this family, and to spend more time with them.Each novel is standalone, so if you decided to skip this first, somewhat underwhelming volume, you do not lose any information, but I feel that this volume (which is definitely well-written, even if it does feel like a retreading of the same old memes) is worth reading because you get to spend more time with the enjoyable Hathaway family, and I really liked seeing the evolution of these characters from the beginning. Amelia, Cam, and Leo are also the most prominent supporting characters in the rest of the series, so I think getting to know them well from this volume is definitely worth it.As far as the technical aspects of story-telling, Ms. Kleypas is rightly known for her smooth, elegant prose, and charming characterization. She is perhaps the only author that has yet to turn out a clunky phrase, that I've read, and she has a gift for crafting delicate similes and metaphors that makes her writing always feel simultaneously witty and poignant, and never a jumble of stock phrases or cliches. The only criticism that I feel inclined to make is that the dramatic arcs of the narratives are sometimes poorly paced, sometimes early arcs peter out and end with no impact, and sometimes a short arc is crammed in at the end of the story, perhaps in an effort to punch up the excitement for the end of the novel. But her characters always feel sympathetic and genuine -- even if their actions aren't always strictly logical, I always find myself understanding why they did it, and hoping everything works out in the end.In short, if you are considering reading any volume in the Hathaway series, I would recommend you buy the whole series and start with this volume, to get the best possible experience. If you are a fan of Ms. Kleypas from past works, or you enjoy warm, engaging families like Julia Quinn's Bridgertons, you will love this whole series. I'm giving this volume 4 stars because it is well worth reading, but its lack of originality as a romance makes it not quite perfect.