In her latest novel in her series about the Cynster family, Stephanie Laurens adds Miss Emily Beauregard and her four younger siblings to the mix.  Emily arrives in a small, rural village in Devon to apply for a job as the innkeeper.  When the owner’s son Jonas Tallent interviews her for the job, he discovers two important things:  She is lying about her references; and he is very attracted to her.  Desperately in need of an innkeeper, Jonas hires her despite his reservations about her experience and capabilities.

Thrilled to accept the new position, Emily finds rooms for her family at the inn and proceeds to turn the barren establishment into a thriving business.  In addition to hiding from her abusive uncle, finding a tutor for her brother, fighting her sexual awareness of Jonas, and getting the inn functioning again, she and her siblings hunt for a hidden treasure.  The treasure belongs to her family, though she keeps her complete name a secret from the people of Devon, lest they figure out why she’s there.  Other than her instincts, Emily’s only clue to finding the treasure is an old rhyme passed down through the ages.

Although Jonas feels that Emily withholds affection and information, he patiently waits until she’s ready to reveal more of herself to him.  Tired of rich London society, Jonas uses his physical attributes, good breeding, and inherent charm to ultimately win Emily over.  However, the closer they get to each other (and the closer they get to the treasure), the closer they also get to dangerous thieves who will do anything to steal her treasure.

Temptation and Surrender presents the kind of flawless romantic hero in Jonas Tallent that most women crave.  Emily, however, erects needless barriers to their romance and ignores obvious clues to the mystery that readers surely will figure out before she does.  Although overall an enjoyable read, the heroes and villains are so clearly delineated in this book that there’s little intrigue about who’s actually causing the mischief in the quaint Devon town.