 Lord of Scoundrels was positively received upon its release , and in 1996 it earned the RITA Award for " Best Short Historical " , a prize given annually by the Romance Writers of America . Also during that year , Lord of Scoundrels won the Romantic Times ' " Regency Historical Romance " award . Literary critics and romance readers have since described it as one of the best historical romances ever written , praising the novel for its wit and well @-@ developed characters . 
