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Have you ever picked up a novel and about halfway through feel like there’s something you should know about it because it seems familiar? I thought I was going insane! I couldn’t remember the book, but I remembered the characters. I was certain I hadn’t read it before but how could I explain my knowledge of the main characters and the two of the side characters? Thank heavens I finally figured it out! Lady Sophia’s Lover is the second of the Bow Street Trilogy. The first is Someone to Watch Over Me. Where I recognized the characters was from the third Worth Any Price which follows the brother of the heroine in LSL. Nothing like solving a mystery to start off my day!
Sophia Sydney is out for revenge. She wants to destroy the man who sent her brother off to his death. Sophia is certain of her facts and equally certain of Sir Ross Cannon’s cruelty and guilt. It seems fortuitous when an ad to be his secretary appears in the papers. Taking it as a sign, Sophia appears in Cannon’s offices on Bow Street determined not to take no for an answer.
Ross is completely stunned by Sophia. Her very presence shatters his carefully constructed walls. He tries to regulate her into a housekeeping position instead of the secretary position. Her argument that he didn’t specify gender completely flummoxes him and before he knows it, Sophia is both his secretary and his housekeeper.
Sophia is equally dazzled. The fat, old, wig wearing man she expected is not there. The man she sees is not the man she pictured. Ross is distinguished, virile, and devastating. While Sophia is trying to gather evidence against Ross and his runners, she finds herself hopelessly drawn to him. Will love win out over vengeance?
I am a big fan of Lisa Kleypas. I love her historicals. I heard about her contemporaries. I wanted to give them a try, but I was afraid I wouldn’t love them as much as I do her historicals. Contemporary novels and I have had our fair share of issues in the past. So I waited, and waited, and waited, until I finally found it in the library. Then I snatched it so fast, it made the other patrons’ heads spin.
I laughed, and chuckled, and giggled, out loud and in my head all the way through the book. Kleypas wrote a gem when she wrote Smooth Talking Stranger. I can’t possibly say enough good things about this book. The dialogue was witty, the leads had phenomenal chemistry, the path from singledom to motherhood and coupledom was breathtaking and sweet.
When I finished the book, I closed with a blissful sigh and one thought running through my head… must own my very own copy. I wanted to sing praises about this book to the nearest person I could find — and I did. It happened to be my mother. She’s now borrowing it from the library.
I’m so thrilled to be converted to the dark side (contemporaries). I’ve put my name on the hold list for Blue-Eyed Devil. I just can’t wait to read it. If it’s half as good as Smooth Talking Stranger, it’s going to be a toe-curling and very yummy read indeed.
The book pits a high society Texan playboy against a woman who has no use for his charm, wealth, or position other than forcing him to admit he’s the father of her sister’s new baby.
This love story is one of the most endearing I have ever read. Lisa Kleypas spins a tale worthy of mystical magical world of fairy tales. Based on Russian superstition, a prince who is like the Beast in Beauty and the Beast meets the woman of his dreams and learns to love. The bedroom scenes are exciting and steamy. Prince of Dreams is a novel not to be missed.
Despite his wealth, Prince Nikolas did not lead a charmed life. Taught early on the abuses man could inflict, Nikolas is determined to avoid emotions at all costs. Tortured and exiled from Russia, Nikolas makes a new home in England where during his recovery he meets Emma Stokehurst. At the tender age of thirteen, Emma is the girl Nikolas is certain he will wed. She is his destiny.
Nikolas remains on the fringes of Emma’s life as she grows and now at the age of twenty, he is more certain than ever that she is the one for him. Emma is tall and lithe, her body he imagines will match his own to perfection. Her red hair, independence, and forthright attitude remind him of the women back in Russia. Though she has a large dowry, Emma is left alone and dismissed by the male of the species. Everything about her is unfashionable in the eyes of polite society.
When he discovers that a man is wooing her under false pretenses, Nikolas strikes swift and sure, cutting her secret beau out of her life with a single conversation. Everything is working according to his plan as Nikolas seduces and marries the bewitching Emma. Now with her by his side as his wife, he is positive that his life is going to turn for the better. He was wrong.
Emma’s gentle nature and guileless giving is more threatening than the memories of those that tortured him in Russia. She can cause more havoc with a single kiss than Nikolas is comfortable with. His life has been dedicated to suppressing his emotions and the feelings Emma brings out are threatening to destroy all that he’s worked for, so Nikolas does the most hateful thing he can think of… he sleeps with another woman.
But despite the wedge he’s driven between them, the bewildering flashes of déjà vu keep happening to him. Snippets of conversation leave him in a cold sweat and a painting once revealed causes him to faint dead away. When Nikolas awakes he is angry and confused. Destiny has taken him back in time to mother Russia, where he lives life through the eyes of his ancestor Prince Nikolai. It is here in the midst of the past, Nikolas learns to become a better man… Emelia, beautiful Emelia, who is in every way his wife Emma, teaches Nikolas how to love. Disaster tears them apart and sends Nikolas to the future.
Realizing what a mess he’s made of his own life, Nikolas is determined to set things right. But Emma won’t have him. She doesn’t trust in the changes Nikolas has under gone. She won’t love him… won’t let herself love him. This new man who is in every way the man she had hoped he would be can’t last, because she knows his nature. As soon as she loved him he’d revert and mock her for her love. After all Nikolas is not a man that can change, he is a product of others hatred and fear, whose innate stubbornness rejects all kinds of affection. But he has changed and he will prove it. If it’s the last thing he does, he’ll make her believe in him; love him as she once did in the past.
Seduce Me at Sunrise is darkly passionate, sensual, and utterly devastating. Kev is the type of hero that is pure indulgence. He’ll make your hips grow just looking at him… or should I say reading him. In summation he is fierce, broody, and desperately in love. Half Romany, half Irish, Kev was raised by his abusive uncle. The man turned him into a cruel heartless Romany warrior, hurting him emotionally and physically until everything soft inside him died… or so Kev thought. Left for dead by his clan and taken in by the Hathaways provides Kev with another chance. It’s unclear his exact age when this happens, I would say sometime between his teens and early twenties. While recovering under the Hathaways’ roof Kev notices Winnifred, young, delicate, and fragile. She is everything good and kind and gentle. In her presence the vicious side of him quietens. He decides to stay and in doing so changes his whole life.
Tragedy strikes the Hathaway a few short years later leaving the older siblings in charge of the younger ones. Fate takes a hand again when scarlet fever strikes two members of the family. One is Win. Both survive, but Win is left weakened. Two years of being weak and helpless watching others live life while she stays in bed incite Win to get herself better at all costs. She makes plans to go to France to a unorthodox clinic (they make you exercise gasp!) which Kev tries to stop from taking place. Win offers him a choice - tell her he loves her or she goes. He can not bring himself to say it, because if he did he could never refrain from claiming her… which he doesn’t want to do because he doesn’t think he’s good enough for her. Lots of circular logic, but there you go.
Win is at the age of spinsterhood upon her return from the clinic. She’s twenty-five if I remember correctly and more than ready to begin her life. She refuses to take anything for granted and plans to marry (Kev) and have children (his).
The emotional drive of this novel is completely fulfilling and can get you high on endorphins. For example:
When Win leaves to go to France she says to Kev:
“I am running after you, and life, in desperate pursuit. My dream is that someday you will both turn and let me catch you. That dream carries me through every night I long to tell you so many things, but I am not free yet I hope to be well enough someday to shock you again, with far more pleasing results.”
Or Kev when he finally declares himself:
“All the fires of hell could burn for a thousand years and it wouldn’t equal what I feel for you in one minute of the day. I love you so much there is no pleasure in it. Nothing but torment. Because if I could dilute what I feel for you to the millionth part, it would still be enough to kill you. And even if it drives me mad, I would rather see you live in the arms of that cold, soulless bastard than die in mine.”
Edward Cullen eat your heart out. Blissed out sigh.
And while some of the motivation is a little hard to grasp, it’s so good, you can’t help but be drawn in by the magic spell Kleypas weaves.
Pirates, good/evil twins, bride stealing, quasi-spinster/virgin widow, quest for justice, nursing wounded hero, and fights to the death. There’s not much missing from this set of romantic plot elements. I was left unimpressed. There was too much to juggle and for me to believe without a large suspension of belief. (I know you’re thinking it’s romance there is always a suspension of belief, but this was a little much.) Only with Your Love is a sequel to When Strangers Marry. We get to see Max and Lysette again this time with kids of their own. As it usually happens with sequels that feature somebody or somebodies from other books, I tend to find more negative in the sequel. It’s because I develop preconceived ideas about the original secondary characters [in this case the twins] and I just don’t like giving them up or letting them get their own story. Still, the story was well-written, the sex scenes diverting, and the ending neatly wrapped up. If you don’t have my hangups about sequels you’re sure to find this a wonderful read.
Celia Vallerand is an ex-spinster but still virgin wife of Philippe Vallerand. They are currently headed towards New Orleans from France. Celia speaks little English and is fluent in French. She’s also the daughter of a doctor, the perfect companion for the charming Dr. Vallerand. Her delicate beauty and shy nature attracted Philippe from the first. She is well bred and refined, sure to fit in amongst the old blood Creole crowd. Until now he’s been happy to accommodate her desire to wait on lovemaking, but he is tired of waiting… unfortunately pirates besiege the ship. Philippe is killed and Celia captured.
On the pirate island, Captain Griffin [Justin Vallerand], watches in disgust as a finely portioned, well bred miss is brought by Dominic Legare to his spoiled sexually perverted brother. She would be dead by morning or broken beyond fixing. Nobody, well bred miss or whore, should have to suffer at that man’s hands. When the little miss manages to escape Andres clutches and runs into him, she begs him for help. He would give it of course… but everything changes when she says she’s Philippe Vallerand’s widowed wife.
The more I read of Lisa Kleypas the more I want to read. When Strangers Marry was a sinful delight to sit down and read. I enjoyed every moment thoroughly. If you’re looking for some scintillating sex scenes, I would book right over your nearest bookstore and pick up a copy. Some of the bedroom interactions are enough to singe your eyebrows off. I’d tell you my favorite but then you’d be deprived of the surprise.
Lysette is running away. She refuses to marry the man her stepfather wants her to marry. Gaspard can beat her to death before she gives herself over to Etienne Sagesse. Her escape is thwarted at the river by two twin boys, the sons of Maximilien Vallerand. They bring her disheveled form before their father for punishment of attempted theft. Lysette is determined not to be sent back home and Max is drawn to her spunk. Even if he wasn’t, Max would never return Lysette to Etienne, his most hated rival.
Max uses Lysette to thwart Etienne and get the duel he’s been craving for nearly a decade. Etienne had slept with his late wife and murdered her. Of the first, Max knows for certain, of the second, Max is very sure, but lacking evidence. In fact all evidence of his late wife’s murder points to Max, the cuckolded and angry husband. Nobody believed Max’s protests of innocence, but the police let him off because of the circumstances. (Apparently killing a wandering and wild wife is completely understandable.)
When the excuse that Lysette is ill and can’t possibly go home turns into a real sickness Max nurses her through it. His mother protests his presence but gives in because she and the housekeeper alone can’t keep up their energies. During that time (3 weeks) he decides to make her his and as satisfying as it is to steal Etienne’s young bride, Max is going to find out how satisfied he can be… but can such satisfaction last?
Because You’re Mine is a delicious, exquisite, and absorbing read. Absolutely delightful from start to finish. The pacing, diction, plot, and characters were all to my liking. There was nothing in the novel that drew me out of the reading experience. Honestly, I just couldn’t put it down. I have a love of all Kleypas novels. She is simply a fantastic author.
Madeline Matthews is in trouble, but not the trouble one would usually expect. No, most of society would say Madeline was not in trouble at all as she was on the verge of making a most excellent match. For Maddy however the upcoming nuptials was the kiss of death. Marriage to Lord Clifton (cue many a bad guy’s looks and smell) was tantamount to a gilded cage. He desired her only as his blue blood broodmare, a situation she could not endure. Explaining her feelings to her parents gained her nothing so Maddy hatched a plan that would in essence remove her as a possibility to be Lord Clifton’s wife.
The plan is nothing short of daring as Maddy escapes boarding school and travels to London with a crazy plan to throw herself at Logan Scott’s feet. Why him? She saw a print of his image and decided that he would be the one she would lose her virginity to… and her approach would be forward, because how else could a girl like herself gain the handsome actor’s attention?
Logan Scott is attracted and irritated with the young girl. He knows she is a well bred lady, and a young untouched one at that. He refuses to give into her bewitching charm and plea to take her to his bed. In fact he tries to immediately send her packing. Unfortunately for him he just won’t be able to help himself. A constant temptation, Maddy is underfoot all the time because the comanager of the Capital, the Duchess of Leeds, hires her to be an all around assistant for the theater.
Who will surrender first to the emotions brewing behind the curtains?
I had some unfamiliar and ear-wax color substances to avoid while reading this book; those are potential problems with any secondhand novel, though I must say I’ve never encountered anything quite like this. lol. Anyway despite the somewhat repulsive quality of my copy of It Happened One Autumn, I enjoyed the story. This Lisa Kleypas novel is number two in the Wallflower quartet. While reading I kept expecting something more, something a little extra. I didn’t get it and so I have to say it was a bit predictable, not that most romance novels aren’t easily predictable, but while the conclusion was good it wasn’t as satisfying as I had hoped it to be.
Lillian Bowman, is an upstart American wallflower and proud of it. She’s got a good nose in her head and can distinguish scents the way an artist can label all the colors on a canvas. However, good olfactory sense aside, Lillian is a bit of a hoyden. She won’t mold herself into one of the demure English ladies that litter the country. Her mother bemoans that this will ensure Lillian to never snare a husband of her own – especially that of a peer.
Her sister Daisy is in a similar boat and the two heiresses have got to figure out a way to wed Lillian off – what better chance will they get than the Earl of Westcliff’s month long house party? Before they go, Lillian purchases a flask of perfume made from her own recipe. The proprietor tells her he added a special ingredient, one that is sure to cause magic to happen. Scoffing at the superstitious idea, Lillian pays and they depart.
Well there must be magic in the perfume after all because Westcliff seems to have gone bezerk. He can’t take his eyes off of Lillian or for that matter his hands and lips. Once he captures her in his arms he doesn’t want to let her go. This is totally unusual behavior for Westcliff as he’s only ever shown Lillian amused contempt in the past. Still, in spite of the handsome earl’s attentions, Lillian refuses to ignore the noble Viscount St. Vincent who is also making a play for her hand. Vincent doesn’t seem affected by her perfume at all and while she longs for a little more passion in his arms, all she desires of Westcliff is that his passion is unaffected in the absence of the perfume.
Vincent is looking for an heiress as his father has squandered off all the family inheritance and property except what is entailed. He finds Lillian charming, pretty, and interesting. If he has to take a wife, he could not ask for a better woman.
Marcus Westcliff has been irritated, vexed, annoyed, dismayed, and amused by Lillian’s presence. He can’t seem to get her off his mind but he knows he will never marry her. It is expected that he wed a properly breed English woman of good bloodlines, and while that makes him sound like thoroughbred horse, it doesn’t change the facts.
So it comes as a surprise when they both ask her to marry them (I won’t say who asked first or how the second came about, that’s half the fun.) Now Lillian has to make a choice – but which one?
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Originally posted 2008-09-29 12:02:33. Republished by Old Post Promoter
This story by Kleypas is an exciting adventure from start to finish. It all starts with a manhunt… or should I say a woman-hunt? Nick Gentry is looking for the wily Charlotte Howard. He has a small portrait of her in his pocket and his brother-in-law’s backing to get him into the Earl of Westcliff’s home where he’s tracked Charlotte. The Earl notices something fishy about the Viscount John Sydney and sets about unveiling the man’s secrets.
Meanwhile, John Sydney aka Nick Gentry, is prowling the premises for Charlotte and comes upon a young lady on top of a stone wall starring out across the grounds. Her foot is caught in her dress and Nick springs into action to save her… only to find the appealing woman in his arms is the very woman he’s been paid to track down.
Against all better judgment, Nick decides he can afford to stay and watch the lovely and lively Lottie. He comes to the startling conclusion that he wants her for himself and Lord Radnor can go hang before he’d ever bring to the obsessed creep a treasure such as her. Just as passion is sparking between Nick and Lottie, Westcliff pounces with the truth of Nick’s identity.
Frightened but determined, Lottie vows she will never go back to Lord Radnor. Westcliff offers to marry her to keep her away from Nick and provide protection, but Lottie turns him down. Instead she offers herself up to be Nick’s mistress which he refuses because he’d also rather have her as his wife…
I’m classifying this novel under virgin hero, not because Nick was a virgin in his relations to Lottie but because we see him lose his virginity to the Prostitute Gemma, well I suppose she was the Madam of the brothel.
This book would be rated higher, but I was a little disturbed by Radnor’s obsession with trying to break Charlotte as if she were a horse. I also didn’t like learning that her parents were okay with her being locked in a room alone with Radnor while he forced her to sit on his lap and answer to him while he touched her inappropriately… and while there was no full blown rape in the story, this qualifies to me as rape and is marked as such.
Luckily for readers Nick is a dominating force and dispels upsetting Radnor’s presence pretty easily. Oh and this is the first time I’ve seen a shower scene in a historical but Kleypas explains in her author notes why she included it based on her research. It’s solid so don’t let the idea of inaccuracy turn you away from reading this book.
Interesting term found within the prologue: buttock-and-file whore which is an old term for a street prostitute who was in connection with a pickpocket or also pickpocketed her customers. So you would pay, pay again involuntary, and perhaps gain a new venereal disease. Cool.
This is a fantastic spinster story set in 1836 England. Our heroine, Amanda, is a 30-yr old spinster supporting herself as a novelist who has decided to do something for herself, for once in her life. As we well know a never-married 30 yr old woman is quite on the shelf, but this does not prevent her from having the same sexual needs as any other woman. So our heroine, and my heroine for this, hires a male prostitute for her 30th birthday completely disregarding social conventions of virginity and premarital sex.
On her birthday a suitable man with an association to the escort service does appear on her doorstep and we assume that this is her prostitute. As the reader we are mortified to learn that this man is not a prostitute despite his sexual actions with our heroine. Later in the book Amanda and the not-prostitute Jack meet at a social/publishing event.
The story as a whole involves Jack doing everything he can to get Amanda back in bed and eventually convinces her to have an affair with him. I very much enjoyed the affair and the experiences of our main characters in public and in private (rating: 5). Once Amanda decides that the affair must end, things get pretty complicated and despair ensues. Months into this unfortunate depression we discover that Amanda is pregnant. Again, our never-married 30 yr old woman has just discovered that she is pregnant- this is a problem. Our Amanda must now decide whether to move to the continent or marry below her standards and whether or not to tell Jack about his child (rating: 4).
I call this a solid 4.5. There are 2 reasons that this review is not a full 5: there is some rear-entry stuff (gags and feels uncomfortable) and there is a bit too much time spent on inner-turmoil instead acts based on inner turmoil.
I’ve been over at Jessica’s blog Racy Romance Reviews and I stumbled upon her post for google search terms. Some of the searches are truly hilarious, but there was a mysterious question that cropped up time and again in the search terms.
I saw him on the inside cover and immediately I wanted to know the answer too. The man is scrumptious! So I started the search and surprise, surprise - Jessica’s blog posts come up as one and two on the search engine, which wasn’t very helpful because as I already knew the name to the gorgeous hunk was not going to be there. So who is he?
The Answer:
Ben Whitaker!
Go Amazon forums for providing me with that tidbit. Once I figured that out I looked for him on other romance covers. Ben is also the model for A Reputable Rake by Diane Gaston and Mr. Cavendish, I Presume by Julia Quinn.
This is his model page, which has a few pictures and information on him. If only there were more information on the internet for me to glean…
Hey Ben! If you see this post contact me! I want to interview you! Grin.
Looks:
Height: 1.88
Chest: 98
Waist: 82
Hips: 94
Shoes: 44/45
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Brown
I hereby dubbed Ben Whitaker as Mr. Eight for the Search for Fabio. Consider this his nomination! I know I want to see him on more covers and I know you do too!
KarLynP says:
He is going to give Nathan Kamp a run for his money. Yum!
L. Magee says:
Oh, yeah, that Ben Whitaker has one killer smile!
lovetherain says:
I just got Seduce me at Sunrise by Lisa Kleypas & the cover model on the inside flap is sooo good-looking. I usually don’t like who they pick to portray the characters, but this guy was dead on.
. I just can’t wait to read it. If it’s half as good as 
, it’s going to be a toe-curling and very yummy read indeed.
?
Go Amazon forums for providing me with that tidbit. Once I figured that out I looked for him on other romance covers. Ben is also the model for 
by Diane Gaston and 
by Julia Quinn.
