Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Welcome to the erotic world of courtesans - Deeper in Sin


Welcome to the erotic world of courtesans! 
Sharon Page - Deeper in Sin



Sophie Ashley found herself in a dreadful situation.  She desperately needs to find a protector so that she is able to provide for her young son, her close friend and her children.  Thrown out by her adoptive parents for having a child out of wedlock and pursued by a nasty lord that is trying to force her into becoming his mistress, Sophie finds herself in London.  She is seeking entrance to the world of the famous London’s Cyprians. 

With determination she knows she can gain access.  She has prepared herself and has gathered information from a journal that she carries.  It is written by her mother, a courtesan, and it details and chronicles her rise and love affairs with many powerful men in London.  With the journal as her guide, Sophie gathers courage and successfully gains access to a lavish Cyprian Ball.  There she meets our hero, Fitzwilliam MontCleif, the Duke of Caradon – and known as Cary to his close friends.

Cary rescues Sophie from a sticky situation during the ball and in doing so sparks hope in Sophie that he may agree to become her protector.  Little does Sophie know that our handsome duke carries with him some very heavy emotional damage that prevents him from offering more than just friendship.  But Sophie does not give up and makes it her mission to try to help him through. 

With a murder-mystery story backdrop we find these two lovers moving through the decadent world of lust and sin, looking for answers to solve the mystery. 

Sophie is very innocent, but is very open to what she sees around her, and wants to be able to please Cary.  Not only because she is falling for him but also so that she can help him emotionally.  At times she seemed to be a bit too eager and not very sure of herself.  She did go forward into any situation readily; but at times it felt that she was missing that courage that you find from a strong heroine.  She makes it up in her sweetness and love for her hero and you could not help but pluck along to see the book through.

Cary is a strong hero.  He is handsome and courageous, and you could not help but feel so bad for what he is going through.  The effects of war and childhood tragedies where finally weighing down on him.  Finding Sophie to soothe his soul is just what he needs. 

This is an erotic novel, and there are some pretty spicy scenes stored within, but nothing too shocking.  Overall it was satisfying.

I would give this novel Four Stars.  The murder/mystery story caught my interest and did surprise me at the end.  The heroine was a little disappointing, but the hero made up for it.

*ARC provided by author/NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you for checking out my blog!
Roxana


www.romanceandalloftheabove.blogspot.com

Tuesday, August 11, 2015

Hope, Love and Courage - Highland Knight of Rapture



Highland Knight of Rapture is the 4th book in a series, and while I have not read the other books I think this book reads well as a stand alone.


Recently I have been doing a lot of spicy reading and felt that I needed a little cooling off.  I was happy to be given the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review and I am happy to report that this book does not disappoint.

The book starts off with our heroine, Lady Helen, delivering a beautiful baby girl.  Her husband and Laird is not happy with the delivery after 5 years of marriage as he wanted a heir.  He is despicable man, with no love, respect and not the slight care for our poor Helen.  Enraged he starts publicly acknowledging his mistress in front of his lady wife and Clan.  Poor Helen, a beautiful and timid lady, tries very hard to please her husband.  Accepting that arrange marriages to forge alliances are the norm, she tries very hard to please her boorish husband and accept her fate. 

Sir Eoin MacGregor, an old friend of Lady Helen and close friend of her brother, arrives at the castle to offer support with the feud against the McDonald.  He remembers Lady Helen very fondly and has secretly loved her all these years.  He is stunned to witness her mistreatment and what she is going through.  He decides to help his beautiful lady so that she can have the happiness that she and her daughter deserve.

I must say, I stayed up all night turning the pages in my Kindle.  This story was very engaging.  You couldn’t stop but feel for Helen and the awful circumstances she was going through, and just sigh at how resigned she was to her fate.  She knew her duty and what was expected of her by her family and clan.  The only joy in her daily life was her new born daughter.

Our hero was such a sweetheart!  Eoin struggled in the beginning with figuring out how to help her, knowing that she was married but not accepting it in his heart.  Someone he was able to offer Helen courage and patiently helped her make some very tough decisions.  They are very frightening decisions for her that would affect so many around her..

While not a very steamy read, it did have its moments, and actually I think that if it would have gotten too hot a read it may have taken away from the story.  I really enjoyed this book and will look to read the other in the series.   

Give Highland Knight of Rapture a try and it will not disappoint!

Thank you for stopping by!
Roxana

I received this book as an ARC from Net Galley for my honest review.