A Courtesan's Guide to Getting Your Man By Susan Donovan and Celeste Bradley

Book Description:
Regency London’s most celebrated courtesan, The Blackbird, was a woman before her time—uninhibited, financially independent, and free to live by her own rules. Schooled in the sensual arts by the one man she loved the most, she recorded every wicked detail in her diaries…

When Boston museum curator Piper Chase-Pierpont unearths The Blackbird’s steamy memoirs, she’s aroused and challenged by what she finds. Could the courtesan’s diaries be used as a modern girl’s guide to finding love and empowerment? One curious curator—and one very lucky man—are about to find out…

***  ***

*fans self* 

This was one hot romance.

I loved it. 

I could barely put it down.  Sneaking home at lunchtime to grab twenty minutes here, twenty minutes there.  Snatching a few minutes before leaving for work in the morning ... staying up late with the itty bitty light while hubby sleeps - I was completely enamored by this book!  I didn't expect to have this kind of reaction - but I was totally into it!  It's the successful collaboration of two well known authors, each known for their own particular genre.  One contemporary, one Regency.  It was like a Reeses candy bar ... peanut butter and chocolate!  A perfect combination - and oh so yummy!  The two authors came together to write a modern day/historical romance combining their two fields of expertise.  It's the the story of how a mousy young museum curator from Boston turns herself into a luscious vixen who succeeds in capturing her dream man by using the diaries of a young and courageous Regency courtesan as her inspiration.   I was swept away by both story lines.  For once, the modern storyline and the historical one were equally as good and kept my attention until the very end! 

Maybe it was all the sex...

Still, I'm used to sex, but this was a lot - even for me.  I wouldn't call it over the top, but it is graphic, some parts are erotica-like.  Naughty, daring, pushing the boundaries. Who knows?  Whatever it was, it worked!

I found the book inspiring in some ways.  If Piper could transform herself from a nerdy, bespectacled, blue-lipped curator to a sexy, jaw dropping bomb shell - so could I!  Well... almost.  The inner vixen in me shouted aloud - "Hey, lay off the pizza already and get yourself off your lazy butt and hop on over to the gym!"  And I did!  This book got me motivated!  I want to be a sexy vixen and make men's jaws drop too! ;)

Enough about me, let's talk about the book which begins with the contemporary side of the story and then flips back and forth to Ophelia's Regency London storyline.

Piper is a curator for a small museum in Boston, working on her next big exhibit about the life of Boston's famous woman abolitionist, Ophelia Harrington.  Her job may or may not be on the line, due to budget cuts and the fact that her last exhibit was a total flop.   With all the pressure about her job and the fact she spends a lot of her time holed up doing research, Piper hasn't exactly been keeping herself up.  Coming off her thirtieth birthday, she's due for a change.  She's been so preoccupied with work that she's let herself go.   Underneath her dowdy exterior she has the voluptuous body of a Venus. Unfortunately, you'd never know it. On one particularly bad hair, no make-up, bag lady-dress day (and don't forget the blue pen run amok episode), Mick Malone, Mr. OMG-the-man-I-threw-myself-at-and-was rejected-by walks into her life again.  The man she never got over.  The man she fantasizes about.  And, he's just as gorgeous, tall, dark and handsome as ever.  And an Irish brogue no less!  It's been ten years since they've seen each other. Will he recognize her? Does he even remember her?

Amazingly enough - yes!  He does!  It turns out Mick's been harboring feelings for Piper ever since that night she tried to seduce him in a drunken state back in her dorm room years ago.  Having no choice, he had to turn her down.  He couldn't take advantage of a woman as far gone as Piper was that night.  He respected her too much.  Plus, he was her teacher's aide and due to leave the country in less than two weeks.  He wasn't about to start up something with her only to leave shortly thereafter!  If things could have been different he would have taken her up on her offer - and more.  He liked her.  But, alas, it wasn't meant to be.   Now here he is after all this time, a globe trotting museum celebrity with his own Indiana Jones-type reality TV show in the making.  Guess who's the new guy working at her museum for the next six months?

Poor Piper, could life get any worse?  By meeting Mick again after so many years - and the humiliation of having him see her looking like such a wreck?  Well, it's a wake up call.  Coincidentally, she's just been reading all of Ophelia Harrington's steamy pornographic diaries and Piper is absolutely buzzing with sex, sex, sex on her mind.  With the help of her friend Brenna, Piper undergoes a complete makeover transformation - a la her favorite courtesan, The Blackbird, aka revered and respected, Boston abolitionist, Ophelia Harrington.

Piper's transformation is a total success - and boy was it fun reading about how Piper plays Mick like a violin.  But, it's not merely an act, they soon develop strong feelings for one another and get closer and closer by the book's end.  Meanwhile, there's the sticky issue of what should Piper do about the newly discovered evidence she's unearthed about history's famous abolitionist who was really a daring and provocative courtesan in her youth!

It turns out that Ophelia was being forced into an arranged marriage and wanted no part of it.  She saw no way to control her life other than to become a courtesan.  At least as a courtesan she would have her own house, money and choose who would sleep in her bed.  It was the kind of freedom she craved!  So what if she wouldn't be accepted by polite society and she'd be forced to only mingle within the scandalous world of the demimonde.  She didn't care! 

With the determination of a terrier, she tracks down the most famous courtesan in London at the time, a beautiful woman known as Swan.  Swan at first will not help her, but Ophelia convinces her otherwise and Swan agrees to teach her the ways of being a courtesan - in secret.  They become close friends and confidantes. The most important part of Ophelia's training is with Sir, the masked man Swan enlists to be Ophelia's lover for a week.  Each night he will instruct her on the Seven Delights of the Courtesan.  *sigh*  Who is Sir?  Ophelia thinks he's a male version of a courtesan and loves every minute she has with him.  But she schools herself not to fall in love, no matter how easy.  He is her teacher and she must learn from him - and learn she does!

Ophelia's training is a big success and Swan interviews many prospects and finds her a protector.  For five years Ophelia is with her protector, Robert, until it ends when he leaves the country on a diplomatic mission.  She's sad to see him go, despite the fact she turned his marriage proposal down - she doesn't want to be anyone's wife - she cherishes her freedom.  Over the course of the next few months, she sees Sir again (masked, as usual), but then, against Sir's warnings, she gets involved with a well known writer with an unsavory reputation.  Their affair leads to a series of events that gets her arrested and accused of murder.  It's all very exciting and I won't reveal the details, but I was riveted by the storyline and couldn't put the book down!  Of course we know Ophelia doesn't hang for murder, because she becomes an abolitionist in Boston twenty years later, but how?  What happens?

This story had it all:

Sex: lots of it.  Racy, sensual, evocative.  Some areas could have made me squirm or feel uncomfortable, yet it was so well written and passionate, there was no awkwardness or purple prose to ruin it.  It definitely wasn't your typical formulaic romance either! 

A Unique Plot: I've never read such a unique plotline.  Courtesan turned abolitionist?

A Masked Lover:  Sir was to die for, I loved him. I loved the whole idea that he was Ophelia's trainer. Their seven nights together - their seven sins - delectable! Who can resist a lover who wears a mask all the time?  That mystery of not knowing who he is or what he looks like, except well... ahem... from the neck down.  The big question of who Sir really was added to his allure.  I guessed correctly, I suspected who he was all along, which made it all the more delicious by the end!

A Strong Heroine:  Ophelia was her own woman.  She wasn't going to take sh*t from anyone.  She determined her own destiny.  She wanted to be a courtesan instead of being forced into a marriage - and she did it!  I do wish we got to witness her first meeting with Robert, her first protector.  I would have liked to have seen how that went.  I kept thinking he was going to be a dud - I'm glad it worked out for her for five years.

Vivid Descriptions: Talk about inspiration!  All the things described that both Ophelia and Piper wore in and out of bed - I want!

Fascination and Tension:  Not sexual tension, though the book didn't suffer due to the lack of it.  There was tension about what was going to happen next!  It kept me reading, I had to find out what happens next! 

A Happy Ending: Both the modern and the contemporary story lines had the ending I wanted!  For Piper, the opening night gala and Ophelia's exhibit's was all it could be.   We know Ophelia somehow moves to America and becomes an abolitionist - but how and with whom, who does she marry?  I was tickled pink to find out - a perfect ending!

I truly loved this book, not only was it sexy and entertaining, I learned a little something about what's involved in being a museum curator and organizing and creating an exhibit.  No easy task!  I'm certainly going to take a second look at museum exhibits from now on.  Not only for the subject of the exhibit itself, but the layout, the planning and execution of it as well - very interesting! 

Susan Donovan is a new to me author, since my familiarity with contemporary romances is a bit limited, but I'm familiar with Celeste Bradley and have read and enjoyed her historical romances in the past.  I hope they write some more books together in the future.  This book is a definite keeper - in fact, I think it deserves a permanent spot on my bedside table - for handy reference ;) 

This book was sent to me by the publisher, St. Martin’s Paperbacks, for early review. Available in stores May 24th, 2011.

4.5/5

Note: 12/31/2012

This book has been re-released under the title Unbound.

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The Spy by Celeste Bradley

Book Description:
James Cunnington has a pressing mission at hand: He must find the daughter of a missing code breaker for the Liar's Club, a man suspected of turning traitor for Napoleon. Time is of the utmost concern. While it is evident that his ward's new tutor has something to hide, James in unaware that the woman he seeks now resides under his very roof... Desperate and near destitute, Philippa Atwater must don gentleman's clothing to pass herself off as a scholarly young tutor. Her clever--if itchy--disguise allows her time to pursue her quest to find her father, ruthlessly abducted by French spies. Closely guarding the cryptic notebook he entrusted to her care, she senses danger all around her--even in the home of her roguishly handsome new employer, James Cunnington. Now Philippa is about to discover that the desire can be as lethal as a well-aimed bullet...

This is number three in the "Liar's Club" series by this author and I liked it. I didn't love it, but it was pretty good. I must admit, when I read the first in this series, it was the first Regency spy romance I'd ever read and I loved it! It was all new and exciting to me (plus it was a great book - The Pretender.)

But, I digress.

Now that I've read several more of these types of books, I'm getting a little tired of this genre, yet I want to finish this series, so I'm valiantly forging on!

The Spy is the story of Phillippa Atwater. A young and beautiful redhead who has been on the run fleeing Napoleon's men. They have abducted her father, a renown cryptographer, who was a member of the secret "Liar's Club" in London. They want him for his expertise in writing codes. Phillippa is destitute by the time she gets to London and the one man she thought could help her is now dead. Before her father was abducted, he told her one thing, to paraphrase, "keep an eye on James Cunnington." Not knowing what this might mean, she's not sure if her father meant James is a friend or foe, but whatever he is, he's the key to how she might be able to find her father and free him.

In this world of spies and treachery, it's hard to tell the difference between who is good and who is evil. The common thread and theme throughout the book is one of mistaken identities and the guilt of one man. James Cunnington, a spy formerly known as "the Griffin" is trying to come to grips with the fact that he had allowed himself to fall prey to a beautiful, yet deadly woman who captured and tortured him in order to reveal who some of the club's other members were. Systematically, these members were found and destroyed. James can't live with the guilt of what he did and has nightmares over it, and the never ending and all consuming need for revenge to get back at the woman who led him down this road. How will he react to the fact that another beautiful woman has come into his life to entice him in the guise of a harem dancer? He seems to be susceptible to this sort of thing...

Despite the underlying serious tone of the book, it is a romance after all, and once I got past the slow start and build up of our characters it turned into a good read and the romance aspect of it really kicked in - Ms. Bradley outdid herself on heightening the sexuality between her hero and heroine by having Phillippa masquerade as a skinny young man who becomes a tutor to the adopted son of James Cunnington.

The two of them become friends, Phillippa is now Philip Waters and James decides to take him under his wing and make him "more of a man" when he's not tutoring his irascible, yet adorable son, Robbie (who sees right through Phillippa's disguise from the instant he meets her.) There are some entertaining moments throughout the book, one at Gentleman Jackson's Club and at a ball in which 'Philip' becomes the beau of the ball! I also was glad to see the valet, Buttons, who's on the scene again too! Ever helpful with costumes!

But the fly in the ointment is, how does Phillippa deal with the fact that she believes James might want to destroy her father, because he thinks her father has turned traitor and is working for Napoleon of his own will? Not only that, Phillippa is also terribly attracted to him - to the point where she nearly has a most embarrassing moment when she's "checking him out" while he's asleep. She is Philip at the time, and I must say, I was so afraid that James was going to wake up and find this young man ogling his privates! Not exactly what happens, but it's a close call.

I really enjoyed this book. We see some of the characters from the first two books that I liked a lot and there is a little bit of a Shakespeare feel to it, with all the hidden genders. Lots of action in the plot up to the ending which made up for the slow beginning. I was very curious to see how it would all be resolved and how Phillippa would be able to reveal herself to James and her love for him. Of course, there is the usual angst when he finds out, but some very sensual and erotic moments between them, in particular a harem dance of the Seven Veils scene that was very well done.

If spies and romance are your thing, I recommend this series, so far it's pretty good!

4/5

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The Imposter by Celeste Bradley

Book Description:
It isn't easy moving about Society dressed like a dandy-especially when one is a ruthless spy. But that's precisely the latest mission for Liar's Club agent Dalton Montmorecy. Dalton is posing as Sir Thorogood, the elusive cartoonist whose scathing political caricatures have all of London abuzz. The true identity of Sir Thorogood is a mystery, and Dalton hopes that impersonating him will flush out the real menace before his cartoons do further damage to the Crown. Now, if Dalton could only find a way to get the irksome, yet oddly appealing widow, Clara Simpson, off his trail...

When Clara meets Sir Thorogood at a ball, she's certain he is an impostor-because she's the true Sir Thorogood. Secretly penning the cartoons under the frothy nom de plume, Clara hopes to save enough money so that she can leave her in-laws and find a new residence. Now she is determined to reveal an imposter's identity-and that means doing some undercover work herself. But pretending to be someone you're not has a funny way of making a woman do things she wouldn't ordinarily dream of-even if it drives her straight into the arms of her devilishly handsome adversary!

This is the 2nd in the Liar's Club series, of which I loved the first book, The Pretender.

This one wasn't quite as good, mostly because I recognized several of the plot devices from the first one so it didn't seem as new and fresh to me. Book 2 picks up with Dalton Montmorency who is now the Spymaster of the Liar's Club. He is unsure of his place with them and takes on the assignment of becoming Sir Thorogood, the pseudonym of the cartoonist that has exposed many an important man in London. One thing leads to another, and Claire (the real cartoonist) goes out of her way to expose the man that is posing as her - or rather, Sir Thorogood. The whole thing is a bit outlandish and convoluted. To make matters more complicated, Claire poses as the maid next door, Rose, and winds up meeting another persona of Dalton's, Monty, a thief who has come to steal documents of her nextdoor neighbor. They wind up attracted to one another, having no idea the other is an imposter and that they've really met before. It was fun, but not very realistic.

Before you know it, the secret's out, they've had some wild attic sex and I found the book a bit tedious with the crazy plotline and all the disguises and other personas and not enough relationship building and romance. I like Dalton as a hero, but again (as in The Pretender) he's always dwelling on should he choose his love for the girl, or his duty to his country. One good point is, this book keeps you guessing about who the real bad guy is. Just when you think you've got it nailed, it surprises you, and you're wrong, and have a great big "Ooooh! So that's who he is!"

Anyway, if you like Spymaster Regency romances, you'll like this one, but as I said before, the plot was too crazy with all the disguises, I like something a bit more straightforward and funnier - although this one had it's moments, but more of them were just kind of dumb and unbelievable (if that's possible in a romance!)

3.5/5

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The Pretender: The Liar's Club by Celeste Bradley

Book Description:
Rule #1: Never fall in love.

She had a secret she'd do anything to hide.
Agatha Cunnington, a headstrong beauty from the country, has come to London in search of her missing brother James. The only clue she has is a cryptic letter signed The Griffin. Agatha decides to disguise herself as a respectable married woman so that she can go about the city unnoticed. But for her charade to work she needs a suitable "husband," preferably someone tall, elegant, and rakish-someone like Simon Montague Rain.

He had a secret he'd do anything to hide.
Simon Montague Rain, also known as The Magician, is a member of The Liar's Club, a renegade group of rogues and thieves in the service of the Crown. When someone begins murdering members of the undercover cabal one by one, Simon is given the mission to bring in The Griffin, one of his comrades who is suspected of betraying his brothers. Simon goes undercover and infiltrates the home of "Mrs." Agatha Applequist who he believes is the Griffin's mistress. Before Simon knows what's happened, he finds himself irresistibly drawn to Agatha's soft, feminine charms-and he is tempted beyond reason to break the first rule of The Liar's Club: never fall in love.

This was a simply delightful romance - I really loved it! It was a rollicking roller coaster ride of a story, funny, charming, exciting, mysterious and sexy - plus, a happy ending! What more could you want?

I loved Agatha, our heroine. She was so spunky and strong willed! Yet, she was ingenuous and delightful - not to mention she had a delicious figure, and knew how to use it to her advantage when out to get information (or her way) from men. Whether dancing with overstuffed generals or dealing cards in a sexy outfit in a gaming hell - she left men spellbound!

Simon was a dashing hero as well. At first, I was put off that he was not noble born, but you get over that very quickly. Tall, dark and handsome with arresting blue eyes he has an amazing physique (as both Aggie and his valet can testify). Plus, throw a little James Bond in there and he's irresistible! The two of them are so funny together, posing as man and wife, and the way they first meet is very funny when Aggie insists he takes off his clothes, and he thinks she means to bed him! She just wanted him to take a bath and pose as her make believe husband. Well, as soon as they meet the sparks fly and the story unfolds.

The main fly in the ointment here is, since Simon is a spy, he can't act on his urge to love and marry Agatha because then his enemies would use it against him? Should he choose his love of England and duty - or his love for Agatha? She is so winsome and a joy - and she tells the biggest and funniest lies! Some real whoppers!

Lots of surprises and gotchas in this book, and it was all very clever and it had a spectacular ending - I won't spoil it, but this is a must read! Ms. Bradley is the Queen of great endings. Clever, a bit sappy, but oh so wonderful, and the sex scenes are great (fans self) but not over the top - they're just right!

This is the first in The Liar's Club series, and I can't wait to read the rest of them!

5/5

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Duke Most Wanted by Celeste Bradley

Book Description:
Sophie Blake's grandfather willed his fortune to the first of his granddaughters to marry a duke. Since her cousin, Deirdre, will seal the deal any day now, the quiet, bookish Sophie can sit back and enjoy her time with the only man she truly adores: Graham. No matter that the part charmer, part scoundrel has absolutely no designs on her! Sophie is content to engage Graham in lively conversation, beat him at cards. . . and probe at the darkness hiding behind his rakish smile.

Then Graham unexpectedly gains a title, an estate in near ruins and a mountain of debt. If there is any chance of survival he must find a rich wife—quickly. As his hunt for a bride begins, Sophie realizes that she isn’t even in the running. Suddenly no longer content to be a wallflower, Sophie gets a stunning make-over and becomes the belle of the ball. Lots of heads are turning…including Graham's. But this beauty has secrets of her own. Will she be his salvation or seal his fate?

This is the third and last of the regency based Heiress Brides trilogy, and I must say, I enjoyed them. This is the story of plain, bookish, bespectacled Sophie who was always the quiet one of the three girls, who never had any interest in the Pickering fortune and marrying a duke. Sophie's great friend is Gray Cavendish, 4th son of the Duke of Edenton. Gray has always been a wastrel type, selfish, but fun to be with. He and Sophie have a platonic sort of friendship, both aware that nothing can ever occur between them in a marriagable sort of way. But, Gray's father and three older brothers wind up dying in a freakish sort of way in Africa while big game hunting, and Gray suddenly winds up being the new Duke of Edenton. But with the title comes a mountain of debt and a crumbling country estate that needs an infusion of money immediately or Gray will not be of this world much longer since the creditors are already after him! He must now marry for money, and as a Duke, there will be no shortage of heiresses who are willing to trade their fortunes for becoming a duchess.

I really liked Gray, he's endearing and cute, blonde, tall, broad shouldered - the usual. He goes through a transformation once he becomes Duke and wants to save his estates and the people living on them. He's torn for his need for money, but his desire to be with Sophie and marry her - guess what he does?

Meanwhile, Sophie decides to transform herself into the belle of society with the help of stellar dressmaker, Lementeur. We've met him in the previous two books, and he works wonders with Sophie and transforms her from a wallflower to the toast of the town, a la Pygmalion. You see, Sophie secretly wants to marry Graham herself, get the Pickering fortune, and help him save his estates. But, Sophie has a big secret, which we don't find out about until almost 3/4 of the way into the book. She's not really who we think she is. This kind of bothered me. I guess I'm sort of a romance book snob when it comes to this sort of deception.

MAJOR SPOILER AHEAD:

As it turns out, Sophie is a nobody, an orphan who is posing as the real Sophie Blake (who had died young years ago). So she really doesn't even have any right to inheriting the fortune, even if she marries a duke. At least in the story of Cinderella (which this book parallels) Cinderella actually came from noble birth, in this book, Sophie is a nothing. I hate to sound callous, but this was a real turn off for me. I had a hard time with it, until they justified it at the end, and all was made well, but it still irked me a bit.

Anyway, Sophie and Gray have a few moments in which they can't deny they are now attracted to one another (although it took Gray a while to come around to this, but once he saw her in one of Lementeur's gowns he was convinced). One thing leads to another and they declare their love to one another, but as usual, there is the mix up at the end, some angst and then everything is put to rights. The nefarious solicitor, Wolfe, is in this again, trying to prevent the Pickering fortune from leaving his firm's hands, though his partner Stickley is in no part of it this time. We also follow the budding romance between the butler, Fortescue, and his love for Irish lady's maid, Patricia. All sorts of surprises come out in this book, not only about Fortescue, but also a transformed Lady Tessa at the end, which was amusing, though farfetched.

I liked these books, they had their humorous moments, the descriptions were frothy and well done and the heroes were sexy and charming. All the heroines had some endearing qualities to them, but I think Sophie was my least favorite because of her deception. Still, this was a worthwhile read, and a must if you've read the other two books because this book wraps up the whole series and brings it all to a close.

3.5/5

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The Duke Next Door by Celeste Bradley

Book Description:
A MARRIAGE OF CONVENIENCE
The dangerously beautiful Deirdre Cantor is determined to inherit her grandfather's vast fortune. All she needs is to marry a duke...and be the first granddaughter to walk down the aisle. So when the proper Calder Marbrook, the Marquis of Brookhaven and future Duke of Brookmoor, is abandoned at the alter, Deirdre makes it her business to become his wife--in spite of the whispers about his past.

AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH...
Soon Deirdre's visions of a lavish existence with the handsome Calder are shattered when she learns his shocking secret. Feeling betrayed, Deirdre seeks revenge by playing a perilous and seductive game of cat and mouse with her husband that threatens to drive them both to the heights of passion. But at what cost? Calder is determined to keep his secret under lock and key--and to make his stunning wife his in every way that matters. Even if it means winning her heart all over again...

This is the 2nd in the Heiress Brides series, the first being, Desperately Seeking a Duke which I liked. This one was even better. I'm rediscovering regency romances and I've decided I like this author. Her characters thoughts are funny and I find them endearing.

Calder has a big secret that his new bride, Deirdre, finds out about on their wedding day. He has a nine year old daughter who is less than thrilled about having a new stepmother. Meggie and Deirdre do not hit it off at first, but eventually the two of them become allies in their war against Calder.

Deirdre has always had a tendre for Calder, ever since she first saw him when she was only 16. Once they are married, there's the instant physical attraction between them, but there is always something that prevents them from getting together, whether it's an interruption of some kind (like a large explosion) or a misunderstanding or argument. Their wedding night never happens, but you're wishing it did since the few close encounters these two have are electrifying, you know when it happens it will be big! The most annoying thing about these two is they don't communicate. He's inwardly lusting after her all the time, but can't voice his emotions or wants. She's lusting after him all the time too, but she thinks he doesn't love her and she wants him to love her, not just want her body. Eventually they get together, only another misunderstanding happens soon afterwards (like what happened in the first book.) that leads to further angst and complications - but a hot sex scene too! There's a big ending with a chase and a rescue and someone gets shot. I like the humor in these books and the sex is hot and leaves you dying for more of the same.

This also has more on the secret longings of Calder's butler Fortescue and his secret attraction to the red-headed Irish lady's maid, Patricia, who is teaching how to read - the better to be along together. There's a brief scene with the very talented gay dressmaker that was in the first as well - he is ingenious and knows just what to say and tells these young girls what to do. I like him and the effect he has on his clients. I think he'll play a larger part in Book 3. Aunt Tessa is in this two, Deirdre's bitchy stepmother. Luckily, Deirdre sends her packing and we don't see her again after that - but she might turn up in the next book for some kind of revenge, she is a colossal bitch.

I'm looking forward to reading the third in this trilogy, funny, sexy and a nice quick, easy read. I recommend it.

4/5

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Desperately Seeking a Duke by Celeste Bradley

Book Description:
The first novel in a brand-new series about three young women looking for love--and upward mobility--from USA Today bestselling author Celeste Bradley.

ONLY A DUKE WILL DO
The only way for vicar's daughter Phoebe Millbury to inherit a family fortune is to find herself a duke--just as her late grandfather demanded in his will. But Phoebe, who's still trying to make good after a romantic scandal, also has her two cousins to contend with. They're all competing for the same money, maybe even the same men --until Phoebe meets her match in the terribly handsome and charming Rafe Marbrook.

BUT WILL IT BE "I DO"--OR ADIEU?
When she receives a marriage proposal from the Marquis of Brookhaven, Phoebe is thrilled to learn that Rafe is headed for dukedom - and accepts his offer. There's only one problem: It's from Rafe's older, less captivating brother, Calder. Now Phoebe finds herself on the verge of yet another scandal as she faces a desperate choice: Marry Calder for his money--or follow her own heart? Each way can only lead to trouble...

This was a delightful frothy romance set during Regency times in London. It's been a long time since I've read a Regency romance, not since high school and the million Georgette Heyer's I had read while babysitting at night. This is no Georgette Heyer regency romance - it's a hell of a lot spicier and probably not as well written, but it was still alot of fun to read. This is the first of a trilogy about all three cousins, can't wait to read the rest, this was my first book by this author, and she did a great job with it!

Right from the get go, it's off to a great start when our heroine, Phoebe (hate the name, but she was a sweet girl, who I kept imagining looked like the actress that played Catherine Morland in the recent ITV adaptation of Northanger Abbey on TV) notices Rafe and his perfect derriere at a ball. It's lust love at first sight pretty much. They kiss and drink champagne that evening, and just before Rafe is about to propose to her himself the next morning, his brother beats him to it! Poor Rafe, the bastard son and half brother who will inherit nothing. Still, he's divinely handsome and sexy and has a reputation for being a rake - but he's changed for the better after meeting Phoebe. Implausible, but it makes for a good story.

Poor Phoebe accepts the offer of marriage, supposing it has come from Rafe and not his brother, who she hasn't even met. Since the brother, Calder, is going to become a Duke, this means she'll come into this great inheritence left by her Scottish grandfather (his will is pretty amusing.)

As so is the angst in the plot that leads us on a journey of much sexual tension and near scandalous predicaments, culminating in one blissful night together and then two weeks of miscommunication and more angst which all leads up to a great ending with our hero coming to the rescue on his white charger - all very cleverly and humorously done - I loved it!

I hope we see more the of the amusing dressmaker in the rest of the books!

3.5/5

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