A Most Sinful Proposal

A Most Sinful Proposal by Sara Bennett 226

Marissa Rotherchild is determined to never marry anyone like her parents as she is sick of being second behind their beloved plants. She meets George Kent at a botanical society meeting and they instantly click at being out of place among the many plant obsessed people there. George's brother Valentine is an expert on roses and he, too, has no interest in plants and invites Marissa to his familial estate, Abbey Thorne Manor for a house party. Marissa arrives with her grandmother, Lady Bethany, in tow, only to discover that not only is there no house party, but George is not even in residence. Instead Marissa meets Lord Valentine Kent whom Marissa is immediately attracted to, and while it is certainly reciprocated, Valentine is a plant lover and that is not something Marissa can overlook. He explains to her that he is searching for the Crusader's Rose, a rose that his ancestor brought back from the crusades that was destroyed a generation ago, but is believed to have survived somewhere in England to this day. He has made it his life's mission to find this rose, before anyone else.

Baron Augustus von Hautt is also searching for this rose because of an unknown personal vendetta against Valentine, and he will stop at absolutely nothing to get it. When Valentine gets a new lead, he discovers that the Baron has beaten him there and he is forced to acknowledge that there is a spy in his house feeding information to the Baron. George reappears and Marissa realizes that she could never be happy with a man who never takes responsibility and who had no problem abandoning her to his brother, and that it is really Valentine she is coming to care for. She finds herself completely intrigued and caught up with the search for the Crusaders Rose and it is not long before the Baron has set his sights on her as well. Valentine is furious that anyone would threaten Marissa and all of his possessive and protective instincts come out as he is more determined than ever to find the Baron so that Marissa will always be safe. Valentine knows that Marissa is far more important to him than any rose, but he needs to prove this to her and show her that she, not the rose, makes his life complete.

I will admit that I bought this book for the cover; it is incredibly sexy and I really wanted to read it even though the blurb did serve as a warning that I might not like it. I found Marissa fairly likable as she was adventurous and carefree and her feelings about botanists were very understandable and all of her fears were justified. Valentine was not as likable as I did not at all care about his rose and that seemed to be his biggest concern in life. I did like that throughout the story Marissa became more important to him until the rose was almost out of thought and she was his world, but the rose was always there at the back of his mind. The did work together fairly well as a couple as toward the end she started to care about the rose as well and they spent quite a bit of time together. The sex was fairly tame, with just a couple of very short and mild sex scenes, a lot of innuendo and hints of things to come, and some kisses. It was disappointing to say the least as they were so incredibly attracted to each other and because I do sometimes judge a book by its' cover and was expecting quite a bit more.

Unfortunately the relationship was completely over powered by the search for the rose, by talk about the rose, by speculation about the rose, and by fights over the rose. The book was the rose, the rose, the rose and I just could not bring myself to care about the rose! It's a rose people!!! Just a rose! They tried to make it exciting by having the Baron go crazy and threaten everyone and it worked to some extent. I did want to know what was going on with him and why he was so hateful of the Kent family and that part of the story was quite interesting and more than a little surprising. It did not make me like the rose plot at all and it kind of seemed like the only thing Valentine and Marissa had in common and all their time together was spent in discussions about the rose or her fears that he was too obsessed with the rose. I did like her grandmother Bethany because that is the coolest name ever ;) and because she was so Bohemian and I wanted a grandmother like her. There was a cute little side romance between Bethany and an older gentleman friend of Valentine's, Lord Jasper, which was cute and short.

Rating: I tried to like this book but I really just couldn't. Marissa and Valentine had their moments, but the rose just bored me to tears and couldn't keep me interested.

A Seduction in Scarlet

A Seduction in Scarlet by Sara Bennett 424

Portia Ellerslie has spent the last several years of her life as England's favorite widow. Her husband was the hero of the nation and the people, and Queen Victoria, expect her to portray the "proper" behavior for the widow of such a man. She knows she can never remarry, never allow her control to slip, and basically never express any of the needs any woman has. She runs to Aphrodite's Club and enlists the help of the madame to find a man for just one night's pleasure to last her for the rest of her life. What she finds is Marcus Worthorne, the boy she had secretly been in love with years before when she was just the vicar's daughter and he never spared her a glance. It is not long before she realizes one night cannot be enough so she arranges what she believes will be just one more night. But Marcus has a plan and this time he hires and investigator to find out who this wonderfully intriguing woman he cannot get out of his mind, is. He decides to surprise her at an event in public in the hopes that she will be forced to confront her feelings for him.

But Portia cannot just throw away the expectations that have been placed on her by society and the Queen and she refuses to make anything public so Marcus arranges a trip for the two of them to the beach. Although things do not go quite as planned, it makes it clear to Marcus that these furtive meeting are not enough and he knows he wants quite a bit more from this woman. He finally proposes to Portia, but she is too scared to let go of what she has worked for for so long and Marcus decides that he can wait Portia out. Unfortunately, Portia's maid, is worried about how her scandalous behavior could end up hurting her behavior and Hettie runs to tell Portia's stepdaughter and her husband. When the two of them threaten to lock up Portia's mother in an asylum she is desperate to find a way to save her- even if it means turning to the man who could prove fatal to her reputation. But Arnold is a member of a secret organization to assassinate the queen and he will do anything to bring about Portia's destruction. Together Portia and Marcus must save the queen and relieve themselves of their worries.

Although I did completely respect Portia's feelings about going against the wishes of basically everyone in the nation, I felt as though she should have succumbed awhile earlier. Despite references being made to all these people depending on her, I never actually read details and sometimes it seemed like the person she was really trying to protect was herself. It went on and on even after Marcus had helped save her mother and I really couldn't help but feeling that, if she really wanted to protect everyone, she would have just married Marcus and avoided quite a bit of the mess. I loved reading about the change that Marcus undergoes as he starts at with not a care in the world and then he starts to want to impress her, followed by some brief jealousy, and then finally to the realization that he does want to make a life with her. And he does this so wonderfully as he tries to show that he can do this for her by finally taking on the responsibilities he has been neglecting for so long. He is so earnest as he tries to tell her all the things he can give her and the scene where she turns down his marriage proposal is just so heartbreaking.

Portia was also interesting in that she gathered the courage and went after what she wanted despite the threats to her reputation. Romance novels involving brothels are always so intriguing to me. Unfortunately the sex was not all that steamy and was jam backed in the first 150 or so pages, with the later offerings really being only alluded to before a new chapter begins. I also really liked that this book portrayed Victoria as a flawed, selfish, far too puritanical woman and not as some mythical God. She was well-liked by the people, but I was glad that she was not held up and revered by them as I am not a great fan. The plot to kill her was a bit of a waste, but I guess that having Arnold be an ass was not enough- he also needed to be into regicide. The book also had a great example of a family struggling with a member slowly giving way to Alzheimer's (before it was really known) and it was quite interesting. Lara was a very interesting character as she was hateful and awful, but her motivations were well explained and she was easy to understand in a rather odd way.

Rating: I liked the first two-thirds of the book the best as it really did just drag near the end as the author tried to get to 370 pages by adding in an assassination. However, Marcus was GREAT!

The Rose and the Shield

The Rose and the Shield by Sara Bennett

The second book in a duo, The Rose and the Shield takes place in England shortly after the Norman William the Conquerer takes over and tells the story of Lady Rose, who became mistress of Somerford when her elderly husband died. Although she is determined to make Somerford successful and safe while still maintaining control when her village is continually attacked by the merepeople- people who live on the mere- she decides to call in mercenaries. She does not want to bother her overlord, Lord Radulf whose wife Lilly is a friend of Rose's, for fear that he will think her weak and take Somerford away from her. Enter Viking warrior Gunnar Olafson and his gang of rough and tumble fighters who promise protection in exchange for money but make it clear that they go wherever the money is highest. From the beginning the reader is aware that Gunnar has actually been sent by Lord Radulf who intercepted Rose's message to Lord Fitzwilliam, a fierce and bitter enemy of Radulf's who wants to take over in this area of England. Lord Radulf sends Gunnar and his gang to Somerford to keep an eye on Lady Rose, get proof of her treachery with Fitzwilliam, bring it back to Radulf, and then Radulf plans to reward Gunnar by giving him Somerford. Gunnar is getting tired of his mercenary lifestyle and thinks settling down on his own land is just what he needs in his "old" age.

Right away Gunnar is entranced by Lady Rose and finds himself conflicted about his simultaneous desire to protect and possess her and his need to find proof of her deceit so he can take over at Somerford. Rose is being helped by her husbands loyal vassal, Arno, who swore allegiance to Rose at her husband's request as he lay dying. Gunnar immediately senses that something is not right with Arno, but Rose is convinced of his loyalty. When the village is burned to the ground and a dead Norman is found the entire community goes into a panic. The penalty for killing a Norman is death and although no one can figure out what the man was doing in the village on the night it was attacked, Rose knows something must be done. Working for Rose and doing his utmost to protect her Rose begins to fall in love with a man whom she believes she can trust- an important thing for Rose whose father was physically and mentally abusive. And Gunnar begins to fall in love with Rose's compassion for her people, her fierce independence and even the way she has to control everything. But when it is revealed that the dead Norman was a member of Lord Fitzwilliam's garrison the truth about Gunnar's purpose there comes to light, to a degree, and Rose has to learn that there are some people she has misplaced her trust in, and others that she has needs to trust now.

I haven't read any midieval romance novels in quite awhile and I much before Julie Garwood's Norman-era writings and Sara Bennett's regency writings. I got this book from the library because it was one of two Sara Bennett books they had which is definitely a good thing as I would never have picked this book up in the bookstore if I had gotten a look at the cover- it is dreadful and reminds me of those '80's Joanna Lindsey books that featured Fabio and lots of raping going on. The whole bad boy warrior turned into meltingly charming softy with the love of a good beautiful woman is a little overdone and when it comes to reforming a Viking warrior it just seems especially awkward. He's spent his entire life killing people for money, although of course we are informed that he doesn't like to kill women and children, and we're supposed to just accept that he's reformed and really has a good heart. I liked the character Rose quite a bit, but I had a hard time getting over how naive and stupid she could sometimes be. I kind of understand why she didn't go to Radulf, but I really didn't understand her blind support of Arno, even when he was so quick to turn the villager who'd killed the Norman over to Lord Fitzwilliam. It literally took a brick over the head to get her to admit that he wasn't an angel.

One of the things I really like about this book was how both characters were "dominant" human beings who liked to be in control of the world around them. In many cases the male in the book is dominant and even though the heroine is always independent, sassy, and at least thinks she's in control, everyone knows the man is in charge. In this book though both really do seem to be equal partners in the relationship; Gunnar rescues her and helps her quite a bit, but it never really seems as though there isn't even a hint of inequality. There was a decent amount of steam in the book, although none of it was exactly hot and if I had to describe it in two words I would choose forgettable and weird. Seriously. There was a nice amount of angst as Gunnar worried about Rose finding out the truth of his mission and Rose worries about losing control to Gunnar. The book was plenty exciting with a lot of build up to a surprise discovery and a very interesting and intriguing plot over treachery and betrayal and attacks and murders. There was also a side romance involving the miller's daughter and another one of Gunnar's men that I would have LOVED to have gotten a lot more information on as it was pretty interesting.

Rating: It was interesting and I liked the characters and the plot but the whole thing just seemed unremakable and average to me.

Her Secret Lover

Her Secret Lover by Sara Bennett

Antoinette Dupre is the heiress to a vast fortune now that her parents have died and this has made her victim number one for Lord Appleby. Despite outward appearances Appleby is broke and in desperate need of money so he tricks Antoinette into coming to London, compromises her, and when she refuses his offer of marriage he packs off to his new estate, Wexmoor Manor. Unfortunately Gabriel Langley is the rightful owner of the manor, but his father had been forced to hand over the deed when Appleby had threatened to reveal past indescretions about Gabriel's mother. antoinette has on her person a letter containing information about Appleby's deceased wife, but Gabriel is convinced the letter has information regarding his mother and is determined to take possession of it through any means necessary. Any means necessary means disguising himself as a highwayman, holding up her coach, and searching her person.

Antoinette and Gabriel are both immediately taken with each other despite Gabriel thinking that Antoinette is Appleby's mistress and Antoinette thinking Gabriel has been sent by Appleby to divest her of the incriminating evidence against him. Sexing ensues with neither side giving in which means neither side ever tells the other the truth about themselves (until the very end obviously). Our little mystery officially starts when Gabriel's childhood sweetheart sends a missive to Appleby informing him that his mistress is sleeping with Gabriel. Gabriel and Antoinette flee to try to figure out a way to stop Appleby from taking Wexmoor Manor and forcing Antoinette (or her sister) from marrying him. But when they're real identities are discovered the two are convinced they can't trust the other and they continue to question the possibility of a happily ever after.

I mention the sex first because there was a lot of it and it was all really good and I didn't have to wait 'til I was nearly done with the book to read them all crammed together. Unfortunately it seemed to be crammed in the first 2/3 of the book and the last third was dedicated to trying to escape Appleby's clutches. The villain plot was certainly interesting, obviously integral to the story and the romance between the two protagonists, and ended on a nice little twist ending even if it got a little far fetched by involving Prince Albert. The angst was also pretty nice as Gabriel realized he was falling in love with a woman whom he believed was sleeping with his mortal enemy and there were some pretty cool "Tell me I'm the best you've ever had," scenes if that's anyone's cup of tea. And although the "I Love You's" didn't flow until the end of the book Gabriel realized early on, and wasn't scared to admit to himself, that he wanted Antoinette as something more than a bedmate.

The only part of the book that I can think of that irritated me was that their true identities were not revealed to each other until 2/3 of the way through the book and it did seem like so much of their arguments, confusion, and loathing could have been avoided if either one of them had bothered to just tell the truth. The two were on the same side they just spent the majority of the book not knowing it and thus disliking each other and themselves for the attraction they felt. The periphery characters were great, even Mary the jilted childhood sweetheart and especially Gabriel's parents who were madly in love but not all the annoying love birds that populate romance novels (normally because the author has written about them in a previous book).

Rating: Not perfect and not the most intriguing of dialogue, but far from bland and definitely an interesting and sexy read.