Seduction by Brenda Joyce Series: The Spymasters Men #1
Published by HQN Books on January 31, 2012
Genres: Historical Romance, Georgian Era, French Revolution
Pages: 374
Format: eBook
Source: Library
ISBN: 0373776551
Dominic Paget, the earl of Bedford, will do anything to resume spying upon Britain's enemies. Badly wounded, he is put will in the care of a beautiful gentlewoman, Julianne Greystone, only to discover that her sympathies lie with his enemies. Yet he can't help but seduce the woman who saved his life—hoping she never learns of his betrayal.
Julianne is captivated by the wounded stranger she believes is a revolutionary hero. Until she discovers the truth…her "hero" is the privileged earl of Bedford. Devastated and determined to forget him, Julianne travels to London. But when she finds herself in danger, it is Bedford who comes to the rescue. Now Julianne must navigate the intrigues of a perilous city, the wild yearnings of her own heart and the explosion of their passion….
This review may contain spoilers, so fair warning, upon reading the review.
Seduction is the first book in the Spymaster’s Men trilogy and written by one of my favorite old-school authors. Brenda Joyce has written some of my favorite books and it was such fun to return to this author and delve into some more unique types of historicals. I will be honest that it was the cover that really won me over in convincing me to read this one. I know ….I know, I probably say that frequently but it’s definitely the truth in this case. I don’t know how anyone can see this cover and resist not picking it up. I also have a weakness for historical’s that have a non Regency era setting. This story and the trilogy takes place while mostly in England in the Georgian era which also coincides with the French Revolution and that is definitely the primary focus of this book and series. I definitely found myself intrigued by this book and despite some of its flaws, was such an enjoyable and stunning read.
Seduction is a sexy angst-filled romance that delves into complexities that features:
- Dominic Paget-Military man,an Earl in the aristocracy, a spy for the crown
- Julianne Greystone-a gentlewoman, fighter for the rebels in France, sister and defender of the innocent and despises member of the Aristocracy.
Seduction is a story that begins with our hero, Dominic, who has been fighting in France along with other English fighting men in defending the rule of law in France against the rebels that are burning and terrorizing innocents including members of his own family. When he is injured, our heroine takes him in and works on healing his injuries. Julianne believes him to be a French hero not even realizing how close he is to being her enemy. Despite her brother’s chagrin and patience, she fights against England and their interests. She has connections and friends that are traitors but Julianne has a naive look at the issues happening with France. Julianne’s goal is to help those in need and those struggling to survive. Through the process of tending to Dominic’s injuries, Julianne and Dom forge a fierce connection to each other. Their relationship turns into a passionate love affair, but when reality comes rushing back, they each get a huge wake-up call, as they realize the truth about each other and they are on opposite sides of the war. Will Dominic and Julianne be able to find a common ground or stay enemies despite the love they hold for each other?
Fear rules the streets—the people. There is power for those who can cause the fear. And the innocent like Nadine are caught up in the violence and are its victims.
Seduction was such a unique and different story that I wasn’t expecting. I will be honest, I didn’t even read the blurb about this book so I had ZERO clue what this book was truly about. I am so happy that I did that actually because it allowed me to really enjoy this one without even knowing what was going to happen. I will be honest I did have some issues with this book. It really revolved around the heroine. She could be very naive at times about the war and the complexities of what was occurring in France. And also there are portions in this book in which she betrays Dominic to her friends. Now the first time it happens I couldn’t understand to be honest. This was after she realized she loved him even knowing who he was and what he stood for. It was pretty unclear her motivations behind it, it did feel like she was angry and was lashing out but it did feel petty at the moment. Now when it happens later in the book, it makes more sense as she is being coerced but it was still a struggle in wondering why she didn’t come to him with it. Now I get it was probably just a plot choice by the author, but I felt for the hero to be betrayed in such a way by the woman he loved and trusted. He was truly such a solid hero, and he definitely deserved the heroine to grovel more than what we received. And yes if the heroine errors she definitely NEEDS to do a grovel. It just didn’t feel as satisfying as I was expecting it to be. The hero was much more gracious and forgiving than she deserved in my opinion. Despite my issues with this book, I still quite enjoyed it, it just didn’t reach a full five star (it probably would have if there had been a good grovel from the heroine and she hadn’t betrayed him in the earlier section of the book) The writing was stellar, the time era in which this book was set in was so refreshing. I do love the French Revolution type of era, even though it has some similarities with the Regency era, it still offers something unique that sets it apart from your standard regency.
However, you are the one bright light in this difficult circumstance. I like being here with you, Julianne. I have no regrets
Overall I found Seduction to be a thrilling, edge-of-your-seat sexy romance that will deliver historical authenticity, a diverse array of complexities, and a swoony read to curl your toes in such delectable ways.
About Brenda Joyce
Brenda Joyce is the bestselling author of forty-one novels and five novellas. She has won many awards, and her debut novel, Innocent Fire, won a Best Western Romance award. She has also won the highly coveted Best Historical Romance award for Splendor and Two Lifetime Achievement Awards from Romantic Times BOOKreviews. There are over 14 million copies of her novels in print and she is published in over a dozen foreign countries.
A native New Yorker, she now lives in southern Arizona with her son, dogs, and her Arabian and half-Arabian reining horses. Brenda divides her time between her twin passions—writing powerful love stories and competing with her horses at regional and national levels
0 Comments