Seduction (The Spymaster's Men #1) by Brenda Joyce

Seduction (The Spymaster's Men #1)
by Brenda Joyce
Publisher: Harlequin
Publication Date: January 31st 2012
ISBN 0373776551 (ISBN13: 978037377655)

Review courtesy of netGalley
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The Spymasters Men: Danger. Deception. Desire.

Dominic Paget, the earl of Bedford, will do anything to resume spying upon Britain’s enemies. Badly wounded, he is put 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…

My Thoughts:

First, let me say what a beautiful cover!! I loved many aspects of this book, but there were many things that I didn't. The storyline was unique~ Two characters who fall deeply, passionately in love with each other despite the fact they were both fighting for different sides of the war.

I developed a love-hate relationship with the heroine, Julianne, she was a strong willed, opinionated young woman. Even when she finds herself on the wrong end of the law, Julianne maintains her independent spirit, growing stronger in her beliefs. With that said, I was disappointed that her character, who was "madly in love" would betray her lover. I get the whole woman scorned thing, but it made me think less of her character. She felt “ a tingling of dismay", followed by the slightest sense of shame” when she unmasked his true identity to those who could cause him harm. That's it!, that's all she felt for the man she loves a “ a tingling of dismay", I would be sick to my stomach, knowing that I may have just jeopardized his welfare and those around him.

I wasn't sure how I felt about the hero, Dominic aka Charles, I am not a big fan of a character not being honest, he wasn't honest with the heroine, he had her thinking that she was an officer in the French army and not her enemy and he wasn't honest with his fiancée having her believe that he was still her betrothed. He did earn some points when he was there was she needed him, even when he knew that Julianne and his beliefs differ, he rescued her when her radical associations got her arrested and wounded.

I was let down on their first tryst, there was so much building up to their first time as lovers, the flirtation and the stolen looks between the two characters, it was leading up to the special moment. I was hoping for a sizzling explosion of passion between the two of them, but unfortunately the scene played out in less than two pages. I wish there was more time spent, it didn't need to be too graphic, just descriptive enough to be fulfilling the reader.

After she revealed his identity the pace picked up rather quickly, I felt somewhat disconnected. At first his family and fiancée loathed her, and then all of a sudden they were living together.

I hope that we can find out more about Amelia and Simon, there was a hint about their past romance and it intrigued me.

While I realize there were parts of the book that I may not have like, it was a good book. If you like historical romance with a mix of "cloak and dagger", you'll enjoy this book.

I received this advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

My Rating:

                    

               

Author:

Brenda Joyce is the bestselling author of fourty-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. You can find out more about the author and her upcoming books by visiting her website.