Review - To Surrender to a Rogue by Cara Elliott

Enjoy a very sexy adventure with a beautiful antiquities expert and a devilish rogue.
As Mary Putney says on the cover, this is "A sexy read."
Title: To Surrender To A Rogue (Circle of Sin Trilogy)
Author: Cara Elliott

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Forever (June 1, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446541311
• ISBN-13: 978-0446541312

Rating: 4.5 of 5

 Product Description:

An expert in antiquities, Lady Alessandra della Giamatti arrives in Bath to excavate newly discovered Roman ruins-only to find herself caught in a web of evil intrigue by a blackmailer threatening to expose her scandalous past. The one man who can help her is Lord James "Black Jack" Pierson, a fellow member of the expedition and a sinfully handsome rogue whose tempting presence ignites a different sort of danger.

Jack has clashed with Alessandra in the past, so when she suddenly surrenders her body he can't help being suspicious. Is she a scheming temptress? Or is she truly a lady in trouble? As desire and deceptions swirl around them, Alessandra and Jack must find a way to win each other's trust. For if they don't work together to uncover a shocking truth, their enemy-and their own simmering passions-may destroy them and everything they cherish.

Review:  This really is an entertaining historical romance with the rogue rescuing the damsel in distress.

Lady Alessandra is as smart as she is beautiful.  Both she and her six year old daughter, Isabella, are rather brazen and have the fiery Italian temperament.  Alessandra had trusted the wrong man after the death of her husband and now that man is back to blackmail her with threats to harm Isabella.

Lord James “Black Jack” is a wonderfully handsome, artistic and surprisingly sensitive rogue. Who would think that this nobleman, a former military man with a “dangerous” reputation, would be a studying artist.  Or that he would be seriously interested in working on an archaeological dig?

The clash between the volatile Italian and the stubborn rogue is immediate. The story has a great opening line: “You tied my daughter to a tree?” With that you just know that sparks are going to fly.  There is good relational conflict between the heroine and hero that keeps the book lively. Alessandra has reason to hold her secrets and not trust any man but she longs for the steely strength and safety she senses when she is with Jack.  Jack is strongly attracted to Alessandra but he begins to suspect that something “havey-cavey” is going on and he doesn’t know if she is a superb liar and actress or an innocent caught in a bad situation.  Fortunately they are able to come to trust each other but circumstances still put Alessandra and Isabella in danger.

There is an appropriately smarmy villain who is working in cahoots with others whom Alessandra does not at first realize are involved. I really like how cleverly Jack is able to set up defenses to foil the villain and how he listens to his military instincts to come to Alessandra’s rescue. Here is a description I really like when Jack claims that he is able to fight the battles they must face he says: "Pierson men are born soldiers, formed from steel and gunpowder."

At the beginning of the book I thought it was a bit heavy on the sexual imaginations and visual pictures. This smooths out as you continue to read so that the innuendos blend better with the plot line and character developments and “sex on the mind” does not seem so emphasized.  When the author gets to some sexual scenes with our passionate couple those scenes are creative in setting and technique.  They are nicely steamy and not vulgar.

The story brims with the snipping conflict and later tension and danger. The well defined characters, intriguing plot and finally the steamy romance make this a solidly entertaining read.

xxx

This book was supplied by Hachette to review and host for giveaway.
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