What a great story! I laughed and cried many times! Such wonderful writing and really engaging characters!! I love this authors work!!

I am currently on a Regency kick and this one was terrific!! ( )

This story moves away from the Russians as the primary protagonist to a small country that France want to absorb, Moricadia. The story is one of revenge and the search for justice for the killing of a beloved brother. Jude, Earl of Huntington, has dedicated himself to bringing the people that kill and burned his brother to justice. He of course blames himself because he wasn't there to save Michael. There are some very funny moments in this story were Jude is trying to be a dandy and dilettante when he is anything but those types. He does a good job of acting the part though. Jude also is a very kind and compassionate man which is surprising for this time period. He endeared himself to me for wanting to stand up for Caroline and for helping not just her but his stepmother as well. Any man that so obviously loves his stepmother cannot be all bad. Jude is also a warrior and a scholar just adding to his appeal. There are times through the story that you long for him to find peace from the death of his brother because we know that revenge won’t take the hurt away. I think that he does a good job of being a spy.

Caroline Ritter is a product of her upbringing as well as her time outside of the ton. She is a strong capable woman even though she doesn't see herself as such. She has survived on her own for four years taking whatever jobs she can find to support herself and save money so she and her sister can move to France. It is sad that she thinks that she thinks that her only skill is flirting. Caroline is an observer of the people around her. She is able to make everyone seem important and worthy. She is kind and generous and more than a little too trusting. That trust is what ruins her reputation. I was glad to see that she became confident enough to take down the woman that has made her life so miserable. Caroline is an intriguing character much like Celeste was I hope that we get to see more of her.

As with all of Ms. Dodd's story there are all kinds of characters that make this story such a joy to read. The villains of the piece are given what they really deserve. I was surprised that the butler was caught in his abuse and dismissed. I had to cheer for Nicolette, Duchess of Nevet, for giving the man the boot. The Duke of Nevet was as arrogant as a aristocrat could be. The ladies that rally around Nicolette and Caroline are delightful. Caroline’s father is slime and I hope he dies a lonely man for his treatment of his daughters. I have to say that the love scenes, while not as steamy as some of the stories I have read, were hot and well written. This is story goes by pretty quickly and it leaves you wondering what happened to one of the characters. I am hoping we find the answer in the next book. This is a very good story and worthy of the series. ( )

My Fair Temptress is a good read, and the romance between Caroline and Jude is well-paced, well-developed, believable...but the plot is so silly that even the most credulous reader will have a hard time suspending disbelief.

First of all, the premise is ridiculous. Caroline is hired to flirt with a grown man? By his father? No, not so likely.

Second of all - Jude in the role of 'effiminate idiot' struck me as being a poor actor, who can't keep to his role and when he's in it, goes so far overboard that he's a caricature. In short, he wouldn't fool a child.

This second problem - the sheer emasculating silliness of Jude's false identity - ends up necessitating a resulting backlash. Whenever Jude manages to slip out of his sissy role Dodd overcompensates to make a balance and Jude becomes hyper-masculine, a manly man to the nth degree. There is one scene in particular, a sort of fun and pretty steamy sex scene (this is a pretty steamy book on the whole, I have to say), where Jude is flipping around a big knife...and as I was reading, all I could think was: "This half-threatening swashbuckling really isn't necessary, Ms. Dodd."

OK, that being said, Dodd does write very well - fluent, with good period detail and a lovely descriptive vocabulary - and if you're willing to put up with the plot, the romance is rather rewarding. ( )

This was ridiculous. Couldn't finish it. ( )

I blame Fictionwise. Every now and then they offer a 100% discount on something SoI take it then it sits on my PDA for oh years until I happen upon it. In this case the book I happened upon was just too bad to stop reading. I was tempted to delete it but then the heroine saw the hero for the first time and I was caught up in OTT descriptions of manly thews and a strong jaw. Finally! I had discovered an archetypical bad romance. I had to continue and I am glad to say it got less and less believable as I did so. It is set in a Disneyesque .Ruritania where they have scones for breakfast. It is called for some obscure reason, London. The time period is I think supposed to be regency though for some reason she has chosen to call the ruler Victoria.
All I need is a plot and , thin though that plot was it, it was enough for me I to continue reading this frothy piece of idiocy to the end. I can therefore report that two chapters of a Black Lace novel seem to have been included by accident. sitting strangely amongst the mannered coyness and flat jokes of the rest of the novel. Its part of a series but I won't be reading them. I enjoy a joke but if I were to pay for more of this the joke would be on me.
Christina Dodd once had a book published in whicha three armed heroine graced the cover, i am sure she did the cover justice. ( )