A 21st Century Courtesan (Paperback)

by Eden Bradley (Author)
Key Phrases: rst time, Eden Bradley, The Broker, Joshua Spencer (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
She lives in a world of silk sheets, imported champagne,
and endless erotic delight.…

She fulfills the deepest fantasies of the most powerful men in the world. Sensual, seductive, and discreet, Valentine Day is a high-class call girl, pampered and adored by her exclusive clientele. But Valentine has a secret. Always in control, she’s never experienced true pleasure outside of her work. But all that is about to change.… Now the woman who’s spent a decade pleasuring others is about to embark on an erotic journey of her own.

It happens one night at the opera. Seated next to her in the dark is a stranger. As the music swells so does the sexual tension. Gorgeous, sophisticated Joshua Spencer invites her for a drink, and soon she’s fantasizing about taking him home. When they finally come together in the most tender and intense lovemaking Valentine has ever known, she’s hooked. But suddenly Valentine is questioning everything. Joshua has no idea what she does for a living. Can she risk everything—including her hard-earned freedom and one final, shattering secret—for one man? And would he still want her if he knew the truth?

About the Author
Eden Bradley has been writing since she could hold a pen in her hand. When not writing, you'll find her wandering museums, cooking, eating, shopping, and reading everything she can get her hands on. Eden lives in Southern California.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Delta (March 24, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553385577
• ISBN-13: 978-0553385571
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #625,580 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Not What I Expected, May 24, 2009

By	Faith (Canada) - See all my reviews

I had read The Dark Garden and I was expecting something along the same lines. I was in for a surprise. Yes, the book is as described but it goes way beyond that.

It is a study of a woman who has fallen in love and begins to question the way she has lived her life for the past 10 years. The book is an exploration of the life of Valentine written in the first person. It is very detailed. We learn details of her life from childhood until today. She analyzes the choices she has made in the past and she is trying to deal with new choices for her future.

We follow her journey which is at times painful. I was quite engrossed in her life.

The book is also an erotic love story. I think this is the part that makes it a four star instead of five. This is not your typical romance. Valentine has several sex scenes with different men in her life as well as women. After all, she is a modern-day courtesan. I have never read such detailed sex scenes and I mean detailed. I found them a distraction from the part of the book I really enjoyed.

3.0 out of 5 stars A Courtesan Fairy Tale (B Grade), April 30, 2009

By	C. Garrabrant "Katiebabs" (Bloomfield, NJ USA) - See all my reviews

Eden Bradley has taken a chance with her latest book about a high class escort in A 21st Century Courtesan. Definitely an erotica, but still very much a romance, Eden puts a face to the name of many women who get paid for sex. Perhaps A 21st Century Courtesan is a bit too fairy tale like in its telling from the call girl heroine being rescued by her Prince Charming who is so understanding, from her clients who are attractive, well to do men who appreciate Valentine for her body and beauty as well as her mind and her creativeness in accepting their sexual quirks and desires.

Valentine Day is a high-class call girl who lives in the Hollywood Hills of California. She loves her life as a prostitute, getting paid to pleasure men and getting pleasure in return. The only way she can have an orgasm is if she gets money. Valentine loves the power she has over these men and will never go back to a life begging for love or money. She is a woman who makes her own decisions and lives by her own rules. She makes no excuses for the life she lives.

One night, Valentine attends the opera and is seated next to a man who sends jolts of lust through her body. She has never reacted to another man like this unless she is working. His name is Joshua Spencer and he is a real estate developer. Valentine is so turned on by Joshua that it unnerves her. They share some conversation and a drink. He gives her his card hoping she will call him.

Joshua is on Valentine's mind all the time now. She can't stop thinking about him even when she's with a client. As she is alone in her own bed and in the shower, she pleasures herself imaging it is Joshua touching and kissing her. Soon her work is suffering and Valentine is not sure if she can continue being a whore. Even her madam is concerned and has her go talk to a therapist. Valentine becomes depressed and unsure. Finally she breaks down and makes a date with Josh. Josh loves to listen to her talk about herself and he wants to get to know Valentine more. Eventually these two do end up in bed and from her experience with Joshua, she feels whole and clean. Joshua wants a future with Valentine and it is up to Valentine to tell him what she does for a living or to keep living the lie.

Eden Bradley's blunt and risqué tale of a high class call girl taps into the reader's emotion. You can't help but care for Valentine even as she sells her body to the highest bidder. She is a not a bitter woman because she enjoys her work and the men she is with. Some reader will think A 21st Century Courtesan is a bit too perfect because all of Valentine's clients seem too handsome, rich and respectful.

Valentine's clients vary between Enzo Alighieri, the Italian film producer who introduced Valentine to her line of work. He is her mentor, friend and lover to whom she has always turned. Louis is a blind rich man who is one of Valentine's favorite clients with such wonderful hands. Colin Harper is a gorgeous movie producer who likes anal sex in motel rooms. Then there is Zayed Bin Saleh Al-Rahman, a member of the Middle Eastern nobility who loves the harem fantasy and expects Valentine to play into it along with two other girls who must act out the ultimate in girl on girl action.

As you can see, Valentine is an expert of everything sex. I wonder if she studied the Kama Sutra?

Joshua seems too good to be true, but he is the catalyst for Valentine to reevaluate her life as a daughter of an alcoholic mother who was in a cycle of destructive behavior at the hands of Valentine's father. Joshua becomes Valentine's savior and his reasons for accepting Valentine make sense. Joshua is all about forgiveness and spreading the love.

A 21st Century Courtesan does open your mind to a lifestyle that breaks many of the stereotypes, especially about the women involved. Valentine's story is an eye-opener and I give Eden Bradley major kudos for taking a chance in writing about such a topic in this mature erotic romance.

Katiebabs

4.0 out of 5 stars An Erotic Journey, April 19, 2009

By	Kristi Ahlers (Illinois) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Valentine Day is a high-class call girl and she knows she is adored by her clients, pampered and spoiled. All of this is good and fine, but for Val, there is something missing in her world and that is true pleasure outside of the boudoir. She wants this to change and so she is going to take control of her destiny by seeking her own erotic journey that begins one night with the aid of handsome Joshua Spencer. Of course she experiences everything she has ever wanted but Joshua has no idea who Val is or what she does. Can she trust him not to shatter her hard earned freedom or will she risk all for the one man that makes her feel more then she has ever before?

Ms. Eden is the queen of erotic and sensual prose and in her latest effort nothing has changed. Told in the 1st person, this title is an interesting tale of a woman's journey in finding what she knows is missing and is willing to grasp her future. This is a title I have no problem recommending.