All About Passion [Mass Market Paperback]

Stephanie Laurens (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 4, 2001

New York Times bestselling Australian author Stephanie Laurens delivers the latest tale in the immensely popular Cynster series. When Chillington is elected an ′honorary Cynster′ at the end of All About Love, he knows he needs a wife , and an heir. His goal; a simple marriage without romance. He agrees to marry a woman he believes to be pliant and quiet. Unfortunately for him, the woman he thinks is Francesca Rawling is really her cousin, Franni.Francesca herself is proud, passionate and opinionated in short, the perfect bride for a Cynster...

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Gyles Rawlings, fifth Earl of Chillingworth and an honorary member of the Cynster clan, is determined not to marry for love. To that end, he makes an offer of marriage, sight unseen, to the niece of an old friend. He believes he's chosen a docile, biddable lady who will bear him an heir and leave his emotions uninvolved. He arrives for his own wedding without ever actually meeting his fianc&eaccute; and at the chapel's altar, is astonished to discover that he's offered for the wrong woman--his wife is the cousin of the woman he thought he was marrying. The two ladies share the same name, and the woman he has married is a passionate female who makes his head spin. Francesca isn't docile, certainly not biddable, and she has no intention of settling for anything less than her husband's heart.

The battle lines are drawn in this war of love, with both parties well aware of the stakes. Will Giles continue to barricade his heart, or will Francesca's love and loyalty tear down the walls that keep him from her? And if Giles can't thwart the strange threats to Francesca's life, neither may live to see the end of their contest of the heart.

This installment in author Stephanie Laurens's beloved Cynster series has been eagerly anticipated by fans, and All About Passion doesn't disappoint. Taut with sexual tension between the hero and heroine, rich with details of the world of Regency England, and well-supported with a solid plot, this latest Cynster tale is an excellent read. --Lois Faye Dyer

From Publishers Weekly

Appealing characters and red-hot chemistry breathe new life into a familiar story line in the latest entry in Laurens's Regency-era Cynster series (following All About Love). This time, Cupid's arrow fells Gyles Rawlings, the Earl of Chillingworth and an "honorary Cynster." Gyles realizes that it's time to take a wife and carry on the line, but he's determined to go about it in a businesslike fashion with an arranged marriage. Fortunately, country heiress Francesca Rawlings, a distant relation, seems to be the perfect candidate. She's well favored, pleasant and endowed with an estate that will nicely complement his own. On his wedding day, however, he discovers that the serene, docile woman that he spied in the garden a few days earlier was not Francesca, but her cousin Frannie. The heiress he's contracted for is the passionate hoyden he's met galloping across the downs. Nevertheless, he goes through with the marriage, seizing the opportunity to complete his estate and indulge his passion for the spirited Francesca. She, in turn, is determined to make the earl admit his love for her. The stubbornness of the hero and heroine, though the center of the story's conflict, may irritate some readers, but Laurens's twist on the bride-switch, arranged marriage formula is fun, spicy and sure to please.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 426 pages
• Publisher: Avon; First Edition edition (September 4, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0380812029
• ISBN-13: 978-0380812028
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (76 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #34,283 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #9 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Romance > Authors, A-Z > ( L ) > Laurens, Stephanie
  • #100 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Romance > Historical > General

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Laurens is great as usual!, September 6, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: All About Passion (Mass Market Paperback)

When I saw Stephanie Laurens' latest book on the shelf, I snatched it up and read it in two days! If you are a fan of her Bar Cynster series, you will not be disappointed! This is the tale of Chillingworth, the character who has gone from Devil's arch-enemy in Devil's Bride to close friend and honorary Cynster in All About Love. Let me tell you that as a leading man in a romance novel, he held his own with the Cynsters! I am also delighted to report that our leading lady, Francesca, is a well-developed character who manages to be high-spirited and strong without being whiny, manipulative, or self-centered. The plot is well-formed and the relationship builds and grows throughout the book- just as it should. The thread of suspense is also interesting without being too distracting, and even though fairly transparent, I was still hooked to the end to see how the situation would resolve. I highly recommend this to all fans of historical romance. However, if you have not yet read the first six books in the Cynster series, you're missing out! I'd start with Devil's Bride (the first and best!) and move on from there. Enjoy Chillingworth and Francesca!

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Different but then again he isn't really a Cynster, September 16, 2001

By 

A. C. Stubbs "anncamille" (Washington DC) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: All About Passion (Mass Market Paperback)

I loved this book, and I will try hard not to spoil the plot, but this is a LOVE STORY. Yes, we know how it ends...IT IS A LOVE STORY. It is, however, a really good love story. I hope you enjoy All About Passion, but let me warn you: First, Chillingsworth isn't a Cynster, he doesn't act like one. Yes, he follows a strict code of acceptable behavior, but he wasn't raised with a large number of close relations and his actions are those of a single son. Second, Francesca was not raised to be English, so she doesn't act like a Cynster wife, he should be glad she didn't resort to a gun. Third, we were only reading the book; we aren't living it. Don't complain because the people in the story behave in a socially acceptable manner for the time period while trying to find the villain. And, by the way, my older brother didn't immediately realize that I was the one who broke his toys, and he was pretty sharp.
The development from physical desire, to companionship, devotion and finally to love flows well. Happily, there is no sonic jump of emotions. I hate stories that have the heros in one scene fighting bitterly then, in the very next scene they can't breathe without the one another. So irritating, but luckily this story moves very smoothly and logically and, even better, has enough intrigue to keep you wondering what will happen to the villain, and the sex scenes are hot without becoming silly. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I, but please remember he isn't a Cynster.

32 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Can I give this 4.5 stars????, September 18, 2001

By 

Mass Consumer of Fiction in Arizona "tempeazr... (Tempe, AZ United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: All About Passion (Mass Market Paperback)

I waver between 4 and 5 stars for this book. Overall, Stephanie Laurens is very, very good. She consistently turns out satisfying books, mixtures of some mystery and lots of romance. When both elements (mystery and romance) are "on", she can't be beat. When one element is "off", she's still pretty darn good. A few of her past books - Captain Jack's Woman (which was really a dry run for a Cynster novel), Devil's Bride, A Rogue's Proposal, and All About Love have hit both nails on the head. All About Passion is one of her very best romance stories - but the mystery/suspense story never really gets off the ground. It's blatantly obvious who the "villain" is and the pathetic red herrings that are thrown in mix into the story like chocolate sprinkles on a beer. On the other hand, I think she could have really used our boys (the Cynsters) more to round out the story. Devil plays a bit of a role and Harry (Demon) shows up on one scene, but that's it. As for the story between Chillingsworth (always one of my favorite minor characters in the Cynster novels) and Francesca - it's superb, one of the best in this series. Of course, his obsession about not falling in love is absurd, but you always have to suspend reality when you're reading in this genre. She's one of the best heroines in the series, too. As always, Laurens writes some of the steamiest copy around, but you get a feel for the personalities and character of both of the main characters. Overall, a pretty darn good read - probably could have used a bit more time in the writing process to make it perfect.