Customer Reviews

A Dangerous Love

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Griff Knighton has fought the sting of his alleged bastardy all his life and has been sent a proposition from the Earl of Swanlea. Marry one of his three daughters and he will provide the proof of Griff's parents marriage. Setting up an elaborate scheme with his man of affairs, he would switch places with him and they would travel to Swanlea so that he can search the estate for the certificate without having to be bothered to court and flatter the three spinster sisters.

Now we have the heroine - a bit long in the tooth - known to be one of the three Swanlea Spinsters - Rosalind to be exact - the middle sister - but with a vast difference for most heroines - she is not this tiny, petite, svelte, wisp of a girl! What Rosalind is is an opinionated, tall, sturdy, voluptuous Amazon - you've got to love this! She senses, that all is not right with this `man of affairs' and decides to stick to him like glue after she caught him rifling through her father's desk at night. Now the fun begins!

Between the double entendres, and the insults the fact remains that Rosalind has this amazing attraction for Griff that he finds extremely hard to control. First of all, he can't seem to control his nether regions when around Rosalind so he feels he must shock her with his risqué allusions to some of Shakespeare's more bawdy dialogs. (And might I say that until reading this novel, I have now come to appreciate Shakespeare all that much more myself!)

This was so much fun to read! I absolutely loved both the main players of this novel. They were vibrant and really came to life under the direction of Ms. Jeffries. The sex was so hot to make you burn - the laughs had me wiping my eyes and holding my stomach - and the love story itself was precious! Griff's preoccupation with proving his legitimacy and furthering his company was uppermost in his mind. No matter how great the passion he still had to recognize the most precious thing of all - his heart had been missing until Rosalind helped him find it. This was a wonderful `feel good' sexy love story!

A Dangerous Love by Sabrina Jeffries is the first of the Swanlea Spinster Series. Griff Knighton pretends to be his friend Daniel (his man of affairs) so he can search an Swanlea estate for proof that he is an real Earl. Rosalind balks at the plan to marry her off to Knighton. The story is sweet with some great twist and excellent love scenes. The order of the Swanlea Spinster is A Dangerous Love (#1) The Dangerous Lord (#2) and After the Abduction (#3), Dance of Seduction (#4) and Married to the Viscount (#5).

Griff has lived under the shadow of illegitimacy and poverty all his life, while the man who stole his title and fortune lived in luxury with his happy family. Now that he has the opportunity to obtain proof of his birthright, how can he even THINK of letting it slip through his fingers? But his dilemma comes from the fact that making his lifelong dream come true will come at the expense of separating him forever from the woman of his dreams...Rosalind, the daughter of his nemesis.

Rosalind's love for Griff survives even the shock of discovering that he has been masquerading as his man of his affairs. But how can she marry a man who is planning to destroy her family? Although she realizes that it is her father's dishonorable deed that was responsible for molding Griff's character, she can't bring herself to marry such a man...no matter how much she loves and desires him.

By the time Griff realizes that nothing matters to him except his love for Rosalind, she has fled and it may be too late to convince her of his sincerity. Once he finds her, what can he do to prove to her that he has put aside his plans for revenge once and for all?

WOW! This book is a rare page-turner, indeed! Rosalind is a strong woman committed to the welfare of her family. Griff is a bitter man who realizes that none of it matters but his love for Rosalind. Very emotional + very sensual = very enjoyable for this new Sabrina Jeffries fan!

I have never read a Sabrina Jeffries book that disappointed me. This book is a page-turner, definitely deserving of my rare five stars. Don't do like I did and start reading it late at night! While this doesn't contain all the humor that her last book had, the reader truly gets tangled up in the characterization and plot twists (and twists, and twists) that abound. Our chubby (and quite opinionated) heroine was a lovely change from the supermodels one usually finds in romance. Wish someone had told the cover artist. (But I do want to mention that I'm a fan of the artist's style. Very nice work; wrong subject.) Add to all the excellence of the book the incredible writing of the sex scenes which flow like butter, not like the uncomfortable hedging or melodrama in many other romances. My only suggestion (a tiny one) is that the sex scenes wouldn't run quite so long in future books. They're exciting... but cut 'em back just a tad, Sabrina. Oh, now's the wait for the next Sabrina Jeffries book to come out!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Rosalind was an interesting character. I kept thinking she's the oldest sister, not the
middle one, the way she took charges of things, but the oldest
sister, Helena, is actually in the next book, "A Notorious Love".

No one can accuse Rosalind of having good taste, when it comes
to asthetics. She dresses gaudy, decorates her home gaudy ...
but, she has interesting qualities, such as a love for the
theater, and especially anything having to do with the works of
William Shakesphere.

Griffith never thought of himself as a man who would ever be
interested in an "Amazon" woman. He typically goes for petite,
feminine women. He adores Shakesphere, and can cite quotes with
the best of 'em, and that means Rosalind. Griffith grows not
only to love Rosalind for her love of Shakesphere, but her
no-nonsense manner, her oversized body, but most of all, her.

The Swanlea Sisters sagas should be read in order, so you can
get a good grasp of what they are about & who the characters are.
1. A Dangerous Love 2. A Notorious Love 3. After the Abduction 4. Dance of Seduction.

So far, I have read the first 2, in order. They are very good
books & well worth the time.

A Dangerous Love was not an enjoyable read for me. I won't go into the plot, as I'm sure others have already done so. However, I must say I've discovered I'm not a fan of light historicals (Sabrina Quinn writes more in the style of Julia Quinn and Karen Hawkins). In addition, the heroine played havoc with my nerves. She argued with the hero all through the book to the point where I just wished someone would rescue him from her. Was she meant to be like Kate from The Taming of the Shrew, as she is a Shakespeare quoting heroine? If you like lighter, more humourous historical romance, The Pirate Lord by the same author was a much better read.

Absolutely a delightful little book filled with lust, desire, humor and clever wit. A DANGEROUS LOVE is book one in Sabrina Jeffries' SWANLEA SPINSTERS series.

Griff Knighton is a wealthy businessman, powerful and passionless. Rosalind Laverick is a voluptuous, vivacious country lass and the second daughter of the Earl of Swanlea -- the man who ruined Griff Knighton's father. Griff is extremely entertained when he receives a summons to the Swanlea estate. The old earl is offering one of his daughters to Griff as a potential mate! Griff is delighted with the old earl's proposition. He accepts the invitation, but he accepts with ulterior motives -- vengeance.

Rosalind is not happy with her father's plans! Her first encounter with the notorious Griff only confirms her anxiety. She just knows Griff is a ruthless scoundrel and his hostile behavior speaks for itself.

However, this is a romance novel and temptations abound. Rosalind and Griff have no idea what to do with their mutual attraction. They hide their amorous feelings by engaging in clever repartee and oh how artfully these two adversaries spar. Their outrageous banter is witty and fun - I never suspected William Shakespeare could be quoted so effectively!

This was a good book. It could have been a splendid book, but Jeffries resorted to repetitive discussions toward Griff's ambitions. These drawn out discussions caused dreariness to rear its ugly head. Although this repetitive weakness lasted only through a few chapters, it still clogged the reading journey. Still Jeffries manages to produce a good book and I look forward to sister Helena's story with much anticipation. Daniel, Griff's man of affairs, is masculine, rugged, and rough around the edges and Lady Helena is dreadfully attracted. Book two, book two where . . . art thou?

Grace Atkinson, Ontario - Canada.

I truly enjoyed this book. The heroine was a real woman -- strong and round and not always perfect. But it was the hero who really made this book for me. Ms Jeffries made him believe so deeply in his own actions, even though they were wrong, that I couldn't help but feel for him. He was far from perfect, and even though I waited for him to realize just *how* wrong he'd been, I desperately wanted to see him chase his happily ever after! I cannot wait for Sabrina Jeffries' next book!

When I read the advanced excerpt of A DANGEROUS LOVE and discovered a Shakespeare-quoting heroine, I knew I had to read it. This is the tale of two emotionally unsure, strong-willed people who match wits and fall head over heels in love while trying to figure each other out. Rosalind is the middle sister of three sisters known in the district as the Swanlea Spinsters. Griff Knighton is the heir to the earl of Swanlea, Rosalind's father. Apparently, the dying earl is trying to get Griff to marry one of the spinsters in an effort to keep them from losing their home when the estate passes on. Griff wants nothing to do with marriage, but he does want something the earl has and is determined to get it. He compels his man of affairs, Daniel Brennan, to masquerade as him, so he can pursue his own agenda without interference from any annoying women. But everything changes when Rosalind mistakes Griff for an intruder in her father's study late at night and bursts in on him, wielding a sword in a most bloodthirsty manner that Griff can't help but admire...and so, the sparring begins!

Rosalind is a terrifically strong lead, with ironclad beliefs, emotional vulnerability, and a brain. She wants nothing to do with marriage to the next earl - she wants to make her way on the stage. As Griff observes, if Shakespeare had met this Rosalind, he would have written ten more plays. Griff, who spent much of his life in unjust poverty and shame, is an admirable man who is blind to his own needs and desires: he knows he wants Rosalind, but he does not realize why. Love stares him right in the face and he has no idea. It would be comical or annoying, except that his epiphany is so beautiful and complete. The way these protagonists exchange witticisms reminds me (rather appropriately, I think) of Shakespeare's Beatrice and Benedick. They are extremely frank with one another about all manner of things, which I found to be more entertaining and refreshing. And the way Griff vanquishes all of Rosalind's insecurities just melted my heart.

The remaining Swanlea Spinsters, Helena and Juliet, promise to be equally appealing heroines. Readers will also look forward to seeing more of Daniel Brennan, who strikes me as great hero material.

A DANGEROUS LOVE was my first experience with Sabrina Jeffries, but it most certainly will not be my last!

This is one of her best, and all her books have been wonderful. The story has a contemporary theme which was refreshing (heroine in danger rescued by the hero themes were wearing thin). This is a story about a struggle between a man's ambition and his heart. Griff is a wonderful hero and Rosalind is a perfect mate to his ego and his passion. The secondary characters, Daniel and Helena, are also interesting and I wished their story had been given a little more attention. But the book is not flawed in that regard and as busy as I was this weekend, I finished the book in three nights. Now I'm tired, but it was worth it.