Customer Reviews

Her Ladyship's Companion (Berkley Sensation)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

where do I begin with this book? I was so happy to see an author trying such a unique theme such as a male prostitue. The book did not deliver what I was hoping for however. The hero was just a little too beta male for a reader that loves alpha males. I think readers that don't mind a hero that is a little passive, will appreciate this book, but for me I needed a hero that was more "take charge". Even the heroine's brothers,(which seems to me will be getting their own stories), did horribly on the protector front! ********SPOILERS******** After the heroine was severely beaten by her husband, her brothers found out and did absolutely nothing but left her in the care of the male prostitute to be taken care of because they had pressing business to take care of in London! ( I think i'll pass on their books!) The heroine's female cousin is the one that had to go and save the heroine, since her brothers or the hero wasn't up for the job! The love scenes were very hot and realistic though so if you like docile heroes then you might enjoy this book.

I noticed this book because of the cover... beautiful art work. I didn't recognize the author so I took a chance and now I am looking for more books by her. The writing is VERY good. Both characters POV, and both POV's were powerful. I really liked the style and flow of the writing. It was intelligent. I loved Gideon. You didn't get alot of information on his early years... just enough to make you feel for him. I liked Isabella or Bella.. Bella, as Gideon called her. I really didn't want this one to end.

In 1811 her brother Philip catches Lady Isabella with her lover and informs her she will marry odious Lord Stirling in a loveless match. She feels guilty and hopes to regain her place as Philip's sister and acquiesces to his demands. Her abusive spouse dumps Lady Bella Stirling on his most isolated Scottish estate Bowhill Park to live by herself soon after their vows.

For five years now her life is that of a hermit though she enjoys working her rose garden and the visits from her cousin Esme Marceau. Worried that Bella is alone with no companionship, Esme sends her male prostitute Mr. Gideon Rosedale, who is renowned for bringing satisfaction to his wealthy female clients. Bella quickly digs past the surface hunk to the intelligent gentleman he hides from his customers. Gideon digs past the prim and proper aristocrat to the seductress she hides from society. As he mentors his customer on lovemaking, Bella falls in love with Gideon, but his time with her is coming to a climax.

This is an exhilarating heated regency romance starring two obvious opposites as she is an aristocrat and he is a working class male prostitute whose customers are wealthy ladies of leisure. Their love has no chance for several reasons yet it blossoms like her roses. Sub-genre fans will relish the relationship between the lady and her companion as a refreshing historical with a torrid seductive edge.

Harriet Klausner

I don't generally read novels with so few reviews, so I thought I'd take a moment to add mine to the list!
I felt this book was well written and the plot was engaging. I will say that it was more sensual than most romances I read, but that's just personal preference. I found that even so, it did not stop me from enjoying the story in the least. I hope that the author will consider continuing to write about Bella's siblings as I was left wanting to know more about them and their stories. And, I suppose, that right there is a sign of a good story.

Ever since I saw the beautiful cover on this book and read the premise behind this Regency romance I've been intrigued. A male prostitute and a gently bred lady? I'm there! And I'm happy to say that I wasn't disappointed. Bella and Gideon's love story is one that will stay with me for a long while. I highly recommend it!

Her Ladyship's Companion was a book that I randomly selected to read on my Kindle because the premise sounded interesting. I had no prior knowledge of the author and I hadn't read any reviews. As with many of my randomly selected books, it was something of a mixed bag, quality wise. I have much to talk about with this book, but I'll try not to ramble.

The book is set in Scotland/England in 1811 and centers around Isabella, a woman in a loveless marriage. Her husband is abusive and hateful, and consequently Bella has grown quite depressed. Her cousin, who doesn't really know the cause of Bella's melancholy, thinks to cheer her up by hiring a male prostitute for her (as one does). Gideon comes to spend two weeks with Bella, and the two discover both mutual attraction and begin to show signs of affection.

Now, the reason that Bella is in this terrible marriage is that she was caught in an indiscretion with a stable boy, and her brother decided that the best possible solution was to marry her off quickly. In this, and other details, the book attempts to address female sexuality and how it was viewed at that time. Almost every time Bella attempts to take any agency in her own sex life, disaster ensues. This novel did a good job at addressing this idea and it comes to a fairly satisfactory resolution.

Aside from this quality, while I did not dislike Bella, she is not a character I would want to be. I pitied her. She's a helpless character, at the mercy of whatever happens to her. I wanted to see her develop more strength, or self sufficiency, than she did. Perhaps I'm being too hard on her, because given the time period her helplessness is not entirely her fault. But some backbone would not have gone amiss.

Gideon is also characterized as a victim of unfortunate circumstances. He's just trying to make the best of his low birth and status. He's pretty passive as far as heroes go--not an alpha male at all. I noted that the author took great pains to mention that, despite his long career as a prostitute, Gideon never agreed to sleep with men no matter what they offered to pay. It was as though the author was worried that readers would suspect him of being gay or bisexual. In addition to this, the author tries very hard to present Gideon as the much desired opposite of Lord Stirling (the abusive husband). All in all, I felt like his character was forced and unimaginative.

With two slightly weak, pitiable characters, it's hard to get really invested in a romantic relationship. But, to be absolutely fair, it was surprisingly not terrible. The sex was hot and plentiful. There are lots of sweet, tender moments. While I didn't find the happily-ever-after completely satisfying, I did believe that Bella and Gideon cared about one another.

There was one detail about the relationship that just...irked me. MINOR SPOILER: After Gideon leaves Bella and tries to go back to his life as a prostitute, he finds himself impotent. Yeah, he can't get it up for any other woman now (because that's what true love does?) I've seen this done a lot in paranormal romance--usually in the "fated mate" trope. This bothered me on a couple of levels: First, because I felt like his biggest motivation in returning to her was to get his equipment operating again and secondly, because I feel like it cheapens the monogamy. He's with her and only her, not because he made an emotional commitment to loyalty, but because he physically can't be otherwise.

What kind of recommendation can I make with this one? I don't want to suggest it to anyone, because it's such an odd book and it isn't very well written. But then again, there isn't anything glaringly wrong with it. So, I won't warn you off of it, if the premise sounds good to you. 2.5 stars

Originally Reviewed for Reading to Penguins.

What I enjoyed most about this story is it is the lead male character who is from the wrong side of the tracks and is looking for a better life. The female lead is of high society, though shunned by her family, and falls for the man she would've never met had her older brother not been so domineering and desperate to marry her off. Her society husband was the beast and the immoral lover was the savior to this passionate woman.

The story takes place in England and Scotland in 1816 and spans about ten months. The heroine is Isabella Stirling. She's 24 and has been married to Lord Stirling, 34, for almost five years. He's impotent and they have no relationship of any kind with each other and he's rarely at home. He's both physically and verbally abusive toward her. Bella is 5'8" and has pale blond and violet eyes. She's terribly unhappy. Her parents are dead and she's got two brothers and two sisters who have never come to visit her.

The hero is Gideon Rosedale. He's twenty-seven, 6'1 and has dark brown hair and brown eyes. He's a prostitute and has been for ten years. His mother was one and he doesn't know who his father is. He was raised up in a brothel. Bella's cousin, Esme, hires him to service Bella for two weeks. That's how the hero and heroine meet.

Bella is so lonely and isolated. I think she became a bit obsessed with Gideon, especially after their original two week stay was over. She was so starved or affection that once she warmed up to him, she was not emotionally prepared to let him go. To me, she showed signs of being mentally unbalanced and seemed a bit immature. She also seems hypersexual. That combined with her overall emotional state made me wonder if she was bipolar. I feel she was a bit of a weak character, pretty passive with things that had nothing to do with Gideon.

Gideon seemed a little bland to me. I'd have liked to have known a bit more about his upbringing. I don't think his character was developed quite enough. Bella's surely wasn't. We weren't told a thing about her past; childhood, upbringing, nothing. I want to know why her siblings never came to visit her.

The sex scenes were very explict but ordinary and there were plenty of them. I was a bit surprised by one scene near the end involving something the hero did to the heroine. I'd give the sex an A-.

Overall, there wasn't much going on in this story but sex. No real plot at all except toward the end when Bella's husband pays her a visit. Though the heroine is married to another, she and Gideon have their happily-ever-after. How? You'll have to read the book to find out! I grade this book 3.5 stars/B-. I absolutely love the cover with the exception of the heroes hairy leg!

What a lovely book - I really liked both the heroine and hero, and their developing story. The vulnerability of both characters was very touching. Contrary to other readers, I found refreshing to read about a hero who is not the all-too-ubiquitous alpha male.

Exciting debut novel that grabs you early on and doesn't let go. Likable characters with relatable characters. The most surprising thing about this book for me was although it follows the overall formula for romance you are not sure how it will all come together. I think this is rare for books in this genre. I was willing to stretch my imagination a bit further for this Author as she had me caring about the characters and how they would come together. I look forward to this promising new authors next work.