The Most Wicked of Sins [Mass Market Paperback]

Kathryn Caskie (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 29, 2009

They are the "Seven Deadly Sins"--the seven Sinclair brothers and sisters who live for scandal and delight in disgrace . . . until their father decrees that they must marry in haste . . . or regret in poverty!

Lady Ivy Sinclair can't live without funds much longer, so she vows to land a sensible, serious husband her father will accept. But just when the respectable gentlemen is about to pop the question, another woman snatches away his attentions. Furious, Ivy hatches a plan—make him jealous by hiring a handsome actor to impersonate a marquess,—a marquess who happens to be madly in love with her.

The moment Ivy boldly kisses Dominic Sheridan—to test his fitness for the task at hand—she sure he's perfect for her desperate scheme. What Ivy doesn't know is that the blue-eyed rake isn't acting at all, but intent on stealing her heart while seducing her into committing the most wicked of sins .

Editorial Reviews

Review

'...a winning combination of poignancy and humor' 

"Caskie's irresistible and irrepressible Sinclair siblings, better known as the Seven Deadly Sins, liven up any season with audacious actions, witty repartee and wild escapades. Caskie sprinkles their stories with a winning combination of poignancy and humor that's sure to charm her fans.

Summary: Lady Ivy (Envy) has one month to find a suitable husband to satisfy her father's demands. She's ready to snare Viscount Tinsdale when another woman captures his attention. To make Tinsdale jealous, Ivy counters with an outrageous plan to hire an actor to impersonate the Marquess of Counterton and pretend to court her.

Recently arrived in London, Dominic Sheridan is shocked when he's accosted, kissed and hired as Ivy's 'suitor' in the blink of an eye. He's intrigued enough to play along with her charade. Soon Ivy's game gets a bit too hot to handle as she realizes she desires Nick's kisses much more than Tinsdale's. Caught in her own web, Ivy has to find a way out, but what happens when her scheme comes back to bite her in the end?" --RT Book Reviews

'...a wonderfully witty and sexy romance.'

"Lady Ivy Sinclair is used to being the envy of every woman in London, until Miss Fiona Feeney arrives in town. Before Ivy knew what hit her, Fiona was not only the talk of the town; the upstart Irish beauty had also stolen away Ivyâ(tm)s fiance, Viscount Tinsdale. Ivy isnâ(tm)t about to let Fiona take Tinsdale away from her, so she concocts a plan to hire an actor to impersonate the Marquess of Counterton, whose subsequent courtship of Ivy will incite Tinsdale to a jealous rage. There is only one small flaw in Ivy's plan: she doesn't realize that Dominick Sheridan, the actor that she hires, really is the new Marquess of Counterton. The second title in Caskie's captivating The Seven Deadly Sins series featuring seven Scottish siblings is a wonderfully witty and sexy romance."

-- Booklist
John Charles --Booklist

Starred Review!

This funny, spicy, satisfying tale is another stellar winner for Caskie (To Sin with a Stranger) and is second in her "Seven Deadly Sins" series featuring the wild Sinclair siblings. Note: Envy is the featured sin, and well-chosen quotes (e.g., "Of the seven deadly sins, only envy is no fun at all."--Joseph Epstein) add to the fun. --Library Journal

This second book in Ms. Caskie's Seven Deadly Sins series shines..."

This second book in Ms. Caskie's Seven Deadly Sins series shines as the envious Ivy learns hard lessons about what is truly important in family and love. Nic is the perfect foil for her as the charming rogue who learns his own lessons about love. Adding to the richness of the story, Ms. Caskie begins each chapter with a quote regarding envy giving readers different insights into the sin of envy." --Fresh Fiction

Top Rating!

Kathyn Caskie continues her exciting Seven Deadly Series with The Most Wicked of Sins. Ivy has the sin of envy and wants nothing more than to reclaim the man she thinks should be hers. Nick goes along with the plan because it sounds like an interesting idea. Suddenly though he finds himself falling for the beautiful Scottish woman and wants nothing more than to make their pretend love into something more. This amazing and wonderful tale is full of sexual tension, plans going awry, crazy schemes, hilarious outtakes, and a love story that will have you sighing in contentment and waiting impatiently for the next book in this series by this outstanding and gifted author!" --Coffee Time Romance

About the Author

Kathryn Caskie has long been a devotee of history and things of old, so it came as no surprise to her family when she took a career detour off the online superhighway and began writing historical romances full time. With a background in marketing, advertising, and journalism, she has written professionally for television, radio, the internet, magazines, and newspapers in and around metropolitan Washington, DC. How to Engage an Earl is her sixth novel. Kathryn lives in a 200-year-old Quaker home nestled in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains with her greatest sources of inspiration, her husband and two young daughters.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Avon; Original edition (September 29, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061491012
• ISBN-13: 978-0061491016
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #409,964 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Kathryn Caskie is the USA TODAY best-selling author of the hilariously clever Regency-set romances. She lives outside of Washington, DC with her family, two cats, two Borders Collies and a Chihuahua with a Napoleon complex.

Learn more about the author, enter her contests and read an excerpt from her latest book by visiting:

http://www.kathryncaskie.com and http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kathryn-Caskie/369040093477

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Implausible mistaken identity story, January 23, 2010

By 

Helen Hancox "Auntie Helen" (Essex, England) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Most Wicked of Sins (Mass Market Paperback)

If you're going to enjoy 'the Most Wicked Of Sins' - and it can be an enjoyable book - you need to first disengage the plausibility receptors in your brain and just pretend to yourself that this could all happen. Yes, really. A family of seven called Sinclair, all of whom exhibit one of the Seven Deadly Sins, have been cast off by their Scottish Duke father and are trying to exist in a penniless state in London. And then one of the daughters, Ivy, decides to arouse jealousy in the beau who seems to have moved on to someone else - by paying someone to appear interested in her. Of course she can't just choose anyone, he has to be a bigger fish than her beau (a viscount) so she picks on the new Marquess of Counterton. He's newly acquired the title and so no-one knows him in town - all Ivy needs to do is hire an actor, rent Counterton's London home and install the actor there, passing him off as a suitor.

Right, that's unbelievable. But wait - there's more!! She finds her actor outside the theatre and... would you believe it! Ivy doesn't realise this but he's ACTUALLY the Marquess of Counterton. He goes along with the deception and... well, you can guess what happens. Or if you can't, you could read this book and find out. It's full of improbabilities - Ivy behaves entirely unlike a young woman of good family and gets away with outrageous behaviour - but if you can ignore that (and I found it hard to) then there's a bit of a love story tucked away in this book, although not a particularly convincing one. Characterisation is fairly minimal but there's a reasonable amount of action and dialogue which lifts this story a little above others.

And the final implausibility - after Ivy marries her Marquess the book describes her as the 'Countess of Counterton' rather than the Marchioness. Historical accuracy isn't always strong in these books but that was a bit of a basic error. If you liked the previous book in this series then this is more of the same and would probably suit, but I just couldn't cope with the implausibilities myself.

Originally published for Curled Up With A Good Book © Helen Hancox 2010

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Cute Sequel (B Grade), September 29, 2009

By 

K. Garrabrant "Katiebabs" (Bloomfield, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Most Wicked of Sins (Mass Market Paperback)

Lady Ivy Sinclair comes from a large family, full of eccentric siblings. Since all of them have disappointed their father, he has sent them on their way to fend for themselves. Unless they can turn their lives around for the better, he will disown them. Ivy has one month to get her act together or she will be disinherited. In order to get into her father's good graces again, she must show him that she has matured and is ready for marriage. She sets her eye on Lord Tinsdale, but Tinsdale's affections seem to have moved onto another. Ivy has no choice but to play dirty and make him jealous. She will invent a gentleman who will compete with Tinsdale! The only place she can find this perfect man is at the Theater Royal.

Dominic Sheridan is coming out of the theater where his friend is employed as an actor. As he exits the stage door, he bashes in the head of a beautiful young woman. Ivy is thrilled to have met Dominic, even in this most unusual fashion. She assumes he is an actor and after kissing him, she asks him to join in on the farce by becoming the Marquess of Counterton. Dominic knows that the act Ivy has planned could get him in trouble. If only she knew who he really is. But Dominic finds Lady Ivy to be an appealing sort of woman, so he decides to give this façade a go.

Dominic and Ivy's mock relationship is so well done that everything Ivy has wanted is nearby. She has Tinsdale eating out of the palm of her hand, but Dominic continues to lay his devotion on a bit too thick, to the point that she is not sure if he is acting anymore. Soon Dominic wants the real thing with Ivy and when their lie begins to unravel, Ivy may have no choice but to admit defeat and look to Dominic to save her.

The Most Wicked of Sins is the second book in Kathryn Caskie's Seven Deadly Sins series about the Sinclair siblings who must turn over a new leaf. This is a witty and fun regency tale where two strangers slowly fall in love with one another. The fun is watching Dominic control Ivy, even though she is not aware that it is actually happening.

There is a bit of a mystery regarding Dominic's true identity that may come as a pleasant surprise to the reader. Ivy's sisters and brothers also bring some funny, lighthearted moments, which add to this tale. The Most Wicked of Sins is a hoot of a read and a lovely romance that will keep a smile on your face until the very last page.

Katiebabs

To Sin With a Stranger

4.0 out of 5 stars Wicked of sins, December 7, 2011

By 

Ambritts - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Most Wicked of Sins (Seven Deadly Sins) (Kindle Edition)

Nice book. Nice storyline. So far this has been a good series. This book is good but the next book in series the dukes night if sin is better