Parlor Games [Paperback]

Jess Michaels (Author), Leda Swann (Author), Julia Templeton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 23, 2006

Do you dare open the door and enter a place like no other?

In these three historical tales of sensual awakening, nothing that stimulates and titillates is taboo, ecstasy comes in many sizes, and pleasure is its own reward . . . a world of seduction and sensation, where inhibitions are unlaced and desires long corseted are gloriously freed. . . .

Fallen Angel Jess Michaels

London's greatest beauty and most notorious madam employs the services of a disgraced Bow Street Runner to keep her safe from a stalker . . . and satisfied after dark.

Parlor Games Leda Swann

An innocent virgin enters a brothel to escape starvation and receives expert tutelage in the steamy Victorian parlor games that rakish gentlemen indulge in. . . .

Border Lord Julia Templeton

Fleeing an unfaithful fiancé, a nubile young lovely finds herself the prisoner of a lustful Scottish laird and must bow to his every erotic whim. . . .

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Jess Michaels always flips through every romance she buys in search of "the good stuff," so it makes perfect sense that she writes erotic romance where she gets to turn up the heat and let it boil. She also runs the popular website The Passionate Pen and writes historical romance as Jenna Petersen.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Avon Red (May 23, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060882298
• ISBN-13: 978-0060882297
• Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 0.7 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,044,356 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Three Luscious and Luring Tales, August 19, 2006

By 

Beverly "Beverly" (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Parlor Games (Paperback)

Parlor Games is a highly entertaining trilogy of well-written historical erotica. In Fallen Angel, a Regency era historical, the handsome, dashing, fallen from grace, Bow Street Runner John Valentine is to protect the beautiful Arabella, madam of a house of pleasure, from a mysterious stalker that wants her dead. In the Victorian era historical, Parlor Games, the innocent and sweet Sarah chooses working in a coffee house that offers "parlor games" over starving in the streets. There she meets the handsome rake, Tom Wilde, who at first lusts for her body and pays for a month of her time, only to discover that a month is not a enough. In the Scottish, time-travel historical, Border Lord, Brochan Douglas spirits away with the daughter of his enemy Laird Angus MacLellan. But it is not the beautiful Annabelle MacLellan Brochan steals away, but Terri Campbell from present day Scottish Borderlands, who visits the priory to escape a cheating finance, only to find herself in medieval Scotland a hostage to sex and evenutually love with the manly, gorgeous Brochan. All three stories have well-written sensual scenes, but unlike some romantica, the sensuality does not override the story. Nicely done.

13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars three well written historical heated red romances, May 25, 2006

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Parlor Games (Paperback)

"Fallen Angel" by Jess Michaels. After falling from grace, Arabella opens up London's most popular brothel with vow that men will service her not the other way around. However, she needs protection from someone who wants her dead. She turns to equally disgraced Bow Street Runner John to keep her safe from her stalker, but soon desires his services 24/7 in and out of bed.

"Parlor Games" by Leda Swann. Sarah entered the coffeehouse brothel so that she can eat, but though her job is to entice men into spending their money, she plans to leave a virgin. Undercover investigator Tom seeks information on a client when he sees Sarah. He buys exclusivity for a month of her while continuing his discrete inquiries.

"Border Lord" by Julia Templeton. Terri went on her Scottish tour for two reasons. To escape a cheating no longer fiancé and because being a romantic she walk where legends speak of lost loves. However, when she enters a room, Terri realizes quickly everything is wrong especially when she becomes prisoner of a highland laird who demands honesty, loyalty and equal lust in his woman. She wants the same in her man, but worries whether a twenty-first century independent female find love and happiness in the arms of a macho medieval Highlander?

These three well written historical heated red romances are fiery fervent fun starring super protagonists in strong storylines in which the erotica is deftly blended into the passionate plots.

Harriet Klausner

14 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars If you like lots of steamy loves scenes....but..., January 16, 2007

By 

Misuzmama (New York, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Parlor Games (Paperback)

This is a hard review for me. While all three stories provide some romance to varying degrees and plenty of explicit love scenes, something was just not right. Anthologies are a tricky business. Making the romance believable and having multiple love scenes between the H/H in a little over 100 pages is nearly impossible IMHO. Therein lies the problem. You don't really feel the characters falling in love with each other. Its really just lust and kind of a shallow sexual love that's portrayed in these three.

Swann's story is by far the worst. It made me feel like I was watching a cheap porno. It was gross the way her characters behaved. The way they got turned on by watching others do their business. And -EWWW!- they get sprayed by someone else's...uh..love juices? It was just like a really disgusting orgy. There is some really disturbing female abuse too. And the H/H fall in love with each other amidst all of this? Ha! I don't think so!

I did like Templeton's & Michaels stories though. They were more believable. The romance was not bad and the love scenes were very hot.

Just three stories with LOTS of loves scenes and characters obsessed with sex and not much else (character/romance development). A little snickers bar for your libido if that's what your looking for.