Customer Reviews

The Price of Temptation

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Although the cover of the book is so cheesy you won't be able to take it out in public, the story is well-written and tasteful.

This book is a classic romance, with the standard formula found in most romance novels; the only difference being that the characters are gay. Stephen St. Clair is a classic romance hero - hot, irreverant, a little tormented. He has inherited his recently departed brother's title and fortune, and is quickly squandering it. Like a true romantic, he drowns his grief for his brother and nephews in alcohol, gambling and a shallow actor whom he keeps as a kind of male mistress. His love interest, Jamie, arrives to work in his household as an innocent country boy and soon falls in love with Stephen. The two spend most of book trying to admit they're in love. Of course, only after Jamie is nearly killed do they finally realize their feelings and live happily ever after.

The plot and dialog are such that Jamie could easily have been a female character and said and done most of the same things. Same for Stephen's male "mistress." Everything about the novel is pretty typical for a historical romance. I actually wished that Jamie had been more of a masculine character. Casting a male in the part of the heroine without really changing anything else about the character left the whole story feeling a little off. It wasn't quite believable.

I also wish there had been more eroticism in the book. Once past the awful picture on the cover, there is barely any mention of sex except for a few rather chaste kisses and a brief consummation at the end of the book.

Nevertheless, the book is an entertaining read and well-written enough to recommend to fans of gay romance.

All told, I really enjoyed this novel. Though, the cover makes me laugh and shake my head--what were they thinking? The pose itself is lovely and in /that/ I understand what they were going for. But, holy hell, what exactly does that man have down his pants because it's more than what /should/ be there.

Okay, now that I have that out of the way: The book. It's your classic romance novel, but with two men and, frankly, I adored that. I love romantic, well-written gay fiction and this book pushed all my buttons in that regard. It had some writing issues, but I found myself fairly forgiving of them since the characters were very delightful.

I understand the author has another book in the works and I look forward to it and will likely buy it as well. That said, I hope some of the sloppiness of the writing might be cleaned up for that. For example, this book begins in limited third-person point of view, but within a handful of chapters, the head-hopping begins and is rampant by the end of the book. The author would be better served to keep individual sections within one point of view as, otherwise, it smacks of amateur writing. Secondly, many word choices and turns of phrase were too modern for the setting. While I appreciate the more modern narrative style, that doesn't mean the dialogue and narrative shouldn't reflect the times. The only solid example I can draw off the top of my head is that the household is lit by candles, yet a touch between the protagonists is referred to as "electric." A small thing, to be sure, but enough to pull me out of the story.

I'm hopeful that the second effort will be a tighter one and, as I've already confessed, I have great love for this exact sort of fiction, so I've given the author the benefit of the doubt.

This was a rollicking good ride! A delightful balance of romance, comedy of manners, intrigue, and, well, smut! It had the feel of a victorian melodrama where you wanted to cheer the heroes and hiss at the villains. Yet as much as I loved the protagonists, the supporting cast is equally deserving of kudos (particularly Charles-- I wish I had him for *my* valet!). All the characters were well-developed (particularly considering that this is a relatively short book). I would love to see the further adventures of these characters down the road. If you're in the mood for a totally indulgent, "guilty pleasure" sort of book, look no further!

That book is everything I wanted. The style is neither pretentious nor wordy - the easy, flowing style ideal for a light, happily romantic story - yet it is precise and elegant as well (especially the dialogues, both subtle and witty). As to the characters, they're all coherent and quite loveable (with the exception of Julian the Antagonist, exquisitely loathsome). As to the smutty parts, they were just delightful.

If you purchase only one gay romance on this site, this should - must - be it. I wish there were more work of such quality in this category.

This book was a good read even for a non-gay reader who doesn't usually read romances. It was well written, you felt symptathetic with the "good" characters, hated the evil ones, and were drawn into the plot - by the end the book is a real page-turner. Lots of nice historical details make this a step above many romances. The romance was sexy but tasteful...An entertaining, fine guilty pleasure.

Does it get any better than this? If you love to read and are looking for something just a little bit different, look no further. Jamie Riley loves Stephen Clair but Jamie doesn't know it. Stephen thinks he loves Julian but doesn't know that he doesn't. Aunt Matilda loves Stephen, hates Julian, and doesn't know what to think of Jamie - but she's very, very rich as well as an inveterate gossip. The secondary characters in M.J. Pearson's historical gay romance are delicious enough to warrant tales of their own (one can only hope, hint hint wink wink). I look forward to more of M.J. Pearson.

It is so fun to see a new twist on the old historical romance genre. Perfect characters and plot; I read it in one evening and wished despertly it was longer. The author's note says that M.J. Pearson is at work on another book; I will be sure to purchase it! A wonderful story, even for a non-gay reader. I just wish there were more books as entertaining as this. Thank you M.J. Pearson for all the reading pleasure.

My only wish is that M.J. Pearson would replace that cheesy anD awful front cover with something more tasteful or erotic. It prevented me from purchasing the book for over a year!!

The story inside is very good with a great plot and wonderful characters. Good background on the characters which helped to either love them or hate them.
I felt there was a loose end when at the very end Jamie's grandfather was identified at a soiree and was told what he could do to help Jamie. This thread was not picked up and followed through, which would have been a logical conclusion to Jamie's life story.
Lots of tension at the end.

PLEASE! TO THE AUTHOR M.J.PEARSON - GET RID OF THAT BOOKCOVER!! It cheapens a very good story inside!

The title of this book very accurately sums up the basic theme of the plot: is it OK to have sex for personal physical pleasure only, or should sex be withheld until love is part of it? Hedonism or emotion, which is most critical for sex? If you deeply and truly love someone, is there a situation in which it is wrong to make love to that person? The author here very clearly and convincingly answers that question in the affirmative. The characters and plotline were beautifully developed, along with an interesting supporting cast of characters (I especially liked Aunt Matilda). The sexual tension between the two lovers was at times excruciating, but Jamie did what he had to do. The conclusion of the book was credible, though I rather wish it had been handled without the torture and attempted murder.

The author left an incredible number of strings dangling at the end of the book, especially what would have happened between Jamie and his grandfather (who was Stephen's first lover). All those dangling threads scream for a sequel. Also, I wondered whether Stephen was "good enough" for Jamie, and whether he could have stayed faithful to Jamie more than a few months or years, once the "honeymoon" stage wore off. I loved this book and strongly recommend it to someone looking for a good gay romance with enough sexual tension to spice it up. I'd also love to see the author do a decent sequel.

I love this book, and I will buy any new gay romances Pearson writes with incredible earnestness. The Price of Temptation is fun, the writing is smooth, and I, anyway, think the characters rather believable. If a gay man complains about women being unable to write from a gay mindset, I suspect that man has only a very limited viewpoint. The only "gay" books he would aquire would be from the sex shop. And as for that, look at the cover here. It's more nakedly erotic than anything in the book really, but you have to admit, its a nice cover. A singularly great book.