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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fabulous - A Most Memorable Heroine, August 21, 2006
This review is from: Seducing the Spy (Royal Four, Book 4) (Mass Market Paperback)
Lady Alicia Lawrence, daughter of the Earl of Sutherland, was not only ruined but labeled a notorious liar where even her own family had disowned her. After five years of isolation she accidentally overheard a plot against the royal prince of England and felt she should at least tell someone. That someone turned out to be Stanton Horne, Marquis of Wyndham and possibly the only person who might listen to her.
Stanton was rigid, a brilliant strategist but a cold unfeeling member of the Royal Four secret society who also possessed a unique gift of being able to read any person to determine if they lied. Unfortunately, he'd met his match for he could not read Lady Alicia. Not quite believing her claims, but on the off-chance that she was telling the truth, he made a bargain with her to pose as his mistress and attend a scandalous house party in order to track down the enemy she claimed would be there. For Stanton, the mission was fraught with danger, not only to track and stop a deadly spy, but that the impudent and audacious Lady Alicia might be the one woman to melt the ice surrounding Stanton's bleak heart!
*** From the very first line of Lady Alicia's letter to Lord Wyndham, "I am writing to you because you appear to be a somewhat lesser idiot than other gentlemen", I knew I was going love this heroine! This impression was further enhanced with the incredibly hilarious dialogs and correspondence between Stanton and the `infamous' Lady Alicia after they formed a partnership, which I felt, was absolute genius! My admiration increased ten-fold by the positively brilliant characterization this author put forth in fleshing out this remarkable heroine who made a lasting impression on me. Stanton was portrayed beautifully as a perfect foil as Alicia pushed him beyond his limits of endurance and he began to surrender to her abundant charms.
The ambiguity of Alicia's ruin and the shameful reaction from her family was adequately revealed and went far into explaining the insolent attitude she adopted to deal with the immense hurt of being betrayed. As the fourth book in the Royal Four series it completely stands alone yet with the reintroduction of characters featured in previous books it has piqued this reader into planning to pull them from my TBR stack and read them posthaste. Bottom line - This has every element designed to entertain - humor, adventure, edge of the seat excitement, and divine sensuality - a totally entertaining read!
Marilyn Rondeau, Reviewers International Organization
for CK2S - Kwips and Kritiques
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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Return of the Best of Celeste, August 10, 2006
This review is from: Seducing the Spy (Royal Four, Book 4) (Mass Market Paperback)
I have been in love with the Liar's and the Royal Four by Celeste Bradley since I read the first book. However, I was a little disappointed with the Lion's story and the Fox stories. Ms. Bradley is back with a vengance in Seducing the Spy and I am saddened that this is the last of the series. But hope springs eternal and we may get more Liar's stories with appearances by the Royal Four. I love the Regency and in these series Ms. Bradley has given us wonderful tradional Regencies with a real bite as all of our heros and heroines are not only romantic but proud and brave SPIES! She has added a new dimension to the ofttimes predictable genre. And additionally, with a great sense of humor. Her characters are multi-dimensional, very well drawn, and judt plain lovable. She even has made Prinny a better character than perhaps he deserves to be. I recommend this boof highly, but with an added caution. You are going to love the series so start at he beginning with To Wed a Scandalous Spy, you won't regret it, then start the Liar's club with The Pretender. You'll be glad you did.
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10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
3.5 Stars, August 17, 2006
This review is from: Seducing the Spy (Royal Four, Book 4) (Mass Market Paperback)
I love Celeste Bradley's books. They're fun, humorous, and suspenseful, although the romance is usually the main focus. I've enjoyed her Royal Four series, but this last one wasn't the best. The thing I admired most about the book was that Alicia's past story, which had turned her into an outcast and ruined her reputation, wasn't overused. Neither she nor the hero obsessed about it, and the true story was revealed at the end without soap-operatic misunderstandings and partial revelations. I disagree with the reviewer who says the hero had a "rapist-mentality". The heroine is always willing, it is the hero who is afraid to give his heart to her. He is detached, yes, so the chemistry isn't as strong in these scenes, but the characters didn't really change.
My main disappointment with the book was that I couldn't relate to Wyndham, the hero. I thought the heroine was interesting and refreshing: she is spunky and vivacious, and even though she had a hard time of it she maintained her strength of spirit. I just wasn't able to fall in love with the hero, who wavered between being rigid and prudish, and unleashing his passion with almost harsh desperation. I kept waiting for him to gentle, to relax, but he never did. Overall, an interesting read but not completely riveting.
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