Customer Reviews

A Taste of Sin

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

In 1747 in the Scottish Highlands, an outraged fourteen-year old St. John "Sinjun" Thornton is forced to marry seven-year old hellion Christy MacDonald. Neither child wants nor agrees to these nuptials, but clan needs require their marriage so the vows are exchanged anyway.

By 1762, Sinjun is better known as Lord Sin for his wild womanizing ways. He has not seen his bride since she kicked him at the altar fifteen years ago. Christy relishes her marriage because she is able to run the clan without the interference of a spouse. That changes when another chieftain Calum demands she annul her vows and marry him. Instead, of succumbing to Calum's pressure, Christy, masquerading as Flora, finds her spouse and seduces him in order to become pregnant with an heir. However, Flora and Lord Sin fall in love, but how will he react when he learns about the ruse his own wife pulled off on him?

A TASTE OF SIN is an entertaining historical romance that takes readers on a wild twisting ride through mid-eighteenth century Scotland. The lead couple is a finely developed duo whose lovemaking heats the pages. The supporting characters provide the depth and intrigue that bring out the period. Best-selling author Connie Mason opens her new series with a passionate exciting Highlander romance.

Harriet Klausner

Another 5 star book from Connie Mason! This is the first book to the new series called 'Sin'. This is about the 2nd oldest child named St.John Thorton, or as everyone else calls, him, Sinjun. Sinjun has an older brother named Julian and a younger sister named Emma. When Sinjun is 14, the King of England had made a deal to have him married to the Highlander clan's future liard, Christy Macdonald, who is 7 at the time. It's supposed to be a marriage of political convience, to keep the Highlanders 'in line'. The marriage is never consumated and the couple never sees each other for 15 years until unrest begins in the Highlands. Christy must make an heir or the troublemaking neighbor clan will cause mahor problems. She goes to London with the intention of seducing her estranged husband whom she hasn't seen in 15 years who is also known as the legendary 'Lord Sin', a notorious rake and 'seducer of women'. She doesn't want him to reconize her, so she poses as a myserious woman from Cornwall. The ruse works and everything seems to be going fine until she realizes she has lost her heart to the womanizer and he doesnt have a clue that she is his wife. This story is filled with intrigue and treachery. When Sinjun falls for the mysterious woman, he ends up also finding out who she really is, and this is when everything breaks open. Sinjun is sexy and I loved his character. I didn't think Christy was immature like some of the others reviews said. She was desperate to save her clan and the her people from ruination. It was heartwarming and full of life. It will keep you turning the pages until the wee hours of the morning. The other two books are set to come out in 2001 and 2002.

Tracy Talley~@

The couple in this book doesn't give you a lot of reason to hope they'll make it together. Their love life and attraction to one another sizzles, but they communicate with one another as well as toddlers would. Mistakes and misunderstandings that would be easily solved are painfully drawn out. Every time one is willing to talk, the other refuses to listen. When one is willing to listen, the other refuses to talk.....

The story starts out humorous, when 14 year old St. John is forced to marry 7 year old Christy. She kicks him in the shin and sticks her tongue out at him during their wedding. Gotta love her spunk. Then the story jumps ahead about 15 years:

St. John (Sinjun) likes the ladies, alcohol, and gambling. Each time he gets mad at his wife, he runs out and finds himself a mistress. No faithful longing for his wife here.

Christy has a horrible knack for telling huge lies and for making rash, terribly bad decisions. More times than I can count, she nearly destroyed both her marriage and her people. She is the Laird of her Scottish clan, but is far too impulsive to make good choices for the clan. When an enemy tries to take the clan over, she proves to be a weak leader and her hubby (Sinjun) has to jump in and fix things for her. (Which nearly gets him killed.)

I still give the book 4 stars, because it is entertaining enough to keep you reading. The story line is original and the characters are realistic. But it does start to drag when the leading lady's mistakes and impulsive actions wear on you, as well as the leading man's "sins."

WOW! This is my first of Connie Mason and if this is her usual style of writing, it will certainly not be my last. The initial plot of this book totally piqued my deepest interest! I saw this book in one of my Amazon friends list sometime months ago. I promised to buy this book but then to my dismay, I forgot the title and the author. All I remembered was the plot. So now what? I've back tracked my Amazon friends list to searching and reading all book back cover in the bookstore for weeks... I just couldn't find it and was getting frustrated... until I finally got lucky yesterday to have stumble across it. How perfect. I was so excited to have finally get it that I prayed this book is worth all the trouble... Oh my! Was it worth it! I read this book in one night, slept for only couple of hours for work and again, it's all worth it.

I won't dally with the book's description anymore as the Amazon editorial review and some reviewers (read Ambrangel) have already did a good job doing that. So, I will simply throw in my overall opinion of this book. It's utterly beautiful! Full of Love, Desire, Tenderness mixed with confusing lies, misconceptions, schemes, hidden secrets.... All these and more. It's a basket full of emotional topsy-turvy situations. One thing always leads to another. Giggle, sigh, squirm and laugh. Sinjun and Christy... awww! My heart skips a beat just thinking about them. I do agree with one reviewer here who stated that Sinjun was useless and seemed to waste his life without Christy. Sad as it may be but I believe that if someone finds true love, their life becomes more meaningful and productive. Isn't it true what they said that behind every mans success is a woman (and vise versa)? Christy is Sinjun's inspiration/encouragement to turn his life around and I liked that idea. Aside from Christy's attribute of kindness and beauty, she is also a bit impulsive, her decision a bit naive, if not even stupid... but this is what made the book compelling, in my opinion. I prefer FLAWS in all the heroes/heroines of my books. This is where I can admire an Author deeply. When a Writer create and implement a flaw or twist in their stories, they expect readers to become frustrated. But it is how they eventually overturn that feeling with an overwhelming reaction of relief and contentment that matters the most. The powerful choice of words Ms. Mason used here in TASTE OF SIN amazed me. The way she weaves her words and plot moved me. This is the kind of book I like to read best. I like to FEEL when I read. I like lots of spastic moments and no dull ones at all. Loved this book! I even bought one for my sister. She gatta read this one and so should you!

I am now in the process of reading A BREATH OF SCANDAL, Julian's story, the mysterious brother of Sinjun. Can't wait to read Emma's story, Sinjun's sister. I like her spunk!

I love romance novels, and read four or five a week. While Mason's previous works have all been good reads, I found the immaturity of this heroine very hard to stomach. Sinjun was also less well-developed than I would have liked. The secondary characters were much more interesting. This is not to say that I am sorry I read the book... Mason has real talent, and gave me some very good moments. I just wished there had been more of them. Could the romance writers out there please offer a few more characters like Anne...instead of these infantile females paired with men a decade older? Oh for another lead character like the one in Roberta Gellis' "A Woman's Estate"!

Fantastic story. This is the 1st CM book i've read. I'm busy trying to get my hands on the rest of hers. Especially as there are 2 more in this series. Can't wait to read Julian's story (Sinjun's brother) in "A breath of scandal". This book has everything, intruige, misunderstandings, laughter & passion. It also sets the stage for the next one. I haven't been so engrossed by a book like this in a long time wanting to know what's going to happen next.

The story began in 1747. St.John Thornton was known as Sinjun. The Ton called him Lord Sin. At fourteen he was wed, by the king's command, to seven year old Lady Christy Macdonald. Neither Sinjun, nor Christy, wanted the match. All Christy's brothers had died in the battle of Culloden. Christy was named laird of the clan Macdonald. She would grow up in her beloved Scottish Highlands at Glenmoor Castle. He would grow up in London and live up to the name Lord Sin.

Fifteen years later, there is unrest among the clans. Calum Cameron ruled the Cameron clan. He intended to have Christy and Sinjun's marriage annulled, claim Christy as his wife, and become Laird through the marriage. Then war with the English will begin anew. To stop this, Christy went to London as Lady Flora Randall to seduce her husband. With his bairn in her belly she could return to Glenmoor in triumph! Glenmoor would have an heir, Sinjun would never know Flora had really been his wife and he would live happily in London unawares, and Calum's plans would be thwarted.

All went as planned until a pregnant Christy returned home to Glenmoor. Then it all fell to pieces!

*** First of a new trilogy! Each will have their own story. This one was MOST EXCELLENT! Connie Mason has never let me down and is still a "A BOOK WRITING WOMAN" as my mother would say. That is her highest compliment and is seldom given. Lord Sin is as handsome and sinful as they come. Christy is more than his match too. Highly recommended reading! ***

What starts out brilliantly takes a sharp downturn as the antics of these juvenile characters will have you pulling your hair out.

In mid 18th century Scotland, little girl Christy is wed to teenager Sinjun as a way to combine politics forces. This is a rather adorable situation for both and is well-presented. Of course, the children are too young to actually be married so they both grow up individually. Sinjun ignores the fact that he has a bride waiting for him in the highlands and takes to a partying life with the ton in London. He spends his time bedding other men's wives, gambling, drinking and basically earning his nickname "Lord Sin."

This suites Christy, his bride, very well as she is left to a life of independence, an admittedly rare opportunity in those times. She does as she pleases and runs her manor and heads her clans and enjoys life immensely. Until that is, she discovers she needs to consummate her marriage and get with child if she wants to maintain her life as she wants it.

She deceives Lord Sin and seduces him... of course, he unwittingly is bedding his own wife. This first deceit was humorous and interesting and I was intrigued for sure. As Lord Sin began to fall for his own wife, my heart was right there with them. I loved what I was reading.

But admittedly, I soon grew tired of them both. Both characters were selfish people with personal agendas that were rather disturbing. As they continue to lie and deceive each other I began to truly dislike them. The Big Misunderstanding(s) is a huge plot device in this book and you will literally want to throw this book across the room. "WHY DON'T YOU JUST TALK TO EACH OTHER?" you want to scream. They are both such immature people and hurt each other so much it's hard to believe in their love.

Without giving away a spoiler, I have to say the situation with their child was almost unbearable for me to read. It was simply not acceptable for either of them to do what they did to each other and I wouldn't have been able to forgive what she did to him, and what he did to her. UGH.

Plot Devices: pregnancy, arranged marriage, kidnapping, disguise, false identities, the big misunderstanding
Steam Rating - High (lots and lots of passionate scenes)

I am a huge fan of Connie Mason, having read most of her other novels. I was disappointed with this one, having to make myself finish it. A great story line, but little character development and an unbelievable love. The characters aren't likable and the female lead is downright stupid at times, constantly making dumb decisions and ignoring easy solutions. The hero of the story starts off extremely shallow and only partially redeems himself in my eyes. Their love isn't believable and far from convincing.

While I still love Connie Mason for daring to go where other authors won't in her earlier novels, I can't recommend this one.

A very good and entertaining read for me personally. Sin's character was good along with Christy. I also like Sin's family. good read