Nov 30, 2010
Yep, you’ve seen this guy and heard quite a bit about him and his friends in all the reviews below. He and his mighty sword are about to take their rightful place on bookshelves near you.
Lords of Passion is tremendously special to me. To share a spine with Virginia Henley and Kate Pearce is surreal. My novella Not Quite a Courtesan was so much fun for me to write, and the positive reviews have only made my feelings about it sweeter.
I said somewhere that Pru and Darius are two of my favorite imaginary friends, and I’m eager to share them. I’m giving away three copies today (Tuesday, November 30)–one on The Vauxhall Vixens blog, and two in a Twitter contest that will run until midnight EST. Follow me @MaggieLRobinson for a chance to win!
Nov 28, 2010
“Not Quite a Courtesan”
By Maggie Robinson
Lords of Passion (Anthology)
Publisher: Kensington Brava
Release Date: November 30, 2010
World traveler and treasure hunter, Darius Shaw returns home to England with one last collection of sensual artifacts that, hopefully, will garner enough money to forever close the doors of Shaw Antiquities, the company he inherited from his father, allowing Darius to leave the family business behind and settle down in the country, as his heart desires. But, upon his arrival, he’s met with the news that his scapegrace younger brother, Cyrus has eloped with an eighteen-year-old heiress, his uncle Algernon has died, leaving the two brothers his love nest on Courtesan Court, complete with aging mistress, and neither his new sister-in-law nor her guardian “dragon” of a cousin are thrilled with the news. Long used to rescuing his brother from his many escapades, Darius heads to Courtesan Court to pay off his uncle’s mistress and save his brother’s new marriage.
Prudence Thorne has been responsible for her younger cousin since she was born and she’s not about to turn her back on that responsibility just because some handsome man managed to sweet-talk Sophy into marriage while Pru was tending her dying mother. Pru knows all about men who stray. After all, her late husband was killed trying to escape his lover’s bed just weeks after marrying Pru. After paying off the woman she thinks is her new brother-in-law’s mistress, Pru waits at the Courtesan Court home for Cyrus, to give him a piece of her mind and send him back to his young wife. But the man who arrives is not young Cyrus and this man is more handsome, more appealing and more dangerous to Pru’s well-ordered life than she could ever have imagined.
Like the unique artifacts for which Darius searches the world, Robinson’s “Not Quite a Courtesan” is a treasure. Well written, this story flows smoothly, with humor and a satisfying depth of emotion. Intelligent, practical, take-charge Pru is the perfect foil for Darius’s sensual, teasing nature and the banter between them is an absolute delight. From beginning to end, their journey is romantic, sensual, and thoroughly enjoyable. I admit, I hated to say goodbye.
Nov 26, 2010
European Historical Romance (1818 England)
Maggie Robinson’s Not Quite a Courtesan wraps things up with a thoroughly enjoyable romp. Our hero Darius follows a long family tradition of dealing in pornographic antiques, but he’s just about to auction off his inventory (housed in a courtesan’s lodgings) and make a fresh start. All of a sudden a staid widow appears on a mission: Her cousin is married to Darius’ brother, who’s been staying with the courtesan, who’s his late uncle’s mistress but appears to be Darius’ brother’s mistress. Prudence is here to give the courtesan what-for, on behalf of her cousin.
Or something like that. It doesn’t matter, really. What matters is that Darius and Prudence are a hoot. As Pru joins in the inventorying they fall in love, Darius gets semi-respectable and Pru gets seriously loosened up. And it’s funny. Really funny.
Grade: B+
Nov 22, 2010
Ten copies of Lords of Passion are on offer at Goodreads from November 20 thru December 15!
Nov 21, 2010
“The real gem of this anthology is Maggie Robinson’s Not Quite a Courtesan. It is difficult for me to find complaint with the story, which is both romantic and sensual in equal measure with well-motivated and delightful characters. Widowed heroine Prudence Thorne is thrown into hero and adventurer Darius Shaw’s hands under the most unlikely of circumstances. Here she is thrust into the world of the courtesan at his house on Jane Street where he is auctioning off a collection of erotic items he has just returned from gathering from all corners of the world. The most enjoyable element of this story is its characters – the piquant Mr. Shaw and the dutiful lady who trespasses into his house. His emotional growth, threaded with warm touches of humor, more than anything is what encourages him to draw the woman out of Prudence’s tightly-buttoned mourning garb.
(excerpt)
“It’s still too soon.”
“Then we’ll have a long engagement. But I want us to live together. On my farm.”
“We’ll shock the sheep, living in sin.”
“The sheep won’t notice. We’ll stay indoors. In bed.”
She picked up an egg-laden fork and put it down. There was no way in the world she could eat now, with her heart hammering like Darius’s gavel in her chest. “There’s more to marriage than sex, Darius.”
“I don’t doubt it. And I expect you to school me in all of its rules and regulations. You’re a very organized woman, Pru. A woman like you could make something out of a man like me.”
Not Quite a Courtesan is so well-written and near perfection that I can’t wait to dive into another Maggie Robinson tale!”
Reviewed by: Amber Leigh
To read the entire review, click here. 🙂
Yep, you’ve seen this guy and heard quite a bit about him and his friends in all the reviews below. He and his mighty sword are about to take their rightful place on bookshelves near you.