Passion (Berkley Sensation) [Mass Market Paperback]

The book is erotic; have plenty of ice at the ready when reading !!-but it isn't all just panting & sighing- there is a plot- the hero is an honourable one who is caught in a dilema that is seemingly without resolution- he genuinely loves the heroine but is torn between doing his duty & his love for her.There are very interesting secondary characters, although some of those appear a little too late in the book-there is also an obvious opening for a sequel-which I shall get as soon as it becomes available.All in all, a brilliant debut- well done! Ms Valdez

Wonderfully HOT. A young widow Passion Elizabeth Dare meets a compete stranger, Mark Randolph Hawkmore, Earl of Langley in the Great Exhibition of Crystal Palace in London. Ms Valdez starts the story with no mucking around straight to business "sex with the stranger" in public and continue to BURN the pages with ultra-hot sex scenes throughout the book with various rapturous renedezvoux. With all the "actions" that happened in public and in private, Ms Valdex manages to draw a surprisingly well developed characters. It is the best erotic romance I had read for a long time. The brillant setting of the repressed Victorian time creates a wonderful contrast with the storyline and helps to stand out from all the Regency books. It has a good balance of story and hot erotic moments. This book reminds me of the early Susan Johnson books and the few good Cherly Holt ones. The language is a bit OTT, but all in all a keeper.

When they meet at the Crystal palace it is passion at first sight. Passion and Mark indulge themselves with each other, igniting a heat that scorches them to the core. Just for once Passion wants to answer the call of her body, Mark is just fascinated by this lady whom holds his interest with her sensual nature. They embrace this erotic adventure and each time they meet it is the heart that answers to the call of their bodies.

Still evil lurks on the horizon with blackmail and the threat of a scandal. Mark and Passion stand divided by their heart and their duty which may very well destroy the blossoming feelings of a true love not easily found in their world.

Literally from the first page Lisa Valdez captured my attention as Mark Rudolph Hawkmore seduces Passion Elizabeth Dare behind a screen with his voice whispering words of passion and his body that acts upon them. It is a raw and wild need that drives Mark and Passion together and the intensity never wavers for one second and made me want to finish this story within one sitting. Regardless whom called, rang the doorbell or needed me in any shape, form or fashion, I wasn't going to answer. Mark is a man whom is brutally honest, on the brink of being a crude, but it still makes Mark all the more appealing and I just had to find out what kind of woman could lay such a claim to a man and if Passion would be that woman. All of this pulled me into their world and page after page I devoured this story like Mark devoured Passion, with utter want and need, focusing on the one person that brought pleasure.

And that it did bring for me....pleasure, this Regency novel is one of outstanding quality and proved to me to be quite the reading experience moreover with its compelling secondary characters it screams for other stories to be told! I think I've felt a range of emotions with various characters, from delighted pleasure to love and compassion, from anger to utter hate, it all coursed through me as Lisa Valdez created such a cast of vivid characters they could do no other than evoke such strong emotions with me. With bold and straight forward language this author gives it to you all and with various words that are frequently used I like to warn that this is something not all readers might appreciate! I on the other hand was never bothered by it and Mark with Grace would truly never be the same if it was written any different.

Mark and Passion take center stage in such a powerful love story and they created it, it is their attraction towards one another that is so vibrant, so full of passion and evidently clear as I read on. Passion is strong and does her name justice as her very nature is passionate, she's all I want to find in a heroine and a joy to read for me. The circumstances which demand certain choices of the main couple is one that reverberates long after you close this book and those two selfish women make almost any mother or mother-in-law look like a guardian angel. For such an intense, all consuming love it probably requires such characters because they enhance each other so and it gives this tale its impact!

The author created a seductive mix of unforgettable characters, scorching passionate scenes, heart rendering love, when Mark realizes his love for Passion, my heart just went out to him. It is with mere words that Lisa Valdez conjured up a heart touching scene of a man bereft of his love, his only love and is facing a future without it. There isn't much that I didn't like and the few times I did raise my eyebrows it was over minor things that evaporated in the presence of such a compelling love story and it will be a personal thing above anything else. I truly believe no one can read this story and not want to talk about it.

An author such as Lisa Valdez shapes the Historical genre she is writing in and for me she will be one of the authors that blazes a renewed passion in my heart for it!

4,5 stars

Reviwed by Leontine
Courtesy of Realms on our Bookshelves