Giveaway and Review: "Notorious Pleasures"

As part of the "Notorious Pleasures" blog tour, I have my review and a giveaway of 3 copies of the book, sponsored by Hachette!

"Notorious Pleasures"
 by Elizabeth Hoyt

Publisher: Vision
Release Date: Jan 25, 2011

Source: sent by publisher

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
 

Summary from Goodreads.com:

 Their lives were perfect . . .
Lady Hero Batten, the beautiful sister of the Duke of Wakefield, has everything a woman could want, including the perfect fiancé. True, the Marquis of Mandeville is a trifle dull and has no sense of humor, but that doesn't bother Hero. Until she meets his notorious brother . . .

Until they met each other.
Griffin Remmington, Lord Reading, is far from perfect - and he likes it that way. How he spends his days is a mystery, but all of London knows he engages in the worst sorts of drunken revelry at night. Hero takes an instant dislike to him, and Griffin thinks that Hero, with her charities and faultless manners, is much too impeccable for society, let alone his brother. Yet their near-constant battle of wits soon sparks desire - desire that causes their carefully constructed worlds to come tumbling down. As Hero's wedding nears, and Griffin's enemies lay plans to end their dreams forever, can two imperfect people find perfect true love?

My Review: 

Wow!! This love story was intense! In a very good way. I don't think there's a person anywhere who doesn't want to be loved the way Griffin loves Hero. 

As always, Hoyt's characters fly off the page. I found myself sympathizing with Griffin a bit more than Hero, just because he's so fiery and emotional. He loved her passionately, and she was still trying to sort out her feelings. Hero was much more closed off because she'd been raised to do everything a Duke's daughter must do. But still, every time she rejected Griffin, my heart broke along with his.

I loved all the drama and secrecy that surrounded Griffin and Hero's love because she was engaged to Griffin's brother, Thomas. Don't worry, it's delivered perfectly, Hero and Thomas are nowhere near a love match. Nonetheless, the family drama and brotherly rivalry amped up all of the already heated emotions.

As the second book in The Maiden Lane Series, parts of the story took place in St. Giles, the shady part of London. While still showing the seedy happenings in St. Giles, this book isn't as dark as the first book in the series, partially because the leads aren't as scarred. I really liked the first book, but I loved this one even more.

Hoyt has written a large cast of multi-faceted characters. We get to see just enough of the supporting players without them overshadowing the stars-Griffin and Hero. We also get a few more clues as to the identity of the Ghost of St. Giles. I am looking forward to Silence and Mickey's story, next! 

Main Characters: 5/5 can you tell how much I love them?
Supporting Characters: 5/5
Setting: 5/5
Romance: 5/5
Uniqueness: 5/5
Cover: 5/5
Writing: 5/5


Bottom Line: I can't recommend this book enough to readers of historical romance. Fans of Elizabeth Hoyt will not be disappointed and if you haven't read any of her books yet, this is a perfect way to start.

GIVEAWAY RULES:
Hachette books has generously provided three copies of this historical romance for readers of my blog!


All you have to do is follow my blog publicly and leave a comment on this review with your email address!

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• Ends Friday Feb 11

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