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Lady Phaedra Northampton is on a quest to locate a Millie, a missing girl who is the sister of Phaedra’s maid, but more importantly the mother of Phaedra’s niece. Although Millie bore the child out of wedlock and Phaedra’s brother did not acknowledge it was of no import; reuniting mother with child was. Phaedra’s only lead was Gorsky, a Russian of dubious background who was attempting to contact her but ended up dead instead with a knife in his back. Tristan Talbot, Viscount Avondale was a first class rake and wanted nothing to do with innocent decent ladies, however the attraction to Phaedra was undeniable. Phaedra projected an outer strength and sense of purpose which belied a fragile and surreptitiously held shameful secret past. Tristan’s reason for contacting Phaedra was as a favor to his estranged dying father, a high-placed government official. Convinced love was not something in their future the passion and caring they began to feel for one another might not blossom when their quests to infiltrate a brothel nest of Russian spies might halt any future they had. *** This absolutely exhilarating sensual romantic thriller is not unlike any of the numerous titles the brilliant and author Liz Carlyle has penned that will grip you from the very first page to the last. Ms. Carlyle has the ability to create some of the most complex and fascinating characters ever and continues to do this over and over again with Lady Phaedra exemplifying that trait. Both Phaedra and Tristan had innermost secrets that they tried to hide from the world as each showed a public face while suffering secret pain. What was most fun about this read were some of the lighter moments the two leads were able to extract from each other during their semi-public interludes, and of course the re-emergence and inclusion of some of Ms. Carlyles’ most memorable characters from previous books, especially Kemball (who is a complete hoot – as well as being a most resourceful character to have on your side). The other thing that puts TEMPTED ALL NIGHT and most all of Carlyle’s books at the top of my reading list is the pure elegance of her prose and their being extremely well-written and researched. Bottom line: Reading Carlyle is tantamount to sipping the finest wine or indulging in your favorite dessert – deliciously satisfying and wickedly sensual!
Reviewed by Marilyn Rondeau for CK2S Kwips and Kritiques
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TEMPTED ALL NIGHT
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