TEST
Pure Temptation sure sounds tempting, doesn’t it? Unfortunately, carelessness by the author and an over-reliance on sex makes this provocative title a less than provocative read Connie Mason’s first mistake begins on page five of this book, where she describes the hero “surrounded by simpering females” at White’s Club. The problem is, that in 1795 London, that very famous club was very exclusively male. Now, I’m not a stickler for detailed historical accuracy, but if an author can make such an obvious error at the beginning of a book, where else was she careless?
Black Jack Graystone is our roguish hero, and a quite handsome rogue is he. But as a penniless Gentleman, Black Jack needs to marry for money. Moira O’Toole is our feisty Irish heroine, in desperate need of protection against an evil earl. The basic premise is fine — the rogue meets the heroine, becomes her protector, and wagers a friend he can turn this Eliza Doolittle into a Lady. But along the way, they fall in love.
One major drama in this story hinges around Moira’s past and whether a simple servant girl can be believed in the face of evidence that she is a prostitute and/or a common thief. The other major drama is in how Society views commoners – by the time our hero proposes to our heroine, he is a wealthy Duke and she is afraid of the scandal their marriage would cause.
Each of these dramas precipitates a sad separation of the hero and heroine because of a lack of mutual trust. Sure, the book offers plenty of typically exciting scenes – there are chases, there is violence, there is rescuing, there is making up . . . so why won’t the reader care?
Mostly because this book is too much for the author to handle. Had she simplified the story-line, she could have better focused on the relationship between the hero and heroine. Instead, she focused only on their sexual relationship for most of the book. As a result, not only was their connection solely physical, but this reviewer felt no real chemistry ever really developed, even amidst all the sexual goings-on.
Jack and Moira were not allowed to know themselves as a couple except in a sexual way for most of the book. To each other, and to us, their connection was physical, and almost ludicrously so. It is a rare romance that has me skipping the love scenes, but time and again, this occurred in Pure Temptation.
Had the author spent less time concocting dangerous schemes for the characters to fall into, she would have had more time to create a real relationship for these two interesting characters. Had she created a real relationship, their lust for one another would have transferred to the reader. As it was, I had to skim through scene after scene to get to a scene that wasn’t contrived but dealt honestly with the characters and the reader.
As a fan of the Pygmalion/Galatea story-line, I was very disappointed. I can envision the same story-line, with all the tortuous twists and turns, written by a more talented author. When I imagine this, there is honesty, real chemistry, and a real relationship, which would have given Jack and Moira a better home for their love. I hope a more talented author will pick up this theme and turn it into a better romance, which it very much deserves.
Grade: D
Book Type: European Historical Romance
Sensuality: Hot
Review Date: 01/07/96
Publication Date: 1996
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Recent Comments …
Yep
This sounds delightful! I’m grabbing it, thanks
excellent book: interesting, funny dialogs, deep understanding of each character, interesting secondary characters, and also sexy.
I don’t think anyone expects you to post UK prices – it’s just a shame that such a great sale…
I’m sorry about that. We don’t have any way to post British prices as an American based site.
I have several of her books on my TBR and after reading this am moving them up the pile.