A Courtesan's Scandal by Julia LondonMy rating: 4.25/5.0
I received this from Sarah Reidy at Simon and Schuster for a Pocket Books Tour.
My Review:
I really enjoyed this story of Kate Bergeron, a courtesan and Grayson Christopher, the Duke of Darlington.
I haven't read stories centered around Courtesans before so this was a learning experience for me. I have been away from historical romance for awhile, but with books like this one coming out I will definitely be reading more in the future.
This book centers around Grayson and Kate having to act as if they are involved so the Prince of Wales who actually bought Kate as his courtesan, isn't suspected of having an affair. Grayson and Kate don't like each other at first. Grayson is all about propriety and how he looks for his family. Kate is just tired of men thinking they own her. Of course attraction ensues and makes the story very interesting.
I really liked Kate's character. She is a beauty and therefore she was picked and groomed to become a courtesan. She has an interesting past and really has made something of herself. She also has a generous side and wants to help those she left behind in the area she came from. I like that she was learning something new and wanted a different life for herself. I loved her naivite. It was fun and refreshing.
Grayson as a character was very masculine and confident and that made him very sexy. He cares a lot for his family and always tries to do the right thing. Yes he has a mistress who is married, but that was acceptable at the time. I didn't really like that arc of the story, but it was important to the story and important to the character growth of Grayson.
To me this was a very enjoyable book. I haven't read Julia London before so I don't know her writing style. I enjoyed her writing. She tells a great story. It was a little hurried at the end, but the rest of the book was so enjoyable that I can overlook that.
This is the third book in this series, but I don't feel like I missed anything by not reading the other two. I couldn't even tell you who the other two were about. I have a couple of guesses by couples mentioned in the book, but I don't think the stories completely hinge on each other. I do want to go back and read the other two and also more of Julia London's backlist.
About the Book:
Kate Bergeron is the beautiful and mysterious former mistress of a cloth merchant . . . and the latest beauty to capture the interest of the Prince of Wales. Mired in a disastrous divorce, the Prince attempts to distract attention from his next amorous pursuit by ordering Grason Christopher,k the eligible Duke of Darlington to pretend to London society that he is having an affair with Kate. When Grayson reluctantly agrees to his Prince's demand, he finds the lady no more wiling than he is. Kate will grudgingly act the part in public, but her favors are not for sale to any man. As Grayson and Kate mimic ardor for the world to see, they find what started as a deception becoming all too real. And when passion flames into love, their predicament becomes extreme. Fore while marriage between a duke and a courtesan could never happen, Kate knows in her heart that she is willing to accept nothing less ...Challenges:
100+ Book Challenge
Fall Into Reading Challenge 2009
MARY BALOGH is the New York Times bestselling author of the acclaimed Slightly series and Simply quartet of novels set at Miss Martin’s School for Girls, as well as many other beloved novels. She is also the author of First Comes Marriage, Then Comes Seduction, At Last Comes Love, and Seducing An Angel, all featuring the Huxtable family. A former teacher, she grew up in Wales and now lives in Canada. To learn more, visit the author’s website at 
She was unlike any woman he’d ever met in the ton or the demimonde. But Sir Gerald Stapleton frequented Mrs. Blyth’s euphemistically dubbed “finishing school” for pure, uncomplicated pleasure—and nothing else. So why was this confirmed bachelor so thoroughly captivated by one woman in particular? Why did he find himself wondering how such a rare jewel of grace, beauty, and refinement as Priss had ended up a courtesan? And when she needed protection, why did Gerald, who’d sworn he’d never get entangled in affairs of the heart, hasten to set her up as his own pampered mistress to ensure her safety—and have her all to himself?
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