Ruby, the proprietress of Madame Rouge's Club for Gentlemen of Taste receives an unexpected visitor: Lady Perse, a matchmaker and society matron. She asks Ruby to help her find a suitable wife for her nephew Stephan Perth, Lord Duldon; the Earl has very particular sexual tastes. Duldon would like Lady Bliss Danser for his mistress, but he sees no way of that happening. Bliss and Duldon have known each since Bliss was a child and Duldon a teenager, and Bliss' father considers Duldon a good marriage prospect if his daughter is not betrothed by the end of the summer. Bliss does not really want to marry, or at least not Duldon, for reasons that are unclear to him and which he intends to uncover, because the Earl is determined to make Bliss his wife.

I was anxiously awaiting BOUND BY BLISS, and Lavinia Kent does not disappoint. In the sumptuous third instalment in the Bound and Determined series, the hero, Duldon, has decided it's time he should marry and stop indulging in his favourite sexual games, but he suffers from a Madonna/whore complex. He hardly dares hope for a wife who would partake in his adventurous sexual games, and yet he wonders if there could be more to Bliss than the sweet and demure girl he sees at soirées.

I loved those two characters so much: Duldon is patient, caring, very gentlemanly and understanding in his pursuit of Bliss. He's into heavy BDSM (Bondage and Discipline; Dominance and Submission; Sadism and Masochism), he's very dominant; Bliss abhors being told what to do, she's very independent, bold and daring. She's a delightful, charming, and endearing character; she doesn't get pushed around while being prim and proper.

Ms. Kent's prose is luminous, as smooth and refined as silk, the story flows seamlessly, the dialogues between Duldon and Bliss are fascinating, intriguing, often amusing and always feel real. I loved how Bliss questioned Duldon about sexual matters with such honest curiosity. The author has a profound understanding of the alternative lifestyle, that BDSM does not equal bullying; she takes into account the era's mores, and she shows respect for her characters. The sex scenes are torrid, sensuous, sensual, and gorgeous. I also love the nice historical touches that Ms. Kent provides, such as Bliss' shoes.

The Bound and Determined series is different, unusual and very classy, and BOUND BY BLISS lives up to the brilliance of the previous instalments: it is definitely a book not to be missed regardless of genres!