Nicholas Francis Seaton's father forced him into a
marriage he never wanted with sixteen year-old Julia. Nick
fled to the Continent almost immediately after the
ceremony, swearing he would never have anything to do
with his Duchess again. Eight years later, having
received no communications from her husband, Julia is
almost destitute and decides that if she had a male heir
-- a legitimate male heir -- her position would be secure
as her husband's cousin would have no choice but to give
her money to survive. And Julia takes matters in her own
hands to seduce her husband, the Duke of Colton.
At first glance, the premise for THE COURTESAN DUCHESS
might seem convoluted, but it is not. Ms. Shupe makes a
convincing case for Julia's duplicity, and as we go along
we learn why the Duke acted the way he did. Nicholas is
known as the Depraved Duke, and that he certainly is, and
to entrap him Julia enlists the help of a courtesan to
teach her the tricks of the trade, Julia having never
committed the deed. She changes her appearance, her name
and with the help of a friend, as the alluring widow Mrs.
Juliet Leighton, Julia is ready for battle.
I will admit to not liking Nicholas very much; he is
charming with everyone but loathes even the idea of his
wife, towards whom his bitterness knows no bounds. Even
though Julia is innocent of everything, he is mean and
nasty to her and I never warmed up to him. Julia only
needs help from the man who had vowed to take care of her
but has neglected her for years; she is determined to
succeed but it's all in good faith, she is not
vindictive. It should have come as no surprise to me,
given the title, but THE COURTESAN DUCHESS takes its
sexiness very seriously; I would venture as far as saying
that the first half leans rather heavily towards
historical erotica.
THE COURTESAN DUCHESS also features wonderful secondary
characters: Julia's aunt Theo, Nicholas' valet Fitz, and
most of all Julia's friend Simon Barrett, Earl of
Winchester, who is also a friend of Nicholas, and whose
story I cannot wait to read. Even with my misgivings
regarding the tortured Nick, I highly recommend THE
COURTESAN DUCHESS because Julia is a wonderful female
character, and also because there are very exciting plot
twists.
Can a bold-faced lie lead to everlasting love? One by one, the impetuous
heroines in the Wicked Deceptions series intend to find out, each in her
unique way. . .
How to seduce an estranged husband--and banish debt!--in four wickedly
improper, shockingly pleasurable steps...
1. Learn the most intimate secrets of London's leading courtesan.
2. Pretend to be a courtesan yourself, using the name Juliet Leighton.
3. Travel to Venice and locate said husband.
4. Seduce husband, conceive an heir, and voila, your future is secure!
For Julia, the Duchess of Colton, such a ruse promises to be foolproof. After
all, her husband has not bothered to lay eyes on her in eight years, since their
hasty wedding day when she was only sixteen. But what begins as a
tempestuous flirtation escalates into full-blown passion--and the feeling is
mutual! Could the man the Courtesan Duchess married actually turn out to be
the love of her life?
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