ALEC MACKENZIE'S ART OF SEDUCTION is book nine in Jennifer
Ashley's Mackenzies
historical romance series. I'm a huge Jennifer Ashley fan and have
been waiting for this book for what
seems like forever -- but it is everything I'd hoped it would be. There
is some intelligence gathering in this
story, but I wouldn't necessarily call it a "spy book." Alec Mackenzie
is on a mission to find and rescue his
brother Will. This mission has many risks, since he is in enemy
territory and with a baby daughter in tow.
Lady Celia Fotheringhay is initially unaware of all the intrigue around
her, but Alec soon finds that she is
anything but a vapid young miss. Their unconventional courtship and
love story is a delightful mix of
romance and danger.
Devilishly handsome, and all-around nice guy, Alec Mackenzie
(under the alias Mr. Finn, Irishman) is
installed as art tutor to Celia. The plan is for Alec to pump Celia for
information as to his brother's
whereabouts. Thankfully for Celia, and readers, Alec isn't cold-
blooded enough to ruthlessly use Celia for
his own ends without caring about her. The initial attraction between
this hero and unlikely heroine surprises
them both. Alec has a natural charm and makes a natural hero --
strong, sensitive, and seriously hot. The
deeper Alec and Celia get into the mystery of where Will is, and what
happened to him, the more questions
they have. One of the biggest questions surrounds Celia's family and
their level of involvement, if any, in
Will's plight. One of the things I love about this story is how Celia and
Alec work together in the
reconnaissance and rescue mission. Once Celia is made aware of
certain realities, she demands to be an
active participant, and Alec respects her enough to comply with her
wishes and is never condescending.
ALEC MACKENZIE'S ART OF SEDUCTION is an exhilarating
adventure full of devious plots and forbidden
passion. Each story in this Mackenzies series matches
the personality of the Mackenzie
involved. Even though women in the 1700s had very limited freedom,
Jennifer Ashley once again provides a
diverse and wonderfully complex group of female characters for
readers to enjoy and root for. Jennifer
Ashley does a great job of balancing the romance with the action. I
look eagerly await Will's story next.
Alec Mackenzie earns a living in exile as an art
instructor, a cover for his search through several
countries for his missing brother, Will. Lady Celia, an
Englishwoman who refuses to marry the gentleman her
martinet mother chooses for her, might hold the secret to
Will’s fate. Celia is sent to Alec, the mysterious
recluse, for drawing lessons after her disgrace–her
family commands her to learn a skill to make up for her
disobedience. Alec decides that the courageous Celia
needs to expand her talents in painting the human figure,
especially that of the male …
Celia is intrigued by the man who pretends his name is
Mr. Finn. He’s a Scotsman, she deduces, but he can’t be
one of the Highlanders who rose against the king, else
she’d be allowed nowhere near him, and he’d be under
arrest or already dead.
But as Celia lets her curiosity guide her, she uncovers
more about Alec, including his name, his title, and the
fact that he was indeed one of the Highlanders at
Culloden. She sees the loneliness in Alec, his terrible
sense of loss, his tenderness toward his daughter, and
realizes he’s a complex man trying to survive now that
his home has been destroyed. She also wonders why he’s
left the safety of France to come to England, and learns
that he believes she’s the key to finding his missing
brother.
But Celia unravels too many secrets, which put not only
her life and Alec’s but also her heart in danger.
© 2003-2025 off-the-edge.net
all rights reserved Privacy Policy