I think I'm more disturbed by the fact that I wasn't disturbed by this book. Anne Stuart is known for her special brand of anti-hero - unrepentant, blissfully amoral, borderline psychotic men who are laws unto themselves. I embraced the appeal of this kind of hero in Lord of Danger, was repelled by A Rose at Midnight, and just kind of indifferent to my most recent encounter with Prince of Swords. Maybe it was because I had read about how despicable Alistair McAlphin, the Earl of Glenshiel is, had braced myself for murder, rape, and mayhem, only to be nonplussed when I didn't find any. Not that I wanted there to be murder, rape, and mayhem. But I was expecting to be shocked - a contradiction in terms that is sure to defeat itself and so, unsurprisingly, I wasn't that shocked. Sure Alistair is a bad boy. He suffers from extreme ennui. His cure: defying death, the law, and common decency by taking to the rooftops of London at night and making a name for himself as the Cat, a notorious jewel thief. He also indulges in the usual gambling, drinking, and whoring. But even these vices have started to lose their charm as our story begins. Alistair is dangerous enough as it is. A bored Alistair is distinctly forbidding, because who knows what naughty, evil deeds he'll come up with to distract himself from his jaded existence? He finds distraction enough in the person of Jessamine Maitland, an impoverished noblewoman trying to support her mother and sister by telling fortunes at house parties. As soon as he sets eyes on her, Alistair determines to seduce, toy with, and generally destroy the life and sanity of the unfortunate Jessamine. She really doesn’t stand a chance.

Jessamine isn’t a wilting violet though, thank goodness, and she does put up a good fight. She’s particularly adamant about protecting her chastity because she really can read the tarot cards, and, if she loses her virginity, she’ll lose her gift. Added to which Alistair might as well have a big danger sign on his forehead.

I wasn't so disturbed by Alistair’s pursuit of Jessamine, not like I was with the hero's pursuit of the heroine in A Rose at Midnight. There's just something about Nicholas that really turned me off. *cough* rape *cough* Alistair, on the other hand, I found to be more sympathetic. Not that he's got a bleeding heart hidden under his cold, sardonic exterior, or any soft spots to speak of. Rather it's more the nature of his double life that I found interesting, his pure effrontery and disregard for anyone but himself. He's not particularly romantic (read: not romantic at all), but he certainly is sexy. He’s trouble with a capital T, but the kind of trouble that can be a lot of fun.

Sadly, for Jessamine, there’s not much fun in the kind of trouble that Alistair stirs up for her. It's after he gets what he wants in terms of seducing Jessamine that I guess I started to have reservations about his character - no, not after he shoots at her (just a warning shot though – can you believe that’s supposed to be a consolation?) abducts her, ruins her reputation, and forces her into a life of crime. It was after she gave into him, after she starts having feelings for him, and he discards her (like he's promised to do all along) that I wonder how the happily ever after is going to be wrangled out of this twisted situation. Jessamine keeps coming back to him after that, poor girl, trying to save him from himself and the law, and each time she's asking for her heart to be broken all over again. And it is. How couldn’t it be, when the man finds out he loves her, and so perversely tries to destroy any feeling she has for him, and any he has for her? I’d be happier if the book had been a bit longer, if I could have had a bit more insight into Alistair’s mind beyond his cynicism and dissatisfaction with his life. We are left to assume that he’s dissatisfied and bored because he doesn’t have Jessamine in his life, that she’s the only thing that can spark his interest, and all it will take is her love to bring him back to life. She certainly sparks feelings of a more carnal nature in him, but unfortunately I'm always left assuming with regards to his feelings for her. Romance takes the form of a hasty, perfunctory declaration of love on his part at the end. I have no problem with his repentance or lack thereof, but I think the main problem is it never seems as if Alistair is ever shaken out of his boredom, not by love or anything else. As it stands, I kind of feel sorry for Jessamine when I finish the book. But still, I somehow enjoyed Prince of Swords. I wasn't appalled by it. I wasn't particularly moved by its romance. But the adventures of the Cat are exciting and suspenseful. Alistair is a fascinating, disturbing character who offers danger and thrills in spades. And I love a good bad boy. ( )