Reckless

I very rarely give single star ratings, but I quickly went from unimpressed to a continual, active dislike. lol. I've enjoyed some previous books from this author decently, but this was honestly kind of miserable to get through. I was just already far enough in by the time I gave up hope of things turning around that I stubbornly stuck it out anyway.
The heroine lies to everyone, including herself, absolutely constantly! And the hero is a manipulative ass and hardly shows a desirable trait throughout the entire book. And they're both kind of dim-witted. It was a lot. Additionally, the heroine was incredibly naive, which I don't always hold against a character, but she was also overly self assured and reckless, and, combined with the show more hero's "worldly" rakishness, it created a sketchy predator/prey dynamic. She's attracted to his looks, and he's intrigued by her denied interest, and even by the end they hardly know any more of each other than that! 90% of the book is just the two of them in a battle of wills, broken up with some seduction, (some of which is 'forced seduction' by the way. There are definite consent issues, fair warning). The plot is a sizeable stretch, there's a lack of almost anything romantic (with the two of them never just in accord with each other or admiring something beyond appearance or sexual skill, until the very end of the book), and there's an obvious and cheap villain thrown in. The seduction overall felt a bit icky to me with her constantly spouting how much she loathed him and sometimes making threats or actually struggling, while he felt entitled to her body and ruining her just because it would amuse him to have her and because he could. (I also dislike in general when heroines put up a fight when inside they secretly want things to continue as well. The very notion seems like it's trying to validate rapists or something. 'She said "no. stop." but I knew better than her what she really wanted!' Ew).

And side note, this didn't contribute to my rating, but was still noteable. I'm not usually a stickler for anachronisms, they're usually just referencing a play a decade before it was written or something and pretty harmless, but in this book an invalid teases that he's not considering suicide yet by saying he's not ready to 'stick his fork in the wall'. Which is a reference to purposeful electrocution by sticking metal into an electrical wall outlet, something which wouldn't be possible because electrical homes wouldn't exist for another 100 years. So unless they're time travelers it would be a preposterous thing to say with no understood meaning of any kind. This is not a new author self publishing all on their own, she's been writing historicals for 50 years and must have a team of people reading these before they go to print. I'm surprised none of them thought to question this. show less

While "Reckless" was unable to unseat "Ruthless" as my favorite Anne Stuart, it contained more of the technical brilliance and gothic entertainment I have come to expect from this author. Normally I would object to a series jumping generations and cheating me out of details about my old, familiar favorites, but the characters introduced in "Ruthless" were able to win my attention away from their predecessors. Charlotte and Adrian are compelling protagonists that, once again, take familiar romance novel tropes to a whole new level. There was one teapot hurling scene that will forever be one of my favorites, and finishing "Reckless" has made me anxious to move on to "Breathless."

Originally posted on PPSS' Sexy Reads.

Anne Stuart puts her own refreshing twist on the regency era romance in this hilarious and heartwarming tale of unlikely love. Be warned it isn’t your typical bodice ripper romance, though don’t get me wrong some undergarments do get shredded. It is funny, sexy and absolutely worth the read.

Charlotte Spencer, the poor cousin of the infamous widow Lady Whitmore and self ascribed spinster. At the advanced age of thirty, she has let go of the youthful fantasies of marriage and love. Though she doesn’t wile away her days feeling sorry for herself, but rather embraces the small amount of freedom her status allows. She reads, speaks her mind and flies in the face of convention every chance she gets. show more Nothing better demonstrates this than the opening scene where our prime heroine given a lesson on how to properly swear by her one time prostitute now lady’s maid, Meggie.

“Bastards,” Charlotte said, liking the taste of it on her tongue. 



“Bloody bastard. Bleeding bastard arse.” 



“No, Miss Charlotte. It has to make sense in English. Arses aren’t bastards.” 



“True. Arses and bastards are nouns, bloody and bleeding are adjectives. Do you say fucking as well?”



“Oh, most definitely.” 



“Splendid,” said Miss Charlotte Spenser. “I’ll practice.”


Reading that passage sold me on the book and trust me this is only just the beginning. The dialogue throughout the story is razor sharp and at times laugh out loud funny. Not just in the conversations between the leads. Every character has their own unique brand of weaponry. Even Adrian Rohan, the ridiculously charming scoundrel who employs his talented tongue to verbally spar with the equally feisty Charlotte.

“How delightfully refreshing. I thought you decided to regrow your hymen and be the same prissy, starched up female you were before I put my wicked hands on you.”

Adrian, oh Adrian. He is the twenty eight year old son of the once notorious Viscount of Rohan, the founder of the secret society of sexual hedonist known at the Heavenly Host. The Viscount days of debauchery are long gone, but Adrian seems hell bent on out doing his father. While he does an admirable job of playing a remorseless rogue, underneath he is as Charlotte puts it so eloquently: “...a wounded and angry child...”



Charlotte and Adrian are basically the geeky girl and bad boy in a different time. I LOVE that pairing. You add in the snarky banter and incredible sexual tension, that doesn’t go unresolved for long, and I am a goner. Not to mention their sexy times.


She felt him slide his hands under her voluminous skirts and she didn't try to stop him. When his fingers slid between her legs she didn't clamp them shut in maidenly modesty, she let him push them apart, touching her in her most private place where she knew she was shamefully wet from his words and his promises, wet and she didn't care. His fingers slid easily amid the moisture, touching the place he'd told her about, the place that held such power over her body and she whimpered in response.


The supporting cast adds to the fun and expand the world of the series with their own complicated back stories. The stand outs are Lina, Charlotte's cousin who is hiding a painful past behind the mask of a wanton woman. The mysterious vicar, who stole my heart, and didn’t get nearly as much story time as I wanted him to have. Most of all Monty, the current head of the Heavenly host who all but steals the book out from underneath everyone. He is delightfully devious and never failed to make me smile when he was in a scene, even when he made me cry a little. 

Reckless is the second book in the The House of Rohan series. I have not read any of the other books, but having had so much fun with this one I plan to pick them up too. Despite this being part of a series I didn’t feel like I was missing anything. Though it did feel like I was seeing into a much larger world with depth and life, which only added to my reading experience. show less

The first volume in the House of Rohan trilogy is dark and disturbing. The second is nasty.

Ms Stuart has taken the worst part of [b:Ruthless|7756459|Ruthless (The House of Rohan, #1)|Anne Stuart|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1274961210s/7756459.jpg|10613440] — the seduction of a distraught and penniless woman by a completely amoral and profligate rake — and built an entire novel around the same theme. A few murder attempts and the appearance and dispatch of a villain are thrown in for light relief, but otherwise the reader has to witness, in jerky slow motion, the seduction and rape of an intelligent but unwise virgin by, yet again, an amoral and profligate rake.

Any self-respecting editor should have rapped Ms Stuart's knuckles show more and ordered her to rewrite the first two chapters. They don't make sense to anyone who's read the first volume. In that first volume we left Francis Rohan racing back to France to avoid arrest and execution for treason. At the beginning of the second volume the same Francis Rohan is very comfortably ensconced in an English country home, has acquired a few more titles, and has passed his least attractive traits to his son Adrian. This is just one of numerous breaks in narrative continuity that mangle the opening of the story.

The 'romance' in this novel is based on the morally unacceptable premise that when a woman says 'no' to seduction, she really means 'yes', and no matter how much she may resist unwelcome advances, sooner or later she's going to start enjoying the pleasures of sex, and once she does, everything will be all right, even if pregnancy results.

The two main characters are so thick-headed and shallow that the reader is left to direct her or his sympathy to some of the secondary characters.

Not a pleasant book to read. show less

Despite many flaws, I'm giving this book four and a half stars. Let me tell you why. While reading this book, I wrote down my thoughts on a notepad for my review. I've got a good solid page only halfway through and it's not at all complimenting. But afterwards? Just one sentence. How could a story with such a tired plot and a clumsy start turn out to be so mesmerizing? I know the answer well, at least for me, it's Anne Stuart. There's a way about her writing I consider her signature that's very unique. The dark, formidable, erotic tension between the leads. The ability to maintain such tension throughout the book. In this book she takes it to another level. Reckless is not just sizzling, but scorchingly hot. Although, I was not crazy show more about the heroine at first, I warmed up to her as the story went on. Let me just say it's quite refreshing to see some defiances from the girl especially after the deeds.
The secondary romance is also skillfully done. Rarely did I find myself equally invested in both pairs, but I did in this book.
What prevented me from giving a perfect score card was a lot of times that the author telegraphed her plot. You can certainly expect something to happen a few pages ahead when those things are brought up as warnings. Portal of Venus, check. The arm band, check. The maze, check check.
Two final thoughts. The scene in the carriage, WOW. And what activities people could do in such a place called the chapel of perpetual erection. show less

Lots of fun. I agree with the other reviewer on this page: the plot is nothing revolutionary. In fact, the whole thing is a re-tread of Georgette Heyer's DEVIL'S CUB. And yet...I *really* enjoyed reading this. The hero and heroine were delightful (and consistently characterized); the plot clipped along at a perfect pace; the secondary romance was one of the best I've seen in years. The whole book was a great and entertaining read.

I'd definitely recommend this to fans of Anne Stuart and historical romance. I don't have any complaints about this book; it was naughty, well-written fun -- a great romance novel. 4.5 stars = A grade.

I read this book before though I never marked it on Goodreads. I'm on a historical romance binge and grabbed a copy of this to read.
Reading parts of this book made me uncomfortable, though in terms of the setting there was nothing inappropriate. It's based on the Hellfire Club which was an 18th-century scene of depravities enjoyed by nobles. The story is the trope of a rake who falls for the bluestocking who only intends to view the goings-on for 'scientific research' purpose, intending to remain a spinster virgin. The villain is suitably villainous, the hero is heroic, and the heroine is spunky. There's a nice secondary romance as a counterpoint. I think the book manages to surpass its tropes and ends up as a good romance.