Paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: Zebra; 1 edition (August 4, 2009)
Delilah Mavelle
Once upon a time, Alexander William Baxendale, the Earl of Hawksford, was known to all of London and its besotted women as the Lord of Pleasure. Those days of frolicking, however, come to an abrupt end when he inherits not only the estate, but all of his father's responsibilities, including five, overzealous sisters and a not-so-proper mother. When Alexander meets the beautiful Lady Chartwell, he once again finds himself yearning for days of old.
Left penniless by her philandering husband, Lady Chartwell survives financial ruin by turning to scandal and becoming the Conductor of Admissions to a school that educates men in the art of seduction. Alexander knows that desperate times call for desperate pleasures, but if he's lucky, it may very well lead him to a hell of a lot more.
I heard about Lord of Pleasures through Sabrina at Cheeky Reads, when she posted a letter from Delilah Marvelle to all of her readers requesting the help to save The School of Galantry. Here is a little snippet from said letter:
Then the reviews started coming in about my series set in 1830 London England about a school that educates men on the topic of love and seduction. People loved it! Wow. It got nominated for awards. Wow. Readers are e-mailing me raving. Wow. Readers from France, Austria, Poland, South Africa and from all over the U.S and the world. Wow. It just kept getting better and better. I was beginning to feel as if every penny I spent was all worth it (even though my family and I weren't going on any vacations and were eating out of cans). Because all that mattered was that my publisher loved me and my readers loved my series.
Come contract time, I'm ready for whatever they wanna throw at me. Or so I thought. Mistress of Pleasure, though completely sold out and unavailable anywhere (unless it's a used copy, some going for a ridiculous amount of $40.00), hadn't done as well as my publisher had hoped. So without waiting for the second book to come out to see if the series was even worth saving, I get a rejection from my own editor citing lack of sales.
I thought it was pretty amazing that with the first book receiving such good reviews and selling out, and I did in fact look for Mistress of Pleasure and you can't find a used copy for less than $20.00 on Amazon, that a publisher would not want to continue publishing this series. I did what most of us would do when our interest is piqued and can't find the book in stores or on the internet, I added it to my wish list on Paperbackswap.com. My wish was granted, I have yet to receive the book, but have been informed that it is on it's way. The lovely lady emailed me to tell me it was sent back to her for lack of postage, but I should receive it next week. Side Note: I really appreciate when someone takes the time to inform you of why you haven't received an expected item. I went back to PBS before I started writing this review and found that Mistress of Pleasure is still on some peoples wish list. This has to amount for something, or so one would think!
When Lord of Pleasure was released on August 4, I went to Amazon and ordered it. Like I said I have yet to read Mistress of Pleasure, but that was not going to hinder me. I wanted to read this book after reading the blurb and Ms. Marvelle's letter to her readers. The School of Galantry intrigued me to say the least.
My Thoughts:
Alexander has recently inherited the obligations of marrying off the eldest of five sisters and continuing to help raise the other four. His family is a little unconventional to say the least, and he himself included in the unconventionality. The family has always played by the rules of the Ton in public, but when it comes to their own home, there are no rules. Alexander is struggling trying to lead by example and establish some sort of order to his household. He wants nothing to impede the chances of great marriages for his five sisters.
Charlotte has lost almost everything. Her husband was murdered by one of his many mistresses leaving Charlotte with out a penny to her name. The only left for her is her family home, which she is in grave danger of losing. She has decided drastic measures are needed. Her salvation comes in the form of Madame de Maitenon and her grand idea of opening a school to teach men how to pleasure their women in every sense of the word.
I enjoyed the verbal battling going on between Charlotte and Alexander and the determination that Alexander has to have Charlotte. Charlotte was stoic in her determination not to allow Alexander into her life, that is until Madame sat her down and gave her a nice little talk. Watching the relationship unfold between these two was delightful.
At the beginning of each chapter, you are graced with a new lesson from The School of Galantry. Each one is craftily created to intertwine with the plot and the goings on between Alexander and Charlotte. Let's face it ladies, not all men are born with the God given gift of knowing how to love a woman, showing his love, or following through with that love. Can we get an actual school to send our men to?
Alexander's sisters, and lets not forget about his mother, are priceless and I truly want to see more come of their escapades in driving Alexander to the brink of insanity.
I hope all of you will join the ranks and help save The School of Galantry!!
