Review: A Rogue's Pleasure by Hope Tarr

Title:  A Rogue's Pleasure
Author:  Hope Tarr
Series:  None
Released:  August 16, 2010 (originally released in 2000)
Genre:  Historical Romance
How I Got It:  ARC ebook from Net Galley

Book Summary:
Miss Chelsea Bellamy is desperate

Her beloved brother is being held for ransom! Impoverished after the deaths of her parents, Chelsea doesn't have five shillings, never mind the five hundred pounds the kidnappers are demanding. With no one to turn to, she resorts to highway robbery to raise the sum.

Lord Anthony Grenville is bored

Viscount Montrose's coach is overtaken by a highwayman—who turns out to be no man at all! Anthony hasn't been this intrigued by anything, or anyone, since his return from the war. And when he catches the flame-haired thief breaking into his London house to further fill her coffers, he comes up with a plan to rescue her brother—and resolves to seduce her into his bed!

Their passion is mutual

Chelsea accepts Anthony's aid, but she'll never become his mistress—even if the thought of it fills her veins with liquid fire...

My Thoughts:
This is my first book by Hope Tarr and I love it.  I haven't read a lot of historical romances, but this book is making me rethink that choice.

The romance between Chelsea and Anthony was pure drama and funny as hell.  I was rooting for Chelsea to have a HEA with him even though he didn't really deserve her.

Chelsea was a very likeable character.  She was feisty at times and did what she felt was necessary to survive.  Other times she was very naive and got caught up in situations that she should have seen coming.  I hated the fact that she felt like she had no one she thought she could depend on to take care of her.    And Anthony certainly wanted to take care of her, just not in the way she really needed him to.

Despite his rakish ways, I loved Anthony.  I wanted to hate him so bad, because he was so full of himself.  He treated women like playthings and plotted to get keep everything in his favor.  He even got pissy when his so called "services" were rejected.  I was glad when he did the right thing and redeemed himself.  Although I do not approve of his methods (looking the other way), he did a good job of worming his way into Chelsea's heart.

My Rating:
I give the book five flowers of love because it sucked me in from the beginning.  I enjoyed it and could not put it down.  It's funny, romantic, and involves a crude but sexy manwhore.  This book is a new fav for the bookshelf because I will want to read it over and over.

Read an excerpt