Reviewer: Holly Private Places by Robin Schone, Allyson James, Shiloh Walker
Series: The Men and Women's Club #2, The Courtesan Chronicles #3.5, The Hunters
Also in this series: Rafe and Sheila
Publisher: Penguin
Publication Date: August 5th 2008
Genres: Fiction
Pages: 368
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Four all-new hot tales of yore, by the queens of erotic fiction.
USA Today bestselling author Robin Schone shares a tale of a man and a woman in a notorious club, who learn how very dangerous desires of the flesh can be. Claudia Dain heats up this collection with the story of two voyeuristic young courtesans who might just take part in a very public seduction at the theatre. Allyson James has a card-playing, cunning widower and a desperate young widow learn that passion is the ultimate wild card. And finally, Shiloh Walker introduces a short story of a woman saved by a shapeshifter. Now, if only she could think of a way to repay him?
Rarely does such blush-worthy, heated erotica exist?and almost never all in one book.
The Men and Women’s Club
Robin Schone shares a tale of a man and a woman in a notorious club, who learn how very dangerous desires of the flesh can be.
You know how you feel when you walk into a conversation and realize you have no idea what’s going on? That’s how I felt reading Robin Schone’s contribution to this antho. While the sexual tension and situations were done extremely well, I mostly just felt like I was missing a major part of the story.
I think fans who’ve read her other novels would probably enjoy this a lot more than I did.
2 out of 5
A Night at the Theater
Claudia Dain heats up this collection with the story of two voyeuristic young courtesans who might just take part in a very public seduction at the theatre.
This is two stories in one. The first centers around a young courtesan looking for a new protector and the other around an experienced courtesan looking for a husband. Of the two, I enjoyed the story of the young girl and the Duke she sets her sights on most. I think the character development was a bit better (they had better backstories, I guess) and they were the more sympathetic of the two.
The story was alright, but once again I felt like perhaps I was missing something. I felt like there was an inside joke I wasn’t privy to and with all the background characters and subplots going on I was somewhat confused..
Not a bad story, but not the best in the collection, either.
3 out of 5
The Decidedly Devilish Duke
Allyson James has a card-playing, cunning widower and a desperate young widow learn that passion is the ultimate wild card.
Of all the stories, this was my favorite. I really liked both characters and felt they were great together. Their sexual chemistry was very well done and I was completely entertained. The perfect blend of humor, emotion and sexual heat.
I’ll definitely be on the lookout for more novels by James in the future.
4.5 out of 5
Hunters Mercy
And finally, Shiloh Walker introduces a short story of a woman saved by a shapeshifter. Now, if only she could think of a way to repay him…
I’ve heard a lot about The Hunters series and I can see why so many enjoy it. I thought the characters were well written and the story was well fleshed out. I was slightly annoyed by the heroine at times (especially towards the end) but I was able to move past my annoyance and really enjoy the story.
I’ll be looking for the rest of the books in this series.
4.25 out of 5
Overall the anthology was alright – a good blend of different styles and classes from the regency era. Two were outstanding and two were average. I’d give the collection as a whole a:
3.5 out of 5
This book is available from Berkley Sensation. You can buy it here or here in e-format.
The Men and Women’s Club is a full length novel and they only took a small part of it to put it this novella.
Very interesting, I had been wondering about this book. Great review, thanks 🙂
I’ve got this on my TBR but haven’t read it yet.
Holly, Schone DOES have a very distinctive style, so if you haven’t read anything by her before, I can see how getting your first try in a shorter format may not have clicked for you (my fave Schone is The Lady’s Tutor). According to her website, The Men and Women’s Club is a sort of prequel to last year’s Scandalous Lovers.
BTW, a Schone set in the REGENCY era? She’s known for her extensive research and writing of the Victorian era and if she’s changed settings, that might also account for the lack of “completeness” you found (and surprises the hell outta me too).
Bev,
The writing style itself didn’t bother me so much as the lack of depth in the story. The story was prefaced with a statement from Schone basically explaining that this is what happened prior to a certain event. I’m assuming the event in question is one she’s written about in a full length novel.
The problem is, having not read it, I was completely lost. The back story for the characters didn’t make much sense and as a result the relationship felt somewhat cold.
I could tell she put a lot of research into it, though. I’m no history buff, but her information seemed accurate. I guess it just felt like I was reading an excerpt rather than a full on short story.
Oh, and also: It’s entirely possible the Schone wasn’t set in the Regency era. I would check, but I misplaced my copy (braindead much?). It sounded right (meaning that’s how I remember it) but it’s entirely possible I was mistaken.
I
This is all interesting thanks for the info
Penney