A Breath of Scandal

Julian Thornton, The Earl of Mansfield has been in service to the Crown. But all that he has done has been state alone. He is trying to capture the Jackel, the man that murder his wife-to-be. After being nearly discover is taken in the group Gypsy. After finding himself to the beautiful Lara, Julian live convinced that he see here again. But Lara is hiding something too, she is the daughter of an Earl. Now Julian feel bound to marry her, but the Jackel is not far behind and all those Julian holds dear are in danger. "A Breath of Scandal" is the follow-up book to "A Touch of Sin" that are from both from Connie Mason. Again this book had good plotline with sexy parts that made the reader want more. And the good thing is you don't need to have read the first book to enjoy this one!

This story is the sequel to Sin's story. You do see him as well as Emma in different parts of this story.Julian is still spying for the crown and is actually the notorious "Scorpion" that is searching of for the Jackal. When he is discovered during a one smuggling excursion and is captured. He manages to escape by jumping overboard and being shot. While out walking the next day Lara (part gypsy, part Ton member) finds him on the beach and is immediately drawn to him. She gets help and takes him back to the camp where her grandmother helps to save him. At the same time the Jackal's men are looking for him. Lara claims that not only is he sick but he is her husband. Due to a bizarre set of events this actually makes them married in the eyes of the Gypsies... Interesting for a man who has sworn off marriage. In true jerk form he doesn't believe that she is wife, that she is a virgin or that she is anything other than a Gypsy and therefore below him as an Earl. He leaves in the early morning. Much to his surprise they meet again at a ball thrown in her favor by her father (of course Julian jumps to the wrong conclusion about why she is there). Then both her life and Emma's are in danger causing Julian to take some strong arm tactics and flee to Scotland (with Lara). Though Julian is a huge jerk throughout most of this story I really liked it and was glad to read about Julian and Emma as well as Lara :)

This book is a sequel to A TASTE OF SIN, which is one of my favorite HRN. I've always wondered about Julian, elder brother of Sinjun in the prequel. He was described as a very honorable & responsible person albeit mysterious. He live by the rules and is over protective of his family. He also have a dark personal mission. To find the person responsible for the death of his fiancee. His character here in A Breathe of Scandal is consistent but is of course more detailed. We learn more about him and he is definitely not the prude man I thought he was in ATOS. In fact, he is a very passionate man. On one of his secret mission he was rescued my a gypsy woman named Lara. She claimed him as his husband to save his life. Yes, Lara did save him from death but she also added complication to his well contained heart & well organized life. What a riot! I love Lara's character. She is no nonsense and straight forward. She knows who she is and what she wants regardless of her new station in life. Sometimes she feels she doesn't fit in outside the Gypsy world yet she adapts well and never loses her personality. The Gypsies and their way of life was an interesting read for me. This is my first book with such kind of plot & the way Ms. Mason explains and describes it makes me feel like I am inside the book. It grabs my imagination. A Gypsy woman versus a Noble sure have a big difference in their ways of living and belief. Interesting! The relationship development of Julian & Lara is heart warming. They are both full of desire despite the contradiction of their mind. There's lots of sex scenes but I didn't mind it. For me, it's written with passion. You can feel their affection and not just lust. Of course, there's always the usual confusions and misunderstanding twist but there is also some element of surprises between them. The action and mystery line was a bit light and predictable, however since I am not much on action/mystery, this didn't bother me at all. Just thought I'd mention it here for others who prefer heavy action/mystery added on their romance books. The appearance of the characters in A TASTE OF SIN was one of the best part for me. I love reading updates of the characters from my previous books especially if they are my favorites. The Epilogue of this book was simply perfect. It's happy, filled with love, family & children. Goose bumps alert :-) The reason why this book didn't belong to a five star rate to me is because of the added romance of Emma and Rudy. I loved Emma's spunky character in A TASTE OF SIN and couldn't wait to read her very own story. I didn't expect her to simply be an extra piece here in A BREATHE OF SCANDAL. I didn't mind her marriage with Rudy, I think it's fitting but I would have love to read how she tamed Rudy. I just want more of her. Oh well, that's only a small niggle which unfortunately took one star out of my overall rating.

Juxtaposed with A Taste of Sin, Ms Mason's first offering from her Scottish Highlands installment, A Breath of scandal fares much better. In fact, this time she puts her spicy narration to her advantage and not just a story overload with lewd scenes to titillate as in the first novel. A Breath of Scandal is sexy but with a heart - the characters molded out by Ms. Mason brings the pages alive. Julian Thornton is the brother of Sinjun and his rigid decorum belies a secret agent identity "Scorpion". He is haunted by the phantom of his demised fiancee Diana and swears to take vengeance on The Jackal, the mastermind behind a smuggling ring and who caused the death of Diana.On his secret mission, he fell prey to the hunchmen of the Jackal but is saved by a half Gypsy girl, Lara. From there, the attraction is set - Lara sacrifices her pride to pose as Julian's wife and to hide him from his tenacious enemy, he assumes the identity as Lara's husband, Drago. After nights of passion, Julian and Lara forged a tenuous love only to be shattered by Julian's guilt and the mismatching social status. It is only after he returns to London did he find that Lara is actually the daughter of the Earl of Stanhope.Their reunion is short-lived - with the chase of enemy behind both of them, their love would prove even more difficult....Connie Mason sculpts the characters to finesse in this book. I was a bit disappointed with Sinjun's profligate ways last time, but Julian shows a more nuanced, mellow and resilient shade which I much preferred. The only thing was his xenophobia and parochial view on Gypsy group - even to the shallow point of thinking Lara was a loose woman. Lara - as usual is strong, brave and decisive, as with all the women characters in Ms. Mason's book. Ms. Mason does not disappoint. The passionate scenes are fiery and sensual, and complimented by an exciting plot to the finish, A BREATH OF SCANDAL is lushly scandalous to take the breath away from the fanatics.

In 1750 on the Scottish coast, Lara Brewster saves Julian Thornton's life when smugglers try to kill him by claiming he is her Gypsy husband Drago. Lara's Gypsy relatives feel Lara and Drago are married, but he rejects the idea that a member of the Ton like him would marry a Gypsy even if he is very attracted to her. Still, they make love before he leaves in pursuit of the head smuggler' the Jackal' who killed Julian's fiancee years ago.Back in London, Julian attends a ball in honor of Lara, who turns out to be an earl's daughter. Julian informs Lara they will marry because he compromised her. Although she loves Julian, she rejects him because she wants his love and can't compete with the ghost of his deceased fiancee. The Jackal's henchman recognizes Lara as the Gypsy who saved Julian's life, making her life forfeit unless Julian can save the woman he loves.A BREATH OF SCANDAL is a powerful sequel to Connie Mason's warm Scottish Regency romance, A TASTE OF SIN. The story line is fast-paced and authentic, especially Julian's reactions to Lara the Gypsy vs. Lara the aristocrat. Lara is an intrepid individual who loves the people in both of her worlds and any spouse of hers would have to do likewise. The return of several popular characters from the first book adds to an exciting Regency romantic suspense that will leave Connie Mason's audience wanting the final book in her Scottish trilogy.Harriet Klausner