The Seduction of Sarah

Alex, the handsome Marquess of Caldern, returns from the navy and the war to an estate in ruins, a family plagued with troubles, and an arranged marriage he is not sure he wants. He then sees Sarah, the beautiful cousin and companion of his fiance Caroline, swimming nude in a pond on the estate. It is love at first sight for him. Not so for Sarah, who is drawn to Alex, but tries to fight his seduction - not only because of her cousin, but because a disasterous previous marriage. As Alex begins his seduction, so do the threats to his life. There is an intriguing set of characters woven into this story who are deep in deceit. Where is the danger coming from? - The angry step-mother, who dislikes Alex, but dislikes the illegitimate brothers more, the step-siblings, the cousins, friends, or some outside threat from the estate village? This well-written book captivated me from the very first page with its strong characters. I found that Sarah was not the only one seduced. I was too!

Ms. Clements debut effort is a very good start to her writing career. She has created some very dynamic characters and their story is compelling and of course romantic. Sarah was married once before and vowed after the death of her husband to never marry again. She has accompanied her selfish cousin Katherine to the north in order to see if she will suit the Marquis of Caldern. Sarah thinks this will be an easy task...until she meets the handsome and strong willed lord. There is an instant attraction between them but her past is keeping her from trusting her heart that is until tragedy strikes. Alex Caldern has returned to him home after an extended absence only to find out his stepmother has brought a shrew into his house along with an angel. He can't get her off his mind and with other matters taking his attention the idea of courting Katherine leaves him cold. But, when accidents starts to happen with shocking frequency he is forced to realize that maybe there is more to these incidents then meets the eye. Will Alex be able to convince his lady love to take a chance with him while at the same time finding out who wants him hurt before the mystery person succeeds in killing him? Alex and Sarah are very entertaining characters. The secondary characters are also very important to the story and fine additions to the storyline. I look forward to reading Ms. Clements again in the future. She pens a sensual romance that will satisfy readers.

The widowed Sarah Wellsley is accompanying her cousin, Caroline, as a companion while they await Caroline's prospective bridegroom to come home. Taking a swim in a secluded and private pond, Sarah is discovered by a handsome stranger. Assuming Sarah's morals are low by her public nudity, the stranger attempts to engage Sarah in a liason. Sarah is shocked to learn hours later that the stranger is none other than the Marquess of Caldern...Caroline's potential husband. Having resigned himself to a loveless marriage, Alex, the Marquess of Caldern, is prepared to marry the shrewish Caroline. However Sarah intrigues him. He longs to possess her and she consumes his thoughts. But Sarah is happy in her widowhood; determined to answer to no man. Fighting her attraction to Alex, Sarah tries to escape Alex's attempts at seduction. But Alex is not going to give up his desire for Sarah, even with a mysterious danger surrounding him. As strange 'accidents' increase, it is obvious that someone is trying to kill him. The Seduction of Sarah is the debut novel from author Cynthia Clement. As a voracious reader, I am always on the look-out for new authors. Since I am a huge fan of historical romance, I was especially tickled to see a new opportunity to feed my addiction! The Seduction of Sarah is an enjoyable first novel. Alex and Sarah's relationship was very sensuous. The mystery element of the story had me stumped with an unlikely but believable villain. While parts of the book were slow, I was still satisfied. I will happily look for more from Ms. Clement! Annabelle Reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

You want a book that will keep you reading to a point you can't put it down. This is the book for you. Alex is such a gentleman in this book and he persued until he got what he wanted. Sarah is the typical try to be nice girl and do it right. Lets just say it is well worth the money to buy!!!!!

Sarah Wellesley had been widowed for some time and was adamant she would never marry again. She delighted in her daily naked swim until the moment she was discovered by a cad who refused to honor her privacy. Escaping his embrace she was horrified to discover mere hours later that he was the long overdue Marquess of Caldern....her cousin Caroline's intended. Alex Caldern had long ago learned the fickleness of a woman's heart, and cynically abandoned any hope of marrying for love. His upcoming nuptials would be held strictly for the purpose of obtaining an heir, but the chance meeting of the early morning `water sprite' left a lingering desire of lust. Discovering that the woman who'd ignited his passion was not some local harlot, but the exquisite Lady Caroline's quiet cousin Sarah, Alex began a devilish campaign of seducing Sarah. While Alex was working hard at convincing his intended that they would never suit, several life threatening accidents seemed to continually involve him. Luckily Sarah always seemed near by to come to his aid. Alex who had never thought that love would enter into the equation had now begun to realize that with Sarah, his biggest challenge was not the seduction, but in convincing her that marriage to him would be a whole new adventure in love and passion. *** This was a very pleasant and a lovely sensual read by a new author and is certainly one, which I can recommend. Her portrayal of the protagonists was very well done with Sarah having issues of trust after a cruel marriage experience and Alex assuming all women only married for money and/or prestige. The shrewish cousin Caroline was also a very interesting characterization as to why a man would want to stay single - talk about a witch! Surprisingly, it also gives a bit of twist as to the culprit behind the accidents, that was very interesting. Additionally, I rather enjoyed seeing the inclusion of the loving relationships Alex had with the many illegitimate off spring from his father's numerous affairs which I thought added an extremely original touch. I believe that this debut effort shows this author to have a lovely writing style and an original and rare talent that will only get better as time goes on. --- Marilyn, for www.romancedesigns.com ---