Sinful Surrender

I prayed for this book to be done; James was a jerk and Missy was helpless and they plodded along for 344 pages dealing with the same dilemma instead of developing the characters to the extent where they could work through their differences early on and create a relationship from that point which would have made a much better story. This snoozer going into the recycle bag & good riddence.

Wow, I really enjoyed this one! Where do I start... Firstly, this is a story of "forbidden fruit" which always makes for an interesting plot, creating a lot of tension, passion, and conflict. Ms. Kendall tackled all this with gusto, creating characters and a story line that just flowed beautifully over the pages (err, Kindle clicks). There were a lot of plot twists and turns, but never once did I feel something was tossed in just to create conflict, nor did the story bog down with too much predictability. While not as light-hearted and frivolous as other romance novels in my cache, it was an easy, pleasant read, with well developed characters that you really did grow to care about over the course of the book - Missy matures, growing a woman's heart, while James battles with his lust, honor, and loyalty. Even the secondary characters were well-polished. Suprisingly, I liked the fact that there was no real "bad guy" in this story. And while there was some closure with Lady Victoria's subplot, I was kinda waiting for James to give the reader a tad more in conversation with Missy, but that didn't happen. Its ok, I will live. :) All together, this excellent debut wraps up neatly with an epilogue (yay!) that gives us a few hints of what may be to come in Kendall's next book, and possibly the one after that. I'm hoping for an update on James and Missy in addition to Thomas's story in A Taste of a Desire coming out in January 2011.

This is a great Regency Historical Romance. This is this author's debut book and I must say you will not be disappointed. It is well wirtten with detail and depth. It has many twist and turns, but in the end the main two characters finally get it right. This story has sunsuality, romance, true friendship, deep family committment, charm and wit. The secondary characters are charming and help carry the storyline along. If you enjoy Regency and debut authors you will enjoy this one. This is an author to watch for.

I don't usually read historicals and I don't do reviews. I had to post one for Sinful Surrender. I won't bore you with a recap of Sinful Surrender, I'll just tell you it's one of the best debuts I've read in years. I'm not going to spoil the book, but it's goes beyond the regular the heroine is in love with her brother's best friend storyline. There are many twists I definitely did not see coming. I loved James but was very frustrated with him part of the book. I understood that he had reasons for staying away from Missy--namely her brother forbidding him to have anything to do with her romantically. There is a second reason they can't get together even when he would like to but telling you that would be a spoiler. Missy is not that young (21 yrs) in Chapter One, and she's either been infatuated or in love with James since she was around 10 yrs. She acts like a typical 21 yr old does. I was so happy when she stopped chasing him. I wanted him to have to chase her and I wasn't disappointed. In fact, he could have chased her a bit longer and I wouldn't have minded at all. The secondary storyline really melds seamlessly into the main story line, and it makes sense. There are no villains in this book even though there is a character you might initially be tempted to despise. I actually even sympathized with this character in the end. The sexual tension is extremely high throughout and there is no saggy middle. It's actually a very hot book. The only bad thing about this book is that I have to wait a year for the brother's story.

Millicent Armstrong has gone about her seduction of James Rutherford all wrong. Three years ago, fresh on the marriage market, she literally threw herself on top of him, showing him quite well what she intended. James, a good friend of Missy's brother, Thomas Armstrong, definitely noticed Missy's newly formed figure, but as any good gentlemen, pushed her away (and made sure his coat hid the front of his pants) before things could go further. Now, three years later, Missy is getting ready to enter her fourth season, and she has been learning the ways of subtle seduction, in hopes of garnering James' attention once again. James has been noticeably absent these past years, and Missy is ready to put her plans in motion. However, as they meet at her parent's estate, James is still putting Missy off even though a strong attraction for Missy exists. James has many reasons - Missy's brother would never find the rake, James, a suitable husband for her. Moreover, James does not know men who practice fidelity, and looking at his parent's marriage and the love lost between them, he has no visions of a happy marriage for himself in the future, no matter his bride. But his plan of staying far away from Missy goes crumbling down when Armstrong comes in with a new idea. He needs his sister married by the season end, and knows Missy has romanticized and idealized James in her head, due to him not being around. Armstrong's new plan is to have Missy observe James in society. Missy has never witnessed James as the rake, only the charming polite gentlemen. Let her get a good taste of his true personality, and she will accept another man's hand in marriage. Society seems to want to pair James, with the icy, cold Lady Victoria Spencer and Missy with the very wealthy Lord Granville. Victoria has her own plans for James, which soon wreak havoc in James' life. He is also fighting the intense attraction from Missy, and can't help but feel lust as he tries to keep his feelings under control. Missy refuses to accept another man as her suitor, and her one track mind is making her desperate to land James as a husband. Sinful Surrender is a strong debut novel by Beverly Kendall full of a very brooding hero and a young, over-eager heroine. For the promise Missy makes to herself at the beginning of the book to be a sly seductress, that doesn't last long. This pair has the most lust and romantic intensity I have read about in a while. Every glance, every touch, is so emotionally draining for them. They throw themselves at each other many times, only for James to push Missy away, knowing much is at stake should their relations get out of control. At the beginning I didn't necessarily buy the argument that Armstrong didn't find James a suitable suitor for his sister. James and Armstrong are such good friends - why would he not? However, as the story progresses, you learn more of James' past and his ways with women - Armstrong is convinced James would never be satisfied with his

This book was great! James and Missy's brother are best friends, and she has been in love with him since she was 10. Missy's brother knows that James is the worst kind of rake and would not make a good husband for Missy so he forbids James to encourage her romantically. James tries to discourage Missy by acting like the worst jerk. Can Missy's love withstand James's antics? This debut by Beverly Kendall was excellent and I will be adding her to my must buy author list. I love an Alpha male that treats the heroine badly and has to redeem himself to win her love. If you're a fan of this theme like I am then this book is for you.