Written on Your Skin

At the opening of Meredith Duran's Written On Your Skin, Mina Masters is like a Scarlet O'Hara imposter with a flirting, fiddle-de-de charm that men find alluring. But Phineas Monroe/Granville is the one person who seems wary of her, that is, until he is confronted with a life or death situation and Mina helps rescue him. What begins as a seemingly simple, yet memorable encounter evolves into a thick and convoluted knot between the two characters when they meet again four years later. Beautiful Mina hides her desperation behind a mask of charm while seeking out Phin's help. Phin, who has become a lord in the interim, is sleep-walking through life anesthetized in a haze of opiates while he joins a small cadre of friends for occasional distractions. It is a metaphorical Beauty and the Beast story - Mina as the beauty and Phin as the beast with a black soul that is caged beneath a handsome veneer. Duran draws complex portraits of two characters that are not quite what they seem. They perform their roles like puppets and hide their motivations behind thick, impenetrable walls meant to protect them from their own pasts. An intrigue of spying and betrayal ties them together as Phin reluctantly agrees to help Mina to repay his debt to her for saving his life, and their bonds are knotted even more tightly as the story progresses. For Phin it is a journey back into the darkness where he once traded his soul. But, the surprising aspect comes when we discover what the journey means for Mina. For me, the best part of this book is the self-discovery when the two characters reach the "the tipping point." Finally in the most important risk they take, Mina and Phin take off their masks. And they find they have more depth, courage, perseverance and faith than even they believed as they are forced to confront their demons. I found the ending to be especially satisfying because Duran continued to mine the depths of the hero/heroine until the very last pages, revealing their own vulnerabilities and strengths and allowing them to escape the prisons of their own making. After reading hundreds of romances, I find it disappointing that many are sexcapades with thin and predictable storylines. I yearn for good, well-written stories by an author who can create believable and complex characters and bring some imagination and wisdom to the mix. A young and rising star in the romance genre, I find Duran to be a masterful and refreshing storyteller. (And, no, I'm not a friend of hers and I don't have any association with her.) This book is a rough stone that Duran has faceted into a subtle and breath-taking gem. Bravo!

I was very pleasantly surprised by this book. This is the first book that I have read by this author, and it will not be the last. I found the story to be very well written, not like a lot of books that seem to have been "dumbed down". What really set this book apart for me was that the turmoil and conflict was not superficial or trivial. There is nothing worse than a conflict that could have been solved with just a little communication between the main characters. What also appealed to me was the fact that the hero and heroine did speak honestly with eachother of their feelings. The heroe and heroine were very likeable and easy to form and emotional connection to. The ending was a happily every after without being too sweet or unrealistic. I would highly recomment this book to anyone.

In 1880 Hong Kong British espionage agent Phin Granvillle is working his case out in the cold before coming home to retire from field work. However, his mission turns ugly when he is poisoned. His mission turns divine when wealthy American Mina Masters nurtures him back to health. Four years later in England, Mina is being forced to accept a marriage she does not want. Soon afterward her mother vanishes. Mina believes her mom's abduction is related to her odious ruthless stepdad's gun-running. She pleads with the retired Phin to rescue her mother and uncover the traitor against the throne while secretly hiding from him her hope he asks her to marry him as she still loves him even more than when saved his life. This super late Victorian romantic suspense is fast-paced from the onset and does not miss a beat as the persistent Yank drags the reluctant retired spy back into the cold. Their escapades in the field together make for an amusing investigative romance as she rips his skin with words while he retorts with verbiage and kisses in a terrific gender war. With ties to BOUND BY YOUR TOUCH, Meredith Duran provides her fans with an exciting action-packed romantic thriller in which the combatants are on the same side (hate to see what they would have said to one another if they were adversaries). Harriet Klausner

Meredith Duran is a relatively new entrant in the historical romance genre, but her remarkable talent seems to grow with every book she writes. "Written on Your Skin" is her third historical romance and is loosely connected to her recent release, "Bound by Your Touch", although the books do not need to be read in sequence. "Written on Your Skin" is the story of Phin Granville, a cartographer and former British spy, and Mina Masters, the lovely, seemingly spoiled step-daughter of one of Phin's former espionage targets. While the character types are very familiar to historical romance readers (tortured nobleman spy--check, headstrong society beauty--check), Duran's ability to transcend the stereotypes and bring these characters fully alive is what sets this book above others in the romance genre. The story begins in Hong Kong in 1880, with Phin wrapping up a mission aimed at bringing down Gerald Collins, a wealthy Irish-American businessman, gun-runner and Mina's step-father. Phin views Mina as a reckless, bubble-headed flirt; a "loose end" from his investigation that will not go away or take no for an answer. But when Phin is poisoned during a party at Collin's house, it is Mina who has the presence of mind to save his life and help him to escape, despite the risks to herself and her mother. Four years later, it is Mina who needs Phin's help when her mother is kidnapped by an escaped Collins during a trip to England. But Phin has recently and unexpectedly come into the title of Earl of Ashmore, and his elevation into the aristocracy has allowed him to finally turn his back on the violence of the past decade and upon his hated spy-master, Ridland. When Ridland tells Phin that Mina is requesting his help, Phin initially believes that it is a plot by Ridland to discredit him or bring him back into the game of spying for England. He agrees to help Mina in the search for her mother, but only if she remains at his house under lock and key. Mina is aware that there was a traitor in the British spy network in Hong Kong four years ago, but since she is not sure of the traitor's identity, she is reluctant to trust anyone, including Ridland. She is desperate to rescue her mother from her abusive step-father, and warily joins forces with Phin to do so, although she chafes at (and revolts against) his attempts to lock her in. The characterizations in this book are outstanding. Both Phin and Mina carry the emotional and physical scars of their past and are constantly playing roles to hide their true selves. Phin hides his lethal skills and violent past behind the facade of a dissipated, bored nobleman, and Mina pretends to be a brainless, fragile china doll, when in truth she is calculating and rather ruthless. Phin's father was a alcoholic wastrel, and Phin has deep-seated fears that he will end up just like his father. His feelings of dissociation with his more innocent, "wholesome" past are poignant and even disturbing at times. Mina's mo

Written on Your Skin is a beautiful, all encompassing experience. Meredith makes sure to bring forth every emotion. And those who wish to write their own historical romance, take note. Meredith Duran is becoming a master writer of this genre. Learn from her. The year is 1880, the setting is Hong Kong, Tokyo. Phin Granville is working undercover as a British spy. He needs to take down a Mr. Gerard Collins who will soon be arrested for crimes against the British government. Phin hates this life. He doesn't want to be a spy. It eats away at him where the stress gets to him so much that he has horrible headaches. But Phin doesn't really have a plan or the desire to figure out what he wants in life. He does enjoy making maps, that's for certain, and longs for the sweet release of his torments through smoking Opium. Phin is close to having a breakdown at any moment. But then Collins' step-daughter waltzes into his life and the suffering he experiences will not compare to the run around Mina gives him. Mina is a young, brash American who flaunts herself in front of society and taunts Phin wherever he goes. When Phin first meets Mina he thinks of her as a featherbrain, a very fragile young woman who looks like a porcelain doll. Mina is full of energy and enjoys speaking what's on her mind. Mina wants Phin and even though Phin thinks he can handle Mina, he can't. He treats her with disdain and near loathing, but underneath this façade, he wants her desperately. He hates feeling this way for a woman and can't decide if he wants to wring her neck or screw her into oblivion. It's all about facades between these two. The world sees Phin one way. The same goes for Mina. Her step father beats her poor mother who is like a butterfly, fluttering against a window pane and trying to find a way to escape, but knows she can't because she is stuck in the hell of her own making. Mina won't be like her mother, even though she loves her dearly. Mina wants to break away and will help her mother also but running back to New York City and away from Collins. But there is a problem, and it is Phin. He is poisoned by one of Collins' lackeys. Mina nurses him back to health and helps him get away. And because Mina does help, the horrors her mother has gone through will not compare to what Mina will endure under Collins' hands. Because Mina is a resourceful young woman she and her mother are able to make their way back to New York. Mina has started a very profitable hair tonic business. But Mina is now in London, four years later, searching for her missing mother. I am not sure why and how Mina's mother is in England and again at the hands of Collins, but Mina must find her mother before she is hurt or found dead. Collins is not one you want to cross and he will take out his anger on Mina's mama before Mina can save her. Mina is only one small woman after all. She may be resourceful but needs someone who is more skillful at the deceit and spy game. And that is Phin. Phin neve