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44th out of 261 books
—
326 voters
Potent Pleasures (Pleasures #1)
by
Eloisa James (Goodreads Author)
Nothing is more seductive than temptation.
Reckless desire sends Charlotte Daicheston into the garden with a dashing masked stranger. He's powerful, unforgettable, a devastatingly handsome footman who lures her--not against her will--into a grand indiscretion at a masquerade ball. Then he vanishes.
Several years later, after Charlotte has made her dazzling debut in London so...more
Reckless desire sends Charlotte Daicheston into the garden with a dashing masked stranger. He's powerful, unforgettable, a devastatingly handsome footman who lures her--not against her will--into a grand indiscretion at a masquerade ball. Then he vanishes.
Several years later, after Charlotte has made her dazzling debut in London so...more
Paperback, 480 pages
Published
May 9th 2000
by Island Books
(first published 1999)
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mau kasih 5* tapi cowoknya bego sangat jadi 4* ajalah
Eloisa James does a wonderful job on Potent Pleasures. Can you imagine being so “touched” from a “one night stand”(using today’s terms) that no future matches could really compare? Then imagine “falling” into them three years later and being just as enchanted. James writes about this very thing in the first book of her Pleasures trilogy (Potent Pleasures, Midnight Pleasures, Enchanting Pleasures) yet only one remembers the other even though both remember the moment. The Earl is a devestatingly h...more
I really enjoyed this book! I started reading this novel with high hopes since there's a review by booklist that says this novel brings to mind the best of Judith McNaught (who is my fave author). And yes, it did remind me of JM's works. :) Alex and Patrick Foakes reminded me of Clayton and Stephen Westmoreland. Also, I felt like I was the one hurting when Alex misjudged Charlotte, which usually just happens when I read a JM novel. I'm so happy this book didn't disappoint me and I'm looking forw...more
Oh, I am so torn. On one hand, I like Ms. James' writing style, the secondary characters are wonderful (I wanted more of Will and Chloe - I wished the book was about them instead of having their romance be secondary) and the heroine is beyond adorable - I'd love to have her in the family.
On the other hand, the hero is an utter fucking temper-driven idiot with trust issues, living with whom would be uncomfortable to the extreme. The main emotion he evoked in me for half the book was sheer rage, e...more
On the other hand, the hero is an utter fucking temper-driven idiot with trust issues, living with whom would be uncomfortable to the extreme. The main emotion he evoked in me for half the book was sheer rage, e...more
Bueno. La trama es linda. Y lo novedoso es que no sólo cuenta lo que estan pensando los personajes principales sino también mucho de lo que piensan los demás. Incluso si el mayordomo entra a la sala y lo tratan mal, se puede saber lo que opina ese mayordomo al respecto, por ejemplo.
Es un poco hot pero no mucho.
lo que me faltó fue que hubiera emociones más detalladas. Por ejemplo, cuando él la desvaloriza verbalmente a ella, ella llora y piensa en lo injusto de los agravios, pero no piensa nada...more
Es un poco hot pero no mucho.
lo que me faltó fue que hubiera emociones más detalladas. Por ejemplo, cuando él la desvaloriza verbalmente a ella, ella llora y piensa en lo injusto de los agravios, pero no piensa nada...more
I really needed this book. I'd been reading too much depressing stuff, or not making time to read for fun, so I went for brain candy. The thing about James though, her books follow the HEA formula, but you don't get there the way you expect and her characters have a solid third dimension.
In this book, Charlotte is the daughter of a duke and is obsessed with painting. Not the simple watercolors that we read about Emma playing with in Austen, but Charlotte works at it, is passionate about it. She...more
In this book, Charlotte is the daughter of a duke and is obsessed with painting. Not the simple watercolors that we read about Emma playing with in Austen, but Charlotte works at it, is passionate about it. She...more
Être aussi obtus, c’est un vrai handicap dans la vie. Le brave héros (comprenez : il est bien gentil…) a culbuté une inconnue dans les buissons lors d’un bal pas très bien fréquenté. Trois ans plus tard, il cherche à se marier et se met en tête de conquérir Charlotte Calverstill. Cette héroïne est trop parfaite (pas bon ça, comment voulez vous que j’ai de l’empathie pour une plus que parfaite !). Charlotte est une beauté foudroyante et intelligente qui s’est retrouvé compromise par un inconnu lo...more
2.5 - 3 stars. (Sorry Gabriela, don't kill me!)
One of my friends lent me her copy of this book as she knows I enjoy reading romance novels and this was the first romance novel she ever read and it holds a soft place in her heart so she lent it to me to try.
Likes.
+ I liked the characters -especially Charlotte and her mother who *gasp* actually cared about her daughter and her happiness
+ The 1 year-old daughter (Pippa?) was adorable.
+ Paintings! I loved that Charlotte painted people including her...more
One of my friends lent me her copy of this book as she knows I enjoy reading romance novels and this was the first romance novel she ever read and it holds a soft place in her heart so she lent it to me to try.
Likes.
+ I liked the characters -especially Charlotte and her mother who *gasp* actually cared about her daughter and her happiness
+ The 1 year-old daughter (Pippa?) was adorable.
+ Paintings! I loved that Charlotte painted people including her...more
1 like · like · see review
Wow, How many times can you be called a ho and accept it? There were several things that bothered me about this historical romance and that was the corker of them all. I also disliked:
A LOT of time spent detailing the friendship of Charlette and Josie(?) I forgot the BF's name already because after the initial mundane preferences of both characters, ex one liked dancing the other didn't, one sat straight , the other lounged she is dropped like a hot rock.
Whyyyyyyyyy? I want best friends to be a...more
A LOT of time spent detailing the friendship of Charlette and Josie(?) I forgot the BF's name already because after the initial mundane preferences of both characters, ex one liked dancing the other didn't, one sat straight , the other lounged she is dropped like a hot rock.
Whyyyyyyyyy? I want best friends to be a...more
My first attempt to read a book by Eloisa James and what bad luck I had to choose this story. I liked the beginning of this... a mistaken identity, unforgettable first for them. Liked it up to that point at the ball of her first come-out. Then everything went downhill for me.
I had thought he would be pining for Charlotte until they met again. But no, he got married and had a child.
My second dislike is there's a child involved. I always stay away from romances involving widows/ers with kids. Aar...more
I had thought he would be pining for Charlotte until they met again. But no, he got married and had a child.
My second dislike is there's a child involved. I always stay away from romances involving widows/ers with kids. Aar...more
3 likes · like · see review
The Bad: If the hero hadn't been such an ass, maybe this book would have been better, but he was such an ass that he almost killed her, literally. Not to mention all the highly improbable ways in which the mother of the girl and the girl herself react to this situation: a duke's daughter loses her virginity at sixteen in a garden at a scandalous party to a man of slightly lesser rank than her father. I'm fairly sure that the Duchess would have told the Duke and they both would have shoved the ma...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Jun 15, 2011
Katherine St. Vincent
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
historical-romance,
eloisa-james
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
2 likes · like · see review
I want you to see something. Julie Garwood is the mother of misunderstandings. When I read this book, all I kept thinking was, "Whoa, that is just too much misunderstanding!"
I can't believe that (view spoiler) Like, seriously? I thought that Alex was way too insensitive and broken to do that to Charlotte. Anyway, if you want to read the book, I can say for sure that you'll get frustrated at how the...more
I can't believe that (view spoiler) Like, seriously? I thought that Alex was way too insensitive and broken to do that to Charlotte. Anyway, if you want to read the book, I can say for sure that you'll get frustrated at how the...more
I love Eloisa James so I figured I'd give this series of hers a try. I enjoyed it. The lay out and pace of the story is very good and the distrust the Earl harbors is something that anyone would have after the issues with his first wife. Charlotte was a naive girl and after one moment of passion she decided she couldn't marry and turns to her art. She becomes an amazing artist but realizes she wants a family. She reinvents herself and emerges into the ton as the most sought after woman. Alex, af...more
This was my first romance novel.
And, to be honest, I probably never would have looked twice at this book, if it weren't for my agent. She and I were talking about something in my manuscript, and she said I should read Eloisa James to see what I could learn from her.
It was like my nightmare, being assigned a romance novel and then told to read an author who only writes REGENCY ROMANCE. *headdesk* The worst, possible scenario. I walked by her books a few times in the book store, wincing away fro...more
And, to be honest, I probably never would have looked twice at this book, if it weren't for my agent. She and I were talking about something in my manuscript, and she said I should read Eloisa James to see what I could learn from her.
It was like my nightmare, being assigned a romance novel and then told to read an author who only writes REGENCY ROMANCE. *headdesk* The worst, possible scenario. I walked by her books a few times in the book store, wincing away fro...more
1 like · like · see review
This book made me so damn angry, specifically the asshat hero. Oh yes. And the heroine, who starts out as someone who could be called interesting and on her road to independency, but then is turned into this human-shaped doormat. She calls the hero a "madman", yet tells him that she loves him and will keep forgiving him. I just can't. I felt so angry throughout the book. I kept hoping for some kind of a payoff, but it just didn't happen. Just lots of anger. And once I finished it, I felt tired a...more
My ladies, why in the fucking world are we trying to convince that a man who does not trust a woman and calls her a "whore" is , actually a loving man? Eloisa James, please stop writing! You are giving women BAD examples of men! Alex is a bullying, foolish, rude, while I was reading I seriously thought the guy would hit Charlotte. Also Charlotte at the beginning was a wonderful woman: independent, modern, ahead of her time and then... she becomes stupid and weak. Eloisa James' books are getting...more
Dec 28, 2011
Lori McD
rated it
2 of 5 stars
Shelves:
british-lit,
chick-lit,
easy-read,
historical-fiction,
regency,
romance,
steamy,
2011_read,
favorite-author
OK, from the date and comments I've read about this book, I'm going to assume this was one of Eloisa James' first attempts at a romance novel. So I can almost forgive her... but not quite.
If you're new to romance novels, please take my advice and DON'T BOTHER WITH THIS SERIES. It will put you off Regency romances forever, unless you like stories where men can act like complete and total jerks, expecting wives to be madonnas while secretly wanting them to be whores in the bedroom, but not able to...more
If you're new to romance novels, please take my advice and DON'T BOTHER WITH THIS SERIES. It will put you off Regency romances forever, unless you like stories where men can act like complete and total jerks, expecting wives to be madonnas while secretly wanting them to be whores in the bedroom, but not able to...more
Sep 02, 2010
Brenda
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
eloisa-james,
romance
Lady Charlotte Caverstill adalah seorang gadis berumur 17 tahun kurang satu minggu saat hidupnya berubah, terbelah dua seperti bola hiasan natal mengilap yang jatuh: menjadi masa sebelum dan sesudah. Charlotte tinggal bersama Julia Brentorton, teman terdekatnya di sekolah asrama Lady Chatterton School For Young Gentlewoman. Setelah sekolah berakhir, ia dijemput oleh ibunya Sang Duchess Caverstill, untuk diperkenalkan ke masyarakat. Sang Duchess sudah mulai merencanakan pesta debut Charlotte deng...more
Actually, ceritanya menarik, menarik banget malah. Tapi asalkan saja eksekusi ceritanya ngga kaya yang ada di buku ini, pasti jauh lebih menarik lagi.
Kenyataan yang terungkap baru di akhir cerita kurasa kurang tepat. Dan ada beberapa bagian dalam buku ini yang tak dibaca-pun tidak menjadi masalah sama sekali. Bukannya kenapa, tapi tak membaca beberapa bab pun tidak akan membuat jalinan ceritanya hilang. Ini hampir persis dengan sinetron. :p
Ada masa-masa didalam ceritanya dimana buku ini membuat...more
Kenyataan yang terungkap baru di akhir cerita kurasa kurang tepat. Dan ada beberapa bagian dalam buku ini yang tak dibaca-pun tidak menjadi masalah sama sekali. Bukannya kenapa, tapi tak membaca beberapa bab pun tidak akan membuat jalinan ceritanya hilang. Ini hampir persis dengan sinetron. :p
Ada masa-masa didalam ceritanya dimana buku ini membuat...more
This is a very good first novel and I would gladly pick up another book by James because I enjoyed the writing. That being said this is a story set in late 1700′s through the early 1800′s and Charlotte and her mother were very modern in their behavior at times and this did take me out of the story. Also, things left unsaid is a hallmark of many romance, historical or otherwise, but this one was just too much. One or two sentences could have cleared up any misunderstanding and it did make the boo...more
Jul 26, 2011
annisa belikov casillas
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Shelves:
eloise-james,
historical-romance
bagus banget nih..suka dech,,tapi cowoknya goblok banget sih..pengen gw ketokin aja nih palanya...kasian charlottenya...sedih pas dia mo lahiran...huhuhuhu...untung aja ada temennya yang nemenin si sophie...
recomended dech nih buku..^^
recomended dech nih buku..^^
This isn't my typical read BUT I read it because it was a good example of 3rd person multi-POV that transitions mid-chapter. Also known as "Head Hopping."
She definitely moves around from POV's from the butler, to the nanny, to different love interests, family members, ...you get the idea.
I didn't mind it AND it was nice because I would skip narrators I wasn't interested in.
I did like the story line and would have considered giving more stars but for one reason: the hero in the story calls his la...more
She definitely moves around from POV's from the butler, to the nanny, to different love interests, family members, ...you get the idea.
I didn't mind it AND it was nice because I would skip narrators I wasn't interested in.
I did like the story line and would have considered giving more stars but for one reason: the hero in the story calls his la...more
The hero was such an idiot!!! Ugh like the story was a good one but the hero I repeat is an idiot! I am not going to write proper review for this because some parts annoyed the hell out of me. The fact that the story had a good plot and amazingly written characters is probably the reason why I finished it and rated a solid three stars.
The heroine to me was your typical wishy washy type. One moment a strong and stubborn resolve. The next no back bone. Cause if some man would of said the things t...more
The heroine to me was your typical wishy washy type. One moment a strong and stubborn resolve. The next no back bone. Cause if some man would of said the things t...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
2 STARS
One night at a masked ball Charlotte has an amazing sexual encounter - her first - with a stranger and then vanishes into the night. Although Charlotte has had a dazzling debut she seems more content painting and going to parties than finding the man to marry...until she sees the man who took her virginity and he's not alone he has a young daughter. He does not recognize her but knows he must have her. Then a scandal breaks that Alexander may not be able to perform sexually and that is th...more
One night at a masked ball Charlotte has an amazing sexual encounter - her first - with a stranger and then vanishes into the night. Although Charlotte has had a dazzling debut she seems more content painting and going to parties than finding the man to marry...until she sees the man who took her virginity and he's not alone he has a young daughter. He does not recognize her but knows he must have her. Then a scandal breaks that Alexander may not be able to perform sexually and that is th...more
Mar 07, 2011
Natalie
rated it
1 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
for-fun,
did-not-finish
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Sometimes when I'm looking for something new to read, I peruse Felicia Day's Goodreads lists. So, when she was raving somewhere a while back about what trashy fun Eloisa James was, I figured I'd see if my library had any. They had this one, so I put it on hold. I don't often read straight romance. I like romance in my books, but I prefer it not to be the main focus most of the time. So, keep that in mind when I tell you how awful this book was. The characters were so incredibly stupid it can bar...more
what the hell is wrong with alex. he IS mad you know cause charlotte is my first female favorite character EVER!! and he treated her like crap.
i felt indignant from page two the feminist in me was raging by the time i got to scotland and she withered and died from horror when he came back from italy "fool me once and all that crap
sorry i feel like am about to burst into tears the ^$#^&&$$& so doesn't deserve her i hated that she didn't make him work to forgive him bleh!
i nearly barf...more
i felt indignant from page two the feminist in me was raging by the time i got to scotland and she withered and died from horror when he came back from italy "fool me once and all that crap
sorry i feel like am about to burst into tears the ^$#^&&$$& so doesn't deserve her i hated that she didn't make him work to forgive him bleh!
i nearly barf...more
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New York Times bestselling author Eloisa James writes historical romances for HarperCollins Publishers. Her novels have been published to great acclaim. A reviewer from USA Today wrote of Eloisa's very first book that she "found herself devouring the book like a dieter with a Hershey bar"; later People Magazine raved that "romance writing does not get much better than this." Her novels have repeat...more
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Sep 21, 2010 03:18am
Jun 16, 2011 06:39am