Lust (The Sins and The Virtues, #1) by Charlotte Featherstone

Dec 20, 2010 UniquelyMoi *Dhestiny* BlithelyBookish rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 5-stars, 2010-reads, author-charlotte-featherstone, beltaine, captive-kidnapped, curses, genre-erotica-historical, faeries, fairytaleesque, fantasy, fantasy-fairies-fey, first-in-series, historical-fantasy, historical-romance, historical-erotica, historical-romance-series, mother-aka-bitch, netgalley, series, series-sins-and-virtues, starts-with-i-thru-l, format-ebook-for-netgalley, format-trade-paperback, signed-by-author, reviewed-by-me

“High and mighty they call me. Frigid. But I am neither of those things. I am Chastity—my name and my virtue. It is who I am, my entire being. It, I fear, is my prison.”

Every one hundred years, seven women are born, each the embodiment of one of the seven blessed virtues; chastity, temperance, charity, diligence, patience, kindness and humility. Chastity Lennox is one of four sisters who were born Virtues and she has lived her life believing that she’d never feel what a woman should feel for a...more

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Feb 19, 2011 Dina rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Dina by: UniquelyMoi *Dhestiny* BlithelyBookish

Shelves: erotica-romantica, paranormal-romance, historical-romance, netgalley, fantasy, ebook

I don't judge books for their covers, but I ~~have to~~ want to start this review saying that I think the cover of this book is beau-ti-ful and fits the title perfectly. Having said that, I'm shallow enough to point out that the male model on the cover isn't exactly my type and I replaced him with someone else. Here's "my" Thane:

(view spoiler)

THE CURSE OF THE UNSEELIE COURT

It is said that the fey have always lived amongst mortals, their world lying parallel to ours. They live in tw...more I don't judge books for their covers, but I ~~have to~~ want to start this review saying that I think the cover of this book is beau-ti-ful and fits the title perfectly. Having said that, I'm shallow enough to point out that the male model on the cover isn't exactly my type and I replaced him with someone else. Here's "my" Thane:

(view spoiler)

THE CURSE OF THE UNSEELIE COURT

It is said that the fey have always lived amongst mortals, their world lying parallel to ours. They live in two courts; the good faeries belong to the Seelie Court, where gaiety and light reign. Opposite to the Seelie Fey are the Dark Fey, those who live in the Unseelie Court, or the unholy court as it is known. These dark faeries are mysterious and sensual, well versed in pleasures of the flesh. It is said that to look upon them and their beauty is to be drawn into their erotic, voluptuous world, and once there, your fate is sealed, your body and will no longer your own.

And this is precisely what happened once, long, long ago, to a beautiful queen of the Seelie Court, who had the misfortune to catch the eye of the Dark Fey king.

Immediately, the king was besotted with the queen, driven to possess her at all costs. Queen Aine was all the king could think about, but Aine spurned him, forcing King Duir to steal her away from her golden court as she slept. Like Persephone taken to the underworld, Duir brought Aine to his dark court, plying her with his erotic skills. The Unseelie king was certain he could win Aine, but the queen despised Duir. Long had she plotted against her captor, vowing to leave the king and his court behind, but Duir kept her prisoner, a concubine for his dark pleasures.

The queen’s loathing of the king festered, until she could think of nothing but revenge. Fueled by hatred, Aine searched for a way to break free — all to no avail. Until one day, she was delivered of the king’s twin sons. Enraptured by his progeny, and grateful to the queen for giving him such a gift, Duir became less watchful, allowing the queen new freedoms, and it was then that Aine found a way to leave his court.

One night she stole away, taking with her one of her sons, the golden-haired child who was the image of her Seelie self, leaving behind his dark-haired brother who bore his father’s resemblance. As she fled, Aine placed a spell on the Unseelie Court, that it whither away, never to thrive again until the Dark Fey could make a woman give herself to him of her own free will. As well, she cursed the sons of Duir’s siblings — and any future male children of the king — with each cardinal sin, further destroying her own dark son’s chances of finding a virtuous woman who would give herself willingly.

To this day, the queen’s spell holds strong. The Unseelie Court is dying. There is but one hope for the court — to find the seven women who represent the virtuous aspects of humanity. Seven women who embody chastity, temperance, charity, diligence, patience, kindness and humility. Women whose very being calls to the sins deeply buried in each prince, sins that are eager to corrupt, through erotic pleasure, their virtues.

If the court is to survive, the fey princes will have to find a way to make the virtues follow them willingly, while satisfying the basic needs of their sins. Sins, of which perhaps, each virtue is ready for a taste.

Unlike most mortal men, the Duke of Lennox is more than aware that faeries exist and knows how powerful they are. The birth of his four twin daughters (Mary, Prudence, Chastity and Mercy) was foretold by the faery queen, who infused within him the virtues to be passed on to each one of them. And so, each daughter was born possessing the moralities that would define her - humility, temperance, chastity and kindness. They've been raised to believe that their purpose in life lies in the fey world and know that they were created for some mystical, and maybe sinister, reason.

Thane is the Dark Fey prince cursed with the sin of Lust and his intended virtue is pure and righteous Chastity Lennox. When he meets her, the sin in him wants to pounce and take her, but Thane knows that he has to woo Chastity carefully before he can corrupt her and convince her to follow him to his dark court willingly. But how will Thane be able to keep his sin under control when everything about Chastity tempts him beyond reason?

Wow, this was a very hot read! As a man (or fey?) driven by lust, Thane oozed sex appeal and was as wicked as he could be. I really liked him and wouldn't mind following him to the Unseelie Court willingly, LOL. Chastity was likeable enough, but her self-righteousness bothered me. I know she was supposed to be a paragon of virtue and all that, but she still annoyed me a couple of times. The sexual chemistry between Thane and Chastity was off the charts and their interactions (in and outside the bedroom) were deliciously sinful, thanks to Ms. Featherstone's sensuous writing. I especially liked the scenes where Thane went to Chastity as mist, surrounding her with his scent.

Now, as much as I liked this book, I have to say that I finished it without being 100% sure that Chastity loved Thane. I have no doubt that she was in lust with him, but love? I don't know. He had the opportunity to spend time with her unnoticed - you have to read the book to understand that - and thus got to know her, making his falling in love with her believable. She never got to know him that well, because he hid his true self from her for the most part of the story. How can you fall in love with someone you don't really know?

All in all, this was a very enjoyable read. The beginning was a little slow and a bit confusing with the introduction of several characters all at once - I had a hard time remembering who was who and associating each character to his/her sin or virtue - but once the focus was directed to Thane and Chastity, the story picked up the pace. Being the first book in the series, Lust was a bit bogged down by the need to set up the background of the series, but that was more than worth it because I can't wait for the next book. Is it out yet? ;P

Note: I received this eARC from Harlequin via NetGalley. That had no influence on my review/rating.
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Feb 03, 2011 Holly rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: netgalley, historical-romance

I have always been intrigued and fascinated by stories about the fey, and I have to say this story and the possibility of the additional Sin & Virtues stories definitely has me anxiously wanting more!

The only hope the Unseelie Court (Dark Fey) have of survival is to have the mortal women who possess the seven virtues come willingly to the Dark Fey that possess the seven sins. I know that the Unseelie are suppose to be bad and the Seelie are supposed to be good, but I believe it is for each...more

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Jan 02, 2011 Dee rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: everyone

Shelves: arc, netgalley, read-2011

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley

Previous to reading this I had heard the name Charlotte Featherstone mentioned as an author I should check out and I even have one of her other books sitting in my TBR pile, but for some reason I just kept bypassing her - now I want to kick myself for doing that. I loved this first book in her new series that mixed Georgian England with the legend of the Seelie and Unseelie in a hot erotic romance.

The premise is simple 7 Unseelie, including the King,...more

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Dec 25, 2010 Diana~ rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: author-charlotte-featherstone, historical-romance, erotica-romance, arc-galley, paranormal-romance, regency-romance

I truly have mixed feelings about this book. While reading it, I couldn't help but think that some of the things that Chastity was "enacting" with Thane... was wrong. Apparently, I let my morals get the best of me. Which is why I wasn't able to finish this book as fast as I thought I would have. But even with some issues concerning Chastity, the foreplay and the sexual tension between the two was hot-- as always from the one and only, Charlotte Featherstone. You have to admit that the descriptio...more I truly have mixed feelings about this book. While reading it, I couldn't help but think that some of the things that Chastity was "enacting" with Thane... was wrong. Apparently, I let my morals get the best of me. Which is why I wasn't able to finish this book as fast as I thought I would have. But even with some issues concerning Chastity, the foreplay and the sexual tension between the two was hot-- as always from the one and only, Charlotte Featherstone. You have to admit that the description of the book and series itself is quite fascinating. Two faery courts, the Seelie and Unseelie. But in reality, which court is good and which court is the bad one? You'll just have to read it to find out! I'm truly looking forward to Mercy's story with Kian because with kindness, there is always jealousy lurking around the corner...

We all know that in most faery books, the Dark Fey is the bad guy right? But in this book, it actually questions the goodness inside of the Seelie. Even though they are described as pure beings basked in light and good, Lust explores the two courts, but sets the stage for the Unseelie instead. It's quite ironic, really, because the Unseelie is known for it's dark pleasures but readers will soon find themself questioning whether the Seelie is truly the bad guy and the Unseelie, the good. Anyway, even though the heroine urked me a little, I soon came to an understanding that it wasn't exactly easy for her to be the first one to stray. She had absolutely no one to talk to about the situations happening to her and Thane is just a very good seducer, lol! She did try desperately to make him go away but in the end, he always win... Yeah, a lot of head desking right there.

Now, we shall talking about the sexual tension between Thane and Chastity and the foreplay that goes along with it! Whoo, was it hot and steamy! A big applause for the author because she always seems to amaze me with her works. I loved Addicted so I often compared that with Lust but there really was no comparison at all. They were both unique in their own way; Addicted had more drama while Lust had more angst and sexual tension, haha. I also had many unanswered questions while reading this book... but that's understandable because this is afterall, the first book of the series. For example, who is Mary anyway? Where is the real virtue? I sure hope these questions will be answered as the series progresses. But I did question Chastity's love for Thane... To me, it happened too fast. There wasn't a lot of romantic development between the two, and it was more like a lot of groping and touching. *face palm* BUT, I did love, love, love this quote between them because I thought it was very emotional:

"Why?" She asked in a confused whisper. "Out of all the women in the world, why did you choose this mortal?"
"Because fate drove me to you."

So for my final thoughts, I would have to say I did like this book. The writing, the characters, and the plot itself was amazing and very sensual. I'm truly looking forward to read more of Charlotte Featherstone's books so overall, I'll give this book a 4 ½ stars! I definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves paranormal, erotica, and historical romance. Even to those who just love to read books about faeries! Thank you to NetGalley for providing me this wonderful book.

P.S. Aw, crap. Prudence, watch out for Mary and Crom!!! I sure hope her Dark Prince will come and save her. ;)(less)

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May 05, 2011 Anthi rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: net-galley, pnr, fairies, erotica, historical, romance

Boy if I am baffled about this one!! I really had a hard time trying to decide how to rate this novel and I am torn between 2 1/2 and 3 stars but I'm leaning towards 3 since I did enjoy the book despite its faults.

They are two Fey courts, the Seelie Court of light and gaiety and the Unseelie Court of dark sensuality and voluptuousness. Centuries ago King Duir of the Dark Court saw the beautiful Queen Aine of the light Court and was immediately besotted by her, but the queen spurned Duir and an...more Boy if I am baffled about this one!! I really had a hard time trying to decide how to rate this novel and I am torn between 2 1/2 and 3 stars but I'm leaning towards 3 since I did enjoy the book despite its faults.

They are two Fey courts, the Seelie Court of light and gaiety and the Unseelie Court of dark sensuality and voluptuousness. Centuries ago King Duir of the Dark Court saw the beautiful Queen Aine of the light Court and was immediately besotted by her, but the queen spurned Duir and and forced him tto steal her away from her world and bring her to his realm like another Persephone. The Unseelie king was certain he could win Aine plying her with his erotic skills, but the queen despised Duir and ploted against him but with no avail until one day, she was delivered of the king’s twin sons. Enraptured by his progeny, and grateful to the queen for giving him such a gift, Duir became less watchful, allowing the queen new freedoms, and it was then that Aine found a way to leave his court.
One night she stole away, taking with her one of her sons, the golden-haired child who was the image of her Seelie self, leaving behind his dark-haired brother who bore his father’s resemblance. As she fled, Aine placed a spell on the Unseelie Court, that it whither away, never to thrive again until the Dark Fey could make a woman give herself to him of her own free will. As well, she cursed the sons of Duir’s siblings — and any future male children of the king — with each cardinal sin, further destroying her own dark son’s chances of finding a virtuous woman who would give herself willingly.
To this day, the queen’s spell holds strong. The Unseelie Court is dying. There is but one hope for the court — to find the seven women who represent the virtuous aspects of humanity. Seven women who embody chastity, temperance, charity, diligence, patience, kindness and humility. Women whose very being calls to the sins deeply buried in each prince, sins that are eager to corrupt, through erotic pleasure, their virtues. If the court is to survive, the fey princes will have to find a way to make the virtues follow them willingly, while satisfying the basic needs of their sins.

I really found the blurb original, seven sins and their counterparts, seven vitrtues and a curse -a very unfair one- that in order to break, the women who are the paragons of these virtues must willingly and out of love mate with the seven dark fey who are possessed by the cardinal sins. Yummy right? Well...not quite!! What went wrong? A lot of things. We have four twin sisters born within minutes from each other, Mary, Prudence, Chastity and Mercy, each representing a virtue. Their birth was the result of a deal their father, Duke of Lennox made with queen Aine (well that should teach you for making deals with the devil) and all four girls are well aware of the peculiar circumstances of their birth and were raised to believe that they were created for a higher purpose that lies in the fey world.

Thane, the dark fey prince ppossessed by the sin of Lust (ok...that doesn't sound so bad to me) must seduce, woo and corrupt Chastity Lennox, the virtue of chastity (mmmm... a gorgeus dark fey prince wants to corrupt you using...lust, yeah that really must suck) in order to help his king, Niall to break the course cast upon their court that slowly dies. But Thane soon discovers that Chastity makes him feel like no other woman.

I swear there were times that I really could't stand Chastity and her stiff self-righteousness!! On second level that goes also for her sister Pruedence that she also happend to be stupid but more on that later. I really get it that she was conflicted with what she thought she knew, that she is the paragon of chastity and that desire and lust are sins that she will never feel even if she wanted to since her virtue makes her unaible and immune to them and her meeting with Thane is an awakening to all these "dark" feelings and pleasures. But this girl couldn't make up her mind untill the very end and really made me wary of her and her constant inner babbling about how she is the embodiment of virtue and all these are SIN!!!!!!!!!! Of course the next moment she was writhing in the hands of Thane like a wanton all thoughts of sin be damned. These were the only moments I found her likeable actually, since stiff, uptight heroines with no real personality (view spoiler)
aren't very appealing to me.

Thane on the other hand... all I can say is that the man really was the embodiment of Lust, he was what made the book interesting and hot, well that and the steamy and beautifully erotic scenes Charlotte Featherstone is more than capable of writing. And although I liked him a lot more that Chastity and found him enjoyably cunning at times if not manipulative, being inside his head and listening his POV made me bored at times, the guy really thinks TOO MUCH and there's a limit to how much brooding a girl (that would be me) can take! Our boy wants this to be the big L and I really feel for him`but how many times must I read it!! I got it the first time, I am not stupid!

And speaking of stupid: Prudence, the virtue of temperance and sister of Chastity, thinks that the Fey of the Seelie court are good because they represent the light and and the Unseelie bad because they repsesent the dark...yes the girl is pure genius, I was mighty impressed by her logic!

Still I enjoyed reading it despite the fact that Chastity and Thane didn't really warmed my heart or convinced me that they fell in love (more like in lust) though the seeds are there for a love to blossom in the future IMHO (god that sounds sooo CHEESY) and despite the plot being somewhat thin I would like to go back to this world and see if the rest of the dark princes will succed in seducing their virtues and break the curse.

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Jan 16, 2011 Alisha rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: fans of very visceral tales with a lot of lush description...and fae!

Shelves: ac-g

(Thought about it s'more, wrote the review, and realized I'm wanting to go with 3 stars. Which is still an "I liked it," mind you. ^_^)

Quick Take:
This ethereal, fairy-tale-like story is imbued with deft use of sensuality, which I rather enjoyed. There's plenty of character posturing and subtle insidiousness, so don't look for high-octane action here or you'll be disappointed.

Okay, so I've got to put my Forthright Cap on…because while I enjoyed this book overall, I also recognize that it's not yo...more (Thought about it s'more, wrote the review, and realized I'm wanting to go with 3 stars. Which is still an "I liked it," mind you. ^_^)

Quick Take:
This ethereal, fairy-tale-like story is imbued with deft use of sensuality, which I rather enjoyed. There's plenty of character posturing and subtle insidiousness, so don't look for high-octane action here or you'll be disappointed.

Okay, so I've got to put my Forthright Cap on…because while I enjoyed this book overall, I also recognize that it's not your typical PnR and may not be everyone's cup of tea.

Though the details are complex, the overall story can be summarized quickly: seven Dark-Fae males are cursed with a cardinal sin apiece, and must non-forcibly secure their correlating human Virtue. Sounds like a fairy-tale premise, right? Well this book is very much like a fairy-tale in several respects, for better or worse (depending on your tastes). In many an old fairy tale or fable, many things (situational limitations, character abilities) just "are." You don't question or consider them too deeply, and they aren't explained. That is the case here; remember that when (to make something up) someone randomly turns into a tree or some such. ^_^

This book is primarily concerned with desires, internal struggles, and inner-character. One can expect a lot of description and mental-musing. The thrills and chills typically derived from high-octane action stories simply isn't here for the most part. And this is not innately a bad thing, either: the intriguing mind-game that plays out amongst the cast is quite dependent on the characters' machinations. It did however get tiresome at some points....the back and forth "did he, didn't he/will she, won't she/should I, shouldn't I" that at times seemed to hash out the. same. things.

One will note that this book doesn't contain very much sex, but has A LOT of sensuality. Ms. Featherstone seems able to take the most innocuous items and tame situations and make them incredibly sensual. Not an easy task, I'd think.

World-building is done through multiple perspective shifts amongst the Sins, the Virtues, and their relatives. While this was (in this case) a useful device for advancing the plot and exploring the depth of the curse's effect, it didn't do a while lot for me as far as connecting with the characters. Which is too bad, because such a narrative device is usually great for fostering attachments to characters. And personally, I'm a big-time character reader.

Reading this book was certainly an enjoyable experience, although (or perhaps because?) the story was executed in a fashion unlike what I'm used to. More than ever I'd like to check out Featherstone's non-paranormal offerings (Sinful or Addicted), to see what her writing style is like there. I can most definitely see this book being hit-or-miss for many.

(note: reviewed eARC copy; final version may have changes)(less)

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Feb 16, 2011 Robin (RBBR) rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: author-charlotte-featherstone, fantasy-romance, get-tactile-version, kindle

Although there were some parts that I didn't care for and that bothered me I really liked this book and look forward to the rest of the series. I'm not a fan of stereotypes although they do have their place. That's what struck me about this book the Feys and the People were defined a certain way because they had been given a label but as you get to know the characters the stereotype doesn't exactly fit and if you ignore the label it might be hard to tell who is good and who is bad. Another thing...more

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Feb 08, 2011 Krista (One Love) (Critical) rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: adult, boring, fae-romance, flat-characters, hero-needs-punching, heroine-i-hate, heroine-i-wanna-slap, heroine-ice-queen, heroine-tstl, historical-romance, own-ab, wall-banger

Two and a half stars for me.
This book is awful. There is no romance in it whatsoever.

Let's talk about Chastity. She is a cardboard cut-out with no spine and no interesting qualities. I don't believe I've ever read of a character who felt more fake. She is flat and simple and stupid and pathetic. She falls under Thane's spell every time he approaches her. Then, after one night of sex with him, she suddenly loves him for no reason. All she does in this book is go around thinking, Oh, woe is me!...more

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Jan 26, 2011 jD rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 6_new-series, fantasy_romance, series_fantasy, magic_fae, must-read-seq, 2011-read

I found this book to be a pleasant surprise. It is difficult to find good fantasy romance centered around the fey. Ms. Featherstone builds an erotic tension amongst her characters that is tangible. You feel the anxiety and longing as Chastity, one of the Virtues, struggles with her desire to remain chaste or give in to her desire for Thane, her Dark Fey prince.

This love story is about breaking a curse placed on the Dark Fey court by the Queen of the Light Fey court after she was abducted and hel...more I found this book to be a pleasant surprise. It is difficult to find good fantasy romance centered around the fey. Ms. Featherstone builds an erotic tension amongst her characters that is tangible. You feel the anxiety and longing as Chastity, one of the Virtues, struggles with her desire to remain chaste or give in to her desire for Thane, her Dark Fey prince.

This love story is about breaking a curse placed on the Dark Fey court by the Queen of the Light Fey court after she was abducted and held hostage by the Dark King. He wanted her and took her in more ways than one. She bore him twin sons, one looking of the light and the other with dark hair and eyes, like the Dark Fey. She eventually escaped and took her Light Fey son Crom with her. Her curse was that the Dark Fey would never be able to bring another woman to their realm against her will. As a result, the Dark Fey are dying as they are unable to mate successfully with human women willing to live in their realm. In addition, they are forced to host their greatest sins such as wraith, envy, covertness, and for Thane -- lust. This part kind of reminded me of Lords of the Underworld but in a good way because I like that series very much.

This is a full length novel and at times, you may find yourself getting impatient as Thane seduces Chasity painstakingly slow. His thoughts and words are so sexually charged that you don't miss the fact that they are not having sex through most of the book, you just want to see what happens when they finally do. Along with waiting for Thane to break through Chastity’s shields, we get to know the other sisters or Virtues. Chastity was born in a litter of four…Mercy, Prudence, and Mary. Yeah, Mary…she is a mystery as she is nothing like them and she ain’t so nice. This is a period piece, not sure if 1700s or 1800s but it was set in London during the time wealth and social graces where necessary ingredients of power and influence. The father of the girls had made two deals, one with the Light Fey Queen to restore health to his infant son in return for a favor to be paid at a later date. His second deal was with the Dark Fey years later for wealth as he now had a healthy son and four daughters. Now the girls are of age and both courts show up for payment, which is the same – they want the girls who are now young women. The Dark Fey need the Virtues because it is the only way to break the curse. The Light Fey want them to ensure that does not happen. There is so much more to this than it appears on the surface such as how did these virtues become flesh in the first place? This is revealed in the book but you must read it to find out.

What we end up with is a cast of interesting characters running in and out of each other's lives with dangerous plot twist, secrets and agendas. It’s all oh so good. I loved this book and will continue the series without a doubt.
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Jan 12, 2012 Willowfaerie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: romance, faeries

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I have always dreamed of writing a Faerie story, but I could never dream up a tale. So I’m excited that Charlotte Featherstone came up with such an awesome idea involving the Faerie world.

Seven Dark Fey lords have all been cursed with the seven deadly sins and each must win over the heart of their virtues to save their dying kingdom. This story is about Lust trying to win over Chastity. I have to admit, just the idea cracked me up, and the story is pretty fast paced and fun, with lots of smut....more I have always dreamed of writing a Faerie story, but I could never dream up a tale. So I’m excited that Charlotte Featherstone came up with such an awesome idea involving the Faerie world.

Seven Dark Fey lords have all been cursed with the seven deadly sins and each must win over the heart of their virtues to save their dying kingdom. This story is about Lust trying to win over Chastity. I have to admit, just the idea cracked me up, and the story is pretty fast paced and fun, with lots of smut. I definitely enjoyed it.

I loved the conflict and chemistry between Thane (Lust) and Chastity. They are both drawn to each other inexplicably and each starts to change and grow, the longer they are together. Both Thane and Chastity both go through a character arc, which makes their character’s rich.

Featherstone also added so much faerie lore to her book, it just made me smile. I’ve have been reading faerie stories all my life, so it was cool to see she added all these little myths and legends.

One problem I had is that Chastity is a powerless character, and she pretty much stays that way all through the book, even at the end. She is pawn in the Faerie war, and pretty much has to be taken care of by Thane. I always feel something is incomplete if the hero and the heroine don’t stand toe to toe. I would have liked it better if Chastity had been Fey too, and had some magic of her own. She is tricked and played with all through the book and she never does get even.

Another problem I had was the unevenness with the virtue and the sin. I get the feeling that Featherstone didn't really think that lust was that bad, and that chastity is kind of a waste of time. I’m not saying I disagree with her, but by doing this, she’s again striped away any power Chastity might have had. Her virtue is considered worthless, and Chastity even writes about it that way at the end of the book. I would have liked to see her virtue valued a little more. After all, being chaste is what keeps people from sleeping with everybody, which is cruel and hurts people’s feelings. At the end of the book, Thane is less of womanizer and no longer just looks at women as just sex objects. Yet he certainly didn’t bend as much to Chastity as she did to him.

All in all, I enjoyed this book, and I can’t wait to read book two, Vanity. :D

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Oct 12, 2011 .þµŋψà. [Punya Reviews...] rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: charlotte-featherstone, erotica, angel-demon-vampire-fey-others

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. My review contains spoilers and they're mostly my thoughts as I went with the book...

Lust is the book #1 in Charlotte Featherstone’s “The Sins and The Virtues” series. Have to say I found the premise of this series really really interesting. The back story or the basis of the series is given in the opening of the book, where the clash between the Fey and their darker brethren and why it happened is mentioned. The Dark Fey are supposed to be the opposite of the Fey who are all goodness and sunshi...more

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Jun 20, 2012 Angela the Fair ~Lusty Lace~ rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-in-2012

4 Stars

Review also posted at link: Under The Covers Bookblog

Lust is the first installment of The Sins and The Virtue Series by Charlotte Featherstone but not my first read of Ms. Featherstone’s work. I have read her novella Forever Yours, which I loved and I must say the same for this book.

The series is called “The Sins and The Virtues”, true to the name, the plot revolves around the Sins and the Virtues who possess them (rather reminds me of the LOTU by Showalter who possess demons in their bo...more 4 Stars

Review also posted at link: Under The Covers Bookblog

Lust is the first installment of The Sins and The Virtue Series by Charlotte Featherstone but not my first read of Ms. Featherstone’s work. I have read her novella Forever Yours, which I loved and I must say the same for this book.

The series is called “The Sins and The Virtues”, true to the name, the plot revolves around the Sins and the Virtues who possess them (rather reminds me of the LOTU by Showalter who possess demons in their bodies) There is a battle between the Light and Dark Fae. Due to past circumstances, a curse was casted upon the Dark Fae. Their kingdom will not prosper but diminish until the men (who possess the sins) of the court are able to make the women (who possess the Virtues) come home with them, willingly. The worst part of the curse is that the women they bring home are no other than the Virtues, specifically opposite of their sins. Our heroes will have to work hard to find their HEA and for the sake of their kingdom.

The heroine for this book is Chastity Lennox, a lady of purity and the hero is Prince Thane, Unseelie Prince possessed with the sin of Lust. Let me tell you, their journey to HEA is nothing of Chasteness but loaded with Lust. Their loves scenes were extremely hot with a lot of s*xual tension in the beginning. This prince definitely has bragging rights to his name, Lusty indeed. I love their love story and the sub-plot of the two kingdom’s battle is just as interesting.

Few things to consider and here are my thoughts. 1. Because our Hero is LUST, there was too much of it. (I can’t believe I just said that). Please don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed every bit of it but the romance or the “getting to know each other” was overcome with their explorations of each other, IMO. 2. There are some things that I’m not used to as far as the historical and Fae elements of the book. Please don’t laugh, this is my first Fey story. The Seelie vs. Unseelie, Dark vs. Light Fae is very confusing to me. I mean. Seelie is the light and Unseelie is the Dark. But the use of both words truly messed with my head. My poor friends Fran and Annie had yet again had to endure my million questions. 3. Other things to get use to are the customs, politics, words and clothing they used back then are foreign to me. Take note that I am fairly new to any Regency or any other Historical books. Thank God for my Dictionary app. I survived. However, my lack of knowledge will not deter me from the new world Ms. Featherstone created. I will be waiting and sure to read the next installment as soon as it is available.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in a time peace with a big twist of PNR.
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Dec 27, 2010 Michelle, the Bookshelf Stalker rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is my first Featherstone novel. I am happy to say, it probably will not be my last. I like my reviews simple even if my thoughts are a jumbled mess most of the time.

The players:

Unseelie-

• Thane- He’s been cursed with one of the seven cardinal sins. His sin- lust.
• Thane’s brothers- Yup, you got it. The other brothers are cursed with the six remaining sins- vanity, gluttony, envy, wrath, greed, and sloth.
• Thane’s dad- He did a major no-no. He decided he really wanted the Queen of the Seeli...more

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Jan 30, 2011 Lady Heather rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites, fae, magic, historical-romance, charlotte-featherstone

WOW!!!! I LOVED THIS BOOK!
FAVORITE FAVORITE 'things' about Ms. Featherstone's books are her Dark Alpha Males... all I can say is THANE.
Love his character and his carnal sin Lust. His is at constant struggle with the Dark Fey, this Sin, and his desire to have a full relationship with Chastity (Chaste) His Virtue.
Chastity is everything her virtue is..but deep inside she wants more. Thane awakens in her the part of her that wants to be a women and not just a 'virtue'.. or rather someone who hides b...more

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Apr 12, 2011 Jessi rated it 4 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jan 17, 2011 Jessica rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: paranormal-romance, historical-romance

I didn't care for this, but I can think of people I know who might like it.

Niall and his Dark Fae brothers are cursed at birth, that they shall watch the Unseelie Court crumble around then until and unless they can find women who choose to be with them -- as opposed to ones who are kidnapped, glamoured(?) and raped... um, yeah, this already makes me dislike half the cast.

The combination of Fae characters with medieval European ideas about virtue and vice seemed weird to me, but I'm not generall...more

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Jan 08, 2011 Laurie (Bitten by Paranormal Romance) rated it 3 of 5 stars

Reviwed by Cynthia for bittenbyparanormalromance

Cynthia's review
The Unseelie King (Dark Fae) falls in love/lust with the Seelie Queen (Good Fae), but she doesn’t love him - - so, he kidnaps her. Fast forward. . . She bears him twin sons and then takes off with one, Crom, but leaves the other one, Niall. Oh yeah, she also leaves one nasty curse behind too. Each of the Unseelie King’s sons will be cursed with a Cardinal Sin. In order for the Unseelie Court to thrive, the Sons will have to find the...more Reviwed by Cynthia for bittenbyparanormalromance

Cynthia's review
The Unseelie King (Dark Fae) falls in love/lust with the Seelie Queen (Good Fae), but she doesn’t love him - - so, he kidnaps her. Fast forward. . . She bears him twin sons and then takes off with one, Crom, but leaves the other one, Niall. Oh yeah, she also leaves one nasty curse behind too. Each of the Unseelie King’s sons will be cursed with a Cardinal Sin. In order for the Unseelie Court to thrive, the Sons will have to find their virtue/mate. That said mate will have to come to them of their own free will.

George Buckman, Duke of Lennox, has made a deal with the devil(s). Trouble is, he doesn’t know which one is worse. And when it comes time to pay his dues, both parties are looking to collect the same piece of booty bounty. This part of the story and the basic storyline, I really enjoyed. Watching the two battling Courts: Seelie and Unseelie. Wanting the best Fae to win, but not always knowing who the best Fae will be. Niall and Rinion are Dark Fae that will not be denied.

Chastity (a way of life that does not include any sexual activity): One entity. She cannot separate herself from her virtue. Thane and Lust: Two entities yet one, and both must be satisfied. A deliberate and, at times, tedious seduction of Chastity begins. For that to occur, Thane taps into Chastity’s darkest desire (aha moment). He surrounds, envelopes, and overwhelms her with his physical essence by way of fog, cloud, mist and perfume. Until she finally caves. Yet, he wasn’t supposed to use any Fae magic. There were two scenes in particular that were troublesome for me; more so what happens to Chastity immediately afterward. Although, it has more to do with my distaste of love making by spectral means. Oh, but the pointy ear scene was vera, vera nice.

What had possessed her? She had not been able to resist the lure. And yet, it had been a dream. No. She had been awake, but in some altered state. A fantasy. Yes. That is what it had been.

It will be quite a while before I look at a glass perfume bottle without cynicism.

Oh wait…a dream, a horrible dream…Bobby?!?(less)

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Dec 05, 2010 Tina rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: alpha-male, erotica, arcs, faeries, historical-rom, paranomal-rom

Heat Level: 5 out of 5
Kink: voyeurism, public sex, anal, questionable consent

Charlotte Featherstone is a pretty new author for me. I have read Sinful and thought it was one of the best romance/erotica reads I have read this year or ever. So I was looking forward to reading this book and I read it in one sitting! While Sinful was primarily historical this book is more Paranormal historical due to the Fey aspect of the story. However this aspect to me was not the focal point of the story. Charlott...more Heat Level: 5 out of 5
Kink: voyeurism, public sex, anal, questionable consent

Charlotte Featherstone is a pretty new author for me. I have read Sinful and thought it was one of the best romance/erotica reads I have read this year or ever. So I was looking forward to reading this book and I read it in one sitting! While Sinful was primarily historical this book is more Paranormal historical due to the Fey aspect of the story. However this aspect to me was not the focal point of the story. Charlotte focuses on the development of the characters and the Fey element is in the background and comes up periodically.

Overall a great beginning to a new series. The world building was believable to me and I could buy into the idea about the Fey. The villians were in the grey area to me. They each were likable or you could understand why they did what they did. I didn't think of anyone as truly evil. Both of the parents acted poorly but I think that Queen Aine I looked on as more evil because she basically acted like the sons were not hers and were monsters. While I understand she went through a lot I just couldn't like that she loved one son and not the other. I don't think this is a bad thing but made me think more about the story. The "Golden" son I didn't think of as truly evil either. Maybe Charlotte is going to give us a book about him?

The sisters each had their own personality and I wanted to know more about their stories and Charlotte gives us lots of hints about who their matches will be. I didn't catch on until it came out and said that Mary was not one of the virtues. I kept thinking and thinking what virtue is she? Duh LOL.
I liked the Dark Fey relatives alot and will definitely be reading more to see how everything works out.

So you might be wondering why I didn't give it a 5. The main reason was that there was too much going on with all the different characters being introduced. I even thought at first that the story was going to be about Niall because the first part is in his perspective. And while I liked Chastity and Thane I felt I was pulled out of the story to tell more about the other relatives and sisters too much.
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Jan 15, 2011 Crystal ♥ RBtWBC rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: request-netgalley

This is a story of two Fae Courts, The Seelie (Light) and the Unseelie (Dark), and of both their sins and virtues.
Several centuries ago the Dark King Duir became besotted with the Seelie Queen Aine and kidnapped her, making Light Queen his prisoner and concubine in the Dark Court. Aine despised the Dark King and vowed to escape him. After birthing him twin sons she finally had her chance; escaping with one of her sons, the one resembling her Seelie side and leaving the other that resembled the h...more This is a story of two Fae Courts, The Seelie (Light) and the Unseelie (Dark), and of both their sins and virtues.
Several centuries ago the Dark King Duir became besotted with the Seelie Queen Aine and kidnapped her, making Light Queen his prisoner and concubine in the Dark Court. Aine despised the Dark King and vowed to escape him. After birthing him twin sons she finally had her chance; escaping with one of her sons, the one resembling her Seelie side and leaving the other that resembled the hated Unseelie, she returned to her kingdom but not before placing a curse on the Dark Court and the princes of the court, including her own son.
Now (around the mid 1700’s) King Duir is dead and Aines forgotten son rules as the Dark King, his court is slowly dying and the princes are becoming slaves to the cardinal Sins that Queen Aine cursed them with. The only way to save them and break the curse is to find the Virtues; seven mortal women born every one hundred years that represent the virtuous aspects of humanity. They cannot use their dark gifts and force these women; they must follow willingly to the Dark Court. But what woman would freely choose to be in a court of sin and debauchery?

Lust is a deliciously dark and sinfully erotic tale of temptation.
When the Duke of Lennox made a tithe with the Queen and then later a dark fae he never imagined that in return each would require his beloved daughters as payment.
Meet Chastity Lennox, one of the Duke’s four daughters, she is virtuous and chaste like her namesake. No man has ever captured her attention or caused a flutter in her chest until the day she crosses paths with the dark and sensual Thane. He awakens her like no other and she struggles with the two halves of herself; the virtuous woman she has been and knows she should be and the woman yearning for passion, heated looks passed between lovers and intimate caresses. Most of Lust is about Chastity’s struggle, she can tell no one of her wicked desires and she flitters back and forth between what she feels is right and wrong. She is scared of loosing herself if she is no longer virtuous and chaste, who will she be then?
Dark Prince Thane, the Dark King Niall’s half brother, is the keeper of Lust and man oh man does he ooze with it. Tall, dark, sinfully handsome, Thane is a walking temptation. He is determined to seduce Chastity and woo her over to the Dark Court to break the curse, but as he comes to learn her and get inside her head he finds himself wanting more. He truly wants her to come to him of her own free will because she wants him, the man he is. Not just the dark fey prince or Lust. So he suppresses Lust as best as he can, and to also treat her with honor, because all Lust wants is to take and pillage and Thane wants so much more.
But the ante is upped when the Seelie show up. The Light Prince Crom, Aines son, also wants Chastity and he isn’t restricted by a curse. He is drawn by her virtuousness and what she can do for his court. And he is of the Light, so that makes him good…right? Well, sometimes good and bad isn’t so black and white. And Chastity doesn’t want to be put up on a pedestal and live a life of duty and expectation for her virtue- she craves excitement. But Crom is determined; he will have a virtue for his court.

Lust has an intricate plot and the concept of it is truly tantalizing. The dialogue is great, the characters detailed & relateable, well paced, the sexual scenes are just knock-your-socks-off good.
Thane sucked me in right away; he’s sexy, intense and yes sweet. And ya’, did I mention sexy? And good with his hands too. ;) Chastity was had a lot of internal monologue going but it was needed for the charter to work through her struggles as was understandable. Thane’s brethren are intriguing and I look forward to seeing more of them and their interactions with the rest of the Virtues. Oh, and The Dark King Niall, really looking forward to that.
I really loved the beginning with all the set-up and introductions and then ending was good. I would of liked to see some of the life at court but it was wrapped up nice and the epilogue left a cliffhanger for the next novel in the series. Though there were a lot of POV’s I found this easy to get through without having to backtrack. But there was some confusion for me in the middle. 1. Chastity goes back and forth with acknowledging Thane as a dark fey. I thought this was already settled but she doesn’t truly grasp this until the end. 2. Some of the ‘this is a dream but it’s real, no it’s a dream, or is it?’ Was a bit hard to keep up with. 3. There was one sexual scene that contained a action & a climax and it was great but then it goes back to Thane saying that he wants to do this and give her release, but he just did that!
But overall a great read, this is a new-to-me author and I am looking forward to Rinion’s, Vanity, novel next in the series.

Warning: This is erotica with graphic sexual scenes.(less)

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Dec 04, 2010 Among The Muses rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: erotica, fae, fantasy-romance, georgian-time-period, great-lovin-scenes, historical-romance, magic, netgalley

At a time when literature is reintroducing us to the fantasy creatures of faeries, Lust provides adult readers a whole new erotic escape where dreams, magic, and passionate seduction enchant you like never before. This book hasn't even hit the shelves yet, and already I'm anxiously waiting for the next installment!

There's something magically delicious about fantasizing that somewhere out there is a dangerously dark and handsome creature hell bent on seducing you in to a passionate frenzy, slowly...more

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Jan 04, 2011 Jess the Romanceaholic rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: arc, free-reads, faeries-or-other-fey, promiscuous-hero, 2011-read, family-issues, revenge-plot, angsty-read, earthy, smuttastic, heavy, netgalley

I received this book free from the publisher

If I had to sum up Charlotte Featherstone' newest novel, Lust, in a single word, it would be "lush".

What worked for me:
*The worldbuilding is simply breathtaking; it's so beautifully descriptive without making the story feel bogged down. There's a certain earthiness to her writing that engages all of your senses while reading.
*The sensuality was amazing. It was incredibly sensual, sexy, and erotic, without being vulgar. At one point in reading, I though...more

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Jun 15, 2011 Amanda Ryan rated it 3 of 5 stars

Ya’ll, I’ve been wanting to read me some Charlotte Featherstone for awhile, and I’ll fully admit it’s mostly for two reason: 1) the covers of her novels are gorgeous and 2) most of the reviews of her novels are always positive. So I was STOKED when I finally committed to Lust and added it to my shelf.

Now, I’m not going to go too in depth about the premise because it’s pretty basic. I’ll give you some key words: Faeries and Sex. There has definitely been a trend in faeries appearing in fiction he...more Ya’ll, I’ve been wanting to read me some Charlotte Featherstone for awhile, and I’ll fully admit it’s mostly for two reason: 1) the covers of her novels are gorgeous and 2) most of the reviews of her novels are always positive. So I was STOKED when I finally committed to Lust and added it to my shelf.

Now, I’m not going to go too in depth about the premise because it’s pretty basic. I’ll give you some key words: Faeries and Sex. There has definitely been a trend in faeries appearing in fiction here of late (i.e. Karen Marie Moning, Julie Kagawa). I, for one, don’t think that’s a bad thing. I love me some very untinkerbell-like faeries. Lust is The Unseelie Court (dark) versus The Seelie Court (light) and the mortal pawns caught in between. The Lennox sisters were each born with a virtue – patience, chastity, etc., and serve as the only redemption from a curse laid upon the Unseelie by the Seelie Queen. The catch, however, is that these virtues have to go to the Unseelie on their own accord – they can’t be taken against their will. Lust is the story of Prince Thane, Lust, and his attempt to woo his virtue, Chastity. He uses his faery skills in some pretty mad ways – i.e. putting his essence into perfume, Chastity’s only guilty pleasure she allows herself – to win her over to him. And she’s stubbornly reluctant.

I was really torn over this story. I realized after all was said and done that I had to give it two separate ratings. As a regency style romance novel it fell flat. Chastity annoyed the hell out of me – she’s hot, she’s cold; she thinks all these sexual encounters she’s having are dreams and it takes her forever to figure out that Thane is a faery, which is just…bollocks…because she’s been raised to know they really exist. Wouldn’t you come to realize that something is definitely UP with all the crazy shite that’s been going down? *sigh* No, she’s too busy being torn between her “dark and handsome stranger” and her untoward sexuality that’s blossoming within her. She’s chastity for heaven’s sake, she’s supposed to be chaste and untouched…blah blah blah. I didn’t buy it. It frankly really turned me off to her as a character. Prince Thane was intriguing, but gradually his attempts at seducing dimwit Chastity grew redundant and I almost felt bad for him that he was destined to be matched with her.

On the other hand, I stuck it out through my general dislike because the sex scenes in this book were…uhMAYzing. As an erotic novel this book was spot frickin on. I mean, this is lust in it’s most basic, primal form competing for it’s survival and it takes no prisoners. It’s fantastic.

Lust made me realize I needed to break down my ratings system – a rating for romance and a rating for raunch. You may have noticed I started doing that a few reviews ago…you can thank Lust for that. Overall, I would recommend Lust like I would a one night stand. Take that as you like. I thought it was fun, but I was bummed it didn’t live up to the stellar standards I’d built up in my head. I definitely will still check out her other books, though.

What I loved about this book: SEXY TIME

What I didn’t like: Chastity Lennox

Rating: D

Romance: 1/5 Raunch: 5/5(less)

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Jun 27, 2011 Francesca the Fierce ~Eyelet Ecstasy~ rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-read-2011, genre-erotica, genre-historical, genre-paranormal-romance, read-audio-books

This was my first exposure to Charlotte Featherstone. In this world of Seelie and Unseelie fae courts, long ago the unseelie king kidnapped the seelie queen and got her pregnant with twins. She managed to escape, taking with her the one son that looked light like her and leaving behind the dark one, like the unseelies. When she left she put a curse on them that would only be lifted if they brought a virtue to lay with them willingly and be with them at the unseelie court.

Seven virtues are born...more

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Sep 04, 2012 Giedre added it

I can't even... what is this... blergh.

I enjoyed Sinful and liked (mostly) Addicted, but this one is a solid DNF.
I've read roughly half of this book and I. can't. take. it. anymore.

Why?

Reason one:
Chastity, or, as I like to call her, the boring virtuous hypocrite. Oh, why am I so virtuous... I have never felt attracted to anyone. Why, why, why. Poor me. Oh, look, a stranger. It's suddenly gettin' hot in here. What is this strange feeling? Let's have a garden make-out session, because I'm sudde...more

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Jan 20, 2011 Marquetta (LoveToReadForFun) rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: netgalley, erotic

I love Charlotte Featherstone's erotic, historical romances. Sinful was one of my favorite reads in 2010. When I saw that she was starting a new series that's a mixture of historical and erotic romance mixed in with the paranormal, I was so excited!

Lust starts off with the history of the Fae. The Unseelie King falls in love with the Seelie Queen and kidnaps her and holds her against her will. She becomes pregnant with twin boys (Crom and Niall). The Unseelie King is obsessed with his sons. The S...more I love Charlotte Featherstone's erotic, historical romances. Sinful was one of my favorite reads in 2010. When I saw that she was starting a new series that's a mixture of historical and erotic romance mixed in with the paranormal, I was so excited!

Lust starts off with the history of the Fae. The Unseelie King falls in love with the Seelie Queen and kidnaps her and holds her against her will. She becomes pregnant with twin boys (Crom and Niall). The Unseelie King is obsessed with his sons. The Seelie Queen uses his newfound distraction as a means of escaping. She takes one of the twins (the one that looks most like her) with her as she returns home. She hates the Unseelie King so much for what he has done to her that she issues a curse on the Unseelie Court. The princes of the Unseelie Court are cursed with the 7 Deady Sins. The only way to break the curse is to have one of the 7 Virtues fall in love with them and come to the Unseelie Court - willingly.

I enjoyed the premise of this book. A lot of background information was provided to set up the plot. The story gets off to a good start. We are introduced to Chastity, one of the virtues and the counterpart to Thane's sin. Thane's sin is Lust and he needs Chastity to break the curse so begins his quest to seduce her. The seduction of Chastity is long and drawn out. His element is fog and mist and uses it to surround her and bring out her darkest desire. Chastity resists at first but slowly gives in. In the process of trying to seduce Chastity, Thane also must worry about Crom, the Unseelie Prince and Niall's twin brother. Crom wants Chastity for himself. Both Thane and Crom are racing to see who can seduce Chastity first.

I found the seduction of Chastity to be long and arduous at times. There were some parts that I skimmed because I felt that it slowed down the pace of the story. Charlotte Featherstone knows how to write some hot and steamy sex scenes. And they were plentiful in Lust, maybe too much. So much so that I started skimming the sexual parts (gasp!). Even though this is an erotic story, I was hoping that there would be some semblance of a romance between Thane and Chastity. I didn't feel any romance or connection between them at all. Maybe their story is not about romance but basic lust between two people. I know that Thane's sin is Lust but I wanted more of an emotional bond between the two and I didn't feel it.

Although I didn't thoroughly enjoy Lust, I plan on reading the next book of the series. I think the series has potential to be great and look forward to reading more.(less)

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Dec 26, 2010 Sassafrass rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: the-romance-reviews, ng

This review was originally done for The Romance Reviews and can be found here:
http://erotic.theromancereviews.com/v...

This book was so good, I don't even think I could begin to do it justice. I was totally immersed in the sensual world of the Fey while entranced by a young woman's introduction to the most erotic delights.

The cursed princes of the Unseelie Court (Dark Fey) are trying to find a way to save their dying kingdom. They feel that the Lennox sisters are just the way to do that. If they...more This review was originally done for The Romance Reviews and can be found here:
http://erotic.theromancereviews.com/v...

This book was so good, I don't even think I could begin to do it justice. I was totally immersed in the sensual world of the Fey while entranced by a young woman's introduction to the most erotic delights.

The cursed princes of the Unseelie Court (Dark Fey) are trying to find a way to save their dying kingdom. They feel that the Lennox sisters are just the way to do that. If they can get these women, who they believe are the Virtues that rival their Sins, to come to their court willingly, the Unseelie may be able to have children and thrive again.

However, the Queen of the Seelie Court will do whatever is in her power to prevent that from happening. She cursed the Unseelie because of what was done to her many years ago, and she's not through exacting her revenge. Thane, a prince of the Dark Fey, has been cursed with the sin Lust who takes over his body, and now he's set his sights on Chastity Lennox. She resists him at first, but he awakens a whole new side of her that both scares and excites her. What starts as duty develops into love, but it may not be enough to save the kingdom.

I don't even know where to start with this book. It was so amazing. The world building was phenomenal. The light and the dark Fey are battling it out for the Lennox sisters in England in the year 1789. I felt instantly transported to this rural town where Chastity and her sisters live. As someone who usually doesn't care for historical fiction, the fact that I was so drawn in was a clear testament to the author's superior writing.

The characters in this book are phenomenal. We are dealing with Virtues and Sins. Chastity, of purity and innocence, and Thane, of lust and dark desires. Their chemistry was palpable. Even when she was fighting them in the beginning, it was a tangible force in the book. But when they actually came together, it was electric and erotic, with deep emotion attached. I loved the two of them together. The angel and the devil. The way that through her love, Thane strove to become better--to be more than just his sin.

The other characters in the book, like the other Unseelie, who have their own sins to deal with, and the Seelie, who are supposed to be "good Fey", really made the story much more well-rounded. We get a lot of background information in this first book that I think will be very important going forward in the series.

As you might assume with a book about Lust, there were plentiful sex scenes in the book. All of them are extremely sensual, but there were some that were extremely creative. There was one scene in particular in a carriage that completely blew me away. I really appreciated the fact that the heroine was supposed to be a virtue, one of chastity to be exact, and she did not just jump right into bed with the first man that she was actually attracted to. Thane had to put a lot of work into bedding Chastity, and that made the story more real (as real as you can get with Faeries, curses, and virtuous daughters).

Ultimately it's a love story, and I was surprised to find myself rooting for the Dark Fey Prince to claim his princess, so that they could live happily ever after. And while they did, they had quite the fight on their hands. The plot lent nicely to betrayals, uncovered secrets, and revenge.

A fantastic start to a series into which I can't wait to dive deeper. LUST has an original plot, fantastic characters, an abundance of erotic love scenes, all wrapped up in superb writing and world-building. I was ensnared from the first word, and I couldn't disentangle myself until I had devoured the entire book! I wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading romances. The story is written so well that I think even if the particular sub-genres (historical romance, fantasy romance and/or erotic romance) aren't of your interest, you will enjoy the book anyway. (less)

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Nov 28, 2010 Barbara ~*Lindt Ninja*~ rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: paranormal, series, arc

The Unseelie Court is doomed. Centuries ago, its King Duir had become besotted with the lovely Queen Aine of the golden Seelie Court, but Aine saw through Duir’s dark, seductive beauty and turned him away. Desperate to have her anyway, he stole into her bedroom at night and kidnapped her, forced her to the Unseelie Court and used his kind’s powers of sexual skill to seduce her. Once she’d given him twin sons though, Aine sought her escape and revenge: she took one son and left the court with a c...more The Unseelie Court is doomed. Centuries ago, its King Duir had become besotted with the lovely Queen Aine of the golden Seelie Court, but Aine saw through Duir’s dark, seductive beauty and turned him away. Desperate to have her anyway, he stole into her bedroom at night and kidnapped her, forced her to the Unseelie Court and used his kind’s powers of sexual skill to seduce her. Once she’d given him twin sons though, Aine sought her escape and revenge: she took one son and left the court with a curse. Every son and brother of Duir’s would be possessed with a cardinal sin and until they could bring a virtuous woman to the court of her own free will, the court would wither and die.

Chastity Lennox and her sisters have always been raised to believe that they were born for a higher, special purpose. She’s always known she was different: she’s never felt sexually attracted to a man, never even a tingle of interest when the most handsome of men attempt to court her, but she’s always had a deep yearning to fit in and be like other women.

Thane is possessed by Lust; when he sees Chastity, the beast in him roars for the conquest, but the man wants something more and both know they have to proceed carefully if they want her to follow them to the Dark Court willingly. While Thane isn’t above using some of his fey powers to lull her into accepting his presence initially, Chastity’s response to Thane’s sexual advances are all her own; her natural sensuality is awakened by his Lust. The only barriers keeping her from following him to the Unseelie Court are the appearance of the Seelie Prince, the machinations of some of her own family and her leftover inhibitions.

Not surprisingly, this book is loaded with sensuality. Not just sex, although there’s plenty of that, but just about everything Thane does with Chastity is squirm-worthy. Once in a while, he has a thought about how much he really respects her as a woman and he doesn’t want to only think of her as a sex object, but I really didn’t believe him. Not that I didn’t find him less hot for it, I just found the interjections sort of funny. Kind of, “yeah, yeah, you’ll respect her in the morning, now get back to licking her neck.”

Chastity is a likeable enough character; she only really starts to stand out on her own though about halfway through the story when she admits she’s more than her Virtue. I enjoyed seeing her evolution, she certainly had more of one than Thane did, which was expected.

There are some good pieces of information given throughout the story that will impact the next and the continuation of the series. Chastity’s sister Mercy seems to have already had contact with her Sin and Prudence may have met hers, although that one’s up in the air. With the Seelie Prince obviously up to no good, there’s bound to be plenty of conflict ahead.

I enjoyed this very much and given the nature of the Sins left and my happy experiences with past Featherstones, I expect the rest of the stories to be quite interesting as well. They’re definitely on my to-read list.
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Jan 19, 2011 Lisa rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: arc

This is a great blend of historical romance, paranormal romance and erotica in one novel. It is the first of Charlotte Featherstone's books that I have read and I am looking forward to the rest in this series.

The story centers around Chastity, the virtuous daughter of a nobleman and the living embodiment of her name, and Thane- a dark Faery Prince and the embodiment of Lust who needs her to break a curse on his court. Thane does everything he can to make Chastity fall in love with him and agree...more

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Jan 30, 2011 Anna rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book opens with a brief history of the Seelie and Unseelie courts, which of course are ripe with intrigue, betrayal, and sexuality. The romantic element is woven into the story in such a way that I was reminded of a Grim fairy tale or Beauty and the Beast. Lust piques your interest right from the first lines because you know that curses are meant to be broken and that this erotic romance will make for great storytelling.

"Perhaps we may find our sins vanquished once we have the virtues," Nia...more This book opens with a brief history of the Seelie and Unseelie courts, which of course are ripe with intrigue, betrayal, and sexuality. The romantic element is woven into the story in such a way that I was reminded of a Grim fairy tale or Beauty and the Beast. Lust piques your interest right from the first lines because you know that curses are meant to be broken and that this erotic romance will make for great storytelling.

"Perhaps we may find our sins vanquished once we have the virtues," Niall suggested. "Mayhap what torments us now no longer will. Maybe all of us will be free."

That was the first glimpse of the men behind the sins. They are more than simply lust, gluttony or envy... so much more. They feel, and yearn, hoping for nothing more than to see the curse ended. The battle for control over each sin is a fierce one and involves having the virtues accept them without force or coercion, and without lies and deceit.

At times I thought Thane and Chastity went round and round without making any forward progress but I really wouldn't have the story told any other way. Chastity needed to learn that she was more than her virtue, that her desires and dreams were not wrong. And Thane needed to tame his sin, to think before speaking, and to not use words like defile or worse yet, quim. Nothing sexy about that and one would think that the embodiment of lust could be more creative in describing sex. Having Chastity fear him because of his harsh words would ruin everything. When Chastity finally gives in, and the fun begins in earnest, I swear I must have looked like the Cheshire Cat with a huge sneaky grin on my face.

Here's my absolute favorite line (warning- explicit language):

"I want to take you, fuck you, have you writhing beneath me. Then I want to love you, to feel you clinging to me, begging me to give you release. And then I want to hold you. To kiss you in the dark and watch you fall asleep. And then I will wake you by sliding down your body and lapping at you, waking you with my mouth."- Thane

*sigh* I just love the brutal honesty of those lines. You'd have to be crazy to say no to that! The stark emotions of Thane, and all the Dark Fey, make you really cheer for them and I am anxiously awaiting my next foray into the sensuous, steamy world of Sins and Virtues. Everyone deserves a happy ending...even those that sin.(less)

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Lust (The Sins and The Virtues #1)

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