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The Seduction
WHEN AN HEIRESS AND A ROGUE MEET...
Although her father sent her to England to find a titled husband, beautiful and headstrong Margaret Van Alden rejects every fortune hunter she meets. The only man who does excite her is Trevor St. James, an unsentimental rake if ever there was one. Fresh from daring exploits in Cairo, and keen on restoring his family's wealth, Trevor sets in motion a trap to seduce Margaret.
...PASSION GETS IN THE WAY
Margaret soon discovers Trevor's shocking deception. And he realizes, too late, that she has reawakened dreams of love he has long denied--a love that could perish before it has a chance to take flight.
Although her father sent her to England to find a titled husband, beautiful and headstrong Margaret Van Alden rejects every fortune hunter she meets. The only man who does excite her is Trevor St. James, an unsentimental rake if ever there was one. Fresh from daring exploits in Cairo, and keen on restoring his family's wealth, Trevor sets in motion a trap to seduce Margaret.
...PASSION GETS IN THE WAY
Margaret soon discovers Trevor's shocking deception. And he realizes, too late, that she has reawakened dreams of love he has long denied--a love that could perish before it has a chance to take flight.
432 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published April 1, 1997
53 people are currently reading
382 people want to read
About the author
Laura Lee Guhrke
41 books1,818 followersFrom the publication of her very first historical romance, Laura Lee Guhrke has received numerous honors and critical acclaim for her novels and her writing style. She has been honored with the most prestigious award of romance fiction, the Romance Writers of America Rita Award, and she has received additional awards from Romantic Times and All About Romance. Romantic Times has proclaimed her, “One of the most natural voices in historical romance to be found today”. Her books routinely hit the USA Today Bestseller List, and Guilty Pleasures has been honored with the Romantic Times Award for Best European Historical Romance of 2004. Among her publishing credits are twelve historical romances, including her latest, And Then He Kissed Her, now available from Avon Books.
Laura is currently hard at work on her thirteenth historical romance for Avon Books. She has also written articles for various publications, including the Romance Writers Report, The British Weekly , and the Irish-American Press.
Laura is currently hard at work on her thirteenth historical romance for Avon Books. She has also written articles for various publications, including the Romance Writers Report, The British Weekly , and the Irish-American Press.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
September 4, 2015
Realmente esta autora escribe libros para que los lectores se los devoren. Aunque el argumento no es precisamente original en el género, los personajes son tan creíbles y están tan bien trabajados que es imposible no involucrarse con ellos. Además, las situaciones implicadas en “el engaño” son de lujo. Muy recomendable.
December 22, 2015
No. No, I don't think so. The honourable fortune hunter luring the naive heiress into marriage? - it's a plot that works sometimes. But not here.
OK - good things. LLG is a an author whose other works I've enjoyed greatly. She writes with real authority, and, generally, with a lightness of touch that just works for me - and in spite of my reservation about the plot, that's the case here too. She gets the balance between plot and character development right, and there's a rounded cast of secondary characters.
So, for me, this is a case of a good author turning in a rare dud.
Let's overlook an immediate problem (certainly for British readers) - the names "Trevor" and "Maggie" come with certain connotations that are...slightly off-putting.
The major problem is the imbalance of power between Trevor and Maggie. He needs to marry for money (fair enough, to save the estate impoverished by his gambloholic brother) - she wants only to marry for love. It's not an uncommon plot (for a brilliantly successful example, read Diane Farr's The Fortune Hunter), but, in this instance, too many cards are stacked against Maggie. She's not conventionally attractive, she's naive, outspoken, and not especially self-aware. When Trevor cynically pulls out all the stops to persuade her into marriage (for his good, not hers), she doesn't stand a chance. He is an earl, experienced in love (or, at least, seduction), and sponsored to Maggie's hand by her father, no less. Even Maggie's sympathetic cousin colludes in Trevor's campaign. No one pays any real attention to her stated desire to marry someone who loves her for herself alone.
Maggie herself is not actually the most attractive of heroines - in her early encounters with Trevor, she's given to a clichéd "How dare you, sir!" form of riposte: automatic bridling is not really a substitute for intelligent response. It leaves her far too open to Trevor's manipulations. But still, I resented on her behalf the way everyone completely disregarded her feelings.
Eventually, she realises that she has allowed herself to be fooled into believing Trevor loves her. I wanted a real ramping up of the angstometer at this point, but in fact Maggie's grief seems too close to pique, and Trevor's off-hand justifications of his behaviour come across as selfish in the extreme.
There is - of course - a final reconciliation, fuelled by a final scene kidnapping and sick-bed confession of love: too little, too late, too clichéd. I wanted Trevor to grovel - grovel hard and long - but he was allowed to get away with a page of mild guilt. Maggie, love, you can do better.
Laura Lee Guhrke was clearly seduced by Trevor. I was not.
OK - good things. LLG is a an author whose other works I've enjoyed greatly. She writes with real authority, and, generally, with a lightness of touch that just works for me - and in spite of my reservation about the plot, that's the case here too. She gets the balance between plot and character development right, and there's a rounded cast of secondary characters.
So, for me, this is a case of a good author turning in a rare dud.
Let's overlook an immediate problem (certainly for British readers) - the names "Trevor" and "Maggie" come with certain connotations that are...slightly off-putting.
The major problem is the imbalance of power between Trevor and Maggie. He needs to marry for money (fair enough, to save the estate impoverished by his gambloholic brother) - she wants only to marry for love. It's not an uncommon plot (for a brilliantly successful example, read Diane Farr's The Fortune Hunter), but, in this instance, too many cards are stacked against Maggie. She's not conventionally attractive, she's naive, outspoken, and not especially self-aware. When Trevor cynically pulls out all the stops to persuade her into marriage (for his good, not hers), she doesn't stand a chance. He is an earl, experienced in love (or, at least, seduction), and sponsored to Maggie's hand by her father, no less. Even Maggie's sympathetic cousin colludes in Trevor's campaign. No one pays any real attention to her stated desire to marry someone who loves her for herself alone.
Maggie herself is not actually the most attractive of heroines - in her early encounters with Trevor, she's given to a clichéd "How dare you, sir!" form of riposte: automatic bridling is not really a substitute for intelligent response. It leaves her far too open to Trevor's manipulations. But still, I resented on her behalf the way everyone completely disregarded her feelings.
Eventually, she realises that she has allowed herself to be fooled into believing Trevor loves her. I wanted a real ramping up of the angstometer at this point, but in fact Maggie's grief seems too close to pique, and Trevor's off-hand justifications of his behaviour come across as selfish in the extreme.
There is - of course - a final reconciliation, fuelled by a final scene kidnapping and sick-bed confession of love: too little, too late, too clichéd. I wanted Trevor to grovel - grovel hard and long - but he was allowed to get away with a page of mild guilt. Maggie, love, you can do better.
Laura Lee Guhrke was clearly seduced by Trevor. I was not.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 17, 2014
Un libro ameno y bien escrito, como todos los de ella, la historia está bien y te atrapa con unos fuertes personajes.Pero Trevor más que un seductor me ha parecido un manipulador y Margaret una niña mimada. Y eso hace que le baje puntos.
Lo mejor el amor pausado de la pareja secundaria...
Lo mejor el amor pausado de la pareja secundaria...
September 9, 2024
The Seduction is so much fun. It hits like an old school romance, but with some more modern sensibilities.
Maggie's an outspoken American, daughter of a wealthy man who is determined to marry her into the English aristocracy. She, on the other hand, is determined to marry for love and nothing less, and she fully abhors men who are after her wealth. Enter Trevor St. James, newly an earl, saddled with an estate 200,000 pounds in debt. He needs a wealthy wife, and Maggie fits the bill. So, of course, he and her dad agree to a deal if he can convince Maggie to marry him.
Now, this plot is ABSURD. That's a compliment. It involves two kidnappings, and honestly it's like dramatic hijinks. Trevor's kind of an asshole, but also he's not forcing himself on Maggie the way he would be if this were written in the 80s or 90s, which means you get all the tension and sass and plot of old school but it resolves in a delightfully new school fashion.
Truly I had a blast.
Maggie's an outspoken American, daughter of a wealthy man who is determined to marry her into the English aristocracy. She, on the other hand, is determined to marry for love and nothing less, and she fully abhors men who are after her wealth. Enter Trevor St. James, newly an earl, saddled with an estate 200,000 pounds in debt. He needs a wealthy wife, and Maggie fits the bill. So, of course, he and her dad agree to a deal if he can convince Maggie to marry him.
Now, this plot is ABSURD. That's a compliment. It involves two kidnappings, and honestly it's like dramatic hijinks. Trevor's kind of an asshole, but also he's not forcing himself on Maggie the way he would be if this were written in the 80s or 90s, which means you get all the tension and sass and plot of old school but it resolves in a delightfully new school fashion.
Truly I had a blast.
April 11, 2015
I found myself binge-reading historicals this week. This was my second HR and I really liked this one as well!
Full review to come...
Full review to come...
September 13, 2017
Leído en Mayo 2010
December 28, 2021
Eh
Man tricks woman into believing he wants her for herself and not her American fortune. Naturally, he finds himself falling for her. How convenient she still has that fortune. I absolutely hate stories where the man with no decent values is transformed into a good guy through the love of a good woman. Especially when his realization comes only after she’s injured by the cuckolded husband of the woman the hero was sexing in the opening scenes. That is flat out yucky & no one should be responsible for someone else’s morals.
Man tricks woman into believing he wants her for herself and not her American fortune. Naturally, he finds himself falling for her. How convenient she still has that fortune. I absolutely hate stories where the man with no decent values is transformed into a good guy through the love of a good woman. Especially when his realization comes only after she’s injured by the cuckolded husband of the woman the hero was sexing in the opening scenes. That is flat out yucky & no one should be responsible for someone else’s morals.
March 22, 2015
Predictable.
September 1, 2022
This is one I probably would have rated a little higher if I had read it years ago but the hero is stealing historical artifacts from Egypt and then selling them to dealers that either sell them to private citizens or British museums. It gets brought up a lot and the hero's attitude in the beginning towards it just left a bad taste in my mouth.
"But isn't it illegal to do all this digging?"
"Technically, yes, although it depends." He grinned at her, and the firelight cast his face in amber glow and black shadow, making him seem more wicked than ever. "If you bribe the proper officials, you can get away with anything."
"Really, Trevor," she said, "it's all right to steal, if the bureaucrats are on your side?"
"If I didn't do it, someone else would." His grin faded, and he looked away, idly poking the fire. "I suspect your father would understand that. He grew up in poverty. But I don't suppose that sort of logic would cut any ice with someone like you."
"What do you mean, someone like me?"
"Have you ever been without money, Maggie? Have you ever known what it was like to live hand- to-mouth? To be completely on your own with no money and not many ways to earn it? Well, I have, and I can tell you it's no summer picnic on the Thames. It's no exciting adventure. It's just hell, pure and simple."
Depending how you feel about the above quote, would probably decide how well you took the hero and thus, how well you will enjoy the story. Cringe-y was my lasting thought.
"But isn't it illegal to do all this digging?"
"Technically, yes, although it depends." He grinned at her, and the firelight cast his face in amber glow and black shadow, making him seem more wicked than ever. "If you bribe the proper officials, you can get away with anything."
"Really, Trevor," she said, "it's all right to steal, if the bureaucrats are on your side?"
"If I didn't do it, someone else would." His grin faded, and he looked away, idly poking the fire. "I suspect your father would understand that. He grew up in poverty. But I don't suppose that sort of logic would cut any ice with someone like you."
"What do you mean, someone like me?"
"Have you ever been without money, Maggie? Have you ever known what it was like to live hand- to-mouth? To be completely on your own with no money and not many ways to earn it? Well, I have, and I can tell you it's no summer picnic on the Thames. It's no exciting adventure. It's just hell, pure and simple."
Depending how you feel about the above quote, would probably decide how well you took the hero and thus, how well you will enjoy the story. Cringe-y was my lasting thought.
May 28, 2018
I really like this book. Laura know how to give up great reads. Margaret wants to marry for love. Trevor needs to marry for money.
He and her father cook up a place for her to get her to like him.
She does like adventures and Trevor takes her on them.
She get to know and falls in love with him. Then she learns what they were planning and that including a best freind. It is only after they marry the she finals out and wants nothing to do with him.
She does go to his estate and see what he needs to do with her money. She wants a divorce
He is fighting that.
She does get kidnapped. When she gets shot, that Trevor realized just how important she is too him. He begs not to leave him.
She wakes and asks him to tell her again. He laughs and tells her over and over that he loves her.
They finally find their love for each other .
Great read
He and her father cook up a place for her to get her to like him.
She does like adventures and Trevor takes her on them.
She get to know and falls in love with him. Then she learns what they were planning and that including a best freind. It is only after they marry the she finals out and wants nothing to do with him.
She does go to his estate and see what he needs to do with her money. She wants a divorce
He is fighting that.
She does get kidnapped. When she gets shot, that Trevor realized just how important she is too him. He begs not to leave him.
She wakes and asks him to tell her again. He laughs and tells her over and over that he loves her.
They finally find their love for each other .
Great read
January 6, 2025
Entertaining read
Nice read about an heiress and a second son who has inherited an indebted title. He's very manipulative and never really tries to understand why the heroine is so angry with him. Luckily he realizes that, why yes, he has fallen in love with his wife before the villain gets her, but the traumatic forgiveness here is strong. The man who doesn't believe in love does some pretty nice, even romantic things, but he does it for manipulative reasons. Our heroine holds strong for a bit and the BBS doesn't show up for awhile but she does soften towards him. I couldn't really hold it against her. Overall an entertaining read from an author that I've thoroughly enjoyed and loved over the years so I would definitely recommend!
Nice read about an heiress and a second son who has inherited an indebted title. He's very manipulative and never really tries to understand why the heroine is so angry with him. Luckily he realizes that, why yes, he has fallen in love with his wife before the villain gets her, but the traumatic forgiveness here is strong. The man who doesn't believe in love does some pretty nice, even romantic things, but he does it for manipulative reasons. Our heroine holds strong for a bit and the BBS doesn't show up for awhile but she does soften towards him. I couldn't really hold it against her. Overall an entertaining read from an author that I've thoroughly enjoyed and loved over the years so I would definitely recommend!
June 8, 2023
Primera lectura de esta autora, la tenía agendada hacía mucho. La historia no es una novedad, sin embargo, empieza con mesura, a cocerse con lentitud hasta hacerse interesante. Después de la mitad están las cartas sobre la mesa y se pone emocionante.
July 5, 2018
Ella es una consentida, pero la trama no esta mal
September 25, 2022
It dragged on.
Read
December 3, 2022I’m not giving this rating cuz I mostly skimmed, but I found the male lead vile and wanted nothing more than for the heroine to escape him.
October 5, 2023
4.5 estrellas
Muy buena trama, no me lo esperaba pero me he divertido bastante.
Muy buena trama, no me lo esperaba pero me he divertido bastante.
October 4, 2024
Protagonista fea
March 24, 2025
4.5 stars
April 4, 2016
Es una suerte que no me haya tomado más tiempo en leerlo porque habría sido tiempo perdido...
Como dije muchas veces antes: hay momentos en los que necesitas de romance cursi y empalagoso, no hay nada malo en eso...
Pero (en mi opinión) hay límites hasta para eso!!!
Este tipo de trama es el que más me gusta: el chico malo que cae por los encantos de una sencilla mujer, le ruega que estén juntos y viven felices para siempre.
Lo malo aqui es que Laura simplemente exageró...poner diálogos floridos y surrealistas en los momentos menos oportunos hace que sea muy tedioso sumergirse en la historia, terminé riéndome de en medio de lo que supuestamente era una intensa declaración de amor.
Me dijeron que éste no es de sus mejores libros, y que en realidad es buena...tal vez le de una oportunidad en un futuro lejano...
Como dije muchas veces antes: hay momentos en los que necesitas de romance cursi y empalagoso, no hay nada malo en eso...
Pero (en mi opinión) hay límites hasta para eso!!!
Este tipo de trama es el que más me gusta: el chico malo que cae por los encantos de una sencilla mujer, le ruega que estén juntos y viven felices para siempre.
Lo malo aqui es que Laura simplemente exageró...poner diálogos floridos y surrealistas en los momentos menos oportunos hace que sea muy tedioso sumergirse en la historia, terminé riéndome de en medio de lo que supuestamente era una intensa declaración de amor.
Me dijeron que éste no es de sus mejores libros, y que en realidad es buena...tal vez le de una oportunidad en un futuro lejano...
October 21, 2020
Well-written, but the character development fell flat. Standard nobleman-tricking-heiress-into-marriage plot, with an added kidnapping that makes the deception even more reprehensible. Yet there is no real redemption arc for the hero (or his accomplices-her family, for that matter), so the ending was a major disappointment. The female protagonist comes off as a pathetic fool and the male protagonist remains a villain.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 9, 2012
Lacked believable characters, tension and interesting plot. I've read others by this author that are so much better than this one.
June 13, 2012
Not bad ... I loved Trevor, but a bit annoyed with Margaret ...
May 1, 2017
Es un libro divertido,el protagonista me encantó, todo descarado !!!y ella muy mimada y todo, pero con muy buenos sentimientos.y la historia tiene sus buenos momentos
December 17, 2014
Tiga setengah bintang! Ceritanya bikin gemes! XD
April 5, 2016
I love all her romance books. This one was good too. Our hero was a bit shady and I liked that he was more human than hero.
July 17, 2016
Three stories rolled into one book, and all of the stories intertwine into each other; I enjoyed reading this book. I am looking forward to reading more by this author.
May 17, 2014
What can I say? It's wonderfull to me <3
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews