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The Courtesan Chronicles #2
The Courtesan's Secret
Second in the ?cleverly orchestrated,?( Library Journal ) Regencyset series featuring the matchmaking schemes of an infamous ex-courtesan.
On the night of her debut two years ago, Lady Louisa Kirkland fell for the devilish Marquis of Dutton. It?s high time, she?s decided, that he realized he loves her. Also, there is the matter of Louisa?s family pearls, which are in his possession. For both problems, Louisa will need the help of Lady Sophia, an ex-courtesan more clever than all the other ton matrons combined?
On the night of her debut two years ago, Lady Louisa Kirkland fell for the devilish Marquis of Dutton. It?s high time, she?s decided, that he realized he loves her. Also, there is the matter of Louisa?s family pearls, which are in his possession. For both problems, Louisa will need the help of Lady Sophia, an ex-courtesan more clever than all the other ton matrons combined?
313 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2008
About the author
Claudia Dain
37 books101 followersIt was while writing a descriptive essay in seventh grade English (that was the assignment, to write a 'descriptive essay') that Claudia first fell in love. With descriptive essays. Boys being what they are in seventh grade, there was hardly much choice.
By her ninth grade year, Claudia was spending hours each week in her bedroom writing descriptive essays that heavily featured older boys (eleventh grade). She also practiced her kissing technique on a pole lamp next to her bed. It was less than satisfactory, but the writing was fun.
She attended the University of Southern California as an English major. She'd mastered kissing by this time and writing, strangely enough, was still fun. 'Strangely' because while it had become obvious to her that almost everyone enjoyed kissing, it was equally obvious that very few people enjoyed writing. This was as peculiar to her as, well, not enjoying kissing.
Clearly, something had to be done. The idea of combining kissing and writing seemed the obvious course of action. While Claudia does not claim to have invented the romance novel, she certainly has a lot of fun describing kisses and inventing men to bestow them upon. And not a one of her heroes looks remotely like a pole lamp. (And don't act like one either.)
Claudia was first published in 2000, is a two-time Rita finalist, and a USA Today Bestselling author. Which just goes to prove that you can make a career out of kissing and writing about it.
By her ninth grade year, Claudia was spending hours each week in her bedroom writing descriptive essays that heavily featured older boys (eleventh grade). She also practiced her kissing technique on a pole lamp next to her bed. It was less than satisfactory, but the writing was fun.
She attended the University of Southern California as an English major. She'd mastered kissing by this time and writing, strangely enough, was still fun. 'Strangely' because while it had become obvious to her that almost everyone enjoyed kissing, it was equally obvious that very few people enjoyed writing. This was as peculiar to her as, well, not enjoying kissing.
Clearly, something had to be done. The idea of combining kissing and writing seemed the obvious course of action. While Claudia does not claim to have invented the romance novel, she certainly has a lot of fun describing kisses and inventing men to bestow them upon. And not a one of her heroes looks remotely like a pole lamp. (And don't act like one either.)
Claudia was first published in 2000, is a two-time Rita finalist, and a USA Today Bestselling author. Which just goes to prove that you can make a career out of kissing and writing about it.
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
June 25, 2009
Apparently this is a sequel, which explains one of the problems I had with this book. The reader is introduced to about a dozen characters in the first few pages, each of whom is languid and rich and pretty and full of desire. I really couldn't tell them apart. I certainly couldn't tell which characters I was supposed to care about. Despite their varying backgrounds--one is a prostitute turned infamous society lady, another a debutante, etc--they all play the same role: they speak cattily at each other and yearn for more intimate connections. After a chapter or two of their non-witty witicisms and blunt reparte, I was done.
April 20, 2021
Eh not much of a character development here. I felt at times the author was starting to do well with one character than didnt follow through with another character. There seemed to have been 4 key players but background was missing on two.
January 7, 2009
This is the 2nd book in the Courtesan series and it didn't disappoint.
After seeing the great results Sophia (Caro's mother an ex courtesan, now a Duchess) produced in arranging Caro's marriage,("The Courtesan's Daughter") Louisa seeks Sophia's help to land Lord Dutton, an infamous rake. Louisa uses the excuse she wants her pearls back -- her pearls that Lord Dutton bought from her contentious father and offered them to Lady Caro for her hand in marriage.
Dutton's friend, Lord Henry Blakesley, is Louisa's constant companion and even helps in keeping Lord Dutton in her sights. In his endeavors, Henry has become a laughing stock in the ton for his attachment to Louisa, who sees nothing but a good friend in Henry.
Everyone knows Louisa is chasing Lord Dutton (even Lord Dutton).
Here is another opportunity for Sophia to help Louisa and at the same time get a little revenge on another that has done her wrong in her past.... What sweet revenge!!
Can't wait for book 3, "The Courtesan's Wager".
After seeing the great results Sophia (Caro's mother an ex courtesan, now a Duchess) produced in arranging Caro's marriage,("The Courtesan's Daughter") Louisa seeks Sophia's help to land Lord Dutton, an infamous rake. Louisa uses the excuse she wants her pearls back -- her pearls that Lord Dutton bought from her contentious father and offered them to Lady Caro for her hand in marriage.
Dutton's friend, Lord Henry Blakesley, is Louisa's constant companion and even helps in keeping Lord Dutton in her sights. In his endeavors, Henry has become a laughing stock in the ton for his attachment to Louisa, who sees nothing but a good friend in Henry.
Everyone knows Louisa is chasing Lord Dutton (even Lord Dutton).
Here is another opportunity for Sophia to help Louisa and at the same time get a little revenge on another that has done her wrong in her past.... What sweet revenge!!
Can't wait for book 3, "The Courtesan's Wager".
May 10, 2009
It took me a while to wrap my brain around this book--the whole thing takes place over just a few days (I'd say a good third or more of it at one party), with all the characters and their relationships already established. The book itself is basically an expanded version of the climax. It didn't really work for me. I think it was partly because the structure of it confused me, and partly because I found the two main female characters pretty unsympathetic.
July 13, 2020
The first couple of chapters I almost put it back in my bookcase for later. But then I started making sense of what was going on & didn't want to put the book down so I had to set how much to read each evening so I could string the suspense out....lol
Louisa is making a fool of herself over the Marquess of Dutton and he has ignored her for 2 years. She decides to request help and Sophia has her own agenda which falls more in line with Lord Henry. Life doesn't always turn out like you plan it but it's an interesting ride.
Louisa is making a fool of herself over the Marquess of Dutton and he has ignored her for 2 years. She decides to request help and Sophia has her own agenda which falls more in line with Lord Henry. Life doesn't always turn out like you plan it but it's an interesting ride.
December 5, 2009
In this second installment of The Courtesan Chronicles, Lady Sophia Dalby is at work with her new project Lady Louisa Kirkland, whom we could anticipate after reading the last chapter of “The Courtesan's Daughter”. This story packed a lot of suggestive conversation, character build-up, and discreetly set-up scandals. There were a lot of minor characters to spice up the events at Hyde House (again), but all it took was a determined female, an even more determined male, and a manipulative ex-courtesan to wrap it up nicely.
I liked this better than the first book because I found Henry's attraction to Louisa very charming and chivalrous. There was certainly time for his attraction to develop unto love and when he got the chance at making Louisa his, he took it. The turn of events were quite unpredictable although it was frustrating sometimes when the lines just go around in circles, characters were never direct, like they're playing a verbal game on saying one thing and meaning another. This book was full of that, but I found that one has to read between the lines to get what they're saying.
The results weren't really surprising but Claudia Dain made this enjoyable for me because of the unusual turn of events and how the characters' actions veered to a direction. I was especially fond of Sophia's nephew, George, a savage through and through and I liked how he stared at Louisa as if undressing her. The ending of this novel was another foreshadowing, like a prologue to the next novel, which I immediately started right after reading this.
I liked this better than the first book because I found Henry's attraction to Louisa very charming and chivalrous. There was certainly time for his attraction to develop unto love and when he got the chance at making Louisa his, he took it. The turn of events were quite unpredictable although it was frustrating sometimes when the lines just go around in circles, characters were never direct, like they're playing a verbal game on saying one thing and meaning another. This book was full of that, but I found that one has to read between the lines to get what they're saying.
The results weren't really surprising but Claudia Dain made this enjoyable for me because of the unusual turn of events and how the characters' actions veered to a direction. I was especially fond of Sophia's nephew, George, a savage through and through and I liked how he stared at Louisa as if undressing her. The ending of this novel was another foreshadowing, like a prologue to the next novel, which I immediately started right after reading this.
June 30, 2009
This was a fun read. It was so interesting to see how Sophia set everything in motion to help Louisa get her family pearls back (and find a husband in doing so).
I think at some points there were too many characters being described - especially male characters. I'm sure the author was just setting them up for later books but it did make it difficult to keep up with who was who at times. Plus, I think we should have had more scenes where Louisa and Henry were alone together since the book was about their relationship.
It took me a bit to warm up to the main character Louisa just because she was one of those girls who persisted in thinking she was in love with the wrong man for most of the book and didn't see how great her friend Henry was all along until the end. I think most of us have met someone like Louisa in our everyday lives and it can be quite frustrating to hear them drone on about someone we know is Mr. Wrong.
I think at some points there were too many characters being described - especially male characters. I'm sure the author was just setting them up for later books but it did make it difficult to keep up with who was who at times. Plus, I think we should have had more scenes where Louisa and Henry were alone together since the book was about their relationship.
It took me a bit to warm up to the main character Louisa just because she was one of those girls who persisted in thinking she was in love with the wrong man for most of the book and didn't see how great her friend Henry was all along until the end. I think most of us have met someone like Louisa in our everyday lives and it can be quite frustrating to hear them drone on about someone we know is Mr. Wrong.
September 2, 2008
My first time reading a Claudia Dain story... and I got her name from one of the Goodreads friend's reading list... I thought it would be fun to look up a new author I had never read.
CD's style is entirely based on conversations between the players and hinges on subtle nuances of wordings at just the right time and place. This makes for very intense reading as one cannot akip over any lines in worder to keep up with the story development.
On one hand, the writing reminds me of Jane Austen as it is very alive with social customs and mannerisms, and somewhat of Mary Balogh who is very deft with nuanced development of passion between the hero and heroine.
Great fun!
CD's style is entirely based on conversations between the players and hinges on subtle nuances of wordings at just the right time and place. This makes for very intense reading as one cannot akip over any lines in worder to keep up with the story development.
On one hand, the writing reminds me of Jane Austen as it is very alive with social customs and mannerisms, and somewhat of Mary Balogh who is very deft with nuanced development of passion between the hero and heroine.
Great fun!
October 15, 2012
Another fun romp among the plethora of dukes (and almost dukes) and other titled creatures of Regency London. A likeable hero/heroine pair, and an increasingly entertaining cast of secondary characters and sequel bait.
There's a delightful scene where Lady Sophia turns what ought to be the moment of Louisa's shame and degradation into something else entirely, and Louisa is clever enough to realize that she's being given power for the first time in her life, and act accordingly.
I love stories about unconventional women, strong women, defiant women. Lady Sophia is one such, and everyone around her cannot but be affected by her unconventionality.
There's a delightful scene where Lady Sophia turns what ought to be the moment of Louisa's shame and degradation into something else entirely, and Louisa is clever enough to realize that she's being given power for the first time in her life, and act accordingly.
I love stories about unconventional women, strong women, defiant women. Lady Sophia is one such, and everyone around her cannot but be affected by her unconventionality.
July 22, 2008
This story takes up where the last one left off. Lady Caro's friend (Louisa)needs help landing a husband and goes to Caro's mom (Sophie) for help. Although Louisa has chosen Dutton for her husband, Sophie has another in mind (Lord Henry Blakesley).
In both of the Courtesan books, there is an underlying plot by Sophie to get her revenge on the ones that have done her wrong in her past, using their children to do it....And the revenge is sweet!!
In both of the Courtesan books, there is an underlying plot by Sophie to get her revenge on the ones that have done her wrong in her past, using their children to do it....And the revenge is sweet!!
July 11, 2009
This book was OK. There were a lot of conversations in the book that seemed like just a lot of filler. It took my a while to get into the book. There were parts near the end I really liked. Overall, I thought the main character came across as oblivious, narrow minded, and obsessive which really annoyed me. There were parts in this book that I really enjoyed and parts that nearly made me close the book and let it remain unfinished.
October 22, 2011
Wow, what a great find. Yes, it is a historical romance, but if you think all historical romances are the same, think again. If you do not have an excellent grasp of the English language, you would not be able to follow the plot. This book, along with many other historical British romances are written with high level English, using great wit and dialogue. The only problem with finding a new great author, is my list of books "to read" grows and grows. Who has time to work?
March 5, 2013
Again, with this second book in the series, I felt as if all of the side characters were taking over the romance between the MCs. It was more a novel about Sophia Dalby and her siblings, rather than Louisa and Blakesley, which relationship I would have enjoyed evolving, but since there was too much 'filler' involved with things other than the main romance, I didn't finish reading it and, unfortunately, will not continue with the next books as I fear it will be the same issue.
September 6, 2010
Louisa saw how Sophia Darby helped her daughter (Caroline Darby) snag a husband and wants the same sort of help. Louisa even knows the man she wants, Lord Dutton. She's been in love with him for years and wants him to finally acknowledge that he returns her affection. There is the slight problem that she's been kissing around with Lord Henry Blakesley, and he might just want to keep her.
July 5, 2012
Lady Louisa's story was just as riveting as Lady Caroline's (the Courtesan's Daughter)... She enlisted the help of Lady Sophia Dalby and secured a marriage, even thought she was ruined.. She was ruined by the one who stole her heart.
June 17, 2012
This book is pure unadulterated fluff, but it’s some EXTREMELY enjoyable fluff.
I read the entire book in less than two hours and felt that they were well spent.
Would recommend it as something like a guilty pleasure / palette cleanser in between some serious reads.
I read the entire book in less than two hours and felt that they were well spent.
Would recommend it as something like a guilty pleasure / palette cleanser in between some serious reads.
May 20, 2015
delightful fluff
December 20, 2008
Yep. I am not ashamed -- I thought it was awesome. Great for carpool but hid from children. Summary: Weak Austen tones (ie girl looking for the right marriage in Regency England) but with spice.
Read
August 24, 2009The Courtesan's Secret (The Courtesan Series) by Claudia Dain (2008)
November 12, 2017
Regency
November 25, 2009
The witty good fun continues. Really enjoying this series.
June 13, 2011
Rather improbable that everyone would fall into place and speak their requisite lines, but a fun read anyway. Book 3 will be on my TBR list as I'm curious to find out how Amelia will land her duke.
September 12, 2016
I just skimmed this. It had an okay storyline, typical Regency romance,but weird writing style.
January 23, 2012
It was a great book it kept me in ne place i couldnt move until i finished it
March 27, 2012
Absolutely delightful writing style, full of non-stop irony and innuendo. The best sort of indulgence!
December 5, 2011
Never read the first one. While this one was very good, I wouldn't re-read it.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews