Book Review: A Courtesan's Scandal

Author: Julia London
Title:A Courtesan's Scandal
Publisher: Pocket Books
Publish Date: October 2009
Rating: 4 Stars
Book Blurb: Kate Bergeron is the beautiful and mysterious former mistress of a cloth merchant...and the latest beauty to capture the interest of the Prince of Wales. Mired in a disastrous divorce, the Prince attempts to distract attention from his next amorous pursuit by ordering Grayson Christopher, the eligible Duke of Darlington, to pretend to London society that he is having an affair with Kate. When Grayson reluctantly agrees to his Prince's demand, he finds the lady no more willing than he is. Kate will grudgingly act the part in public, but her favors are not for sale to any man. As Grayson and Kate mimic ardor for the world to see, they find what started as a deception becoming all too real. And when passion flames into love, their predicament becomes extreme. For while marriage between a duke and a courtesan could never happen, Kate knows in her heart that she is willing to accept nothing less....
Review: I had never read a book by Julia London before, but if this book is any indication of her writing style, I'm definitely going to be joining the ranks of her fans.

This book was really well written and fun and it didn't over sex the story, which could have been a pitfall, since the heroine is a courtesan. London kept the balance of good girl/sex goddess pretty nicely. Kate Bergeron wasn't a novice at her profession but she also wanted to be something more, a baker! Kate is always working in the kitchen creating some pastry or another. It is almost impossible not to crave sweets while reading this book.

Grayson was everything anyone would think a duke should be, including a hopeless stuffed shirt, until he really started to get to know Kate, then he started to change, to care about things other than what was expected of the Duke Of Darlington. It was really quite fun to watch how he slowly started to fall for Kate, even though he didn't want to. The fact of the matter is, Grayson was a bit of a hypocrite. He fought against liking or being seen with Kate, even when it was a favor for the Prince Of Wales, but it was perfectly acceptable for him to bed another man's wife, and when he finished with that woman (Diana) he ended it so abruptly it was no wonder she sought revenge! Who wouldn't?

The cast of characters in the story really makes it more enjoyable, from Kate's staff to Darlington's family. I really loved how Grayson acted towards his nephews. Most regency romances don't have the hero cast as a family man, but that wasn't the case with Grayson, which really made it difficult at times to believe he wasn't ready for marriage.

But all of the little plot holes didn't hurt this story, and yes, there were several including a whopper at the end involving Kate's long lost brother. (You'll have to read to understand) This was truly a great regency read, I can't wait to devour another one of Julia's books.

~ If you like this author, please share another title that I might enjoy.