Sebastian’s
Lady Spy
Secrets & Seduction # 5
Secrets & Seduction # 5
By: Sharon Cullen
Releasing March 31st, 2015
Loveswept
Blurb
Seduction
abounds in Sharon Cullen’s steamy historical romance! For the Crown’s top
agents, love is a hazard best avoided—until an unforgettable affair exposes
their undercover hearts.
Sebastian Addison has a powerful
secret. To society he is the Earl of Claybrook, the patriarch who raised his
siblings after the death of their parents. But to the king, Sebastian is
Britain’s top spy—a position that has taken an emotional toll on him. Contessa
Gabrielle Marciano has also been living a lie, her title a cover devised by the
Office of Intelligence. The femme fatale was plucked from a life of crime and
prostitution and trained to restrain her passionate nature. Until she meets the
earl.
For three deeply sensual days and
nights, Sebastian and Gabrielle drop their masks, indulging in pleasures that
seem too good to be true. Then the lovers go their separate ways. Seven months
later they reunite when inside sources report that an English aristocrat has
been aiding France in a plot to topple the Crown. Their objective: to find the
turncoat. Their greatest challenge: to keep their wild, wounded hearts from
derailing a mission of life and death.
Review 5 Stars
Sebastian’s Lady Spy has adventure,
steamy romance, great characters, and an intriguing plot. I loved reading it.
It may seem an odd word to use, but it fits, this book was delightful.
On
the outside, Sebastian has quite the life. Money, a title, good looks, etc.
However, his life has never really been his own. Orphaned at sixteen, he raised
his two siblings, only to become a servant of the crown as one of their top
spies. The biggest sacrifice in this job is any kind of permanent relationship.
So when he meets Gabrielle, and he loses his heart, he is forced to let her go.
Gabrielle
was plucked from the streets at a young age and molded into a weapon for the
good of England. Though she was saved from an unimaginable life, there is a
part of her that yearns for those things she can never have, a husband,
children, a family. But, she knows those things are beyond her reach and has
accepted her position. Sebastian sneaks up and steals her heart, but she lets
him go, knowing she has nothing to offer him.
Sebastian
and Gabrielle are then thrown into an assignment together. Sebastian is unhappy
to work with anyone, but working with Gabrielle is completely unacceptable. His
passion for her consumes him and he knows she will be the ultimate distraction.
However, he is given no choice and his incorrect assumptions about Gabrielle’s
knowledge of who he was at their last encounter, cement his decision to cut her
out of the investigation and do his best to stay away from her.
Gabrielle
is not about to be left behind. Sebastian underestimates her and she is forced
to prove her worth to him. Unfortunately, in the process, she falls for him all
over again. The sparks between them are almost impossible to ignore and thought
they are both good at their jobs, it is clear that the mission may become
compromised because they are so consumed with each other.
The
author has done a wonderful job of weaving this tale. There were a few
surprises that kept it interesting and the cast of supporting characters
rounded out the story nicely. Sebastian is quite hardheaded and very quick to
assume the worst of people, but he is still captivating and it was easy to want
to be in Gabrielle’s shoes.
Gabrielle
is the ultimate string and independent woman. As a spy and assassin for the
crown she would have to be. However, the author also took an unusual twist on
this story that was actually pretty brave. Even today, when sex outside of
marriage is so accepted, you will rarely find a story where the female heroine
is forced to sleep with the target. It may get close, but in the end, she is
often saved from having to commit this act, and if she does, she is treated as
though she were prostituting herself. However, today, as it was then, men who
sleep with the target are treated as somewhat of a hero, the playboy who can
get all the women. So, for the author to put Gabrielle in the circumstances of
the men, and keep her from seeming like a prostitute to the reader, seems like
it would be a slippery slope. But, the author manages to do it. I liked
Gabrielle very much and I felt empathy for the position she has been forced
into.
This
a creative love story and I shut the last page with a smile, satisfied that
Gabrielle and Sebastian found their happily ever after. I was also caught by
the other characters in the book who have a story of their own. I’ll definitely
be putting those on my TBR.
Author Info
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