Bestseller Johnson follows Gorgeous as Sin
with another sizzling 1890s romance. Osmond, Baron Lennox, freely takes on new lovers right and left. When he stumbles into Isolde Perceval's hotel room instead of the one where a paramour waits for him, the libidinous countess invites him to stay the night, knowing the scandal will dissuade the odious man who wants to marry her for her fortune. Osmond gallantly offers to wed Isolde instead, declaring, “It's strictly a business arrangement,” while privately expecting her to remain his lover for “at least a month”; Isolde is entirely complacent about the arrangement and his inevitable infidelity before the agreed-upon divorce, making the happy-and-monogamous-ever-after ending ring a bit false. Yet the clever, sexy characters' refreshing honesty about their lust results in a sensual and satisfying story. (Jan.)
