SHE HAD TOO MUCH SENSE TO BE SEDUCED BY SUCH A MAN…
Beautiful and reckless, the Loversall women have been notorious for loving unwisely and all too well. But Cara, now the widowed Lady Norwood, refuses to follow family tradition. Instead, she is quite happy rusticating on her estate in the Cotswolds, tending to her garden…until the day her brother arrives requesting her help. It seems that her niece, in the manner of all true Loversalls, has developed a most unsuitable tendre. And the object of her affection? None other than Mannering–the most irresistible, infuriating, indecently handsome rake in all of London.
BUT SINCE WHEN IS LOVE SENSIBLE?
To the world, Nicholas, Lord Mannering can seduce the birds from the trees. But unbeknownst to Society, there has been one conquest who got away. Now, Nick has devised a shameless scheme to lure a certain defiant lady back to London–and into his arms. Alas, he never counted on Cara’s niece being so devilishly determined to hold onto her prize. Suddenly the most worldly and sophisticated of rogues is caught between two stubborn women…one he will do anything to entice, the other he wants only to escape. In this scandalous tangle of hearts, does love stand a chance?
I discovered Maggie MacKeever a few months ago and have enjoyed her off-beat Regencies. An Extraordinary Flirtation is no exception…and it managed to make me actually laugh out loud in a couple parts which is the wild horse I am always chasing.
A sort of second chance romance, Cara is lured back to town by her former love, the bad boy Mannering, under the guise of seducing her niece. They are older, wiser, but still hot for each other. The romance element of that is a little subtle, but if you read in between the lines a bit its really sweet.
Boy, is the niece Zoe (and her father) a Piece of Work. She may be at the top of a short list of Regency characters you love to hate. She literally lays on the ground and beats her feet and hands when she is throwing a tantrum. She says outrageous things for a virginal debutante. And she is beautiful enough to get away with it. The father (Cara’s brother) is just as bad, spending most of the time moping about his love life problems rather than focusing on what a crazy brat his daughter is. There is also a long suffering cousin, Ianthe, who out of long standing devotion has served as default mom and house manager for these two monsters.
Cara married a much older man, escaping the family tradition of making a passionate and poor marriage. She has been content with her critters, gardens, and her quiet country life. Except, of course, for a pesky neighbor Squire who wants her land.
Mannering is the classic ageing rakehell. There is not a deep backstory or a lot of time spent on his character, but I liked him nonetheless.
MacKeever does a great job at painting a vivid picture of the Regency that helps enmesh the reader into the period and tone. Some of the scenes are outrageous, and therefore hilarious. I won’t spoil them…but I will say that I love when naughty dogs are featured.
This was originally a Zebra Regency, so it borders between steamy and clean. There are some bedroom scenes off the page, and lots of risqué talk, discussion of ED, mistresses, and other stuff that might be off putting to a clean reader. There is also a lot of kissing.
Funny, fast read that is not quite clean and not quite steam. Recommended for older readers who love a good second chance romance with a lot of farce.
4.25 out of 6 Farcical second chance romance
| Content Rating/Heat Index | |
|---|---|
| Mature Content |   |
| Adult subject material, including mentions of mistresses, ED, and members | |
| Intimacy | |
| Most, besides kissing, occurs off page but there is strong innuendo. | |
| Violence | |
| Some squabbles and accidents | |
| Overall |  |
|---|---|
| Not quite clean and not quite steam. Recommended for mature readers who don't mind adult subject matter. | |
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