Between the Devil and Desire

Scoundrels of St. James, Book 2

By: Lorraine Heath

Narrated by: Susan Ericksen, Antony Ferguson

Length: 11 hrs and 15 mins

Publisher's summary

London's most notorious rogue - decadent, depraved, forbidden:

The ladies of the town won't stop whispering about deliciously wicked Jack Dodger - once a thieving street urchin, now the wealthy owner of London's most exclusive gentleman's club. There's no pleasure he hasn't enjoyed, no debauchery the handsome scoundrel won't provide for the lords who flock to his house of carnal intrigue.

London's most virtuous lady - honorable, uncorrupted, and all too human:

Olivia, Duchess of Lovingdon, would never associate with such a rogue. So when Jack is named sole heir to the duke's personal possessions, the beautiful, well-bred lady is outraged. Now, Olivia is forced to share her beloved home with this despicable man.

But Olivia's icy disdain is no match for Jack's dangerous charm. His touch awakens desire. His kiss demands surrender. She will struggle to bar Jack from her heart....but her body, coveting divine release, will not let her bar him from her bed.

©2009 Jan Nowasky (P)2012 HarperCollinsPublishers

Probably my favorite Scoundrel

Read from April 14 to 19, 2013

Read/Listened for Fun (Kindle/Audible)
Overall Rating: 4.25
Story Rating: 4.25
Character Rating: 4.25

Audio Rating: 4.00 (not part of the overall rating)

First Thought when Finished: Jack Dodger was super wicked and probably my favorite Scoundrel!

Story Thoughts: Historical romance must have two things to make me happy: a man to swoon for and a woman who puts him in his place. Between the Devil and Desire delivered on both counts. The story had the added kick of a little boy who brought out the best in Mr. Dodger. I cried at the back story, laughed at the shenanigans, and loved watching Jack/Olivia fall in love!

Character Thoughts: Normally I would start with the man but to me Olivia was the rock of Between the Devil and Desire. She was a woman who could have just cowered to Jack but instead she was a fierce mama bear who held her own. What I loved most? She was willing to expand her thought process even where her son was concerned. Jack was just awesome. I liked him the first book but loved him here. I am so glad he finally found love and a little peace.

Audio Thoughts:

Narrated By Susan Ericksen, Antony Ferguson /Length: 11 hrs and 15 mins

Susan and Antony did a great job with Jack and Olivia. I do think they work really well together and really enjoyed this audiobook.

Final Thoughts: I am really enjoying this series so far!

Finally a great story, & narration

It's been soooo long since I read read and enjoyed everything about this book- Great story, conflict, heros and heroines!! Get it. You will love it.

Surprised I love it more than Book 1

I wasn't happy at first about Jack Dodger being the focus in book two of this series and the first I'd say half hour I found the ridiculous behavior from the two main characters annoying, but as you get to know the characters you truly enjoy the unfolding of this complex character Jack Dodger.

The poor man has been through much - you truly ache for him as you discover his pains.

For Olivia (Livi), you understand how she transitions.

I'm not big on explicit sex scenes in books, but recognize this is a romance. However in this book the intimacy was necessary to understand really the unfolding of the characters, both Olivia and Jack. She was repressed. He was protecting himself.

My favorite scene was when he becomes overly turned on by Olivia (not a sex scene just early in their attraction) and he goes to Dodgers and denies his carnal appetite. It is the beginning of him becoming the man he had always been without knowing it.

Truly a nice story - not very realistic that a Duchess would be with him but you love the story all the same.

The little boy Henry grows in importance and that doll makes you cry with joy.

Slow!

A good story but should have been half the length. So slow it was just plain tedious through much of the book. Very good narration though.

Loved it, but...

Any additional comments?

as with the first book in this series, I found the narration way too slow. Once I changed the setting to 1 1/2 x , it was perfect!

Good Book 2 in the Series

This is book 2 in the Scoundrels series, and I enjoyed it, but the romance between Jack and Olivia started a bit slow. At first, Jack and Olivia were really mean to each other, which was a bit annoying, but the book picked up speed and captured my attention. The book did have some good twists, and Lorraine Heath is a talented author. There are some dark, evil aspects in the story, especially in Jack's background, but it made you understand Jack and his personality. The narrator is really good, and she also read book 1, which is nice for consistency. Overall, I am enjoying this series and I am looking forward to book 3.

Good Series!

The second book in the series was as good as the first. This author weaves a fast paced story with characters that come to life. I'm looking forward to the next book.

Predictable.

Will not read any more in this series. Don’t waste a credit as I did. Kept thinking it would get better, but it doesn’t.

Extremely annoying lead character

Olivia, aka Duchess, was very very annoying. I'm not sure if the author made her annoying or if the narrator made her sound annoying. Either way....I found her attitude distracting. Dodger deserved a slap or two...but he did have some redeeming qualities. The story line was well-developed, so it's unfortunate that the characters distracted from the story.

Wonderful addition to the series

I enjoyed this second book in the series. The characters continue from book one and are so well developed I found myself totally involved....again. It is really difficult to stop listening mostly because of the hardships they've endured and how they overcome them. The love story just develops naturally....not something far-fetched or predictable. I highly recommend this series.