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Rakes and Rogues #1
What the Earl Desires
Preferring solitude, Colin Faulkner resides at his country estate. Yet, fate being fickle, introduces a mysterious woman into his life. Societal dictates say he has no business wanting her...he does. Najja's in England for one thing, however, meeting Colin changes everything. After he unexpectedly becomes Earl of Clifton, Najja withdraws. Her excuse? His title. Her vow.
Colin doesn't care, but wanting and /having/ Najja are two different things. For Najja can never truly be his so long as another controls her. Obstacles are meaningless when a love that spans the continents is...
What the Earl Desires
Colin doesn't care, but wanting and /having/ Najja are two different things. For Najja can never truly be his so long as another controls her. Obstacles are meaningless when a love that spans the continents is...
What the Earl Desires
344 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 1, 2011
27 people are currently reading
690 people want to read
About the author
Aliyah Burke
315 books986 followersA USA Today Bestselling author, Aliyah Burke is an avid reader and is never far from pen and paper (or the computer). She loves to hear from her readers and can be reached http://aliyah-burke.com/blog/contact/
Facebook, twitter, Instagram, or via email.
She is married to a career military man, and they are owned by 4 Borzoi. Her days are spent sharing her time between work, writing, and dog training/showing.
Facebook, twitter, Instagram, or via email.
She is married to a career military man, and they are owned by 4 Borzoi. Her days are spent sharing her time between work, writing, and dog training/showing.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews
December 8, 2013
Loved it! There definitely needs to be more historical romance novels written like this. I was staying away from historical romance due to the lack of people of color, lack of variety in heroines- always the genteel sort, but reading this has me craving more books within the historical romance sub-genre. I'll just be looking to read novels with more interesting couples.
June 4, 2012
I give author Aliyah Burke an extra star for her wonderful depiction of three of the main female characters in this intriguing historical fiction novel. Some romance writers commit major genderfail when it comes to their female characters because they tend to be so overly in love with the alpha male. Not only was Najja, the African assassin a wonderful and well-crafted heroine (much like an 18th century version of the comic book heroine Elektra), but so were the strong-willed and loyal women of the family she has been hired to protect, Josephine "Jo" Adrys and her mother Honoria.
Even though I came to know and to love Najja and her struggle between love and duty, the larger story of her life was never delved into the way it needed to be. For instance, who was her father and why was he so powerful? Why did her train his only daughter to be an assassin? What I did love is in spite of her prowess with sais and a very deadly whip, Najja wasn't written like some invincible superwoman. Her battles always came with scars and the fact that she got wounded in her fights worked. I like that sense of realism. I also like how she doesn't just fall in love with the hero, but struggles with what she wants versus what she can/cannot have. I guess my only minor quibble is the whole hair thing. Not every black female, especially in the 18th century, is going to have long flowing locks. I guess hair will be the bane of black women, even in fiction, LOL.
Colin Faulkner was also an interesting character. At first I was a little taken aback at his use of the endearment "luv", which would have been out of character for a member of the ton. However, Colin having been a member of Her Majesty's Navy and thereby associating with "the wrong sort", his cadence and speech made perfect sense. I liked his passion and his kindness. Unlike a lot of stereotyped alpha males, Colin had heart. He was also not a man-slut. Of course he'd been in a previous relationship (and unfortunately left in the lurch by a fortune-hunting femme fatale), but once he saw Najja, she was it and he didn't care about her past. It was nice to see him wanting to protect her, but also knowing that she was more than capable of taking care of herself. The gold earring was also a nice touch.
And Jo. I loved Jo. She was such a free-spirited young woman and I can just imagine the kind of mayhem she'd cause at Almack's with her plain-speaking. I hope we'll be treated to a Jo/Trystan tale soon...hint.
There were a few instances of modern speech which jarred me out of the setting, and even though I don't think race should be a huge plotline for IR books, the fact that it was glossed over in such as way as to be unrealistic for the times. Not that I needed for the racial aspect to be treated in a heavy-handed fashion, but there was no way that a woman like Najja was going to be accepted amongst the upper ten thousand, and it would make no sense for Colin, despite hating London, could lock himself and her away on his country estate without notice. The other problem is how so many threads were left hanging. I never found out who was trying to kill the Adrys or why, nor why the person who was robbing Colin's shipments was doing so.
Overall, this was a great book and thorughly enjoyable, even for a stickler about Regency-era England such as myself.
Even though I came to know and to love Najja and her struggle between love and duty, the larger story of her life was never delved into the way it needed to be. For instance, who was her father and why was he so powerful? Why did her train his only daughter to be an assassin? What I did love is in spite of her prowess with sais and a very deadly whip, Najja wasn't written like some invincible superwoman. Her battles always came with scars and the fact that she got wounded in her fights worked. I like that sense of realism. I also like how she doesn't just fall in love with the hero, but struggles with what she wants versus what she can/cannot have. I guess my only minor quibble is the whole hair thing. Not every black female, especially in the 18th century, is going to have long flowing locks. I guess hair will be the bane of black women, even in fiction, LOL.
Colin Faulkner was also an interesting character. At first I was a little taken aback at his use of the endearment "luv", which would have been out of character for a member of the ton. However, Colin having been a member of Her Majesty's Navy and thereby associating with "the wrong sort", his cadence and speech made perfect sense. I liked his passion and his kindness. Unlike a lot of stereotyped alpha males, Colin had heart. He was also not a man-slut. Of course he'd been in a previous relationship (and unfortunately left in the lurch by a fortune-hunting femme fatale), but once he saw Najja, she was it and he didn't care about her past. It was nice to see him wanting to protect her, but also knowing that she was more than capable of taking care of herself. The gold earring was also a nice touch.
And Jo. I loved Jo. She was such a free-spirited young woman and I can just imagine the kind of mayhem she'd cause at Almack's with her plain-speaking. I hope we'll be treated to a Jo/Trystan tale soon...hint.
There were a few instances of modern speech which jarred me out of the setting, and even though I don't think race should be a huge plotline for IR books, the fact that it was glossed over in such as way as to be unrealistic for the times. Not that I needed for the racial aspect to be treated in a heavy-handed fashion, but there was no way that a woman like Najja was going to be accepted amongst the upper ten thousand, and it would make no sense for Colin, despite hating London, could lock himself and her away on his country estate without notice. The other problem is how so many threads were left hanging. I never found out who was trying to kill the Adrys or why, nor why the person who was robbing Colin's shipments was doing so.
Overall, this was a great book and thorughly enjoyable, even for a stickler about Regency-era England such as myself.
March 3, 2017
OMG I really liked this one. Despite it less then steller cover, made me think that was going to be a really poorly written trash romance this book totally wowed me. It was beautifully written with a perfect heroine and hero and plot. I think that the only aspect that I might have complained about were I felt that There was a lot of time the two main characters went without seeing each other, even though we don't experience it, were told he hasn't seen her in two weeks, or a month, and that made me sad cause I wanted them to be so in love they can't even bee two days without one another but honestly it did make for a more realistic plot. that was basically it though, everything else about this book i loved. the male charachter was sweet yet perfectly possessive he found his assassin lover intriguing and mesmerizing vs fearful and trying to control her. At the same time he is clearly a pirate earl with all the fun masculine aspect that comes along with. all the relationships in the book were fun and I never disliked anyone, I thought the heroine was super bad ass and even though she was at times a stick in the mud it was clearly due to her upbringing. I loved the addition of Pug and I over all just really highly recommend this one!
May 30, 2019
3.5 stars. I enjoyed the refreshing aspects of this story....and the writing was decent though there were some spelling mistakes that were too glaringly obvious to miss. What I found odd in this book was the "romance." The way the chemistry between Najja and Colin was portrayed made it feel like nothing more than a strong case of lust. It just didn't feel like love. Also I didn't understand Najja's refusal to leave her father. There was no back story to explain it so it made no sense to me and made her seem like someone with a weak character and physical strength. I wish Burke had done a better job with the romance and Najja's character development. Also the random attacks on Jo and Colin's people were never really explained....the villains were just not there at all. I was frustrated about that too. It was definitely a different flavor of HR. The synopsis made me think of the Duke of Shadows and My beautiful enemy but the writing lacked that luster and the story telling lacked that magic.
December 13, 2019
The rating is for the heroine and the mysteries. I could leave the romance and everything else.
January 8, 2013
Excellent love story.. Collin Faulkner finds himself meeting the love of his life Najja under some mysterious conditions... What one will find is that Najja is a trained assassin, who is sold by her father for the highest price! Yes, it is the year 1811 and because societal dictates that they should never be together, what will happen?.. Yet the only thing keeping them apart is her loyalty to her father and the continent of Africa! If you are in need of an intriguing and hot interracial romance, take a moment and enjoy a great read! :)
February 6, 2012
After finally breaking down to pay the $8.99 price and started to read I realized it is one of those stories that you want to finish but you don't want it to end. Adventure and romance
March 24, 2025
Najja: beautiful, talented, assassin 🗡
Colin: brave, handsome af, head over heels for Najja ❤️
Me: squealing and totally enamored 😍
A historical story of an earl falling for his neighbor's companion aka bodyguard.
A couple of issues that kept this from 5 stars- 1 the people who were coming after Colin and the Adrys were glossed over and I thought that was weird; like why did they want them dead?
2 I wanted more descriptions of the... sexy times 😎 the tension was A1 and then when it happened, it was glossed over- MAN WTF!! got me suffering the lady version of blue balls 😒
I don't think the sequels will hold up to this one so I'm not gonna bother; Najja and Colin are chefs kiss.
Colin: brave, handsome af, head over heels for Najja ❤️
Me: squealing and totally enamored 😍
A historical story of an earl falling for his neighbor's companion aka bodyguard.
A couple of issues that kept this from 5 stars- 1 the people who were coming after Colin and the Adrys were glossed over and I thought that was weird; like why did they want them dead?
2 I wanted more descriptions of the... sexy times 😎 the tension was A1 and then when it happened, it was glossed over- MAN WTF!! got me suffering the lady version of blue balls 😒
I don't think the sequels will hold up to this one so I'm not gonna bother; Najja and Colin are chefs kiss.
March 28, 2020
DNF: 78%
From the many 5 star reviews, I was expecting something earth shattering. A badass heroine and a badass hero were words that were bandied about, and that's what I wanted. Not to mention the heroine was a woman of color!
This is the story of Najja, an African assassin hired to protect a English peer's daughter, Jo. While in England, Najja makes the acquaintance of Mr. Faulkner, and sparks fly ... sort of.
Najja is from "Africa," more specifically, "Western Africa." We can surmise the Congo Basin from her references to the rainforest in western Africa, but I'll admit, I was disappointed no country was named, no native tongue was referenced, and no cultures were admired.
Colin Faulkner, the hero, is high-handed and irritating. He treats Najja as less than an equal, ordering her around, threatening her, and making demands. When he's not, he has a constant stream of sexual remarks that are borderline creepy.
Add to all this, my greatest pet peeves: poor grammar and inexcusable word choice.
"She mewled when his seeking digits teased her damp curls." This makes me wonder if the author went to thesaurus.com for synonyms of "finger."
"He explored her mouth, deep sweeping strokes that blended their tastes." Blended their tastes? Like their saliva, or the food they ate? Or does she mean their tongues?
I wrote much more about my disappointment in this book and the tropism of Najja's character with the warning that there is a minor spoiler: https://wordpress.com/post/nmccreablo...
This book, sadly, breaks no barriers but instead makes good use of the cookie cutter characters I'm familiar with in English romance novels.
From the many 5 star reviews, I was expecting something earth shattering. A badass heroine and a badass hero were words that were bandied about, and that's what I wanted. Not to mention the heroine was a woman of color!
This is the story of Najja, an African assassin hired to protect a English peer's daughter, Jo. While in England, Najja makes the acquaintance of Mr. Faulkner, and sparks fly ... sort of.
Najja is from "Africa," more specifically, "Western Africa." We can surmise the Congo Basin from her references to the rainforest in western Africa, but I'll admit, I was disappointed no country was named, no native tongue was referenced, and no cultures were admired.
Colin Faulkner, the hero, is high-handed and irritating. He treats Najja as less than an equal, ordering her around, threatening her, and making demands. When he's not, he has a constant stream of sexual remarks that are borderline creepy.
Add to all this, my greatest pet peeves: poor grammar and inexcusable word choice.
"She mewled when his seeking digits teased her damp curls." This makes me wonder if the author went to thesaurus.com for synonyms of "finger."
"He explored her mouth, deep sweeping strokes that blended their tastes." Blended their tastes? Like their saliva, or the food they ate? Or does she mean their tongues?
I wrote much more about my disappointment in this book and the tropism of Najja's character with the warning that there is a minor spoiler: https://wordpress.com/post/nmccreablo...
This book, sadly, breaks no barriers but instead makes good use of the cookie cutter characters I'm familiar with in English romance novels.
October 21, 2013
I love interracial romances. I especially love historical interracial romances because I find its a challenge. How can you tell a realistic story with maybe a semi-believable ending at that point in time? I mean it is ONE thing to write about "race-mixing" during the Wild West, and a completely different during a Regent period. I'm always going----how are you going to make this legal in that time period?!
I think really weird thoughts while reading sometimes...
On towards the story review!
I actually liked the sexual tension in this book sometimes more than the story itself. It was exciting to read how Colin would plot all types of impropriety of the time. :] Also, the fact that he was stubborn in her calling him 'Colin' instead of Mr. Faulkner.
I'm such a corny sap. The character sexual tension was by far the better than the actual "night" that happened. I was not too thrilled about the "mystery" killer and how that all resolved. I did love me some of the that little boy Pug.
I know I'm a bit all over the place---but I think it was the secondary characters that out shined the plotline. It was weird because there was a lot of things that could have made this book lackluster---and just by sheer character likeability, I could ignore all that.
I loved the chemistry---the brooding rakish pirate 'dude' and the african assassin. Naja read straight out of a YA dystopian novel, without the love triangle attachment. Great, read.
I think really weird thoughts while reading sometimes...
On towards the story review!
I actually liked the sexual tension in this book sometimes more than the story itself. It was exciting to read how Colin would plot all types of impropriety of the time. :] Also, the fact that he was stubborn in her calling him 'Colin' instead of Mr. Faulkner.
I'm such a corny sap. The character sexual tension was by far the better than the actual "night" that happened. I was not too thrilled about the "mystery" killer and how that all resolved. I did love me some of the that little boy Pug.
I know I'm a bit all over the place---but I think it was the secondary characters that out shined the plotline. It was weird because there was a lot of things that could have made this book lackluster---and just by sheer character likeability, I could ignore all that.
I loved the chemistry---the brooding rakish pirate 'dude' and the african assassin. Naja read straight out of a YA dystopian novel, without the love triangle attachment. Great, read.
June 7, 2014
What the Earl Desires was the first historical romance I have read in at least 10 years and it totally blew me away. I literally could not put this book down. From the moment I began reading until the very last page, What the Earl Desires kept me up until 1 and 2 am some nights just to read “one more page.” It was simply magnificent.
Najja, a trained assassin and bodyguard unexpectedly falls for Colin, the Earl of Clifton. Predictable huh? Yes, but there was still a lot of really interesting surprises, twists and turns. What the Earl Desires made me mad; made me cry; made me shout and made me laugh out loud. It is filled with mystery, sweet romance, action, a little bit of violence and everything that makes for a great historical romance.
If you are looking for something different than all of the other historical romance novels that are out there, I highly doubt What the Earl Desires will disappoint you. The vernacular was way off at times, but even with the wrong vernacular and grammatical errors I still give the book 5 stars.
Najja, a trained assassin and bodyguard unexpectedly falls for Colin, the Earl of Clifton. Predictable huh? Yes, but there was still a lot of really interesting surprises, twists and turns. What the Earl Desires made me mad; made me cry; made me shout and made me laugh out loud. It is filled with mystery, sweet romance, action, a little bit of violence and everything that makes for a great historical romance.
If you are looking for something different than all of the other historical romance novels that are out there, I highly doubt What the Earl Desires will disappoint you. The vernacular was way off at times, but even with the wrong vernacular and grammatical errors I still give the book 5 stars.
May 10, 2018
To quote Erykah Badu, this book went "on and on and on and on.." They actually have very little interaction and when they do, it's just sex....if i read "exotic spices and vanilla" one more time....and this dude was a coward..he wanted her soo bad, but he always tried to hide their connection, but meanwhile were supposed to believe that he's such a rebel/unconventional man....and FFS who cares about his damn earring...this book is meh, at best...and to top it off, he finds out that the love of his life has left and what does this fool do? He takes a bite of his sandwich of course!
September 5, 2012
This was a very good book I was caught by surprised because this book was so much different from her other books but it was good. I found myself frustrated at times because the love part of the story took its time but I can say , that is what makes this story so good . I loved this couple Najja and Colin were strong characters I would love to see a second book because I would love to see a romance between Joe and Trystian.
May 24, 2017
What the Earl Desires by Aliyah Burke ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4.5) OMG I really liked this one. Despite it less then steller cover (made me think that was going to be a quick erotica novel) this book totally wowed me. It was beautifully written with a perfect heroine and hero and plot. I think that the only aspect that I might have complained about were I felt that There was a lot of time the two main characters went without seeing each other, even though we don't experience it, were told he hasn't seen her in two weeks, or a month, and that made me sad cause I wanted them to be so in love they can't even bee two days without one another but honestly it did make for a more realistic plot. that was basically it though, everything else about this book i loved. the male charachter was sweet yet perfectly possessive he found his assassin lover intriguing and mesmerizing vs fearful and trying to control her. At the same time he is clearly a pirate earl with all the fun masculine aspect that comes along with. all the relationships in the book were fun and I never disliked anyone, I thought the heroine was super bad ass and even though she was at times a stick in the mud it was clearly due to her upbringing. I loved the addition of Pug and I over all just really highly recommend this one! #whattheearldesires #aliyahburke #interracialcouple #interracialromance #assasin #earl #historicalromance #book #review #bookreview #romancebook #romancereview #biblophile #booknerd #nerd #booksofinstagram #bookporn #bookblooger #smutt #trashyromance #historicalromance
March 19, 2021
Colin Faulkner, newest Earl of Clifton, has been in his majority's Royal Navy, a third son, least wanted in his family. He went into the navy to be his own man. Now out he runs his personal estate and business with fellow mates. He has a home for injured service men.
One night he ends up with guests due to an attack. Not knowing what happened he does his best to attend the injured and the family. Josephine (Jo) Adrys, Lady Honoria and Najja while Lord Hayworth was laid up, stayed at Colin's offer.
Najja had no last name and was introduced as Jo's companion. He sparked something primal in Colin. Jo was like the little sister he never had. As he got to know this family he felt more for them than his own.
Then the news came, his father and brother where killed. As he takes over all the responsibility of being the earl, dealing with the debts, and his mother, he comes to see Lord Adrys as a source of direction and father.
As the attacks on the Adrys family escalates, he protectiveness over Najja increase. Add in the investigation into his father and brothers deaths. So take the journey as these two find out what Najja can do, Colin is about, and where they go. Surprises abound in this suspenseful courageous adventure. Will they or won't they find a way to co-exist or are they torn apart. If I say more it will take too much away and ruin the story. The colorful descriptions, vivid details being you right into the story.
One night he ends up with guests due to an attack. Not knowing what happened he does his best to attend the injured and the family. Josephine (Jo) Adrys, Lady Honoria and Najja while Lord Hayworth was laid up, stayed at Colin's offer.
Najja had no last name and was introduced as Jo's companion. He sparked something primal in Colin. Jo was like the little sister he never had. As he got to know this family he felt more for them than his own.
Then the news came, his father and brother where killed. As he takes over all the responsibility of being the earl, dealing with the debts, and his mother, he comes to see Lord Adrys as a source of direction and father.
As the attacks on the Adrys family escalates, he protectiveness over Najja increase. Add in the investigation into his father and brothers deaths. So take the journey as these two find out what Najja can do, Colin is about, and where they go. Surprises abound in this suspenseful courageous adventure. Will they or won't they find a way to co-exist or are they torn apart. If I say more it will take too much away and ruin the story. The colorful descriptions, vivid details being you right into the story.
February 17, 2019
Oh no, it's over!
This was a book that I have stumbled across a few times but hadn't had a desire to read as I had another obsession at the time. And then I read this wonderful review that briefly described the tale of a badass woman with an equally badass man who would move heaven and earth to love her. I probably got a few sentences into the review and considered myself sold. But even with that review nothing prepared me for the masterfully written tale of Najja and Colin. I nearly broke into applause at the end of the book. My goodness, talk about a wonderful story. I've added a new book to my favorites list.
This was a book that I have stumbled across a few times but hadn't had a desire to read as I had another obsession at the time. And then I read this wonderful review that briefly described the tale of a badass woman with an equally badass man who would move heaven and earth to love her. I probably got a few sentences into the review and considered myself sold. But even with that review nothing prepared me for the masterfully written tale of Najja and Colin. I nearly broke into applause at the end of the book. My goodness, talk about a wonderful story. I've added a new book to my favorites list.
November 27, 2022
The main question I have is where in Africa were they. They just kept saying they were from Africa, but where in Africa???
3 solid stars. The romance was mid. The time jumps in the story gave me whiplash. I’m still confused about what Najja was protecting the Adryses from. The insertion of Pug was so random. And the switch from Trystan being dirt poor to all of a sudden having money again was head scratching. All this, and I still had fun reading it. I found myself especially engaged during the fighting scenes. Those were surprisingly good. I was really riding on vibes with this book.
3 solid stars. The romance was mid. The time jumps in the story gave me whiplash. I’m still confused about what Najja was protecting the Adryses from. The insertion of Pug was so random. And the switch from Trystan being dirt poor to all of a sudden having money again was head scratching. All this, and I still had fun reading it. I found myself especially engaged during the fighting scenes. Those were surprisingly good. I was really riding on vibes with this book.
September 21, 2020
Difficult “Luv”
Although I enjoyed this book, I was extremely frustrated by how much Najja kept allowing Father and other obligations control her. It was great to see her indulge in her desires and experience some happiness when she did; the last scene was great, however I did feel as if the last two chapters were rushed. Lastly, aside from some minor editing details (hardly any page breaks during scene transitions), this was another good book.
Although I enjoyed this book, I was extremely frustrated by how much Najja kept allowing Father and other obligations control her. It was great to see her indulge in her desires and experience some happiness when she did; the last scene was great, however I did feel as if the last two chapters were rushed. Lastly, aside from some minor editing details (hardly any page breaks during scene transitions), this was another good book.
May 23, 2018
this was awesome! couldn't ask for a better story it was action-packed and so unusual she's a warrior and she finds a man who can appreciate her she's had such a hard life she never needed anybody to save it her nor expected anybody to it was steaming but it's what you would expect and a good book I can't wait to read the rest of this series! I want to thank her for such a good read!
April 30, 2025
DNF I was getting irritated with the book because so far it's just Colin chasing Najja. I want to know what's going on. I feel like I'm missing something from the book, like I'm reading every other chapter or something and I'm only at Chapter 5. I'm not patient enough to wait this out right now. If I revisit this book I'll add more but right now I'm not going to finish it.
July 2, 2017
Really good story.
This Book started off with riddles and really slow. I almost gave up on it I'm so glad that I didn't. Colin and Najja are so great together and I love Jo. Can't wait to read her book.
This Book started off with riddles and really slow. I almost gave up on it I'm so glad that I didn't. Colin and Najja are so great together and I love Jo. Can't wait to read her book.
December 27, 2018
Superb!!!
I am a lover of historical romances, these are what I started reading form teenage years and now a fervent reader of interracial book. So this marriage of both had me in hog heaven. This story was excellent. I look forward to more. Great job!!!
I am a lover of historical romances, these are what I started reading form teenage years and now a fervent reader of interracial book. So this marriage of both had me in hog heaven. This story was excellent. I look forward to more. Great job!!!
November 10, 2020
It started out so strong but the continuous back and forth between the two leads got tiring. I ended up skimming the ending
December 21, 2024
Great storyline with lots of action and a fantastic romance.
May 1, 2025
DNF
I kept going thinking it will get better, it did not. At 70% I do not care what happens with Najja and Colin.
I kept going thinking it will get better, it did not. At 70% I do not care what happens with Najja and Colin.
January 25, 2022
excellent story
This was well written Ed it dealt with friendship humor and love. I would love to see how Jo and Tryst Wilkes love story be addressed
This was well written Ed it dealt with friendship humor and love. I would love to see how Jo and Tryst Wilkes love story be addressed
March 24, 2021
I thought I'd give this a try because I heard it wasn't explicit, but I am disappointed so far, the sex theme started almost immediately, not the deed and not explicit but as usual the hero wants her sexually, love or care has nothing to do with it she'll be another black heroine sex toy. In a time where propriety and respect says a lot,or treated with decency means even more, she's given none I was hoping he would have treated her has he would a white woman of the time with the same regard, so far all he has done is to try and have sex with her. I would have have respect for the hero if he would show respect for her, but she isn't white is she? so he doesn't have to. Disappointing!
Of course there is the friend who keeps encouraging encouraging the heroine towards the hero, not caring that the heroine could get hurt intentional or not. that's no friend. If it was the friend he was attracted to, I'm sure it would have been written in a different way. Very sad actually.
As usually the heroine has been trained in the art of seduction, not while in bed with anyone, she watched,as I said, sex toy.
so far, so disappointing. it will take alot for me to believe that anything exist between the hero and heroine besides sex and lust.
Of course there is the friend who keeps encouraging encouraging the heroine towards the hero, not caring that the heroine could get hurt intentional or not. that's no friend. If it was the friend he was attracted to, I'm sure it would have been written in a different way. Very sad actually.
As usually the heroine has been trained in the art of seduction, not while in bed with anyone, she watched,as I said, sex toy.
so far, so disappointing. it will take alot for me to believe that anything exist between the hero and heroine besides sex and lust.
October 29, 2011
I wish that I could give the novella four stars because I did enjoy it. So, what was the problem? First there were editing problems, which were not as bad as some of her novellas but still they were there. Secondly, there were some inconsistencies in the storyline with who was who and when some things changed or became known. Thirdly some of the drama issues though resolved were never fully explained. As far as the characters go I enjoyed them, Colin was something of a jerk but a lovable one. Najja was a good heroine who didn't come off weak even while attempting to get past her background indoctrination (that is all I'll say about that). Sometimes Ms. Burke's heroines came come off a bit gemini, meaning they will show one personality at the begining of the story and be totally different during the second half (I HATE THAT!!), that is not the case in this story. I do think perhaps Ms. Burke may have bit off a little more then she could put out though I thank her for the effort and look forward to reading more from her.
March 15, 2023
I really loved this story. It was so unique and different from anything I've read. My only complaint is that there were things left unanswered.
Like why did Colin's cousin want him and his family dead? Did he want the title? What did Jo have him do to alert Najja that he was in Africa? It also would have been good to better explain the capture of those attacking the Adrys' family's and who all was involved and why (I know this was explained a little bit it needed a little more depth). Same with Colin's situation.
But overall I enjoyed it. Just wished it was more complete.
Like why did Colin's cousin want him and his family dead? Did he want the title? What did Jo have him do to alert Najja that he was in Africa? It also would have been good to better explain the capture of those attacking the Adrys' family's and who all was involved and why (I know this was explained a little bit it needed a little more depth). Same with Colin's situation.
But overall I enjoyed it. Just wished it was more complete.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 6, 2014
Really enjoyed this unconventional love story! I would've given a rating of 5 stars, except there were scenes that didn't flow. Like, as an example, the hero is stated as standing next to the heroine cradling her face but a couple sentences later it says he was sitting next to her cradling her face. That skipping around was a bit confusing (and frustrating) but on the whole I'd say this book was well worth the read and I do recommend it.
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