Scandalous Virtue

The Saint of Seven Dials #0

by Brenda Hiatt

What You See

Sheltered and more than a little naive, Lady Nessa Haughton was raised to be a model of English virtue. But beneath the inexperienced young widow's prim yet exquisitely beautiful exterior beats a willful heart longing for a taste of wickedness that would shock her proper sister and the rest of London Society.

Isn't Always

The new Marquis of Foxhaven, dashing Jack Ashecroft, is England's most revered war heros and its most notorious hellion. Though he's inherited his beloved grandfather's title, Jack must reform his rakish ways to gain his fortune. Vowing to earn respectability, he sets out to find a proper wife—a woman above reproach who can redeem his reputation.

What You Get

Irresistibly drawn together, Nessa and Jack each seem to be exactly what the other wants—or so they think. Will their mutual attraction lead to true love, or irreparable ruin for them both?

Genres: Historical Romance, Romance, Historical, Regency, Historical Fiction, Regency Romance, Amazon

384 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published June 1, 1999

About the author

Brenda Hiatt is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of sparkling romantic adventure. She's written twenty-five novels (so far), including sweet and spicy historical romance, time travel romance, humorous mystery, and her young adult science fiction STARSTRUCK series. Brenda began in traditional publishing with Harlequin, HarperCollins and Avon Books and later made a transition to indie publishing as she began getting rights back to her older books. So far, she hasn't been sorry! She is an active member of Romance Writers of America and Novelists, Inc, where she has served as president. In addition to writing, Brenda is passionate about embracing life to the fullest, to include scuba diving (she has over 60 dives to her credit), Taekwondo (where she is working toward her 4th degree black belt), hiking, traveling…and reading, of course!
Learn more at http://brendahiatt.com

Reviews

[Edwina " I LoveBooks" "Deb" · Rating 5 out of 5]

Scandalous Virtue was a delightful well written Historical Romance. The story is believable mild sensuality and creative enjoyable characters. I loved the H/H Jack Ashcroft, Marquis of Foxhaven and Lady Nessa Haughton, young widow.

Jack has recently inherited the title of Marquis and must now reform himself from a Rake into a honorable member of Aristocracy or he will not receive the Unentitled Portion of the Foxhaven Wealth. Jack sets off to find a respectable wife who can make him acceptable to the Ton. He will look for a wife with high moral standing. But he has meet an interesting female at his Masquerade Ball and they share a very nice kiss before parting ways.

Nessa Haughton has always lived a protected staid boring life. Her father was a Puritan Prude who didn't allow his daughters any pleasures such as dancing in life. Then Nessa's Father married her off to a man twice her age. The few times they had sex was painful and just for the pleasure of Lord Houghton and those few episodes were few an far between and eventually none existent. Now he is dead an Nessa what's to experience life and have a bit of fun. She sneaks out of her sister home and goes to a Masquerade Ball, where she first meets Jack. Neither know who the other is and when they meet again at a ball given by one of the upstanding member of the Ton the chase is on. Jack wants Nessa for his wife.

The story is well crafted with a cast of enjoyable supporting characters. The story moves along at a good pace and is never boring. There's a few action scenes that will have you on the edge of your seat. I really enjoyed Scandalous Virtue and It Was a Freebie on Amazon!! I Highly Recommend You Read It.

[Gilgamesha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I feel like Joey from the episode of friends where he thinks he asked a girl out he had already dated but couldn't remember.....because I had read this book as part of the Scandalous Brides series but completely forgot about it.....totally feeling like a promiscuous reader lol. Oddly enough it was not the main characters but the secondary story of Prudence and Charles that had remained memorable. The rest of the book was decent as well....I really enjoyed the reread. There were a few minor issues with the book and the end kind of derailed from the main plot a bit however it was a decent story with likable characters.

[BJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book, my first from this author. The characters were well developed, and married early in the story. There was some refreshing elements to the plot, with both of them being honest with themselves, and showing maturity in their thoughts as the story continued. He was not perfect, and wasn't honest at first, but it wasn't long before he trusted her. It was not a love match, so it was great to see them fall in love after their marriage. Good one.

[A · Rating 3 out of 5]

For the most part, I liked Nessa and Jack as individuals. I could empathize with her desire to enjoy her freedom after years in a puritanical household and I appreciated the combination of naïveté, desire, and burgeoning confidence, even if I didn't always believe it. I'm a sucker for a reformed (or rather, reforming) rake and I thought Jack filled the role very well. He had compelling reason to change--more than one, in fact--and he experienced temptation to reverse course, despite his best intentions.

Nessa and Jack's relationship, particularly in the weeks immediately after their marriage. With the exception of his (unnecessarily) threatening second proposal, I could believe their courtship in the nineteenth-century context. For the most part, I liked the ways that her naïveté slipped through. I thought her relationship with Prudence--and the relationship between Prudence and Philip--was really sweet as well.

Having said that, I'm sceptical that she'd discard her reputation so quickly or that she'd be so naïve about the consequences thereof. Her determined flirtation is all the more bizarre because she doesn't want either marriage or physical intimacy until after her marriage to Jack and she cared enough about her sister's opinion at the novel's outset that she sneaked off to a masquerade ball, content to have a single adventure before she returned to normalcy.

I would've shrugged it off, but after she learned that Jack had spent time with Miranda Dempsey, her behaviour became even more outrageous and the public sex incident seemed entirely out-of-place in a historical romance. On a side note, The author didn't seem particularly sympathetic to the vast majority of the women in the novel--Lady Mountheath, Amanda Leverton, Miranda Dempsey, Lady Branch, and Collette were desperate, jealous, and/or simply mean-spirited.

The last-minute action plot seemed like an unnecessary addition to an otherwise decent story, but I found the book quite readable, if over-long for the plot (or lack thereof). While the author used the occasional anachronistic or repetitive phrase, I think the writing was fine overall. Scandalous Virtue is a fun way to spend a couple hours, especially since it's free from Amazon.

[Jamee Pritchard · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my first venture in the genre of historical romance, and I can positively say I thoroughly enjoyed it. Every aspect of Brenda Hiatt’s novel was amazingly charming: the characters, the plot, the dialogue, and definitely the chemistry between the two lead characters. I loved the idea of romance in such a setting. Husband and wife are like strangers, treating each other so formally, afraid to show too much affection in public. People marry for money and status, but eventually find themselves falling in love with their spouses.

Nessi is alluring and quite brazen despite her strict upbringing. The rake turned faithful husband, Jack, is delightfully engaging, seemingly a bad boy at heart. The two are the perfect couple. There are so many good moments in this book that put me through such a range of emotions. One specific scene is stuck in my mind as one of the best and most amusing scenes I’ve read in a long time. Hiatt does a wonderful job with her description and historical relevance. I am a newfound fan of Brenda Hiatt and the genre in which she writes. I will definitely be reading more of her work and I encourage everyone else to do the same, starting with this book.

[ayiruh · Rating 2 out of 5]

i didn’t like nessa or jack. jack was a thorough rake and i just can’t stand them lately but he changes, nessa also is coming out of a very tepid relationship that leaves her wanting more.
their relationship was just a jumbled up mess of misunderstandings and it wasn’t bad but i thought it lacked depth.

i enjoyed reading about nessa’s sister and brother in law. they had an interesting dynamic, their relationship while secondary was much more fun to read

[Elsa Carrion · Rating 4 out of 5]

The start was a little slow, but if you hang in there around 40% into the book it starts to pick up. I thought the ending was rushed, and some parts in the middle should have been speed up. Keep in mind that it's HR so it's a little more modest on the intimate scenes. The characters are likable, but I didn't really understand or found the connection with the name of the series. I'm still not sure what "the saint of seven dials" is supposed to mean.

[Cecily · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hmmm. Bit of a strange one. Whilst I quite liked the idea of a book that (mostly) focused on the development of the relationship between Jack and Nessa the quality of the writing, characterisation, and dialogue wasn't of a high enough standard to sustain the approach. And then there were just some very odd (in the sense of either eyebrow raising or just a bit TOO outlandish) detours that left me thinking 'eh?' rather than 'awww'.

[Heidi (can’t retire soon enough) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not badly written, but it didn’t carry me away. Ended up skimming the second half which seemed terribly “tacked on” to ensure a full novel length.

The first chapter preview of the next book actually seemed more interesting... but since it was a free Kindle read, I’m not complaining... just moving on.

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really like the characters in the book and the start and middle where great but the end seemed incredibly rushed. It went from the start of the adventure to a happy ending within a couple of pages and with no detail of the adventures in between which really let the whole story down for me.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

There was not quite enough story for all these pages. Tension resolved long before the book ends, manufactured crisis thrown in as a post-script. Still, not as tedious as some of its ilk. 2.5 stars.

[Kathleen Ruggio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it

Great book with lots of beautifully developed characters. Romance with twists and turns. A real page turner. Truly enjoyable. Time worthy & quick read.

[Sheila · Rating 5 out of 5]

The wicked and the reputable

The heat and the challenge these two wonderful and well developed. The give and take between them was a pleasure to read.

[Romanticamente Fantasy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nello scenario ricco di sfarzo e mondanità dell’epoca Regency, prende vita la storia di Nessa e Jack. Lei, vedova di un anziano nobile, austero ed estremamente vincolato dalle convenzioni sociali, nonché egoista e insensibile tra le lenzuola; lui, ex eroe di guerra, affascinante e seducente libertino. I due si incontrano per caso durante una festa in maschera, occasione decisamente inadatta ad una rispettabile donna dell’alta società che non ha ancora terminato il suo periodo di lutto. Ma Nessa è troppo avida di libertà per rinunciarvi, soprattutto adesso che non deve più subire il controllo e la disapprovazione del marito defunto né del proprio padre, così decide di sfuggire alle convenzioni che l’hanno tenuta legata per la sua intera vita, interpretando per una manciata di ore la cortigiana Monique. Immersa in un turbinio di danze e trasgressione, rimane incantata dal monaco Eligius, che si rivelerà essere Jack Ashecroft, appena diventato marchese di Foxhaven in seguito all’improvvisa dipartita dello zio Luther, precedente detentore del titolo nobiliare. Per godere appieno delle ricchezze e del prestigio del suddetto titolo, il giovane marchese dovrà dimostrare di aver abbandonato del tutto il suo passato e guadagnarsi quella rispettabilità sociale a cui non ha mai ambito e che ha sempre ritenuto un inutile accessorio. E quale potrebbe essere la migliore soluzione ai suoi problemi se non sposare una rispettabile vedova, dall’educazione impeccabile, che non ha mai fatto dubitare della propria integrità morale? Peccato che la vedova in questione si sia molto affezionata all’idea della sua nuova vita da donna indipendente, desiderosa di gustare tutte le opportunità che il suo nuovo status le concede, compreso esercitare sul genere maschile il proprio fascino e l’arguzia della sua mente brillante. Nessa si avvicinerà a Jack spinta dalla curiosità e attratta proprio dal fascino di quel passato dissoluto da cui lui deve riscattarsi, con l’obbligo di costruire agli occhi della bigotta società londinese un nuovo se stesso. In una serie di malintesi, baci appassionati, colpi bassi di ex amanti abbandonate, i due protagonisti costruiranno il loro mondo, donando l’uno all’altra quella parte mancante che li renderà un insieme perfetto.
La narrazione è ricca di dettagli e cenni storici che, alla pari dello stile dei dialoghi, la rendono vivida e realistica, dimostrando una grande conoscenza dell’epoca da parte dell’autrice. Molto originale il personaggio di Nessa, combattuta tra la rigida educazione ricevuta e la necessità di soddisfare il suo bisogno di libertà, costretta ad ignorare i suoi desideri per compiacere prima suo padre e poi suo marito. Una donna dalla personalità frizzante e maliziosa, ma allo stesso tempo inesperta e un po’ ingenua, che riesce a tenere testa ad un uomo attraente e navigato senza mai risultare sgradevole o poco credibile. D’altra parte Jack rappresenta l’ideale di dissolutezza, fascino e ricchezza, che ogni donna desidera ma che solo l’amore può far capitolare, ottimo maestro per gli ‘insegnamenti’ che Nessa è ansiosa di acquisire. Godibili anche i personaggi secondari: la puritana sorella di Nessa, Prudence, e i due amici di Jack, Peter e Harry, ovvero le due metà opposte della coscienza.
Peccato per la prima parte della storia che ho trovato un po’ lenta e che ha smorzato il
mio entusiasmo iniziale per la lettura. Di sicuro un pizzico di maggiore vivacità mi avrebbe portato a dare un giudizio migliore.

[A.M. · Rating 2 out of 5]

A young widow, Lady Agnes Haughton, raised by an overbearing father and married off to an older man with puritanical tendencies is finally free of her mourning garb and decides she wants to be rebellious.
Meanwhile, a rake, Jack Ashecroft, is told he must reform or not inherit his grandfather’s estate. He decides marriage to a respectable widow might be just the ticket. Then he can cash in her dowry, leave her in England and dash off to spy for Wellington in Paris.
***
I think I’ve got whiplash.
She loves him. He loves her. [They’d actually be well matched.]
Then he asks her to marry him. She says no. [she was hoping just to be tumbled] But an old harridan has seen them together and tells Nessa’s straitlaced sister Prudence, that she is no longer invited to any of the old dame’s social events. Then she says ‘yes’ I will marry you to save my sister’s reputation.
Then he decides excellent, I’ll marry her and dump her - when half an hour ago he was falling in love with her.
*frowns*
[Hmmm… engagement rings are a modern invention. Regency peeps didn’t wear them. Men didn’t even wear a wedding ring. Marrying for love is also a modern thing for that matter, but HR readers let that one go.]
Then she loses her brains and behaves like a fool causing a huge amount of damage in society which completely undoes any of the hard work she’s done to get them both accepted. AND destroys her sister’s hard won reputation at the same time.
He was a rake, she knew that. She said it was why she wanted him, then every time any hint of rakish history comes up she freaks out.
omg, now she’s trying to seduce the husband who is already in love with her. It makes no sense.
Gosh I hope Prudence will relax. Do you think Prudence will relax? Aaagh don’t say it again.
When Prudence finally changes it is head swimmingly fast and a full one eighty.
I’m getting very annoyed with Nessa.
The second half pacing is really off. What is the point of his mother? And I keep waiting for it to have ANYTHING to do with the Saint of seven Dials - but it doesn’t. There is one paragraph at p130 where Luca is looking for Marcus and that’s it. It matches the one line about Jack and Lady Haughton in book 1. [I went and looked it up] It’s pretty tenuous.
Jack is a spy who does no spying. And is so out of touch with world events that they go to Paris just as Napoleon is marching on it.
2 stars

[Wealhtheow · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ever since the end of the first Napoleonic war, Jack Ashcroft has been living a life of dissipation and excess. Then his frail uncle dies and Jack is elevated to Marquis of Foxhaven, with all the attendant responsibilities and expectations. In order to gain full access to Foxhaven's resources, Jack must become respectable. He locks onto marriage with an eminently respectable woman to further this aim, and the newly widowed Lady Agnes "Nessa" Haughton is a perfect choice for this. She's young, pretty, and she and the rest of her family are famous sticklers to propriety. Jack doesn't suspect how much Nessa enjoys her newfound freedom as a widow, or how much decadent fun she wants to have while she can. Nessa agrees to marry Jack after her not-particularly-wild behavior starts causing rumors that might hurt the rest of her family. But although she expects her husband to control and manage her and his conjugal visits to be embarrassing and uncomfortable, instead she finds a great deal of freedom and comfort in her marriage to Jack. Meanwhile, however, the War Office has tasked Jack with using his old contacts to spy, which both tempts him back to return to his dissolute ways, and threatens Jack's tentative relationships with Nessa and Society's good opinion.

I quite liked this! Both Nessa and Jack have defined, consistent characters throughout. Regency romance authors tend to give characters a single hobby, goal or fear and then consider their characterization work complete; not so here. I completely believed in their growing affection and trust in each other, and rooted for them to come together.

[AG Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were two main problems with this book. First was the pacing. It is obvious no attention was paid to the pacing of the storyline and it tended to bouce up and down randomly. Because of that, what is actually a decent story reads as tedious and bogged down, particularly in the first half of the book.

The second problem was too much telling instead of showing. In several parts, where showing the story could have added a good sense of adventure and fun, instead we get a paragraph set after the action that tells us what happened. The timeline skips ahead in odd increments and bypasses plot points that could have added a great deal to the readers' enjoyment. The worst offense of this occurs at the end of the book when they leave Paris. Both the Hero and heroine could have really shone during that week, but we don't get to see it. Every time the action starts to heat up, the author skips it and instead we get yet another passage of dancing at a ball or the heroine's fashions.

This was not a particularly bad read, but it could have been so much better. I liked the main characters and their romance was satisfying. The HEA was good.

[Lidia Riva · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nessa ha ventiquattro anni ed è sempre stata succube delle decisioni altrui. Prima quelle del rigidissimo padre che l ‘ha poi data in sposa a soli diciotto anni ad un uomo molto più vecchio di lei ma possessivo e despota come il padre. Dopo cinque lunghi anni di vita coniugale segregata in campagna rimane vedova e va a vivere a Londra a casa della sorella per terminare l’anno di lutto. Nessa è più che mai convinta a esplorare nuove opportunità e libertà che non ha mai avuto, ma deve combattere anche con la rigidità della sorella.
Jack ha ereditato il titolo di marchese di Foxhavem del nonno alla morte dello zio Luther. Ma la vita dissoluta e scapestrata che ha condotto fino a quel momento non lo aiuta molto a farsi accettare dalla nobiltà. L’unica sua possibilità è quella di trovare una moglie con una rispettabilità indiscutibile.
Così le strade di Jack e Nessa si incontrano nella Londra di inizio milleottocento .
Un bel libro che ti conquista fino alla fine.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Historical Romance at its best. The author's writing mechanics were excellent, and I liked her characters. I liked he historical content about nineteenth century England and France, although I would not like to have lived in those days. I fear I would have been among the poor lower class of people. The storyline was about a beautiful, well-bred, respectable young widow wanting to taste the wilder side of life marrying a handsome, titled, young rouge needing to become respectable in order to inherit property from a wealthy relative. I liked the writer's skilled depiction of the mores of society that did not work in their favor. How they met their wants and needs was entertaining.

I do not read historical romance novels very often, but sometimes I get a yen for it. This book satisfied my yen quite well.

Thank you, Ms. Hiatt, for a good read.

[Lisa Dinsmore · Rating 1 out of 5]

Did not finish. I really enjoyed the Rogue of Seven Dials and had high hopes for this book in the same series. Widow Nessa is out for fun and dashing nobleman/spy Jack needs her to provide him with respectability. He teaches her that the marriage bed doesn't have be the painful experience it was with her first husband.
That's as far as I got because while Nessa was previously forced into sex as part of her "marital duties" in her first marriage, she had no children. One night with Jack and she's swooning over the thought of her "first three children" and sad she isn't immediately knocked up, and so course as I skim further, not long before the bride is impregnated and I lost all interest. Something worse than a baby epilogue is a baby rabid heroine.

[Nancy Luebke · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this historic romance. I won this from the Exclusive Jewels-Vol 3. A bit too much sexual content for the under 18 readers. I've given this a 4.5* rating. This was an interesting time period when Nepolean was on the march toward Paris. Although Paris is associated with art and romance, it was also a large city targeted in times of war, as at the time of this story and more commonly known at WWII when it was taken over by Germany. This story only touches on the tips of this first time period and some of the situations but enough to fill out this story and the serious situations many went through. A nice ending to this story.

[Cindy C. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Scandalous Virture is a Fantastic Read! Brenda Hiatt has written a story with a magnificent cast of characters with such depth and individuality that they come off the pages and will pull you into their tale. From the first page and throughout I was totally swept away with sigh-worthy romance of Nessa and Jack. Jack is a reckless rakehell who needs to find respectability. Nessa who has led a very sheltered life in the country now she wants to learn about being more scandalous. Fast and witty, is never boring with mild sensuality just right for those who want a bit of spice in their reading. Once I started reading I could not put this book down until the very end!

[Deb Diem · Rating 5 out of 5]

Scandalous Virtue by Brenda Hiatt is a phenomenal read. Ms Hiatt has delivered a well-written book and filled it with amazing, lovable characters. Jack and Nessa's story is loaded with plenty of drama, humor, action and spice. I enjoyed reading Scandalous Virtue and look forward to my next book by Brenda Hiatt. Scandalous Virtue is the prequel to The Sain Of The Seven Dials Series but can be read as a standalone. This is a complete book, not a cliff-hanger.

I voluntarily read a free copy of this book that I received from BookFunnel.

[Isabella Ney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nessa stammt aus einem extrem religiösen und strengen Haushalt.

Jack Ashecroft erhält unerwartet den Titel Marquis von Foxhaven und muss ab sofort ein Leben nach den englischen Regeln des Anstandes und der Tugend führen. Eine Ehe mit Nessa soll ihm dabei helfen. Aber Nessa möchte sich nicht sofort wieder von einem Mann das Leben vorschreiben lassen.

Die beteiligten Personen sind recht nett und sympathisch aber die Geschichte ist extrem vorhersehbar und inhaltlich sehr flach und fad.

[Candace · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jack inherits the title Marquis of Foxhaven. Nessa is the widowed Lady Haughton. Nessa agrees to marry Jack to keep her reputation from harming her sister. Their love grows despite several obstacles -- Jack's reputation as a rake, Nessa's seduction campaign, Napoleon's escape from Elba. Through everything their love triumphs.

This story is a love journey. The novel leads us through the growing love between Jack and Nessa. It is an easy, fast read. Explicit sex.

[Kebby Shropshire · Rating 3 out of 5]

Started out well enough, but then

I hate it when authors use the misunderstanding ploy. The heroine started out as a sensible person, and then suddenly her brains went to mush.

Spoiler: the hero could have told her about his mission. She would have supported him. To pay him back for something she didn't believe he actually did, she goes almost too far in attempting to make him jealous. Silly.

[Sally Hannoush · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well written Historical Romance. Brenda Hiatt writes another hit. It's the most enjoyable of her work thus far. The love story was fun to read. It started and ended in directions I didn't see comming even knowing a happy ever after is to come. There is great passion, love, scandal, and adventure. Great read.

[Tonileg · Rating 2 out of 5]

English Historical romance with two titled rich people that are becoming independent 'adults' although they are in their mid-twenties.
The young widow Nessa, Lady Haughton is almost out of her year long confinement after the death of her elderly husband. She is ready to jump into society and make herself into a happy person that has been imprisoned by her father as a child and then by her very old husband. Nessa is ready to party! So she meets the sexy rake, Lord Jack Ashecroft, Marquis of Foxhaven who she wants to have an affair, but Jack is trying to clean up his reputation and wants an honorable wife.
Fluff romance about a mix-up of desires between two people that like each other from the first meet-cute.
384 pages and kindle freebie
2 stars

[Annette · Rating 4 out of 5]

SCANDALOUS VIRTUE : is worth reading. Widowed NESSA and Lord FOXHAVEN, are an intriguing pair. She, raised and then widowed by overbearing, manipulative men, looks to having some fun. He a renowned rake must marry an exceedingly proper woman in order to gain his inheritance. They are a good match. The very ending was contrived but lots of laughs as well.

[Kristi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Relationships

I like how creative the story line is. He wants to become respectable while she wants to learn about being more scandalous. I love most the developed relationship between the sisters.