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Trap #3
The Pleasure Trap
From nationally bestselling author Elizabeth Thornton comes the sinfully seductive, delightfully romantic story of a woman who discovers a most thrilling type of pursuit. . . .
After years of heroism in the fight against the French, Ash Denison wants nothing more than to savor the good life. But an urgent request has sent him to a writer's symposium. His charge: to unmask an author who has rattled several members of the town by revealing their most intimate, most scandalous secrets. Not one to be left out, when Ash encounters a bold, beautiful, irresistibly aloof woman writer, he can't help stirring up some gossip of his own. . . .
Much to Eve Dearing's surprise, Ash is far from the well-mannered gentleman she's heard about. In fact, he's shockingly brash and has taken an inexplicable interest in manhandling her at every turn. Yet something about his searing embrace makes her forgive his wicked behavior--and succumb to his dangerous seduction. And when a fellow writer is brutally attacked and Eve becomes the killer's next target, Ash surprises her once more by vowing not only to keep her safe . . . but to win her heart.
After years of heroism in the fight against the French, Ash Denison wants nothing more than to savor the good life. But an urgent request has sent him to a writer's symposium. His charge: to unmask an author who has rattled several members of the town by revealing their most intimate, most scandalous secrets. Not one to be left out, when Ash encounters a bold, beautiful, irresistibly aloof woman writer, he can't help stirring up some gossip of his own. . . .
Much to Eve Dearing's surprise, Ash is far from the well-mannered gentleman she's heard about. In fact, he's shockingly brash and has taken an inexplicable interest in manhandling her at every turn. Yet something about his searing embrace makes her forgive his wicked behavior--and succumb to his dangerous seduction. And when a fellow writer is brutally attacked and Eve becomes the killer's next target, Ash surprises her once more by vowing not only to keep her safe . . . but to win her heart.
400 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2007
13 people are currently reading
193 people want to read
About the author
Elizabeth Thornton
61 books154 followersMary Forrest George, née Baxter was born and educated in Aberdeen, Scotland, where she taught school for a number of years before establishing her own nursery school, St. Swithin Street Nursery School, an institution that is still going strong today.
She and her husband then emigrated to Canada with their three young sons. She taught kindergarten and Grade One for a number of years in Winnipeg, Manitoba, before becoming lay minister at a Presbyterian Church in Winnipeg.
As part of her continuing education, she enrolled in evening classes at the University of Winnipeg to study Classical Greek. Five years later, having completed an Honor's thesis on Women in Euripides, she received her B.A. (Classics Gold Medalist).
After reading her first romance, a Regency by Georgette Heyer, she was captivated by the genre. Hereafter, writing became her hobby. In 1987, her first book, a small Regency entitled, Bluestocking Bride, was published by Zebra books.
She is the author of twenty-four historical romances, and two novellas. She has been nominated for and received many awards including the Romantic Times Trophy Award for the best New Historical Regency Author and Best Historical Regency. Seven of her novels have been finalists in the Romance Writers of America Rita awards, Scarlet Angel, Strangers at Dawn, Princess Charming and The Perfect Princess, Shady Lady, The Marriage Trap, and The Bachelor Trap. Her books appear regularly on national best-selling lists and have been translated into many languages.
Elizabeth's hobbies include reading (particularly mystery and suspense novels, biography, and history), and traveling to do research for her novels. She is also an avid Harry Potter enthusiast.
She and her husband then emigrated to Canada with their three young sons. She taught kindergarten and Grade One for a number of years in Winnipeg, Manitoba, before becoming lay minister at a Presbyterian Church in Winnipeg.
As part of her continuing education, she enrolled in evening classes at the University of Winnipeg to study Classical Greek. Five years later, having completed an Honor's thesis on Women in Euripides, she received her B.A. (Classics Gold Medalist).
After reading her first romance, a Regency by Georgette Heyer, she was captivated by the genre. Hereafter, writing became her hobby. In 1987, her first book, a small Regency entitled, Bluestocking Bride, was published by Zebra books.
She is the author of twenty-four historical romances, and two novellas. She has been nominated for and received many awards including the Romantic Times Trophy Award for the best New Historical Regency Author and Best Historical Regency. Seven of her novels have been finalists in the Romance Writers of America Rita awards, Scarlet Angel, Strangers at Dawn, Princess Charming and The Perfect Princess, Shady Lady, The Marriage Trap, and The Bachelor Trap. Her books appear regularly on national best-selling lists and have been translated into many languages.
Elizabeth's hobbies include reading (particularly mystery and suspense novels, biography, and history), and traveling to do research for her novels. She is also an avid Harry Potter enthusiast.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
May 4, 2025
Slogging through the book at the moment.
Finally got to the end.
It’s so boring!
Finally got to the end.
It’s so boring!
June 17, 2014
Author: Elizabeth Thornton
First published: 2007
Length: 385 pages
Setting: 1818 (Regency). London and it's surrounds. Light paranormal.
Sex: Not frequent but reasonably explicit.
Heroine: Heroine: An author of gothic romances. Has light paranormal talents .
Hero: soldier at Waterloo. Rake with an inheritance.
With lovely garden descriptions and wonderful characters, Thornton takes us into the Regency World with a well-wrought mystery and some light paranormal.
An engaging story. A nice romance. A mature couple.
A Really Good Read.
Trap series:
The Marriage Trap - Jack Rigg and Miss Elinor Hill
The Bachelor Trap - Brand Hamilton and Lady Marion Dane
The Pleasure Trap - Ash Denison and Eve Dearing
References:
Author's website: http://www.elizabeththornton.com/plea...
(ISBN 978-0-440-33657-0)
-CR-
First published: 2007
Length: 385 pages
Setting: 1818 (Regency). London and it's surrounds. Light paranormal.
Sex: Not frequent but reasonably explicit.
Heroine: Heroine: An author of gothic romances. Has light paranormal talents .
Hero: soldier at Waterloo. Rake with an inheritance.
With lovely garden descriptions and wonderful characters, Thornton takes us into the Regency World with a well-wrought mystery and some light paranormal.
An engaging story. A nice romance. A mature couple.
A Really Good Read.
Trap series:
The Marriage Trap - Jack Rigg and Miss Elinor Hill
The Bachelor Trap - Brand Hamilton and Lady Marion Dane
The Pleasure Trap - Ash Denison and Eve Dearing
References:
Author's website: http://www.elizabeththornton.com/plea...
(ISBN 978-0-440-33657-0)
-CR-
June 14, 2009
This story has a touch of supernatural, but I liked the way it was done. Eve Dearing is an author who has 'the Claverly charisma' - sort of like 'the sight'. Ash Denison, who spent years in the army, is a pragmatic man who believes only the practical and proveable. Sparks fly - verbal and otherwise - when these two match wits and lifestyles.
The back cover of the book refers mainly to the love story, but this is a wonderful suspense mystery as well. It's this combination of the two that makes this such a great book, and it's that combination that keeps me reading and rereading Ms. Thornton's books.
The back cover of the book refers mainly to the love story, but this is a wonderful suspense mystery as well. It's this combination of the two that makes this such a great book, and it's that combination that keeps me reading and rereading Ms. Thornton's books.
September 22, 2010
It was just ok for me and what did the title have to do with the book. The mystery took so much of the book that I never really connected with the h/h. I thought that Ash felt he was God's gift to women and Eve came off as cold and therefore they didn't work as a couple for me. Even the romantic bits weren't that good for me. I wanted to like it.
February 4, 2024
This is one of my childhood favorite books and I think I might be giving it 5-stars more out of nostalgia than anything. It’s so funny that this was one of my favorites, but I think I know why it was. Teenage baby me hadn’t really discovered paranormal romance yet and this is like the very tip top of that iceberg. While definitely a historical novel, there are slight elements of the fantastical that made baby me love it.
After rereading it, I realize how slight those elements are though. I feel like the author didn’t really commit to those paranormal characteristics, though it would’ve been so much more interesting if she did.
Eve and Ash were definitely the redeeming qualities of this book, though again, they could’ve been explored so much more.
Ultimately, if you go in remembering it’s a product of its time - the early 2000s, you probably won’t be too disappointed. It’s a good read for what it is.
After rereading it, I realize how slight those elements are though. I feel like the author didn’t really commit to those paranormal characteristics, though it would’ve been so much more interesting if she did.
Eve and Ash were definitely the redeeming qualities of this book, though again, they could’ve been explored so much more.
Ultimately, if you go in remembering it’s a product of its time - the early 2000s, you probably won’t be too disappointed. It’s a good read for what it is.
October 3, 2021
القصة رائعة جدا ومشوقة للغاية لقد أحببتها وأكاد أقول إنها أفضل قصة من سلسلة المكائد
كنت قد قرأت السلسلة المحتوية على ٣ قصص
The marriage trap
The bachelor trap
وهذه القصة The pleasure trap
وكلها كانت جميلة
ولكن هذه القصة كانت الأجمل
الأحداث فيها كانت مترابطة وحماسية للغاية وفكرتها كانت جديدة عن المتعارف عليه
ولكن الذي جعلني أعطيها ٤ نجوم بدلا من ٥ كانت بسبب بعض الأحداث الفاترة فقد توقعت أن أواصل حماسي ولكن حينما أنغمس أكثر أتفاجأ بالنهاية الغير متوقعة للحدث ويصيبني الإحباط
ولأعطيكم مثالا لهذا: عندما تقاتلت إيڤ مع جيسون فورد (بيرتي ماسنجر) كنت متحمسة جدًا لما سيحدث من قتال بينهما وعند حضور آش توقعت أن يكون هو البطل الذي سينقذها ولكن نهاية القتال كانت محبطة قليلا عندما لم يكن هناك اشتباك بينما مع أن قفزة جيسون من النافذة كانت غير متوقعة ولكن أحسست أن القتال كان باردا نوعا ما
وهكذا في بعض الأحداث في بقية الرواية
ولكن بشكل عام الرواية جميلة جدا في مجملها وأنصح أي شخص بقراءتها
كنت قد قرأت السلسلة المحتوية على ٣ قصص
The marriage trap
The bachelor trap
وهذه القصة The pleasure trap
وكلها كانت جميلة
ولكن هذه القصة كانت الأجمل
الأحداث فيها كانت مترابطة وحماسية للغاية وفكرتها كانت جديدة عن المتعارف عليه
ولكن الذي جعلني أعطيها ٤ نجوم بدلا من ٥ كانت بسبب بعض الأحداث الفاترة فقد توقعت أن أواصل حماسي ولكن حينما أنغمس أكثر أتفاجأ بالنهاية الغير متوقعة للحدث ويصيبني الإحباط
ولأعطيكم مثالا لهذا: عندما تقاتلت إيڤ مع جيسون فورد (بيرتي ماسنجر) كنت متحمسة جدًا لما سيحدث من قتال بينهما وعند حضور آش توقعت أن يكون هو البطل الذي سينقذها ولكن نهاية القتال كانت محبطة قليلا عندما لم يكن هناك اشتباك بينما مع أن قفزة جيسون من النافذة كانت غير متوقعة ولكن أحسست أن القتال كان باردا نوعا ما
وهكذا في بعض الأحداث في بقية الرواية
ولكن بشكل عام الرواية جميلة جدا في مجملها وأنصح أي شخص بقراءتها
May 5, 2022
I wanted to like this book more than I did. The hero was one of my favorite side characters from the pervious books. I was also excited by the supernatural angle and shared dreams.
This biggest negative of the book is the heroine. I think author was going for "feisty" but the heroine just came across as mean and judgemental for most of the book. Once she and the hero were intimate it got better, she became far more likable.
I was also frustrated when one of the characters knew who the killer was for most of the book, and told nobody for no real reason.
This biggest negative of the book is the heroine. I think author was going for "feisty" but the heroine just came across as mean and judgemental for most of the book. Once she and the hero were intimate it got better, she became far more likable.
I was also frustrated when one of the characters knew who the killer was for most of the book, and told nobody for no real reason.
April 15, 2021
I liked the first two books, but this one? No. Ash was a completely different person in this book. There didn't seem to be any building of romance between Eve and Ash. And Eve was either mad at Ash or admiring him. Sometimes multiple times in one paragraph. I finally skipped to the end, and I'm still not sure exactly what happened and I don't care enough to figure it out.
November 8, 2022
3.6
If I would have read this separate from the first two books, it would have been ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. It followed the same storyline as the first two with very similar murder mystery and romance so by the 3rd book I grew bored of it.
If I would have read this separate from the first two books, it would have been ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. It followed the same storyline as the first two with very similar murder mystery and romance so by the 3rd book I grew bored of it.
March 5, 2019
Too bad the synopsis for this book implies that the romance (i.e. sex) is the most important aspect of this book. It has a much more interesting plot than your average romance.
March 21, 2021
The Pleasure Trap sees some familiar characters from The Bachelor Trap playing minor supportive role while Ash Denison, whom fans of Thornton first met in The Marriage Trap, takes centrestage trying to unmask a malicious author whose recent expose in the papers has rattled quite a few members of the ton. The mission sends him to a symposium for gothic and romance writers, where he met the bold, beautiful and seemingly self-sufficient writer who rebuffed his every advance.
Eve Dearing has a secret that could shock and send potential suitors running, and her impression of Ash’s reputation as a lady killer makes her wary and even more desperate to hide her secret. However, when a fellow writer was brutally assaulted and Eve becomes the next target, Ash found himself stirred to vow that he would not only keep her safe, but he would also win her heart. Can she entrust herself and her heart to him, knowing that when he uncovers her secret, he is likely to be repulsed and change his mind?
Ms Thornton has lived up to expectations from the last book, and in fact. This last of the trio is a little more gripping for the romantic tension which she expertly built up and the unlikely killer she unleashed on the unsuspecting characters in the story. I always love a good who-dun-it mystery so this book was right up my alley. The author is obviously in her element and I can’t think of a historical romantic suspense author I’d enjoy more.
If you’re hankering after a little suspense, a little romance and a little thrilling mystery solving set in the past, you’ve simply got to give Elizabeth Thornton a try.
Read and reviewed it in 2007.
Eve Dearing has a secret that could shock and send potential suitors running, and her impression of Ash’s reputation as a lady killer makes her wary and even more desperate to hide her secret. However, when a fellow writer was brutally assaulted and Eve becomes the next target, Ash found himself stirred to vow that he would not only keep her safe, but he would also win her heart. Can she entrust herself and her heart to him, knowing that when he uncovers her secret, he is likely to be repulsed and change his mind?
Ms Thornton has lived up to expectations from the last book, and in fact. This last of the trio is a little more gripping for the romantic tension which she expertly built up and the unlikely killer she unleashed on the unsuspecting characters in the story. I always love a good who-dun-it mystery so this book was right up my alley. The author is obviously in her element and I can’t think of a historical romantic suspense author I’d enjoy more.
If you’re hankering after a little suspense, a little romance and a little thrilling mystery solving set in the past, you’ve simply got to give Elizabeth Thornton a try.
Read and reviewed it in 2007.
April 8, 2022
The Pleasure Trap
If you like mysteries with a touch of paranormal and plenty of historical romance , you'll love this book as much as me. It was so good, I read it in less than a day.
If you like mysteries with a touch of paranormal and plenty of historical romance , you'll love this book as much as me. It was so good, I read it in less than a day.
July 12, 2007
Good story, but the clairvoyancy was just a little weird.
May 22, 2009
A Great Book.
September 25, 2010
Heroine is physic
February 29, 2012
good as a sorbet, light and lighter
March 4, 2012
English writer, reading minds,
August 9, 2013
Wonderful historical romance with suspense that holds off until the end. A great read, well written and captivating. The characters are smart, witty and not sappy.
Read
February 12, 2014fluff
September 13, 2017
Leído en abril 2010
Normalito!!
Normalito!!
August 20, 2012
Good Reading
January 22, 2014
pretty good historical romance
Read
August 6, 2018DNF
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews