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Mistress

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When a blackmailer threatens her Aunt Zoe, Iphiginia knows she can ferret out the villain. A 26-year-old vixen with the intellect to match her beauty, Iphiginia descends on London society as the dazzling mistress of the missing Earl of Masters—another supposed victim of the blackmailer. But when the missing earl suddenly reappears at a ball, Iphiginia is caught in her own clever lie.

©1994 Jayne A. Krentz (P)1994 Recorded Books, LLC

Audible Audio

First published June 1, 1994

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About the author

Amanda Quick

93 books5,493 followers
Pseudonym of Jayne Ann Krentz

The author of over 40 consecutive New York Times bestsellers, JAYNE ANN KRENTZ writes romantic-suspense, often with a psychic and paranormal twist, in three different worlds: Contemporary (as Jayne Ann Krentz), historical (as Amanda Quick) and futuristic (as Jayne Castle). There are over 30 million copies of her books in print.

She earned a B.A. in History from the University of California at Santa Cruz and went on to obtain a Masters degree in Library Science from San Jose State University in California. Before she began writing full time she worked as a librarian in both academic and corporate libraries.

Ms. Krentz is married and lives with her husband, Frank, in Seattle, Washington.


Pseudonym(s):
Jayne Ann Krentz
Jayne Castle
Stephanie James
Jayne Bentley
Jayne Taylor
Amanda Glass

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5 stars
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 490 reviews
Profile Image for Kara.
Author 27 books95 followers
May 13, 2009
In the Beginning, there was Jane Austen, and She wrote the Word, and the Word was Good. And She did Create the Regency Novel in all its Glory.

Then there was Georgette Heyer, blessed be Her name, who did taketh up the torch, and ran with it.

But Lo! There were then imitators, and they were many, and Their name was Legion, and they did taketh the Chaste Kiss that endeth the Regency Novel, and turn it into page after page of instructional descriptions on how to make the Beast with Two Backs.

Here endth the lesson.
Profile Image for Heidi (can’t retire soon enough).
1,379 reviews273 followers
November 12, 2024
3.5

For me, the perfect (not-too) sick day is one spent reading a HF romance novel complete with a swoon-worthy hero and “bluestocking” heroine. I’ve been reading some older novels in Amanda Quick/Jayne Ann Krentz’ title list. This one was just what the patient ordered!

What I most loved was the fairly unique storyline and how it unfolded. There was also an underlying mystery (lost star for the easy villain guess BUT a few other mild twists were pretty clever).

Need an escape from the daily grind or stuck in bed for the day (and have to love HF romance) then this is a nice quick trip to the land of happily ever after.

(Reviewed 10/15/24)
Profile Image for Azet.
1,095 reviews284 followers
March 3, 2021
I must say "Mistress" is the first historical romance novel i have ever read by Amanda Quick (aka Jayne ann Krentz) who is one of my top favourite authors.She knows great deal about this genre and knows what readers crave in a romance book.I loved the mystery,intrigue,the witty dialuges and the main-characters lived up my day with their entertaining and funny love-story.I laughed,swooned and shed a few happy tears by the end.Romance always does that to me when executed well!

Iphiginia Bright was a bright heroine indeed!I have no idea how she got the balls to make herself turn into a worldly mistress of one of the most powerful men in England,Earl of Masters and fake it through until the gossips catched up to him.She had thought him dead and had planned to find the person who blackmailed her aunt by coming closer to the people Masters surrounded himself with.Unfortunately Earl of Masters comes back to England to find out what the hell is going on.That`s where the romance starts,and i loved it.Iphiginia is a exuberant,independent and intellectual woman,and to Marcus Valerius Cloud,Earl of Masters,she was like a shooting star who lit up the dark sky in his world.Both were stubborn and together they made me enjoy much witty arguments and electric chemistry that burned off-page.I also loved how Marcus lived by strict rules that he breaks for the sake of his love for Iphiginia and was interested in astronomy and steam engines.A bit of a nerd of our times,but had this dark edge of being a alpha-hero.Loved Iphiginia and Marcus together,they made hell of a power couple and even captured the culprit together.They will have a great marriage of HEA and lots of babies together for sure and i am so happy for them!
Profile Image for Dina.
1,324 reviews1,364 followers
March 24, 2012
This was only my third book by Amanda Quick, but I knew what to expect from her: a funny and charming story with a bright but quirky heroine who defies society's conventions, a brooding hero who's in need of an emotional makeover and a somewhat convoluted mystery to be solved while the H/h fall in love with each other. Mistress had all that, but it was by no means predictable. In fact, the mystery plot had some very unexpected twists, and I'm still a little dizzy.

Iphiginia (ugh, what a name!) Bright is a 27-year-old financially independent country spinster who's just returned to England after a year touring the ruins of Italy, when she learns that her dear aunt Zoe is being blackmailed. Determined to find out who the blackmailer is so she can put a stop to his/her unsavory threats, Iphiginia decides to pose as the unsuspecting Earl of Masters's latest mistress in order to gain access to his inner circle of acquaintances/friends. See, she's sure she'll find the blackmailer among them and she believes Masters is dead, so her plan is quite brilliant, isn't it? Unfortunately (for her), her alleged lover is very much alive and more than curious to meet his "newest mistress"...

Marcus Valerius Cloud, Earl of Masters, is a bit suspicious of Iphiginia's charade and doesn't buy her explanation, especially after he finds out that one of his friends is being blackmailed. But even though he thinks that Iphiginia is the blackmailer, he doesn't put a stop on her charade and plays along with her, decided to see how far she'll go. The fact that he's more than enchanted by her and wouldn't mind making her his newest mistress for real isn't relevant, because he lives his life by a set of simple and straightforward rules he formulated several years ago and never deviates from them:
#1 - Never remarry.
#2 - Never discuss the past.
#3 - Never explain his actions to others.
#4 - Never retreat from an objective or alter a decision.
#5 - Never get involved with virgins or other men's wives.

Little does Marcus know, but Iphiginia is going to make him break all his rules one by one in a short time. And he won't regret it. ;)

This was another great book by Ms. Quick, and I really liked Marcus, Iphigina and the whole cast of secondary characters. Marcus's sarcastic comments and Iphiginia's smart replies were so funny to read, I couldn't get enough of their witty banter. There were some serious moments between them too, especially when he finally broke Rule #2, but the lighter scenes were the ones that sparkled.

Marcus was a bit inconsistent at first: he was known to gather all facts before reaching a conclusion and making a decision - remember Rule #4, which made him a very judicious man - but he quickly assumed that Iphiginia was the blackmailer without any evidence to support that. Granted, he didn't stick to that misconception too long and he learned to trust her beyond doubt, but his initial behavior was frustrating. Overall, he was a well-drawn hero and it was very nice to see him breaking all his rules and becoming a better person in the end.

Based on the premise, I thought I would have a problem with Iphiginia because, let's face it, her plan to unmask the blackmailer was just "crazy". As I read the book, it started to make sense - I mean, the ton didn't know her and she could "retire" quietly after the charade was over, with no damage to her or anyone's reputation - so I was happy to go along with it. Plus, Iphiginia was a blast of fun and I can forgive a lot of nonsense when I connect with the characters in a book. That said, I wasn't fully happy with the way things ended for her...



As for the mystery part of this book, it was okay but some of the blackmailer's actions didn't make sense to me. At one point, I was so confused that I had to pause and wonder what the heck was going on. I got an explanation for that in the end, but it only made me think that the blackmailer wasn't the brightest person in the world. All in all, that wasn't a big deal because the main focus of this book was always Marcus and Iphiginia's relationship, and that was nicely written.

Final verdict: not my favorite book by Ms. Quick, but a very good read anyway.
Profile Image for drowningmermaid.
1,011 reviews47 followers
September 20, 2021
"Oh! Iphiginia! Your phiginia is so hot and tight!" says Marcus, Earl of Whatever, tallest and richest and most desired of the whoevers.

A *unique* (cough) romance hero who has dallied enough for experience (but not TOO much, and not with anyone important, and not too recently), who lives in a self-imposed prison of a loveless life, waiting for a salvic female to unlock his heart through the healing balm of graphic sex.

One of the pointless, self-imposed rules Marcus lives by is that he never dithers with virgins. But, dread! Iphiginia is a phirginia!

I sincerely hope an editor tried to talk the author out of "Iphiginia" as a name. It would be dreadful if that sailed by without comment, or, worse, that an awful editor decided to change the name TO Iphiginia.

Ah, me.

When I was a wee chit of a girl, and I thumbed through this book at the grocery store register-- how I WANTED it. It had sex in it, and a beautiful gilt carriage on the cover, who could possibly want anything else? But my mom wouldn't let me get it. And my dad scolded me because we were not the kind of people who read those kinds of books.

Now I've read it anyway, so ha.

But alas, with the passing of the decades, I am no longer entranced by fashion porn, and romance characters strike me as distractingly stupid. They can do it; it's their god given right. But who really wants to watch imbiciles doink?

I was in the mood for some pretty, brainless lurff, and this book had it all-- in a rather larger dose than I could swallow. Pretty dresses. Alleged 'intelligence' that drew the couple together. Plot holes you could drive a Conestoga wagon through. Absurd people drawing out pointless angst. I started flagging about a third of the way through, but at the end I read really fast and this seemed to help.

It gets an extra star for having the decency not to take itself too seriously. For being boldly, fiercely, determinedly bad. Proud as a Franklin fart.

Odds of staying together if they were real people, and not romance novel characters: 2/10

Iphiginia is intractable and glories in getting her way-- even insisting that the wedding night be spent proving her (stupid) theory right. When Marcus is done being led around by the dick, he may remember that he is a person who might like to have his wishes respected, who once had a complete life without her, and who may notice the contempt they both feel for each other beneath the lust.
Profile Image for Inna.
1,678 reviews372 followers
July 8, 2020
3 stars, would have been 3.5 if the ending wasn’t so abrupt. I want an epilogue!

This story was about Iphiginia (worst heroine name ever) and Marcus (an Earl & the hero). The heroine pretends to be the mistress of the hero in order to gain entry into society and figure out who has been blackmailing her aunt. Marcus finds out someone is posing as his lover and comes back to town to confront the heroine. He is immediately enamored by the heroine and decides that he wants to make her his mistress in truth. They then work together to figure out who the blackmailer is. At the end, they are together, but the ending didn’t feel satisfactory.

Here are my thoughts... while the writing is really good, the plot requires a reader to suspend their disbelief greatly. First, why does posing as someone’s mistress gain them access to society? She appears out of nowhere, uses her real name with a Mrs. and no one is the wiser? The whole premise seems rather far fetched. Second, the heroine falls in love with the hero based on research she’s done on him? Without ever having met him! Third, all the walking into danger that everyone does. The heroine goes by herself to several places without taking any precautions. Finally, where are the authorities? People are dying and yet, no police. 🤔🤔🤔

This book was just ok, imo. I would have enjoyed it if the ending was better. Instead, I’m left feeling unfulfilled.

Safe.
December 16, 2025
Classic Amanda Quick~

݁ .・˖»┆Hero is a mysterious earl who isn't thinking about marriage
݁ .・˖»┆Heroine is



━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
🕮⋆˚࿔✎𓂃 𝐣𝐨𝐢𝐧 𝐦𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧���𝐭𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐲 𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Profile Image for Nabilah.
612 reviews250 followers
December 24, 2024
I've been re-reading Amanda Quick's books, especially her earlier ones, in between new reads. Her books are perfect for pulling me out of a reading slump. I’ve noticed that her earlier works are steamier compared to her later ones. While her stories tend to follow a formula, this one is no exception—and it’s a formula that works!

Stuart is the quintessential Amanda Quick hero: cold, logical, and driven by reason. But he more than meets his match in Iphiginia, who embodies Quick's signature quirky and rule-defying heroine. Their banter is hilarious, especially as Stuart tries to impose his will, only for Iphiginia to blithely disregard his rules.

Overall, this was a fun and thoroughly enjoyable read. It's easy to see why Amanda Quick's books consistently make the bestseller lists.
__________________________________________________________

Ah, what loveliness. Ms. Quick books are like meeting an old friend. Comforting yet familiar. This book is no different. It is suitable if you're in the mood for some light reading.
Profile Image for Robin (Bridge Four).
1,943 reviews1,656 followers
October 18, 2014
My guilty pleasures include regency romances. I love to cuddle up on the couch and indulge in them on stormy days. I even expect a bit of cheese to be involved but this one for some reason was just a little too much on the cheese and crackers side of romance for my taste.
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Iphiginia, try to say that three times fast, Bright is an educated woman who doesn’t want to live by the rules. To catch a blackmailer she pretends to be the mistress of Marcus the Earl of Masters a notorious man who has a list of rules a mile wide and whom she believes to be dead. It is Surprising when he shows up unexpectedly to meet the infamous lady parading around town as his mistress.

Iphiginia is a puzzle to him and while he might not believe her tail about a blackmail scheme, he does find her interesting and agrees to continue on with the ruse, in hopes that it won’t be a ruse for much longer because ♫♪♫ I just met you. And you might be crazy. But here’s my number, be my mistress baby ♪♫♪ or something like that.

I should have liked this. I liked the woman that Iphiginia is, like an 18th century Nancy Drew, but I just found myself rolling my eyes every time an intimate moment arrived. Although the way she consoled him after he accidentally took her virginity was sorta hilarious. That was maybe the best/most awkward moment in the book.

I’ve read a few other books by Amanda quick and I really like her quirky intelligent heroines normally so I’m not exactly sure where everything went asunder here. But the Oh Marcus, ooh Iphiginia might have had something to do with it.

Not my cup of tea but it still had a couple funny scenes.
Profile Image for *CJ*.
5,097 reviews624 followers
October 16, 2019
"Mistress" is the story of Iphiginia and Marcus.

What a wonderful book with so much to love.

Our heroine is Iphiginia Bright, a strong independent intellect who has traveled the world, owns her own academy and business, and is fiercely protective of her loved ones. When her beloved aunt starts getting blackmailed with a dark secret, she takes up a new role..as the pretend mistress of Earl of Masters whom she presumes has been murdered. Making a splash in the society with her beauty and wit, she begins thoroughly investigating the suspects..until the real Earl of Masters, Marcus Valerius Cloud shows up!

Marcus Cloud is shocked when he is informed of his ethereal mistress who is enchanting the society..until he realizes he does not have one currently. Travelling to London to debunk her lies, he soon finds himself awestruck by her beauty..but more by her sharp wit, valor and supposed honesty and earnestness. Initially suspecting her of making up the whole charade, he finally believes her when a close friend falls prey to blackmail too, and he is forced to work with her to unmask the blackmailer.

Honestly, this was a thoroughly engaging read. The heroine was so strong, determined and smart, she should be a paragon for all the HQN sissies. She was honest, did not run away from her feelings and made the hero listen to her, instead of giving in to his or society's dictates. She was also free thinking, and so confident about her intellectual abilities. I absolutely loved and adored her- and how she ONLY gave in to him when a promise of love was returned. The hero was a sexy and scholarly alpha, but he stood no chance when it came to the heroine who had him enraptured from the very beginning. Hot lovemaking, good amount of angst, interesting secondary characters with a few love stories thrown in there too- all concluding in a heartwarming ending.

Why not 5 stars? Because I deserved an epilogue and 100% wanted more.

Safe
4.5/5
Profile Image for Missy.
1,109 reviews
September 25, 2021
This is my second book by Amanda Quick and it appears I enjoyed the other book (Dangerous) as well although I can't recall anything from it. Darn.

The narrator really kept me interested in the book. I think I may have a new narrator to add to my top narrators list. :) She kind of sounds like the narrator at the beginning of Disney's Cinderella (not the live-action remake) and I believe that helped draw me in.

Based on some of the blurbs of her books, Amanda Quick tends to insert mysteries into her HRs, which is why I haven't read more books written by her. Not surprisingly, this book had a mystery (who is the blackmailer?), but thanks to the narrator and the likable characters (main and secondary), I ended up enjoying this book more than I anticipated.

I liked the main couple. They're both intelligent and logical. The hero has scientific endeavors and rules of his own that he never breaks probably because of his past (first marriage). The heroine falls in love pretty early. It was refreshing to see that she wanted his kisses. Their first time together ended quite hilariously. The story did kind of dragged a little after this scene, when the heroine refused to marry the hero because he's not in love with her. Same-old, same-old.
Profile Image for Robin.
1,979 reviews98 followers
July 29, 2020
When her Aunt falls victim to a blackmailer, Iphiginia Bright comes up with a plan. She comes to London posing as the mistress of the Earl of Masters who is out of town and rumored to be dead. She believes that the blackmailer knew both her aunt and the Earl. When the Earl, Marcus Cloud, hears about a mistress he has never met, he travels to London to check her out. Marcus finds Iphiginia beautiful and intriguing; but doesn't believe her wild story. But when a good friend of his is also being blackmailed by the same person, Marcus decides to help Iphiginia catch the culprit.

This older Amanda Quick title hasn't lost any of its charm. It has well developed characters with fun dialogue. The only drawback is the blackmailer is rather easy to pick out. Still I enjoyed this historical romance. My rating: 4.5 Stars.
Profile Image for NMmomof4.
1,787 reviews5,029 followers
May 2, 2023
2.5 Stars

Opinion Breakdown
The Good: The premise.

The Not-So-Good: The ending. It was lackluster and could've been so much better. I also wasn't happy with the connection to the characters and the connection I felt among them. I remember feeling much more with this author, especially in Ravished, so this was a let down for sure.

The Bad: The pacing. It felt slow. It felt long. It felt like there were periods where not much happened.

Overall: This was so underwhelming. I love the idea of the book because I'm intrigued by the mistress-to-more type theme -- so if there are any recommendations, please send them my way! I just felt bored and I was expecting much more here that it just fell really flat for me. It could be a me thing since there are some good reviews for this!

Brief Summary of the Storyline: This is Iphiginia and Marcus' story. Iphiginia is searching for her aunt's blackmailer when she poses as the infamous (and she thought late) Earl of Masters' mistress. Only Marcus is not dead and he returns to London after hearing about his supposed mistress being all the rage in the ton and is looking for someone to replace him. When Marcus finds out what is really going on, he agrees to keep up the farce and even help Iphiginia out. There is some suspense, some secrets revealed, and some sexy times...and they get a HEA ending.

Point Of View (POV): This alternated between focusing mainly on Iphiginia and Marcus in 3rd person narrative.

Overall Pace of Story: Not the best. This felt slow but I never skimmed.

Instalove: No, they take a while to develop stronger feelings.

H (Hero) rating: 3 stars. Marcus. He was alright. I wanted all his secrets revealed to the h.

h (heroine) rating: 3.5 stars. Iphiginia. I liked her more than the H. I appreciated her smarts and independence.

Sadness level: Low, no tissues needed

Push/Pull: Yes

Heat level: Alright. They have some tension, chemistry, and scenes -- but not so much it takes away from the story.

Descriptive sex: Yes

OW (Other Woman)/OM (Other Man) drama: Yes

Sex scene with OW or OM: No

Cheating: No

Separation: No

Possible Triggers: Yes

Closure: This ends in an okay place and with what I would call a HEA ending , but it could've been much better.

Safety: This one should be Safe for most safety gang readers
Profile Image for Sometime.
1,718 reviews173 followers
February 13, 2022
I decided to dig deep from my "want to read again" shelf and came up with this gem. It's been 9 years since I last read it and I loved it just as much as the first time.

Both H/h were great, smart, funny, and perfect for each other. Amanda Quick writes great HR.

Safety: safe for me
Profile Image for When Funmi Met Romance.
128 reviews302 followers
January 25, 2012

SEX EDUCATION 101

It would have gotten three maybe four stars if one thing hadn't happened. How are you supposed to be a lady in to her spinster years, traveled, and smart and You MISTAKE a man's ejaculation with a near death experience caused by you and your inability to "take all of him"...WTF???

now that kind of stupidity is irreproachable, yet she is smart enough to understand the ins and out of ancient architecture, she can conjure up an amazing plan to catch a blackmailer, and FOOL THE TON-gaining entrance even into Almacks with status as a "Mistress" Sorry Quick but that is ridiculous. You cannot have those two extremes in intelligence.A woman cannot be that naive as to men at that age. Im going to give her a piece of advice my mother gave me, If you don't know about sex you do not need to be having it. Period Point Blank.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Daniella.
256 reviews635 followers
July 4, 2015
HOLY SHIT THIS BOOK WAS JUST SO AWFUL.

There, I said it.

Bloody hell. I can't believe it. It actually happened... I finally encountered an Amanda Quick book that I dislike so much cartwheeling over a crate of dynamite seemed infinitely more appealing than reading it. And unlike in the case of her other book, Affair, no amount of loyalty to Ms. Quick could elevate this to anything more than a harsh 1 star rating.

Everything was just wrong with this book, but the straw that broke the camel's back was the fact that Iphiginia was so bloody ridiculous and so damn stupid to live. She represented everything I hate in a heroine. I wanted to wring her neck halfway through the novel out of frustration. UGH.
description

Iphiginia: "Do not lecture me as though I were a schoolgirl, sir. I am a rational, educated, intelligent woman, not a foolish child. Of course I gave the matter proper consideration."

SAYS THE GIRL WHO LET A MAN KISS HER SENSELESS ON THEIR FIRST MEETING. Says the girl who fell in love with her image of a man she never met (who, I would like to repeat, was a notorious and reputably dangerous man). Says the girl who, despite her family's warnings, lets a man flip her skirt without any second thoughts. Yes, not even a single thought for the future. No "Oh maybe they were right--maybe I shouldn't let him ravish me since I don't know him that well".

SAYS THE GIRL WHO LET A GUY--WHO DID NOT LOVE NOR TRUST HER--TO TAKE HER VIRGINITY.
description

SERIOUSLY, WHAT THE HOLY FUCK? I expected so much more than this shit. Seriously, Iphiginia was too stupid--too damn stupid--to live. It didn't help that Marcus was a manipulative, cold, uninspiring bastard who cared too much for unnecessary things like his rules.

SERIOUSLY. FUCK THIS SHIT.
description
Profile Image for Ginger.
993 reviews577 followers
December 7, 2020
DNF. Bloody hell, I expected a little too much from the idea of this book. It sounded like mindless fun with the plot of blackmail, a woman impersonating a mistress and a mysterious rake that lived by his own rules.

I’ve read other books by Amanda Quick and have enjoyed them. I choice this book at random at the library and I will be returning it this weekend.

Why did I not finish this book you ask?
Well, the characters were flat and I had no desire to carry on their story. I did not like them or care about what would happen next. When that happens, you've just got to move on. And another thing, I hated the name “Iphiginia” from the beginning. Seriously, it was too much to pronounce every time her name came up.

Next book, onward and upward!
Profile Image for &#x1f41d; Shaz &#x1f41d; .
830 reviews24 followers
May 25, 2021

The Earl of Masters and Iphiginia Bright, find love while trying to find a Blackmailer. Good read with humour, and two intelligent H & h characters.
3,211 reviews67 followers
November 27, 2019
Silly plot that became a great love story, because of great writing. The characters were fabulous, she's smart, caring and falls in loves with the H very quickly. He has self image issues and is shocked by her, and how much he cares for her, but doesn't trust himself at first. I loved how quickly he changed his mind, and that his life became better because of her.
Profile Image for Lauren.
1,482 reviews216 followers
June 19, 2020
Loved!! This was such a different read. The hr is smart, beautiful, and independent. She comes up with a clever way to catch a blackmailer. Such great, well depth characters.
Profile Image for Lizzy.
307 reviews159 followers
September 23, 2023
** 4.5 stars **
What is better than to sit down by the fire on a winter night, drinking hot chocolate and reading an endearing novel? That’s how I felt while reading Amanda Quick’s Mistress, a hilarious clever mix of romance and intrigue.

Iphiginia as Mrs. Bright, all in white, poses as the mistress of the effusive Earl as Masters to unmask a blackmailer that is threatening her family. Marcus intrigued quits his country home to meet her, when told of Lady Starlight’s parading in society as his supposed paramour. She believed him dead, but suddenly Marcus strides into the ballroom to meet her. And it goes on…

Ms. Quick reveals her characters wondrously well through their dialogues. Marcus's sarcastic comments and Iphiginia's smart remarks were hilarious and I thoroughly enjoyed their witty banter:
’Tell me, do you enjoy living by such rigid rules, sir?’‘They have served me well.’ ‘Life is short,’ Iphiginia whispered. ‘I find that too many rules can make one’s existence dull and confined.’
I just loved the banter between them:
’Have you enjoyed playing my mistress, Iphiginia?’
‘Oh, yes… But I have to admit is has been … almost as exciting as my recent journey to Italy.’
Marcus’s brows rose. ‘Almost as exciting? I am devastated to hear that being my mistress has not been quite as entrancing as your tour of antiquities.’... ‘I did not mean to offend you, my lord. In truth, I have found playing the part of your mistress vastly interesting.’ ‘But not quite as interesting as, say, touring the ruins of Pompleii?’ ‘Well, Pompeii is Pompei, after all, my lord.’
Through further dialogues we learn how Iphiginia and Marcus are both set on their ways:
’It would, indeed, appear that he was correct.’ Amelia agreed. ‘He very often is.’ Iphiginia muttered. ‘What is worse, he knows it and does not hesitate to make one aware of the fact. I vow, it is vastly annoying at times.’ ‘I suspect you feel that way because you are so accustomed to being correct most of the time yourself.’ Amelia said. ‘Masters and I do have a great deal in common, do we not?’
So, they are very alike in their tenacity. He is an arrogant, sure of himself, devastatingly attractive man. She is a woman ahead of her time, though innocent in her experience, that has forged a future for her and her family. But where he is set in his rules, she is basically open minded and romantic. A believable and lovable couple, they totally enraptured me.

Marcus, a well-drawn hero with the help of the romantic Iphiginia starts to breaks loose of his rules and becomes a better person:
Bennet sighed. ‘Would you mind telling me why you feel you must marry this particular female, Marcus?’ Marcus gazed broodingly at the clockwork man. ‘When I am with her I do not feel as though I am made of gears and springs.’
And later on:
‘I will not marry a man who has a rule against falling in love.’ … ‘You have taught me to break most of my rules, Iphiginia,’ Marcus said quietly. ‘Teach me to break this one, too.’
I really love Ms. Quick’s quirky sharp heroines; it adds fabulous enjoyment to some of her books. You will also recognize another resourceful protagonist on Imogen of Mischief. They have a lot in common for they are almost modern females in a time that being a woman was not a walk in the park at all. The respective plots that defines them are not only unmistakable, but is not limited to a formula and totally credible and innovative.

Mistress had everything anyone would need to enjoy a good reading time: a lovely romance, an awesome leading couple with great chemistry; nice supporting characters; believable mystery and a good dose of suspense. Another Quick classic, it remains one of my favorites historical romances.
Profile Image for daemyra, the realm's delight.
1,291 reviews37 followers
December 28, 2020
If Mistress is a dessert, it is a macaron. It’s the cutest thing that you want to consume! Mistress is a recommended read if you enjoy a confident bluestocking paired up with a stuffy Mr. Darcy type off to solve a mystery. The relationship between the leads, Iphigenia and Marcus, reminded me of Loretta Chase's Lord of Scoundrels (beautiful, strongheaded bluestocking, "dark" hero who is not actually dark but kind of stuffy, still hot) and their amusing banter reminded me of The Importance of Being Earnest (or should I say, the importance of Marcus' intelligence).

I enjoy an angst-filled read but there is a place in my heart for very nice vanilla romances like Amanda Quick's Mistress. It has one of the most charming opening chapters ever - I love the first chapter and Iphigenia and Marcus meeting for the first time! So good. The latter half of the story becomes predictable when the hero demands marriage because it's the "right thing to do" and the heroine refuses because she's being asked for the "wrong reasons."

Mistress is a great example of an independent female protagonist with subtlety. I enjoyed Iphigenia a lot. Her interest in antiquities wasn't to demonstrate she was a dreamy bookworm but a resourceful woman who translated what she loved into successful real estate/investment ventures and a future pattern book project! Her positive attitude bordering on ditzy paired with her business acumen reminded me a lot of Anne Mallory's heroine in In Total Surrender. I loved Iphigenia's independence and I loved that there was no marketing statement about feminism here. I am a feminist but I hate the commodification of capitalist feminism.

This is my second read from Quick and I plan to read more by Quick!
Profile Image for Serialbookstarter:Marla.
1,185 reviews82 followers
September 23, 2022
Love the narrator! I listened to this on audible. I prefer to read books the old fashioned way… but this narration is sublime. Iphigenia the h is out to find out who is blackmailing her Aunt. She pretends to be the H Marcus’ mistress while he is oot.that way she will have entry into London society.
Profile Image for Zoe.
766 reviews203 followers
February 2, 2016
ugh my review is gone. I don't know why. Suffice it to say that it was not great or awful. It was typially Amanda Quick with a overly rational heroine (I hate a woman who argues and argues and thinks this makes her look smart) and a high-handed earl. Mystery, blackmail and a little bit of romance. 3 stars for old time's sake.
Profile Image for Helena.
385 reviews53 followers
February 14, 2018
I have to be honest, some parts of it were boring and my eyes were just flying across the pages BUT I enjoyed the story as a whole so much that I'm willing to look past those never ending descriptions and unnecessary plots
Profile Image for Aou .
2,042 reviews215 followers
November 10, 2018
I’ve read the hard copy in 1999 and re-read e-book a couple of years ago again. It was funny and heroine was great.
Profile Image for Laura Elizabeth.
620 reviews2 followers
May 16, 2021
This was an ok who done it romance. Didn’t love Masters but heroine was fantastic.
Profile Image for Arzu.
342 reviews
September 23, 2021
4.67/5

Ay çok güzel çok sevdim 🤩
Klasik histlerden sıkıldıysanız bu kitap tam size göre. Metres adından anlaşıldığı gibi yasak aşkı konu etmiyor aksine iki bekar insanın ilişkisini anlatıyor. İlk önce bunu anlatmak istedim çünkü evlilik olsaydı okumazdım. Neyse kitabın diğer sevdiğim noktaya geleyim o da hem kızımızın hem de oğlumuzun zeki olmasıydı. Hatta Marcus'un esprileri beni kırdı geçirdi yahu! Özellikle doktorun odasında üst üste iki baskın yediği zaman Allah'ım çok komikti. Tek sevemediğim yönü ise kızımızla münasabetleri oldu. Çok az mutlu an okuduk ama ya :( Keşke yazar olayları çıkardıktan sonra biraz daha mutlu zaman daha okusaydık. Neyse ilk Amanda Qick romanımdı ve beğendim ❤️ Eğer boştaysanız, gizemli bir kitap ve kafası çalışan karakterler okumak istiyorsanız gönül rahatlığıyla okuyabilirsiniz ✔️
Profile Image for Gina.
2,069 reviews71 followers
March 24, 2020
Iphegenia (what a name!) goes undercover as a mistress of a dead Earl in order to gain entrance into society to reveal a blackmailer. One problem...he's not dead and she's never been a mistress. When he hears about his mistress, he decides to check it out. I in no way expected this to be funny, but it really was. I loved the banter between the H/h and each other's family and friends. Sure, the plot is a little - OK a lot - farfetched, but it was so fun I didn't care. There's a few TSTL moments and a few others that weren't really clear how they worked with the mystery, but all the fun and banter made up for it. I enjoyed it and recommend it.
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