Led Astray

Hellraisers #1

by Sandra Brown, Sandra Brown

LED ASTRAY

And once he had kissed her, felt the responding warmth of her body beneath his hands, there had been no turning back. What he had done had been unforgivable. But what he was going to do was almost as bad.

Cage and Hal Hendren are as unalike as two brothers can be. Preacher’s kids, Hal has taken the righteous path, while Cage is the unrepentant black sheep of the family. The only thing they have in common is their love for the same woman – Jenny Fletcher.
Jenny loves Hal for his commitment to his calling, but deep in her heart of hearts she wishes his desire for her burned as hotly. Only on the eve of his departure for a dangerous mission trip to Central America, when he comes to her bed in darkness and secret, does he take her with unexpected passion.

When tragedy strikes and Hal is lost to her, it’s that night that Jenny cherishes, that Hal she misses. She yearns for that lover whose unbridled sensuality more resembled. . . Cage.

For Jenny, Cage is willing to give up his wild ways. But to get on the straight and narrow, he must sin again.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Fiction, Audiobook, Harlequin, Adult

240 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 1985

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Sandra Brown is the author of more than sixty New York Times bestsellers, including STING (2016), FRICTION (2015), MEAN STREAK (2014), DEADLINE(2013), & LOW PRESSURE (2012), LETHAL (2011).

Brown began her writing career in 1981 and since then has published over seventy novels, bringing the number of copies of her books in print worldwide to upwards of eighty million. Her work has been translated into over thirty languages.

In 2009 Brown detoured from romantic suspense to write, Rainwater, a much acclaimed, powerfully moving historical fiction story about honor and sacrifice during the Great Depression.

Brown was given an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Texas Christian University. She was named Thriller Master for 2008, the top award given by the International Thriller Writer’s Association. Other awards and commendations include the 2007 Texas Medal of Arts Award for Literature and the Romance Writers of America’s Lifetime Achievement Award.

Reviews

[Mo · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

Written in the 80s? Seems like it was written further back than that. Dated, cheesy, totally non-PC. I guess authors have to start someplace but, honestly, it is hard to believe that this is the same author that wrote Chill Factor, Mean Streak, Friction ... her more recent books are on a totally different wavelength. I guess it is try what they say, "Practice makes Perfect."

We had the obligatory SB "hairy chest"!


There was one scene that was totally "wrong" but, what the heck, its an oldie, its fiction, its SB.



Cheesy? Sure it was but sometimes I am in the mood for a cheesy, oldie.

[Cristina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un libro muy tierno que me dejó con muy buen sabor de boca lo leí hace tiempo y estoy deseando releerlo cuando tenga tiempo.

[Saly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved Led Astray, it didn't feel dated to me at all.

Jenny was taken in by the Hendrens when she lost her parents at fourteen and she has lived with them since then, letting them choose her life and planning to marry their younger son Hal.

She is preparing to see off Hal, who is going on a mission to Central America when she goes outside and Cage joins her. Cage is the eldest son, the one who, has never been given his parents approval or love since he is not as perfect as Hal, and this is something that Jenny has always noticed and felt bad about. He tells Jenny to convince Hal not to go it would be suicide and he also tells her to stop letting his parents guide her life.

Jenny tells Hal not to go and asks him give her something he has never given her, one night of lovemaking, he refuses and when she is crying herself to sleep, he appears and they make love.

The "he" in question is Cage who feels guilt-ridden. He has loved and wanted Jenny for years but never made a move since it was kind of decided she would be Hal's wife, but he decides to woo her, dropping in the house, talking to her.

Once Hal leaves, Jenny starts having doubts about their relationship and thinks, what Cage said was right, she allowed others to decide her destiny and then Hal dies. She goes along with Cage to collect the body and their growing intimacy and what he makes her feel, make her feel guilty so after the funeral she tries to avoid him. She also tries to make a new life for herself but the Hendrens don't want to let her go.

With the help of Cage she starts a new job and then her life is interrupted, she is pregnant, Cage offers to marry her but she runs after the Hendrens reaction. Cage is elated with the news but thinks it is his penance to not be able to tell Jenny, he doesn't know what to do, he does not want Jenny to think she betrayed Hal.

I actually enjoyed the forbidden aspect of the book. Cage had led a life of a hell-raiser because of his parents disapproval, drinking, womanizing but Jenny centered him. He starts taking care of her, her pregnancy and loves seeing her bloom and come onto her own. Jenny had been burdened too long, but I liked how she realized that she had kept away from Cage deliberately for years, she deals with a lot of guilt because of her growing feelings for Cage and I liked how she held out.

She defended him and even comforted him because of her parents and I liked seeing her grow and her reaction to finding out the truth was very realistic.

[Booklover · Rating 5 out of 5]

5++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ rate book,absolutely fantastic wonderful heart warming emotional romance,Cage Henderson is now on my most adored hero list on no 1 spot,loved him through the story

Cage Henderson such a wonderful sweet caring humble brave courageous man,he has so much patience,he is such a selfless man always thought of others and helped them in his own way,my heart went out to him whole life he was ignored and abandoned by his parents,he had a family but for only name sake he was so lonely among the crowd,then his love his Jenny inspite of being in front of him he just could'nt have her when he decided he will fight for his love fate cruelly took that also away from him but still he never gave up he was always there with Jenny and supported her

Jenny what do i say she is a sweet woman but at the same time she even irritated me by her constant thoughts what will people say,as Cage said her whole life and her choices are dictated by other people but then Cage came in her life he taught her how to stand for herself,voice your thoughts and decisions and helped her to become independent

Absolutely adored Cage-Jenny's friendship and then how it slowly developed in love,these two were two lonely souls who filled each others loneliness and made each other happy,when Jenny comes to know the truth she hurted Cage but then she has an epiphany and comes to her senses but tragedy strikes again but this time Jenny never gave up she was there and even made Bob-Sarah accept that they have been very unfair to Cage how their actions have hurt Cage through his childhood and adulthood

I was really sad when this book ended i wanted so much more of Cage-Jenny''s love story,overall a wonderful awesome read,a keeper for me,this was my first book by this author,will get more books by her

Wonderful read
Recommend it

[Floripiquita · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mira que me gusta Sandra Brown, aquí escribiendo bajo el seudónimo de Erin St. Claire, pero esta historia está muy lejos de sus mejores libros. Se le notan mucho los años y el inicio no me ha gustado nada, aunque luego el protagonista se redima.

#RetoRita4 #RitaViejuna

[D.G. · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm sorry but I cannot get pass the plot point that served as one of the catalysts in this story. It was just too appalling. I think there was a way for the author to achieve the same results in a way that the hero wouldn't have taken advantage of the heroine in such a way: have HER go to his room thinking she was going to Hal's and the hero not realizing she had confused the brothers until the deed was done. At least he realized what he had done - he thought of his act as a violation which was definitely accurate. It doesn't get a lower rating because otherwise, the book was good.

[Feminista · Rating 1 out of 5]

Having sex with a woman and deceiving her as to your identity (by act or omission) is rape.

There is no ifs or maybes about it. Yes she was willing, but she was willing for another man. Just because a woman is willing to have sex with one man, or several, doesn't mean that she is willing to have sex with any man.

[*TANYA* · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lol. Fun filled cheese!!! I love Sandra Brown!!!

[Malika · Rating 5 out of 5]

First Sandra Brown bk read! Omg where the hell hav i been how can i missed this?! Soo good! Thanks alot for recommending this bk for me :-)

If you have more sandra brown bk wit similiar heros plz plz plz let me know ;-) thanks

[Auj · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this one. From the blurb, I wasn't sure what I was going to get: if there was a love triangle or two brothers sharing one woman. And I didn't really want to read either of those, though I could have tolerated the tiniest love triangle. If you think about it, there is a little bit of a love triangle indirectly but only for chapter one.

Cage Hendren is in love with his brother Hal's fiancée, Jenny Fletcher, the orphan who's lived with his family in the parsonage (the father is a Reverend) ever since she was 14 and he in college. (I think the MCs were 4 years apart. Jenny 26, Cage 30.) He's been in love with her for years. I thought it was nice to read a book where the guy is the one in love with the woman for years, instead of the girl being the one always pining away for the elusive, sexy guy. However, what was kind of ironic, was that Cage was a rake. And definitely a bad boy, but part of that was to rebel against his parents and the love they never showed him but showered his younger brother in.

Hal's off to help political prisoners escape Monterico, Guatemala, and smuggle them illegally into the U.S., where they'll be safe. (Either Monterrico changed its name in the years since this book's been written, or Sandra Brown misspelled the name of an important city to the book....umm, obviously, it's the latter.) Both Jenny and Cage disapprove of this mission because it's extremely dangerous, so it's not a surprise & hardly a spoiler (it's the blurb of the library book I got) that Hal dies. I almost want to read an alternate novel of this book where instead of Hal dying, Cage wins Jenny away from Hal, which was Cage's original plan.

From the very beginning, when Hal is still alive, it's obvious that Jenny has some feelings for Cage...feelings being strongly attracted to him but those feelings frighten her a bit. It seems she got with Hal because it was convenient, expected of her, they were best friends and it just seemed to "make sense" but in a way lacking romance or passion. Hal also didn't really seem to care for her so much, not in the way someone should if they're to be marrying. It seemed like Jenny was convenient to him too, an afterthought that would come after his missions and holy work. (This reminded me of Ragnar and Aslaug's relationship in Vikings; Ragnar doesn't love her but she's convenient to him as a broodmare and mother of his sons. She comes as a second, or even third, thought.) For instance, he refuses to stay when she pleads with him not to go, refuses to make love with her the night before he leaves, doesn't even single her out in a postcard that's sent to the whole family, etc. Even though Cage could be a little pushy and sorta steamroll Jenny, who was super passive to the point of it being annoying, I think he was better for her because he genuinely cared for her & helped her get out of her shell to take more risks. He finally got her out of the parsonage, where she was working for free & wasting her life away, and out of his parents' thumb.

I'm not really sure what Cage saw in Jenny though. Here he was this really alpha, sexy, good in bed guy and he had fallen for this slightly boring (though far less boring and annoying to me as Justine in "Quid Pro Quo"), innocent, submissive, and passive girl. I prefer my heroines to be strong and even a little feisty sometimes is interesting. Even Cage told her to stop being passive and letting his parents dictate her life, which they had been doing since she was 14 when she moved in with them when her family died in a freak accident. It seemed she was afraid of telling the parents, especially Sarah, no in fear that they would kick her out/not want her anymore. Honestly, she seemed afraid of a lot of things...earning their disapproval, her feelings for Cage, etc.
However, I did really like how the hero and heroine knew each other very well, shared stories of their past, reminisced, you really got the sense that they were friends, etc. Too often in romance novels, I feel as though the couple just met and now they're in love and I'm like how? Where is the conversation? The connection besides a sexual one?

In this novel, like some other older books I've read, the first sex scene is the longest and the best. The sex scenes were definitely better and had less flowery language than many books written in the same time frame, but there was still a little bit of flowery language and the metaphors for climaxing, so much so I was confused if Jenny has orgasmed or not in the first sex scene. One example is "her satin sheath". I don't mind that one, as long as there are no purple manhoods. I do wonder why so many romance writers in the 80s wrote sex scenes in such flowery ways...was it the culture back then, that it would be considered crass to write sex scenes so explicitly? If you know, please comment.

There is a catch in the first scene, though...you'll see if you read the book. Cage makes love to Jenny under duplicitous circumstances. Jenny thought he was Hal, come to change his mind about making love to her or saying goodbye one last time, and Cage didn't correct her. He was overcome by his lust lol. I saw in the GR reviews that it bothered some people, but it didn't bother me. Even though I know it's not right and definitely not PC, I found it a little bit romantic for some reason. When I found out, I actually was like 🤭🤭. I think I might have gasped too lol

I was wondering if Jenny was going to get pregnant from that night, but when it didn't come, I was just like oh well, maybe he didn't come in her or something, or it doesn't always happen on the first try. But then it did happen, but the news of her pregnancy came so late in the book, probably more than halfway through, I had forgotten about it. (It seemed Jenny was shocked and didn't want to believe it, but mostly because she had thought her missed periods were from stress/grief over Hal.)

I was surprised Cage never had gotten any speeding tickets because he was always driving over the speed limit...for example, 90 mph on a highway, which is crazy (and now I'm curious as to what that'd feel like being in a car going that fast...). I also noticed at least 2 grammatical errors, including the misspelling of the word "business", not to mention getting the spelling of a city (see above) repeatedly wrong.

I also think the climax at the end was unnecessary and seemed like extraneous drama. I felt like the conflict between the MCs at that point was enough for the climax/obligatory big conflict at the end of romance novels anyways. Cage got into a car accident trying to help a family whose car got stuck in the railroad tracks and a train hit his car. I think it was unnecessary because we missed Jenny making up her mind to forgive him and decide to be with him, which she seemed on the verge of doing so after he finally revealed that it was not Hal but rather him she had made love to that night and not Hal's son but his son. And/or we missed him groveling more. I hate when novels take the easy way out and have the hero get in a car accident (obviously, when she got the call in the middle of the night, I suspected he had been in a car accident) so the heroine automatically decides to forgive him because she realizes that she doesn't want to live without him now that he almost died. And we only got a sense of what happened after he came out of surgery and his convalescence, so I just assumed that she forgave him, through recounting. That was another thing I didn't like about this book and the author's writing style: the recounting of events when they had already happened. I don't think it was a case of show not tell, but rather a catch up of events that had it only happened once or twice, I would have hardly paid attention to it and then complained about it in my review, but it happened a few too many times that it started to irritate me a bit.

I am curious about this author's other books, so maybe I will check them out and read other books by hers. I just hope there won't be another pointless dramatic event to occur for the climax of the novel. Some readers found this novel dated. I, on the other hand, like when books were clearly meant to be contemporary, but since they were written over 30 years ago, they give off a slightly historical vibe. (Basically, books written in the 1900s of 20th Century life.) Even without the publication date, you could tell this book wasn't written a few years ago because Jenny's bra was referred to as a "brasserie", she was wearing stockings, a friend of theirs died recently in 'Nam (referring to the Vietnam War), I think Cage's job was as an oil prospector, etc.

[Lyuda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would say this is my favorite of Sandra Brown romances back when she wrote them. The story of two brothers loving the same woman is definitely not new but very appealing main characters made all the difference. The love triangle in the story was resolved early on when the younger brother died on a church mission to Central America leaving his fiancé and older brother on the central stage. The chemistry between the two characters was very good, the secondary characters well drawn, both brining the story from a dated soap opera to a pretty dramatic read.

[Anita · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, this oldie is a definite miss. Angst from beginning to end. Jenny, pure as the driven snow, is engaged to the saintly Hal, who is about to embark on a dangerous mission trip. Cage, the wildcat, hellion of a black sheep brother steps up to comfort Jenny when Hal declines to sleep with her the night before Hal leaves for Central America. Hal is killed in Central America and Jenny is left pregnant and Cage is left knowing that the baby is his. Their way to true love and acceptance is long and rocky.

[Mahlet · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't want to give it away, but as a reader, you find out some pretty shocking news at the beginning of the story, and I'm not talking about the "good" brother Hal's death, mentioned on the backcover. Maybe other readers saw it coming, but I did not, so from that point on, I was hooked!

I loved the h/h pair! The misunderstood, bad-boy hero Cage, has basically made it his mission to have his dead brother's wife, whom he's loved for years, for himself. Jenny has always felt a little uncomfortable around Cage, even when her husband Hal was alive...and now he's finding every excuse to be around her, and she's enjoying their time together. But as Jenny is the former fiance of the preacher's good son, tongues are soon wagging in this small town. Jenny's conscience and the pressure from her almost-in-laws tell her being with Cage is wrong and dirty, but her body and heart tell her otherwise...This story was a wonderful sweet romance :)

[Lemon · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a lovely and heartwarming read. This book was emotional and sweet and the hero was thoroughly lovable and huggable in his vulnerability behind the bad boy attitude. Thanks a million to Saly!

[Leona · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved it......my favorite Sandra Brown Book!

[atomickitten · Rating 4 out of 5]

4+ stars

"I used to be such a nice girl. I was led astray."

And thank god that she was.
No, scratch that.
Thank Cage that she was.
It did take him a while, though.
But I loved it!
Because watching Jenny turn from a prude, insecure and very naive pushover to a woman who knows what she wants was what I wanted from the very get-go.
And that's what I got.

I'm only taking away 1 star because of the parents.
They were simply pure evil: two pious, bigoted hypocrites who forgot one important thing: you practice what you preach.
They were just obnoxious. When they told Cage they wished he'd died instead of Hal, I srsly wanted to strangle them with my bare hands.

Because if that's not pure evil, I dunno what is.



And these two deserved to suffer.
And I mean suffer.
In agony.
For years.
Just like they let Cage suffer for years just for being himself, just like they did everything to show him every possible way that they didn't love him because he "wasn't good enough to be their son" because he didn't fit their narrow-minded vision of life.

Because, I'm sorry, but there's a line.
There's always a line in every fucking aspect of your life.

Your parents telling you they never loved you and that your younger brother is a million times better than you and then telling you it would've been better for everyone if you'd died instead of him?
Here, we were so past the line, I couldn't even see it any more.



And because they were just forgiven and let off the hook so easily, you know, like the past 30 years never happened, my thirst for revenge was not fulfilled.
Hence the missing star.
Because I really hated these two.

But I loved Cage, he was my absolute favourite here.

And this book, in all its vintage glory, was a total blast.
And I inhaled it all in one go.
Now off to book 2 in the series.
I'm super excited.

[Jessica A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cage... Cage... Cage... meu bad boy dos anos 80

Simplesmente apaixonada por este livro *-*

Meu primeiro romance de banca e comecei com o pé direito, to encantada até agora! Confesso, que tinha lá as minhas dúvidas sobre romances de banca, pensava que era aqueles clichês danado, totalmente melosos e super previsíveis, sei lá, eu jurava que era assim, mas como sou lerda (como sempre) sempre procrastinava a leitura, apesar de possuir dois na minha estante.

Como tudo que eu for falar sobre esse livro não será novo, então, vou apenas fazer alguns comentários sobre:

Primeiramente, que mocinho é esse?! Cage é aquele personagem que vc quer pega-lo e enviar dentro do bolso pra ninguém meter o olho e só vc possui-lo (em todos os sentidos :P danadinha), de cara já tinha me apaixonado por ele, ainda mais sendo aquele bam bam bam todo de bad boy, mas que por dentro é um anjinho vulnerável. Depois, por tudo que os dois passaram, teve momentos que eu ri (ah, como ri), quando iam finalmente concretizar o bendito amor, tinha um estrupício pra atrapalhar na hora. E por fim, a mocinha, eu gostei da Jenny, ela foi a vida toda sendo manipulada e controlada que finalmente acordou pra realidade e deu a volta por cima. Ah, não posso esquecer a família do Cage, que família é aquela?! Deus me livre!

O final é lindo demais ♥

Minha primeira experiência com a Sandra Brown e a única coisa que posso dizer é: A-M-E-I com todas as forças! ♥

E agradeço de novo a Gaby (1282789-gaby) pela a indicação MARA!!! Ela sabe mto bem como eu adoro um mocinho bem bad boy, Cage foi perfeito! Obrigadaaaaa ♡♥♡

Se recomendo?! Preciso falar mais alguma coisa?! ;)
Nota: 5 ♡♡♡♡♡

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is quite a dated book, but that does not excuse how predictable and manipulative it is. Yes, I get that it is a romance novel. But no, even I can't get behind a heroine so bizarrely clueless that, in her plans to seduce someone, her first step is to take two sleeping pills.

The fact that several of the characters are (allegedly) devout Christians also seemed a poor fit for most of this novel.

Finally, I realize this was written before date rape was a thing that society grasped, but the crux of the romance involves exactly that.

I listened to this while commuting to work and I can't say that I was bored, but I was frequently exasperated.

[Melluvsbooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

This has some fun cliche 80’s romance elements:

- good twin/bad twin quasi-triangle
- twin swap
- dubcon
- bad boy preacher’s kid is misunderstood - but he’s a manwhore who absolutely drives a motorcycle and corvette 😅
- repressed virgin h - she does a lot of naive shamed pearl clutching
- surprise baby of questionable paternity
- stereotypical judgy small town
- dramatic near-tragedy


I mean…. I didn’t hate it. 🤷🏼‍♀️






⚠️FOR THE SAFETY SQUAD⚠️

- no cheating once the h and H are intimate
- no sharing
- OW drama- the H has a colorful past that the whole town knows about - there’s an assumed relationship between him and a gal in town, that causes the h grief, but it’s actually a misunderstanding
- I personally felt like his “friendly” relationship with a gal was a bit over the top, but it got better
- dubcon

[Rbeey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Definitely..LED ASTRAY is....
The sweetest love hang over no true Romantic wants to get over!
Love oooh TRUE Love... goes where it pleases Not where it is sent.
Caution! Caution!
This True Romantic imposingly felt... burns penetrate deep down to the love bone.
Every drop of this delicious READ oozed and dripped from the pages with scorching white HOT Lava fires!
Why yes indeed,Loves magic was majestically work in this short READ!

No matter what demands or allegiances Heroine(JENNY)felt to her so called fiance parents,it meant nothing cause she subconsciously Desired&loved another!!!!
For so long she was in denial and couldn't let the Real independent &Sensual JENNY come out of the closet! ;O)
JENNY didn't understand,that there is nothing to FEAR but Fear it self,but that's life and what every circumstances you're reared in perhaps,shapes your mind as individual for life!
On a whole this READ offers a lot ,that's if your mind isn't close or One track, to accept!
As in life and I found in this READ Some individuals in general have narrow minds and form opinions wrongly of others without knowing that person first hand. Then again, theirs nothing as great as FEAR of the unknown,like JENNY was afraid of her Feelings for a another even though she was Betrothed...to another!!!!
I think people and life NEVER change there's nothing New under the sun,regardless of the time ,nope it doesn't matter,traditions of old DON'T die,they live on! teeeheee!

Within this story line Ms. Brown did a magnificent job of demonstrating through her Gift of Writting how, fate & destiny as in True life took control of the direction of the story.
Excellent job! on Ms. Brown's part for showing the different characters of the sons &how the parents interaction with both Sons...hmmm..very,very interesting. It's like yep,yep I know these people!

I love the feeling when I get when the Hero is sexy,wild,and they say,"NO OOO,you shouldn't get involved with him(Cage)OOOOH my! Here goes, then comes the excitement of being bad to the Bone!!! Being naughty is fun,Cage was fun and not boring like his brother! He was lead by his on self on the road to life discoveries while learning along the way and even if he fall(he had faults to) he could brush his self off and get back up again,isn't that what life is all about?!
I can read,LED ASTRAY again&again.

[Didichan · Rating 1 out of 5]

disfusting ... Cage raped her... na this is not a love story .. its very disgusting i feel so sorry for Hal.... i hated this

[Magdelena Tsureva · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Съдбовна нощ" е книга за преплитането на 3 човешки съдби. Интересното тук е,че смъртта на Хал напълно преобърна живота на Джени и Кейдж, които откриха любовта между себе си. Развитието на героите и щастливия край също много ми харесаха. Единственото,което можеше да бъде по-добро е сюжета,който ми се стори не особено развит. Като цяло си заслужава четенето,ако сте любители на романтиката.

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

Do you remember Amanda Seyfreid’s character Karen from Mean Girls?


Well imagine she grew up and was also a Christian, then you would have our leading lady in Led Astray, Jenny.

Yep, a bit of a dumb dumb. Why does innocent have to equal stupid in these romance novels? Why????? Argh! A conversation for another day and a bit of a deep conversation for this waiting pool of a story.

Anyways the romantic leading man is Cage, a hot alpha male bad boy who has been in love with Jenny from afar for years, but Jenny is oblivious (understatement of the century) and has always been involved with his younger brother (the goody two-shoes), so afar he stays. Until the younger brother Hal decides he is going on a trip to save poor people in South America or something it is some dangerous Bible thing.
Break it down: Jenny is not his priority.
Cage decides he will steal her away while younger brother is off missioning (or whatever it is called). Kind of a shitty thing for Cage to do but in all fairness Hal seems like a shitty brother.

Here is where the book gets a bit…I don’t know.... it could definitely sink the story for many. Jenny is upset the night Hal is to leave and is given a valium, 1 Valium. She then decides to throw her virgin self at him to encourage him to stay he is not into it (I am not a dude but this did not ring true to me) any way devastated and a bit stoned from the valium (the 1 Valium) she is sobbing in bed and our “Hero?” Cage comes in to “comfort her” and she mistakes him for goody two shoes and they have sex. When it becomes clear the next day that Jenny has no clue she "cheated" on Hal, Cage does not tell her what’s up and then tries to woo her and what not for the rest of the book until it all comes back to blow up in his face.

If the drug haze (from the 1 Valium) sex had been handled differently it may have made this book, more enjoyable but the fact that this girl came off as so oblivious to everything made it hard to get into.

[Linda (NOT RECEIVING NOTIFICATIONS) · Rating 3 out of 5]

LED ASTRAY was an older contemporary romance originally released in 1985 under one of several pseudonyms Sandra Brown used earlier in her career: Erin St. Claire. Hands down, it is a 'wonk' romance.

Typical of the 1980's, Cage Hendren was a man with money, power and common sense. Well, most of the time. His father was a preacher and his mother was a housewife and they raised two boys that were as different as could be. Cage was the rowdy one. Always seeking attention in the most unusual places but earning scorn as his reward from his dysfunctional parents.

Hal, the younger son, had similar beliefs as his father. He had a calling that would take him to a war-torn country in Central America to serve others. But it quickly lead to his death leaving behind a bereaved family trying to pick up the pieces. His live-in fiancee and his parents' adopted daughter, Jenny Fletcher, was caught in the middle. All of this happens within the first few chapters of the story.

Loaded with secrets, self-esteem issues, the ick-factor and more, it is the rough journey of two young people hoping for better things. Although he is 32, Cage still has some growing up to do. As long as he can remember, he has loved Jenny from afar. But no more.

Jenny is 24 years-old. Since she first came to the Hendren household she had been a quiet do-gooder. She was content, until recently, not to rock the boat. But her feelings for Cage gradually changed. And at times, I felt like I was in the middle of a frustrating soap-opera.

Ms. Brown blended tension, some internally-tortured souls and a yearning for acceptance by those you care for. She added the 'forbidden love' element. The story ended up becoming a stew of struggling risk and emotional justice. With the exception of some dated material (smoking, mention of the Vietnam war and riding in Corvettes), it was about moments of angst leading to unconditional love.

[Kristen · Rating 3 out of 5]

In Sandra Brown's classic romance, Led Astray, the first book in the Astray and Devil series, this was a beautiful and heart-warming timeless story about second chances to find love. When Jenny Fletcher mourned the loss of her fiancé's sudden tragic death, she found a surprisingly sympathetic friend in his enigmatic breather, Cage Hendren. She always considered him reckless and wild, until he brought the wild side out of her. For Cage Hendren, he had chased and caught more than his side of his women, but he loved only one... Jenny Fletcher. A natural born hell-raiser, danger followed him like a shadow. Tragedy struck close to home, when his brother was killed in Central America, leaving his fianceé Jenny behind, the only one he always wanted. He was about to make the biggest play of his life, one that could cost him more than his heart.

[Bona Caballero · Rating 3 out of 5]

Otra novelita genérica de las que publicó Sandra Brown en los años ochenta. Esta era la Silhouette Intimate Moments n.º 120, salió en noviembre de 1985 y con el seudónimo de Erin St. Claire. Tópico harlequinero: amor prohibido.
Cage Hendren está enamorado de Jenny Fletcher, la novia de su hermano, un tipo religioso con mejor voluntad que sesera. Y a Jenny Cage le cae bien, pero la incomoda un poco porque le hace sentir... cosas... físicas. Y no debería ser así cuando está comprometida con otro, ¿no?
Sería una de las genéricas de los ochenta que rescataría, aunque haya sexo no del todo consentido.
Crítica más extensa, en mi blog.

[Toni · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book would have been great if it wasn’t for the fact that it starts off with the main character raping the woman he “loves”. Sure, he seems like a very nice and loving man, but that doesn’t make up for the fact that he raped her. I just cannot get past the rape. If it wasn’t for that, this would have been a good book.

[Booked · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's right up my alley. It's a sweet story with just the right balance of angst that pulls on your heartstrings. Cage is so much a besotted hero who's both naughty and nice. I, personally like his swoon worthy brand of courtship very much. A very light heartwarming read.

[Karah Hullander · Rating 1 out of 5]

Was this supposed to be a love story?
The guy raped her, sexually assaulted her, lied to her, threatened her and betrayed his brother.
But you know what it's okay because he "LOVES" Her...
This book is a big NO for me

[Jucilene · Rating 4 out of 5]

nhaaawn I love this book!!