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Midnight Flame
When vengeful Tony Duvalier discovers a "Miss L. Delaney" was responsible for his uncle's death, the hot-tempered Cajun vows to make her pay. But he can't reconcile the emerald-eyed innocence of Laurel Delaney with his image of a cheap, scheming woman. Despite the way she sets his heart aflame, Tony is determined to humiliate the guilty femme fatale--even if it costs him once-in-a-lifetime love.
Laurel's trouble making cousin, Lavinia, begs for her help in hiding from the Duvalier family, and the two leave New Orleans and travel in disguise. But when Laurel meets the very man she's deceiving, she's stunned by his arrogance, confidence and charm. She knows she should avoid Tony, but the moment this refined heiress feels his commanding embrace, she can't help but submit to their sensual, all consuming midnight flame.
Laurel's trouble making cousin, Lavinia, begs for her help in hiding from the Duvalier family, and the two leave New Orleans and travel in disguise. But when Laurel meets the very man she's deceiving, she's stunned by his arrogance, confidence and charm. She knows she should avoid Tony, but the moment this refined heiress feels his commanding embrace, she can't help but submit to their sensual, all consuming midnight flame.
394 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 1, 1988
16 people are currently reading
116 people want to read
About the author
Lynette Vinet
22 books28 followersBorn in New Orleans, Louisiana, I have always been intrigued by the history of the city and the south. New Orleans is unique, there is no other place like it and once you’ve lived there, you can never forget the sights, sounds and smells of the city. I am also intrigued by other countries, especially Ireland and England, probably because my ancestors were born there. So, I feel it is only natural that I have combined my love of history, New Orleans, and the British Isles in many of my novels.
EMERALD DESIRE was my first novel, published in 1985, and begins in Ireland and sweeps the reader to the French Colonial city of New Orleans. That was the first book in the Emerald Trilogy, followed by EMERALD ENCHANTMENT and EMERALD ECSTASY. Eight more books followed. I am pleased that ereads.com will eventually publish my backlist of books. At the present time EMERALD DESIRE, EMERALD ENCHANTMENT and PIRATE’S BRIDE are available on Amazon Kindle.
EMERALD DESIRE was my first novel, published in 1985, and begins in Ireland and sweeps the reader to the French Colonial city of New Orleans. That was the first book in the Emerald Trilogy, followed by EMERALD ENCHANTMENT and EMERALD ECSTASY. Eight more books followed. I am pleased that ereads.com will eventually publish my backlist of books. At the present time EMERALD DESIRE, EMERALD ENCHANTMENT and PIRATE’S BRIDE are available on Amazon Kindle.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 25, 2021
This book is somewhere between okay and good. It's a real BR!
September 2, 2016
The Lord moves in mysterious ways.
This is the only thing that I can say in my defense.
I don't know what possessed me to read this, why I kept reading it and what made me finish it....
Seriously!
This is not a must-read and I highly doubt it was one even at the time it was first published.
The female protagonist gave the term "too stupid to live" a whole new
meaning, the word "wanton" was used 28!!! times and the prose was purple.
But when I woke up from sleep last night at 3.00 am, I grabbed for my kindle device and continued reading until 6.00 am, when the sun was rising and the birds started chirping.
So I guess the writing was engaging in a strange way...
And I admit, the hero was.... charming!
Why he chose the heroine is still beyond me, but obviously my introductory sentence applied to him, too.
This is the only thing that I can say in my defense.
I don't know what possessed me to read this, why I kept reading it and what made me finish it....
Seriously!
This is not a must-read and I highly doubt it was one even at the time it was first published.
The female protagonist gave the term "too stupid to live" a whole new
meaning, the word "wanton" was used 28!!! times and the prose was purple.
But when I woke up from sleep last night at 3.00 am, I grabbed for my kindle device and continued reading until 6.00 am, when the sun was rising and the birds started chirping.
So I guess the writing was engaging in a strange way...
And I admit, the hero was.... charming!
Why he chose the heroine is still beyond me, but obviously my introductory sentence applied to him, too.
to-read-historical
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November 11, 2013
When I start a book, in my mind it is a 5 star. As I read the book I might feel that the 5 stars are justified or maybe not. This is a definitely maybe not. The longer I read it, the more stars it lost.
Here's the thing... if an author is going to write historical fiction, then I insist that the historical aspects be true to historical facts. This is extremely important to me.
Apparently this author is unaware that a man's shirt was considered underwear until the 20ith century and no gentleman would have appeared in front of a lady without a coat. He especially would not have taken her for a drive around a plantation with his shirt unbuttoned to his navel.
As for Laurel..she is one of those too insipid to live heroines. Once again this author eschews character development in favor of cliched people reacting to preposterous circumstances. I feel this way about all the characters.
I am tired of cliched characters and this book is just full of them. The virgin. The well-bred lady turned whore for no known reason. The misunderstood daughter who loved well but not wisely.
As for the virgin... she falls in love with her masked kidnapper and has sex with him. Really? Her kidnapper? Only we know he is actually the hero of the story. Laurel marries the hero, not knowing he is the kidnapper. She longs for the kidnapper. Despite what the love songs might tell us, she does not recognize that her husband is her kidnapper.
Then she staggers off to Texas where starts wearing Levis to work the ranch. I find that very hard to believe. Oh, Levi was selling canvas pants in 1853 for those looking for gold in California but by 1858 he was not yet using denim. Also at this point int history "jeans" and "denim" were not synonymous and from what I can tell, the fabric which was called "jeans" is not at all what we think of today as it was sold as a men'[s dress fabric.
I don't believe women were wearing men's pants in 1858. They would have been wearing the split skirt. Women raised to be ladies as Laurel and Lavinia were, would have been concerned for their modesty which would have been protected by a split skirt.
Another historical detail which bothered me was Laurel's unbound hair flowing down her back. Even if she didn't put it up once she reached a marriageable age, she certainly would have put it up after she was married.
If you are going to write historical fiction, pay attention to historical details.
Here's the thing... if an author is going to write historical fiction, then I insist that the historical aspects be true to historical facts. This is extremely important to me.
Apparently this author is unaware that a man's shirt was considered underwear until the 20ith century and no gentleman would have appeared in front of a lady without a coat. He especially would not have taken her for a drive around a plantation with his shirt unbuttoned to his navel.
As for Laurel..she is one of those too insipid to live heroines. Once again this author eschews character development in favor of cliched people reacting to preposterous circumstances. I feel this way about all the characters.
I am tired of cliched characters and this book is just full of them. The virgin. The well-bred lady turned whore for no known reason. The misunderstood daughter who loved well but not wisely.
As for the virgin... she falls in love with her masked kidnapper and has sex with him. Really? Her kidnapper? Only we know he is actually the hero of the story. Laurel marries the hero, not knowing he is the kidnapper. She longs for the kidnapper. Despite what the love songs might tell us, she does not recognize that her husband is her kidnapper.
Then she staggers off to Texas where starts wearing Levis to work the ranch. I find that very hard to believe. Oh, Levi was selling canvas pants in 1853 for those looking for gold in California but by 1858 he was not yet using denim. Also at this point int history "jeans" and "denim" were not synonymous and from what I can tell, the fabric which was called "jeans" is not at all what we think of today as it was sold as a men'[s dress fabric.
I don't believe women were wearing men's pants in 1858. They would have been wearing the split skirt. Women raised to be ladies as Laurel and Lavinia were, would have been concerned for their modesty which would have been protected by a split skirt.
Another historical detail which bothered me was Laurel's unbound hair flowing down her back. Even if she didn't put it up once she reached a marriageable age, she certainly would have put it up after she was married.
If you are going to write historical fiction, pay attention to historical details.
November 18, 2013
His vow to shame her cost him his heart!
A powerful, arrogant New Orleans planter believes "Miss L. Delaney" is responsible for his uncle's death. He plots to humiliate the schemer called Lavinia Delaney. Instead, he confuses his uncle's lover with her refined cousin, Laurel Delaney. Laurel tries to help Lavinia, only to land in trouble herself with the reckless rogue bent on revenge. Sensuous, charming Tony Duvalier will stop at nothing until he makes "Miss L. Delaney" pay for her mistakes. This story whisks readers into a world of glittering steamboats, jasmine-scented breezes, and Southern-style seduction beneath shimmering moonlight. Lynette Vinet weaves a magical spell of fiery passion as bright and hot as a MIDNIGHT FLAME.
A powerful, arrogant New Orleans planter believes "Miss L. Delaney" is responsible for his uncle's death. He plots to humiliate the schemer called Lavinia Delaney. Instead, he confuses his uncle's lover with her refined cousin, Laurel Delaney. Laurel tries to help Lavinia, only to land in trouble herself with the reckless rogue bent on revenge. Sensuous, charming Tony Duvalier will stop at nothing until he makes "Miss L. Delaney" pay for her mistakes. This story whisks readers into a world of glittering steamboats, jasmine-scented breezes, and Southern-style seduction beneath shimmering moonlight. Lynette Vinet weaves a magical spell of fiery passion as bright and hot as a MIDNIGHT FLAME.
June 17, 2014
This is a great historical romance. I can't wait to read another story from this author.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews