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From New York Times bestselling author Susan Johnson and Sylvia Day and Noelle Mack come three sizzling stories about the art of seduction . . . It Starts With One Perfect Kiss . . . School For Scandal Susan Johnson James Bell, Viscount Ormond, is a shameless rake, infamous for his skills in seduction-and Claire Russell doesn't intend for her sister to become his latest conquest. That is why she's come to the viscount's private masked ball. The flagrant sensuality and unabashed decadence on display there are shocking, but they are nothing compared to the scandalous fire Claire feels when James makes a wholly improper suggestion . . . improper, indecent, and very, very tempting . . . Mischief And The Marquess Sylvia Day Justin, the Marquess of Fontaine and Lady Sophie Milton-Riley have no desire to marry. To satisfy their mothers' insistence that they would be quite right together, they set out to demonstrate how completely ill suited they are for one another. Justin is allergic to her perfume. Sophie dislikes his dogs. He prefers blondes; she, brunette men. But the more they seek to prove how wrong their union would be, the more right things feel. And when opposites attract, there's no denying the sparks or the heat . . . The Ruby Kiss Noelle Mack Susannah Fowler is in possession of many temptations-an independent nature, a quick wit, and lush curves. She is also in possession of a fortune in stolen jewels hidden within her favorite corset. If rakehell Carlyle Jameson wants it, he will have to remove it himself. From her boudoir . . . or from her body. One kiss ought to distract her, but one kiss leads to another and another, till there's no turning back . . . and no desire to try . . .

334 pages, Paperback

First published June 2, 2007

14 people are currently reading
723 people want to read

About the author

Susan Johnson

256 books574 followers
And it all began rather serendipitously. Long ago, as they say, in another time, when fast food hadn't reached our area and the only shopping was what the feed mill offered, I was reading a book that annoyed me .

My husband was lying beside me in bed, watching TV. Turning to him, I sort of petulantly said, "How the hell did this book get published?"

"If you think you're so smart," he replied, with one eye still on the TV, "why don't you write a book?"

So I did. And very badly.

I've since learned how to do, he said, she said, and a great variety of other adverb heavy, sometimes lengthy explanations of why my characters are saying what they're saying, along with finally coming to an understanding of what things like POV means. Point of View for you non-writers}.

Although, I still don't fully comprehend why it matters if you switch POV and I cavalierly disregard it as much as possible. So while my technical skills have hopefully improved, what hasn't changed is my great joy in writing. There's as much pleasure today in listening to my characters talk while I type as fast as I can, as there was the first time I put dialogue to paper--in long-hand, then, in my leather bound sketch-book.

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5 stars
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122 (35%)
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
Profile Image for ᑭᑌᑎƳᗩ [Punya Reviews...].
874 reviews225 followers
January 6, 2020
My review contains spoilers and they're mostly my thoughts as I went with the book...

Rating based on the Sylvia Day novella “Mischief and the Marquess” (4 stars).

“Mischief and the Marquess”

This novella was soo loveable and sweet, something so very different from SD. The story was beautiful, so were the characters. We 1st meet the Marquess of Fontaine, Justin in “Lucien’s Gamble” in the anthology Bad Boys Ahoy!, which took place about 7 yrs prior to this story. He was the other man who sought to marry the heroine. Justin has matured and became a great man; someone I could totally adore.

Sophie and Justin have been childhood friends for long. Though Justin always had a tendre for her, he never expressed his feelings for the fear of being rejected. This was a matter of misunderstanding and youthful follies I think. And the way SD handled that was amazing. Sophie always thought Justin as a stiff boy/man, who is always admonishing her for this and that. She, never in her wildest dreams, thought that he feels anything deeper for her. Justin was going to be a very good looking man, she knew it even then and was totally besotted. But, she thought him as a ‘perfect’ being whereas she was always not-so-perfect with her various troublemaking and dirty dresses. So, no she never even imagined. Justin’s mother and Sophie’s grandmother are good friends and he visited Sophie’s estate quite regularly in his youth. Justin never thought Sophie has any kind soft feelings towards him either. And when she got engaged to Lord Langley, it only confirmed his thoughts and Justin stopped visiting. Loads of things happened since then; Sophie got pregnant before marriage and lost Langley, though I don’t know what happened. It was a big scandal, she was ruined and ostracized. Her brother, the heir (as their parents were already dead; she’s the daughter of an earl) washed his hands off her. Sophie never had a close relationship with him and lived with her grandmother, still does. Her son, Thomas has been accepted in Langley’s family and visits them often.

After many years, they meet in Justin’s estate again. It was apparent that Justin’s mother and Sophie’s grandmother was matchmaking and not so subtly. Justin just took it in stride. He bore no ill-will for Sophie but he hasn’t seen her for a long time now so, this can’t be a possibility. On the other hand, Sophie also is apprehensive. Justin will never marry a tarnished woman like her. But they see each-other again and et voilà, they fall. WOW but didn’t I just love what happened in the course of the story; how they, especially Sophie tried to thwart the marriage, knowing Justin really wants her. She was genuinely thinking about Justin’s reputation and I believed it. It was full of fun; sweet and damn hot lovin’! Sophie, at first, got a bit scared of Justin’s intense looks and perusal of her. She wants him and she knows it’s much different than what she felt for Langley. And, Justin has already decided that he loves her. Oh how sweeeeeet. *sigh* I love it when a man who falls head over heels 1st in a story! He had always loved her. Justin chose Julienne (see “Lucien’s Gamble”) because she reminded him a lot of Sophie and back then, he knew Sophie is out of his reach. But not anymore and he won’t stop until he makes her his.

On the 1st day, at night when Sophie went to Justin’s room to discuss this ‘impossible situation’, Justin asked her to stay and let him make love to her. It didn’t just happen but they did talk, with that the heat level rose. I loved that. But I also thought that it was the right thing that Sophie declined. She needed to think. Justin wasn’t making it any easier by always complementing her and giving her the look (you know what kind ;) ). She tries to do a few funny stuff to thwart him but only ended up regretting what she did. Then, after much thought, though she doesn’t want to be his mistress (thinking about her son’s future), Sophie decides to make love to him. She’ll have him only for a night and Justin was only happy to accommodate her. And they make crazy, sexy love. She refused his offer of marriage though she didn’t want to. Oh, what to do about this? Really. Justin becomes ever so determined to find a way to solve this problem and for this, he sought out Lucien first...

As I mentioned, I loved this novella from the 1st chapter to the last. I loved both Justin and Sophie, their banters and flirtations. Got the question to my answer that why Justin never fought hard for Julienne. I’m so glad that he didn’t! Also loved the dowager Lady Fontaine and Countess of Cardington, Sophie’s grandmother. I so agree with the last lines of the novella:

The two women leaned back in their wrought-iron chairs and shared a secret smile.
“Beautifully done,” one said to the other.
The laud was apropos of both of them.


It most definitely was beautifully done. From me, 4 stars and lots of sighing to go with it.

“Mischief and the Marquess” has 11 chapters, an epilogue and some hot lovin’. Yes Justin, more please. ;)


I got a few favorite quotes but for that I have to give away a full scene or two. Still, one just to show you how fun this relationship was for me:

“I will make you happy,” he promised. “I will do my best to make Thomas happy.”
“I know, my love,” she crooned.
“But,” his tone was a warning, “if you ever blow pepper up my nose again, I will take my hand to your arse.”
“Perhaps I shall like that,” she teased mischievously.
His c*ck twitched wearily, insanely interested despite being spent. “Bloody hell.”


Lol. :p
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for MaggieReadsRom.
956 reviews117 followers
July 9, 2010

School for Scandal – Susan Johnson
James Bell, Viscount Ormond, is a shameless rake, infamous for his skills in seduction--and Claire Russell doesn't intend for her sister to become his latest conquest. That is why she's come to the viscount's private masked ball. The flagrant sensuality and unabashed decadence on display there are shocking, but they are nothing compared to the scandalous fire Claire feels when James makes a wholly improper suggestion...improper, indecent, and very, very tempting...

Clair Russell wants to prevent her younger sister becoming James Bell’s latest prey and James promises to leave Harriet alone and even introduce her into the “ton” to find an suitable husband, but he wants Claire’s friendship in return. Friendship becomes lust and lust eventually lust turns into love.
This was not an emotion stirring story but very entertaining. James is utterly confused by his feelings for Clair but other than that there is very little depth to the story or the characters. The erotic scenes come across a bit rushed.


3 stars



Mischief and the Marquess – Sylvia Day
Justin, the Marquess of Fontaine, and Lady Sophie Milton-Riley have no desire to marry. To satisfy their mothers’ insistence that they would be quite right together, they set out to demonstrate how completely ill-suited they are for one another. Justin is allergic to her perfume. Sophie dislikes his dogs. He prefers blondes; she, brunette men. But the more they seek to prove how wrong their union would be, the more right things feel. And when opposites attract, there’s no denying the sparks or the heat…

As a young man Justin was in love with Sophie but he was afraid of rejection and kept his feelings to himself. Another man did propose to her and they had a child before they could get married, creating a big scandal for Sophie and making her an outcast after her fiancé’s death. Justin’s mother and Sophie’s grandmother try to get them back together again and this succeeds. After a night of passion Justin proposes to Sophie but she refuses afraid to rub her scandal of on him. Justin doesn’t take no for an answer and makes a plan to make her acceptable to society again and thus leaving her no room for refusing to marry him
A beautiful story of a childhood love and affection lost because of uncertainty and misunderstanding. Rekindled by a matchmaking mother and grandmother.
The erotic scenes were steaming hot and beautifully written. This is the first anthology-story (especially an erotic anthology-story) I ever really liked. Well-written characters with depth to them and a beautiful well rounded love-story. Within the small amount of pages Sylvia Day still manages to create a history and background for the characters, so it’s very easy to relate to them and their dilemma’s and at the same time the pages sizzle with the sensual attraction between them.
This is the first work by Sylvia Day I have read and I’m positive I want to read more by her hand!

Quote:
How the devil could she have thought he was a prince?
Princes were mortal. Fountaine was a golden god, with a body built for carnal sin, wrapped in the chilly infamous English hauteur she had never forgotten.


4 stars




The Ruby Kiss – Noelle Mack
Susannah Fowler is in possession of many temptations–an independent nature, a quick wit, and lush curves. She is also in possession of a fortune in stolen jewels hidden within her favorite corset. If rakehell Carlyle Jameson wants it, he will have to remove it himself. From her boudoir…or from her body. One kiss ought to distract her, but one kiss leads to another and another, till there’s no turning back…and no desire to try…

Susannah Fowler leaves India where she grew up, after her father’s death, with Carlyle. He’s appointed her guardian and promises her father he’ll see to it she’s introduced in London Society to find a proper husband. What follows is a blurry story about stolen rubies, sapphires and diamonds sown in a corset. The story never really caught my attention or emotions. Cold and aloof. No depth to the characters with a lot of emphasis on the stolen jewels and practically none on the relationship between Susannah and Carlyle. Even the erotic scenes didn’t tip the scale to the positive side. Actually I found them boring and they didn’t do much for me.


2 stars





In short: The first and last story were real anthology stories with no depth or emotion stirring to be found. The second story makes it worth while to by this book and for that one I’m glad I did.
Profile Image for Jane Stewart.
2,462 reviews966 followers
September 15, 2010
4 stars, 3 stars and 2 stars for three stories.

This book contains the following three stories.

4 stars for SCHOOL FOR SCANDAL by Susan Johnson.
Interesting and entertaining. A rich, handsome rake is reformed by his feelings for a spinster school teacher. The actions James took during the first couple of days after meeting Claire were a little unbelievable, but I still enjoyed the story.

Sexual language: strong. Number of sex scenes: three. Setting: 1829 London. Copyright: 2007. Genre: historical romance.

For a list of my reviews of other Susan Johnson books, see my 3 star review of “Hot Property” posted 9/30/08.


3 stars for MISCHIEF AND THE MARQUESS by Sylvia Day.
The characters and storyline were not interesting enough to make me care about them. The story was ok, but not enough to buy the book. Justin and Sophia knew each other as teens but never followed their feelings. Later, she has a child out of wedlock. She and Justin reconnect and realize they love each other, but she won't be with him because she feels her scandalous past will hurt him.

Sexual language: strong. Number of sex scenes: six. Setting: 1817 Northamptonshire. Copyright: 2007. Genre: regency romance.

For a listing of my reviews of other Sylvia Day books, see my 5 star review of “The Stranger I Married” posted on 1/19/07.


2 stars for THE RUBY KISS by Noelle Mack.
The plot was odd, stolen gems from a maharaja in India, who let the thief keep part of the gems but wanted the diamonds returned. I also couldn't get into the characters. It was odd that Carlyle would pleasure Susannah but not allow his own physical pleasure for some time.

Sexual language: moderate. Number of sex scenes: two. Setting: 1856 London. Copyright: 2007. Genre: historical romance.
Profile Image for Susan.
386 reviews
February 2, 2009
The Johnson story was mediocre at best. It felt very disjointed, particularly in the beginning as those the editor chopped away half of it. It felt this way because there was zero character development and they seemed to contradict their statements and beliefs almost immediately, rather than grow to change their opinions of the other character. It was like...you are a lecherous man stay away from my sister...to seduction is .01 seconds. And same for him, no explanation as to why he would be a rake one second and 2 hours later in love with her. Blah blah.

The Day story was ok. I've enjoyed her other works. I actually read this particular story from this volume several months ago and didn't remember it until a ways through...which shows that it is not especially memorable.

I did not read the third author's story.
85 reviews3 followers
August 21, 2008
Though Johnson writes good sex, she can be formulaic, which is distracting and boring.
For some reason, I just couldn't get into any of the stories. If I finished them, maybe they'd get another star.
Profile Image for TINNGG.
1,238 reviews20 followers
November 8, 2011
Two very good ones and one somewhat less very good but still very readable makes for a good anthology.

Of course, I still cringe and laugh at the thought of the H in the first one having a "Mighty Wang of Power" calloused from hard use.
Profile Image for Jackie.
234 reviews2 followers
August 2, 2012
The first story was good and then it got progressively not good. I didn't even bother reading the 3rd story. All the plots were kinda week esp the second one and a bit cheesy. Still an okay read if you have nothing else better to read.
341 reviews3 followers
October 21, 2018
Overall rating: 3.5 stars
Three short stories about various couples in the 1800s.

School for Scandal: 2.5-3 stars
By far my least favourite story. James was mostly a dick, seemed to get slightly better, then became a dick again. Claire was a decent person and had a sad history. The end was...abrupt.

Mischief and the Marquess: 4 stars
Definitely the best story, this is the third story in The Bad Boys series, and follows Justin Fontaine, who finally gets his own story (please, cut the poor guy some slack). I like how Sophie has had the guts to carry on, and keep her boy, even though she is judged for it. I like how good Justin is at planning things, and he kinda reminds me of my hubby later in the story. Nice ending to Sylvia's trilogy of Georgian novellas.

The Ruby Kiss: 3.5-4 stars
This is the shortest story. It's quite a sweet story. I fell for Carlyle early on. Susannah was also a well written character. This story was quite different from the others as it started out in India. There was a bit of scandal (not the usual type for this kind of story). It was a breath of fresh air. Perfect ending as well.
Profile Image for J.
270 reviews
August 23, 2014
Rating based only on Sylvia Day's story which I loved.

The other two stories were one star for me. In the first I absolutely couldn't stand the irritating and obnoxious characters and the third story was one of the most boring reads I've ever encountered. The entire dialogue of the whole story could practically fit on one page.
Profile Image for Karla.
2,001 reviews2 followers
October 1, 2011
Sylvia Day's story about childhood friends who get together, was the best of the three short stories.
Profile Image for Sandy.
1,293 reviews23 followers
October 30, 2012
Read Sylvia Day's Mischief and the Marquess. It was a sweet story. Pretty typical but I couldn't figure out what the scandal for her was. Good story at any rate.
Profile Image for Jessica Alcazar.
4,408 reviews625 followers
May 5, 2015
LOL FANTASTIC! All 3 stories were just wonderful. I haven't laughed this much in ages! BRAVO to all 3 authors!
Profile Image for Margarita.
28 reviews5 followers
August 28, 2013
I only read Sylvia Day's story in the middle of the book. It was mediocre compared to her addictive Crossfire Series.....
Profile Image for Sue.
204 reviews
May 2, 2015
Enjoyable anthology of historical romances all centered around one perfect kiss...

Profile Image for Janet.
1,494 reviews2 followers
Read
October 21, 2018
This anthology includes:
.
School For Scandal by Susan Johnson - 2.5 stars
Mischief and the Marquess by Sylvia Day - 4 stars
The Ruby Kiss by Noelle Mack - 2 stars
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews

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