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Notorious
Lady Destiny Fontaine Chesterfield risks her life to save her diplomat father, under suspicion of being a traitor, from the notorious mercenary assassin, Cobra, who hides his mission behind his true identity as Lord Jason Batson.
359 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published November 1, 2000
139 people want to read
About the author
Katherine Sutcliffe
42 books75 followersKatherine Sutcliffe was born an only child in East Texas. After working for a time at an oil company and as a headhunter for a computer personnel company, Sutcliffe decided in 1982 to quit her job and attempt to write a novel. Three years later she sold her first book, Desire and Surrender to Avon Books. She works eight hours a day, five to seven months a year. Sutcliffe also attempts to find a single CD that will provide inspiration during the writing of each book. In the past, she has used the soundtrack to Somewhere in Time and Kitarō's Silk Road.
In 1995 and 1996, Sutcliffe worked as the Consultant Head Writer for the soap operas As The World Turns and Another World. Sutcliffe was offered the job after Bill Graham, who searched for writers for Proctor and Gamble, mentioned to his wife that they wanted to refocus the soap opera stories on romance. His wife, who loved Sutcliffe's book, insisted that he contact her. During her time as a soap opera writer, she concentrated on developing the six-month story lines, which the breakdown writers would then develop into dialogue and individual scenes for the show. During this time frame, Sutcliffe also made a guest appearance on Another World, playing herself. She resigned from her position after the networks began to insist that she move to New York City to be more accessible.
Her historical romance, Notorious, sold out its first printing in a mere four days.
Sutcliffe lives near Dallas, Texas. She met her husband, an English geologist, while they worked for the same oil company. They have three children, Bryan, Rachel, and Lauren. Sutcliffe also raises and shows Arabian horses.
In 1995 and 1996, Sutcliffe worked as the Consultant Head Writer for the soap operas As The World Turns and Another World. Sutcliffe was offered the job after Bill Graham, who searched for writers for Proctor and Gamble, mentioned to his wife that they wanted to refocus the soap opera stories on romance. His wife, who loved Sutcliffe's book, insisted that he contact her. During her time as a soap opera writer, she concentrated on developing the six-month story lines, which the breakdown writers would then develop into dialogue and individual scenes for the show. During this time frame, Sutcliffe also made a guest appearance on Another World, playing herself. She resigned from her position after the networks began to insist that she move to New York City to be more accessible.
Her historical romance, Notorious, sold out its first printing in a mere four days.
Sutcliffe lives near Dallas, Texas. She met her husband, an English geologist, while they worked for the same oil company. They have three children, Bryan, Rachel, and Lauren. Sutcliffe also raises and shows Arabian horses.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
June 28, 2025
Read: 6/17/25- late review
Setting: 1857 England, India
Trope: spy, enemies to lovers, adventure
This is Sutcliffe's best book! A dark, romantic action-packed adventure. I couldn't put it down! It was a wonderful surprise, especially since I was expecting the plot to center around the Indian Rebellion of 1857 . I falsely assumed the plot would be similar to The Duke of Shadows by Meredith Dunne, but the characters don't even reach India until the last 50 pages. The rest of the story is about the journey to India, and I loved it. This is my kind of Bodice-ripper!
Plot: Other reviewers have summarized the plot better than I ever could, and I'm lazy today 😉
Notes:
Liked:
1. Jason🥰! My poor Jason! He's led such a dark, dangerous life, and all he wants is to retire. I enjoyed the journey watching Jason regain his humanity.
2. Jason is an assassin, an exception assassin, but he's done some horrible things. I praise the author for not over romanticizing or glorifying the horrors of his career. His job is dark, and there is nothing stylish about it.
3. The story is not perfect, but it had all the ingredients I adore in a Bodice-ripper.
4. The romance was entertaining. I really rooted for this couple. Their interactions were entertaining.
5. Interesting secondary characters, to say the least! They were all well developed, essential to the plot, and so damn entertaining!
6. Jason has a bastard daughter. He supported her and her mother from afar. Understandable with the life he led. Now, he is her only parent. I loved watching him become a father and their interactions together ❤️
7. It was a pleasant surprise to discover that the villain was an actual historical person.
Dislike:
1. The secret identity thing was annoying and pointless! I can't believe he wore those prosthetics through most of the book!. Was the author going for a Beauty and Beast type love story before the reveal? It made no sense. Why not take it off once she was safely on board and far from England?
2. His mercenary team, Cobra, reminded me too much of the movie Predator.
3. Destiny couldn't decide if she should just suck it up or fight this man. This dilemma got old. Though she could be frustrating, as Bodice-rippers go, she was pretty tame.
4. The plot is ridiculous. Jason's boss goes through all that trouble over one man's opinions? He hires 2 assassin teams to kill ONE man. Talk about extreme! So you have to ignore that absurd detail in order to enjoy
I highly recommend this book!
Setting: 1857 England, India
Trope: spy, enemies to lovers, adventure
This is Sutcliffe's best book! A dark, romantic action-packed adventure. I couldn't put it down! It was a wonderful surprise, especially since I was expecting the plot to center around the Indian Rebellion of 1857 . I falsely assumed the plot would be similar to The Duke of Shadows by Meredith Dunne, but the characters don't even reach India until the last 50 pages. The rest of the story is about the journey to India, and I loved it. This is my kind of Bodice-ripper!
Plot: Other reviewers have summarized the plot better than I ever could, and I'm lazy today 😉
Notes:
Liked:
1. Jason🥰! My poor Jason! He's led such a dark, dangerous life, and all he wants is to retire. I enjoyed the journey watching Jason regain his humanity.
2. Jason is an assassin, an exception assassin, but he's done some horrible things. I praise the author for not over romanticizing or glorifying the horrors of his career. His job is dark, and there is nothing stylish about it.
3. The story is not perfect, but it had all the ingredients I adore in a Bodice-ripper.
4. The romance was entertaining. I really rooted for this couple. Their interactions were entertaining.
5. Interesting secondary characters, to say the least! They were all well developed, essential to the plot, and so damn entertaining!
6. Jason has a bastard daughter. He supported her and her mother from afar. Understandable with the life he led. Now, he is her only parent. I loved watching him become a father and their interactions together ❤️
7. It was a pleasant surprise to discover that the villain was an actual historical person.
Dislike:
1. The secret identity thing was annoying and pointless! I can't believe he wore those prosthetics through most of the book!. Was the author going for a Beauty and Beast type love story before the reveal? It made no sense. Why not take it off once she was safely on board and far from England?
2. His mercenary team, Cobra, reminded me too much of the movie Predator.
3. Destiny couldn't decide if she should just suck it up or fight this man. This dilemma got old. Though she could be frustrating, as Bodice-rippers go, she was pretty tame.
4. The plot is ridiculous. Jason's boss goes through all that trouble over one man's opinions? He hires 2 assassin teams to kill ONE man. Talk about extreme! So you have to ignore that absurd detail in order to enjoy
I highly recommend this book!
August 28, 2009
[“Notorious” by Katherine Sutcliffe (audiobook); Josephine Bailey/Reader = 4*:]
Jason and Destiny
(Setting: Historical England/The High Seas/India - 1856-1858)
This book is tough to review for me because although I gave it 4 stars, the assessment is adjusted for how I believe the audience as a “whole” would perceive this read, rather than just my personal tastes. For me personally, it was more like a 3 star, with each of those stars being awarded in what I’d consider “waves” as the book rolls along: My first star came at the very opening of the book, which catapults the reader into some less than usual opening events and characterizations with the hero and heroine, setting the stages of things to come and capturing my attention immediately; my second star belongs to Sutcliffe’s ability to outline a character pretty thoroughly and get the reader attached to each of those characters in their own right; and my third star goes to Sutcliffe’s overall writing, especially when she did actually focus on the romance aspects.
Jason Batson, raised by an unfeeling father whose only focus was to “weed out” the emotions of his two sons and turn them from men into human weapons, finds himself eventually part of an elite and covert military mercenary squad, “The Cobra.” Destiny Fontaine, the daughter of an older gentleman friend who Jason found some momentary emotional mentoring from as a young man, finds herself in the position of becoming a virgin-widow after being married off to a gay nobleman, unbeknownst to her until afer his distraught suicide. Having only known Destiny as a child, years later under reimpressment into active duty against his will, Jason seeks out Destiny to glean possible information on her father’s suspected treason. After several clandestine meetings in a forest glade, Destiny, with no prior recollection of who Jason is, becomes completely captivated by this handsome and charming man, and surrenders her virginity to him in a passionate moment in the glade. So begins a story of epic proportions as the two lovers clash again and again in their quest to ascertain where Destiny’s father’s loyalties lie, and rescue him from the milieu of an Indian uprising during the English occupation.
Although this story is written in a way that can keep the right reader completely enthralled, the key to enjoying this story in it’s most favorable light is being “the right reader.” I’m not exactly that reader. Sutcliffe takes the story from forest glades and English country estates into months of high seas adventure and drama, and carries it through a fictitious account of India’s rail against the English. I’m not generally attracted to plot lines involving political espionage, high seas pirate-type adventures, nor so much story focused away from the main romance theme. The greatest portion of this story does indeed focus on the adventure rather than the romance aspects. However, I could clearly see the well thought out tracking of the plot and Sutcliffe’s writing abilities which kept me entertained enough, although completely out of my line of taste, to finish the book. Sutcliffe has a firm grasp on character develop, if too many characters to focus on and too much time invested in characters that are quickly killed off in the story.
Where I would dip in my “gathering of stars” for this book would be some of the cliche moments (i.e. Destiny being pulled into the song and dance of the locals during a shopping expedition on an island stopover; the overly dramatized, bodice-ripping (literally) romance moments aboard ship; and some of the “yo-ho, a pirate’s life for me” kind of scenes that are less than creative to the story, regardless of whether they provide atmosphere set-up). At one point I actually did stop and check what year this book was published as I was absolutely certain it had to have been written somewhere around 1985 or prior. You can imagine my surprise to see it was actually first published in 2000. Another stand-out “Huh?!” feel about this book is there is a lot (and I mean a LOT!) of ruthless killing and bloodshed, heavily laden with avid descriptives, yet love scenes are few and far between, and consist of a few paragraphs each. Though the sex scenes can be clearly identified, they can in no way be described as descriptive (“slid in,” “thrust,” “groaned” type verbage in short sentences), and are couched in extremely general terms. Nothing but missionary style going on here.
Frankly, I feel the book was mainly written toward non-regular romance readers and perhaps to suck in a bit more male audience. The sentimental moments Sutcliffe does infuse do resonate and are another point where the stars shot upward for me personally. I just wish she had drawn those moments out and visited them more frequently. She made me believe the H/h had fallen deeply in love when those moments came, so long as I never made a laundry list of the reasons why -- the list would have been short to say the least had I dwelt on the specifics. Additionally, their was an overall theme that the heroine should forgive the hero for HER initial seduction of him from the beginning of the story. Sure, he withheld information from her that his overall mission was as an assassin should her father actually turn out to be a traitor to the Crown, but his intention was only to gather possible information she may have had -- he was not the instigator of her seduction! Every time she shouted her hatred of him for this (loudly and often -- he was still groveling by book end), it grated on my nerves about her ability to see the balance of responsibility on this issue. Lastly, I did love the Epilogue of this story. It was indeed the most romantic moment of the entire book, again, not for it’s originality so much as the writer’s ability to write it to evoke emotion and pull at my heartstrings.
This is a well written, well plotted story, full of juicy cloak and dagger adventure with a sprig of romance thrown in ala “Gone with the Wind” flavor. If this is your preference in reading material, this is the book for you.
NOTE: Mild/Minor sexual content described in general terms; graphic language only used in violent moments; graphically depicted violence throughout.
Jason and Destiny
(Setting: Historical England/The High Seas/India - 1856-1858)
This book is tough to review for me because although I gave it 4 stars, the assessment is adjusted for how I believe the audience as a “whole” would perceive this read, rather than just my personal tastes. For me personally, it was more like a 3 star, with each of those stars being awarded in what I’d consider “waves” as the book rolls along: My first star came at the very opening of the book, which catapults the reader into some less than usual opening events and characterizations with the hero and heroine, setting the stages of things to come and capturing my attention immediately; my second star belongs to Sutcliffe’s ability to outline a character pretty thoroughly and get the reader attached to each of those characters in their own right; and my third star goes to Sutcliffe’s overall writing, especially when she did actually focus on the romance aspects.
Jason Batson, raised by an unfeeling father whose only focus was to “weed out” the emotions of his two sons and turn them from men into human weapons, finds himself eventually part of an elite and covert military mercenary squad, “The Cobra.” Destiny Fontaine, the daughter of an older gentleman friend who Jason found some momentary emotional mentoring from as a young man, finds herself in the position of becoming a virgin-widow after being married off to a gay nobleman, unbeknownst to her until afer his distraught suicide. Having only known Destiny as a child, years later under reimpressment into active duty against his will, Jason seeks out Destiny to glean possible information on her father’s suspected treason. After several clandestine meetings in a forest glade, Destiny, with no prior recollection of who Jason is, becomes completely captivated by this handsome and charming man, and surrenders her virginity to him in a passionate moment in the glade. So begins a story of epic proportions as the two lovers clash again and again in their quest to ascertain where Destiny’s father’s loyalties lie, and rescue him from the milieu of an Indian uprising during the English occupation.
Although this story is written in a way that can keep the right reader completely enthralled, the key to enjoying this story in it’s most favorable light is being “the right reader.” I’m not exactly that reader. Sutcliffe takes the story from forest glades and English country estates into months of high seas adventure and drama, and carries it through a fictitious account of India’s rail against the English. I’m not generally attracted to plot lines involving political espionage, high seas pirate-type adventures, nor so much story focused away from the main romance theme. The greatest portion of this story does indeed focus on the adventure rather than the romance aspects. However, I could clearly see the well thought out tracking of the plot and Sutcliffe’s writing abilities which kept me entertained enough, although completely out of my line of taste, to finish the book. Sutcliffe has a firm grasp on character develop, if too many characters to focus on and too much time invested in characters that are quickly killed off in the story.
Where I would dip in my “gathering of stars” for this book would be some of the cliche moments (i.e. Destiny being pulled into the song and dance of the locals during a shopping expedition on an island stopover; the overly dramatized, bodice-ripping (literally) romance moments aboard ship; and some of the “yo-ho, a pirate’s life for me” kind of scenes that are less than creative to the story, regardless of whether they provide atmosphere set-up). At one point I actually did stop and check what year this book was published as I was absolutely certain it had to have been written somewhere around 1985 or prior. You can imagine my surprise to see it was actually first published in 2000. Another stand-out “Huh?!” feel about this book is there is a lot (and I mean a LOT!) of ruthless killing and bloodshed, heavily laden with avid descriptives, yet love scenes are few and far between, and consist of a few paragraphs each. Though the sex scenes can be clearly identified, they can in no way be described as descriptive (“slid in,” “thrust,” “groaned” type verbage in short sentences), and are couched in extremely general terms. Nothing but missionary style going on here.
Frankly, I feel the book was mainly written toward non-regular romance readers and perhaps to suck in a bit more male audience. The sentimental moments Sutcliffe does infuse do resonate and are another point where the stars shot upward for me personally. I just wish she had drawn those moments out and visited them more frequently. She made me believe the H/h had fallen deeply in love when those moments came, so long as I never made a laundry list of the reasons why -- the list would have been short to say the least had I dwelt on the specifics. Additionally, their was an overall theme that the heroine should forgive the hero for HER initial seduction of him from the beginning of the story. Sure, he withheld information from her that his overall mission was as an assassin should her father actually turn out to be a traitor to the Crown, but his intention was only to gather possible information she may have had -- he was not the instigator of her seduction! Every time she shouted her hatred of him for this (loudly and often -- he was still groveling by book end), it grated on my nerves about her ability to see the balance of responsibility on this issue. Lastly, I did love the Epilogue of this story. It was indeed the most romantic moment of the entire book, again, not for it’s originality so much as the writer’s ability to write it to evoke emotion and pull at my heartstrings.
This is a well written, well plotted story, full of juicy cloak and dagger adventure with a sprig of romance thrown in ala “Gone with the Wind” flavor. If this is your preference in reading material, this is the book for you.
NOTE: Mild/Minor sexual content described in general terms; graphic language only used in violent moments; graphically depicted violence throughout.
June 15, 2025
Notorious (2000) … stunning, edgy with brilliant writing with an exquisite hero who’s an assassin for the British Crown in a covert organization called Cobra. The story takes place in the late 1850s and spans London, a sea voyage to India, and thru a mutiny against the British. The heroine, Lady Destiny is a young widow who grew up in India.
Jason “is fascinated by her spirit, intelligence, and enthusiasm for life. Her warmth melted the cold that had settled in his bones during the long months in prison.”
A master storyteller Sutcliffe has written a dark intense story with killers that’s filled with treachery plus a touch of laugh out loud humor. A superb balance! Minor quibble … I found the hero’s disguise while they’re on the ship not credible … the heroine didn’t recognize him.
It has one of the finest first sex scenes I’ve read in ages… so sensual and passionate! Overall, a thrilling romance with memorable characters. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
(I’m slightly biased as I have a great interest in HRs set in India.)
Jason “is fascinated by her spirit, intelligence, and enthusiasm for life. Her warmth melted the cold that had settled in his bones during the long months in prison.”
A master storyteller Sutcliffe has written a dark intense story with killers that’s filled with treachery plus a touch of laugh out loud humor. A superb balance! Minor quibble … I found the hero’s disguise while they’re on the ship not credible … the heroine didn’t recognize him.
It has one of the finest first sex scenes I’ve read in ages… so sensual and passionate! Overall, a thrilling romance with memorable characters. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
(I’m slightly biased as I have a great interest in HRs set in India.)
January 4, 2015
This is a much better book than the bodice-ripper-esque summary will lead you to expect. Angsty but well crafted romantic adventure, entwined with a moving history of the bloody atrocities inflicted by both sides during an uprising against the British Raj. Dark, upsetting, often beautifully atmospheric, and ultimately rewarding, this is a not a fun read; it's a full-immersion historical tear -jerker for when you're in the right mood. There's a Big Deception, by the way, as if the h/h weren't facing enough hardship already. Will they live HEA?
If you like audiobooks, Notorious is available in an unabridged edition sensitively narrated by actress Josephine Bailey.
If you like audiobooks, Notorious is available in an unabridged edition sensitively narrated by actress Josephine Bailey.
Read
February 21, 2022DNF
Call me crazy or selfish but I prefer my heroes without the baggage of a bastard child.
Call me crazy or selfish but I prefer my heroes without the baggage of a bastard child.
February 17, 2020
I was close to giving this five stars. It's wonderful.
September 20, 2023
This book was a romance with political intrigue. Our heroine, Destiny, is the daughter of a man believed to be committing treason by helping the Indian uprising against the English in India. Our hero, Jason, was her father's friend but is now working for the government to discover if he is committing treason. Jason is a part of a secret elite assassination team working for the Queen.
Destiny meets Jason in a glade by her home, falls in love with him and seduces him, not knowing who he is. Jason never meant for it to go that far. He only wanted to find out what Destiny knew about her father's actions. But couldn't help himself. Destiny gets pregnant. Considering all the awful things she goes through she should have had a miscarriage but she doesn't.
I am giving the book 3 stars because I felt tense the whole time I read it. It was one bad thing after another happening. The epilogue was only 5 pages so you did not get to see everyone in their new life.
About half of the story took place in India where there political upheavel described in graphic detail.
It was much too heavy a book for me.
Destiny meets Jason in a glade by her home, falls in love with him and seduces him, not knowing who he is. Jason never meant for it to go that far. He only wanted to find out what Destiny knew about her father's actions. But couldn't help himself. Destiny gets pregnant. Considering all the awful things she goes through she should have had a miscarriage but she doesn't.
I am giving the book 3 stars because I felt tense the whole time I read it. It was one bad thing after another happening. The epilogue was only 5 pages so you did not get to see everyone in their new life.
About half of the story took place in India where there political upheavel described in graphic detail.
It was much too heavy a book for me.
October 23, 2019
It was OK but cliched heroes: heroine young & beautiful, hero handsome and ruthless alpha.
HE deceives HER about his identity, she finds out eventually, gets mad at him and lets him wait and fidget for her forgiveness.
Historical setting is India during the fights between Indian soldiers against the British army& civilians during the reign of Queen Victoria.
Some scenes were described rather cruelly and brutally.
HE deceives HER about his identity, she finds out eventually, gets mad at him and lets him wait and fidget for her forgiveness.
Historical setting is India during the fights between Indian soldiers against the British army& civilians during the reign of Queen Victoria.
Some scenes were described rather cruelly and brutally.
February 13, 2013
I am typically not a big fan of historical novels because I tend to find historical inaccuracies distracting. I did enjoy this as a quick, fun read. If you are just looking for a bit of mindless, "I just want to lose myself for a few hours" read, Notorious fits the bill. I wanted to romantic couple to find true happiness as neither had found successful relationships before and seemed well suited for each other. I particularly liked the epilogue. I did not, however, like how many minor characters died. I seemed pointless to introduce them, establish friendships with the protagonists, and then slaughter them pointlessly (and blame the heroine, I might add). Otherwise a nice little read if you are into historical.
September 4, 2016
4.5 stars
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews