Clever and charming Roslyn Loring, the middle child of three beautiful, independent sisters, knows that true happiness lies in a marriage of the heart – and she has hers set on a love-match with a neighboring earl. Yet her sharp mind has observed an undeniable truth: Gentlemen lavish passion on their mistresses, not their wives. Roslyn realizes that to win her future husband's devotion, she must learn the secrets of kindling a gentleman's ardor. Fortunately, she finds a willing tutor in Drew Moncrief, the Duke of Arden, a notorious rake whispered to be London's most magnificent lover. If his searing kisses are any indication, the duke is the ideal man to teach Roslyn how to be the perfect mistress.

Drew begins schooling Roslyn while coolly guarding his heart. But as best-laid plans are thwarted by unexpected events – including a night of unforgettable passion – Roslyn and her wickedly arousing tutor discover how easily lessons in pleasure can become lessons in love....

I liked this book, but I found it was a bit slow in the beginning and there were a lot of clichés in the book. Now, I don't really mind clichés in my romances, however these were so poorly worked out that they annoyed me a bit. Still, it was a nice read, and a fitting second book in the COurtship War series. ( )

Great book, lots of passion and steamy scenes. ( )

Book 2 of the Courtship Wars series. Roslyn Loring is beautiful but her parents' unhappy marriage has made her determined that only a true love match could entice her to give up the freedom she enjoys as a teacher of young ladies. When Drew Moncrief, the Duke of Arden, sets out to seduce Roslyn into becoming his bride he has no idea that she believes such passion can only stem from lust rather than love, or that he'll have to challenge others for her affection. Nice, but somehow lacking. Nothing memorable in it for me. ( )

Roslyn Loring suffered greatly through her parents' antagonistic marriage. While she yearns for marriage, she fears nothing more than a marriage of convenience. Only a love match will do, and Roslyn has long since discovered that men are far more likely to love their mistresses than their wives. So Roslyn enlists her courtesan friend Fanny and famed lover Andrew Moncrief, the Duke of Arden to assist her in capturing the heart of her future husband.

Drew doesn't believe in love. Anybody who has experienced the coldness of his mother cannot be surprised. Yet the more time Drew spends with Roslyn, the more he begins to question his stance against marriage. The passion that simmers between them is hotter than anything he's ever experienced, and he actually respects her and enjoys her company to boot... What's not to reconsider?

I was a little worried that we were going to have another 'seduced into submission' plotline, but nothing could be further from the truth. Neither Roslyn nor Drew find it easy to resist the passion between them, but Roslyn is aware from the beginning that the physical can be, and often is, completely separate from the love she so desperately needs. While the love scenes are amazing and steamy, some of the books loveliest moments come when Drew decides to woo Roslyn without seducing her and without touching her (much).

The personalities and overarching motivations are convincingly drawn (though in Roslyn's case a little sketchily if one hasn't read the first book). Both characters were flawed but strong, deeply honorable and did I mention the attraction practically jumped off the page? Yum. The side plot with Winifred was quite nice, although it was a little Christmas Carol-like. That part definitely required some suspension of disbelief, but I still liked it.

After To Bed a Beauty, I'm really excited to read Lily's story. I have a weakness for hoyden heroines (what? How did you guess?), and I've been looking forward to Heath's story as well. He seems like fun. I was also delighted to hear that there will be stories about Haviland, Eleanor, and Tess forthcoming, and that Fanny will get a secondary romance. Yay!

Also posted at my blog ( )

Became bored half way through and could not force myself to finsh. ( )