Night Secrets by Kat Martin

They had come from opposite worlds: Brianna, a young woman trapped in a life from which she longs to escape, and Capt. Marcus Delaine, the Earl of Hawksmoor, a man whose heart and soul cannot be touched by anyone. When Brianne stows away on his ship, their lives are filled with passion. But when tragedy strikes, Brianne and Marcus are torn from each other. Traveling to England, Brianne is determined to touch the heart of the embittered man Marcus becomes--even if it means losing him forever.

My first Kat Martin book. Pretty good.

Brianne did bother me in the beginning of the book though. See, she's a tavern wench in her father's tavern. She's sick and tired of working there. So she decides to stowaway on Marcus' ship. She wants to have an adventure and see things. She's discovered though by someone and he takes pity on her. So he keeps her presence a secret. Unfortunalty they encounter rough waters and Brianne is discovered. Marcus is not happy and makes her stay in his chambers. The kind man is punished. Brianne complains it's not fair. Oh well, Marcus says, he didn't follow orders and report her so he must be punished. Brianne is allowed to work in the kichten but decides to sneak down to visit the guy and bring him food. On her way she's almost raped. Marcus rescues her again and this time says she's can't leave the room and she must watch the guy get flogged. She insists she's ok and doesn't want him to be flogged but Marcus doesn't bend. You'd think she'd learn her lesson right? Nope.

They pull into port and Brianne is left behind becuase it's not safe. She decides to walk about the ship thinking she'll be ok. Nope. The guy who was flogged comes back and attempts to kidnap her. She is once again saved. See, annoying. After Marcus rescues her, again, he comforts her and they do the nasty.

When they head back home, Brianne tells Marcus she understands that she won't see him for a long time and promises if she's preggers, she'll write. Then it's Marcus' turn to be annoying.

While at sea there is a really bad storm and Marcus is hurt. Really hurt, like he could never walk again hurt. He's taken back home to England. Someone sails back to Brianne to tell her what happened and she sails to England. She wants to be with Marcus. Of course, Marcus being man, yells at her to leave but secretly hopes she'll stay. Brianne is then told the doctor had said it's possible that Marcus could learn to walk again.

Will he? Will he pull through?

All in all, a good story. It wasn't great but it was enough to make me want to read more.

Grade: C+/B- (cause they both got on my nerves sometimes)

Heartless by Kat Martin

To escape her life of poverty as a tenant farmer's daughter, Ariel Summers made a bargain with the devil-she would become the Earl of Greville's mistress in exchange for the schooling and refinements of a lady. But she couldn't foresee the earl's untimely death, or her own disturbing attraction to his bastard son and heir, Justin Ross.
Justin Ross never meant to demand payment from the tempting young woman his father had so callously planned to ruin. But her innocent allure provoked his ruthless nature, and he vowed he would have her in his bed.

Seduction was his plan, but Justin never suspected Ariel's innocent passion would awaken emotions he had long believed dead. Now mistrust and betrayal threaten the fragile happiness the two of them have found, and Justin must convince Ariel he isn't the heartless man she believes.

And he will risk his very life to prove his love.

Kat Martin will never compare to Judith McNaught in writing style or character development, but if I'm in the mood for a B-grade romance, she's the one I turn to.

Heartless is the first book in a Victorian-Era trilogy and one of my favorites by her.

The hero, Justin, is jealous, jaded and...well, Heartless. He's never known love from anyone in his life and he's been dumped on by enough women to know they're all just as Heartless as he is and not worth his efforts.

Until he meets Ariel.

While the book captured me and I rather enjoyed his jealous fits and absolute adoration of her, I can't help but wonder if there's such a thing as a smart historical romance heroine with common sense. Things aren't looking good at this point.

The other two that follow this one are:

The Fire Inside
Fanning the Flame

Which I'll be reviewing shortly.

Not must reads, but still pretty good.

3.5 out of 5

The Fire Inside by Kat Martin

Kassandra "Kitt" Wentworth was no ordinary young woman. Headstrong and rebellious, this daughter of a viscount had no intention of obeying her father, submitting to a husband ... or falling in love. But she never thought a man like Clayton Harcourt would pursue her. As the bastard son of a wealthy duke, Clay was no stranger to scandal. Taking a wife was not his plan, but Kitt's wild spirit drew him like a flame in the darkness, and the gossip swirling around her awakened a desire to tame and protect her. When Clay lays a trap for marriage, Kitt can't help but surrender to the passion he stirs within her. But will a secret from her past keep her from trusting her heart to the magnificent rogue who arouses her most burning desires?

The heroine in this book royally pisses me off. During the first half of the book she showed a lot of promise. She was spunky and had some attitude, which I love. But by the middle of the book she was just down right irritating. And by the end of the book I was hating her.

The hero, Clayton, pretty much saved the book. He was sweet, funny, and sexy as all hell. Plus, I liked that he had a backbone and didn't just bend over for the heroine.

3.0 out of 5 (because of the dumb heroine)

The other 2 books from the series are:

Heartless
Fanning the Flame