Wednesday, January 8, 2014

Blog Tour Review - - Secrets for Seducing a Royal Bodyguard







Secrets for Seducing a Royal Bodyguard
By Vanessa Kelly
Publisher: Zebra Books
Release Date:  January 7, 2014





Though acknowledged as the youngest son of Lord and Lady Thornbury, it's a well known "secret" within the ton that Captain Aden St. George is actually the product of an extra-marital liaison between his mother and the Prince Regent.  In effect, a Royal bastard, a fact that the late Lord Thornbury never let him forget.  Despised by his "father" and emotionally abandoned by his mother, Aden learned early to hold himself apart from the messy emotions that accompany relationships, a trait that makes him perfect for Sir Dominic's secret agents of the Crown.  But after several years working undercover throughout Europe and a recent mission gone wrong, Aden has returned to England weary in spirit and re-thinking his life path...just in time for Sir Dominic to send him on a mission that will turn his life upside down and, perhaps, bring into his life the one thing he never wanted but most needs.

Vivien's family certainly isn't making it easy for her to honor her promise to her father to look after them following his death.  Her mother and younger brother keep piling up debts and her older brother is more interested in his political career than doing anything to help his family.  But her family is the least of her worries when Vivien is kidnapped from a carriage in the middle of Mayfair and stashed in a smuggler's cave. Drugged, manhandled, facing possible rape or, worse, death, the feisty Vivien isn't going down without a fight.  Rescue arrives in the form of the sexy, handsome and enigmatic Aden St. George but, for Vivien, her troubles are just beginning.

Vivien and Aden strike sparks from their first meeting.  When it becomes evident that Vivien is still in danger but the source is unknown, Aden is assigned to protect her and those sparks gradually grow into full-blown flames of desire.  Not only do they desire one another but they also like each other and it doesn't take long for emotions to become entangled though Aden fights it with everything he has.  He's never known true, unconditional love and believes he isn't worthy of it; believes he isn't worthy of her. While Vivien is strong and well able to take care of herself (after all, she's kept her mother and brother afloat all these years by winning at card tables across the ton), she yearns for someone to love her for herself, not for what she can do for them.  She wants Aden to be that man but can he overcome years of emotional wasteland and offer her his heart or will he abandon her at the moment when she needs him most?

Secrets for Seducing a Royal Bodyguard is an exceptionally well-written book.  Perfectly paced, with characters that are brought to life by Kelly's skilled hand, this book also includes a sensually romantic love story, taut drama, a scarily realistic psychopath, snappy banter and a sigh-worthy happy ending.  Aden and Vivien are complex, three-dimensional characters who captured me from the get-go.  While I appreciated their strength, it was the underlying vulnerability of each that engaged my emotions.  Secondary characters, both good and bad, moved the story along and added flavor.  The scenes with Griffin Steele have me eagerly anticipating his story in Kelly's April release, Confessions of a Royal Bridegroom.

While it's not necessary to have read "Lost in a Royal Kiss," the novella prequel to Kelly's Renegade Royals series, I highly recommend it. Set twenty years earlier, it provides the background that will make the reading of the Renegade Royals books a richer, more deeply enjoyable experience.  It's available at $1.99 for both Kindle and Nook.

If you're already a fan of Vanessa Kelly's work, you'll want to add Secrets for Seducing a Royal Bodyguard to your collection.  If you haven't read her books yet, now's a perfect time to begin.  Secrets for Seducing a Royal Bodyguard showcases the strength of her writing.  It's my favorite of her books and going straight to my keeper shelf.

~PJ


Blog Tour Giveaway:


One ARC of CONFESSIONS OF A ROYAL BRIDEGROOM, book two of The Renegade Royals series, and one copy of HIS MISTLETOE BRIDE will be given away per the total number of blog tour stops. (US/Ca only) Please see Terms & Conditions on the Rafflecopter widget.

Vanessa Kelly is also hosting a giveaway on her website for a reproduction of the original art for SECRETS FOR SEDUCING A ROYAL BODYGUARD, and original sketches of the heroines from LOST in a ROYAL KISS (#0.5) and SECRETS for SEDUCING a ROYAL BODYGUARD (#1).

Link to contest on Vanessa’s website:  http://www.vanessakellyauthor.com/contest/



Vanessa Kelly is an award-winning author who was named by Booklist, the review journal of the American Library Association, as one of the "New Stars of Historical Romance." Her sensual, Regency-set historical romances have been nominated for awards in a number of contests, and her second book, Sex and The Single Earl, won the prestigious Maggie Medallion for Best Historical Romance. Vanessa's next series, The Renegade Royals, is due to hit the shelves in November with an introductory novella, Lost in a Royal Kiss. Book One in the series, Secrets For Seducing a Royal Bodyguard, will release in January, 2014, and Confessions of a Royal Bridegroom will be out in April, 2014.
When not dreaming of plots for her next Regency historical novel, Vanessa also writes USA Today Bestselling contemporary romance with her husband under the pen name of V.K. Sykes.  She's also a member of Rock*It Reads, a group of bestselling traditional authors who are self-publishing, and of The Jaunty Quills. 



Jaunty Quills:  http://jauntyquills.com/


65 comments:

  1. WOW! 5 stars! I definitely will read this book. I had fun at the FACEBOOK Launch Party last night. I saw you were there too.

    Vanessa, Do you have any funny stories to relate from when you were doing research for these stories? Or funny facts you discovered?

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    1. Hi, Laurie! It was a fun party last night, wasn't it? As for funny research stories, you always stumble over weird stuff in researching the Regency era. The behavior of the royal princes was often so outlandish that you couldn't help but laugh with disbelief. The Prince Regent, for one, sometimes got drunk as a skunk and went careening madly on his horse through Hyde Park. He was also prone to passing out from over-indulging in alcohol, too. One of his advisers once said about him that: “a more contemptible, cowardly, selfish, unfeeling dog does not exist.” Hard to believe he went on to become king.

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    2. Laurie, I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

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  2. PJ, thank you so much for your generous and beautiful review, and for hosting me here today! I love visiting The Romance Dish with you lovely ladies!

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    1. Any book that can keep me enthralled that far beyond my bedtime deserves five stars! :)

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    2. That's such a wonderful compliment, PJ - thank you!!

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  3. This sounds wonderful! The blurb hooked me, and PJ's glowing review sealed the deal! Congrats on the new release, Vanessa.

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    1. Hope you enjoy it, Cheryl. It never hit a wrong note for me. Kept me glued to the pages from beginning to end!

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  4. I just finished Lost in a Royal Kiss and I'm *dying* to read this book :) Thanks so much for the great review! Congrats to Vanessa on her newest release!!!

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  5. I saw it was released on Facebook yesterday so I picked it up on Amazon. Started reading it last night and love it so far!

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  6. Great review! It sounds wonderful. I'm eagerly anticipating for my copy to come in so I can begin reading.

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  7. His Mistletoe Bride was the first Vanessa Kelly book I've ever read, and it was SO good, I immediately went and read the other ones in the series. I cannot wait to start this new series!

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  8. Sounds like a great book

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  9. the Facebook party was a lot of fun last night - it sure had a big crowd!

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    1. It was fun, wasn't it? She had a great lineup of guests!

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  10. Great review! Had a great time at the Facebook release party, definitely need to get my hands on this series and this book!

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    1. Thanks, arizonadutt. I highly recommend this book and the prequel novella!

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    2. I'm glad you were able to join us last night, arizonadutt!

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  11. Great review, PJ! Secrets for Seducing a Royal Bodyguard is waiting for me on my Kindle. I plan to start it tonight. I've never read a Vanessa Kelly book I didn't love, and I've read them all. :)

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    1. Janga, can't wait to hear what you think of this one! :)

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    2. Janga, I'm crossing fingers and toes that you like it!

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  12. I had a lot of fun at the party last night... Didn't win anything but it was fun! :)

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  13. You sure are kept busy Vanessa. Book sounds good. I enjoyed your party last night. Secrets for seducing a Royal Bodyguard is on my wish list, so If I don't win a book, I'll be buying it. Don't you know it has been hard just waiting to see if I win one. Think I'm just giving it a few more days! I want to read this. lol

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    1. Hi Debbie Lou! Thanks for stopping by. I know how you feel. I have a hard time waiting for books I want to read too. ;-)

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    2. I'm glad you enjoyed the party, Debbie Lou!

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  14. I had a great time at yesterday's release party on facebook. It gave me a good reason to cook early for dinner lol. I just started on this book last night and can't wait to finish it now.

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    1. Welcome, Sandy! Hope you enjoy the book. Are you prepared for a late night? ;-)

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    2. Sandy, thank you so much for reading - hope you enjoy!

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  15. I also had a lot of fun at the party last night. Didn't win, but enjoyed it all the same.

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  16. Congratulations on the new book. It sounds interesting. I've often wondered that with the lag time in publishing, is it a little strange to promote a book that was written months earlier?

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    1. Good question, Kim! I'll be interested in hearing what Vanessa has to say.

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    2. It often is, Kim. I find that I'm in an entirely different headspace - sometimes I even forget details about the book I'm promoting! Fortunately, with this new series there's a lot of carry-over with characters, so it's a bit easier to talk about it.

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  17. I love Vaness's books and am anxious to read this new one. Thanks for the giveaway!

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  18. My next book on my tbr pile is Secrets for Seducing a Royal Bodyguard and I can't wait to get started. This will be my first of her books but I just know I'm going to enjoy it!

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  19. Thank you, Vanessa. Got a question for you. Where do you get the ideas for your books?

    Good luck with your new release. Keep up the good work!

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    1. Thanks, Mary Anne! I get ideas from lots of places - history books, biographies, newspaper stories - especially the weird ones - movies and TV shows. It only takes one little idea to spark the concept for an entire book or series.

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  20. Hi Vanessa, you have some of the best covers on your books. How do you manage to get such beautiful covers? These books sound fabulous and I can't wait to read them. I will be entering under the name of Virginia. Great party last night.

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    1. Quilt Lady, pure luck on my part, and a good publisher with a great art department!

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  21. Great review PJ!!! And welcome back Vanessa!

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  22. Thank you for the book summary/review. This is just the type of story I enjoy - damaged hero, a heroine in peril, intrigue, and suspense. I can't wait to read it.

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  23. Goshers this sounds good! Thanks for the contest (and the head's up!).

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  24. Great review! I can't wait to get started on this series! I have Lost In A Kiss and Secrets For Seducing a Royal Bodyguard but haven't gotten to read either yet and I'm already anticipating book 2 :)

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  25. I'm looking forward to this one, and I have to say how much I love the cover. Gorgeous!

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  26. Hi Vanessa, so great to see you here at the Dish! I'm looking forward to reading this series as well but the one the thing I can never get over about your books is just how beautiful the covers are! I absolutely love them! Thanks for the giveaway and the chance to win!

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  27. Our internet went out late Sunday night because of the storm and we didn't get it back until Wednesday, so I missed the FB Launch party for this book. *sigh* At least we didn't lose power or heat. I can't wait to read this whole series!

    Marcy Shuler

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  28. Love Vanessa's books. These both look great. Would love to win, such a fan of historical and these both look great.

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