Seven Secrets of Seduction

By Anne Mallory

      Miranda Chase, an innocent young woman who works at her uncle's bookstore, finds herself strangely seduced by the dashing Viscount Downing, a notorious rake who wanders into the shop one day. Before long, he has commissioned Miranda to work in his home organizing his extensive personal library. His sexual banter and wealth of explicit books fill Miranda with fear and longing.

In addition to the Viscount's slow and deliberate seduction, Miranda finds herself drawn to the currently popular book “Seven Secrets of Seduction” and its author to whom she regularly writes. While her mind swirls with erotic thoughts, she struggles to behave appropriately while working among the servants at the Viscount's home. When he openly courts her as his mistress while simultaneously planning his wedding to someone else - a woman of his station, of course - Miranda becomes more confused about his true motives and her true desires.

To help answer her ignorant questions about love, lust, and relationships, she writes to yet another frequent correspondent, a journalist named Mr. Pitts. His cynical views provide some guidance for the naïve woman, who has only her distracted uncle and a silly female friend to rely on since the accidental death of her family. Virtually on her own, Miranda seems like putty in the hands of her highly skilled seducer. Problems arise, however, when the sexual seduction threatens to turn into an actual love affair.

Words have the power to reveal or conceal. Anne Mallory adeptly uses words to reveal the Viscount's passionate nature and Miranda's quick wit. When the clever repartee continues well into the novel and nearly to its conclusion, it's clear that these words also conceal the truth. Although readers come to know Miranda's character, the Viscount remains mostly a mystery - a carefully guarded rogue who shamelessly seduces to get what he wants without much thought to how his actions affect others. With such a deceptive character in the role of romantic hero, it's a wonder Miranda could fall in love with him. Readers might find the task even more challenging.