Yorkshire, 1879
I am alone...
When Ivy Leavold is left destitute by her brother’s death, she is taken in by her cousin’s brooding, tortured widower—Julian Markham. Handsome and possessive, it’s not long before Ivy falls for him. But Mr. Markham has dark secrets, secrets that may put Ivy in danger...
I am afraid...
As Ivy unravels the mystery surrounding her cousin’s death, she falls deeper and deeper in love with Julian, who opens her body and her mind to his indomitable will. But even as he draws pleasure and desire from her night after night, Ivy can’t shake the feeling that their passionate affair may end in violence…
And I'm completely his.
***
The Awakening of Ivy Leavold is the first book in the Markham Hall Trilogy. It is 40,000 words. ***For Mature Audiences only**
I am alone...
When Ivy Leavold is left destitute by her brother’s death, she is taken in by her cousin’s brooding, tortured widower—Julian Markham. Handsome and possessive, it’s not long before Ivy falls for him. But Mr. Markham has dark secrets, secrets that may put Ivy in danger...
I am afraid...
As Ivy unravels the mystery surrounding her cousin’s death, she falls deeper and deeper in love with Julian, who opens her body and her mind to his indomitable will. But even as he draws pleasure and desire from her night after night, Ivy can’t shake the feeling that their passionate affair may end in violence…
And I'm completely his.
***
The Awakening of Ivy Leavold is the first book in the Markham Hall Trilogy. It is 40,000 words. ***For Mature Audiences only**
Oh my stars that was a great read! I
loved Ivy. As a fan of historical romances, I’m used to either the naïve
virgin, the headstrong and independent virgin, or the thoroughly debauched widow.
So Ivy’s wild virgin persona is an original one for me and I loved her. Equally
as entrancing is the dark and brooding Julian Markham – he is most definitely
sinfully sexy.
When Ivy’s brother dies, she is left
homeless and penniless when she is forced to sale the family home to settle his
gambling debts. Fortunately, Ivy’s solicitor tracks down her cousin’s husband
and convinces him to take her in. As Mr. Markham is frequently away on
business, Ivy’s welcome to his home is quite frosty by the head housekeeper,
Ms. Brightmore, making an already dark and dreary home even more uninviting.
But being as she has nowhere else to go, Ivy is determined to make the most of
it. Once she meets Mr. Markham she’s not sure which will be the most difficult
task – avoiding the temptation that is Mr. Markham or giving in to the
temptation that is Mr. Markham. And the chemistry between the two is so intense
that it was amazing to me that they held out as long as they did before
physical intimacies occurred. Julian’s inadvertent seduction of Ivy as he
fights his desire to have her makes for several titillating foreplay scenes.
Rather than the suggestions of sex
that most historical romances contain, The
Awakening of Ivy Leavold is quite graphic in some scenes – which makes for
an extremely erotic read. As much as I enjoy the suggestive nature of most
regency romances, I found this to be a refreshing change. I cannot wait to see
how Ivy and Julian’s relationship progresses and what secrets will be
(hopefully) revealed about Violet’s death in The Education of Ivy Leavold. Ms. Simone I do hope you’re writing
quickly.
“What are you doing?” I
breathed, feeling every line of his body through his clothes, feeling his hips
pressed against mine.
He didn’t answer, but his
lips were on my neck, hot and scorching, and then he reached down and
unbuttoned his trousers. He hooked an
arm around my leg, raising it up, and then I could feel the hot length of his
cock pressing against me, hard and urgent.
I slid my hands through
his hair and then pulled his head back so that I could kiss him. The blindfold kept everything in complete
darkness—reducing everything to sounds and touch—but that was all I needed, because
at that moment, the head of his cock pressed up against my folds, and I thought
I would never need any other sensation again.
I could live forever with only this feeling—the blindfold silky against
my eyes, his dinner jacket soft on my breasts, his wide crown slowly, oh so
slowly, pushing in, caressing me, separating me.
“Oh, wildcat,” he moaned,
his head buried once again in my shoulder.
“Oh, God. You feel so good. Make me stop.
Make me stop.” He pushed further
in and I gasped.
“Don’t stop,” I begged.
We stayed there for a
long moment, me pinned against the wall, his breath against my neck, his cock
barely inside of me. I could feel every
heartbeat, every pulse, and all I wanted was for him to finish it, to thrust
all the way inside, and fuck me against this wall, right where anyone in the
house could see.
With a throaty
exhalation, he pulled away, his lips leaving my neck, his hips parting from
mine.
“No,” he said again, and
he finally sounded in control of his voice.
“I can’t.”
Sierra
Simone is a librarian who writes unabashedly sexy books with brains, beauty and
big words. She lives with her hot cop husband and family in Kansas City.
I do like historical romances, but more of a change of pace rather than a steady diet.
ReplyDeleteBonnie Hilligoss - bonnie at bonnieanddave dot com