Deceived

by Bertrice Small

Book Overview

1760. Aurora and Calandra "Cally" Kimberly hear that Valerian, the Duke of Farminster has come to their island home of St. Thomas from England to claim his prize--an heiress promised to him by... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0821761129
• Release Date: January 1999
• Publisher: Kensington Pub Corp
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 7.0" x 1.0" x 4.3"

Customer Reviews

Oh, Deceive me... please!

I suppose there's always a difference in tastes... and I guess that I'll be the first to give this book a good review. I'd mentioned before that Hellion was my favorite Bertrice Small book... well, this one ranks right up there with it. I know the reviews haven't been so fantastic thus far but I quite enjoyed this book. The characters of Aurora and Valerian were absolutely magnetic. I liked Aurora's boyishness and thought it was rather interesting that though she -was- rather hoydenish, she didn't deny her femininity and was passionate enough to be dubbed an 'eager virgin.' Valerian I liked because though he almost hated Callandra, he wasn't unfaithful... well, except maybe in his head... and truthfully, what man can honestly say that he's never fantasized about someone else? It only added to the realism of his personality. Valarian knew what he wanted and wasn't going to let it slip through his fingers... he felt the passion sizzling and wasn't about to relinquish control of that feeling by letting Aurora go. He defied society and the conventions therein and took what he wanted. ...There was also the added comedy tossed in by the characters of St. John and Trahern... two of London's finest idiots. All in all... this is an enjoyable book... so don't be 'deceived' by the other reviews here. The best you can do is to read the book for yourself.

I really enjoyed this book!

I am stunned by the reviews. I really enjoyed this book as it was a departure from her Scottish / English books from early centuries. It was also a slight deviation from her boy-loses-girl-to-handsome-stranger-in-a-far-off-land plot. The boy didn't have the girl till much later. Callie and Aurora switching places promised to be a lively telling. Callie let her sudden entrance into English society go to her head. Not even the logic of her sensible stepsister could bring her to heel. I was amazed that once Callie was out of the picture, that Valerian moved so quickly. I truly enjoyed the humor towards the end of the story when they played their "little trick" with Trehern. I hope other Bertrice Small fans who were not happy with this book, gives it another try.

Sweet and entertaining

I have read many of Ms. Small's books. Athough this is not her best, I enjoyed it very much because it is so sweet. The plot is much simpler than others without so many twists as Skye O'Malley, which I think is the best of her books, but the characters are endearing and convincing. which I don't find in other books such as ' Love Slave' and 'Enchantess Mine' or ' Betrayed'

Vintage Small

In 1761, following the death of her father, heiress Charlotte Aurora Kimberly learns that she is betrothed to an English aristocrat, Duke of Farminster, Valerian Hawkesworth, who she has never met. She convinces her step-sister Cally, to pose as her and marry the man. Eight months later, she visits the newlyweds in England and realizes they are an unhappy couple. When Cally dies in childbirth, Valerian learns of the ruse. He blackmails Aurora to immediately marry him. However, country society is not ready to forgive them for their scandalous behavior. The pair travels to London where they are befriended by Cally's friend Trahern, who actually plans to ruin them for taking Cally away from him. Surprisingly, love flourishes between Aurora and Valerian. Hopefully that bond will prove strong enough to withstand their self-made scandal and the machinations of Trahern. The beloved author of the "Skye O'Malley" series, scores big time with this classic Georgian romance. Readers will enjoy the novel because of the depth to the various characters (including the villain) and the delicious plot centering around a mere woman successfully tricking a Duke. The queen of historical romantic erotica, Beatrice Small, has returned to her roots with one of her hottest novel ever. Harriet Klausner