Something Reckless

by Jess Michaels

Book Overview

Prim, headstrong, and beautiful Penelope is determined to expose the licentious affairs of the ton's randiest rakes. Now one of their powerful number--the unrepentant libertine Jeremy Vaughn, Duke of Kilgrath--has been selected to put an end to the prudish lady's interference. Jeremy's plan is devilishly clever: He will join Penelope's war against immorality, fighting passionately by her side, all the while showering her with anonymous erotic missives...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0061283975
• ISBN13: 9780061283970
• Release Date: April 2008
• Publisher: Avon Red Impulse
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.8" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

a charming bedtime story for grown-ups

As with first, I found this to be a very enjoyable quick read - finished it in one sitting as soon as it arrived. I wouldn't have minded if it had been a bit longer to allow for more character development and better understanding of somewhat complex relationship between Penelope and Jeremy, but then that's not really the point, it it? It fulfills it's promise...a happy story with a good dose of sugar, a little bit of spice, and very satisfying overall. Looking forward to her next book!

Steamy hot

Penelope decided to make the sexual affairs of the greatest rakes of the ton public knowledge, which the ladies applaud in private, but shun her in public. The males of the ton aren't happy of her either, so that they choose Jeremy Vaughn to end her revenge campaign. But no one ever imagined that he would fall in love with her. I have to confess that I was surprised and a little dismayed when I discovered that Penelope was the heroine of SOMETHING RECKLESS, but I was more than surprised by the result of Ms. Michaels work. The relationship between the prim and proper Penelope and the rakish rogue Jeremy makes SOMETHING RECKLESS a very entertaining and amusing as well as steamy hot story. Both of them undergo quite a change while the story develops, from an unlikely pair to soul mates. They bring the best out of the other one and soon they learn that they have more in common that they ever thought are possible. Penelope and Jeremy's story will definitely touch your heart and you will love it. Ms. Michaels gifted her reader with a wonderful story. SOMETHING RECKLESS is the sequel to EVERYTHING FORBIDDEN (you met the heroine there), although it can be read as a stand-alone, I will recommend EVERYTHING FORBIDDEN, too. I can recommend this book not only to all fans of the more steamy novels, but also those of Regency novels. SOMETHING RECKLESS is a book that you don't want to miss. Courtesy of Loveromances and more

Excellent - could not put it down!

Here is the premise of the this novel Jeremy Vaughn, Duke of Kilgrath friends are tired of Penelope Norman telling wives that the 'men of TON' should give up their mistress. Penelope feels that why can't the wives be everything for their husband so they don't look elsewhere. Jeremy friends decide that she must be stopped and he get the short straw and decides to seduce her and then she will be a fraud. As with all good romance novels nothing goes as planned. If you enjoy this author I would also suggest; Something Reckless (Avon Red), Everything Forbidden(Avon Red) and A Red Hot Valentine's Day Available due out 1/6/09. This author also writes under another name Jenna Petersen;From London With Love] (Lady Spies Book 1),[[ASIN:0061138088 Desire Never Dies(Lady Spies Book 2),Seduction Is Forever(Lady Spies Book 3) ,Scandalous and Lessons From a Courtesan, Her Notorious Viscount due out April 2009.

Five Blue Ribbons from Romance Junkies!

Widow Penelope Norman must be stopped - that is the topic of conversation Jeremy, the Duke of Kilgrath, and his friends are having over drinks and cigars at their club. It seems that Lady Norman has interfered once too often in the lives of the `Nevers' and they want her stopped. Jeremy is lucky enough to draw the shortest matchstick, so it is up to him to silence Penelope. His plan? Seduce her with letters and illicit meetings in order to make her see exactly what she is missing by her crusade. How? By pretending to agree with her campaign to make the men of society faithful to their wives. Does it work? More than he ever thought possible. Penelope Norman never wanted the job which she has been given. Her outspokenness has gotten her into trouble once too often and before she realizes it, she is given the title leading actress in a battle between the token wives of London's society. All it took was one innocent observation and the ball began rolling so fast that before she was able to breathe, Penelope was being held responsible for the newfound determination of forgotten wives and their hatred of the men who cuckold them. When the Duke of Kilgrath comes to her praising her work and offering to help her in her supposed campaign, Penelope is at once disbelieving as well as smitten. Why would someone as immoral as Jeremy Vaughn want to help her? She discovers exactly how he wants to help when he takes her to places women of society are never allowed. Admittedly, she is spellbound by the lack of dictates and the utter sensuality of these places. So much so that when the letters begin arriving from an unknown but highly eloquent admirer, Penelope can't help but follow her heart. I was lucky enough to meet Penelope in Jess Michael's prior release, Everything Forbidden. I must admit that Penelope was not one of my favorite characters and I was somewhat dismayed to find out that SOMETHING RECKLESS was Penelope's story. I was genuinely afraid that I would not be able to like her as a heroine. Eight hours later I can say without a shadow of a doubt that Penelope Norman was completely and miserably misunderstood. Having finished SOMETHING RECKLESS, I see exactly where she was coming from and why she did the things that she did. In fact, I honestly adored her in this novel and loved how she handled herself. She never expected to have sensuality in her life after the death of her older husband. She was willing to be seduced and willing to be reckless, something that few society women were able to do. Then there was Jeremy Vaughn. He was a man after my own heart simply because of the way he dealt with Penelope. He wanted to hate her for her supposed influence on the women of the ton. He wanted to make her pay for the marriage troubles being experienced by the men in his club. He really and truly desired her and that is what stood out first and foremost. It was like he was on the edge of a cliff and just needed one slight push to

5 Klovers - Courtesy of CK2S Kwips & Kritiques

Finding herself in the unenviable position of being the moral mouthpiece for the Ladies of the ton, Penelope is privately lauded by the women she stands for, and publicly spurned by almost everyone. The `gentlemen' of high society are the worst, with their extracurricular activities having been greatly impacted by her cause. They resolve to put a stop to her interference, one way or the other. Jeremy Vaughn is elected to take care of the problem, using the best weapon at his disposal - seduction. Once the Duke of Kilgrath beds the wench, he will have what he needs to blackmail her into a quiet retreat from her cause, leaving he and his friends to their carnal games without impediment. But best-laid plans often go awry, and Jeremy's plan backfires as he grows closer to the winsome Penelope. Once he befriends her, he finds it impossible not to like her, and soon finds himself in the position of confidante. When his scheme to seduce her finally lands him in her boudoir, albeit anonymously, Jeremy cannot get enough of her. Has the seducer become the seduced? Will Jeremy be able to go through with his plan and betray Penelope? Jess Michaels follows up her wonderful historical romance EVERYTHING FORBIDDEN with SOMETHING RECKLESS, with the previous heroine's sister Penelope in the role of heroine. When we last saw Penelope in EVERYTHING FORBIDDEN, she was set to make a bad, yet respectable, marriage. Resigned to the idea that she must sacrifice love and passion for stability and the ability to assist her financially strapped mother and younger sisters, she weds and uncaring older man who sees her as a trophy, not a woman. As SOMETHING RECKLESS begins, Penelope is now a widow of a year or so, and lives independently, having inherited her late husband's fortune. At a time when she might have found suitors at her door once again, she is instead avoided by the men of the ton since she began speaking publicly against their lascivious activities, which she deems immoral. But a cause is a lonely bedmate, and so Penelope is ripe for the seduction intended to be her downfall. Although no virgin, having been married once, she has never experienced passion or sensual pleasures, and is completely unprepared - much to the readers' delight - for the overwhelming feelings that Jeremy Vaughn inspires with mere looks, the slightest of touches. Couple that with erotic missives sent daily by a mysterious admirer, and you can guess it isn't very long before Penelope succumbs to temptation. With a man like Jeremy in pursuit, who can really blame her? LOL Jeremy could very accurately be called `idle rich.' Raised in his position as the first son of a wealthy Duke, whose title and funds he later inherited, everything has come easy for Jeremy. While he spends his days in pursuit of various pleasures, he has found his life somewhat unfulfilling lately. Is it boredom, or is something missing? Of course, as he spends more and more time with Penelope, he