FURTHER THAN PASSION

Author: Cheryl Holt ISBN: 031299284X 3/2005 HISTORICAL Publisher: ST. MARTIN'S PRESS
Time Period: 1813 London

Kate Duncan agrees to help her young cousin land a husband though she draws the line when she learns the foolish girl wants to use an apothecary's love potion to snag the notorious Marcus Pelham! To prove the elixir a fake, Kate drinks it herself-and experiences the most erotic moment of her life when she stumbles upon Marcus in a most compromising position. Every nerve in Kate's body sings as she watches from the shadows, but is her response a result of the potion...or the man? Luckily, Marcus is far too busy to notice Kate's spying-or so she thinks... As the Earl of Stamford, Marcus has his choice of willing ladies to share his bed. Yet nothing has ever aroused him as much as the image of Kate watching him. Marcus tries to have a little fun with Kate by drinking the elixir-and then appearing to lose all control every time she's near. But the prank goes awry when Marcus finds himself wildly and truly attracted to the innocent Kate. As he teaches her the passionate art of seduction, will he lose his heart for the very first time?

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

Yikes! Just when I thought I would no longer find a book with words like "cockstand" in them, along comes Cheryl Holt's, FURTHER THAN PASSION. Wow. Passion is the least of this book's problems.

The story starts out decent enough. It begins with a magical love potion and a cast of characters that spice up the scene with their selfish and villainous ways. Along with them, the hero, Marcus, is a true alpha. The heroine, Kate, disguises her beautiful self by creating a drab appearance, yet appears to have a decent head on her shoulders despite the fact she lets her guardian push her around.

At the start, as a chaperone, Kate shows some backbone and talks to her spoiled charge, and her guardian, like she has a brain. It seems she is just accepting of her lot in life and doesn't desire to change it. Why Kate never questions her lot in life is beyond me. If my mother left me, yet I was still an earl's daughter, I would certainly make sure there was nothing bequeathed to me, not just take my evil guardian's word for it! Truly, it makes no sense. I wish I could say more, but I don't want to give the whole plot away.

Once Kate meets Marcus, the book takes an even stranger turn and the once mousy girl with gumption deep down, becomes dumb. Not naive, but well and truly dumb. The conversations she has with Marcus in regards to sex matters, make me want to hide my face and laugh out loud! They are absolutely hilarious and "purple prose" does not even begin to cover the language. Kate suddenly knows nothing about nothing, not just with her lover, but with her evil guardian, and her sister, whom she is supposed to be dispersing funds for. Yep, Kate's half-sister has some cash, yet Kate has absolutely nothing. Hmmmm, I think I might check with the solicitor myself about all that, were I in that situation.

Though some of the characters are quite memorable, the plot is, well, ludicrous, and a wimpy heroine does nothing for me. Fans of Cheryl Holt will no doubt disagree with me, but to each his own, I say.

Shannon Johnson