THE MISTRESS DIARIES

Author: Julianne MacLean ISBN: 9780061456848 8/2008 HISTORICAL Publisher: AVON
Time Period: Victorian, 1873

He told me he would treat my heart with care. He was lying, of course, for it was all a very clever, skillful seduction. I never imagined that I could engage in such wicked, wanton behavior... until the night I met Lord Vincent Sinclair, son of the Duke of Pembroke. He was a man I hardly knew, but in that fateful moment, alone in his coach, the passion I felt for him was undeniable. And so I surrendered. Then a fateful secret brought me to his door... I always believed my pride would prevent me from becoming any man's mistress—especially a rogue like Vincent, who cares for nothing but his inheritance. Yet I have very good reason to remain in his life. If only he did not tempt me so... Lady Cassandra Montrose

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

THE MISTRESS DIARIES is the second book in Julianne MacLean's Pembrooke Palace book series, following the first book IN MY WILDEST DREAMS. Book one featured Devon Sinclair, the oldest brother and book two is about the second oldest son, Vincent Sinclair.

The book begins with a hot and lusty chapter—a night of passion which lands the hero, Vincent, and the heroine, Cassandra, into a bit of a predicament a year later. Both of them admit whilst kissing that they had no idea what had come over them, with Cassandra arguing she never had behaved so recklessly before, and Vincent asserting that he is a heartless rake and for Cassandra not to look too deeply into this night.

A year later, after the Duke of Pembrooke makes the announcement that all four of his sons must marry before Christmas or else they will all lose their inheritances, they are thrust back into each other's lives. Cassandra isn't happy; she doesn't trust Vincent's motives and feels his attentions are merely transitory until the next amusement. Meanwhile, Vincent is busy trying to convince himself that his fiancée, Lady Letitia, Devon's former fiancée, is the perfect wife for him and not the calculating, cold-hearted shrew everyone seemed to think she was.

In the beginning, much is made of Cassandra's high principles—they are the entire reason she won't give in to Vincent at first to be his mistress. She has nowhere to go, her family having disowned her, no money to speak of and basically lives at poverty level. Even when Vincent offers a less physical entanglement (basically, they sign a divorce settlement with Cassandra getting alimony even though they were never married), Cassandra balks due to pride. However, a little over half a book later this, of course, goes to the wayside, and Cassandra is quite all right with the idea of being his mistress since he could never marry her with his father's approval (and if he marries without his brothers as well, he will lose all).

Something that irked me was the fact she tells him point blank she is barren, a sore point of contention from her own previous marriage. Yet she gets pregnant. The author doesn't explain this at all, references it a few times more, but doesn't offer an explanation. If the epilogue was any indication, she really wasn't barren at all. The fault must have been with her late first husband, which isn't even a passing thought in anyone's mind.

Also, the Duke of Pembrook's mental irregularities were incongruous with what was said about the family's social position. Eccentricity can only cover so much (certainly not the fact he didn't want to wear shoes part of the time) and the fact Letitia, who had been engaged to Devon for a while and had been to Pembrooke Palace before, didn't seem to notice just how 'eccentric' the old man was.

Overall, I think the book is worth reading, especially if you enjoyed the first book as some of the relationships in the first one are fleshed out and built upon more so in this book. There are still two brothers left, Garrett and Blake, as well as a sister, Charlotte, so I suspect we shall see more of the Pembrooke family yet.

Alexandra Cenni