Title: Seven Years To Sin
Author: Sylvia Day
Publisher: Kensington Brava
Release Date: August 29, 2012
ARC provided by NetGalley
Book Blurb from Goodreads
Seven years ago, on the eve of her wedding, proper Lady Jessica Sheffield witnessed a licentious scene no innocent young miss could imagine. Shocked, yet strangely titillated, she'd held her silence regarding scandalous Alistair Caulfield, and walked down the aisle as expected. But through years of serene, unremarkable marriage, Caulfield's image remained burned into her imagination, fueling very illicit dreams. . .
...the sweeter the reward
Alistair ran far from the temptation of the prim debutante with the fire of passion in her eyes—all the way to the West Indies. As a successful merchant, he has little in common with the rakehell youth she knew. But when newly widowed Jessica steps aboard his ship for a transatlantic passage, seven years' worth of denied pleasures are held in check by nothing more than a few layers of silk—and the certainty that surrender will consume them both. . .
Book Review
I love Sylvia Day's writing and enjoyed her book, Bared to you, immensely. So when I saw this title available, I had to pick it up, despite it being an historical romance.
The book starts out the night before the beautiful Jessica Sheffield is to be married. And while walking her dog late at night, runs into the much younger Alistair Caulfield diddling with a woman in the gazebo. Their eyes lock and Jessica is unable to turn away from the couple. Her heart pounds heavily in her chest and the heated look from Alistair refuses to let her go. It was a very heated, intense moment that stayed with them both over the years.
What I loved about this story is that there is no smearing or sullying of Jessica's first husband. Their marriage was strong, filled with trust, and an unshakable commitment. However it lacked the passion that Jessica secretly longed for in just those few moments in the woods with Alistair.
Fast forward seven years--Jessica is a widow and her mourning period of one year comes to a close. Now is her chance to travel and see the world and do the things she never had the chance to do. Benedict, her late husband, has seen to her future and left her land overseas. Jessica plans to sail there to see to the property. She sails aboard the ship that is owned by the very man who stirred such passion in her seven years ago.
What follows is a slow building story of seduction. Alistair wants Jessica to see him more as the young rake in the gazebo. He has struggled hard to get where he was and without the help of his family. He is a self made man who has never forgotten the woman in the woods and now he plans to have her.
Sylvia describes the historical setting with flair and beautiful accuracy; in fact, the time that was spent on the ship left me feeling a bit claustrophobic.
There is even a secondary romance dealing with Jessica's sister, Hester. She hasn't been so lucky in love and is in an abusive marriage that she has hidden from her sister. Michael is the man who has carried a torch for her for seven years. Theirs is a tender and heart wrenching tale.
If you love historical romance that leans more toward the erotic side, Sylvia's Seven Years To Sin is your cup of tea. Her words are sometimes hauntingly beautiful and touching. I just wish that they had gotten off the ship sooner and the reader had time to see how Jessica and Alistair's relationship stood outside in the real word. Especially during the time period that the book was written.
I saw SDay & just grabbed it, never thought this is historical romance.
ReplyDeleteBraine-I hope you like it. Let me know what you think :)
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