Brazen (Braddock Black Book 4)

Classic Susan Johnson. Loved it. One of my top favorite authors. So ahead of her time. Wish she would write a few more like this again. No one crafts a hero like she does. Just decadent hero's. I never hate a heroine either and often the opposite is the case with most authors. Up there with her top three absolute best along with Pure Sin, my favorite and Silver Flame among many other greats. She has had some misses, as most authors do. She could get a bit hung up on history but didn't in this novel. Read this years ago and bought it again because I couldn't remember it. Glad I did because I barely recalled it and I appreciated it that much more . The cover though? what was up with that? That was pretty bad. A book you have to hide. Seriously. Wish they would release this with a decent cover and I would buy it.

Somewhere in the last book of this series, things took a vulgar and ridiculous bent toward some of the worst cliches on romance writing, and in Brazen, the whole lot just went tumbling over the edge. I can go for the erotic bent in these books, but not the lap sitting, kumbaya cuddle fest of the final chapter, where all the characters gather in the parlor for a winsome reunion. I wish johnson would pick one lane or another, and drop the tedious foot notes attempting to intellectualize the effort.

Purchased specifically for my Susan Johnson collection. Item as described. Prompt delivery. Would purchase from Seller again.

It is intelligent, sad, cold, and hot. It is about sex and love, in that order, and there were very few things I found romantic about it. If you read romances for light escapism, this one may depress you.I think it will be difficult for most readers to identify with the characters. (I've never seen a romance novel with 20 pages of endnotes.) The lovers are extremely privileged in every aspect of their lives, except one that affects their freedom to marry. They are good people, they do kind things for others, but not out of empathy. They do it because noblesse oblige, and they are both as glittering and rich and irresistible as you can imagine. They are the center of attention wherever they go. That brings with it its own coldness, a lack of connection with other people that leaves the story a little bereft. These people might impress me, but I didn't respect either of them.The story is oddly true to that, though. What happens to people who can have anything they want without trying, for whom no one is as special as they are, when they finally collide with someone who is? Is it love? No, it is definitely sex, and neither can ever get enough, which also makes a lot of sense if you have never had the opportunity to feel emotional connection to other people. But it's still not very romantic.So they have crazy sex all the time. Absolutely impossibly Olympian feats of sexual prowess. They have pages of issues with prophylactics as a result. If you like the idea that kissing and touching are just prudish substitutes for sex toys and multiple orgasms, you might find this romantic. I found it a little bleak. The brief moments of tenderness between them are tainted by sophisticated, cavalier banter, and a lack of trust.They do both get hurt, but even then it was hard for me to really feel for them. They couldn't reasonably expect more when they had not shown a willingness to put much they truly valued on the line for anyone. Both of them lived for thrills and admiration, and threw their endless supplies of money at anything that otherwise required a spine. He sleeps with any woman who offers (and lies about it), and keeps a harem for the nights at home. (Seriously, I counted at least 6 living with him, and at least 3 in the bed with him at a time.) She never really listens when her lover and her son tell her it's unnecessary and probably irresponsible to stay married to a man who beats her, rapes her, and molests little girls, when she has a 2 year old daughter. I felt sorry for her, but her level of denial about keeping her children safe from her monster of a husband was chilling. Under these extreme circumstances, unfair marriage laws seemed secondary to at least TRYING to find a way out for herself and her children, especially when she was lucky enough to have people willing to help her.Some people would think these two are never in love, just in lust - they don't know each other well enough, although they have sailing and horses in common. I think they are in love, but it is a more selfish and animal kind of love than you usually see in a romance. Neither changes or grows from having known the other, things just happen. They are more kindred spirits than soulmates, I think: neither will ever find someone else as spectacular as they are, and they both know it.A lot of people really liked this book, and for them, the raw sexuality and scholarly approach to the period probably made the book unique and satisfying.

Although I have given this book five stars, I have some issues with it. The storyline was great. The excessive amount of sex almost killed it. And I like Susan Johnson's writing. Oh, well, in to the next one.

A great story -- easy reading -- Susan Johnson is adept in describing background and story plot in the detail of the time. Easy reading, good plot, predictable happy ending, but one did worry if all would end well. Plot within plot well done. A great addition to the series.

I have been a fan of Susan Johnson for years, but lost all my previous copies because of moves. so im starting over again and enjoying the ride as if the first time reading it.

Another grand adventure in the 1890's with enough adventure to keep most readers keep turning the pages to see what comes next.

SJ's writing is good as is the characterisation. What ruined this for me was the fact that the heroine has had many lovers and the way the author handled this got in the way of the romance. Also, the heroine is married and she won't divorce her husband even though he is a deeply unpleasant man. Her reason for staying married to him is that she does not want to cause a scandal - very weak. Not a keeper.

Meh.....a bit too much of a sex novel. Story was good but at times the porn took over too much of the tale.