Master of Seduction

Rating:
Summary: Master of the Cop-out
Review: Lorelei Dupree is a spunky Charleston debutant who never met a man she couldn't tame. Recently engaged, she convinces her lieutenant fiancé to let her help him catch the infamous pirate Black Jack Rhys. Dressed as a serving girl in a pub where the pirate is being set up, Lorelei recognizes Rhys as the man she danced with at a society party the night before and immediately fingers him as the man they're after.

Jack Rhys had a rough life. His mother was a prostitute (is that a pirating prerequisite?), but he's raised himself up from a cabin boy to be the captain of his own ship. He kidnaps Lorelei in hopes of luring her fiancé and his father (Jack's nemesis) into a trap.

Lorelei isn't just feisty in the wallpaper sense, she really is, and I find it refreshing to see a heroine who is self-possessed and confident. She does come across as a little dim sometimes, but on the whole she's likeable.

Jack is a little complicated because of his horrible childhood, but we never really get the satisfaction we need from the build-up of his story because the book ends on a total cop-out.

The romance is nice, and I find myself wishing I could see it in a different setting where it would come off as a little more believable. Jack falls hard for Lorelei, and I'm a sucker for a strong guy who is flattened by gut-wrenching love for his gal.

One of my biggest problems with this book is Jack's pirate ship, which seems more like a fantasy rendition of a pirate ship than reality. All of the pirates are nice. Some of the men have wives on board. It seems that everyone and their brother has a cabin on their own, and I'm beginning to wonder if this is supposed to be some late eighteenth century cruise ship or something. Let's just say that if you're looking for gritty pirate fare this isn't the place to find it.

Overall, "Master of Seduction" is very readable, if a little forgettable. The heroine is cool and the hero is pretty much ok. It gets three stars because it balks at real emotional depth and because the story drags in places, then ends unsatisfactorily.

And the cover? Yuck. And wasn't the hero blonde?

Rating:
Summary: Really 3 1/2 stars -- Entertaining but not Wonderful
Review: This is the first book that I have read by Kinley MacGregor and I found it enjoyable but not really memorable. I am a pretty picky reader and tend to get put off by scenes and characterizations that are wildly improbable, so my problems with this book are not likely to be universal (what I mean to say is, loads of people *loved* this book, but you picky readers out there know who you are.)

I did like the character of the heroine, Lorelei Dupree, a spirited and spoiled girl from Charleston who has just gotten engaged to the man of her dreams at the beginning of the book. Lorelei is self-confident, spunky and vibrantly attractive. When her fiance, Justin, concocts a plan (a stunningly wrongheaded and improbable plan) to entrap the notorious pirate Black Jack Rhys which involves Lorelei posing as a barmaid (?? this is supposed to be in 1780 and Lorelei is a gently-bred lady????), Lorelei happily agrees and (of course) ends up being taken hostage by Black Jack.

Fortunately for Lorelei, the pirate ship is a comfortable *palace* of a vessel (with windows!! and multiple extra guestrooms!! and yummy food!! and art supplies!!!) and the pirates are perfect gentlemen. When Lorelei expresses a preference for the color yellow, her room is redecorated with yellow bedspreads and lacy curtains and YELLOW ROSES (Whaaaat????? They just *happened* to have yellow roses on a pirate vessel???) Romatic but ridiculous, in my opinion.

Captain Jack Rhys is a good hero--gorgeous and remote, damaged by his (really!) horrible childhood, he has managed to become (improbably) well-educated and wealthy. He rejects the idea of love and announces his intention to seduce the lovely Lorelei. And, well, you know where this is going, but it is pretty much fun getting there. (For those devotees of the classic pirate tale "Windflower", Jack is a bit like a grown-up Cat, but without Cat's brittle shell.)

The romance was fine and the story moved along reasonably well, although this was not a book that I stayed up all night reading. I do dislike books that break up chapters in the middle of a conversation for no apparent reason and the cover of the book was one of the absolute *worst* (half-naked block-headed dark-haired man draped in a sheet--Jack is supposed to be a blonde hottie and I *HATE* naked men on the covers of my books!)

This was a fun (rather improbable) tale with a nice romance and a good hero and heroine. Recommended for those readers in the mood for a fluffy pirate romance.

Rating:
Summary: Good Enough
Review: "Master of Seduction" is the second Kinley MacGregor book I've read and it was certainly better than "Master of Desire". The characters were nicely developed and the story far more interesting. The romance aspect was sweet, although the love scenes were rather tame. The ending was terribly unbelievable...in that everyone is forgiven quite easily for past wrong-doings no matter how awful: the jilted fiance, the abused and abandoned son, etc. And sorry to nitpick, but the cover model was an unappealing brunette, while the story portrayed our hero as a dashing blond pirate.

However, the book flowed well and it was an easy and light read. I will sample more of Ms. Macgregor's books, but I think I like her writing as Sherilyn Kenyon better.

Rating:
Summary: Master of the Cop-out
Review: Lorelei Dupree is a spunky Charleston debutant who never met a man she couldn't tame. Recently engaged, she convinces her lieutenant fiancé to let her help him catch the infamous pirate Black Jack Rhys. Dressed as a serving girl in a pub where the pirate is being set up, Lorelei recognizes Rhys as the man she danced with at a society party the night before and immediately fingers him as the man they're after.

Jack Rhys had a rough life. His mother was a prostitute (is that a pirating prerequisite?), but he's raised himself up from a cabin boy to be the captain of his own ship. He kidnaps Lorelei in hopes of luring her fiancé and his father (Jack's nemesis) into a trap.

Lorelei isn't just feisty in the wallpaper sense, she really is, and I find it refreshing to see a heroine who is self-possessed and confident. She does come across as a little dim sometimes, but on the whole she's likeable.

Jack is a little complicated because of his horrible childhood, but we never really get the satisfaction we need from the build-up of his story because the book ends on a total cop-out.

The romance is nice, and I find myself wishing I could see it in a different setting where it would come off as a little more believable. Jack falls hard for Lorelei, and I'm a sucker for a strong guy who is flattened by gut-wrenching love for his gal.

One of my biggest problems with this book is Jack's pirate ship, which seems more like a fantasy rendition of a pirate ship than reality. All of the pirates are nice. Some of the men have wives on board. It seems that everyone and their brother has a cabin on their own, and I'm beginning to wonder if this is supposed to be some late eighteenth century cruise ship or something. Let's just say that if you're looking for gritty pirate fare this isn't the place to find it.

Overall, "Master of Seduction" is very readable, if a little forgettable. The heroine is cool and the hero is pretty much ok. It gets three stars because it balks at real emotional depth and because the story drags in places, then ends unsatisfactorily.

And the cover? Yuck. And wasn't the hero blonde?

Rating:
Summary: Good book - not a fantastic Kinley book!
Review: Everyone of the MacAllister series and the knight books I absolutely loved and gave 5 stars too. I just did not feel either Jack nor Lorelei were the compelling characters as in the other books. Jack started out too cockey and too sure of his seductive powers and Lorelei seemed all to sure of her powers to make any man fall to her charms. Neither quite appeared vulnerable enough to really make you feel as strongly for them, as in the other Kinley books. Still I do like Kinley's style of writing and found even this book better than many many other novels out there. And I will give a go at Pirate of her Own about Morgan.

Rating:
Summary: sexy, comedic, and ROOOOMANTIC
Review: There is something about her writing style that draws me to her books, the witty conversations, humorous situations, complicated hero - it's a win, win combination.

When Lorelei gets kidnapped by the pirate Black Jack Rhys, she is so certain about everything in her world - mainly all pirates are murdering, raping thieves. Except, every time she is in his company he treats her as a Lady, even if he is out to seduce her! For Jack, women are only good for loving and leaving, hence the title Master of Seduction. However, every time he has a verbal sparing match with the enchanting Lorelei he finds himself more entangled in a web he doesn't understand.

From tantalizing art work to a ship wreck (as only one near death experience), MASTER OF SEDUCTION will enthrall anyone looking for a good story and provide many opportunies to laugh. Oh and when I mention art work, I should add, Lorelei's version of painting fruit... it is the best! I can say no more! As I really enjoyed Jack and Lorelei's story, I highly recommend this book.

Rating:
Summary: lively couple,tantilizing romance,unwarranted forgiveness
Review: I just discovered Ms Mac Gregor, having first read Claiming the Highlander, which took me to Sin's story and now Jack's and Lorelei's. I appreciate her strong heroines. They have pluck without being obnoxious. They have feminine strength and grace and give as good as they get. My only problem and I'll just address Master of Seduction is the need to tie up loose ends with forgiveness for horrific behavior. In Seduction I could understand Jack's forgiving his mother for her treatment, though that in itself took Christian charity to the limit. But, I find it very hard to believe that anyone could forgive his father. He abandons Jack three times, first with his mother, second after his mother's death leaving him in slavery to a sexual predator, and finally by not letting his maternal grandfather reach him before his death or after with an inheritance that would have sustained him. Ms Mac Gregor creates cruel mean characters to innocent children and then in the last few pages of at least 2 of her books expects all to be forgiven. What is truly hard to fathom is her heroines would facilitate these acts where the victim is expected to make the first move. She should stick to her good use of lively dialog between her lovers and if she wants to have vile characters don't try and wrap it all up neatly in a bow at the end.