The Art of Sinning by Sabrina Jeffries

July 21st, 2015 Kimberly Review 51 Comments

21st Jul
The Art of Sinning by Sabrina Jeffries
The Art of Sinning
by Sabrina Jeffries
Series: Sinful Suitors #1
Genres: Historical Romance
Source: Publisher
Purchase*: Amazon *affiliate
Goodreads
Rating: One StarOne StarOne StarOne Star
Heat Level: One FlameOne FlameOne Flame

American artist Jeremy Keane refuses to return home and take over his father’s business. He’d much rather sample bevvies of beauties abroad, in search of a model for the provocative masterpiece he’s driven to paint. When he meets Lady Yvette Barlow at a London wedding, he realizes she’s perfect for his work—and determines to capture the young heiress’s defiant spirit and breathtaking sensuality on canvas. No stranger to scandal, Yvette agrees to be Keane’s subject—in exchange for his help gaining entry to the city’s brothels he knows intimately, so she can track a missing woman and solve a family mystery. But when their practical partnership leads to lessons in the art of sinning, can they find a bold and lasting love?

I adored Sabrina Jeffries’ Duke’s Men series and was eager to being The Art of Sinning the first novel in the Sinful Suitors series. Arrangements, bargains and heat made for a delicious tale.  Jeffries delivers strong heroines who make me laugh and  I quickly devoured the Art of Sinning.

Jeffries has a habit of weaving past characters into her new books and we see some familiar faces. Our hero American painter, Jeremy Keene was first introduced in The Duke’s Men series and I was glad to read his story. It is unusual to have an American as our hero and Jeremy’s backstory and reasons for being abroad were interesting. Paint, passion, and a strong-headed Juno soon have him very busy. He has a reputation as a rogue who spends a lot of his time in the nunneries but we soon learn there is much more to Jeremy. While attending a wedding and looking for reasons to flee he spots Lady Yvette Barlow. He realizes she will be the perfect model for his latest masterpiece. He soon finds himself making deals not only with Yvette but also with her older brother just to paint Yvette. I love these types of “arrangement” tropes because things inevitably go wrong and usually in the most delicious ways.

Yvette is headstrong and well aware of two things. She is drawn to rakes and rakes are trouble. However, she needs Jeremy’s help gaining entry into the cities brothels and agrees to pose for him in exchange for his help. Edwin the Earl of Blakeborough wants to see his sister happily wed, but fears her outspokenness will hinder her prospects. I really liked Edwin. (as in I swooned and need to know more) The man comes off as a stodgy stuffed shirt, but as Jeffries peeled back his layers, I liked what we discovered. We meet other secondary character and see some beloved ones.

Unlike the Duke’ Men which weaved in suspense and danger The Art of Sinning focuses more on the characters themselves and their issues with love, trust, guilt etc. There is a small mystery thread concerning Yvette’ family and it added interest and excitement. The overall arc thread concerning men of the ton and their sisters/charges was an interesting one and I liked the concept. It should prove to be interesting and I am already excited for the stories to come.

The romance was slow-building and began with heated chemistry and wicked thoughts. Both characters tried to avoid acting on these feelings due to past experiences. We get a little banter as Yvette manages to unhinge Jeremy.  Frustration, fear, trust and lack of communication hamper their progress but Jeffries did not overdo the angst allowing me to become engaged. We do finally get some heat and as always it was heated and beautifully done. I totally loved the play on the title. It is always fun to discover its meaning for the characters.

My only pet peeve was Jeremy’s overuse of the terms “thunderation.” I did not count the number of times he said this but it had to be well over a dozen times. After a while, the word had me rolling my eyes, which pulled me out of the story a little.

The Art of Sinning was an excellent start to the Sinful Suitors series and I am excited to continue. It looks like the heroines will all be strong, opinionated women who are driving their brothers/charges a tad crazy.

Interview with Sabrina Jeffries

I had the privilege of interviewing Ms. Jeffries for Simon & Schuster online @ XOXO After Dark. Stop by and check it out!

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About Kimberly
Kimberly is a coffee loving book addict who reads and listens to fictional stories in all genres. Whovian, Ravenclaw, Howler and proud Nonna. She owns and manages Caffeinated PR. The coffee is always on and she is ready to chat. BlueSky | Facebook | Instagram

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51 Responses to “The Art of Sinning by Sabrina Jeffries”

  1. Cyn

    Yay! I’m glad you enjoyed this one, too! Sabrina Jeffries never fails me, haha. While the book didn’t blow me away, it was still a really fun read and I’m so excited for more Edwin! Great review, Kim!

  2. Cindy

    This sounds so good, I used to read historical romances all the time, reading this great review makes me want to get back into them. Thank for sharing.

  4. Teddyree

    I like Jeffries writing but haven’t read any of this series. I know I’ll like the ‘character’ focus and strong, opinionated women who drive their brothers/charges crazy … yep I like that a lot too lol

  5. Aurian

    I am a big fan of her books, can’t wait to read this one myself. Glad you enjoyed it so much Kimberly!

  6. Lark

    I’m so glad you enjoyed this one, Kimba, because it’s on my list to read this week or maybe next (depending on how things go.) And it will be my first Jeffries!

    • kimbacaffeinate

      Oh your first? Well I hope you love it. Her books are wonderful..my favorites are the Hellions of Halstead, and the Duke’s Men

  8. Diana Leigh

    Just saw this one on Blodeuedd’s blog. Cool, I’m glad you both enjoyed it! What in the heck is a “thunderation” anyway?

  9. Sophia Rose

    What an interesting combo of American and Artist in the character. They seem like a fun couple to read about. I still have yet to read my first Sabrina Jeffries.

  10. Ramona

    Well, THUNDERATION!!! If this doesn’t sound like something that I must absolutely explore. The late-night art is a very appealing idea… Great review, Kimba! Hope your bra took less effort today 😛

  11. Ro

    Have always enjoyed this author’s work, and sounds like this one is just as good. LOL to “thunderation”. Hugs…

  14. Katherine

    I enjoyed this one too those these weren’t my favorite characters of Jeffries. I’m really looking forward to Edwin’s story!

  15. Debbie Haupt

    Well thunderation Kim 😉 LOL I know exactly what you mean about overusing a word or two.
    Wow sounds like a great do I detect a bit of a Regency era human trafficking tale?
    Sounds interesting.

  18. Jenny

    Is it bad that I need to look up “thunderation”? I don’t know what it means! I definitely notice small things like that when I’m reading too Kim – excessive use of an uncommon word – and it can get really frustrating because you can’t un-notice it! Overall though, this sounds like a winner and I’m in the mood for a good historical romance:)

  19. Faye

    Yeah… I’m not fond of the word “thunderation” myself. Is that some sort of coded word they use to make themselves sound cool, like “swag”? Haha. I have never heard of this author but look at that heat level! 3 fires sounds like a sure read to me already 😀

  20. kindlemom1

    I seriously need to know where you find all these amazing historical romances Kim. Thanks so much for sharing this one with us and I’m glad you enjoyed this one.

  21. Lover Of Romance

    I think Thunderation might be her favorite word…because she does use it a lot in her books. I guess I have never had it bother me too much since I have read her for years and its just part of reading her stories I guess. I totally loved this story and seeing their relationship develop, and I enjoyed how there was more focus on that than other aspects of the story.

  22. Lindy

    I love a strong and opinionated female lead! I’m glad that the author didn’t overdue the angst, and kept your attention the whole way through. Slow-building romance is the best in my opinion, and I love when two characters share some sexy banter! Lovely Review Kim 🙂

  24. Nick

    I was waiting for a trusted blogger I know to read this one, Kim and I’m so so happy you enjoyed it so much. I think I would really enjoy this book and the characters especially. Yvette sounds like my kind of girl!
    Great review, Kim!

  25. Melliane

    It’s always so nice to have a heroine like that! I love a good historical romance. I didn’t know about this one but I heard so much about the author. I need to try her one day!!!!

  26. Naomi

    I like the sound of this slow building romance, and how they tried to deny their feelings!
    I can just see you rolling your eyes at that word… Nice review girl!

    Naomi @ Naomi’s Reading Palace