The Beloved Scoundrel Book

Now, from nationally best-selling Iris Johansen comes a thrilling tale of abduction, seduction, and surrender that sweeps from the shimmering halls of Regency England to the decadent haunts of a notorious rogue...

She was a hostage torn between passion and loyalty...

Marianna Sanders realized she could not trust this dark and savagely seductive stranger who had come to spirit her away across the sea. She possessed a secret that could topple an empire, a secret that Jordan Draken, the duke of Cambaron, was determined to wrest from her. In the eyes of the world the arrogant duke was her guardian, but they both knew she was to be a prisoner in his sinister plot—and a slave to his exquisite pleasure.

He was the fabulous rake they called the Duke of Diamonds...

For years, brilliant, deadly Jordan Draken had schemed to destroy the emperor who threatened everything he valued most in the world. Now that he held this defiant woman who was the key to his final triumph, he felt a fierce sense of satisfaction...and the first stirring of desire. She was only supposed to be a pawn in his plans, but once alone with his captive, Jordan realized she was a prize he could never surrender.

Library Journal

In this absorbing Napoleonic-era romance by the author of The Magnificent Rogue (Bantam, 1993), Eastern European stained-glass artisan Marianna Sanders becomes privvy to a politically charged secret sought after by the leaders of two warring countries. One of them, Jordan, Duke of Cambaron, takes her to his home in England and tries to get the information gently; inevitably, they fall in love. His nemesis, the Duke of Nebrov, murders Marianna's mother and kidnaps her much-loved younger brother in hopes of extorting the information, but Marianna has plans of her own. To the author's credit, her romantic heroine has guts, intelligence, and strength that carry the day. Readers may be reminded of Kathleen Woodiwiss's The Flame and the Flower (Avon, 1972); they certainly won't be able to put down this new book, as the experienced Johansen has outdone herself here. Buy plenty: it's certain to be popular and well loved. --Bettie Alston Spivey, Charlotte-Mecklenburg P.L., Charlotte, N.C.