[b:Tempting a Sinner|18723602|Tempting a Sinner (The Sinners Club, #2)|Kate Pearce|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1392028433l/18723602._SY75_.jpg|26592640] by [a:Kate Pearce|688826|Kate Pearce|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1234845255p2/688826.jpg]
Genres: Adult, Erotica, Romance
3.75 Stars

I was unsure if I should give this a 3 or 4 star. Here is why;

Her characters & the story line itself is very stilted. It's hard to feel connected to either. Its like they are 2 dimensional.
Great books make you FEEL. You become a part of the story when it is well written. You become a part of the characters. You, as the reader, feel involved.
This is the 3rd book in this series I have read & each one is written the same way. I kept hoping the next book would be better.
But, unfortunately I was disappointed.

So why have I continued to read this series & why am I unsure about the stars. Even while writing this review I am wavering. 3 stars or 4 stars.......

When it comes to the sexual situations Kate Pearce's writing suddenly changes.
You can feel the Passion! You suddenly feel the emotions of her characters. This woman can really write Erotic situations that even make the reader PANT!

If she could just get that same passion into the rest of her story line I would most likely give a 5 star. Her erotic situation are THAT FANTASTIC!

So that brings me back to 3 stars or 4 stars....... ( )

Tempting a Sinner, the second installment in Kate Pearce's highly erotic historical series, The Sinner's Club, is the highly anticipated and long awaited romance starring Lord Benedict Keyes. It is another scorching hot novel that finally provides answers for the intriguing questions about Keyes and his mysterious past.

Benedict's eighteen year separation from his wife, Malinda, comes to a very unexpected conclusion when Malinda returns to England following the death of her mother. Their reunion is very unorthodox and although a bit rocky in the beginning, Malinda and Keyes are soon in the midst of a very perplexing mystery surrounding the death of Malinda's father years earlier. With both Malinda and Benedict keeping secrets from one another, will they uncover the truth before it is too late?

Although Benedict has been featured in previous novels, he continues to be a rather mystifying figure. He has an impeccable reputation and he is quite honorable and well respected by his peers. In his private life, Benedict keeps things simple and he is unencumbered by emotional entanglements. But when he is reunited with Malinda, his hard won control is threatened and she definitely shakes up his well-ordered, quiet life.

Malinda is a mature woman, who is feisty and not afraid to do whatever it takes to untangle the web of deception surrounding her father's death. She is not exactly forthcoming with information, so she and Benedict stumble around a bit in their investigation until she divulges most of the secrets she has been keeping. Their relationship suffers a bit from the lack of honesty between them, but their emotions and feelings always feel genuine.

Benedict and Malinda's relationship is complicated by lies and betrayals from their long ago past, but nothing can diminish the fiery passion that burns between them. Outside of the bedroom, secrets continually come between them, but in the bedroom, these two are definitely on the same page. Sexually adventurous, Benedict and Malinda indulge in a ménage or two (with both another woman and another man). Malinda experiments with a little girl on girl action while Benedict continues his occasional encounters with Adam Fisher, a longtime friend and fellow Sinner's Club member. Their sexual repertoire also includes voyeurism, bondage, light spankings and a little backdoor action.

A deliciously sensual novel that has no shortage of incredibly passionate encounters, Tempting a Sinner is a beautiful blend of mystery and romance. Kate Pearce keeps The Sinner's Club series fresh with introduction of new characters and innovative, intriguing storylines. Once again, I am very much looking forward to the next installment in this delightfully provocative and alluring series. ( )

Tempting a Sinner by Kate Pearce
(Book #2: The Sinners’ Club)
Source: Netgalley and Purchase
Rating: 5/5 stars

Woot!! Round two of Kate Pearce’s The Sinners’ Club series quite literally starts off with a bang. Benedict, Lord Keyes is shot off his horse as he approaches his clearly inhabited ancestral estate in Lincolnshire. While the grazing gun shot is certainly troubling it brings with it even more trouble and questions. For example, who’s actually living in the ancestral home, why in Hell did the inhabitants shoot Lord Keyes, why is he now chained to a bed and, where has his memory gone??

Malinda is bound and determined to protect her family and if that means keeping Benedict, Lord Keyes chained to a bed and prisoner in “her” home then so be it. As far as Malinda is concerned, Benedict and his wretched family owe her big for the loss of her father, her mother and, her heart. For nearly two decades, Malinda has stayed away from England: her father’s death nearly tore her apart but Benedict’s abandonment did even more damage. Though she never thought to see the man she once dearly loved again, Malinda has returned to England to settle a score. In light of some new and very shocking information, Malinda intends to kill Benedict’s father and secure a safe future for herself and her family. Before she can do that, she needs some answers from the man she just shot.

Waking up chained to a bed isn’t a fist for Benedict since he is a prominent member of the Sinners’ Club. Waking up chained to a bed after having been shot is a first and the situation isn’t at all comfortable. With his memory being sketchy at best, Benedict is doing everything he can to secure his release and figure out why the hot angry woman is so angry with him, specifically. As the days go by, Benedict’s memory returns, Malinda becomes even angrier and, everyone involved starts to realize that things just aren’t exactly as they appear to be. Malinda begins to understand that the circumstances which led to she and Benedict’s parting weren’t entirely of his making and Benedict begins to understand that Malinda still means a great deal to him and protecting her is vital to both their futures. Oh, and it doesn’t hurt at all that Malinda is still wonderfully attractive and just as eager as Benedict to engage in a little sexual experimentation.

For the vast majority of this read, Benedict and Malinda engage is a sort of emotional tug of war. Both have spent so many years completely misunderstanding the circumstances of the original parting and misunderstanding each other. Additionally, both have learned to rely on themselves and not someone else so being vulnerable in any way is most disconcerting. Through all of their ups and downs, through the intense drama involved in unravelling the past and, through all of the miscommunication and withholding of information the two cannot deny their intense sexual desire. The attraction is all but tangible and once Malinda is properly introduced to Benedict’s life and the Sinners’ Club, naughtiness ensues.

The Bottom Line: I LOVE IT!!! Malinda is feisty and daring and the perfect partner for Benedict, a man who is used to dominating, controlling and, coming out on top. Malinda challenges Benedict in the very best ways and proves to be an equal partner to the spy. Pearce doesn’t limit herself or her book to well written characters. Tempting a Sinner also has a fun and mysterious plot that takes the reader back and forth between the past and the present. There is plenty of action to keep the plot constantly moving forward, there are some creative naughty bits (ggrrrr, Adam!) and, there is, as always excellent dialogue. Older characters (ggrrrr, Adam!) make an appearance to help Benedict and Malinda with their problem and Pearce introduces a few new characters that will surely make a splash in later installments of the series. Overall, this naughty ready is quick-paced and entertaining and will most certainly appeal to lovers of period pieces, light mystery and erotica and, HEAs. For the record, I have already pre-ordered the third book in the series, Mastering a Sinner which is set to release December 30, 2014  Happy sinning! ( )

Title - Tempting a Sinner

Author - Kate Pearce

Summary -

As young lovers, Benedict Keyes and Malinda Rowland are separated by class. Benedict, the heir to English aristocracy, and Malinda the daughter of a sergeant in the English army.
When Malinda's father dies in battle, seeking to protect her and her mother, Benedict rashly marries her. But when his father learns of it he has the marriage annulled and Malinda sent away.
Eighteen years later Malinda returns to England and with Benedict's help, begins to unravel the mystery behind her father's death. But in their way are the secrets of the past and the ones they keep from one another.

"You haven't told him the truth, have you?"
"And which truth would that be, my lord?"
"The reason you left."
Malinda went still, and Benedict watched a triumphant smile grow on his father's haggard face. He stepped in front of her.
"What truth?"
"The fact that her mother was my mistress, and that your darling Malinda is my bastard, and therefore your half sister?"

Benedict and Malinda must weave their trail through secrets and lies and their own conflicted desires. Together they will find out the truth of the death of Malinda's father and the payroll he was guarding. Also Malinda learns what Benedict has become and of the activities that go on in the Sinners Club. Activities that she herself desires to be a part of.

Review -

Wow. Pearce is not shy about what she infuses her tales with. There is sexual activity for all here. Man and woman. Woman and woman. Man and man. Threesomes of various kinds. Voyeurism. All told in rich and powerful detail with a prose and tempo often missing in erotica.
But Pearce also writes a really good mystery here. Not just some filler until the next sex scene. She layers secret upon secret and discovery upon discovery. Remove the sex and you have a very good mystery novel that would stand on its own.
But why would you want to?
Surprisingly good. I will definitely be looking for others in her collection of stories.
A very good read. ( )