Heartless

I was really looking forward to Emma and Brandon's story. They had the perfect build up for the perfect storm. Too bad it was very disappointing and not executed well.<br /><br />Brandon returned home from the war wounded and scarred. When he ended up a nameless nobody in the public hospital, Emma became the guardian angel that took care of him when he was on the brink of death. He grew to love her for her kindness and her beauty. <br /><br />Emma used to be a prostitute turned madam. She found redemption in volunteering to care for the sick. She fell in love with Brandon as she nursed him. But when his aristocratic family located him and took him home to heal, she realized she was too far beneath him to ever have a chance.<br /><br />These two meet by chance years later. Emma has somehow moved up into the ranks of surgeon during a time when women are not even allowed to be referred to as Doctor let alone surgeon. (Huge Plot Hole) They have many interactions that mostly consist of Emma avoiding Brandon.<br /><br />When Brandon's memory returns and realizes that Emma is the woman that saved him and nursed him..the woman he has loved for years...I expected these two to start to work towards being together. Except this is where the story took a turn into purgatory. <br /><br />Brandon's memory returns but instead of confessing his love, he chooses to think the worst of Emma because she never mentioned she helped care for him when he was ill. He begins to dis-respect her and treat her like a whore. <b>I truly wanted to Gut Punch him in the Nads.</b><br /><br />SO Emma keeps running and hiding from Brandon....to the point of exhaustion. The author kept throwing too many unnecessary obstacles in the way to drag out the angst and keep these two apart.<br /><br />So there was a kidnapping and a lot of drama near the end. After her rescue, Emma goes missing for 5 weeks. I was SO annoyed by this point that I didn't care if the couple got together or not. There was no talking or much needed communication between the couple and the ending felt disconnected and thrown together. <br /><br />And so many questions were never answered. What ever happened to the evil Vicar that attacked Emma at the christening? How did Emma, the infamous whore and madam get into school to become a doctor, let alone a surgeon? Why did Emma think she was barren? What happened to Charles after Brandon hit him? What happened to Brandon's fiancee? It was alluded to that she was lovers with her guardian but the author wasn't clear. Why did Brandon's family keep it from him for 5 weeks that the woman he loved had gone to his home and moved in without talking to him to discuss ANYTHING while he was wasting his time looking for her? (Sorry for the run on sentence, but I was ranting) <br /><br /><b>Authors: There is a fine line between angst...and too much angst. If you drag it out too long, the reader will disconnect from the couple and stop caring. </b><br /><br />I reached that point near the end of the book and took no joy in the beautiful epilogue.

<b>I've given this a B- at AAR, so that's 3.5 stars rounded up</b>.<br /><br />Seven years after our last encounter with the members of the scandalous <strong> <em>House of Rohan</em> </strong>, author Anne Stuart returns to nineteenth century England to bring us a fifth book in the series, <strong>Heartless</strong>, which picks up the story of the youngest Rohan, Lord Brandon, and Emma Cadbury, the woman who cared for him and saved his life following his return from war and his subsequent descent into depravity and addiction.  Their relationship began in book four, <a href="https://allaboutromance.com/book-review/shameless-by-anne-stuart-2/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener"> <strong>Shameless</strong> </a>, but although it’s been several years since I read that book, the author has included enough information about the couple’s backstory here for a new reader not to feel as though they have missed anything, and for the reader newly returned to the series to feel the same.<br /><br /><em>Note: This review contains spoilers for <strong>Shameless</strong></em>.<br /><br />Captain Lord Brandon Rohan of His Majesty’s army returned from the Afghan Wars so seriously injured that he wasn’t expected to live.  Emma Cadbury, formerly the youngest, most successful Madam in London, worked as a volunteer at St. Martin’s Military Hospital, and was assigned to take care of Brandon on what was believed would be his last night on earth.  But Emma managed to pull Brandon back from the brink, stubbornly refusing to let him sink into death.  Over the next few weeks, a subtle bond formed between the pair, as Brandon revealed things about himself he’d never told anyone, talking to Emma night after night about the war and the horrors he’d seen, endured and committed.  As he regained his strength, their teasing gradually turned into gentle flirtation, until each night ended with a goodnight kiss, which Brandon insisted would give him something to live for throughout the next day.<br /><br />Emma may have been a courtesan, but her experience with men was limited to the sexual act – which she normally undertook while numbed by drink or laudanum; emotions – other than distaste or disgust – were never involved.  But when one of Brandon’s goodnight kisses turned into something more than a chaste peck, she panicked – terrified by the strength of her reaction to him – and didn’t return to his bedside again.  After that, he was reunited with his family and, apart from one further fateful occasion, he and Emma haven’t seen each other since.<br /><br />Until, that is, almost three years later, when Brandon attends the baptism of the newest Rohan, youngest daughter of his brother, the viscount. Having spent those years healing, drying out and weaning himself off drugs, Brandon is reluctant to expose himself once again to society and all its temptations, although he can’t deny he misses his family and that he needs to apologise and rebuild his relationship with his brother.  So he travels to Suffolk from the Scottish estate he has now made his home, and is more than a little put out when one of the other guests, his sister-in-law’s dearest friend, Mrs. Cadbury, seems to take him in dislike – especially as there’s something about her that draws him.<br /><br />Since her stint as an unpaid ‘nurse’ at St. Martin’s, Emma has worked hard to learn surgical skills and is now performing operations at the hospital under the direction of Mr. Fenrush – <em>a venal, ham-handed butcher </em>who kills more patients than he saves but who maintains his position simply by virtue of being a man.  It’s quite possible there were women performing surgical procedures at this point in history, although I admit I found it a little hard to believe that Emma was performing them at a hospital in 1840. It’s true that she is disdained by her male colleagues and only tolerated because of her connection to the Rohans, but it’s still a bit of a stretch.  Anyway – she has agreed to stay with her dearest friend, Mélisande, Viscountess of Rohan, for a couple of weeks after the christening  – until, that is, Brandon arrives.  Fully recovered, imposing and – though scarred – very attractive and exuding sensuality, he’s the last person Emma expects to see and one she desperately wants to avoid.  She immediately starts plotting her departure, having no wish to experience again the stirrings of desire and other uncomfortable feelings he had awakened in her so long ago.  Still, she can’t deny that she’s just a little bit hurt that he doesn’t remember her at all – even as she tells herself it’s for the best.<br /><br />Brandon returned from war wounded in both body and mind, his handsome features marred by severe scarring on one side of his face, his body broken and his mind confused and tortured by the ravages of war.  The one bright light in his existence was his “Harpy”, as he named Emma – and when she abandoned him, he was both heartbroken and furious.  Sinking deeper and deeper into sin and depravity, drinking and taking drugs to forget the past, he tried to take his own life, and would have succeeded, had it not been for Emma.  She saved him again – but owing to a mind addled by drink and drugs, his recollections of that time are hazy and although he feels an almost visceral connection to Emma, and certainly desires her, Brandon cannot explain what it is about her that draws him so strongly.  He’s a rather unusual hero among Anne Stuart heroes, because other than a brief time when he lashes out at Emma while under the misconception that she’s deliberately deceived him, he isn’t cruel, arrogant or morally ambiguous – at least, not in this story, although he was like that in the past.<br /><br />While I did enjoy <strong>Heartless</strong>, I realised while writing this review that most of the storylines I’ve recounted here actually happened in the fourth <strong> <em>Rohan</em> </strong> novel, <strong>Shameless</strong>.  Most of the interesting things in Emma and Brandon’s relationship happened in <em>that</em> book, and if we take out the scenes in this one which feature someone trying to kill Emma, it’s fairly uneventful.  Brandon and Emma meet again and feel an intense connection which Brandon, at least, doesn’t understand; and Emma is simultaneously dismayed (and a tad irritated) that he doesn’t remember who she is and spends most of the book running away or avoiding him. And, er, that’s pretty much it.  The pacing is stodgy in places and some parts are repetitive;  the mystery plot is flimsy and the identity of the villain supremely obvious – to the reader, if not immediately to Emma, who takes a while to wise up to the fact that yes, someone is, in fact, trying to do away with her.<br /><br />Fortunately however, Emma and Brandon carry the story through the sheer force of their personalities and the strong sexual chemistry that burns between them.  They are complex, flawed characters who have experienced some of the worst life has to offer and their HEA is hard-won and  well-deserved. Ms. Stuart’s writing is assured – as one would expect of someone who is a veritable doyenne of the genre – and engaging, and while the plot of <strong>Heartless</strong> perhaps leaves something to be desired, the novel will no doubt be appreciated by those who’ve waited seven years for Brandon and Emma to get their happy ending.

<img src="https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1528982911i/25778139._SY540_.jpg" class="gr-hostedUserImg" loading="lazy"><br><br><b> <i> <blockquote>"I could wish you weren't so perfect."<br>"The ugliness is all on the inside," she said.<br>"There's no ugliness in you anywhere. There's only pain."</blockquote> </i> </b><br><br>All I can say is that I really wanted to love this book. And I did love parts of it, but unfortunately it fell short of the mark on many others. I really liked the beginning and the ending of the book. I loved the characters. Two scarred souls, both physically and emotionally. It was the recipe for a great love story. But, I don't know, I just found it a bit too repetitive and even unimaginative at times. <br><br><img src="https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1528983000i/25778150._SY540_.jpg" class="gr-hostedUserImg" loading="lazy"><br><br>Emma seemed to have a propensity for walking the halls at night.. and this theme continued throughout the book. I know she suffered from insomnia, but it made the story a little too predicable. There was a short but satisfying epilogue at the end, which made me happy. <br><br>I have truly loved this series though, and I hope there are more to come. <br>

<b>3.5 stars</b><br /><br /><i>Heartless</i> picks up three years after the events of <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/9939328.Shameless__The_House_of_Rohan___4_" title="Shameless (The House of Rohan, #4) by Anne Stuart" rel="noopener">Shameless</a>, and is a second-chance romance between Brandon Rohan, a veteran of the First Afghan War of 1839-1842 and youngest son of the hero and heroine from <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/7715163.Reckless__The_House_of_Rohan___2_" title="Reckless (The House of Rohan, #2) by Anne Stuart" rel="noopener">Reckless</a>, and Emma Cadbury, a former prostitute/bordello owner. Both are damaged souls who fall in love while Brandon is recovering from his injuries at the military hospital Emma volunteers at. Circumstances separate them, with their story ending on a cliffhanger at the end of <i>Shameless</i>.<br /><br />(Their romance was secondary to the one between Benedict and Melisande, Brandon's eldest brother and Emma's best friend. It's not necessary, but I recommend reading Book 4 before reading this one as it may enrich your reading experience.)<br /><br />I've waited years (sniff) along with other fans for the fifth book of <i>The House of Rohan</i> family series and can say the wait was worth it—mostly. This self-published installment started a bit slow, but definitely hit its stride by the halfway mark. It could also have used more editing to fix grammatical errors and address loose plot threads which might have ratcheted up the existing angst. <input type="checkbox" class="spoiler__control" aria-label="The following text has been marked spoiler. Toggle checkbox to reveal or hide." onchange="this.labels[0].setAttribute('aria-hidden', !this.checked);" id="ae39612b-e7fa-414c-b855-58bc3ffbe51e" /><label aria-hidden="true" class="spoiler" for="ae39612b-e7fa-414c-b855-58bc3ffbe51e">Topics including the reason and timing behind Brandon's recovered memories, Emma's return on the night they discharged Brandon from the hospital (he was unconscious so thought she'd abandoned him), and Brandon's return to the hospital a year later to search for her.</label> <br /><br />I loved Brandon even though he's not the author's usual, lovable antihero. In particular, I adored:<br /><br />1. His worshipful, yet lusty thoughts about Emma.<br /><br />2. His championing of her, punching every man who dared to insult or hurt her. <br /><br />3. His sense of humor. The scene where she slaps him after he propositions her and he responds with, "I take it that's a no?" LOL.<br /><br />What I didn't like as much was Brandon's lack of celibacy during their separation. <b>Just to be clear, he and Emma were not together in a relationship prior. They'd only kissed when they first met and had made no promises.</b> And to be fair, this had happened to him. <input type="checkbox" class="spoiler__control" aria-label="The following text has been marked spoiler. Toggle checkbox to reveal or hide." onchange="this.labels[0].setAttribute('aria-hidden', !this.checked);" id="05981d08-a9db-4357-9038-830ae3bf132a" /><label aria-hidden="true" class="spoiler" for="05981d08-a9db-4357-9038-830ae3bf132a">The opium and brandy Brandon had consumed had addled his mind so much that he'd forgotten Emma. (But if he hadn't twice mentioned in his internal monologues the woman he'd obviously had sex with, I don't think I would have minded as much. Plus, the village he lived in is small, so it's going to be a bit awkward when he marries Emma, no?)</label> To expect Brandon to have remained celibate may be unreasonable, but the love they felt—and which was suggested in the previous book—felt so epic that I would have preferred if he stayed celibate. <br /><br />I liked Emma, but didn't care for her tendency to run away. <input type="checkbox" class="spoiler__control" aria-label="The following text has been marked spoiler. Toggle checkbox to reveal or hide." onchange="this.labels[0].setAttribute('aria-hidden', !this.checked);" id="95dceed5-b916-4694-a2b2-470da0583c6b" /><label aria-hidden="true" class="spoiler" for="95dceed5-b916-4694-a2b2-470da0583c6b">She was scared because he made her feel, felt he could do better than her, and believed she was barren. I also don't know why she left the last time to only to show up at his home in Scotland. Was it her original intention?</label> I also wished she'd actually said "I love you" to Brandon. He knew she did, as did I, but Brandon deserved to hear the words. <br /><br />While <i>Heartless</i> isn't flawless, read it for the wonderful hero who is the heart of this story.

I enjoyed this story. The indecision of the MCs made it repetitive at times, and the story dragged. Other than that, I had a good time with this book and I liked the ending. It was cute!<br /><br />The FMC, Emma, is a surgeon; previously she was a prostitute. She has a lot of trauma with men/sex. She has had a huge crush on Brandon Rohan since she met him.<br /><br />Brandon is the younger brother of the Rohan clan. A former soldier of war, with marks of that time tattooed on his face. He meets Emma in an infirmary, nearly dying. The war also made him a drug addict, and after nearly committing suicide, he headed to Scotland to heal.

I really enjoyed (most) of the other books in this series, particularly the last one, which left the secondary romance unresolved. So I was stoked when I saw that there was finally going to be a resolution for them in a new book.<br />Unfortunately this book had a few kernels of good ideas, but missed in the execution. It seemed like it desperately needed another edit, both for content and copy. The characters were uneven, random details were introduced out of nowhere, and frankly the whole thing dragged on. Not even one of my favourite historical romance couples in Benedict and Mellesandre returning could save it for me. I skimmed the last 15%. <br />The Florence Nightingale/peer with amnesia trope in dark historical romance has been done better in Kerrigan Byrne's <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/29875921.The_Duke__Victorian_Rebels___4_" title="The Duke (Victorian Rebels, #4) by Kerrigan Byrne" rel="noopener">The Duke</a> and Charlotte Featherstone's <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/6895723.Sinful__Addicted__2_" title="Sinful (Addicted #2) by Charlotte Featherstone" rel="noopener">Sinful</a>. Anne Stuart is better than this. I'm not sure what went wrong here.

At last, Heartless, the 5th book in the House of Rohan series by Anne Stuart is out, a book that has been long awaited by fans. The fourth book, Shameless was published in 2011, with Anne Stuart promising fans that she would get around to writing Brandon George Rohan (Brandon) and Emma Rose Magdalene Cadbury (Emma)’s story. It has been four years since I discovered this delectable series by Anne Stuart and indulged to my heart’s content. Before the arrival of Heartless, I decided to do a re-read marathon of the entire series, which actually made Heartless all that more meaningful to me.<br /><br />Heartless starts after a period of three years having passed since the Shameless. With Brandon living in the Scottish Highlands, recovering and recuperating from the mess his life had become after the war, Brandon is summoned home by his brother Benedick upon the birth of his and Melisande’s second child. Brandon is reluctant to make his way back to England, but it was finally time.<br /><br />Taking a look at Emma’s life, it sure had changed considerably since then. Someone who had been the youngest madam in England had turned her life around to the point where she was now about replace Mr. Fenrush as the head of surgery at the Temple Hospital where she pursues her passion. Her triumphs in her professional life had not come easy, especially pursuing a career in the medicinal world as a woman at the time. But Emma has an innate talent that wins her peers over, except for Mr. Fenrush, whose anger towards her often seems more malicious than just professional jealousy on his part.<br /><br />Emma and Brandon’s story is one that begins way before Heartless does. Which is perhaps why readers have been waiting with bated breathe for their story. Emma had been one of the volunteers at the hospital at the time during which Brandon had been admitted, suffering from war injuries. It is at the hospital that Emma and Brandon forge a bond, that for Emma had been something beyond her wildest dreams, especially for a woman such as herself considered as soiled in the eyes of the society. For Brandon (whose thoughts on their shared time together are revealed much later), Emma had been the lifeline which had held him together, and he had entertained unrealistic dreams of them being together, even knowing that Emma wasn’t probably the wisest choice as a life partner.<br /><br />When Emma and Brandon’s worlds collide once again at the christening ceremony of Alexandra Emma Brandon Rohan, Emma is hopeful and at the same disappointed that Brandon doesn’t seem to remember her. And it is a game that Emma continues to and is willing to play, as long as it does not put her emotions in peril. However, even with the obstacle of Brandon’s pompous elder brother trying to force a bride on him standing in the way, there seems to be no obstruction strong enough to prevent Emma and Brandon from coming together, except of course for Emma herself.<br /><br />Heartless was I suppose what you would call mellow, at least mellower than the rest of the books in the series. I understood the need for it. Both Emma and Brandon are broken in a way that no other characters we have come across in previous books have been, not even Brandon’s grandmother whom we encounter in Ruthless. Imagine being ripped off of your virginity in the cruelest way, being forced to sell your body by someone you had trusted, and not having a choice about any of it. Imagine going dead inside, having never sought pleasure in the act of sex, never understanding the pleasure to be had.<br /><br />It is Emma’s character that requires care in this story. It is usually the male lead who almost always has issues that are seemingly insurmountable. But in the case of Emma and Brandon, it is Emma’s character that needed the TLC factor, and Brandon, having undergone what he had owing to his attempts to drown out certain aspects of the war he had witnessed in drugs and liquor, has the patience and endurance for the slow seduction required of Emma.<br /><br />Emma’s avoidance of everything to do with Brandon does come with a price. It is an avoidance that is borne out of the need to protect herself, and that tactic applied to an escalating danger to her life ends up nearly costing her life. The period of separation that takes place was one that provided the emotional angst factor in spades, and Brandon never giving up on Emma was something I approved of and loved wholeheartedly. If ever there are two people who deserve to have their happily ever after, it is Emma and Brandon, and knowing that they did achieve it? Makes me smile from ear to ear.<br /><br />Recommended for fans of the series. Brandon and Emma’s story was beautiful and soothing in a way that deviates from the norm that is Anne Stuart.<br /><br /><i> Final Verdict: Heartless might be a little late to the party, but it brings along a ton of angst, feel good emotions, and a whole lot of love. Emotionally heavier in comparison to the rest of the books in the series, Brandon has just the right amount of tenderness, steely determination, and sensuality to seduce Emma, for life. </i><br /><br /><b> Rating = 4.5/5 </b><br /><br />For more reviews and quotes, please visit, <a href="www.maldivianbookreviewer.com" rel="nofollow noopener"> www.maldivianbookreviewer.com </a>

Sanırım serileri arka arkaya okumayı bırakmalıyım. Eskiden bu eylem çok hoşuma giderdi ama artık sevmiyorum sanırım. Seri ilerledikçe sıkılıyorum galiba.<br />Bir önceki hikaye de Emma ve yaralı kuşumuz Brandon'a değinilmişti. Aslında karakterler ve konu ilgi çekici. Tozpembe hayatların işlendiği bir çok kitaptan daha gerçekçi ve tatmin ediciydi.<br />Ana karakterlerimizin hayatında, zorluklar olmasına rağmen ayakta kalma çabalarını takdir ettim.<br />Sanırım seride en çok Rohan'ların gelenek ve sosyal baskıya aldırmadan kendi kuralları olmasını sevdim. Günümüz de bile yargılayabileceğimiz bir çok konuyu güzel aksettiler.<br />Kısaca ortalama güzellikte bir seriydi.Bazı sahneleri sevmedim ama o da kitapların tuzu sanırım

I have found a new favorite author. I have enjoyed this series immensely. I’m in love with each of the Rohan men. The characters are rich and full. Big huge happy sighs☺️☺️☺️.

<i>Someone needs a copy editor</i><br /><br />I try, I really, really try to ignore typos or the wrong word/s inserted into a sentence. You know the words I’m talking about, those words which are actually correct, but the author leaves a letter out, and of course the spell check will not catch it because – it’s not wrong. For instance, in this book, and I quote, “<i>I doubt it would hock me</i>.” Hock me? What does that mean? The heroine perchance has a side of pork attached to her leg? Or maybe she needs money. What I’m pretty sure was supposed to be there was the word “<i>shock</i>”. But ‘twas not. If this had only happened once I wouldn’t be whining, but it didn’t and even though I didn’t count the number of times this happened, it was distracting – and sloppy. Don’t get me wrong, there is a reason I don’t count the mistakes, or complain (too much). Editing is a very hard job. Your brain lies to you, it makes you see the words you want to see. No matter how hard you try, you can read and reread and then turn to your "<i>bestest</i> buddy in the whole wide world and they will miss stuff. Even those <i>bestest</i> buddies who went to college and had high marks in grammar – you know who you are. So, I understand, I feel your pain. But I feel my pain also. It only added to my overall reaction to this book. After seven long years of waiting for the next installment of the Rohan family, <i>Heartless</i> had the earmarks of a rush job. The overall feeling of this being a rush job, or something that just had to be finished just because. Much as I was looking forward to this Rohan installment, I was disappointed by it. You know, I am always up for one of Ms. Stuart’s manly-men-Steve Morgan bonehead heroes, even when I don’t like them.<br /><br />As I said earlier, it’s been seven years since we were last visited by the House of Rohan. And, that is a long time for anyone to remember who did what to whom. But, I’ve reread this series quite a bit, so I didn’t have to injure my little brain-box too much to refresh my memory. Captain Lord Brandon, one of the Rohan’s, was injured in one of the wars in Afghan. He was a mess; his face was half-way destroyed and he almost died from injuries. What that means to my little Petunia’s is that one side of his face is <i>allllll</i> scarred and the other side of his face is beautiful to look at. He is a <i>I-only-have-half-a-face</i> hero. Lucky for him, he was nursed back to health by Emma Cadbury. <br /><br />Now Emma Cadbury happens to have made an unusual career choice for a heroine. She was a prostitute who eventually became a madam. She was, of course, forced into that career. So, her past isn’t one which would be conducive to being a member of society. Anyway, Brandon and Emma become quite close during his recovery. They fall in love, but she knows it will never work, so she runs away. While she is hiding from him, Brandon’s family finds him and takes him home. Well, Brandon slides into a blue-funk, to put it mildly. If you read the previous book, you will know he turned to opium and a group of sadistic mad-men called the Heavenly Host. The story ended with the group being destroyed and Brandon fighting to join the world. He is in Scotland recovering. He also doesn’t quite remember Emma, but he knows that there is some kind of memory just beyond his reach – something hiding in the shadows waiting to be brought back to life. <br /><br />Three years later Emma is attending a baptism for the newest little Rohan and Brandon grumpily decides to journey from Scotland to attend. Because he doesn’t quite remember Emma, he is surprised when she tries to avoid him. Why is this strangely attractive woman trying to avoid him? And, thus begins the beginning of repeated maneuvers of him advancing and she retreating. She does a lot of retreating in this story. I lost track of the number of times she ran away from him. It was annoying. As you can imagine, Emma’s returns over and over again to the I'm-not-good-enough routine. Logically, being a prostitute, she probably wouldn’t be. But she was a nice prostitute. However, the poor me routine was constant, over and over, the neutrons in her brain cells kept turning – much like a hamster in a wheel. It was pretty tiresome. I’m not that stupid, you don’t have to beat me over the head to get the point across. I got it right away that she considered herself not good enough. <br /><br /><i>The scene</i>. For a lot of the book, I didn’t think Brandon was going to live up to the bad-boy temperament which Ms. Stuart endows her heroes – but he did. In their first sexual encounter, there can only be what I would call a forced seduction scene. She said no. I had a problem with this being included in the book. I was already having issues with this story, but this dropped the book down to a another level. Forced seduction is not seduction and definitely not romantic. It's a belittling of another person’s rights. I think the author should have taken a step back for a moment before she included this scene. While I am not a big fan of some romance author’s who are trying to make a political/religious statement or right some kind of world-wrong, I do think it is time the forced seduction in Romanceland was laid to rest. <br /><br />Anyway, once again I have to say I’m very disappointed by <i>Heartless</i>. I was so excited when I saw it was to be published. This story was not up to Ms. Stuarts normal standards. The pacing was off, there was pondering, pondering, pondering of the same thing over and over. It was filler. Maybe just too much time had passed between the previous book and this one. The story was rushed and had an incomplete atmosphere to it. Sorry to say, I cannot recommend <i>Heartless</i>. <br /><br />