A Season to be SinfulA Season to be Sinful was published not long after the Compass Club series and there are so many similarities and patterns here that I hesitate to give this an "A" rating just on the basis of standardization alone. If I had read this book first though, I would have completely loved it. Some of the standby Goodman elements are here and luckily the ones I tend to like. Sherry is a fitting hero in that he's handsome, wealthy, smart, and compassionate to children and women, all the while hiding a dark past that makes him decidedly enigmatic. He does what Goodman's best heroes do, which is to provide comfort, protection and assistance to his beleaguered woman, and all without overstepping her rights to defend herself and her independence. Once Sherry and Lily really come together they are a dynamic force. Lily is a victim of sexual abuse, like many of Goodman's heroines, but she's also not completely victimized by the past and always focuses on her own survival as well as caring for others in need. I had some brief qualms about Lily's ability to push past the effects of sexual violence so quickly once she fell in love, but I didn't allow those to stop me from enjoying the romance here. I also had some reservations about the sheer ubiquity of the villain in that he's everywhere and involved in so many various plots, not to mention so over-the-top dastardly. How is it possible for one man to have his hand in everyone's backstory? After some eye rolling, I decided to let that go as well. Still, Lily & Sherry are among my favorite Goodman characters, and this is a compelling read.
This is the best historical romance I've read in awhile, I loved it.Sherri is such an interesting hero. Regency heroes definitely have types among them. There's the uptight, tightly wound Mr. Darcy ones with the secret hearts of gold. There's the physically or mentally tortured ones despite their money and titles. There's the self made men fighting for their place in a classist society. Sherri is none of these things. He's spoiled, factitious, sarcastic, uptight. He's not a bad man, but he's a product of his environment and upbringing. When he meets Lily, a woman surviving on the streets of Victorian England, when she takes a knife wound for him by accident when he is attacked on the street. He takes her to his mansion for her to recover, along with three street urchin children (not hers) that she looks after the best she can. They all find their way into his heart and he really transforms and becomes alive.The only reason that this book doesn't get 5 stars is that Lily suffered from years of repeated sexual victimization, and after a confession to and a Sherri holding her was able to physically "get over it" immediately which I thought was so unrealistic and took me out of the story.Besides that, loved it. Great characters, very witty dialogue, and a good plot. This is my first Jo Goodman book and I'm delighted to see that she has a large back log. If her other books are half as good as this one I have a lot of happy reading ahead of me.
What do You think about A Season To Be Sinful (2005)?
The title of this book is one of the most misleading titles in this genre. What might you imagine when you look at the cover and read the title? I brought this on vacation with me because I thought it would be lighthearted and flirtatious, but you should know that it's definitely not.The way that Jo Goodman writes this story is that she divulges small amounts of story bit by bit, so we slowly get to know the secrets of our main characters. I won't ruin the story and tell you what happens, other than this story deals with a very serious subject (view spoiler)[sexual abuse and sex slavery (hide spoiler)]
—Hannah
Author: Jo GoodmanFirst published: 2005Length: 4870 locationsSetting: London and rural England, 1815Sex: Sex is a big part of this book. He has a mistress. She was abused. They do get together and it's explicit, but not overly frequent. Sex as both right and wrong, good and bad.Almost Cheating: He has a mistress.Heroine: has been abused. (view spoiler)[Has an uncomfortable sexual past including prostitute for survival and sex slave. Some sexual acts combine her past in a convent with abuse. (hide spoiler)]
—Cruth
el principio fue tan lentoooooo que tenia ganas de abandonarlo, se que deben explicar las cosas pero senti como que no avanzabamos durante la mitad del libro, era lo mismo y lo mismo despues de ahi se puso un poco mas interesante.Lily es una chica que sufrio mucho, paso por tantas cosas, que muchas personas hubieran buscado otra solucion y seria un poco mas reservada a pesar de tener su actitud, sigue siendo una chica que lucha por los que quiere y no se deja convencer muy facilmente, le da la pelea a Sherry y entre los dos hacen entretenido el libro y por supuesto no podemos dejar por fuera a los pilluelos, ellos te roban el corazon y te divierten a lo grande.
—Ivonne
