novel ini dibuka dengan pembunuhan terhadap Marcus Banning, Earl of Wickham.kematian marcus membuat lady gabriella banning cemas, betapa tidak, jika marcus meninggal maka gelar serta seluruh properti wickham secara otomatis akan jatuh ke tangan sepupu mereka, thomas.jika sudah jatuh ke tangan thomas bisa dipastikan nasib mereka akan berada dibawah belas kasihan thomas.jika sudah begitu maka claire & beth tidak akan bisa diperkenalkan secara layak di kalangan ton.maka dengan bantuan jem, pelayan setia keluarga banning, gabby menutup2i soal kematian marcus & terus berpura2 semua baik2 saja.gabby berharap saat claire diperkenalkan ke kalangan ton, claire bisa mendapat jodoh yang baik & bisa menyelamatkan mereka semua.maka dimulailah petualangan ke 3 kakak beradik banning.nah masalahnya tiba2 ada seorang pria tampan yang muncul & mengakui dirinya adalah marcus banning, earl of wickham.gabby tau pria yang mengaku sbg marcus bukanlah marcus yang sebenarnya jadi siapa sebenarnya pria ini??tapi gabby tidak bisa berbuat banyak.jika gabby membuka kedok pria tak dikenal itu maka sama saja gabby membuka rahasia-nya sendiri, jadi mau tidak mau sementara gabby mencari tau identitas pria tersebut gabby harus menyetujui penyamarannya.tapi bukan gabby namanya kalo lalu diam2 saja menerima pengakuan pria misterius tersebut.gabby selalu menentang setiap ada kesempatan.tapi yang tidak diperkirakan gabby adalah pria misterius tersebut ternyata sanggup memikat hatinya, menerima segala kekurangannya.bagaimanapun gabby sadar bahwa kaki-nya cacat & dirinya tidak secantik claire.tapi bersama sang pria misterius, gabby merasa sempurna.bersama nick, gabby merasa sempurna.....nick....itulah nama pria misterius tersebut.nick walau menyamar sbg marcus tapi dia punya alasannya sendiri. alasan yang membuatnya harus terus bertahan menjadi orang lain.walo harus bertahan sebagai orang lain tapi tidak berarti nick harus melepaskan gabby bukan? bagaimanapun juga gabby adalah wanita yang sangat memikat hati & nick tidak ingin melepaskan gabby.apalagi setelah dia mendapatkan gabby dalam pelukannya.novel ini sebenarnya sangat simple & menarik kalo mo diliat secara keseluruhan tapi dari segi penceritaan waduh teramat sangat membosankan.banyak part yg ku skip saking bosannya membaca.aq mulai telaten membaca perhalaman setelah di bagian2 terakhir, dimana nick mulai membuka jati dirinya sedikit demi sedikit pada gabby.juga saat gabby menyadari ketertarikannya pada nick,saat nick-lah pria yang menjadi penopang & penyelamatnya saat gabby kembali merasakan teror atas kehadiran trent whatever his name, duke....( kagak ingat gelarnya).si trent ini adl teman judi ayah kakak beradik banning.saat gabby berusia 13 tahun, sang ayah menggadaikannya pd trent sbg penebus hutang judinya.gabby yg baru berusia 13 tahun & ketakutan, melompat dari jendela.itulah alasan kenapa kaki gabby cacat sampai sekarang, juga alasan gabby masih merasa ketakutan menghadapi trent.dari 1 - 10 nih novel ku kasih 6.7tadinya mo ku kasih bintang 2 tp karna aq suka keseluruhan ceritanya jadilah ku kasih bintang 3.
This was my first read by Karen Robards. Scandalous is the first in a trilogy about The Banning Sisters, three girls who all share the same father but different mothers. The first installation is about Gabriella, the eldest. She’s a take-charge kind of woman, filling the shoes of their parental figures (dad is dead, may the heathen rest in peace; mom(s) are deceased as well) and taking care of her younger siblings. She commits herself to securing a coming-out for her next oldest sister, Claire, and writes to her half-brother, Marcus, the Earl of Wickham, for his permission to take the family to London. Marcus receives the letter and agrees, but he’s suddenly shot dead on his tea plantation in Ceylon. Gabriella’s servant returns to her with news of their brother’s untimely demise as well as his letter of agreement, and Gabriella is faced with a dilemma – if she announces the news of her brother’s death the earldom will pass to their stuffy, cruel cousin; but if she hides the news she can take her sisters to London and secure a future for Claire. Gabriella decides to take a gamble, and they pack up their things and set off to London. Gabby keeps the secret of Marcus’s death between herself and her servant. You can only imagine her shock and mortification upon arriving in London to find the Earl of Wickham in residence. You know, because HE’S DEAD. “Marcus” is, in fact, an imposter and he senses upon first meeting his “sisters” that Gabby knows that something is amiss. What Gabby doesn’t know, though, is that pseudo-Marcus is on the hunt for Real-Marcus’s killer, and he assumed the Earl’s identity in hopes of luring the murderer out into the open.The great thing about Gabby is she has a hell of a temper. And Pseudo-Marcus, hereon referred to as “PM” is a bit of a pompous ass. The banter between the two is funny. Objects fly, including bullets. Of course PM and Gabby fall for each other, but they have to tread carefully because everyone around them sees them as brother and sister. And we all know how “Flowers in the Attic” THAT is.Scandalous was a fun read. It wasn’t one that will stick with me, but I did have a good time reading it. Robards has a conversation-like writing style with her descriptions. I liked that the three Banning sisters were each their own woman, all three encompassing completely different personalities. The most recent release of Robards’ was Shameless, the story of the youngest Banning sister, Elizabeth. I’ll probably pick it up some time in the future, but I’m in no rush to do so. Mandi over at Smexy Books recently reviewed it.What I loved about this book: Gabby is feisty. She throws things. She shoots people. It’s fantastic.What I didn’t like: The virgin premise gets a bit old for me, and this case was no exception. It was well played, however.Rating: C+
What do You think about Scandalous (2001)?
I've read this book three times, and I've finally gotten around to reviewing it, so yay me. I really enjoy this book a lot - obviously, since I've read it five times. I'll say it over and over again, I love a book with good characters. This one, for me, has great characters. I love Gabby - she's so regal and proud, and she's really smart. Instead of feeling contrived, I thought the plan to save her sisters was brilliant and sly. And I love Nick, he's a good man who gets into a rough spot when Gabby's plan overlaps with his. I really enjoy watching the two of them fall in love - I find their relationship believable and I appreciate the slow build in the beginning. I do feel that there comes a point where they go from a mutual dislike to actively loving each other and I don't quite see how the gap is bridged - they have a few sexy moments and they start to like each other more and more as people, so I guess sexual tension and their roles as the other's secret keeper carry them over. But they never had those moments of hey, this is a person I'm friends with and am falling for. They just sort of... fall. But it's an enjoyable fall, and I love their interactions. I really root for them as the book carries on, and I buy their relationship. I believe that these two people fall in love, and I believe Gabby's reaction in the last chapter (without spoiling anything, I think that was a very realistic way for her to behave...after what happens). The only other thing that bothers me, without saying too much, is the conclusion of the secondary plot about Marcus's death. I just sort of felt like that was a freebie, and a little too contrived/easy. But since the majority of the book focused on their relationship and not the mystery, I'm just fine with it. It's a romance novel - if you're going to make something a little unbelievable, make it the bad guy, not the romance. All in all it's a great book - I've read Beth's book, Shameless, as well, and it was pretty good, but this one was definitely the better of the two. I just really like Gabby and Nick, they're great characters and not only do I want them to fall in love, but I also want their mutual schemes to work out. They might be one of my favorite romance couples - they're two characters I can really get behind.
—Erin
Gabby (were there really nicknames like that, during that period of history?) is an obnoxious, grating, horrible heroine. She is completely obsessed with her younger stepsister's beauty; nearly every breath is devoted to cooing about how gorgeous she is--while at the same time fixating on trying to find the girl a worthy groom, as if she's dumb as a rock and can't find one for herself. Gabby has zero self-confidence, a point that's hammered home so hard that the reader can't have much confidence
—Amy
*3,5novel Karen Robards pertama yg kubaca.Gabriella Banning mendapat informasi bahwa Earl of Wickham, kakaknya yang bermukim di Srilanka tewas terbunuh. Demi bisa memberi kesempatan kepada adik2nya, Claire untuk mendapat season pertamanya di London dan Beth untuk keluar dari suasana desa yang terkungkung, juga agar hak waris tidak segera beralih kepada Thomas, sepupunya, maka Gabriella Banning (Gaby) tetap menganggap Earl of Wickham masih hidup.Saat Gaby, Claire & Beth datang ke London , Gaby dikejutkan dengan kehadiran ‘Marcus’, Earl of Wickham. Gaby dan ‘Marcus’ sama-sama mengetahui kebenaran tentang Earl of Wickham, dan untuk mencari tahu siapa pembunuh Earl of Wickham dan agar Claire tetap punya kesempatan mengikuti season, Gaby menyanggupi ‘Marcus’ menjalankan perannya. Dari yang semula sering adu argumen, saling gontok-gontokan…sampai ‘Marcus’ kena tembak…akhirnya timbul rasa saling suka. Tapi masa’ kakak-adik saling mencinta ? akan ada skandal dong…Di tengah usaha ‘Marcus’ mencari pembunuh Earl of Wickham, situasi menjadi rumit, karena hantu masa lalu Gaby (yang menyebabkan Gaby pincang) kini hadir kembali mengusiknya dan bahkan mengancam keselamatan jiwa Gaby. Kini saiapakh yang akn ‘Marcus’ prioritaskan ? Menangkap sang pembunuh atau menyelamatkan Gaby ?Banning Sister Trilogy ini berkisah tentang 3 gadis kakak beradik Banning lain ibu. Mereka punya ayah yang sama, ayah yang pelit, ayah yang kurang memperhatikan dan kurang menyayangi mereka. Malahan mereka lebih banyak mendapat kekerasan psikis.Menarik membaca seri pertama dari trilogy ini, selain karena Gaby adalah gadis yang tangguh, ceritanya juga menyegarkan.
—Fiary
