Reviews

The Art of Temptation by Lauren Royal

lifeand100books's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.0

Not my favorite of the Sweet Temptations trilogy....a bit slow at parts and the ending seemed abrupt.

Nonetheless I really did like Corinna and her staunch feelings of pushing her art and succeeding at it before she focused on men. The fact that love found her while she was practicing those ideals...lucky her!

And Sean - he's an amazing character. So supportive, kindhearted, and just good. Enjoyed his development a lot.

bkwrm22's review

Go to review page

lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

This is actually a 2 for 1 story. The couple in the synopsis was not the only love story going on and since I was not aware of that ahead of time, it annoyed me a lot. Whenever something was happened with the main couple, aka the reason I chose this book, the story would then shift onto the secondary couple and that frustrated me. I liked the 2nd couple. They could have been their own story. If the author felt that there wasn't enough story there, well novellas are a thing. Overall, I did enjoy the book, I just wish that I had known it was a 2 couple story from the beginning.
I loved the main couple. I appreciated that alternative to a 3rd act breakup and that it was resolved quickly. Very enjoyable book.

thanys_thoughts's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

Well, I had to read the 3rd in the series since I could not put this series down. Nice way to end Rachel and Griffin's over-arcing storyline and I predicted what I thought was going to happen.

I liked Corinna and I liked Sean probably best of all the heroes in the series. I hope the Audiobook has his Irish accent there. From the very beginning, I knew Sean was going to be her nude male model. Hot.

Again, I am really liking the author's style. Will definitely be looking out for more of her stuff. Wish she had more Regency romance. Might check out her older stuff though.

thebookcoyote's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

Very good book! Sean Delaney is an Irishman who inherited a small fortune and through business sense and investment, made himself a rich man. Still, he is not accepted by the ton - he is still a lowborn man of trade. Attempting to secure his sister a divorce from her odious husband, he agrees to impersonate him and keep his brother-in-law's dying uncle company. Only problem is - he's supposed to be impersonating a painter - a problem when you're color-blind. So he enlists the help of Corinna Chase - an artist trying to get a painting into the Royal Academy. She helps Sean along with the hoax, and along the way, a romance flourishes between them. I found this to be an interesting set-up for a romance novel. Sean is a self-made man, in love with a woman far above him, while Corinna is a bit of a rebel, flouting convention by wanting to paint portraits instead of the more feminine still-lifes. Neither character dominates the other in this well-written book - both are full and interesting characters in their own right, and their coming together is all the more satisfying because of it.

collinsdonique's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

Good Series

I really enjoyed how she blended and reintroduced the characters from other novels and connected series. I would recommend this series.

simplyparticular's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.0

A bit of a strange plot for a historical, with the hero impersonating someone else and divorce involved. The connection between hero and heroine was well developed, but I had a harder time getting into the plot compared to the other books in this series.

roselillian's review

Go to review page

4.0

There's quite a few reasons why I liked this one better than the rest in the series so let me list it out for you.

1) Corinna is the best of the sisters, at least to read about. Her focus on her art career instead of just wanting to get married was refreshing in comparison to Alexandra. While Juliana wasn't only focused on marriage it was the main focus.

2) Sean not only straight-up pines for Corinna like the simp he is, but he also cares so much for Corinna's passions. Hell, he even stripped so she could draw him (for research purposes only, he swears).


3) The third act drama, and basically all the drama that kept Corinna and Sean apart, actually seemed plausible. And the solution aka the reading of the will scene was a goddamn joy to read I was laughing so hard. I'm pretty sure I actually said "oh snap" out loud.

4) This one was the shortest in the series sitting at a clean 400 pages, but being as we also get to experience the Chase brother find love (he may have annoyed me but it was hinted at for over 1000 pages so he can have it) and all the steamy scenes were actually steamy (looking at you Juliana, you just disappoint) it felt more fast-paced, therefore easier to digest without wanting to yank out my eyeballs.

5) This one made me have emotion. I knew, of course, that Corinna and Sean would end up together but I actually was worried about it for a bit there. The steamy scenes were steamy, the jokes were actually funny, Sean's dark moods felt warranted, Corinna's anxiety over her future was too relatable, I hate John Hamilton as he's supposed to be, and all the sad portions were actually sad. I mean my heart was racing during the will scene, as Corinna's was as well. It actually made me feel like the stakes were real.

Basically what I've spent the past 300+ words listing out is that while I was able to see every plot point from a mile away this book still made me feel the emotional punches it was going for which made it an actual enjoyable read. And Sean's better looking than a Greek god.

madhamster's review against another edition

Go to review page

2.0

A bit of a nothing book - I enjoyed the first in the series enough to get the rest out...
More...