Smitten by Books

Secrets of Sin
Author: Chloe Harris
Publisher: Aphrodisia
Pub. Date: January 26, 2010
ISBN-13: 978-0758238535
Retail Price: $14.00
Pages: 320

THREE DAYS… ENDLESS PLEASURE

On a Caribbean island of alluring delights, Emiline du Ronde-Barhydt commands a large estate, vast wealth, and unwavering devotion. Her inheritance and dazzling beauty ensure that she’s granted her every wish… or almost. The one thing she can’t get is freedom from her proud wayward husband.

When her husband, sea captain Reinier Barhydt finally agrees to give his determined wife the divorce she craves – it’s for a price: three days of total submission to his every erotic demand. Both fall under the spell of the most forbidden sensations that reignite every delicious inch of their bodies… and Reinier soon realizes that he is no longer master of his carnal game. At the mercy of his own raw shattering needs, the three red hot days may just turn into a lifetime of smoldering passion…

~*~*~

If you couldn’t tell Secrets of Sin is an erotic romance. And wow. My first thought when I read the first couple pages of Secrets of Sin is ‘You had me at hello.’ This book is erotic without being porny. It was really hot and descriptive. I mean if you want a complete idiot’s guide to spicing up your sex life, get this book. Really. I think my eyes popped out of their sockets a couple times, but in a good way. 🙂 There was a time or two when reading that I thought, ‘Oh, so that’s how that’s really done.’ 🙂 And I don’t recall ever thinking that when reading an erotic romance before.

Secrets of Sin is a compelling read. What really piqued my interest is the location and history of the country where the story takes place. After reading Secrets of Sin, I spent over an hour on the internet googgling Grenada, its culture and its history. Very few books engaged me so completely in that way.

That leads to the plot. The plot engaged me because it’s amazing that I would spend so much time on the internet. Secrets of Sin is more than a marriage reunion story. It’s about finding yourself and accepting yourself and the person you love for who they are. That’s the strength of Secret of Sin.

There were a couple things that bothered me about Secrets in Sin. There’s a subplot involving Reinier’s best friend that distracted from Emiline and Reinier’s story, especially in the beginning. This could’ve just been me, because when I first start reading a novel, I want to get to the hero/heroine’s story and conflict. There is a scene in the beginning of the book that I felt could’ve been left out, but once I got to the end of the book, it was explained and I had a ‘Oh, I see why you did that’ moment. I know I’m being annoyingly vague but to go any deeper would reveal too much. Although I understood why something was done, I still believed Secrets of Sin would have been stronger if the majority of the best friend’s story was left to his own book. It was certainly a strong enough subplot to do so.

Another thing that annoyed me about Secrets of Sin is the conflict that pulled Reiner and Emiline apart. I understand why it might have ruined the marriage in the beginning, but all these years later they never talk about what drew them apart. After awhile I got a little annoyed that they didn’t just sit down and talk to each other, because Secrets of Sin had so much more going for it that even if they talked about what drew them apart, they had so many other issues they needed to work through. Overall, I loved this book and would definitely read it again.

Rating: 7 (Good)

Heat Level : 6 (Erotic)

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