Review originally posted in November of 2013 on Fiction Vixen by Angela.

Pleasuring the Lady by Jess Micheals
The Pleasure Wars #2
Historical Romance
First Published- November 19, 2013 by Samhain
Rereleased- March 11, 2017 by The Passionate Pen

It was real. It was not a dream. Her entire life had just changed with one foolish decision.

Circumstances in Lady Portia’s life have left her a wallflower and spinster. With no hope that she will ever marry, she stays with her troubled mother in the small house her unfeeling brother has provided. The best thing in her life is her friendship with Ava. Someone who has always been there for her and who she knows always will be, there is nothing she wouldn’t do for her best friend. So when Ava tells her that there has been a sighting of her estranged brother Liam in the notoriously sexually free Donville Masquerade, she knows she must go and see if she can find him for her. She doesn’t expect to be drawn into her own sexual escapade with a man from her youth that will ultimately change her life.

He should have asked her again who she was. Or slid a finger beneath he cheap mask and pulled it away from her face to reveal her identity then and there. He did neither. Instead, he lowered his face, covered her mouth with his and kissed her.

Miles, the Marquis of Weatherfield, knows he must marry eventually, but is in no hurry to chain himself to another. There are things in his childhood that lead him to believe that a marriage of fidelity and love isn’t something that will ever exist in his future. But on one evening out at the lustful Donville Masquerade he meets a masked lady who grabs his attention fully. Even when they are caught in a compromising position and it’s revealed to be none other than Lady Portia behind the mask he still can’t get his mind off how much he wants her body. One forced marriage and an agreement that if Miles will take care of her mad mother she will give him everything he asks for in the bedroom later and this couple starts a journey that will ultimately lead them to a true loving partnership.

I enjoyed the first book in this series, Taken By the Duke. This is where Portia is first introduced and to be honest she came across as a loving friend to Ava who is herself a shy and sad woman. It’s not until the opening of Pleasuring The Lady that her backstory starts to unfold and we learn why she is those things. She has a cruel brother who treats both her and her mother with disdain. Her only concerns are keeping her brother from committing her mother to an insane asylum and being the best friend she can to Ava. She has an interest in passion though and once she is forced to marry Miles she takes Ava’s advice and offers him free reign over their pleasure. Even if the thought of some of what he wants from her might intimidate her.

“That is only the beginning. I will make you feel so much better.” He moved toward her and she gasped as he sank onto the settee next to her. “I will make you beg me for more. I will make you weak with pleasure. But I cannot promise that you won’t fear what I want. That you won’t be changed by it.”

And she is changed. As she and Miles embark on a sexual relationship full of voyeurism and erotic pleasures they start to fall for each other, but the thought of any tender feelings in their relationship causes both of them distress. Miles has no idea how to love after the stain of his childhood and Portia is so used to expecting the worst from people that it takes awhile for her to be confidant enough to admit her growing feelings to both herself and her husband. It’s only when he tries to reset their relationship to just one of pleasure that she opens up and admits that her feelings have changed.

Portia doesn’t at first come off as an overly strong heroine, but I could sympathize with her and her strength grows with each chapter until she is able to capture the admiration of both the reader and Miles. Miles held my attention right from the beginning, so sexy and kind and so very taken by his new wife that I knew by the end he would fall and fall hard. Isn’t that the best kind of hero? My only complaint was that I would have liked to have had an epilogue, just a glimpse of them in the future where they are settled and happy. I’m hoping we will see them again as this series continues.

Once again Jess Michaels has delivered a lovely, romantic tale full of emotion and erotic pleasure. A must read for historical romance lovers.

Favorite Quote:

“Be weak to me,” he urged as he slipped those hands through the loose fold of her gown and touched her bare breasts beneath her chemise. “Lose control for me. Give me all that you are and all that you desire and I swear to you, you will never be sorry.”