Ten Kisses to Scandal by Vivienne Lorret (Misadventures in Matchmaking #2)

Ten Kisses to Scandal by Vivienne Lorret, the second book in the Misadventures in Matchmaking series, is the story of the youngest sister in a family of matchmakers. Briar's elder sisters are in charge of interviewing potential clients, investigating their lives to discover their characteristics in order to find their perfect match, and doing all the important paperwork. Meanwhile, Briar is relegated to serving their clients tea.

Determined to become a matchmaker herself, Briar sets out to try to meet up with a potential client -- one who is unaware that the spontaneous and imaginative youngest Bourne sister sees him that way. On her way to see this potential client, Briar ends up viewing an infamous rake ravishing a woman (well . . . kissing her passionately and such) as he sends her off in a carriage. Briar is both scandalized and fascinated.

The rake, Nicholas, is surprised by this enchanting and naive young woman, her wild imagination, and her infatuation with chocolate. When she is later challenged to find him a bride, Briar makes a deal with Nicholas. If he will teach her about what attracts males and females to each other, how to read their body language, etc., she will pay him for each lesson with a single kiss. She'll be able to observe him and find the right matchmate while she learns. But, as each kiss becomes more passionate, will Nicholas drop his guard and fall in love?

Highly recommended to romance lovers - I'll mention the negative first (there's only one): there was something done in one of the two sex scenes that totally grossed me out. As anyone who reads my blog regularly knows, I'm not into graphic sex scenes, anyway, so I'll just skim those in the next installment. It wasn't enough to turn me away from this delightful series, by any means, but it certainly surprised me. What makes Ten Kisses to Scandal shine is the author's sense of humor. In Briar, she has created a truly adorable and entertaining character. Often, romance authors will describe a character as enchanting or clever without showing them to be so through dialogue. Briar's imagination and charm are well described and shown. She really is a delight. And, while Nicholas is a rake, Lorret also beautifully shows his soft side and makes the pairing believable. I loved Ten Kisses to Scandal and can't wait for the third book in the Misadventures in Matchmaking series.

Note: I received a copy of Ten Kisses to Scandal from Avon Romance in return for an unbiased review.

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