Between the Devil and Desire

Scoundrels of St. James, Book 2

By: Lorraine Heath

Narrated by: Susan Ericksen, Antony Ferguson

Length: 11 hrs and 15 mins

Publisher's summary

London's most notorious rogue - decadent, depraved, forbidden:

The ladies of the town won't stop whispering about deliciously wicked Jack Dodger - once a thieving street urchin, now the wealthy owner of London's most exclusive gentleman's club. There's no pleasure he hasn't enjoyed, no debauchery the handsome scoundrel won't provide for the lords who flock to his house of carnal intrigue.

London's most virtuous lady - honorable, uncorrupted, and all too human:

Olivia, Duchess of Lovingdon, would never associate with such a rogue. So when Jack is named sole heir to the duke's personal possessions, the beautiful, well-bred lady is outraged. Now, Olivia is forced to share her beloved home with this despicable man.

But Olivia's icy disdain is no match for Jack's dangerous charm. His touch awakens desire. His kiss demands surrender. She will struggle to bar Jack from her heart....but her body, coveting divine release, will not let her bar him from her bed.

©2009 Jan Nowasky (P)2012 HarperCollinsPublishers

The Dodger

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

It was a fun and captivating listen.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Between the Devil and Desire?

The story time with the heroine's son and Jack. It was about the Dickens story. It was so delightful!

What does Susan Ericksen and Antony Ferguson bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

It is an extra trigger for the imagination. Susan's characterizations were spot on. I'm all grown up but I still enjoy story time.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Whatever became of the Artful Dodger?

Loved it

I love this series and this was a fabulous book. The characters are fun and it's an easy read/listen. The narrator does an excellent job.

Awesome! Beautiful story

This audio is a keeper. I loved every minute of it the story is awesome!! Great job! Very easy to listen and read and although it is somewhat predictable the ride is still so much fun!!

Jack Dodger-Hot, Hot, Hot

Jack Dodger carries the story. Not as good a storyline as Book 1 in this series. Still good and worth the listen.

Good read.

I liked it! I liked the "Oliver Twist" character references with Dodger, Franny, Fagan. I have enjoyed books 1and 2 so far and plan to read Franny's book soon.

Over 250 books read, 1st Review HAD TO SO GOOD

Would you listen to Between the Devil and Desire again? Why?

Absolutely YES I will listen to this one again. I love the character Jack

What other book might you compare Between the Devil and Desire to and why?

In Bed with the Devil - 1st in this series

Have you listened to any of Susan Ericksen and Antony Ferguson ’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

yes, very good performances

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The reading of the letter from the original Duke and outside the church at Jack's wedding

Any additional comments?

Loved the fact that Olivia kept finding out that she rushed judgement on Jack

Very good continuation of the series :)

4 stars

This was a very good story. I liked Olivia from the start. Jack acted like a real jerk for the first part of the story but he did grow on me and I liked him as well by the end of the story.

Olivia is the widow of a Duke with a 5 years old son who is heir to the title. She grew up being the dutiful daughter and her father married off a much older man (one of his friends) but she wasn't much more than a broodmare for the Duke to get an heir with and then pretty much ignore until his death (making her wonder if maybe she shouldn't have been so dutiful). Now she doesn't intend to re-marry unless it's for love.

Jack was born in one of the poorer sections of London. He didn't have a good life or parents that cared about him so he ended up in a group of child thieves, stealing to survive and protecting the younger kids as much as he was able. Jack got an unexpected windfall when he was younger and used it to open a "Gentleman's club" where the rich men of London can go to gamble and have contact with loose women. Jack has grown rich from his business but is always looking for ways to get more money.

When the story begins, Olivia's husband has just died. She's waiting for the reading of the will but is shocked and confused as to why the infamous Jack Dodger is there as well. The attorney makes it clear that it's a requirement of the will that they both be there. He then reads out a will that gives Jack just about all the property that isn't "entailed" as part of the titled holdings being saved for the heir, Henry, to come of age. All Jack has to do to get these riches is to agree to be guardian of Henry until he grows up of Olivia remarries. Jack isn't sure why this Duke would ask him of all people to be guardian of his son. Jack met him a few times but didn't know the man but the large amount of wealth being offered makes Jack consider the offer. Olivia is shocked and angry about the will and thinks her husband must have gone mad to do this not to mention that fact that he pretty much slighted Olivia in the will...leaving her just enough to live off of comfortably but much less than what most would consider right. Jack finds Olivia's anger fun and decides to increase his enjoyment by doing everything in his power to piss Olivia off, as if everything that's happened isn't enough and Olivia needs more stress to deal with. Jack doesn't care about anyone but himself though and goes about doing everything he can to make her life miserable.

Olivia is horrified by the fact that Jack is her son's guardian and now owns the home they live in. She wants to leave but can't "legally" take her son away because Jack's his guardian. TBH, I think Olivia's late husband should have been ashamed of himself for what he put her through (Both before and after his death) and I can totally understand her being horrified by her circumstance because Jack goes out of his way to behave like a beast to her. Olivia does realize pretty quickly that Jack might not be such a bad guardian after all (after getting rid of a secretly bad nanny and getting Henry a puppy). She starts to accept Jack more and tries to make peace but it doesn't come right away because Jack takes great pleasure in torturing her. After a while though (and an unexpected sickness), the walls come down between Jack and Olivia. They start to respect each other and the attraction that was buried is now coming out in full force for them both. They do try to resist the attraction but this doesn't succeed for long. Jack was intending to marry Olivia off so he could get out of the agreement ASAP but as they continue to see each other, those plans don't seem like such a good idea any more. As Jack and Olivia are trying to figure their relationship out there's another twist that comes in to the plot that brings a bit of danger/suspense with it. Olivia and Jack go through a bit of difficulties but come through it alright and they start their HEA.

I enjoyed this story very much. I liked how Jack and Olivia came together and was happy for them once they worked things out. In the beginning of the story, Jack's actions and attitude just pissed me off but that did stop and it was probably my main complaint about the book. Outside of Jack's early attitude I liked the book and am glad I read it. I'm planning to read the next book in the series. I'd recommend this story. Thumbs up. :)

Good book

I really enjoyed this book had a couple things that held it back. t was long and took forever for the hero and heroine to finally get together. It just drug out. It was good still good. I really liked Jack. Plot 7.5(1-10) steaminess 7.5(1-10)

"What if the children of Oliver Twist lived HEA?"

If you could sum up Between the Devil and Desire in three words, what would they be?

Sure, why not?

What did you like best about this story?

A different narrator from previous Lorraine Heath books. That may seem a trivial thing, but after listening to Anne Flosnick sound nearly comedic in previous Heath books (and ruining the enjoyment of the story in doing so), having a new narrator in this series (Susan Ericksen) has been a breath of fresh air.

Which character – as performed by Susan Ericksen and Antony Ferguson – was your favorite?

None are particularly admirable. However, Ericksen as narrator instead of Flosnick means the males sound both believable and can be taken seriously.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Moved? No. However, Heath has touched upon pedophilia in previous books in this series but explores its horrors a bit more in this one as it is arguably at the root of the worst and most defining moments of Dodger's history. While historial fiction and romance will often delve into the conditions of the poor or those lacking in social stature, this was a particularly dark aspect of humanity to get in a Happily-Ever-After type of book but I'm glad to see it was not skirted. If an author is going to borrow from Dickens, they need to incorporate all the ills of that era.

Any additional comments?

I hope Lorraine Heath, if she has any care and influence, will ask for Susan Ericksen to read her future novels and not Anne Flosnick. I really, desperately hope for that.

Jack Dodger...what a man!

If you could sum up Between the Devil and Desire in three words, what would they be?

Lust! Desire! Satisfaction!

What did you like best about this story?

I loved the play between Jack and Olivia. They had issues with eachother from the beginning yet couldn't stay away.

What about Susan Ericksen and Antony Ferguson ’s performance did you like?

I thought both Susan Erickson & Anthony Ferguson did a great job.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Jack Dodger, a boy from the streets now one of the wealthies men in London. Appointed guardian to a 5 year old boy he doesn't even know. A Dutchess who follows the rules except when it comes to lust.

Any additional comments?

I love the play between Jack and the other characters. When I laugh or snicker out loud its a good lilsten!