Smut Ahoy, Matey! – “Pleasuring the Pirate” by Emily Bryan

As far as titles go, it doesn’t get much better than “Pleasuring the Pirate,” does it?

The very moment I found out this book was a real, true thing, I knew it needed to be included in this month of romance novels.

So it’s with great happiness that I can tell you, the book doesn’t disappoint.  Emily Bryan knows what’s up and never lets a dull line pass her pages.

The story shares a lot of similarities with a few titles already reviewed here.  We’ve got a nice girl who needs to tame a wild man so he fits into society, but in turn he ignites her innermost fires.  There are traces of “Some Like it Wild” and “Wild,” but “Pleasuring the Pirate” is it’s own tale with it’s own vividly drawn characters.

Jacquelyn Wren came to the castle of Dragon Caern to be it’s governess, but wound up becoming practically the master of the house after Lord Drake’s death.  When a Pirate named Gabriel Drake appears, and turns out to be the long-lost son of Lord Drake, it falls to Jacquelyn to get him up to speed on manners so he can marry a wealthy lady and save the castle for all it’s inhabitants.

There’s a problem, though.  You guessed it – Jacquelyn and Gabriel have had the hots for each other since their first encounter (when she, dressed as a boy, was defending the castle from this new lord who everyone assumed had come to take the castle) and their passion can’t be tamed.  Jacquelyn is a good girl, and a virgin, but she’s soon swayed by Gabriel and things heat up.

I won’t spoil the ending, but the book is actually very charming and fast-paced.  It’s a little weak on plot, but then again – with steam like this, who needs it?  Jacquelyn and Gabriel are solid characters, and the book gets a thumbs up from me.

SuchaBookNerd Smut Index: This one gets a 9 – as there are a couple of truly dirty moments in the book, and Jacquelyn (though innocent) doesn’t take long to get into the swing of things.