This HaBO comes is from Jessi, who is looking for what sounds like an erotic historical romance:
I’ve been trying to remember this book for a while. I’m hoping you can help.
It was about a woman who I think went to the French court as a spy; she hooks up with a nobleman in the court as her target. She resists him and never lets him bring her to orgasm, to keep him interested in her as part of her mission, and in the course of resisting him, he finally brings in his twin brother in his effort to satisfy her. I cannot remember anything else and I want to read it again.
Who else is insanely interested in this one?
This isn’t it, but Juniper Bell’s My Three Lords is a pretty hot historical three-(and four)some.
The Spitfire by Bertrice Small includes this storyline, and of course, so much else since it’s Bertrice Small. I think this is the one where she was sent naked to her wedding with only her long blond hair to cover her bits.
Every time someone mentions Bertrice Small I wonder if I missed out by not reading her. And then I read the book synopsis and think I’m okay with that.
This seems like it could have been published by Black Lace (erotica by women, for women) – but the plot doesn’t ring any bells. How I loved those books. Sigh.
I concur with cleo: the Black Lace books (erotic fiction written for women, by women) are easily my favorite line of erotica. Though the books have had plenty of threesomes, and infrequently identical twins, this HABO isn’t from any of them. Bummer: Otherwise I might have known a HABO for the first time!
It’s definitely The Spitfire by Bertrice Small. As per Small it’s a whole book of crazy sauce where the heroine is “forced” to do things the heroines in her last, modern books were doing gleefully and willingly of their own choosing. It just shows to me how the times had changed over the course of her writing career. She didn’t have to cloak the racier stuff in old skool rapiness.
@Pam Shropshire – I think you’re right about the heroine from *The Spitfire* getting married naked. I only remember the first half of the book, but I do remember that scene. Also the truly awful first fiance.
My mom loved Bertrice Small but her books were strictly off limits to me. Naturally I snuck around and read them anyway. I ultimately didn’t finish this one because even though I’d made it through a couple other Small books, that was A LOT of crazy, especially since I was in high school at the time.
Someone on Goodreads has written a detailed (like a synopsis of every chapter) for Spitfire. You should be able to figure out if this is your book. FYI, there is a twin ménage scene.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/155881405?book_show_action=true&from_review_page=1
Is there some reason this review was posted without paragraph breaks? It might be a helpful review but without paragraphs and white space, I find it unreadable.