'Awakened By A Kiss' by Lila DiPasqua -Review-

   Wickedly wanton and thrillingly tantalizing; 'Awakened By A Kiss' was exciting and passionate and one of those reads you just couldn't put down. Set in seventeenth century France, Lila DiPasqua takes 3 beloved childhood fairy tales and gives them a sensuous makeover. You'll never look at sleeping beauty the same way again!
   Awakening to a stranger's kiss, one-night stands, aphrodisiacs, forbidden publications, mistaken identity, special agents for the crown, and scarf-loving bastard daughters of the King. All this and more lay within the pages of this spectacular debut by Lila DiPasqua.'Sleeping Beauty' , 'Little Red Riding Hood' and 'Puss In Boots' have been transformed into something insanely erotic and gratifying for the adults who like a little heat thrown into their happily ever after...

Read a sizzling excerpt: here

Sleeping Beau- Follows the reunion between one of the most notorious bastard sons of the King and the woman who stole into his bedchamber after slipping him an aphrodisiac, awakening him with a kiss that lead to a steamy sexual interlude. He awakes the morning after with his unnamed 'midnight temptress' mysteriously vanished and the evidence of her virginity smeared along the bedsheets. Fast-forward 5 years later and we meet our 'sleeping beau' once again as his gaze alights over the red-headed beauty who has plagued his dreams in all that time. At first, Catherine tries to deny it was her, but Adrien eventually gets his way and get her to reveal why she did what she did. They proceed to have an affair for the week until Cathrine's betrothed comes to get her. The motives behind her deception is out in the open and Adrien can't help but admire the maddening stubbornness of his ladylove. When Catherine's betrothed come for her early, it may be Adrien's own stubbornness that threatens his future happiness with the woman he's pined after for 5 years and now has come to love.

Little Red Writing- The Vignon spinster sisters were beautiful, intelligent, writer with skill, and guarding a secret that could lead straight to their ruin. Nicolas de Savignac (a.k.a The Wolf) is a Musketeer for the King sent on an assignment to unmasked and bring down Gilbert Deluc; author of the incendiary volumes which besmirch the image of men of consequence. His investigation takes him to his estranged grandmother's house and he zeros in the house guests; The Vignon 'spinsters'. He is immediately attracted to one of the sisters: Anne, and although he is in residence under false pretenses (to forge a civil relationship with his grandmother) and inevitably will have to bring charges up against one or all of the sisters, his can't resist the strong pull that draws him to Anne and an affair begins. While Nicolas ruefully gets closer to identifying which sister is the infamous author, he and Anne fall deeper in love with one another. Nicolas' hand is now forced to act when his comrade informs their commander of their suspicion of the Vignon sisters and he is order to bring in the culprit or have the entire family brought in. The betrayal Anne feels is acute, but the love Nicolas has for her and she for him will have to be enough to eclipse whatever plans the King has in store for 'Gilbert Deluc'. 

Bewitching In Boots- Being the King's favorite daughter is a coveted position. That distinction was currently held by the headstrong Elisabeth de Roussel.She may be thought of as an outrageous flirt, but she knows what she wants; and she wants Tristan de Tiersomier. Tristan was recently injured and relieved of his duties as commander of the King's private Guard. He retired himself to the grounds at his estate, shunning the world and burying his feelings beneath a sea of resentment. When the enticing Elisabeth saunters her way into his inner-sanctum (and wearing breeches and BOOTS no less) demanding fencing lessons, he can only grit his teeth and try to bare it. Elisabeth, however, has plans of her own. She seeks more than lessons in the fencing arts from Tristan and when she successfully induces an affair, she plots to flip the situation in her favor and make Tristan hers for a lifetime. Her plans could possibly blow up in her face, but she will do anything to heal Tristan's hurts and posses his heart.

Rating: 4 Red Roses

My Favorite Part of the Book: There were many! This book had 3 separate stories within it and I have my favorite moments for each. Bewitching in Boots was my favorite story out of the three and my favorite moment is when Tristan starts questioning Elisabeth's motive for seeking him out. He tries to scare her away by saying that if she isn't out of his home by tomorrow she will be tied up to his bed and he will have his way with her. At first, in the morning, Elisabeth and her entourage are no where to be found, but not only do they come back with reinforcements (to help fix up Tristan's house) but Elisabeth presents Tristan with a box of scarves for him to tie her up with later that night.

What it boils down to is this: Miss DiPasqua is probably one of the most promising debut authors to hit the scene so far in 2010. Her short stories were well-written, well-paced and flavored with an insane amount of heat and spice. I think many short-stories are prone to accelerated plots where the love is unconvincing and the character development lacks; that is not the case with 'Awakened By A Kiss'. It's a little different from the classic historicals I am use to, but it has set a new precedence in my reading exploration and I look forward to reading more from this author!

*In November, DiPasqua will delight us with 3 more fiery tales in 'The Princess In His Bed'