Silk Is For Seduction

Written by Loretta Chase

Narrated by Kate Reading

“One of the finest romance authors of all time.”
—Julia Quinn

“[Loretta Chase has] a rare talent for creating crackling sexual tension and characters so fresh and compelling that readers won’t be able to forget them.”
—Susan Elizabeth Phillips

One of the most beloved authors in the field of historical romance, the remarkable Loretta Chase proves that Silk is For Seduction. The acclaimed New York Times bestselling author brings readers the first in a very sexy, emotionally rich new series in which sisters from a rather scandalous aristocratic family—the purveyors of the most fashionable shop in Regency London—discover passion and love as sumptuous as the exquisite gowns they create. Stephanie Laurens fans will adore this sensuous love story, as ambitious dressmaker Marcelline attempts to win the patronage of a future duchess…and ends up inadvertently enchanting the Duke!

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperAudio
• Release date: Nov 12, 2019
• ISBN: 9780062992987

Loretta Chase

Loretta Chase has worked in academe, retail, and the visual arts, as well as on the streets—as a meter maid—and in video, as a scriptwriter. She might have developed an excitingly checkered career had her spouse not nagged her into writing fiction. Her bestselling historical romances, set in the Regency and Romantic eras of the early nineteenth century, have won a number of awards, including the Romance Writers of America’s RITA®. For more about her past, her books, and what she does and doesn’t do on social media, please visit her website. LorettaChase.com

Reviews for Silk Is For Seduction

[Marcilla Elliott · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I did not enjoy the first few chapters. Did not like the heroine. However when I finally got past the first few chapters, I really enjoyed the book quite well. I look forward to the rest of the series.

[akmargie · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

The first one of her's I've been disappointed in. I found the mains a bit flat and not really that interesting. I didn't care enough when they finally got together. There was also this very bratty and annoying 6 yr old character that I'm sure we were suppose to think was Precocious and oh so Twee. I hated her and wanted someone to treat her like a 6 year old.

[readinggeek451 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Chase writes well and is good at characterization, but duke's don't marry shopkeepers. They just don't. And if they do, it's not a happy ever after, not for them and not for their children. Chase did finally acknowledge that fact, and even have her heroine lay out all the--very real--reasons why it's a very bad idea. She managed to finesse it, but I spent the entire book distracted by the total implausibility.Add half a star if you can suspend your disbelief in the marital mismatch.

[lauren2013_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Silk is for Seduction
3 Stars

Determined to solidify her position as London's most gifted and creative dressmaker, Marcelline Noirot sets her sights on designing the wedding trousseau of the Duke of Clevedon's intended bride. All she has to do is convince the duke, which is no easy task given both his reluctance to marry as well as his penchant for seducing beautiful women. When the two meet, however, sparks fly and Marcelline realizes that her ambition might just be her downfall.

Not the strongest beginning to a series. The basic premise requires a great deal of suspension of disbelief; the details on the characters backgrounds are too slow in coming and the romance is bland.

Marcelline's wit and intelligence are very engaging, and her honesty with regard to her intentions thankfully prevents the annoying keeping secrets and silly misunderstanding tropes. Nevertheless, she also comes across as self-aggrandizing and materialistic, and her relationship with Clevedon is problematic. He is pompous, self-absorbed and superficial, and the undercurrents of cheating in their romance is a turn off.

The secondary characters are far more appealing and the hints at a love/hate connection between Longmore and Sophy are intriguing. Lucie is also a sweetheart and the scenes with her shenanigans are some of the best in the book. The "industrial espionage" subplot adds an extra element of suspense and tension that is quite enjoyable.

All in all, the characters are not all that likable, but Chase's writing style is entertaining and the premise for the next book is compelling enough to continue.

[jorgeousjotts · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I chuckled and grinned through large portions of this book. Witty banter, interesting characters, a fairly realistic plotline. I just really enjoyed it. And perhaps for the first time in a historical romance, a few tears welled up in my eyes, and from a *happy* event no less! Very sweet but not overly sugary.

2nd read- I enjoyed this just as much the second time, even though I remembered quite a bit of the plot (which is really quite notable in itself, because I've read *literally hundreds* of historical romances in the three years since I first read this one). lol. It has a good reason why they can't just get together three chapters in, so the characters aren't having to constantly get in their own way to add drama. And there's an 'other woman' who isn't secretly an evil villain or anything, which I appreciate. I can easily buy how events play out. The heroine is very smart and capable, and there's good tension between the characters. I like it.

[ladywesley · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a very interesting approach to the traditional romance -- the heroine is a modiste, and there are lovingly detailed descriptions of her gowns. Not being that familiar with 1830s fashions, I really wished for illustrations.

[marcella1717 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book reminds me of Lord Perfect, especially because Lucie is so much like Olivia. The story itself is different though, and I enjoyed it a lot. Can't wait for the rest of this series.

[tivonut · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Really cute and smart. Both of the characters are good unlike her Lord of Scoundrels, where the Hero is way flawed. This didn't have as much emotion and what was going to happen was a bit predictable after the first 1/2 of the book. I definitely want to read the next in the series. Very good but not a knock out because of the predictability.

[cranberrytarts · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

3/23/12 - a quick reread before starting Scandal Wears Satin. I enjoyed it just as much the 2nd time. Chase does such excellent dialogue.

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I was really disappointed in Chase's last release. I expected more from her than I got with both the plot and characters. So it was with some trepidation that I started this story. I'm happy to report she delivered a fabulous story with characters I loved.

[castiron_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Chase is good at creating heroines who are professionals in their work (be it paid employment or unpaid vocation), and Marcelline is a delightful example, competent and driven. I enjoyed seeing how Marcelline does her job and how she thinks about fashion. Clevedon doesn't thrill me as much, but he's a hero I can respect, and I can believe in their love.The main plot, though, seemed to resolve too easily. "Oh, no, we can never be together! The obstacles between us are too great!....oh, wait, no they aren't." It didn't quite work for me.Overall, a pleasant read, but not among my favorite of Chase's works.

[coffeenut1992 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this book. The characters were different from the "usual". The story featured a Duke, a family of Con-Artists and various members of "the Ton".
The main character Marcelline, is a seamstress who is very exacting and will stop at nothing to provide for her family. She is interesting, kind, and caring.

I don't want to give away the entire story, but I really enjoyed it and will definitely be looking for more books by this author.

[jendoyle2000 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I'm slowly coming around to historical romances; books like this are making that a much quicker journey. Marcelline was a wonderful heroine and Clevedon was her perfect match. Lucie was the cherry on top. Some laugh out loud moments along with a really wonderfully drawn out reluctance-to-what-is-happening-while-unable-to-resist-it between Marcelline and Clevedon put this onto my favorites list.

[kmartin802_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

When I picked this up, I was looking for a light and fluffy book of historical fiction to use as a palate cleanser between more meaty books. That was not what I got! This story was wonderful. It was filled with intense emotion. It was also a very good look at what a rigid class structure is like. Marcelline is in trade. While she has aristocratic ancestry, they were not the upstanding, honorable type of aristocrats. They were the black sheep of their families. She has been raised without moral code or scruples and is an excellent forger, liar, and actress. She is also a brilliant dress designer. When her parents, beloved cousin and husband die of cholera she travels to London with her two younger sisters and her daughter to make a life for herself and them. To be successful they need to attract aristocratic clients to their dress shop.Marcelline travels to France to win the interest of the Duke of Clevedon so that he will have his intended bride buy her clothing from Marcelline's shop. Her intentions are purely mercenary as she sets out to fascinate and intrigue him. She isn't at all expecting to be fascinated and intrigued herself but Clevedon is more than she expects.Clevedon is a typical historical romance hero. He is handsome, arrogant, spoiled and bored. But he is also intelligent and damaged by an unfortunate childhood. These two people should never have met. They should never have fallen in love. Both will have to overcome major obstacles in order to be together.This was an intense read with strong characters and an interesting story. The story is lightened by the antics of Marcelline's daughter Lucie who is a very charming and willful six-year-old who manages to wrap everyone around her fingers.I recommend this one to lovers of historical romances. It was great!

[kaetrin_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

3.5 stars, rounded up.Marcelline Noirot is a modiste in England, in business with her 2 sisters. When they hear that the Duke of Clevedon is due to return to England to marry, after 3 years on the Continent, the sisters hatch a plan to capture the business of the Duchess-to-be. Because the Duke will hold the purse-strings, Marcelline sets off to Paris to entice the Duke - purely for business purposes. It is not her intention to fall for him herself, but that is what happens. Still, Marcelline is a mercenary and practical character - she has responsibilities to her sisters and to her young daughter and the difference in their stations make it impossible to make a match with the Duke herself anyway (even if her weren't already practically engaged to someone else), so she forces herself to think of business and puts her feelings firmly aside. I've had mixed reactions to Loretta Chase's books; some I've loved, some I've liked, some I've thought were kind of "meh" - this one, for me, falls into somewhere between the like and love range - I was loving until the end when it fell just a little flat for me. I guess I was a little disappointed that some more creative way for Clevedon and Marcelline to be together hadn't been thought up - it felt a little... pedestrian and predictable at the end (and with insufficient detail of exactly how the plan worked for my liking also) in what had otherwise been an exceptional and refreshingly different book. Clevedon and Marcelline struck sparks off each other from their first meeting and this banter continues through most of their interactions, like here: "It would be vulgar to strangle you on the dance floor;" he said. "Yet I am sorely tempted." and on the next page: "My dear duke, only look at the competition." "I would," he said, "but you're so aggravating, I can't tear my gaze away." ... "Fascinating," she said, "You mean fascinating." I liked how they were both portrayed as being far less than angels. In fact, it turns out that this made them extraordinarily well suited and it was the best part of the book - each trying to work out the other's motives, and come out ahead in some kind of delicious competition. She'd been a fool to imagine she could manage this man. She should have realized that a duke is used to getting his own way, to a certain degree common folk could scarcely imagine. She should have realised that getting his way all his life would affect his brain and make him not altogether like other men.and "Don't be noble, I beg you," he said. "I think nobleness of spirit... and morals... and ethics... and scruples... those sorts of things are all very well in thier place. To a point, you know. But beyond a certain point, I think they make me bilious."If only the end of the book could have lived up to the rest of it, it would have been superb. As it was, it was still very good, but it could have been...

[allureofbooks · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Silk is for Seduction by Loretta Chase gave me a surprise. I’d read a couple of Loretta’s other books and was less than impressed. The synopsis of this one intrigued me, so I decided to give it a try. I ended up falling absolutely in love with it!Marcelline Noirot (or, as she is called through most of the book: Noirot) is the oldest of three sisters and a dressmaker. Her family has a checkered and scandalous past that she is determined to overcome – for her sisters and her daughter. When she hears that the most eligible of London’s bachelors, the Duke of Clevedon, is finally coming home from his travels to marry, she knows she needs his future duchess as a customer so she can take her business to the next level. She goes so far as to chase him down in Paris to convince him that she is the dressmaker of choice for his bride.What she didn’t foresee is the explosive chemistry immediately obvious between herself and the duke. As far as he is concerned, resistance is futile. As soon as he lays eyes on her nothing will do but to have her. She doesn’t come easily though – their interactions are absolutely phenomenally written. Their characters are explored in-depth and we come to know them on a level rarely achieved in historical romance. The icing on the cake is when the story heads back to London and Noirot’s daughter becomes a part of the story. If you don’t absolutely melt at the way the duke handles her – you probably don’t have a heart. I teared up more than once – incredibly adorable.Also rare in historical romance novels is a plot that isn’t just a throwaway. Usually I’m impatient to read though the ridiculous nonsense to get to the character interaction. Not so in this story. The added drama of Clevedon’s fiancée along with the treachery afoot in the dressmaker’s studio are both extremely well thought out and interesting.Seriously y’all, this is a book that has it all! Definitely a must read for historical romance fans. Also highly recommended for those of you that, like myself, were less than impressed with some of the other Loretta Chase books you’ve read. Prepare to fall in love with this one!

[ktleyed · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I simply loved this book! I'm not surprised, it has everything, humor, sensuality, a fantastic, strong, heroine and an irresistible hero. *sigh* Marcelline's daughter was so sweet as well - she brought tears to my eyes at one point. I love the notorious DeLucey's, and there were some elements here that reminded me of Chase's other book, Lord Perfect. We even got a glimpse of Lord Hargate! A great addition to Chase's library of great books! A keeper and has primed me for book two in the series!

[capnrandm · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I did love the unconventional roles of both hero and heroine in this novel, and though class boundaries did melt a bit at the end, I was so wrapped up in the HEA I didn't mind.

[dianaleez · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Loretta Chase is so good at creating chemistry between intelligent, appealing characters. And she does that quite ably in 'Silk Is for Seduction.' Chase fans may rejoice and read.However, incredible suspension of disbelief is required. Those who demand believability from a romance novel had best pass.