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Mercury wondered if anyone had ever told Sloan how cute she looked when she became angry. How her brows slashed together over her forehead and how the pupils of her eyes became a turbulent dark gray. Then there was the way her chin lifted and her lips formed into a decadent pout. Observing her lips made him remember their taste and how the memory had kept him up most of the night.

“I don’t need you to take care of me.”

Her words were snapped out in a vicious tone. He drew in a deep breath. He didn’t need this. Especially from her and definitely not this morning. He’d forgot-ten to cancel his date last night with Raquel and she had called first thing this morning letting him know she hadn’t appreciated it. It had put him in a bad mood, but, unfortunately, Raquel was the least of his worries...

Mercury Steele is one of the last Steele brothers that has not fallen under the love spell. The way he figured it, it was his and Gannon’s job to keep the single ladies happy. Mercury Steele is about to have his busy life flipped upside down by a powerhouse sure to cause him a bit of trouble. I enjoyed Mercury Steele so much from the previous books in the Forged of Steele Series.

Sloan Cunningham was quite the little surprise for me, so thank you again Brenda Jackson for such a memorable heroine. Sloan’s world is take a turn that could end her or make her a stronger person, the one big draw for me is this heroine don’t go down without a fight.

I enjoyed the interesting vibes between Mercury and Sloan, resistance is futile. *grins* Sloan is finding after everything she is stronger than she thought and she can with a little help be on her own. Mercury is determined not to give his heart to another, after his ex simply crushed it. In all actuality both Sloan and Mercury seem drawn to help each other, to show each other that whoever they ended up with the person would be very lucky to have them.

The supporting characters are fun and intense as always, never lacking in family fun and drama. I am seriously looking forward to Gannon’s fall. There is a question I have, Will there be a spin-off from the Forged of Steele Series Mrs Jackson ?

Heartfelt family moments, characters that will stay with me for years to come, even Sloan’s nasty family had grabbed my attention from the beginning. Brenda Jackson is known well for her ability to create passion so powerful between her characters this it’s hard not to get loss in her characters. What is with these Steele men, from the father too the youngest they make my heart flip.

Rated 5 Stilettos and a Recommended Read by Deb!

Mercury Steele is part of a large, very wealthy family and has 5 brothers. He has it all. When his car is stolen, he is sent on a hunt to find his prized posession and finds someone who he was not expecting.


Sloan Donahue has no job, no money and nothing to her name after she finally escapes her manipulative family. What will happen when Mercury agrees to help her?

But soon they both get more than they bargained for.....

I am coming in very late to this series and this is the first in the Forged of Steele series I have reviewed. I got through this in a matter of hours. I was proud of the changes in Sloan and liked then disliked Mercury then liked him.

Quick writing and the pace didn't lag. Sensual. Emotional and realistic. The dynamics of both families are well shown.

At the end of the book, there's an excerpt for book #13, Claimed by a Steele which is Mercury's brother Gannon's story.

I would love to check out the entire series.

Thanks to Brenda Jackson and Harlequin Desire for my eARC in exchange for an honest and voluntary review.

5 stars.

Having reported his vintage car stolen, Mercury Steele cannot believe it when he catches an apparent thief, Sloan Donahue, driving it. Mercury quickly learns why Sloan has is precious car. What is more is that Sloan is running away from a controlling family. Mercury offers Sloan protection. I loved how Mercury recognized Sloan's reason for distress, and then took her home to his loving parents, particularly his mother, a character I thoroughly enjoyed while reading this book.

It soon becomes apparent that both Mercury and Sloan have feelings for one another. However, Mercury is acting with caution, especially when he finds that Sloan is keeping someone from him. It certainly becomes quid pro quo in this book because Mercury has issues and doesn't communicate well with Sloan at times. This was an enjoyable conflict to read in this book, and it was a delight to see how things worked out, especially as the sizzle of attraction turned into a flame.

Seduced by a Steele is the 12th book in the Forged by Steele series. However, I hadn't read the previous titles. While this does more than well as a standalone novel, I did feel a connection with several side characters that I am sure were from previous books in the series. This delightful book was a quick, sexy read and gave me the opportunity to read a book by Brenda Jackson, something I've wanted to do for quite some time.

Many thanks to Harlequin Desire and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

Pleased to be reunited with the Arizona Steele's. Who can resist six green eyed brothers who exude such male masculinity that it make women purr. I have issues with this short book, as with almost all of Mrs. Jackson's books, I do find them entertaining. What I love the most is the familial love and the reminding that black people can be successful, wealthy, pillars of their communities, educated and loving. It is nice to read about black romance. We need to see ourselves in stories and not just portrayed as baby mamas.

Gannon's story is next. He won't be single for long.

I received an ARC from Harlequin via Netgalley

Nobody writes sexy, intelligent and charismatic heroes quite like Brenda Jackson and she is back with a red-hot tale of scandal and seduction readers will devour in one single sitting: Seduced by a Steele.

Mercury Steele is passionate about two things in his life: beautiful women and vintage cars. With a notorious reputation as a playboy, the gorgeous billionaire can have any woman he wants – and he frequently does! While nearly all of his brothers have found their soulmate, Mercury has absolutely no interest in shackling himself to a woman for the rest of his life. He is perfectly happy playing the field and keeping his relationships casual and devoid of all feelings and emotions. And as for having a family, his collection of vintage cars are his pride and joy and the only children he will ever have in his life – or so he thinks. When one of his prized possessions is stolen, Mercury is devastated, but when a chance encounter propels him straight into the path of the ‘thief’, little does he realise he is about to get a lot more than he had ever bargained for…

Sloan Donahue is a woman determined to stand on her own two feet. Having spent her entire life being spoilt and cossetted by her parents, Sloan never wanted for anything. Whatever she wanted or needed was delivered to her on a silver platter, but she soon realized that there was a very high prize to pay for this level of luxury. Her parents have arranged a marriage for her to a man whom she does not love and who has made it perfectly clear fully intends to continue seeing his mistress long after the ink has dried on their marriage certificate. Sloan is not about to put up with this, so she decides to stop being a spoilt princess and live life on her own terms. But being an independent woman with no money and no support system is certainly not a walk in the park as she discovers. With less than a couple of hundred dollars to her name, Sloan needs to get a job and find somewhere to stay. Having spent a large chunk of her money on a beat-up old car, Sloan is overjoyed when she schedules a job interview. But all her plans go awry when she is accused by billionaire playboy Mercury Steele of stealing his car!

Mercury was incandescent with rage when he realized that Sloan Donahue had stolen his prized vehicle – even though he grudgingly had to admit that she is one of the most attractive women he has ever met. Although their first meeting is not exactly promising, Mercury soon realizes that Sloan was not a thief but a woman who had fallen on hard times who had been duped. Unable to stop thinking about her or to let her fend for herself when everything seems to be stacked against her, Mercury’s gentlemanly and protective instincts are fired up – as is the flame of desire that sizzles between the two of them.

A red-hot affair quickly ensues, but as things get far more complicated between the two of them, can they forge a future together? Or will Sloan’s secrets ruin any chance the two of them might have of a future together?

Brenda Jackson turns up the heat with her latest novel for Harlequin Desire, Seduced by a Steele. A red-hot tale that sparkles with sensuality, danger and desire, it is impossible not to root for Sloan and not to fall madly in love with sexy playboy Mercury.

An intense, emotional and passionate love story peppered with humour, scandal and drama, Seduced by a Steele is another winner from much-loved author Brenda Jackson.

Mercury Steele is on hot pursuit of the thief that is driving his stolen car! He is bound and determined to capture the thief red handed. When he pulls up to his car in a parking lot, a very pretty young woman named Sloan and she tells him she didn’t steal it, she bought it. Now they are both off to the police station to straighten the matter out.


Mercury finds out that Sloan is trying to make a new start in a new place after running away from an arranged marriage and controlling parents. She has no money, no job and no where to turn. Mercury decides to take Sloane to the only safe place he knows, his parents house.

Soon the whole Steele family is trying to help Sloan and Mercury is determined to stay away as he doesn’t need another woman in his life that will break his heart. How long can he stay away after a few stolen kisses start heating up his body and his heart?


I loved this feel-good story of family, loss and love. It was fun to meet all the Steele brothers and the author Brenda Jackson did an excellent job of filling in all the information of the supporting characters. I read this as a stand alone novel but I would love to go back and read the whole “Forged of Steele” series. An excellent book to curl up with this Spring. A big thank you to Ms. Jackson, Harlequin and NetGalley for an advanced copy to read and review.

Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing, Netgalley, and Harlequin Desire for this free copy. All quotes in this review are taken from the Advanced Reader Copy and may change in final publication.

First of all, I love that we start off with a car heist thing. I couldn’t imagine what I would do if someone stole one of my vehicles and then was told that they bought it cheap. I couldn’t imagine being in Steele’s shoes especially since I’m pretty sure it wasn’t as cheap as Sloan thought. She’s a mysterious one, an heiress on the run from her family because of issues? I wonder what could be so bad that she had to run away.

Now, Mercury Steele has his hands tied because for some reason, he’s into the mystery that is Sloan Donahue, despite her stealing one of his classic cars for cheap apparently. Do I like her? Possibly. Am I slightly jealous that she is a runaway heiress? Totally. Am I slightly jealous that she caught the eye of one of the famous Steele brothers? Totally yes.

It’s always cool to see how the beginnings of what could be a interesting relationship can form from some of the strangest of circumstances. This one definitely was not an exception. Not only does Mercury have to deal with the whole car thing, but after talking with his mother, he has to pretty much set Sloan up with a place to stay and work on getting her a bank account so she can get out of her family’s control. Could you imagine having to pretty much figure out how to take care of a stranger that you weren’t anticipating? Very, very interesting.

It's the first book I read in this series and had a lot of fun.
It's a good, fun to read and engrossing romance with a couple of characters that are bit over the top but who a share a great chemistry and are well thought.
It was entertaining to read about Sloan facing real life and what a good family means as much as I enjoyed reading about Mercury. I rooted for them and I found the end satisfying.
There is some suspense but on a general level it was the right book to read in this bleak times.
I recommend it.
Many thanks to Harlequin Desire and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

Sloan is trying her best to get out of her parents thumb and goes off to do her own thing defying her parents wishes for her to marry a guy with a side piece. Problem is with every step she goes something keeps happening. Mercury was on the hunt for his missing car and manages to find Sloan and gets to know her story. If you like an alpha who is the type of take control you'll definitely like Mercury. He tried to do everything he could to help Sloan and while she was really trying to assert her independence he was there to help her out and back her up if needed. He was highly generous to the point of being ridiculous. To me that was the flaw of his is I both liked and disliked because the women was really trying to do her own thing and he was kinda meddlesome for someone who bearly even knew Sloan. I loved how caring and supportive his family was they also did their own thing helping out but it was a normal level of help for someone you barely knew. As for the story other then the things that were going on between the two Sloan's father was being meddlesome so it was only a matter of time when he'd show up and I was wondering how things would turn out with that mess. Overall this book was pretty good I really enjoyed it.

Mercury Steele is a womanizer who has left behind a string of broken hearts. Handsome, sexy and downright cocky. An avid collector of classic cars, so when one of his cars got stolen, he was far from amused. It didn’t help when he saw said car in traffic on his way to a meeting. On further investigation he discovered it was being driven by the beautiful Sloane Donahue.

Sloane left home to prove to her parents she could make it on her own. They were intent on forcing her into a loveless marriage all in the name of money. When she refused, her father gave her an ultimatum, his way or the highway. She chose the highway. However, a string of bad luck has since followed her. Despite not being pleased with how the incident surrounding the theft of his car, Mercury offered a helping hand when he discovered her predicament.

This is the twelfth book in the Forged of Steele series and can be easily read as a standalone. Mercury’s brothers whose stories have already been told appears in this installment. I liked the book, but I was not in love with it. I enjoyed the writing, the story was predictable..

Initially Mercury acted like a jerk, but he changed as the story progressed. I didn’t like how he kept things from Sloane, knowing how much she wanted to prove her independence. The manner in which she discovered the truth was predictable, but her reaction was not one would expect in such a situation.

Sloane’s need to prove herself was understandable, but for someone down on her luck her refusal to accept help when offered reeked of stupidity.

The romance developed quickly and I found to it be unrealistic, given the circumstances and the time frame in which the events transpired. The sexual tension, however, was intense and when they became intimate it was hot and steamy.

Sloane’s father was a manipulative and an evil bastard. His reasons for wanting to force his daughter into a loveless marriage revealed the extent of his depravity. I am glad to see he got what he deserved.

Conclusion/Recommendation
Seduced by a Steele was a quick and easy read, which would appeal to fans of romance with a hint of spice.

This was my first introduction to the Steele family and I have to say I enjoyed it immensely. I'd have to say that the family interaction was some of the best parts of the book. I did have a hard time believing how naive Sloan was (a vintage car in wonderful condition for $300? even people who don't know cars know that they are worth quite a bit more than that), but that was a small thing that didn't dramatically affect the story. It was obvious she was sheltered and had been strictly controlled by her parents, which I think was the author's intent.

I'll definitely be picked up more from Brenda Jackson, her writing was easy to read and flowed wonderfully and I loved the interactions with the family. For a quick romance that was a little formulaic it was a great read!

Per usual with Harlequin Desire titles, I blew through this book! Although the length of these books leaves threads unfollowed or the conflict are quickly resolved, I cannot deny that this kind of quick consuming read is just what I need right now.

I found Sloan’s predicament, running away from an arranged marriage for wealth accumulation, a but far-fetched for the 21st century but I also kind of liked it because it was reminiscent of a lot of the historical romances that I enjoy.

I thought the couple was great and while I had some qualms about the “rich guy save the girl” trope, it is a billionaire romance so I should have know that going in. I guess my modern day, independent lady did’t enjoy all of the bit about being taken care of but I totally understand why it’s appealing.

Overall, I really enjoyed the couple of hours I spent with this book and I’m looking forward to reading the next book in the series!

Seduced by a Steele by Brenda Jackson is book twelve in her Forged of Steele series. This is a Mills & Boon Romantic Suspense: Heart-racing suspense, adventure and romance under extraordinary circumstances.

Well-known Phoenix sports agent, Mercury Steele, sees his stolen 1967 Camaro and gives chase. He follows the car and locates it in a mall parking lot in the possession of spoiled heiress, Sloan Donahue. Mercury is livid and Sloan is indignant. Neither can believe the audacity of the other. Mercury doesn’t know what to do with the woman running from her overbearing parents, but his integrity and his mother’s teachings force him to assist the damsel in distress. Is he opening himself to a persuasive seductress or a woman even a playboy could love?

Brenda Jackson is a master of the romance genre and Seduced by a Steele is another bestseller in the making. The characters are strong yet endearing. The backstory brings the reader up to date and makes this twelfth book in a series read like a standalone. The plot is intriguing and the romance adds just the right amount of spice. This is a quick, entertaining read that rates 5 out of 5 stars. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys engaging romance.

My thanks to HARLEQUIN – Romance (US & Canada) and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book. However, the opinions expressed in this review are 100% mine and mine alone.

Brenda Jackson made this one worth the wait. You know she will always give you characters that you can easily fall in love with, making it difficult to pick one favorite. I enjoyed Sloane and Mercury's story, it was one that had you feeling all sort of emotions, but you will want to celebrate at the end of their love journey.

This being 12th book of the Steele series, it was great to be able to catch up with some of the other family members. Another great read and can't wait for the next one...

Mercury Steele is a wealthy playboy, determined to never settle down with a woman after having his heart broken in college. Sloan Donahue is running away from her rich but heartless parents and an arranged marriage and definitely doesn't need a man or a relationship right now. 

Mercury comes from money but made a name for himself as a successful sports agent after leaving the NFL. He hasn't given his heart to anyone else since college, and is determined to stay single while having fun with beautiful women. 

Sloan's parents only care about wealth, and try to force her to marry a man who will ensure riches for their families. When Sloan runs off trying to escape, her powerful father will stop at nothing to get her to come back home, from canceling her credit cards and causing her friend's rent check to bounce, leaving Sloan homeless. When Mercury learns all about the troubles Sloan is dealing with, he is determined to make taking care of her his responsibility.

Besides the romance, my favorite part of this book was the Steele family dynamic. Mercury's parents and brothers (and their wives) were kind, fun, and caring. 

Seduced by a Steele is part of a Harlequin desire series but you can read this as a standalone. If you're into soap operas or just need a quick, steamy, fluffy read to get your mind off of things give this one a go.

Chance and ever after collide to create unforgettable. Sloane and Mercury are like fire to gasoline. Combustible in every way. He's a planner. For Mercury his mind is his greatest asset. She's a doer. Sloane refuses to let anything get in the way of her independence. The choices she makes puts her on a collision course with danger. Seduced by a Steele is a high-octane, unpredictable, steamy, irresistible, adventure of the heart, that you'll want to experience again and again.

MERCURY STEELE LIKE THE PLANET IS HAWT!!!
Seduced By A Steele is a quite story with a sizzling punch of romance and steam. Mercury Steele is one of the last remaining Phoenix Playboys. He meets Sloan in a surprising meet cute I truly savored. No matter how much alpha vibe Mercury gives off, he is still your typical male: he sees his vintage Camaro first and a beautiful woman last.
Sloan is running from her family and embracing her new independence. She is determined to live life on her own terms. Because of her privileged past, it’s charming to see her embrace the new world of budgets and bills while falling for a handsome, smart and successful billionaire.
I’m a sucker for a unique meet cute. When Mercury meets Sloan, it made me smile with happiness. I knew I was going to enjoy a beautiful afternoon reading an exceptional story with real characters and no unnecessary angst.
If an easy Sunday afternoon with a delightful contemporary romance gives you joy, Seduced By A Steele is the story for you. Mile High Kink Book Club recommends The Steele Brothers for your reading pleasure.

I am so happy to discover the world of Steele. I thoroughly enjoyed this excellently written feel good story and have actually gone back to find the other stories to add them to my TBR list.
Mercury Steele and Sloan Donahue are so well matched. Even through their relationship did not exactly start out as friendly soon Mercury is Sloan's landlord and fronting her the money she needs to stand firm and tall against the arranged marriage her parents want to force her into.
When a Steele falls he definitely falls to the delight of his readers. A definite thumbs up.

This was a fun and sexy read filled with characters that I really enjoyed. I loved the situations that Sloan and Mercury would find themselves in and the way they would always work together. They had instant chemistry and I really appreciated the build up of their relationship. Of course once things got started with them it moved pretty fast but that is pretty typical of these books. I also really loved Mercury's close knit family and I definitely want to go back and read the previous books in this series. I did feel this book was repetitive at times and the ending did take a dark turn that I wasn't expecting at all. Overall, though, I found this book to be exactly what I wanted and I never feel let down by these Harlequin category romances.