This was my first Loraine Heath's book but it won't be my last. This was absolutely fantastic and there was so much to like on it. I was captivated by the book from the moment I read the blurb about a courtesan who can fly her on balloon but ends up caught in a storm and ends up stranded on an almost deserted island where a very grumpy Lord is hiding from society. The book takes its time developing the story and the relationship between these two and I had such a great time watching these two main characters interact and trying really hard not to fall in love. They both have their faults and that made them even more precious and there was so much hurt/comfort from both sides.
I was initially worried about how these two would end up together when they come from such different social circles but I shouldn't have worried. I will also mentioned that I haven't read the prior books on this series so it stands alone on it's own pretty well.
You should read this book if you like grumpy/sunshine, class difference, strong female characters, only one bed or hurt/comfort.

Love Lorraine Heath, love the Scandalous Gentlemen of St. James series, love a strong heroine who is courageous and confident and a hero who ultimately can't live without her.

It did take me a bit of time to warm up to this one (things got better after they'd gotten past the initial prickly attraction), but by the end, there were wonderfully angsty moments that had my heart aching for these two to resolve the conflict keeping them apart. So many small moments in this that made their love feel substantial long before they admitted it to one another.

As always with Lorraine Heath, this one is worth the read!

I adored this historical romance so much. It was a slow burn which I appreciated because I wasn’t expecting it, given the heroine being a mistress.

I really felt like this book was original in the way it introduced the characters to each other and spent a lot of time discussing their personal backgrounds and how they got to the point they were in rather than simply another "forced proximity" romance.

In this book, Viscount Langdon is hiding away on his private island, trying to hide from his family that he is still having issues after being a part of a huge train derailment. One day he finds a woman washed up on the shore and recognizes her as a locally famous courtesan, Marlowe.

During her convalescence, they discuss at lenght a time a year or so ago where Marlowe was with her benefactor, "Hollie" Hollingsworth at a gaming hell. Hollie and Langdon were playing cards and Hollie offered an evening with Marlowe if he loses. Marlowe is upset, and Langdon purposely loses in order to keep from having an unrequired affair with her.

A good portion of the book is hearing about both characters' backstories. It was a slow burn, but I really enjoyed hearing about these characters and how they got to that point. They fall in love, but Langdon still has his medical issue, and Marlowe is still with Hollie, though he has recently become engaged to a debutante he is actually in love with. This begins the issues of Langdon and Marlowe not easily being able to be together because he is the heir for his family, and Marlowe is a courtesan and not the right class to marry him.

There have been many ways I've seen this sort of relationship work out in novels, and this ending is pretty similar but overall I just really liked the characters and the lenght of time dedicated to getting to know them versus the standard "forced proximity - they get togther - society keeps them apart - everything is solved" theme. Great book.

I received an advanced copy and am giving an honest review.

Holy smokes SO MUCH ANGST! In the best way of course. But truly, moments when I worried it really wouldn't be all right in the end. So much desire, so much tension, and both characters have to see through their past to get to their future. Heath just won't let you go in this one. Don;t need to have read the series, just dive in here. So worth it.

I was thrilled to see Lorraine Heath return to the *Scandalous Gentlemen of St. James* series after seven years. One of my all-time favorites is *In Bed with the Devil*, so I was excited that this new book focuses on the son of Lucian and Catherine. It was great to revisit those characters and see their story continued through their children.

That said, I found the book lacking. With the plot centered around a lord and a courtesan, the focus leaned heavily on their physical desire for each other, often at the expense of a deeper narrative. The first half primarily revolves around their attraction, which makes sense given her background, but it left the male lead feeling somewhat superficial. While he does have moments of depth, I ultimately wished for more substance in the story. The best parts for me were still those connections to Lucian and Catherine, but overall, I hoped for a richer experience.

I loved how different this book is from other historical romances coming out right now. Marlowe is a courtesan who washes up on shore of Langdon's private island retreat in a storm. He takes care of her and proximity has it's way with the story. They both have their own private struggles but the tension between them was great.

I felt like the connections and the romance were less than what I usually expect from Heath, but the torture and the angst was up to par. Also note that I am a HUGE fan of her early work and love the way she tortured her characters in those books. Many things fall flat in comparison. This was really good. It wasn't AMAZING like I wanted it to be.

Beautifully written and full of emotion, as with all of her other books. This author is so talented at evoking very real feeling and making you feel completely immersed in the characters’ world. It was chock full of angst (my favorite) and such a great read.

Thank you Netgalley and Avon for letting me read A Tempest of Desire by Lorraine Heath! I consider Heath a pillar of historical romance, you simply can’t go wrong with her books, and I appreciate how she’s willing to explore stories that most other authors won’t, such as having a mistress be a heroine (and not someone who was tricked into being one either). She knows how to bring drama and trauma and still tie it together with a happily-ever-after.

After a railway accident, Viscount Langdon has hidden himself away on an island near his family's estate when, during a storm, he sees a woman washed on the shore of his hideaway. He quickly realizes the woman is Marlowe, an infamous courtesan. In classic Lorraine Heath fashion, Marlowe wasn't in a boat. She was out in her hot air balloon and got caught in the storm - crashing into the water and washing ashore.
What unfolds is a passionate journey filled with angst and repressed emotions. Marlowe, feeling rejected by Langdon after a previous encounter, struggles with her feelings. Langdon, on the other hand, battles with his attraction to Marlowe, knowing she is the mistress of another man in the ton. The storm forces them to confront their emotions, leading to a compelling and empathetic narrative.

A Tempest of Desire is another excellent novel by Lorraine Heath. This book doesn't rely heavily on the other books in the series, so you can read it as a standalone.

This is my favorite Lorraine Heath book since "The Notorious Lord Knightly." The romance is between a courtesan and a viscount with an affliction, and my heart warmed at the MMC’s plight and his caring family. This also has the “stranded on an island together” trope, always a favorite. There’s plenty of tension as the romance is forbidden, and the happy ending is well-earned. I’m also someone who usually skips the dedication, but I found the one in this book to be very touching. I’m eagerly looking forward to whatever the author writes next as she’s undoubtedly one of the best in the Regency romance game.

I don't think you can ever go wrong with a story by this author
The settings, the characters, the storyline are all wonderful and the story captures you from the first page and holds you until the last. Lorraine Heath is a gifted writer with her stories. Don't miss this one.

I picked this arc up because I thought it was the first in a series. Whoops, it’s the fifth. So a few characters I knew from the author’s larger world but most I didn’t. However, much of the book does not need to be read as part of a series.

While mistress books aren’t really my cup of tea, I was intrigued by the aeronaut side of the heroine and the hero’s case of “railway spine,” a term that became a catch all to label all injuries that resulted from railway accidents. Lorraine Heath made the worries and struggles of the protagonists match up well for each other and feel very relatable.

Heat level: 4

Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for this ARC.

This was a wonderful return to a beloved series. Lorraine Heath is a master of the genre. The plot is slightly crazy, in the best way, but doesn't go off the rails bc Heath knows what she is doing! Loved it!

I wasn’t sure this book was for me when I first started it. I enjoyed the look at the day to day of Langdon and Marlowe first really getting to know each other, but I just couldn’t see a way through for them that would feel real for me. But this is Lorraine Heath - I should have known better than to doubt her. Once they were back in London, the characters’ arc really started to fall into place and it was wonderful to go along their journey.

I’ve read many Lorraine Heath books. She was one of the first authors. I’ve read that I loved. I feel like she writes a lot of emotional romances. This book was pretty good except it got boring from the beginning to the middle just because a lot of it he was talking about the woman that he found at see that almost basically died and he talked about her for so many pages that I got kind of boring where she just describes everything in the book in my opinion it was a little too slow for me so this is why I didn’t like this book. The woman in the book seemed very jealous and didn’t understand why the guy was mad at her , I like the book I like sea vibe books, but it was really boring in my opinion

Hot air balloon fiascos. Famous mistresses. Brooding Viscounts. Private isles. Railway wreck recovery. Lorraine Heath has written an absolute banger of a historical romance and yet again proves why she is a master of her craft.

We open the story with the dashing Viscount Langdon standing on a cliff over the sea, storm roiling around him, as he’s having an existential crisis. Langdon led a charmed existence - he is the heir and son of the couple from Heath’s previous book In Bed With the Devil - until his life was irrevocable changed by a traumatic railway accident. Unable to tell his loving family the truth, he retreats to an island to sulk, drink a bit too much, and hope his problem magically disappears.

Meanwhile, down below on the sand, Marlowe has found herself with a different sort of crisis. As London’s most infamous courtesan, she’s got a reputation, but her true bold and daring spirit comes out when she is in her hot air balloon. Even though Marlowe was an experienced pilot, the storm was able to sweep her far off course, eventually causing near disaster and depositing her onto Langdon’s isle of solitude.

When he gets done yelling at the wind, he eventually spots her on the sand, carries her to the fortress, and tenderly brings her back to fine flirting shape.

Marlowe’s role as a mistress makes her a fallen woman, and that’s a problem for a Lord and heir like Langdon. A regular theme in Heath’s books is love between the commoner and high society. Sometimes it goes further than that, into people who have been actively shunned and character growth comes from choosing love above public perception, comfort, gossip, or an easy path. This is another case where I found the resolution deeply satisfying, even if I was unsure how these two would resolve their external conflict as the story went along.

Because Heath is such a passionate researcher, I’m always delighted when I discover the most unusual details are based in fact. In this case, how many women were taking to the sky in hot air balloons near the turn of the century. Lorraine’s author’s notes are never to be skipped.

Beyond just her ballooning antics, Marlowe was a fascinating character. She was so unashamed of her desires and experiences. Her fearlessness was a perfect balance for Langdon as he found himself for the first time unmoored. Here was a man who believed he needed to be perfect according to society’s rules to be loved and is then confronted with proof that he need only be himself to earn the love of the ones who matter.

I think Heath is saying some interesting things about the nature of mistresses as well. In so many historical romances, the role of mistress is automatically the antagonist, to be judged harshly and shamed. Here is a reversal, where we see that Marlowe made the best choice she could for a woman in that age and situation. She does not deserve to be treated as anything less than equal to anyone in the ballrooms of the ton.

It was interesting, as her relationship with her benefactor was also not in any way portrayed as predatory. If anything, in modern times, she and he would have been friends with benefits until they found their actual love matches. It was clear they truly cared for each other, but simply weren’t in love.

The moment of reconciliation between Langdon and Marlowe was swoon worthy, with just enough of that patented Heath angst to turn up the heat before the happily ever after. The love scenes between these two are scorchingly hot and make the somewhat slower burn worth the wait.

A Tempest of Desire is the new installment in the older Scandalous Gentlemen of St. James series, but it is clear that Heath is not going backwards because she’s interested in safe, well-worn story paths. While the world may be familiar, the tangled webs they must unknot on their way to forever are thornier than ever. Overall, any fan of Heath’s past works will find much to love in A Tempest of Desire.
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Thank you to NetGalley & Avon/Harper Voyager for the Advanced Reader Copy. Expected publication date: Dec 24, 2024

Like every Lorraine Heath book, A TEMPEST OF DESIRE has two vital ingredients: a saucy, smart, beautiful heroine and a dark, sexy hero who’s a member of the aristocracy. Oh, and one more thing: a fabulous romantic plot.

Marlowe ( 1 name like Cher!) is an infamous, well, a kept woman. A mistress. A courtesan. The backstory of why she has made herself one is so good I don’t want to give it away. She is also what the book describes as an aeronaut – a hot air balloon flier. One day, she receives unexpected news, is distraught, and takes her balloon up for a spin to clear her head. Unfortunately, she hits bad weather and her balloon plummets to the sea.

Enter our hero, the fabulous Oliver, Lord Langdon. Ollie’s back story is filled with drama too. He was recently in a railway accident and has lost the ability to decipher numbers – something he needs since he will be managing the accounts of his family’s estates.

When Marlow winds up on the shore of Ollie’s secluded island, he doesn’t know what to do. The one thing he knows he can’t do is give in to the desire he has for the amazing woman.

Or can he? And does Marlow return his desire?

What unfolds is a romantic, sexy story of two people from different worlds who discover the best of themselves in the other.

Thank you to the author and Netgalley for a sneak peek at this wonderful addition to the Scandalous Gentlemen of St. James series. 5 stars from me. Brava!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book.
As always with Lorraine Heath, I enjoyed this immensely. However, without getting into specifics to spoil this review, there were a few lines early on that I felt like foreshadowed a plot twist that never happened. I was left wondering what she meant by them.

Thank you netgalley, the publisher, and Lorraine Heath

I have never read a book by Lorraine Heath that I didn't love. This one was absolutely perfect. I loved Marlowe and Langdon's story they were perfect for each other! There were many things in this story that I have never read in any other historical romance that made it unique to me like her flying a balloon and him not being able to remember numbers. I also adored Hollie, to begin to with I expected to hate him but he was so nice. I can not wait to see what she writes next. I hope there are still many stories to come.