Tuesday, April 24, 2018

A Scandalous Deal by Joanna Shupe


Joanna Shupe returns with another unforgettable novel set in the glittering world of New York City’s Gilded Age…

They call her Lady Unlucky…

With three dead fiancés, Lady Eva Hyde has positively no luck when it comes to love. She sets sail for New York City, determined that nothing will deter her dream of becoming an architect, certainly not an unexpected passionate shipboard encounter with a mysterious stranger. But Eva’s misfortune strikes once more when she discovers the stranger who swept her off her feet is none other than her new employer.

Or is it Lady Irresistible?

Phillip Mansfield reluctantly agrees to let the fiery Lady Eva oversee his luxury hotel project while vowing to keep their relationship strictly professional. Yet Eva is more capable—and more alluring—than Phillip first thought, and he cannot keep from drawing up a plan of his own to seduce her.

When a series of onsite “accidents” makes it clear someone wants Lady Unlucky to earn her nickname, Phillip discovers he’s willing to do anything to protect her—even if it requires a scandalous deal…

Add to Goodreads –


Book 2
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Avon Romance



Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica☆☆☆☆☆
A Scandalous Deal felt innovated and fresh in a genre that by definition is antiquated. I read the novel feverishly, not realizing how quickly I blew through it until I hit the ending, since nothing broke my concentration.

Two new things for me: I'd never read a book that began with a ship passage from England to New York City and I've read very few books taking place in the US during this era. This was a pleasant surprise, adding lawyers of originality.

Equality is the driving force for the premise. Eva is her father's daughter, using his notoriety as an architect to pose in his place as his health declines. There is an altruistic need, as Eva has to afford to pay for her father's care, since the man was not a money-miser.

While on the passage to New York, Phillip is playful, free with his laughs, and laid-back. When he arrives back in NYC, the gruff, exacting builder emerges – a man of those times.

Not wishing to spoil the details... Eva is filled with secrets and lies, when Phillip doesn't abide by either after being burnt in the past. Eva wishes to have a career, using the gift she's honed since a child, not wanting to go from her father's daughter to her husband's wife, with no identity of her own.

Eva isn't a damsel in distress, nor is she the forced feeling of the 'spunky' spitfire – she earns her place by doing as she said she'd do, using her wit and intelligence to reach her goals.

Instead of a balance, where one is exacting and the other is playful, I feel the two exacting intellectuals draw out the playful, passionate side in one another. The novel is high on tension, the spark igniting immediately, but slow-building when it comes to trust, intimacy, and love.

There is an underlying thread, featuring a female friend of Phillip's that I appreciated seeing brought to light, showing the accuracy of what would have happened to her if she hadn't had a friend like Phillip.

Joanna Shupe is a new-to-me author. After devouring A Scandalous Deal, I'm looking forward to going back and reading her backlist.

Highly recommended to historical romance fans who appreciate today's world views taking shape back in the past, as not every woman was comfortable in their station, especially as this takes place during the women's suffrage movement.



Joanna Shupe has always loved history, ever since she saw her first Schoolhouse Rock cartoon. While in college, Joanna read every romance she could get her hands on and soon started crafting her own racy historical novels. In 2013, she won Romance Writers of America’s prestigious Golden Heart® Award for Best Historical. She now lives in New Jersey with her two spirited daughters and dashing husband.

Connect with Joanna

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http://www.avonromance.com


Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of A Scandalous Deal (The Four Hundred #2) by Joanna Shupe to read and review.

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