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Someday her prince will come...
Inspired by the tale of Cinderella, Lila DiPasqua weaves a steamy historical romance that offers a glass slipper, a dangerous deception, and an impoverished beauty determined to find her handsome prince...and make him pay.
Matching wits and wiles with a man of Jules de Moutier's seductive skill is not as easy as Sabine Laurent supposed. Soon, she must decide whether her desire for vengeance is greater than her desire for her one and only prince...
OMG y'all. This book is HOT, HOT, HOT. I can hear Charles Perrault turning in his grave. Good heavens! Like Sabine trying to describe the hotness of Jules while he was bathing, there are no adequate words to describe this book. Like Jules reading the first sentence of Sabine's journal, I was ensnared. Like the chemistry between Jules and Sabine, this book was bliss. This is Cinderella like you've never had it re-told before. Yes, there's still a glass slipper. Yes, there is still a Prince Charming. Yes, there are still stepsisters and a stepmother figure. Yes, there is still a Cinderella. Yes, there is still a dead father who leaves his daughter in the hands of the stepmother. Yes, there is still a fairy godmother figure of sorts. Yes, there is still a ball. But that is where the similarities end. I'm sure Cinderella *whispers* did it with Prince Charming after they were wed. But boy oh boy, there's smexing not even 50 pages in and can I just say I was gripping my book so tightly, my knuckles cracked a few times. Oy! Lushly erotic? ABSOLUTELY! Heartbreaking? YES! Romantic? OH MY STARS, yes! Not like that Disney version with the singing and dancing and weird woodland creatures? Thank goodness it's not. This book is a thigh clenching, heart pounding, adrenaline rushing, "did I just moan out loud?" inducing, toe curling, hand gripping book and almost breaking the spine, unputdownable, stay up all night read. Didja get all that? Yes, A MIDNIGHT DANCE was all those things. Pure magic. Well done, Ms. DiPasqua. ***I won this book from Operation Auction***
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted August 30, 2012
Not even half way through the book yet and i'm just coming up for air now!!! I've already gotten my money's worth with this story. Don't want to give anything away thus far but i can't wait to see how these characters progress in thier relationship. Both in and out of bed. What fantasy! I love these historical romances. And this is a step or TEN above those lame Harlequan Romance books!!! (no offence to those who don't like thier toes to curl) You won't be sorry. So far i'm not!!!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.BooksnKisses
Posted October 7, 2011
In A Midnight Dance we meet Sabine Laurent, who is in dire straits. Sabine is a woman on a mission to save her family. But in order to do that she must be willing to make the ultimate sacrifice in order to gain the trust of those she plans to deceive. But as with all good plans not all goes right. The last person Sabine ever expected to find in this camp is the one man she blames for the fall of her family. Jules deMoutier
Jules deMoutier has been stripped of everything, his money, his title, and his pride. But after 5 long years he is so close to getting everything back. Back to the way his life should be. But Jules never planned for one small blond woman to come into his camp and steal his treasure out from under his nose.
Sabine is a great heroine. She is smart, funny, determined and really doesn't take people's crap very well. Her only weakness seems to be her heart. Sabine cares too much sometimes.
Jules, aahhh, sweet, handsome, suborn, wouldn't know when a woman is lying to him Jules.. Jules is HOT. He his Dream.. He really is a prince charming under all that holier than thou attitude.
OH, Lila is wicked good. There was not one moment that I didn't love this story. Lila doesn't wait very long for there to be a very hot forest sex scene *wiggle eyebrows* Lila does a great job of taking the Cinderella story and telling it in a way I would have never thought about. This is truly a riches to rages to riches story.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.BlondieBlack
Posted August 6, 2011
First of all, I trust that any book by Lila DiPasqua will be an enjoyable read - she is a master at storytelling. This book more than met my expectations. Her characters are well-defined and thanks to the details she provides, I feel that I'm right there with her characters. I'd give this book more than 5 stars if I could!
The tale of Cinderella has been a favorite of mine since childhood. Even now when I visit the Magic Kingdom at DisneyWorld, I enjoy visiting her castle there.
This story was truly an exquisite reminiscence of Cinderella's story with her handsome Prince Charming, her famous glass slippers and plenty of romance. Ms. DiPasqua updated it for adults by adding luscious ultra-steamy erotic love scenes, deception, suspense, an eccentric family and lots of wondrously surprising turns.
Ms. DiPasqua's books are absolutely must-reads for adults who'd like to re-visit their favorite childhood fairy tales and readers will not be disappointed by this one! This will be a keeper on my bookshelf and I look forward to revisiting with Cinderella and her Prince over and over!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.A Midnight Dance was captivating from the very first page. You could feel and understand Sabine's desperation to provide for her family and find her sister. Her determination to do whatever it takes, the courage to go through with her plans even though the chances are slim that she will succeed, and most certainly will lead to her ruin .possibly even her death. But Sabine has very little left to loose except her reputation, and as a result she is willing to sacrifice her dreams of marriage, and the future of the man she used to love, to live. Jules of course has other plans, and is equally determined to do whatever it takes to regain his birthright. Jules Mourtier should have been a Marquis, living the life of an Aristo that he was proudly and arrogantly raised to be, but he has been stripped of his birthright because of his supposedly traitor father. He's spent the last few years of his life as a privateer (sanctioned pirate), and now that he has enough Spanish silver to buy back the lands he's lost, he is ready to resume his titled life. He's ruthless, and just as desperate to prove his father was no traitor to the Crown...nothing is going to stop him from achieving his dream, including his feisty "forest fairy", Sabine. The attraction between Sabine and Jules is undeniable, and both act carelessly and somewhat foolishly in their need and desire for each other. Their initial encounters are somewhat bittersweet for Sabine. On the one hand she gets to live out a fantasy with the man she once believed was her "Dark Prince" and in every way perfect. On the other hand she is faced with the man who's family was partly responsible for her family's downfall, and is presented with the perfect means of exacting revenge by stealing his silver. Sabine is presented with the harsh reality that the "Dark Prince" she dreamed of is instead an "Aristo" who doesn't care about his people except for what they provide for him. Jules on the other hand is presented with the illusion of an ethereal woman who is perfect in her passion. All of his dreams of regaining the former glory of his family and all that entails is about to come true, and the same time that all of Sabine's dreams meet the harsh light of day. She is faced with the harsh realities of life, while Jules is living in a dream world. The love scenes in A Midnight Dance are unbelievably hot. I mean HOT. There's passion and desire, and tons of chemistry between the Jules and Sabine. And when they aren't fighting for their lives, and each other (because theirs is a love/hate relationship), they are making mad passionate love. When it's the two of them on the page, magic happens. In the end I didn't feel like I got the Cinderella happy ever after in Ms. DiPasqua's retelling of the story that I wanted, even though the hero and the heroine happily end up together. Overall A Midnight Dance was magical, with witty and smart characters, great dialogue, an interesting conflict for each of the main characters to overcome, as well as the sensual love scenes that were hot, passionate and intense that the author has become known for. Ratings: Overall: 4.00 Sensuality level: 3.75 (this historical romance is in between a very hot traditional romance and an erotic romance, but I would hesitate to classify it specifically as an erotic romance)
1 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
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Posted February 22, 2013
This book was great
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted March 23, 2012
Good read
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Review by Jen: I've been hearing a lot of good things about A Midnight Dance, so to say I was thrilled when I won a copy courtesy of a contest at the SOS Aloha blog might be an understatement. I've not read any of Ms DiPasqua's other Fiery Tales, but now they are on my list of must-reads.
As I knew this was a retelling of Cinderella, I kept finding myself looking for hints of the original fairy tale. Fortunately they were there and even though there are enough differences for the story to be original, I had fun picking out the similarities (such as the glass slipper, the prince, the step-mother and so forth) while enjoying the freshness of the tale.
I think I enjoyed the character of Sabine more than Jules. She just seemed more relateable as she wasn't from the aristocracy (she was Cinderella) and she was willing to do just about anything to to find her sister and support her "family" who have fallen in hard times during the French Revolution. Jules motivations are to clear his family's name and his position in society... which isn't bad in itself, just harder to relate to especially when you're also faced with Sabine's struggle. But the chemistry between the two is sizzling and I couldn't wait to see how their Happily Ever After played out.
I strongly suggest this story to those looking for something a little different when it comes to a historical romance. And for those looking for a spicy (or fiery) story, this one will be sure to please.
krazymama_98
Posted August 6, 2011
I have just finished A Midnight Dance by Lila DiPasqua. It had a perfect blend of description and feelings. So rich and entertaining. The twists and changes made me want to read on. Of course, it comes to a perfect ending. If you enjoy romance, you will want to read this one.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.gincam
Posted August 2, 2011
I now think of author Lila DiPasqua as "Scheherazade". Having just read her third Fiery Tale book, "A Midnight Dance", I can strongly advise that Ms. DiPasqua is not just a premier author of erotic historical romance, she is also a master storyteller. With each of her books, I have been captivated by the character development and the story line detail, but there is more, much more. There is undeniable passion, titillation and temptation, but there is also intrigue, revelation and redemption. Then there are the surprises, which keep you turning the pages looking for more depth-adding twists and turns. In "A Midnight Dance", lovely Sabine Laurent sacrifices much to restore the lands, fortune, and good name of her family. The man she has always adored from afar, Jules de Moutier, is the son of the man she holds responsible for her family's ruin. Jules' family has not been untouched by tragedy, and for years he has strived to replenish the lost wealth and social standing of his aristocratic heritage. When Sabine and Jules cross paths again after many years, they are at cross purposes, each intending a cache of silver coins to be the answer to their own individual quest. There are others interested in that same silver--others who live with evil intent and the desire to torment Sabine and Jules and those around them. The passion between the inexperienced, loving Sabine and the sensually masterful Jules is scorching! However, it is Sabine's inner fire which kindles deeper embers in the worldly Jules. "A Midnight Dance" will leave you breathless, and hoping to experience the same sensations soon with another Fiery Tale. Most pleasurably recommended!
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.YVandermer
Posted August 2, 2011
Be prepared to be swept away in the pages of Lila DiPasqua's newest breathtaking novel, A Midnight Dance, an intoxicating and fiery retelling of the Cinderella classic. Lila DiPasqua's masterful writing, witty dialogue, and intriguing plot will draw you in to the point where time is suspended - and only you and the characters exist in a world of erotic romance, mystery, deception, and of course, true love. It's been a long time since a historical romance was written so amazingly that I was drawn to each page and was loathe to put it down. Wonderful, well-rounded characters and a beautifully woven plot, A Midnight Dance has instantly won my heart and has become one of the best historical romances I've ever had the pleasure of reading.
Born into wealth, Sabine Laurent and her twin sister lived a life of luxury, their father's prestigious theater frequented by royalty and aristocracy alike. And Sabine dreamed of her own Prince Charming - the devastatingly handsome Jules de Moutier.
That was before the loss of her sister and her family's fall from grace - a disaster Sabine blames on the Moutier family. Now, with her father's death, she's inherited his sizable debt and the responsibility of caring for his spoiled long time mistress and her two wastrel daughters. But with the help of Sabine's eccentric friends - the balance of her father's acting troupe - she plans to get very close to her old infatuation, seduce the rake - and make off with a fortune.
Resisting Jule's skillful mouth and tantalizing touch is not as easy as Sabine supposed, though. And soon she must decide whether her desire for vengeance is greater than her desire for her one and only prince.
Sabine Laurent is hands down my favorite heroine.She is intelligent, witty, fiercely loyal to her family and tenacious in going after what she wants. Scenes of her point of view on the tragedy that befell her family and the disappearance of her darling sister had tears come to my eyes.
Jules is one of those hero's that will be seared into my memory for a longtime. He has dazzling charm, is devastatingly handsome, and is also fighting for retribution for him and his family - but he is not without flaws. His character's evolution in the novel was so well written, and his story told to such perfection, he became one of the most life-like hero's I had the pleasure of reading about.
The attraction between the hero and heroine is, in a word, breathless. Their sexual heat and fiery attraction was written in such beautiful, vivid detail. Ms. DiPasqua's talent in drawing in the reader with such life-like characters had my toes curling and my eyes glued to the pages. The steamy erotic scenes were lush, imaginative, and oh so romantic!
A masterful, inventive story spiked with danger and unexpected twists, a group of hilarious secondary characters, and a romance as timeless as the hero and heroine's made my heart sigh.
Buy this book if you want to lose yourself in the depths of a story so imaginative, sexy and vivid, you will want to read it again and again for years to come.
moon_princess111
Posted August 2, 2011
A MIDNIGHT DANCE by Lila DiPasqua
Let me begin my review by saying Roger's and Hamerstein's CINDERELLA was always my favorite fairy tale. For one reason, and I will admit I am 51 years old, it is because this was the FIRST show I ever saw in color! Now to those of you who don't like a good B&W movie, you have no idea what you are missing, but to a 5 (possibly 6) year old girl seeing something on television for the first time, in real colors...HUGE, LASTING IMPRESSION! Lesley Ann Warren and Stuart Damon will ALWAYS be Cinderella and Prince Charming to me, so as I began this book, those were the people I associated with Sabine and Jules, and it worked, for me. You personally may have your own veiws of Cinderella and Prince Charming, but it doesn't really matter, Sabine and Jules can be whomever you want them to be.
Next, I'd just like to mention, if you prefer your romance novels on the timid and tepid side, this book may not be your cup of tea. If, like me, you enjoy steamy and sensual, than this is the book for you!
Ms Dipasqua had me after the 4 page prologue. I was crying tears for Sabine and probably for every other 15 year old girl, myself included, who had a major crush on an older man. The prologue takes place in May 1650, Paris. Then the real story begins.
We being in August 1658, just past the stroke of midnight. Sabine and two of her cousins are following a cart filled with Spanish silver. They are doing this to try and pay the taxes on Sabine's property to the aristocrat who owns the lands on which her home lies on. Sabine is known to all in her family as "sensible Sabine", so it is up to her to save her family, her late father's mistress and her 2 daughters, cousins, the music master for her father's plays and assorted others. After overhearing a conversation in Italian, one of many languages she knows thanks to her father's ideas about women being educated, she was a very intelligent woman. Her late father was a prominet playwrite, who's many plays were preformed in Paris for the aristocracy and anyone else who could afford the price of a ticket, hence she knew many people of many classes. She also knew how to act and that is how they were going to steal the silver. She and her cousins were going to serve the men some tainted wine in exchange for some food. If she had to offer herself up to the leader of the group, she would become the actress she'd pretended to be many times in the past, and do what needed to be done. If he decided he didn't want to drink of the wine before accepting her offer of herself, so be it, she was ready and willing to do anything to save her family and look for the one person in her life she missed more than any other, her twin sister, Isabella.
Without giving anything else away about this lucious, steamy, sexy, historically filled book, let me just say if this had been the Roger's and Hamerstein's version of CINDERELLA, not only would I not have seen it at the age of 5, but I probably wouldn't have seen it until I was 16, and only then by sneaking my way into the theater and lying about my age! While the sex scenes are so very hot and Mr DiPasqua must be one very lucky man to have a wife with this type of imagination, there is also a real story here about what happened in France during the Fronde.
I'd also like to say, this is the way in which the real CINDERELLA found her Prince, whether he was charming or not, well, that would be a personal preference.
Addicted2readin
Posted August 1, 2011
Lila DiPasqua had me captivated from the start with her book 'A Midnight Dance'. The story is romantic, sensual and erotic. It has love, loss, humor and a perfect ending. An absolute must read! You will not be disappointed.
0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Chynnagal
Posted August 1, 2011
The heroine, Sabine Laurent, is strong, clever and also a romantic. I loved that she could bring out the best in the hero, Jules. The sparks were certainly there between both Sabine and Jules, but there was also humor and sadness (loss of family). My favorite part of the book was when Jules realized that Sabine was more that just a liar and thief; that she was doing what she had to do to take care of her family. Towards the end of the book, when Jules realizes how much he loved her, I had a few tears in my eyes. It was a very compelling story and I loved every minute of reading it. This is the 3rd book in the Fiery Tales series, and I am already eager to read the 4th book (hopefully Isabelle and Luc's story).
If you like your books with a sassy heroine, humor and lots of sparks between the main characters, then I would highly recommend Lila DiPasqua's books.
cmoyablock
Posted July 31, 2011
Lila DiPasqua grabs your imagination in her newest release "A Midnight Dance, A Fiery Tale". The retelling of the favorite fairy tale Cinderella takes place in the France of Louis XIV, with court intrigue and decadence. Her impoverished heroine is strong-willed, clever and more than capable of standing up to and outsmarting the devilishly handsome arrogant aristocratic hero, in spite of the differences in class and nobility. With sparks flying between them the story takes you on an adventure of mystery, looking for lost treasure, a masked ball and of course glass slippers. All surrounded with erotic pleasures and burgeoning love. As the story ends you are delighted with the development of the characters and hope to hear of them again in a new Fiery Tale.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.In 1650 watching from the back stage as her father's plays are being performed, Sabine Laurent begins falling in love with one of the aristocrats attending the theater; her Dark Prince, nineteen year old Jules de Moutier. Her twin Isabelle is attracted to Jules's younger brother Luc.
However, a failed coup d'état leaves her father dead and her twin sister Isabelle missing and presumed dead. She and the surviving extended family members to include the troupe face debtor's prison. The king and subsequently Sabine blame Jules who fled France to become a privateer.
In 1658 Sabine plans to avenge what Jules did to her family by stealing silver from him to keep her loved ones out of prison and to search for her sibling in hopes Isabelle lives. However, her courtesan scheme goes astray when she meets her Dark Prince.
The third "Fiery Tale" (see Awakened by a Kiss and The Princess in His Bed) is an adult version of Cinderella in an adult historical romantic setting. Jules and Sabine are an intriguing pairing as she holds him culpable for what happened to her loved ones. The fate of Isabelle and a Machiavellian aristocrat enhance a strong well written seventeenth century tale.
Harriet Klausner
ReadersGroupsLiaison
Posted June 27, 2011
I Also Recommend:
Historical romance fans have a new author to cherish in Lila DiPasqua, who offers in Book #3, A MIDNIGHT DANCE of her Fiery Tales series for Berkley Sensation (August 2011) her own wickedly sensual retelling of Charles Perrault's beloved classic fairy tale "Cinderella-set in the very time he penned the tale! Daughter of a successful playwright, Sabine Laurent had wealth, a beautiful home, lovely gowns and her beloved twin sister, Isabelle. And was infatuated with her "dark prince", the handsome son of an aristocrat, Jules de Moutier. Eight years later, she has lost everything, including her father and worse, Isabelle has mysteriously died. And Sabine blames the Moutier family for it all. Left with a sizeable debt and the responsibility to care for her father's long-time mistress, the mistress's two daughters, and the balance of his old acting troupe, Sabine is desperate to come up with the money to pay the tax collectors and save her eclectic family from debtors' prison. She intends to seduce Jules, drug him and steal his wealth. She never expected that her old flame, now enemy, would be so difficult to resist. Add in a healthy dose of intrigue into the mix and you have a clever retelling of Cinderella. How refreshing to read such a well-crafted historical romance that's so rich in historical detail with such well-matched lovers and all the chemistry and passion any romance reader could ask for!
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Posted August 22, 2011
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Posted November 19, 2011
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Overview
Someday her prince will come...
Inspired by the tale of Cinderella, Lila DiPasqua weaves a steamy historical romance that offers a glass slipper, a dangerous deception, and an impoverished beauty determined to find her handsome prince...and make him pay.
Matching wits and wiles with a man of Jules de Moutier's seductive skill is not as easy as Sabine Laurent supposed. Soon, she must decide whether her desire ...