THE ART OF DESIRE

Author: Cherie Feather ISBN: 9780425221600 6/2008 EROTIC Publisher: BERKLEY

Museum director Mandy Cooper is obsessed with nineteenth-century artist Catherine Burke—and the artist's erotically charged relationship with Atacar, her enthralling American Indian lover. But Mandy's link to the legendary couple runs deeper than she knows. She's having a heated affair herself—with Jared Cabrillo, Atacar's handsome great-great nephew who knows precisely what it takes to seduce a woman... He's in possession of Catherine's explicit journal. He knows every intimate detail of what she wanted and needed. But he also knows how desperately Catherine had loved Atacar and how dangerously he'd loved her. The journal is timeless and tragic, and the secrets contained within its pages can bring Mandy and Jared together, or just as surely destroy them both—desire by shocking desire.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

Cherie Feather sets her erotic romance, THE ART OF DESIRE, in present day Santa Fe, New Mexico, where art gallery director Mandy Cooper is having a steamy affair with playboy horse breeder Jared Cabrillo. One of her museum's key pieces is a portrait of Jared's Native American ancestor, Atacar, painted by Catherine Burke. Mandy's biggest obsession (other than Jared) is finding Catherine's journal. She's sure it will show that Catherine and Atacar had more than an artistic relationship.

Jared has a secret. He's found the journal. Will he share it with Mandy?

The story is amazingly hot! Jared has learned many of the finer points of lovemaking from Catherine's secret journal, and has used them to drive women mad. Mandy is so addicted to Jared that she'll do anything he asks, even promising him that she'll never say no to his requests for sex in any way, shape, or form. Confidence is so sexy, and Jared just oozes its power. The story of Jared's ancestors often parallels his relationship with Mandy as Feather takes us back and forth between the two. Feather has drawn her story just this side of the line between tasteful and crude, and she pulls us along on the tightrope. The two couples have no inhibitions and seek to fulfill each other's fantasies, no matter the cost. Be sure to turn up the air conditioning and have a pitcher of ice cold drinks handy, because the explicit scenes could ignite passion that roars into flames. THE ART OF DESIRE makes a better teacher than the Kama Sutra. My whole body is tingling just thinking about it!

I loved how Feather deals with the issue of the government's use and abuse of Native Americans in the nineteenth century. I like it when I learn some historical facts. It is obvious that Atacar has been wronged, yet there isn't a vindictiveness or anger tearing him apart. He is motivated by his love for Catherine and unselfishly gives himself to her. Jared, on the other hand, has been used and abused by his own family, and he uses the journal only to satisfy his carnal desires, afraid to trust anyone with his soul.

The only problem I had with THE ART OF DESIRE is that the editing could have been better. I found a lot of swapped words or duplicates, and I have such an obsessive mind when it comes to grammatical problems that it can really kill the mood to stumble over misplaced words. Nevertheless, I highly recommend THE ART OF DESIRE to any reader looking to scratch "that itch" and get a couple of nice plot lines besides.

Susan Barton