The Seduction of Phaeton Black by Jillian Stone

Paranormal Investigator, Book 1

Synopsis:In the gaslit streets of Victorian London, phantoms rule the night, demons dance till dawn, and one supernatural detective dares to be seduced by the greatest power of all. . .  
He’s The Man With The Magic Touch
A master of deduction, seduction and other midnight maneuvers, Phaeton Black is Scotland Yard’s secret weapon against things that go bump in the night. His prodigious gifts as a paranormal investigator are as legendary as his skills as a lover, his weakness for wicked women as notorious as his affection for absinthe. But when he’s asked to hunt down a fanged femme fatale who drains her victims of blood, he walks right into the arms of the most dangerous woman he’s ever known. . .
She’s The Devilish Miss Jones
Pressing a knife to his throat–and demanding he make love to her–Miss America Jones uses Phaeton as a willing shield against the gang of pirates chasing her. As deadly as she is, with a derringer tucked in her garter, Miss Jones is not the vampiric killer he’s been staking out–but she may be just what Phaeton needs to crack the case. As the daughter of a Cajun witch, she possesses uncanny powers. As a fearless fighter, she can handle anything from Egyptian mummies to Jack the Ripper. But when an ancient evil is unleashed on the world, she could be his only salvation. . .or ultimate sacrifice.

review: I still haven’t read a lot of Steampunk books and I was therefore very curious to start this one. I confess I was expecting a big interesting investigation and a nice romance between our two protagonists. Yes, I had my great investigation, and even more than that! For the second aspect of the story, I was very surprised at first because I didn’t expect so many hot scenes but we get used to them as soon as we get to know the characters.
America is a young woman who finds herself thrown into the street overnight at the death of her father. Her possessions, some cargo vessels, stolen by pirates, deprive her of the money she could have. And when she meets Phaeton, a Scotland Yard investigator, a really intriguing man, she thinks he can help her to solve her problems. But this man is far from the gentleman she thinks he is. He is libertine, lives with a few prostitutes and doesn’t care about what the others think about him. But when America manages to have a job at his home as a housekeeper, her life is turned upside down. 
In addition of an investigation about people drained of their blood, we can approach the story of Jack The Ripper and even some notions about the Egyptian mythology. What more can I ask for? I confess it’s always for me a really good point, I love to discover more about these topics and I didn’t expect the introduction of these kinds of ideas. 
The America/Phaeton couple is a pleasure to follow all along the book. America is an idealistic woman who doesn’t really notice the cruelty around her but Phaeton will make her understand that the world is very different from what she first had thought. She will evolve with the chapters and Phaeton with her as well. Many responsibilities will fall suddenly on him without warning, and it will be difficult for him to deal with them. I really enjoyed their distant interactions that ultimately bring them closer. It’s also touching to see their complicity despite our hero tries to hide it.
It’s a good book with two great investigations that I really enjoyed. I really loved the characters and the world we have here, it’s the reason why I’m now very curious to see what Jillian stone will present us in the second novel.

The Seduction of Phaeton Black de Jillian Stone (VO)


Paranormal Investogator, Tome 1

Résumé (traduction personnelle) : Dans les profondeurs des rues du Londres Victorien, Les phantoms gouvernent la nuit, les démons dansent jusqu’à l’aube, et une détective surnaturel ose être séduit par le plus grand des pouvoirs…

C’est un homme avec une touche de magie

Maitre de la déduction, séduction et autres manœuvres de minuit, Phaeton Black est l’arme secrète de Scotland Yard contre les choses qui surgissent la nuit. Ses dons prodigieux en tant que détective surnaturel sont aussi légendaires que ses qualités en tant qu’amant, sa faiblesse pour les femmes facile est aussi célèbre que son affection pour l’absinthe. Mais quand on lui demande de chasser une femme fatale à crocs qui vide ses victimes de leur sang, il va droit au devant de la femme la plus dangereuse qu’il ait pu connaitre.

C’est la démoniaque Miss Jones

Pressant un couteau contre sa gorge – lui demandant de lui faire l’amour – Miss America Jones utilise Phaeton comme un bouclier humain contre le gang de pirate qui la pourchasse. Mortelle comme elle est, avec un Derringer dans sa jarretière, Miss Jones n’est pas la tueuse vampirique à laquelle il s’attendait- mais elle pourrait bien être la personne que Phaeton a besoin pour résoudre l’affaire. En tant que fille de Cajun, elle possède des pouvoirs inimaginables. Battante sans peur, elle peut gérer tout ce qu’il se passe, des momies Egyptiennes à Jack l’Eventreur. Mais quand un ancien démon est relâché dans le monde, elle pourrait être son seul salut… ou sacrifice ultime.
Avis : Je n’ai pas encore eu l’occasion de lire beaucoup de livres de type Steampunk et j’étais plus que curieuse de commencer celui-ci. J’avoue que je m’attendais à une grosse enquête et peut-être moins à autant de scènes hot entre nos deux protagonistes. Oui, j’ai eu ma grande enquête, et même deux grosses enquêtes. Pour le deuxième aspect de l’histoire, j’ai été un peu surprise au départ je dois dire car je ne m’attendais pas autant de scènes de ce genre mais je pense qu’on s’habitude petit à petit une fois qu’on connait bien nos personnages.
America est jeune femme qui se retrouve à la rue du jour au lendemain à la mort de son père. Ses possessions, des bateaux de marchandises, volés par des pirates, lui privent du peu d’argent qui lui restait. Et quand elle croise la route de Phaeton, un enquêteur de Scotland yard, cet homme si intriguant, elle voit en lui une porte de sortie. Mais cet homme est loin du gentleman idéal. Il est libertin, vit avec des prostituées et ne fait pas loi de son image auprès des autres. Mais quand America arrive à obtenir une place en tant que gouvernante à son service, sa vie change du tout au tout. En plus d’une enquête mêlant des personnes drainées de leur sang, on pourra aborder les meurtres de jack l’éventreur et même une partie de la mythologie égyptienne. Et j’avoue que c’est toujours un bon point pour moi, j’adore en découvrir plus et je ne m’attendais pas du tout à l’introduction de telles idées.
Le couple formé par America et Phaeton est un plaisir à suivre. America est une femme idéaliste, qui ne se rend pas vraiment compte de la cruauté qu’il y a autour d’elle mais Phaeton va lui faire comprendre que le monde n’est pas toujours ce qu’il semble être. Elle va évoluer tout au long du livre, et Phaeton avec elle. Il faut dire que de nombreuses responsabilités vont lui tomber dessus sans crier gare. J’ai beaucoup aimé leurs interactions distantes qui les rapprocheront finalement. C’est assez touchant de voir leur complexité bien que notre héros cherche à le dissimuler.
Un très bon livre avec deux bonnes enquêtes que j’ai pris grand plaisir à suivre, peut-être un peu trop de scènes hot pour moi, mais cela mis à part j’ai beaucoup aimé ce monde et ses personnages. Je suis curieuse de voir ce que Jillian Stone nous propose dans son second tome.

Stacking the Shelves #13



Stacking the Shelves is a meme hosted by Tynga’s Reviews

Les traductions sont personnelles

 The Seduction of Phaeton Black (Paranormal Investigator, 1) – Jillian Stone
In the gaslit streets of Victorian London, phantoms rule the night, demons dance till dawn, and one supernatural detective dares to be seduced by the greatest power of all. . .  
He’s The Man With The Magic Touch
A master of deduction, seduction and other midnight maneuvers, Phaeton Black is Scotland Yard’s secret weapon against things that go bump in the night. His prodigious gifts as a paranormal investigator are as legendary as his skills as a lover, his weakness for wicked women as notorious as his affection for absinthe. But when he’s asked to hunt down a fanged femme fatale who drains her victims of blood, he walks right into the arms of the most dangerous woman he’s ever known. . .
She’s The Devilish Miss Jones
Pressing a knife to his throat–and demanding he make love to her–Miss America Jones uses Phaeton as a willing shield against the gang of pirates chasing her. As deadly as she is, with a derringer tucked in her garter, Miss Jones is not the vampiric killer he’s been staking out–but she may be just what Phaeton needs to crack the case. As the daughter of a Cajun witch, she possesses uncanny powers. As a fearless fighter, she can handle anything from Egyptian mummies to Jack the Ripper. But when an ancient evil is unleashed on the world, she could be his only salvation. . .or ultimate sacrifice.

Dans les profondeurs des rues du Londres Victorien, Les phantoms gouvernent la nuit, les démons dansent jusqu’à l’aube, et une détective surnaturel ose être séduit par le plus grand des pouvoirs…
C’est un homme avec une touche de magie
Maitre de la déduction, séduction et autres manœuvres de minuit, Phaeton Black est l’arme secrète de Scotland Yard contre les choses qui surgissent la nuit. Ses dons prodigieux en tant que détective surnaturel sont aussi légendaires que ses qualités en tant qu’amant, sa faiblessepour les femmes facile est aussi célèbre que son affection pour l’absinthe. Mais quand on lui demande de chasser une femme fatale à crocs qui vide ses victimes de leur sang, il va droit au devant de la femme la plus dangereuse qu’il ait pu connaitre.
C’est la démoniaque Miss Jones
Pressant un couteau contre sa gorge – lui demandant de lui faire l’amour – Miss America Jones utilise Phaeton comme un bouclier humain contre le gang de pirate qui la pourchasse. Mortellecomme elle est, avec un Derringer dans sa jarretière, Miss Jones n’est pas la tueuse vampirique à laquelle il s’attendait mais elle pourrait bien être la personne que Phaeton a besoin pour résoudre l’affaire. En tant que fille de Cajun, elle possède des pouvoirs inimaginables. Battante sans peur, elle peut gérer tout ce qu’il se passe, des momies Egyptiennes à Jack l’Eventreur. Mais quand un ancien démon est relâché dans le monde, elle pourrait être son seul salut… ou sacrifice ultime.

 

 Geekomancy – Michael R. Underwood

Ree Reyes’ life was easier when she just had to worry about scraping together tips from her gig as a barista-and-comicshop slave wage in the port city of Pearson to pursue her ambitions as a screenwriter.

When a scruffy-looking guy storms into the shop looking for a comic like his life depends on it, Ree writes it off as just another day in the land of the geeks. Until a gigantic ‘BOOM!’ echoes from the alley a minute later, and Ree follows the rabbit hole into Pearson’s magical flip-side. Here, astral cowboy hackers fight trolls, rubber-suited werewolves and Elegant Gothic Lolita fate witches by channeling genre tropes and wielding nostalgia-powered props.

Ree joins Eastwood (aka scruffy guy), investigating a mysterious string of teen suicides as she tries to avoid imploding after her own drag-your-heart-through-jagged-glass breakup. But as she digs deeper, Ree discovers Eastwood may not be the knight-in-cardboard-armor she thought. Will Ree be able to stop the suicides, save Eastwood from himself, and somehow keep her job?

 

La vie de Ree Reyes était plus simple quand elle n’avait qu’à se soucier son travail en tant que Barman – et vendeuse de comics dans la ville portuaire de Pearson où elle rêve de devenir scénariste.
Quand un gars débraillé entre comme une tempête dans son magasin pour acheter un comics comme si sa vie en dépendait, Ree ne le note que comme un autre jour chez Geek Land. Jusqu’à ce gros « BOUM » qui résonne quelques minutes plus tard, Ree se lance à la suite du lapin dans son terrier, dans la partie magique de Pearson. Ici, les pirates cow-boys se battent contre des trolls, des loups-garous et d’élégantes gothiques façons lolita deviennent des sorcières en canalisant et brandissant des accessoires.
Ree se joins à Eastwood (aka gars débraillé), enquêtant sur plusieurs suicides mystérieux tandis qu’elle essaie d’éviter l’implosion après sa propre rupture qui lui a brisé le cœur. Mais alors qu’elle creuse plus profond, Ree découvre qu’Eastwoord pourrait bien ne pas être le chevalier en armure qu’elle pensait. Ree sera-t-elle capable de stopper les suicides, sauver Eastwood de lui-même, et par la même occasion garder son travail ?

 

 Incarnation – Emma Cornwall


Lucy Weston tracks down the novelist Bram Stoker in her search to reveal the dark force who made her a vampire–and regain her humanity in the process.In the steampunk world of Victorian London, Lucy Weston, a character in “Dracula,” seeks out Bram Stoker to discover why he deliberately lied about her in his popular novel. With Stoker’s reluctant help, she tracks the creature who transformed her from the sensual underworld where humans vie to become vampires to a hidden cell beneath a temple to madness and finally into the glittering Crystal Palace where death reigns supreme. Haunted by fragmentary memories of her lost life and love, Lucy battles her thirst for blood as she struggles to stop a catastrophic war that will doom vampires and humans alike. Ultimately, she makes a choice that illuminates for her–and for us–the true nature of what it means to be human.

Lycy Weston recherche l’auteur Bram Stocker pour ses recherches afin de réveler les forces sombres qui ont fait d’elle un vampire – et regagner son humanité par la même occasion. Dans le monde steampunk d’un Londres Vistorien, Lucy Westion, un personnage de « Dracula », cherche Bram Stocker afin de découvrir pourquoi il a délibérément menti à son sujet dans son nouveau roman célèbre. Avec l’aide réticente de Stoker, elle suit la créature qui l’a transformée dans le monde d’en dessous où l’homme vit pour devenir vampire dans une cellulecachée sous un temple et enfin dans le palais étincelant cristal où la mort règne en maître. Hantée par des fragments de sa vie perdue et son amour, Lucy se bat contre la soif de sang tandis qu’elle essaie d’arrêter une guerre catastrophique qui  causera la perte des humains et vampires. Elle doit donc  faire un choix qui lui dévoilera – et à nous – la vrai na ture de l’humanité.

 

The Shifting Price of Prey (Spellcrackers.com, 4) – Suzanne McLeod


Sometimes a bit of magical help might cost more than you bargained for . . .

London is hosting the Carnival Fantastique, and Genny’s job has never been busier or more fulfilling. Only not everyone is so happy. Genny believed she’d cracked the fae’s infertility curse . . . but the fae are still barren. It’s a devastating plight to which the mysterious Emperor may have the solution – if Genny can find him.

She needs help.

She turns to the vampire Malik al-Khan, only to find he’s wrestling with his own demons and, when the police request Genny’s assistance with a magical kidnap, her own problems multiply too. Is it all unconnected, or can the Emperor help her solve more than the fae’s infertility? Soon Genny is hard on his trail, so it seems she’ll have a chance to ask . . . but will the answer cost more than she’s willing to pay?

  

Parfois un peu de magie peut bien vous couter plus cher que ce que vous l’auriez pensé…
Londres est le témoin d’un Carnaval Fantastique et le travail de Genny n’a jamais été aussi occupée ou plus accomplit. Seulement, beaucoup ne sont pas heureux. Genny croit qu’elle a détruit la malédiction d’infertilité des faes… mais les faes sont toujours stériles. C’est un sort dévastateur auquel le mystérieux Empereur pourrait avoir une solution – Si Genny peut le trouver.
Elle a besoin d’aide.
Elle se tourne vers le vampire Malik al-Khan, seulement pour découvrir qu’il s’occupe de ses propres démons et, quand la police demande l’assistance de Genny pour un kidnapping magique, ses propres problèmes se multiplient eux aussi. Y-a-t-il un lien, ou l’Empereur peut-il l’aider à résoudre plus que l’infertilité des faes ? Bientôt Genny se retrouve sur sa piste, il semble donc qu’elle aura une chance de lui demander… mais la réponse pourrait bien couter plus que ce qu’elle est capable de payer.

 

 Breaking the Devil’s Heart (Logic of the Demon, 2) – H.A. Goodman



When Stewart and Layla recruit a demon to spy on the Devil, their decision takes them on whirlwind ride through the afterlife. Journey alongside this young couple in H. A. Goodman’s new novel, Breaking the Devil’s Heart, and join forces with a teenage Angel outcast to bankrupt Satan’s underground Company and save Heaven from civil war. H. A. Goodman’s Breaking the Devil’s Heart is a rollercoaster afterlife experience that tests a young couple’s love, their grasp on reality, and the essence of human nature. What happens when Stewart and Layla tour Hell’s Marketing Department and Stock Exchange? What happens when their relationship is tested by Satan? This book is unlike anything you’ve ever read, or ever thought the afterlife might be like. Breaking the Devil’s Heart is an enlightening look into an alternate world, a new afterlife, and a profound journey inside the human conscience.


Quand Stewart et Layla recrutent un démon pour espionner de diable, leur décision les amènera dans l’au-delà. Suivez la journée de ce jeune couple dans le nouveau roman de H.A Goodman, Breaking the Deveil’s Heart, et joignez les forces avec l’ado Angel exilé de la compagnie souterraine de Satan et sauvez le paradis d’une guerre civile. Breaking the Devil’s Heart de H. A. Goodman est un aperçu de l’expérience de l’après vie que teste l’amour d’un jeune couple, leur emprise sur la réalité, et l’essence de la nature humaine. Que se passe-t-il quand Stewart et Layla visite le département marqueting et la bourse de l’Enfer. Que se passe-t-il quand leur relation est testée par Satan ? The livre est différent de tout ce que vous avez pu lire, or que vous auriez pensé de l’après vie. Breaking the Devil’s Heart pose un regard sur un monde alternative, une nouvelle après vie, et un voyage intérieur dans la conscience humaine.

 

Wicked Game (WVMP radio, 1) – Jeri Smith-Ready


 LATE NIGHT RADIO YOU CAN SINK YOUR TEETH INTO!

Recovering con artist Ciara Griffin is trying to live the straight life, even if it means finding a (shudder!) real job. She takes an internship at a local radio station, whose late-night time-warp format features 1940s blues, ’60s psychedelia, ’80s goth, and more, all with an uncannily authentic flair. Ciara soon discovers just how the DJs maintain their cred: they’re vampires, stuck forever in the eras in which they were turned.
Ciara’s first instinct, as always, is to cut and run. But communications giant Skywave wants to buy WVMP and turn it into just another hit-playing clone. Without the station — and the link it provides to their original Life Times — the vampires would “fade,” becoming little more than mindless ghosts of the past. Suddenly a routine corporate takeover is a matter of life and undeath.

To boost ratings and save the lives of her strange new friends, Ciara rebrands the station as “WVMP, the Lifeblood of Rock ‘n’ Roll.” In the ultimate con, she hides the DJs’ vampire nature in plain sight, disguising the bloody truth as a marketing gimmick. WVMP becomes the hottest thing around — next to Ciara’s complicated affair with grunge vamp Shane McAllister. But the “gimmick” enrages a posse of ancient and powerful vampires who aren’t so eager to be brought into the light. Soon the stakes are higher — and the perils graver — than any con game Ciara’s ever played….

Ces vampires ont le Rock dans le sang !

Arnaqueuse depuis le biberon, Ciara Griffin a décédé de mettre ses talents commerciaux au service d’une radio dont les émissions nocturnes diffusent de vraies pépites. Le secret des DJ : ce sont des vampires, à tout jamais retenus dans l’époque à laquelle ils ont été convertis.
Quand un géant des médias tente de racheter WMMP Radio pour en faire un robinet à tubes, c’est la santé mentale des DJ vampires qui est menacée : sans la musique qui les lie à leur époque, ils risquent de faner. Ciara a alors une idée de génie : révéler l’identité des stars de la radio qu’elle a rebaptisée “WVMP : le sang du rock !”

A+ / Tall, Dark and Fangsome (Sarah Dearly, 5) – Michelle Rowen



Sarah Dearly’s positive attitude is waning. Perky and bubbly no longer describe her and frankly being a vampire is the least of her worries. Gideon Chase, leader of all vampire hunters, is being consumed by Hellfire and his only hope is that Sarah will bite him during a ritual under the full moon and turn him into a vampire. To ensure her help he has threatened to kill all the people she loves, inc. Thierry, her master vampire boyfriend and she has no doubt that he can and will do it. He has also demanded she break things off with Thierry and never see him again, which she pretends to do but it isn’t easy to protect someone when you’re forced to keep your relationship a secret. However Sarah isn’t the pushover she used to be – in fact, she was recently cursed to be a nightwalker and when she removes the magical necklace that keeps her hungers in check, she’s as dangerous as any blood-thirsty, horror-movie vampire and not just a girl-next-door with fangs. However, her nightwalker self is becoming dangerously attracted to Gideon. Can she cure herself of the curse in time to destroy Gideon and save her true love, so they can live happily together forever?

Depuis qu’une malédiction a fait de moi une nocturne, ma vie n’est qu’une suite de catastrophes.
Déjà que je ne peux plus m’exposer au soleil sans risquer ma vie, Gideon Chase continue de me mettre la pression. Il exige que je quitte Thierry et que je le transforme, lui, en vampire. Quelle drôle d’idée ! Et puis il me connaît mal s’il croit que je vais me laisser faire. N’empêche, il a des arguments solides : il menace de tuer tous les gens que j’aime. Bon, en plus, je dois bien avouer, il ne me laisse pas complètement indifférente.
Allez Sarah, ressaisis-toi!

Les âmes de la Forêt / Bone by Bone – Carol O’Connell

In the northern California town of Coventry, two teenage brothers go into the woods one day, but only one comes back. No one knows what happened to the younger brother, Josh, until twenty years later, when the older brother, Oren, now an ex-investigator for the Army CID, returns to Coventry for the first time in many years. His first morning back, he hears a thump on the front porch. Lying in front of the door is a human jawbone, the teeth still intact. And it is not the first such object, his father tells him. Other remains have been left there as well. Josh is coming home . . . bone by bone.” Using all his investigative skills, Oren sets out to solve the mystery of his brother s murder, but Coventry is a town full of secrets and secret-keepers: the housekeeper with the fugitive past, the deputy with the old grudge, the reclusive ex-cop from L.A., the woman with the title of town monster, and, not least of all, Oren himself. But the greatest secret of all belonged to his brother, and it is only by unraveling it that Oren can begin to discover the truth that has haunted them all for twenty years.

Années 90. Deux frères se promènent dans la forêt de la petite ville de Coventry. Un seul des adolescents, le plus jeune, en revient. Personne ne sait ce qui est arrivé à Josh qui reste introuvable. Vingt ans plus tard, Oren, l’autre frère devenu enquêteur fédéral, revient à Conventry pour la première fois depuis le drame. Sur le porche de la maison familiale, il découvre des ossements humains, une mâchoire déposée devant la porte. Une mise en scène macabre qui se répète les jours suivants : c’est Josh, son frère disparu, qui revient à la maison… os par os. Oren se plonge dans ce mystère vieux de vingt ans pour tenter de savoir, enfin, ce qui est arrivé à son frère. Il découvre que la petite ville, en apparence bien tranquille, recèle des secrets que certains voudraient garder profondément enfouis…

Excerpt for The Seduction of Phaeton Black by Jillian Stone + Giveaway

The Seduction of Phaeton Black (Paranormal Investigator, 1) – Jillian Stone

Blurb #1

THE YEAR IS 1889 and Queen Victoria, exemplum of decency and sobriety, is in her fifty-second year of reign. Paranormal Investigator, Phaeton Black, on the other hand, couldn’t be less interested in clean-living. He has recently taken up residence in the basement flat of London’s most notorious brothel. A dedicated libertine with an aptitude for absinthe, he wrestles with a variety of demons both real and self-inflicted. Unfairly linked to Scotland Yard’s failure to solve the Whitechapel murders, Phaeton is offered a second chance to redeem himself. A mysterious fiend, or vampire is stalking the Strand. After a glass and a consult with the green fairy, he agrees to take on the case.

On his first surveillance, Phaeton pursues an elusive stranger and encounters several curious, horrifying beings. But the most intriguing creature of all is a Cajun beauty who captures him at knifepoint and threatens to spirit away his heart.

Alternate Blurb #2

Hold onto your knickers ladies, Phaeton Black has arrived!

He’s the man with the magic touch. A master of deduction and other midnight maneuvers, Phaeton Black is Scotland Yard’s secret weapon against things that go bump in the night. His prodigious gifts as a paranormal investigator are as legendary as his skills as a lover, his weakness for wicked women as notorious as his affection for absinthe. But when he’s asked to hunt down a fanged femme fatale who drains her victims of blood, he walks right into the arms of the most dangerous woman he’s ever known.

She’s the devilish Miss Jones. Pressing a knife to his throat and demanding he make love to her––Miss America Jones uses Phaeton as a willing shield against the gang of pirates chasing after her. As dangerous as she is with a derringer tucked in her garter, Miss Jones is not the vampire killer Phaeton is stalking––but she may be just what he needs to crack the case. As the daughter of a Cajun witch, she possess uncanny powers. As a fearless fighter, she can handle anything from Egyptian mummies to Jack the Ripper. But when an ancient evil is unleashed on the world, she could be his only his salvation…or ultimate sacrifice.
Excerpt 
She had never met the like of such a man.
After a few deep draughts of spirit, he kicked a chair out from under the table and straddled the seat. “The chair rails guard my bulging privates. Not to be confused with filthy pirates.”
He took another swig from the bottle. “Tell me about these imaginary, cutlass wielding corsairs. Miss––?”
 “My name is America Jones.”
He set an elbow on the chair back and cupped his chin. He had a wary way of studying her, as if she were some kind of curiosity. “Are you incapable of answering questions in a truthful manner? Again, Miss––?”
She set her jaw and glared. “America.”
“Is the name of a continent, or two. I can never remember if there are two continents designated north and south, or one continent designated south and north. Which is it?”
Why did he play the Mad Hatter? Leaning far back off the chair, he had to catch himself. The grog appeared to be having an effect. “And there is a new country, the United States of America.”
Even with arms tied down, she still managed a shrug. “It is my name, sir. America Síne Jones and I have learned to live with it these twenty-ought years.”
 “I believe I may call you by your middle name.” His mouth twitched. “Sin–ay. I do so admire the first syllable.”
Her gaze narrowed to a quizzical squint. “Is your mind always in the gutter, Mr.––?
“Black.” Liquid sable eyes flecked with gold drank in every inch of her. “Only when I am interested, Miss Jones.”
“And are you interested?”
“I once enjoyed a meal at the Langham Hotel, which I thought about repeating for weeks afterward.”
“Is that what I am to you? A supper?”
 He lowered his chin. “A banquet, my tempting dark dove.” Hooded ebony eyes crinkled at the sides. He enjoyed taunting her. 
Captivated for a moment, she mentally slapped herself.  “I would love to stay and chat, really I would, but I must be on my way.” She flashed the faintest of smiles. “Now that we are introduced, certainly you can release me from bondage?”
“One more thing, Miss Jones. If you would kindly explain about the pirates?” He tilted his head. “Your eyes are most extraordinary. Almost feline.”
What an exasperating man! While he swigged from the bottle, she tugged again on her bindings. “Why do you insist on torturing me?”
She pressed her lips together and chewed the inside of her bottom lip. A force of habit when vexed beyond endurance. Well, she supposed two could play this silly, annoying interrogation game. “Are your parents still living, Mr. Black?
He sat up and blinked. “Mother died of a virulent meningitis years ago. My father teaches advanced mathematics at Trinity College.” He ran a hand through thick waves of dark brown hair. “He might as well be dead. We don’t get on.”
“I could not tell you if my mother is alive or dead. I’ve not been home to Louisiana in many years. Buried my father four short months ago. Charles Gardiner Jones.” She leaned forward purposefully. “A decent and honest merchant trader. Acquaintances said he couldn’t face his business failure––that he died of drink. People who knew him well, told a very different story. My father’s heart was broken by his lying, scheming business partner.”
When her eyes threatened to tear, she lifted her chin. “After his funeral I vowed to bring Yanky Willem to justice.”
“And how goes this pursuit?”
She frowned. “Not as well as I’d hoped. Last night Willem caught me rifling through a year’s worth of cargo manifests.”
He arched a brow. “Searching for––?”
“Proof of piracy, Mr. Black.”
He smiled that maddening grin of his. “I knew if I was patient, we might actually get round to the original subject of my query––the filthy pirates.”
“Chased me from the Docklands all the way down the Strand.” She laid her head back against the padded chair and counted the cracks in the ceiling. “When you stepped into the sharp edge of my blade, I was clean out of bullets.”
“Bullets? And where, pray tell is your pistol?
Now it was her turn to grin. “Untie me, and––“
“I think not, Miss Jones.” From behind protective rungs, Mr. Black stepped over the seat of his chair and ventured closer. “Shall we search together?”
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