Wicked

Best known for her erotic love scenes, Johnson (Brazen) continues to play to her strength with her latest sizzling release. Becoming a governess after the death of her father, Serena Blythe has dreams of becoming a painter. After years of saving, she is about to depart for Italy to study when the ship on which she has booked passage is hijacked with all her money and worldly possessions. Determined to reach Florence as planned, Serena stows away on a ship belonging to the dangerously handsome Beau St. Jules, London's most notorious rogue. The Earl of Rochefort had already surpassed his father's reputation as a libertine, and that's saying something, considering his father is the Duke of Seth (fans will remember him as Sinjin St. John). As is her forte, Johnson provides about 250 pages of unadulterated sex. It's not for the prudish but Johnson fans will love it. (Jan.)