I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was categorized under Erotica on NetGalley but should be under Romance. And a historical one at that. This was a pleasant discovery though. The story, though dark with a pinch of morbid develops into a hopeful and romantic novel. I will definitely be following up with other titles for this series and more from Delilah Marvelle. ( )

Master of Pleasure is the fifth in the School of Gallantry series by Delilah Marvelle. All of the books take place at more or less the same time, some of them intersecting more than others, so reading order doesn't really matter but you will understand the characters better if you read them all.

I've been eagerly awaiting Brayton's story since the first book. For most of the series we've known very little about him aside from that he's an extremely unlikely-looking virgin. In Night of Pleasure we learned that he works for Prince Nasser of Persia. Here we learn that he has dedicated himself to a life of celibacy since having spent time in a monastery trying to learn how to control his attraction to pain. (Considering that most of his scars are from punishment he received in the monastery, this may not have been the best place for him.)

Miss Leona Webster was left alone and pregnant after her fiance abandoned her, and his now struggling to keep a roof over her and her child's head. Brayton first sees her facing off against men sent by her creditors who are carting off her possessions, including her son's stuffed bear she had specifically paid them to leave. He intervenes and offers her a job. It doesn't take long for them to realize that each could complete the family the other needs, but conflicting duties and fears create obstacles to their learning how they can be together.

In the last book, Night of Pleasure, I thought the school's role was too peripheral. I felt this book improved on that count although it still wasn't as central as it was in the first three stories. There's only one scene actually in the school but Madame appears earlier and one gets the impression that Brayton has been attending regularly before the scene there.

At times both main characters are frustrating. Brayton can be overly domineering and Webster difficult to understand. (To put it vaguely, she'll go along with something that's quite extreme but then be unwilling to consider something much milder.) But by the end I was genuinely convinced that they had both learned the error of their ways, so I'll chalk their earlier mistakes up to both of them being works in process.

Overall I loved everything about this book except for the ending feeling slightly rushed. The plot thread about the father of Webster's son trying to take him back is put aside for most of the book before very abruptly being brought back and then resolved. It felt like either the book could have been longer and that plot thread could have been more developed or it could have been completely forgotten following Brayton having secured the prince's intervention. ( )