Veena’s review of Between the Duke and the Deep Blue Sea (Royal Entourage, Book 1) by Sophia Nash
Historical Romance published by Avon 28 Feb 12

Between the Duke and Deep Blue Sea is a wonderful kickoff to Sophia Nash’s new regency romance series. Alex Barclay, the newly minted Duke of Kress, barely gets to celebrate his good fortune before he finds himself penniless and exiled to his crumbling estate in the wilds of Cornwall to host a house party of eligible heiresses. Contrary to his orders from the Prince Regent, he’s strongly attracted to the unsuitable and very married Roxanne Vanderhaven, who joins his household after he rescues her from near death and drowning.

Roxanne is a commoner who was married for her fortune to the Earl of Paxton and elevated to the peerage. Gradually she is isolated from her family and the people she grew up with and becomes completely submissive to her husband until she is subjected to the final indignity where he tries to engineer her death. She wants to retaliate and finds an unlike ally in her efforts in Alex.  In a series of hilarious episodes, the two of them engage in pranks that prick her husband’s vanity and ambition until “I’ve grown weary of his uninspired villainy, if he cannot provide more sport,how long must I continue playing with a mouse who is already dead?”

Alex lives life on the surface, refusing to risk his heart after he lost his parents during the French revolution. He is determined to find a rich wife as commanded by the Prince and restore his crumbling estate to its former glory. Roxanne, however, breaks through all his defenses and he finds himself fighting a losing battle against his growing attraction to her.

As gold separates from the dross, Roxanne finds new and true friends amongst the ladies attending the house party. She finds love with Alex as he cajoles and flirts with her while giving her her self-esteem back. I found myself laughing aloud at some of the conversational dialogues between them and some of the things that they do to Roxanne’s husband.

There are a lot of interesting characters that are introduced in this book, and I am sure that some of them will have greater roles and may even be the center of some of the books to come in this series. This is a delightful, lighthearted romp and makes a great read. There are some interesting twists and turns to the plot, but all comes together nicely in the end with the help of new and old friends. I am looking forward to the mysteriously disappearing Roman’s story next.

Grade: A+

Summary:

The morning after the most scandalous bachelor party of the century, the dukes of the royal entourage must face all of London’s fury . . . when not one of them can remember a thing.

Roxanne Vanderhaven always believed herself the perfect wife. But when her husband, the Earl of Paxton, leaves her clinging to the edge of a cliff, she’s forced to face the truth: she married a murderous blackguard. Her eventual rescuer, Alexander Barclay, Duke of Kress, is one of England’s most disreputable peers—a member of the notorious royal entourage, no less–and certainly the last man she can count on. Indeed, the Prince Regent himself exiled Barclay to Cornwall, and now, by decree, the dashing duke must seek a royal bride to regain favor and help quell the public’s fury against the excesses of the crown.

Roxanne desperately wants a new life—after she’s uncovered the cause of her husband’s despicable actions—and she finds herself drawn, most surprisingly, to her unlikely champion. The Duke of Kress may not be quite the scoundrel he appears…but if she gives him her heart, will Roxanne be making the same mistake twice?

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

LynneC’s review of The Fireman Who Loved Me (The Bachelor Firemen of San Gabriel, Book 1) by Jennifer Bernard
Contemporary Romance published by Avon 24 April 12

A small town romance featuring a reporter for a local TV station and a fireman from a station labelled the one with the hot bachelors. It should make for a cute romance, and on the whole it does. However, some distractions and deviations from the romance make it less than the hot romance promised in the blurb. In fact, it’s almost a case of false description, because the hot sex is a long time coming, and when it arrives, it’s on the vanilla side.

On the other hand, it’s quite a cute read, and worth picking up. I’m not sure who decided to sell it as a hot romance, but I don’t think they were doing the book justice, because while it doesn’t deliver on the erotic front, there are other enjoyable parts of the book.

Melissa is a producer for a local news program being upstaged by an airhead presenter. The presenter is a standard bimbo type who shows up in many, many romances and is increasingly uninteresting. She’s shallow, egotistical, and only there to present a foil and a conflict for the main female character. More effort put into that part of the story might have increased the interest there, and I might not have been tempted to skip those parts, since the outcome is as predictable as sunrise.

Melissa has a grandmother who is determined to see her married off. To that end, she puts her savings into a bachelor auction and buys Ryan, a hunky fireman, for an astronomical sum. But Ryan is hot, so Granny wants him for her granddaughter. Of course, all she has to do is put them together. When Ryan chickens out, after thinking his date is with Granny, and he’d never hear the last of it, his boss, fire captain Brody, steps in. And he ends up with Melissa.

To be honest, I’d have shoved Granny in the lake years before, not put up with her indulgently. Granny is cute as the old person who pushes into line at the supermarket, yelling, “Let me in, I’m eighty.” It’s one thing to allow someone into line, it’s another when they push their way in. Granny, aka Nelly, is like that. She’s clueless, she makes her presence known, and she’s as subtle as a sledgehammer. She isn’t cute or feisty, she’s the most annoying character in the book. She’s a caricature.

In fact, that’s my problem with most of the secondary characters in the book. They are less characters, more types, and you could pick out the ones meant for sequels, because more thought is put into them, although it’s of the “give this person three basic characteristics and take it from there” type.

What’s worse is that the secondary characters eat into the time Brody and Melissa have together. The book isn’t focused enough on the romance, and it doesn’t develop so much as lurch from incident to incident. We get Nelly’s point of view when we want Melissa, we get shenanigans at the TV station when we want to know what Brody thinks of his last encounter with Melissa.

The whole setup is so cute, my teeth are starting to ache. A fire station full of hot men, apart from one with a big belly, and two women we never really get to meet. They cook, they have an enlightened attitude to the opposite sex, they are great firefighters. A small town with no serious problems.

I kept reading, and unfortunately, it doesn’t improve a great deal. In fact, more characters and a distracting plot development detract even more from the romance. The trouble is, I don’t care about the other parts. The characters are sketchily done and the plot doesn’t have much to do with the romance. I couldn’t get interested, and had I not been reading this book for review, I’d have put it down at that point. Gently, and with regret, but down.

While this book doesn’t do it for me, I’ll keep an eye on Ms. Bernard to see what else she comes up with.

Grade: C-

Summary:

Fearless, smoking hot, and single: meet the Bachelor Firemen of San Gabriel. These firemen might be heroes, but it’s their bad luck in love that makes them legendary.

News producer Melissa McGuire and Fire Captain Harry Brody couldn’t be more different, though they do have one thing in common: they’re both convinced they’re perfectly wrong for each other. But when Melissa’s matchmaking grandmother wins her a date with Brody at a bachelor auction…

Sparks fly. Passion flares. Heat rises. (You get the picture.)

Add a curse, a conniving nightly news anchor, a stunningly handsome daredevil fireman, a brave little boy, a couple of exes, and one giant fire to the mix, and Melissa and Brody’s love may not be the only thing that burns.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

C2’s review of Crazy On You (Lovett, Texas, Book 2) by Rachel Gibson
Contemporary Romance ebook novella published by Avon Impulse 1 May 12

Can a woman determined to be responsible unbend enough to have a fling with the new, cute next-door neighbor?  And what happens if the fling turns out to be more?

Lily Darlington led an interesting life when she was younger but finally, at 38, she has put “Crazy Lily” behind her.  Now Lily is a homeowner, successful business owner, and single mom.  The last thing she needs is to get involved with the exceptionally hot, younger man who just moved in next door.

Tucker Matthews is relatively new to Lovett, Texas.  After serving ten years in the Army, Tucker left and began a law enforcement career and just started working for the county Sheriff’s Department.  After Tucker pulls Lily over for erratic driving (darn those cell phones!), he realizes she is his neighbor and is intrigued. And when her son Pippen’s bouncing basketball keeps him from sleeping (again), Tucker goes next door to negotiate with him – and gets another chance to talk to Lily – who doesn’t recognize him out of uniform.  Heh.

Lily is resistant to starting a relationship with anyone.  She has just gotten her life on track and doesn’t want to give the town reason to start reminiscing about Crazy Lily.  But Tucker is determined…and hot. Soon Lily agrees to a fling if Tucker doesn’t tell anyone.  He doesn’t understand what the big deal is but agrees. Soon, though, the sneaking around begins to bother him – is she ashamed of him?  What does it matter what other people think?  Finally, he tells Lily she has to decide whether she cares enough to go public or is she ready for the relationship, such as it is, to be over.  What’s a formerly crazy chick supposed to do?  Is it more mature to let the opinions of others rule your life?  Or should you be allowed to reach out and grab something potentially wonderful?

Crazy On You is an enjoyable read, but it feels very much like what it is – a bridge between Daisy’s Back in Town (Lily’s sister’s story) and Ms. Gibson’s next full-length release, Rescue Me (we very briefly meet the heroine).  It is a bit formulaic and feels like something I’ve read before, but, if you enjoy Ms. Gibson’s writing, you should enjoy the book – and it’s a bargain at $1.99. So if you’ve never tried this author…go for it!  I doubt it is necessary to read Crazy On You to read Rescue Me, but I can’t say for sure because I haven’t read it yet.

Grade: C+

Summary:Lily Darlington’s been called crazy in her day—and, yeah, driving her car into her ex-husband’s living room probably wasn’t the smartest move ever made—but the louse deserved it. Now Lily is happily single, and she’s turned it all around. She knows she’s a good mom, a homeowner, and a businesswoman, all wrapped up in one good-looking package.

A package that police officer Tucker Matthews is dying to unwrap. This ex-military man sure doesn’t need another woman in his life. His last girlfriend left him with nothing but memories and a cat named Pinky! But living next door to Lily has been driving him nuts. He dreams about her long blonde hair and even longer legs. And maybe it’s time to go a little crazy . . . and fall in love.

Read an excerpt.

Connected books:

Ash’s review of Bedeviled (Dark Breed Series, Book 2) by Sable Grace
Paranormal Romance published by Avon 27 Dec 11

I think that this is one series that I am going to be giving up on. I dislike Kyana even more, and now Ryker looks like an idiot for loving her. The story bored me and I just wanted it to be over.

Kyana hasn’t changed a bit. She is still uncaring, stubborn, and selfish. She is unwilling to give anything more than her body to Ryker, right up until the end, and still then it’s more of a “we’ll see what happens.” He tells her he loves her and he wants more, and she uses sex to distract him. I’m honestly disgusted with him for letting her get away with it. Ryker is a good guy, and he could be a great hero, except his major flaw is loving Kyana. There isn’t a single thing I like about her, which is a problem since she is a main character.

The plot involving Haven being possessed by Cronus could work, if it’s done better and not dragged out. The whole book is Haven and Kyana fight, Kyana loses and Haven gets away or Haven tricks her, takes what she wants, and then gets away. It feels like we are running in a big circle. By the last third of the book, I was tired of it. I feel no emotion at Haven’s ordeal, and I don’t feel any from Kyana either. She tells us she has to save Haven, because they are like sisters, but we aren’t shown how much she cares. Kyana doesn’t appear to care about anything, so I didn’t care about anything.

I have hoped this series would turn into something really good, and I’m sad that I was wrong. It’s just not for me, and there are too many great books out there for me to struggle through the bad.

Grade: D

Summary:

She has done the unthinkable—turned her best friend into a dark breed: part Vampyre, Lychen and Witch . . .

Kyana thought only to save her friend’s life when she fed Haven her blood; instead, she created a monster. Now the woman she thought of as a sister is under the spell of an ancient, vengeful god, determined to set him free and wreak havoc on the mortal world . . . and only Kyana can stop her.

But time is running out. In just seven days, Kyana’s Vampyre and Lychen abilities will be gone and she’ll be completely transformed into the Goddess of the Hunt—and her blood ties to Haven will be severed. By her side is Ryker—ally, demigod, lover— who will sacrifice everything to keep Kyana safe . . . even the attraction that burns between them. Together they have one chance to save Haven from herself . . . to save humanity from hell on earth.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

C2’s review of Confessions from an Arranged Marriage (Burgundy Club, Book 4) by Miranda Neville
Historical Romance published by Avon 27 Mar 12

What began as a drunken prank on a friend ended up being a scandalous encounter.  So what happens when a young lady with political aspirations gets caught in a compromising position with a gentleman with no aspirations at all?  Miranda Neville shows us in her latest release, Confessions from an Arranged Marriage.

The Marquis of Blakeney (Blake to his intimates) is back in London after spending the last few years at his family’s country seat.  His father, the Duke of Hampton, thought it was because Blake was interested in his future duties as duke, finally.  Actually, it was because a “friend” signed a large IOU in his name.  Blake had to take care of the debt or his Secret would be revealed.  At a ball, Blake thought he was teasing a flirtatious duchess awaiting a tryst.  In reality, Blake compromised the very serious Miss Minerva Montrose – while she was recuperating from a migraine, no less.  And he was caught by a crowd of important members of the ton…including his mother.  Of course, they must marry – and it is decided it must look like a love match to save face.

An aside – I read two books back-to-back with heroines named Minerva and both of them had older sisters named Diana. So odd. Onward…

Minerva has always been interested in politics.  She is a Reformer and wants to marry a gentleman with political leanings so she can guide his career and influence the future of the nation.  Waking up from a nap with Blake’s head under her skirts certainly took care of those ambitions.  Although the Dukes of Hampton have always played a large role in political matters, no one really expects Blake to do so. Minerva and most of her friends (and also the duke and duchess) think Blake is stupid and much more interested in horses and hunting than anything to do with government.  Minerva remains somewhat hopeful that she will have some political part to play after she becomes part of the Vanderlin family but soon realizes how unlikely that will happen.

During their wedding trip to France, Blake receives word that his father is extremely ill and he and Minerva rush back to England. The duke’s illness worsens and he passes away – leaving Blake the head of the family – and all the power that includes, whether he likes it or not.

When a man who has made a point of being irresponsible is suddenly saddled with more responsibilities than he ever wanted, what happens? Blake will need help and people he can trust around him, but he has a secret that could bring his world down around his ears. Can he learn to trust the wife his drunken prank landed him? Or will his family’s reputation be lost?

Both lead characters mature a great deal over the course of the book – Blake, because he has to, after he inherits the dukedom. He had already started down the road to maturity after landing in debt, but who knows what might have happened if his father had lived? Minerva starts out very young…and very focused on her interests and not much else. Earnest youngsters make my head hurt sometimes, by the way. Anyhoo, she does finally start to grow up after she sees that the world she so wanted to be part of isn’t quite as she imagined. For me, both lead characters (and many supporting characters) start off mostly unlikeable. Blake grows on me but Minerva doesn’t.

This is the first book I’ve read by Ms. Neville and, while I liked it, I think reading the previous books in the series would have increased my enjoyment. There are relationships and situations carried over from earlier books that left me out of the loop a bit. Will I go back and read the earlier books? Probably not.

Also, I’ll admit I have no love for (and very little interest in) politics of any sort – kind of like poor Blake, actually. He resolves himself to his situation and makes the best of it…I’m not sure I manage that as well as he does. And a secret similar to Blake’s is handled much better in Courtney Milan’s Unveiled – a most excellent read, says me.

If you have read and enjoyed Ms. Neville’s previous books, I am confident you will enjoy this one too. If you are new to this author and are interested in trying her books, I recommend starting at the beginning of the series.

Grade: C+

Summary:

They couldn’t be more different, but there’s one thing they agree on.

In London after a two-year exile, Lord Blakeney plans to cut a swathe through the bedchambers of the demimonde. Marriage is not on his agenda, especially to an annoying chit like Minerva Montrose, with her superior attitude and a tendency to get into trouble. And certainly the last man Minerva wants is Blake, a careless wastrel without a thought in his handsome head.

The heat and noise of her debutante ball give Minerva a migraine. Surely a moment’s rest could do no harm … until Blake mistakes her for another lady, leaving Minerva’s guests to catch them in a very compromising position. To her horror, the scandal will force them to do the unthinkable: marry. Their mutual loathing blazes into unexpected passion but Blake remains distant, desperate to hide a shameful secret. Minerva’s never been a woman to take things lying down, and she’ll let nothing stop her from winning his trust … and his heart.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in the series:

C2’s review of A Week to be Wicked (Spindle Cove, Book 2) by Tessa Dare
Historical Romance published by Avon 27 Mar 12

What do an insomniac viscount, a bluestocking geologist, and a dinosaur named Francine all have in common?  In Tessa Dare’s newest Spindle Cove book, we find out.

Colin Sandhurst, Lord Payne, is not a good sleeper.  Ever since a childhood trauma, he has been plagued by nightmares.  The only thing that helps him get a good night’s sleep is company in bed – a practice he has embraced with vigor.  Heh.  Colin is in Spindle Cove to assist his cousin, the commander of the local militia, while he waits for his inheritance.  The funds won’t release until his next birthday OR until he marries – so he is living in the country.  Waiting.

Miss Minerva Highwood is a bluestocking.  She is much more interested in science than in flirting with the locals in Spindle Cove.  She and her family came to the area because her sister Diana’s health needed improving and taking in the sea air was recommended.  Diana, it seems, caught the eye of the dashing Lord Payne, but Minerva does not approve of him – especially for her sister.  He is a flirt and a rake and a scoundrel – and he can’t even be bothered to remember Minerva’s name!  But Minerva needs his help…

Minerva is a geologist.  Since she came to Spindle Cove, she has been studying the fossils along the coast.  When she found an exceptionally well-preserved footprint of a very large lizard (in a hidden cave, no less), she knew it could change the way science looked at the past.  So she needs to get to a symposium in Edinburgh to present her findings.  However, she realizes she would never actually be able to speak before the attendees, because she’s a woman.  But the most important thing to Minerva is getting the information out to the people who need to know, so she needs someone to help her get to Scotland and present her paper for her.  Since she knows Colin is short of funds, she figures she can bribe him.  Colin proves less bribe-able than Minerva thinks, but, after he sees she is going to Edinburgh with or without him, he agrees to accompany her.  His one condition – she has to share his bed.

I tend to enjoy on-the-road books and this one is not an exception. All the forced intimacies and close quarters – no chaperones! – lead to all sorts of interesting developments.  Poor Colin and Minerva had the road trip from hell – pretty much everything that could go wrong did, but they keep trying.  Long after most people would have given up and gone home, Colin wants to Get Minerva to Edinburgh.  So sweet! (And he finally remembers her name, too.)

I haven’t read the first Spindle Cove book, yet (darn it).  I plan to, because I have so enjoyed those I have read.  So, yes, this book stands alone pretty well, I think.  I didn’t feel lost or like I was missing out on subtext because I didn’t know the backstory.  If you are looking for a sweet, fun read filled with on-the-road adventures (and science!), I urge you to check out A Week to be Wicked.  I’ve never read a Tessa Dare book I didn’t thoroughly enjoy.  If you haven’t tried her books, this is an excellent one to test out and get a flavor of her writing. Like I said about Colin, it’s so sweet.

Grade: A

Summary:

When a devilish lord and a bluestocking set off on the road to ruin…
Time is not on their side.

Minerva Highwood, one of Spindle Cove’s confirmed spinsters, needs to be in Scotland.
Colin Sandhurst, Lord Payne, a rake of the first order, needs to be… anywhere but Spindle Cove.

These unlikely partners have one week
to fake an elopement
to convince family and friends they’re in “love”
to outrun armed robbers
to survive their worst nightmares
to travel four hundred miles without killing each other
All while sharing a very small carriage by day and an even smaller bed by night.

What they don’t have time for is their growing attraction. Much less wild passion. And heaven forbid they spend precious hours baring their hearts and souls.

Suddenly one week seems like exactly enough time to find a world of trouble.
And maybe…just maybe…love.

Read an excerpt (scroll down).

Other books in the series:

Sandy M’s review of The Cowboy Takes a Bride by Lori Wilde
Contemporary Western Romance published by Avon 27 Mar 12

What a delightful book this is. It’s also my first Lori Wilde read, and the fact she writes sexy, sensual, and fun cowboys makes it that much more enjoyable.

The opening scene sets the tone for the book, and what a riot it is. Mariah Callahan has made her way to Jubilee, Texas, to find out what her recently deceased father has left her in his will. Her plan is to get rid of it all and then hightail back to her life in Chicago. A life that has fallen apart and needs desperate mending. When her boss should have backed her up during a sexual harassment incident, she fired Mariah instead. So now Mariah hopes to make her dream of opening her own wedding planning business finally come true. But first she has to deal with the backlash of a father who loved his cutting horses more than he ever loved his daughter.

When she arrives at the ranch, she finds a cowboy – one good-looking, sexy thing – naked in a horse trough. How to take care of this situation? And the banter between them is just hilarious. I think this is the earliest I’ve ever laughed out loud reading a book. Joe is expecting Mariah. This is the daughter who didn’t give a shit about his best friend, her dad. Joe has gone through horrible loss in the last few years, including losing Dutch just weeks before. Thus his bender of last night, ending with his “bath” in that gold-plated trough. I have to share part of that conversation with you.

“I’m calling the cops,” she threatened, pulling her cell phone from her purse.

“Are you always this friendly?”

“Whenever I find a naked cowboy in my gold-plated horse trough I am. I’m pretty sure there’s laws against public nudity, even in this backwater place.”

“First off, I’m not naked,” he said.

She couldn’t stop herself from raking a gaze over his amazing body. “You look naked.”

“Appearances can be deceiving. For instance, you look stuck-up.”

“Sometimes appearances can be deceiving, but on the whole, I’ve found that generally what you see is what you get.”

“So you’re saying you are stuck-up?”

“I’m saying you look like a drunken derelict.”

“Hungover derelict,” he corrected. “I’m not drunk anymore.”

“Excuse me for missing the distinction. I’m sure your mother is so proud.”

“I have underwear on,” he offered.

“How comforting.” As if a little strip of soaking wet cotton cloth hid anything. Why she should find that even more tantalizing than full nudity, she had no clue, but she did.

And that bothered her, a lot.

“Secondly, this isn’t public,” the cowboy continued. It’s private property.”

“I know,” she said. Had she driven down a rabbit hole when she wasn’t looking and ended up in Wonderland? She half expected to see the White Rabbit pop up at any moment, muttering about being late. “My property.”

“Thirdly, it’s not your horse trough.” Her finger hovered over the keypad. Should she call the cops? By challenging him, was she making things worse? Maybe she should just walk away and let him get out of the horse trough at his own pace…

There’s some banter about the sheriff’s deputy just pulling up being a woman, and then they get back to the fact Mariah is upset because he’s in her horse trough, they’ve come full circle.

“It’s not your horse trough.”

“It is.”

“Nope, because it’s not your ranch.”

“It is and I can prove it.”

“It’s not and here’s the reason why. My name is Joe Daniels, this here is Green Ridge Ranch, and I have a sneaking suspicion you’re looking for Stone Creek.”

I actually should have stopped this scene after the appearances can be deceiving part, because that’s where I laughed the hardest, but until their relationship moves to the next level because of the heat between them, this all is the fun to be had whenever Joe and Mariah are together. Even after the tide turns for them, the banter turns too, becomes even more fun and intimate.

Mariah’s plans change a few times during her stay in Jubilee. First she wants out as fast as she can. She agrees to wait, though, a few months, until Christmas, when Joe enters his cutting horse in the local futurity. He knows he’ll win and he can pay her for the property. The amazing horse came from Dutch, in exchange for the Stone Creek Ranch. Then the longer Mariah stays, the more she gets to know the people, which you can’t help but do in small-town America, she begins to think maybe this life could be for her. Maybe her wedding planning business could work here. When she meets a couple of people to push her in that direction, she talks to the bank and gets her hopes up. But they’re dashed quite quickly when her history is revealed.

But this is where her relationship with Joe with becomes truly cemented in love. He offers to bring his men over to build her wedding chapel for her. And they get it built in no time. Mariah sees her dream coming to life before her eyes. Her barn is transformed into a reception hall. She even has a wedding to plan, and all goes off without a hitch. She’s well on her way now.

Interspersed in all of this is Joe’s feelings for his deceased wife. Theirs was a wild albeit short relationship, and he’s missed Becca terribly since her accident. The town also loved her to death. So every time Mariah comes up against Becca in Joe’s life, she takes a step back. Joe’s not ready for another relationship. There’s too much guilt, too much left-over love to deal with. He has to learn to let go, but when he tries it never works.

And there’s Mariah’s feelings for her father. The father she never really knew because he loved his horses more than he loved her. The father who left her and her mother behind years ago, who embarrassed her, who left her his ranch. At first she doesn’t understand how the people of Jubilee could love the man so much, but as she learns more about him, sees inside his heart, she begins to discover the person he was, and she’s sorry she missed knowing that man.

When disaster strikes, it strikes with a heavy hand. Both Joe and Mariah are hit, but it’s Mariah who loses the most. Which helps her make her decision to flee Jubilee in the end, along with other factors, of course.

We also get a side story with Joe’s sister-in-law, Ila, who has been in love with Joe for years, and Cordy, Joe’s right-hand man. Ila hasn’t given Cordy a second look because he’s shorter than she is, but he’s done with her ignoring him. He pulls out all the stops and makes her sit up and take notice, while also getting her to let Joe go. They’re a lot of fun.

The one thing I don’t like that much in the book are the parallels to Sleepless in Seattle. The references to it to help Joe with his feelings about being a widower are fine, but then it goes a little too far with the call-in show and all that follows, just like the movie. It really isn’t needed. The author does fine on her own, and I feel she would have kept doing fine with a true, straight course as she’d been doing all along. But all’s well that ends well, as they say.

This is a fun and funny read. The characters are charming, the folks next door, people you’d like to know. I like the slow-growing love between Joe and Mariah, despite their fears. I’m definitely going to be cracking open a few more Lori Wilde books.

Grade: A

Summary:

Welcome to Jubilee, Texas: where everyone knows everybody’s business—especially if that business is love!

Ex-champion bull rider turned cutting horse cowboy Joe Daniels isn’t quite sure how he ended up sleeping in a horse trough wearing nothing but this Stetson and cowboy boots. But now he’s wide-awake and a citified woman is glaring down at him. His goal? Get rid of her ASAP. The obstacle? Fighting the attraction he feels towards the blond-haired filly with the big, vulnerable eyes.

When out-of-work wedding planning Mariah Callahan learns that her estranged father has left her a rundown ranch in Jubilee, she has no choice but to accept it. Her goal? Redeem her career by planning local weddings. The obstacle? One emotionally wounded, hard-living cowboy who stirs her guilt, her heartstrings, and her long-buried cowgirl roots…

Read an excerpt.

Sandy M’s review of The Husband Hunt (Madison Sisters, Book 3) by Lynsay Sands
Historical Romance published by Avon 28 Feb 12

I’m not sure what happened between me and this trilogy. It started wonderfully, I loved the first book. Then things just kinda went…by the wayside.

Richard’s and Christiana’s story in The Countess was a fun comedy of errors, and while I wasn’t bowled over by Daniel’s and Suzette’s book, The Heiress, mostly because they didn’t get much of a story of their own, I still enjoyed that couple tremendously. Using the same timeline in that second book was a good idea, it just didn’t come out exactly as I had hoped. That leaves us here in this moment with The Husband Hunt.

First off, I think what’s needed is some type of encounter between Robert and Lisa in one of the previous books to pique the reader’s interest a tad more. I don’t find this couple as engaging as the others. Lisa has been in love with Robert for years. He’s a family friend and has been around the Madison sisters to help out whenever possible, especially after the recent passing of their father. However, he still looks upon Lisa as that little girl who adoringly followed him wherever he went. She’s decided things have to change, especially after her recent abduction by a local madam to sell Lisa to the Suitor, a nameless villain who wants to play dangerous and painful sexual games.

So the hunt is on for the Suitor, and Robert is taking on the role of Lisa’s protector, which only brings them into more and more contact with one another, causing sparks to fly – all in the wrong direction, as far as they’re concerned. If Robert won’t see her for the woman she now is, well, she’ll have to find someone who will. Thus begins another hunt, this one for a husband, Lisa scouring balls to find someone who may not cause desire and passion to course through her veins, but maybe a decent man who will bring a little pleasure to the marriage bed. And she’s not without a number of suitors, one of which is Charles Findlay, the front runner for Lisa. I have to say I do like the idea of Robert having to play bodyguard each and every time Lisa and Findlay go on a picnic or some such “date.” Especially once he begins to change his attitude in how he views Lisa. Suddenly she’s grown up and Robert is sweating it out when he thinks of some other man in possession of those curves and other womanly delights.

But Robert still refuses to give in. See, he has to contend with the Langley curse. Both his father and his grandfather were victims of the curse, their wives being unfaithful no matter how well they were cared for. Therefore, Robert just knows any woman he chooses will do the same to him. Even Lisa. He just has to sit back and wait for it to happen. As you can imagine, Lisa finds this horribly insulting and wants nothing to do with a man who won’t trust her before they even get started. Thinking the only way to make him come ’round is to marry him and show him how wrong he is, Lisa, with the help of her sisters, is set on a course to seduce Robert and eventually be caught in the act, thus forcing their union. However, when it comes right down to it, Lisa realizes she also doesn’t want a man who doesn’t come to her willingly. So her quandary continues.

In between all of this, there is still the Suitor to look out for, and he does strike again. And it’s this event, along with some sage advice from Richard, that makes Robert see how foolish he’s been. Now if he can only rescue Lisa before it’s too late. I kind of had an inkling about the villain early on, but I was never quite sure if I was right. You’re taken in a roundabout misdirection here and there so you don’t guess too soon. It’s chilling how quickly and how ugly the man turns when faced with a defiant Lisa.

While I did enjoy this book, along with Robert and Lisa – and I really like how Ms. Sands brings in the previous characters throughout the book without sacrificing the romance – I don’t feel the same about them as I do Richard and Christiana and even Daniel and Suzette. I wasn’t as intrigued by them, there wasn’t anything in the previous books to snag my interest as totally as it did with the others. I also don’t like all that much the Lisa we first meet in this story. She wants Robert to see her as a woman, but she still has the affect of a young girl. Now, she does realize that herself eventually and she takes steps to get rid of that image, and that’s when she becomes a more attractive character for me. It also takes a bit for Robert to grow on the reader. I think his hiding behind the family curse goes on too long and that irritated me for a while. But they both end up right where they should be, of course.

No one is more surprised than me at my only liking this trilogy and not loving it as I have every other Lynsay Sands book I’ve read. But it’s still enjoyable, and if you’ve not read it, by all means do.

Grade: B-

Summary:

Let the hunt begin…

Lisa Madison wants a husband, and she has just the candidate in mind: Robert Langley. Trouble is, the infuriating man insists on seeing her as the impish girl she once was—even as every other gentleman in London has taken notice of her womanly…charms. When her beauty lands her in danger, it’s Robert who comes to the rescue…only to announce his affections are not of the romantic variety!

Robert saw enough sorrow in his parents’ union to know he wants nothing to do with marriage, which is exactly what he’ll be trapped into if he acts on his desire for the irksome siren. And then Lisa does what Robert least expects: gives up on him! As feigned indifference gives way, blistering passion burns at last. But just before the pair can give in to hard-won bliss, an enemy with unfinished business lurks threatening to destroy them both.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

Sandy M’s review of She Tempts the Duke (Lost Lords of Pembrook, Book 1) by Lorraine Heath
Historical Romance published by Avon 31 Jan 12

Lorraine Heath never fails to pull every emotion under the sun out of me when I read her books. And when she does it all through her heroes is what brings me back to her books time after time. In her new Lost Lords of Pembrook series, we meet three brothers who have gone through hell to return home to regain what was stolen from them years before when they were just children. In this book, it’s the oldest brother, the Duke of Keswick, who starts the series off, bringing along guilt, responsibility, and, most amazing of all to him, love.

The Pembrook lords’ frightening plight begins when they are young boys who have been imprisoned by their uncle after their father’s mysterious and very convenient death. Knowing what’s probably in store for them, Sebastian, the oldest and, thus, the next duke, is working out how to escape when the door to the castle tower opens to give them their first view of their fate. But fate has decided to smile on them by sending their friend Mary, who overheard the evil plans laid out for the lads. Grabbing a handful of Pembrook soil, Sebastian and his brothers leave their lives behind, scatter into the wind, and vow to return in ten years to take back what is rightfully theirs. It takes two years more than that before they’re finally reunited.

Once they are back in London, all hardened men by the lives they had to lead to survive, each on their own because Sebastian believed they’d be better off separated, they make their grand entrance by crashing their uncle’s ball. What better way to make their claim and give society notice the Duke of Keswick is alive and well. However, because they’ve not mingled and entertained in their lost years with society as they normally would have, their reception is met with gasps and gossip. Luckily Mary is in attendance, and, though hurt by their lack of communication over the years, is the only one to welcome them home, to try to help them fit into a world they know nothing about.

Though Mary is betrothed, she helps Sebastian at every turn, taking the chance of ruining her reputation each time. But she can’t leave him to fend on his own, especially when people stare in horror at his scars received while serving his country during wartime. They’re friends and she can’t abandon him and his siblings to the voracious rumor mill that can leave them on the outside looking in. Knowing he can’t have her, and she wouldn’t want him anyway all scarred as he is, Sebastian valiantly tries to stay away from Mary, even tries to find someone else who would make a good duchess for him, but after too many meetings alone, Mary’s fiance calls off the engagement and it’s left to Sebastian to pick up the pieces of her reputation.

Sebastian is riddled with guilt and responsibility throughout this book, plus his need for revenge against his uncle also pulls at him. He tries to find out what happened to his brothers during their years apart, but neither of them is willing to talk about those times. He left Rafe, the youngest, at a workhouse and sold Tristan, his twin, into service on the seas. Rafe’s cries not to be left alone and Tristian’s stoic silence still weigh on him even after so many years. It’s Mary who soothes his soul, but even that is something he can’t call his own – until after marriage to her, something he dare not want. But as alluring she is in his bed after they are wed, his scars come between them – only because he allows it, because Mary has looked past his scars since the moment they came face to face again – and Pembrook and his need for revenge seem to be more important to him than his wife.

As she always does, Lorraine Heath pulls emotion from the reader from the beginning. The reunion of the brothers is a bittersweet but happy moment, and I wish we could have actually seen it instead of being told about it. Mary is in the middle of a dilemma of a lifetime, wanting to be the dutiful wife expected of her but needing to be the friend necessary to help the Pembrook lords. You can feel her frustration and indecision. You can see her love for Sebastian grow, knowing she doesn’t realize what’s happening. The time she spends with Sebastian when he’s ill is full of unrealized love. Sebastian’s obsession with tearing down the castle tower where he and his brothers were imprisoned are such heart-wrenching scenes. This book is full of such scenes.

I doubt there’s anything Lorraine Heath can’t do, as far as I’m concerned, when writing her books. Her talent is huge and nearly unsurpassed. I look forward to Tristan’s and Rafe’s stories, finding out what happened to them in those intervening years. More emotion to leave me high and dry. I can’t wait.

Grade: A+

Read [name of reviewer]‘s review here.

Summary:

Three young heirs, imprisoned by an unscrupulous uncle, escaped—to the sea, to the streets, to faraway battle—awaiting the day when they would return to reclaim their birthright.

Sebastian Easton always vowed he would avenge his stolen youth and title. Now back in London, the rightful Duke of Keswick—returning from battle a wounded, hardened, changed man—cannot forget the brave girl who once rescued him and his brothers from certain death.

Lady Mary Wynne-Jones paid dearly for helping the imprisoned young Lords of Pembrook, and she remembers well the promise she made to Sebastian all those years ago: to meet him once more in the abbey ruins where they shared a bold, forbidden kiss. While Mary is now betrothed to another, a friendship forged with dark secrets cannot be ignored. Unexpected passion soon burns dangerously between them, tempting Sebastian to abandon his quest for retribution and fight for a love that could once again set him free.

No excerpt available.

Other books in this series:

Lord of Temptation – October 2012

C2’s review of A Rogue by Any Other Name: The First Rule of Scoundrels (Rules of Scoundrels, Book 1) by Sarah MacLean
Historical Romance published by Avon 28 Feb 12

Scoundrels! Scandals! Gambling! A new series that combines all three? I am so there. In her new series, Sarah MacLean returns to Regency London and tells the stories of four lords who, for various reasons, have been cast out of good society. Will love help them put their scandalous pasts behind them?

Twenty-one year-old Michael Lawler, Marquess of Bourne, lost everything not entailed to his title – and very little was not part of the entail – on one turn of the cards. The engineer of this catastrophe, Viscount Langford, was the young marquess’s guardian..the very man who had managed the estate until Michael reached adulthood.

A decade later, Michael (now known only as Bourne) is a partner in one of London’s notorious gaming clubs – The Fallen Angel. He does not move in polite society or do anything marquess-y. Bourne has spent his time regaining the fortune he lost and awaiting vengeance. So when Michael receives word that the land surrounding his very small entailed estate no longer belongs to Langford and is now part of a dowry, he knows what he has to do.

Lady Penelope Marbury is very nearly on the shelf. After a broken engagement years before, Penelope’s status in the ton has steadily dropped – and she doesn’t really mind. Penelope wishes for a love match like the one her former fiancé found or a marriage that isn’t just for convenience, at least. However, Penelope’s unmarried state is beginning to affect her younger sisters’ chances at making a good match and her parents are not above forcing her to pick a suitor. Still, they aren’t cruel people…Penelope’s father recently won a large parcel of land form a neighbor – land that borders her family’s estate. That estate has been added to Penelope’s dowry in hopes it will renew interest in her and give her more choices when it comes to picking a husband.

Penelope and Michael grew up together. They, along with Thomas (son of Viscount Langford), were the best of friends until time and distance (and life) pulled them apart. Penelope and Thomas remained friends, actually. But Penelope always preferred Michael. In fact, even after he went off to school, they wrote to each other until someone decided it didn’t look right for a young lady and gentleman to correspond…and after that, too.

Penelope doesn’t quite know what to think about Michael’s land being added to her dowry. It is a wonderful estate and will certainly attract attention, but that isn’t what she wants. During a sleepless night, when she must get out of the house, Penelope walks through part of her new land. And who does she encounter in the dark? Michael!

Bourne has changed a lot from when they were children. Even though Penelope is friendly and tries to make him smile, he remains aloof. Penelope is hurt by Bourne’s continued coldness toward her – hurt enough to want to strike back at him. She tells him that he is on her land, that she is engaged and that she and her future husband plan to live there quite happily. Too late, Penelope realizes she might have pushed Michael too far.

Bourne takes Penelope to his abandoned house. He decides the easiest way to ensure a marriage – and get his land back – is to compromise her. After spending the night alone with him in an empty house, her father can hardly refuse his suit. After much arguing, Penelope sees she will not be able to talk Michael out of his nefarious plan and sets about negotiating the best outcome for her and her family. (An aside – the scene the following morning, when Penelope’s dad comes to find them? Funniest scene ever!)

Penelope and Bourne marry and begin to find a way to move forward in their lives. Deals are negotiated and wagers are made. But there are other scandals waiting in the wings. Scandals that will force Michael to decide between revenge and people he cares about.

Oh, faithful reader, I very much enjoyed this book. I always like watching a scoundrel come up against the person who makes him want to be better. And I also like it when a heroine that’s been floating along in life suddenly is forced awake and decides to take an active role in how her life goes. Michael encourages Penelope to push for what she wants…to take advantage of opportunities. And from the first, Penelope gets past the walls he has built up as Bourne and finds the parts of Michael that still exist. Also, the letters that open each chapter are a nice touch, I think. They give the reader a glimpse of Penelope and Michael before life happened to them.

I had no plans to read this book until the blurb caught my attention. My previous experiences with Ms. MacLean’s books have been mixed. I thought her first book was okay, but I could not get into the second book, so I never bothered to try the third (this book is loosely connected to that book, by the way). But I am so glad I decided to give it a try! And I am looking forward to the next book (I loves me some scoundrels, remember). I say the book stands alone just fine. However, if you remember “The Grape” from Ms. MacLean’s previous book and wonder how things turned out for her, here is your chance to find out. Otherwise, if you are looking for a book with heart and touches of humor, I encourage you to try this one. You won’t be sorry. Besides, don’t you want to know what the first rule is??

Grade: A-

Summary:What a scoundrel wants, a scoundrel gets. . .

A decade ago, the Marquess of Bourne was cast from society with nothing but his title. Now a partner in London’s most exclusive gaming hell, the cold, ruthless Bourne will do whatever it takes to regain his inheritance—including marrying perfect, proper Lady Penelope Marbury.
A broken engagement and years of disappointing courtships have left Penelope with little interest in a quiet, comfortable marriage, and a longing for something more. How lucky that her new husband has access to an unexplored world of pleasures.
Bourne may be a prince of London’s illicit underworld, but he vows to keep Penelope untouched by its wickedness—a challenge indeed as the lady discovers her own desires, and her willingness to wager anything for them . . . .even her heart.

Read an excerpt (scroll down).

Connected books:

C2’s review of A Town Called Valentine (Valentine Valley, Book 1) by Emma Cane
Contemporary Romance published by Avon 31 Jan 12

A new name to contemporary romance (but familiar to historical fans, under another name) begins a series set in a small western town called Valentine.  I do enjoy small-town settings, don’t you, faithful reader? Even though they are never anything like the small town I grew up in…no fictional small town will ever match that weirdness. Heh.  Onward!

Our heroine, Emily Murphy, is reeling from an unpleasant divorce.  She is trying to move forward with her life and will be attending Berkeley starting in the fall.  In the meantime, she has driven from San Francisco to Valentine Valley to sell a building she inherited from the grandmother she barely knew.  Emily arrives in town late on a rainy night, with not much money and a sickly car.  She manages to make it to the parking lot of a tavern and goes in for some dinner.  While Emily is there, she notices an attractive cowboy across the room.  They flirt for a bit and go into the backroom to play pool – where things get a bit hot and heavy.  Before things go too far, Emily calls a halt…she realizes she has had too much to drink and is groping a virtual stranger.

Nate Thalberg, local rancher and businessman, was enjoying the groping and would have been glad to continue.  However, he respects Emily’s wishes and lets her go…out to her car that won’t start.  When she comes back into the tavern to call a tow truck, Nate and Tony (the tavern owner) explain that no one will be available until the next day and there aren’t taxis either.  Nate offers to take her to a nearby motel, but Emily doesn’t have much money and asks to be taken to her building.  Instead, after showing her the inhabitable state the building is in, Nate takes her to the Widows’ Boardinghouse to stay until she can fix things up.

During her time in Valentine Valley, Emily works hard to improve her building (trashed by the previous tenants), becomes acquainted with the area, develops close friendships, becomes more confident in herself and her abilities, and is surprised to learn some new facts about her background.  She also gets closer to Nate – but not too close…Emily still plans to sell the building and go back to school.  A fling is all she has time for.  Right??

Nate is happy to fling.  He is a busy guy with lots of business interests and also helps run his family’s ranch – and is in charge of the upcoming rodeo.  After several relationships that ended badly after he took too active a role – being too helpful, allowing the other person to become too dependent – Nate likes to keep things casual.  And if it is more difficult than usual to be casual with Emily, well, she won’t be around long and then things will go back to normal.  Won’t they??

I enjoyed the town of Valentine and its residents…it feels very real and not just an afterthought setting.  Lots of interesting characters with potential for future stories – without super-obvious sequel baiting.  The widows are fun, especially.  The dialog is a bit odd in places…like, unusually formal.  It’s hard to explain or even to find an example. Somehow, in a contemporary romance, it’s a bit jarring sometimes because it seems awkward and keeps some scenes from flowing properly for me because I’m all “Who talks like that??” and re-writing dialog in my head (and I’m no writer).

”I’m selling the building and returning home to San Francisco.”

Emily is a bit confusing to me.  She says early on that she didn’t really enjoy college and didn’t mind quitting when she got married but is so determined to return to San Francisco and start classes at Berkeley…even though she admits she has no idea what she wants to study and isn’t sure what she wants to do.  Also, the fact that she refused financial support from her husband after their divorce seems unlikely – even if she didn’t want alimony or whatever – there should have been a split of assets and whatnot, I’m thinking, since California is a community property state (I am not a California resident nor am I a lawyer and I know this, so…). Why did she have no money??  Still, it is always nice to see a heroine who doesn’t sit back and expect people to do everything for her and Emily certainly is very active in moving forward with her life.  If she goes overboard in the opposite direction or is a bit narrow in her thinking and ignores some possibilities, well, she is coming out of a difficult time.

Ah Nate – it’s always nice to see a cowboy hero, right?  And I didn’t have a hard time believing he keeps things casual because of his past relationships.  His relationship with his family is fun (even when they’re fighting) and believable.  And Nate tries really hard to not help Emily too much, even if his natural inclination is to help and help and help. Still, the relationship feels a bit awkward.

Overall, I enjoyed A Town Called Valentine and look forward to the next installment.  Certainly, the positives outweigh the negatives.  If you enjoy small-town settings or are looking for a modern western setting, this book might be just the thing.

Grade: C

Summary:

Emily Murphy never thought she’d return to her mom’s rustic hometown in the Colorado Mountains. But after her marriage in San Francisco falls apart, leaving her penniless and heartsick, she returns to her old family home to find a new direction for her life. On her first night back, though, a steamy encounter with handsome rancher Nate Thalberg is not the fresh start she had in mind…

Nate has good reason not to trust the determined beauty who just waltzed into town–he’s no stranger to betrayal. Besides, she’s only there to sell her family’s old property and move back out. But as Nate and Emily begin working side-by-side to restore her time-worn building and old family secrets change Emily’s perception of herself, both are about to learn how difficult it is to hide from love in a place known far and wide for romance, family ties, and happily-ever-afters: a town called Valentine.

Read an excerpt (scroll down a bit).

LynneC’s review of Reckless Night (Dangerous Trilogy, Book 3.5) by Lisa Marie Rice
Contemporary Romance ebook novella published by Avon 29 Nov 11

This story is an epilogue to a book by Rice, something I didn’t realize when I started to read it. It reads well as a standalone, and Rice is a competent storyteller, but I thought the story really needed to be in context to its novel.

Viktor (“Drake”) Drakovich and his wife Grace are living under new names and a new location. As far as the world is concerned, Drake died when his office complex exploded, but with a bit of plastic surgery and a lot of money, he’s been able to start his new life.

Grace gives Drake beautiful gifts that she’s made herself. Exquisite gifts, and her latest is a painting of his hand in front of a vase of flowers. This is described so beautifully that I wanted to see the painting, not just read about it. Strange how most artists in romance novels concentrate on traditional techniques and figurative images, but at least this painting sounds like an interesting one. I’ve read about paintings in romance novels that I’ve been glad I couldn’t see, the gaudy, sentimental kind of painting that I would gladly see on the top of a bonfire, but in few other places. Not so here. Grace does sound like a woman happy with her talent, capable of creating beautiful paintings and craft items and who loves her husband. I didn’t read that Grace was unhappy in her new life or that she regretted changing her lifestyle so drastically. That’s Drake, feeling guilty about dragging her away, not Grace.

Since this story is so short, it’s hard to discuss it without spoilers. Suffice it to say that Drake plans a surprise for her that goes somewhat awry, and the end of the story we’re wondering – what? Why? I’d have been much happier had the story ended with Grace and Drake learning to live their new life. The ending read like an intrusion, something that shouldn’t be there, that turns the whole situation on its head and means that they are left in the same slightly unsatisfactory position that they had at the beginning. There’s no progression, although there are moves towards it, and then something happens to stop it.

I do like Grace and Drake, and I can see where Rice is going with the main story. Drake is immensely wealthy, was an arms dealer with more money than he can count, and used to be surrounded by security stronger than any President. Grace is a free spirit, an artist who enjoys walks and her more relaxed lifestyle. The initial story must have been interesting, but now I’ve read the outcome, I can’t say I want to read it, because Drake and Grace are in a limbo of their own making, a well-protected beautiful island where they must exist, rather than progressing and getting on with their lives. Without that shock ending (don’t worry, it’s a romance, she doesn’t commit the ultimate sin of killing off her main characters!), it would have been more satisfactory and would have made for a happier ending. As it is, we’re left wondering – so what happens now?

My other problem is that half this book is a lengthy extract from the main book, the one I no longer want to read. I do think this story spoiled the main one for me. The story is 30 pages long, so there’s another 30 pages of extract and adverts. If you buy this book on Kindle, it’s currently $3.16, but if you buy it on B & N, it’s $0.99 – I don’t know why there’s a difference or why Amazon has allowed it, but I know which price I’d rather pay. Too expensive at $3.16, fine at $0.99

Note: While I do share a publisher with Lisa Marie Rice, this book isn’t published by our mutual publisher, and Lisa Marie is not a special friend, so I felt it was fine to review this.

Grade: D

Summary:

What do you give your beautiful wife when you’ve got all the money in the world but can’t spend it?
Victor “Drake” Drakovitch used to run a criminal empire, but he gave it all up for the woman he loves. Grace, an accomplished artist, abandoned the life she knew in order to be with the one man she could never live without.
Exiled to an island far from their former lives, the two stay safe from the watchful eyes of Drake’s many enemies. This Christmas, Drake wants to show Grace how much her sacrifice means. But what can he give a woman who shuns gold jewelry and diamonds, furs and expensive cars? Grace doesn’t want fancy things; she wants what Drake can give her—unquestioning devotion, fierce protection… and the best sex a woman has ever had.
Until terror strikes and Grace realizes that the best gift of all is a dangerous husband.

Read an excerpt.

C2’s review of She Tempts the Duke (Lost Lords of Pembrook, Book 1) by Lorraine Heath
Historical Romance published by Avon 31 Jan 12

In her new series, Lorraine Heath tell the stories of the Lost Lords of Pembrook – three boys who ran away from their scheming uncle.  They escaped a locked tower (with some help from a friend) and fled into the night, promising to return for retribution when they were adults.  One went to the army, one went to sea, and one was left in a workhouse.  The boys decided it would be best for them to run away until they were older and better able to fight their uncle.  They made plans to reunite in ten years but they didn’t manage.  Now they have returned…

Sebastian, the oldest (and new Duke of Keswick), and his twin brother, Tristan, were fourteen and their younger brother, Rafe, was ten when their father (a skilled horseman) was killed in a riding accident.  Their father’s brother locked then in a tower on the family estate, but after Mary (also fourteen and from the neighboring estate) overheard him give orders to kill the boys, she went looking for them and managed to break them out of the tower. While the boys were fleeing, Mary told her (remarkably ineffectual) father what she heard – even though Sebastian said not to tell anyone – and was sent to a nunnery for her trouble.

Fast forward a dozen years – Mary is finally having a Season, thanks to her aunt rescuing her from the nunnery.  She has recently been betrothed, even.  Imagine her surprise when, after years of hearing nothing from them, the lost lords of Pembrook arrive at a ball given by their uncle.  The brothers have come to reclaim their inheritance and assume their rightful places in society.  Society, however, is less than welcoming.  The ton doesn’t like the looks of these uncivilized young men.  But the brothers continue with their plans – they throw their uncle out of the family home and cut off his money and try to find their way in society.  But scandal continues to plague them.  And Mary’s unwavering support of them turns society’s suspicious eyes on her.  Her friends want to know more about the brothers, her fiancé wants her to stay away from them, and Mary just wants Sebastian. Even though Sebastian thinks she deserves so much better.
Sebastian was horribly injured during his time in the army.  He lost an eye and has terrible scars over most of one side of this body.  How could any woman stand to be with him?  And yet Mary doesn’t seem to mind at all.  She was his best friend when they were children and knew him better than anyone, except maybe Tristan.  Could it really be that the scars don’t matter to her?

After rumors blemish Mary’s reputation and her betrothed’s father forces him to withdraw his suit, the brothers know one of them must step up and marry her – both to save her reputation and to thank her for all she has done for them.  And Sebastian knows he could never let one of his brothers marry her.  But does he care for her the way she needs him to?  Or is he only grateful for her help to him and his brothers?  Is he even capable of loving anyone now or has his time away taken that from him?  Is Pembrook all that matters or does Mary still hold part of his heart?

A lot of Sebastian and Mary’s story was set up for the next two books, I think.  There was a lot of information to pass along to the reader.  Still, I always enjoy Ms. Heath’s books.  She has a way of drawing the reader into both the emotional side of the story and the intrigues that tend to surround her characters.  This series is loosely tied to her Scoundrels of St. James series.  It is not necessary to read those books before reading this one but, if you have read them, you will run across some familiar names.  I like it when an author stays consistent within the world he/she has created – it makes it seem more real.

If you are in the mood for a solid historical and a story arc that promises to continue to intrigue, look no further.  I am already anticipating the other two books.

Grade: B

Summary:

Three young heirs, imprisoned by an unscrupulous uncle, escaped—to the sea, to the streets, to faraway battle—awaiting the day when they would return to reclaim their birthright.

Sebastian Easton always vowed he would avenge his stolen youth and title. Now back in London, the rightful Duke of Keswick—returning from battle a wounded, hardened, changed man—cannot forget the brave girl who once rescued him and his brothers from certain death.

Lady Mary Wynne-Jones paid dearly for helping the imprisoned young Lords of Pembrook, and she remembers well the promise she made to Sebastian all those years ago: to meet him once more in the abbey ruins where they shared a bold, forbidden kiss. While Mary is now betrothed to another, a friendship forged with dark secrets cannot be ignored. Unexpected passion soon burns dangerously between them, tempting Sebastian to abandon his quest for retribution and fight for a love that could once again set him free.

No excerpt available.

Other books in this series:

Lord of Temptation – October 2012

LynneC’s review of Beyond The Darkness (Offspring Series, Book 5) by Jaime Rush
Paranormal Romance published by Avon 29 Nov 11

Petra is a girly-girl. She likes the Wizard of Oz, American Idol, and she’s training to be a beautician (called an esthetician here. Is there a difference? Pardon my ignorance!) In a previous entry in the series, she met and fell for Cheveyo , a part native American, part alien/paranormal being whose job is to chase down and capture the baddies that slip through the gaps between worlds. He is also in love with Petra, although she doesn’t know it. Cheveyo is a jaguar shapeshifter, which is pretty sexy all on its own.

At the beginning of the story, Pope, who was instrumental in saving Petra’s life in a previous book, needs help. He’s a renegade, and Cheveyo offers to help hide him until he’s used to our world and doesn’t need help anymore. But this puts Petra into danger. Two hunters from the other world are after him and they track him to her. Cheveyo wants Petra and she wants him, but Cheveyo is in psychic contact with his dead father Wayne (Wayne? Really? I kept seeing Wayne Rooney in my mind). Wayne pushes Cheveyo to keep up the good work, and he knows he has to, but he also knows he can’t bring Petra into his world. Pretty girly-girls don’t belong.

That’s about it, really, and hooray, I say. So many paranormal romances have pages and pages of rules and strange names you have to get used to. Not with this one. There are few odd words, and the ones that were there were explained adequately, so they didn’t wreck the flow of the story.

This isn’t a masterpiece, it isn’t a mind-blowing experience. What it is, is a damn good read. I had fun with this book. It’s a road book for a great part, with the baddies chasing our heroes and heroine, and the white-hats sometimes turning the tables. They drive through some wonderful scenery which is well evoked, and Cheveyo doesn’t live in a great big, dirty house with a bunch of comrades. He’s a loner, although he knows he’s not alone in his fight.

I like both hero and heroine in this book. At first, Petra seems like a bit of an airhead, but even at the beginning, there are touches that snagged my interest and made me want to leave on. Later, she gets more proactive and learns how to defend herself. And Cheveyo helps her, instead of automatically labeling her a weak woman to be protected. I like that, too, and that Petra doesn’t become an awesome warrior in leather boots and corset overnight. Or at all, come to that.

The sex is enough, although the long lead-up is a bit frustrating at times. There is a particularly disgusting villain and without going into spoiler territory, at one point I thought it’s going into unacceptable territory, but the scene turns around and it works out much better than I’d feared. Which, after all, is a writer’s job. I’m sorry to miss the falling in love part, and, in this instance, the book let me down. By the time I joined in the fun, that part was a done deal, and I wanted a bit more courtship and maybe a tad less yearning.

Cheveyo is stubborn and his insistence on Petra not staying with him gets a little bit annoying, especially after Las Vegas. But that apart, I like him. He respects her as a person, enjoys the touches of femininity she brings to him and his life. He listens to her, even though he might disagree with her. So, yes, for an enjoyable read, I can definitely recommend this one, and I will be looking for the others in the series now.

Grade: B

Summary:

They live ordinary lives, but they are extraordinary. They are the Offspring, children of a mysterious experiment gone awry—and they are in terrible danger.

Cheveyo: a name that stirs Petra like no other, reviving deep feelings of pleasure . . . and pain. Despite her rare psychic gifts, the beautiful half-human Offspring doesn’t know why the magnificent shapeshifter walked out of her life when the bond they shared was powerful . . . and intensely passionate.

But Cheveyo is not gone. From the shadows, he watches over his beloved, determined that the malevolent enemies he hunts with fang and claw will not invade her world. But now, suddenly, the stakes are getting higher—as an insidious evil plots the destruction of Petra’s race. Cheveyo can remain hidden no longer from the lover who completes him but could destroy him . . . if his own inner darkness doesn’t destroy her first.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

C2’s review of The Duke is Mine (Fairy Tales, Book 3) by Eloisa James
Historical Romance published by Avon 27 Dec 11

In her newest release, Eloisa James tackles another well known fairytale. She has already given us her twist on Cinderella and Beauty and the Beast. This time around? The Princess and the Pea.

Thanks to a schoolboy friendship between her father and the Duke of Canterwick, Miss Olivia Lytton has been betrothed to the future duke since she was a toddler.  The older of twin girls, Olivia has been raised to be a duchess – educated in all things duchess-y, always treated as an engaged young lady, and given quiet sympathetic glances. Why sympathy when being engaged to a future duke is all some girls dream of?  Well, those girls aren’t engaged to Rupert.

Rupert, for all that he will someday inherit a dukedom, is not the brightest of bulbs.  He is younger than Olivia, shows no particular interest in her or any young lady, is not a graceful creature nor is he particularly well-spoken.  He is also stubborn – once he latches onto an idea, it is almost impossible to get him to let go. However, he is good natured and friendly, so things could be worse.

Olivia, her mother despairs, is the least duchess-like future duchess ever.  She likes bawdy jokes, she is plump, she is outspoken and loves to laugh.  Why she can’t be more like her (younger by several minutes) twin sister, Georgiana, is an often-asked question.  The girls were raised and educated together, so why is Georgiana the epitome of all things duchess-y while Olivia is…not?  It is a good thing, Mr. and Mrs. Lytton agree, that Olivia did not actually have to catch a duke on her own merit.

When Rupert decides he is going to bring glory to the family name through beats of military greatness, there is no way to dissuade him. Before he leaves, Rupert and his father visit the Lyttons to formalize the betrothal – and to give Rupert and Olivia some alone time.  The duke strongly encourages Olivia to seduce Rupert – since he is going off to war and has no siblings, an heir would be a good thing.  (An aside – OMG REALLY?  So creepy!)  Neither Olivia or Rupert have any real interest in the sort of proceedings necessary for getting an heir and, after a half-hearted effort, decide to not but say they did.

In the meantime, Olivia and Georgiana are invited to a house party at the home of the Duke of Sconce.  Rumor has it that he is looking for a wife and his mother (who apparently gets to choose) has invited the most promising candidates to the party.  Olivia and Georgiana both know this is Georgiana’s best chance at landing a duke – there aren’t very many available and she has very little dowry to offer as enticement.

Tarquin, Duke of Sconce, is all about reason.  He does not let his passions rule him – his first marriage taught him that lesson very well – and does not like dealing with the passions of others.  Quin spends his days taking care of estate business and dealing with mathematical theories.  He is not a cheerful, easy-going fellow and he knows it and he has no interest in choosing his next bride.  However, when soaked Olivia arrives on his doorstep to get help for a stranded carriage, Quin is transfixed and (literally) sweeps her off her feet.  He is unable to concentrate on anything except his desire to kiss her…and she makes him want to laugh!

Olivia doesn’t immediately realize the person she thinks is a very impertinent footman is actually the Duke of Sconce.  And even when she does, she is perplexed by his behavior.  He kissed her and said she was beautiful.  And he didn’t even know who she was!

You can see where this is headed, can’t you, faithful reader?  Olivia and Quin have immediate chemistry, but both are honorable enough to try to stay away from each other.  Olivia does feel some loyalty to Rupert, bless his heart.  Plus, she doesn’t want to ruin her sister’s chance at happiness.  Quin doesn’t think he wants a wife who makes him feel things…but he definitely wants Olivia.  And neither can stay away from the other.  But what about Rupert?  And Quin’s prospective brides?  Will love triumph?  Heh.  What do you think?

I enjoyed this book, overall.  I like Olivia (much more than when we met her in the Winning the Wallflower novella) and Quin and find the premise interesting – with all the emphasis on marrying, there must have been a good many people who found a better match after they were betrothed to someone else.

I will say it feel like the story could have ended a few chapters earlier than it does.  It seems like a lot of effort was made to tie up the Rupert situation when a few pages might have worked just as well. And the fairytale connection feels a bit forced, as opposed to the previous books where it did not.  Still, the extra bit of story gives Quin a chance to have an adventure and it is entertaining.  If you’re looking for a fun read, this might be just the ticket.

It isn’t the strongest entry in the series, but it wis an enjoyable book all the same.  This book is tied slightly to Winning the Wallflower, an e-novella that I enjoyed immensely (hey, look – I reviewed it here).  It isn’t necessary to read WtW first (or at all), but it is very good!  Does The Duke is Mine stand alone from the rest of the Fairy Tale series?  Absolutely – all the books in the series stand alone.

Grade: B

Summary:
Tarquin, the powerful Duke of Sconce, knows perfectly well that the decorous and fashionably slender Georgiana Lytton will make him a proper duchess. So why can’t he stop thinking about her twin sister, the curvy, headstrong, and altogether unconventional Olivia? Not only is Olivia betrothed to another man, but their improper, albeit intoxicating, flirtation makes her unsuitability all the more clear.

Determined to make a perfect match, he methodically cuts Olivia from his thoughts, allowing logic and duty to triumph over passion…Until, in his darkest hour, Tarquin begins to question whether perfection has anything to do with love.

To win Olivia’s hand he would have to give up all the beliefs he holds most dear, and surrender heart, body and soul…

Unless it’s already too late.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in the series:

C2’s review of How the Marquess Was Won (Pennyroyal Green, Book 6) by Julie Anne Long
Historical Romance published by Avon 27 Dec 11

In Julie Anne Long’s newest release, we return to Pennyroyal Green. This time around, the Redmonds and Everseas play a supportive role instead of being the focus.  They still manage to stay in the thick of things, though. Spoilers ahead (but not too many, I hope) – enter at your own risk!

Julian Spenser, Marquess Dryden, (aka Lord Ice, also aka Jules) has come to Pennyroyal Green on a family errand and to attend a house party at the Redmonds.  Miss Lisbeth Redmond is of marriageable age and there has been speculation that Lord Dryden is interested.  Jules is interested
in part of Lisbeth’s dowry.  A bit of land that was once a portion of his mother’s dowry before his father gambled it away.  Jules has spent most of his adult life cleaning up messes left by his father.  Finally, the family name is respected, the family fortunes have been restored and everything is falling into place.  The last piece is the bit of land the Redmonds own.

Phoebe Vale is a teacher at a girls’ school – the school she attended. Phoebe grew up in the Seven Dials section of London – a very dangerous area – but, after her parents were gone, a mysterious benefactor arranged for her to be brought to Pennyroyal Green and educated at the academy. In addition to her teaching duties at Miss Endicott’s academy, Phoebe once was a tutor to Lisbeth Redmond.

[A random aside - for the first hundred pages or so, every time I read “Miss Vale”, I heard bits of Prince’s Bat Dance. If you’re close to my age, you’ll know the bit I’m talking about; if not...you kids get off my lawn! *grumpy face*]

Onward!

Phoebe knows a lot about Lord Dryden from reading gossip sheets.  He attracts a lot of attention and is something of a trendsetter.  When she actually sees him for the first time (at a shop in town), however, he is even more impressive than she imagined.

“He seemed taller than…anyone.  And suddenly all the hats and ribbons and buttons and gloves seemed like gaudy props arranged on a stage, awaiting just his arrival all these years.”

Later, when he visits Miss Endicott’s academy – to see if it might be an acceptable place for a young cousin to attend – Phoebe is tasked with giving him a tour of the facilities.  During the tour, they begin verbally sparring with each other – and enjoying it immensely.

Faithful reader, I must say the whole tour of the academy is one of the loveliest extended scenes I’ve read in ages.  Watching Phoebe and Jules slowly get a feel for the other’s personality and wit and, perhaps, recognizing a kindred spirit?  It’s this kind of interaction that make me love romances above all else.  So sweet and emotional and fun and poignant.  Eventually, their small talk turns a bit more personal and her reaction to him this time is more focused.

“He’s meant for me.

The thought emerged from nowhere, fresh as a slap and seemed as true as it was dumbfounding.  She stared at him, bewildered.  She’d never had a thought like that in her entire life.”

I like the sense of immediate connection – it just screams romance, don’t you think?  Even if the characters don’t acknowledge it until later, it’s there.  Also, the idea that no one else ever really has bothered to know Jules – everyone is happy with just seeing the image he presented (or was presented for him by gossip) – is intriguing.  How often does anyone really look below the surface of the people around them?

Phoebe has been invited to the Redmonds’ to serve as chaperone/companion to Lisbeth. Since Phoebe has been planning to go to Africa with a group of missionaries, she decides a last bit of fun in a luxurious house might be just the thing. But Lisbeth is different and treats Phoebe more like a servant than a friend. And Jules is there and the connection between him and Phoebe gets stronger. But Jules makes a big mistake. BIG.

Still, the (OMG huge) misstep Jules makes by asking Phoebe to be his mistress seems true to the period and his character.  Jules is focused on accomplishing his last goal and getting the land that had been part of his mother’s dowry.  And a marquess marrying a school teacher??  Very unlikely, regardless of his feelings.  Of course, even though she was an orphan, Phoebe has been brought up well, so it’s rude of him to issue that sort of proposition, I’m thinking.  I’ll leave the historical wrangling of all things etiquette-ish to others, though.

After the house party, two of Lisbeth’s friends invite Phoebe to go with them to London for a few weeks. There will be outings and parties and all sorts of fun to be had and Phoebe is curious about London since she hasn’t been back since she was a child, so she agrees to go. What she doesn’t realize is her hostesses are in cahoots with a couple of bored “gentlemen” who are also attending the house party. They think it will be great fun to play a trick on the Ton by making Phoebe the toast of the town and then exposing her as a nobody.

The casual cruelty of the supporting characters – toying with the life of someone so totally beneath them is just a lark – also rang true and it’s lovely to see them get their just rewards for their behavior, I must say.  And their awful prank does serve a purpose – it helps Jules figure out what really matters to him.

A bit more info – the prologue is a glimpse into the happenings six weeks after the beginning of chapter one. Some people hate prologues, I know, but this one hooks you. You have to find out how things got to that point! Still, if that’s not your thing, you’ve been warned. Also, I recommend going back and reading the prologue after you finish the book. Just do it, trust me.

Does the book stand alone? I say yes. Sure, the Redmonds and Everseas are there, but enough of their backstory is passed along to give a feel for things without being an info-dump. For those who have read the previous books, there are a few more interesting bits of info about Olivia and Lyon. All in all, this is an excellent entry into a series that is just getting better and better.

Finally, an honorary award for best feline performance goes to Charybdis. A very accurate depiction of a cat, I must say.  :-D

Grade: A+

Summary:

The Scandal Sheets call him Lord Ice.

Ruthless, cold, precise, Julian Spenser, Marquess Dryden, tolerates only the finest—in clothes, in horseflesh, in mistresses. And now he’s found the perfect bride, the one whose dowry will restore his family’s shattered legacy and bring him peace at last: the exquisite heiress Lisbeth Redmond.

She’s not afraid to play with fire…

But one unforgettable encounter with Lisbeth’s paid companion, Phoebe Vale, and the Marquess is undone: this quiet girl with the wicked smile and a wit to match is the first person to see through the icy façade to the fiery man beneath. But their irresistible attraction is a torment as sweet as it is dangerous: for surrendering to their desire could mean losing everything else they ever wanted.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in the series:

LynneC’s review of How the Marquess Was Won (Pennyroyal Green, Book 6) by Julie Anne Long
Historical Romance published by Avon 27 Dec 11

Julie Anne Long has a lovely, light style that lends itself well to historical fiction. It’s just a shame that it’s not a history I recognize (yes I know, here she goes again!) So seriously, if you don’t care about history and you can put up with the fantasy in this book, have no hesitation in picking this up. It’s part of the Pennyroyal Green series, but you don’t have to read the series in order, or at all, come to that. And I pray and hope that the final version is better than the ARC, because that made reading an adventurous experience.

First, the ARC. I had it sent to my Kindle from NetGalley. Mostly this leads to a pretty decent copy, but this copy is a disaster. Every chapter has an “nm” below the heading for no perceptible reason. The leading capital is separated from the rest of the text. The first chapter has indents for paragraphs, then they just stop. And then start again. It drove me demented after a while, but I kept on reading. And there are haphazard capitalization, too. “His Lordship,” where it refers to “the marquess” earlier in the paragraph.

The hero is Julian, usually known as Jules, the Marquess of Dryden (I can’t bring myself to call him the Marquess Dryden. That “of” makes a huge amount of difference). He is tall, dark and handsome, the leader of the ton. You know the deal. The heroine is Phoebe Vale, who is a schoolteacher at a girls’ school in Pennyroyal Green. She’s blonde, lively and answers back. I like both of them. Jules is a man who takes his responsibilities seriously, and Phoebe seems intelligent enough to cope with him.

They meet in the country, when Jules visits the local country house in order to give the once-over to a young lady he is thinking of marrying, Lisbeth. Phoebe’s family holds a parcel of land he wants, the last one his father sold off to pay his debts. Jules has bought them all back but this one. The young lady is charming, sweet and a product of her class. She is kind to Lisbeth but never sees her as her equal. She proves benevolent compared to what Lisbeth has in store, but to say what it is constitutes a spoiler, and, although that’s one of the best parts of the book, I’ll refrain.

But this is a Regency where Faberge has started making his eggs, a Regency where pound notes are in common circulation. Fireflies and crickets populate the countryside and gentlemen drive landaus. Gentlemen wear trousers, not pantaloons or breeches, and their shirts button down the front. Where they drink whiskey. Where a Marquess foregoes the proper title. Where they say “Bloody hell” and “bloody,” and sometimes they’ll stay “stuff it.” Where young ladies go to school. Where there appear to be a lot of Catholics about, and nobody questions it. Rosaries and maids called Mary Frances seem to be around everywhere. Where men drink in pubs and say “gotten.”

What’s wrong with this? Faberge made his first egg in 1885. Pound notes were very unusual until the Victorian era. Fireflies and crickets aren’t native to the UK. Landaus were a lady’s vehicle, much favored by widows (Queen Victoria was fond of them and the present Queen uses them on state occasions) and were not made for travel, merely for pottering about in town. The Cossack trouser was a particular style, heavily pleated at the top, narrow at the ankle and what’s described in this book isn’t the Cossack. Whisky (definitely not whiskey) was a product of the mid-Victorian era. Only the illegal stuff was available before, and it could be clear, not the caramel color we associate with it today. The rank of Earl and above, and definitely Marquess was styled “the Marquess of Dryden,” not “Marquess Dryden.” And a knight or baronet, someone with the title “Sir” is addressed by his first name, not his last. Harry Dildo would be “Sir Harry,” not “Sir Dildo.” The people in the story would definitely know this. “Bloody hell” as a curse wasn’t used until World War One, and “bloody” wasn’t just rude, it was vulgar. Crude and rude were allowed, but vulgar, no. My grandmother used to say it was “common” and this was a woman who used “bugger” regularly. Girls of good family didn’t go to school. Despite extensive searches, the only schools for girls in this period seem to be the charity schools for poorer girls, to give them a better start in life. There was no need to educate girls of good family and their upbringing was haphazard, to say the least. Catholics were still looked down on, even the Catholic peers, who lost out on a lot of privileges, including taking their seats in Parliament, because of their religion. There is more, but I stopped taking notes after a while.

The errors spoiled my enjoyment in what could have been a fun book. Likeable characters and an engaging plot should have meant hours of pleasant reading, but it didn’t. Almost every page contains something that made me go “huh?” and make a note (since I knew I was reading this book for review – I don’t usually make notes, I just give up and take the author off my reading list). One or two little slips? Okay, fine. Nobody’s perfect, but this number is close to insulting, both to the age and the reader. Is it considered not important enough? To many people it won’t be. But it will destroy some people’s enjoyment of what could have been a good read. It wrecked mine. I would have DNF’d the book after the third chapter were it not for the style and the characters, and the fact that I wanted to find that elusive new historical author to love. If you don’t care about the plethora of errors, then go ahead, because you’ll enjoy it. If you have any knowledge of the history of Britain, then maybe you’ll want to think again.

But always remember, this is the opinion of an Englishwoman, brought up with this history and taught to regard it as hers. So if you’re not, then you might love this froth of a book. I felt like I was kicking a meringue while I was writing this review, but I had to be fair and give my honest opinion. Never forget that it might very well not agree with yours.

Grade: C-

Summary:

Ruthless, cold, precise, Julian Spenser, Marquess Dryden, tolerates only the finest—in clothes, in horseflesh, in mistresses. And now he’s found the perfect bride, the one whose dowry will restore his family’s shattered legacy and bring him peace at last: the exquisite heiress Lisbeth Redmond.

She’s not afraid to play with fire…

But one unforgettable encounter with Lisbeth’s paid companion, Phoebe Vale, and the Marquess is undone: this quiet girl with the wicked smile and a wit to match is the first person to see through the icy façade to the fiery man beneath. But their irresistible attraction is a torment as sweet as it is dangerous: for surrendering to their desire could mean losing everything else they ever wanted.

No excerpt available.

C2’s review of Winning the Wallflower (Fairy Tales Series, Book 2.5) by Eloisa James
Historical Romance published by Avon 6 Dec 11

What happens when a recently-engaged (to a gentlemen in trade) wallflower suddenly inherits a fortune? Suddenly her parents have much higher expectations for her marriage possibilities. But what about her current fiance? In Eloisa James new novella, we find out.

Mister Cyrus Ravensthorpe grew up under a cloud of scandal, but he has A Plan to restore his family to their rightful place in society. His plan is proceeding nicely – one important step has just been taken…finding an acceptable bride. Mister Ravensthorpe has recently become engaged to Lady Lucy Towerton.

Lady Lucy considered herself a wallflower. Taller than most of the gentlemen of the ton, she always felt awkward and uncomfortable. Imagine her surprise when the very handsome and wealthy Mister Ravensthorpe asked her father for her hand in marriage! Still, as they spent some time getting acquainted, Lucy realized they never really connected. No real conversation – he didn’t even ask to use her given name – they mostly spent their very proper visits playing Backgammon.

Suddenly Lucy’s life is sent spinning. She finds out she has inherited her great aunt’s fortune. Her parents are very excited because they think Lucy’s chances of finding a noble husband have now increased exponentially. All she has to do is break her engagement to Mister Ravensthorpe. Lucy is reluctant – she has a bit of a crush on Cyrus – and plans with her best friend, Olivia, to be found in a compromising position with her betrothed. No chance of breaking the engagement then!

But you know the old saying about the best laid plans, don’t you, faithful reader? Cyrus arrives at the ball Lucy is attending and hears of her recent good fortune and sees his plan hit a stumbling block. Meanwhile, Lucy’s plan to be caught with her betrothed also doesn’t go as she thinks it will.

Lucy realizes she deserves someone actually interested in her and not someone who sees her as a convenient Available Perfect Noble Lady. Cyrus realizes he might have chosen Lucy for reasons other than the fact she fit into his Plan. But can he convince Lucy?

I really enjoyed this novella. It’s a quick, fun read and doesn’t feel at all rushed or compressed. The story is in no way shorted and it does not feel like a setup for Ms. James’ next full-length book. Cyrus and Lucy are a fun couple and their interactions are lively and sweet. Does it stand alone? Absolutely. Is it worth your $0.99 investment? Most definitely. At this busy time of year, you might not have the available time to invest in a full length book, but this one is just right. Treat yourself!

Grade: A+

Summary:

It Could Only Happen in a Fairytale…

Lady Lucy Towerton
Plain and tall. (According to the lady herself.)
Titled, and irreproachably proper. (According to her fiancé.)

Until, overnight, she becomes

Lady Lucy Towerton
Heiress. (Thanks to an aged aunt’s bequest.)
Belle of the Ball. (So say the fortune hunters of the ton.)

In charge of her own destiny (finally!), Lucy breaks her engagement and makes up her mind to never be proper again…

Read an excerpt.

Other books in the series:

LynneC’s review of Brazen by Margo Maguire
Historical Romance published by Avon 29 Nov 11

As I said in a previous review, there isn’t usually one reason to DNF a book, but more often than not it’s because the book doesn’t grab me. If I persevere and get to a third or more, then I could do a full DNF review, if I have something to say about it. A DNF isn’t always because it’s a terrible book. It could be because the book just didn’t do it for me, as in this case, but it might well do it for you. There’s no deep flaws, and the plots is interesting, but the authorial voice or the premise just didn’t take me away. So I’d say try it, get a sample and see if you like it. I got this book from NetGalley, and it occurred to me that if I could sample it, that might be a useful thing. I actually persevered past the first chapter, more to see if I could settle into the read. Sadly, I couldn’t.

The heroine is one of two daughters who were adopted by an earl when their grandfather and guardian, a duke, abandoned them after his son’s death. Yeah, I know. And that’s just the start of the complex plot that would have been worth concentrating on, had I cared. But I found the book a bit of a slog and I think the main problem is the pedestrian authorial voice. Which could be as much my problem as Margo Maguire’s. Sometimes an author’s voice just doesn’t work for a reader, and I fear that is the case in this book.

Because the heroine, although brought up in the bosom of society, has no clue about things that women would generally have known. A Regency lady who doesn’t know how to load and fire a pistol? A viscountess who lives in a cottage? That last throws me. In that era, a cottage was either a place to play, a la Marie Antoinette, or it was a hovel. Not a reasonably pleasant house with separate rooms. Okay, not so bad.

The hero is interesting. He’s the younger son of a viscount, so relatively low in the pecking order of the peerage. Goodie. And even though he’s a spy, he’s a believable one, having worked in the military, and he has one more assignment before he retires.

The heroine shoots him (a mere graze), but weapons were pretty erratic in those days, and even knowing about weapons, she could have done that. A niggle. Not important. Then she wants to stitch his wound, and in an age before penicillin, that could be dangerous, sealing in the infection. Whenever possible, wounds were left open so they could be cleaned frequently and allowed to heal from the inside out. The heroine has short hair and the hero hasn’t seen short hair before. Why not, when cropped hair was all the rage in the period? He was in the army, an officer, so surely he’d have set eyes on one or two fashionable women? Niggle followed on niggle, and the tone of the book is very much American (so, my US friends, it’s unlikely to bother you).

Words like “quit” for “leave” and the dreaded G word (“gotten”) make an appearance on the first page (to a modern Brit, “gotten” screams “American,” which in some circumstances is good, but not when it’s supposed to be a deep third point of view British Regency character). Maguire has a habit of “telling” instead of “showing,” which leads to a blander style. In an effort to avoid the purple, blandness ruled. They drank “whiskey” in an era when whisky was the equivalent to moonshine, and was as often clear as caramel coloured. In the end, I was just waiting for the next niggle to turn up. That’s always a sign that I’m not engaged with the book, because when a book catches me and drags me along, details are the last thing I worry about. So I gave up. I really wanted to like this one, but it just wasn’t doing it for me. It might for you.

Grade: DNF

Summary:

She will give him what he desires. But first, a small favor . . .

Lady Christina Fairhaven is devoted to her adoptive family—and most protective of her wayward brother.

So when battle-scarred and world-weary Captain Gavin Briggs arrives at her cottage bearing shocking news—that she is the granddaughter of an aged, bad-tempered duke— Christina is stunned . . . temporarily.

She will not meet the duke who abandoned her when she was a child; Gavin will not receive his significant—and much needed—reward. However, should the good Captain agree to help her locate and rescue her endangered sibling, then perhaps . . .

But with a fortune at stake, the road to London is paved with peril. Treachery awaits them . . . not to mention attraction, temptation, and a most unanticipated passion.

To regain his soul, to protect his lady, Gavin must be more than brave. To win his love, Christina must be positively . . .

Read an excerpt.

LynneC’s review of Ecstasy Untamed (Feral Warriors, Book 7) by Pamela Palmer
Paranormal Romance published by Avon 25 Oct 11

I had a few disconnects with this story, but there’s no doubt that Palmer knows how to write. Interesting characters and intriguing world building is let down a little by a few plot holes and an overlong book.

Faith is living in Poland helping street children. She’s an immortal, a Therian (I kept reading this as theramin, that awesome instrument Jimmy Page plays, but that’s my own fault for spending most of last night watching theramin performances on You Tube), a race of people once shapeshifters but now unable to shift. The only shapeshifters are Feral Warriors. One of them, Maxim, discovers her and claims her. He’s about to go to America to the compound. So she goes with him.

There she meets Hawke, who is a shapeshifting Hawk. And she feels an immediate attraction. Since she understood she was to be mated with Maxim, this confuses her. She’d felt the mating pull, or so she thought.

That basic plot is fine, but it’s at this point I get my first disconnect, or huh? moment. There are only nine Feral Warriors left. They’re very precious, very special people. And they all live in the same house? That’s a big no in my book. Surely they should live at opposite ends of the earth? Well, there’s a plot reason for that. They need to be in contact with the Radiant, who at present is the wife of their leader, Lyon, who is a shapeshifting lion. As far as I can gather, the Radiant is a kind of battery, and they have to recharge. That, to me, read like a plot contrivance. There’s no internal reason why that should be. Why there should be a battery, why they have to use it, why, in all their existence, they haven’t discovered a scientist clever enough to invent a way of remote-control charging, or even more of the batter—er, Radiants? It just didn’t work.

Yep, they all live in a mansion close to Bos—well, no there, but it’ss very, very reminiscent of the BDB headquarters, right down to the antiques. They all have bedrooms, a bit like a dormitory for Ferals. Very sweet. I don’t like this setup, but because these creatures are the last of their kind and precious, it seems criminal, Radiant or no Radiant, to put them in the same place. One hit and they’re gone. And why can’t they spell? Kougar, Lyon, Vhyper – just why? They also have very unimaginative nicknames, and I mean unimaginative. Lyon’s nickname is Roar and Hawke’s is Wings.

And, of course, ordinary humans know nothing.

Anyway, there are other creatures. There are shamans and ilinas, who were ghost-seeming people with power. Their enemies are Mages. To me, this all came across as a contrived world. I couldn’t believe in it. There are definitely echoes of North American native beliefs, but I know next to nothing about those, so I can’t go into more details. Perhaps it makes more sense if you’re more familiar with that world. Oh and there are draden, jellyfish-like creatures that we mere mortals can’t see, but that doesn’t matter, because they’re not interested in us. Only the Ferals and theramins (sorry, Therians).

Once Faith has realized that it’s not actually Maxim who floats her boat, much sexing ensues. They are sweet scenes rather than erotic or arousing. I’m not really sure why they’re there or what they’re doing. There is a plot about rogue Ferals, but if I wanted to question the reasoning, I came unstuck. See, there’s this virus, and—it really read as if Palmer just threw it at them as something for them to overcome.

There are some very long scenes where they sit around and talk or engage in not-too-interesting rituals, and the beginning is a big ol’ lump of exposition, but I’m not holding that against her because otherwise I wouldn’t have been able to jump right in. Actually, I probably would. But there’s no depth to this world. Question it too much and it falls apart. every time you think you’ve got a hold on the story, Palmer throws something in to confuse you. I was constantly scratching my head and thinking, “Why?”

On the whole, an unsatisfactory read. I understand the world, but it’s confused and superficial. The most interesting part of the book is the characters. I enjoyed Hawke and Faith, but without them and their interaction, there wouldn’t be a whole lot left.

And I don’t blame the author for the cover. It’s not her fault, but oh, my eyes! I remember Lynn Veihl complaining about the pink cover on one of her books. Just as well she didn’t get this one.

Grade: C-

Summary:

They are called Feral Warriors—an elite band of immortals who can change shape at will. Sworn to rid the world of evil, consumed by sorcery and seduction, their wild natures are primed for release . . .

Shattered by recent nightmarish events, Hawke feels his bond with his animal spirit weakening—and once it breaks, he’s finished. The arrival of Faith sends his life spinning even further out of control, for although she delights him and enflames his deepest primal passions, she’s promised to Maxim, the newest Feral Warrior.

Faith is drawn to Hawke from the start, but Maxim holds her in his thrall and has secretly bent her to his malevolent will. Though gravely damaged, Hawke is the only one who can end Faith’s slavery and protect the Feral Warriors from Maxim’s evil designs. But first they both must embrace the wild . . . and surrender body and soul to a forbidden, all-consuming ecstasy.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

C2’s review of The Bride Wore Scarlet (Fraternitas Series, Book 2) by Liz Carlyle
Historical Romance published by Avon 26 Jul 11

With The Bride Wore Scarlet, Liz Carlyle continues her foray into the paranormal. The St. James Society is a front for an ancient brotherhood sworn to protect those with The Gift. Regency rakes with their own mysterious abilities find and protect others from persecution and exploitation. Sound like an intriguing premise for romance? Maybe not…

Geoffrey Archard, Earl of Besset, is one of the founders of the St. James Society and a member of the Fraternitas Aureae Crucis (from here on referred to as the F.A.C.). Geoff has just learned of a little girl in Belgium that possesses The Gift and is in the clutches of an evil uncle who means to use her for his own gains. The F.A.C. needs to rescue her.

Lady Anais de Rohan has just arrived in London to request membership into the F.A.C. She knows there has never been a female member in recent times, but Celtic priestesses were among the founders, most likely, so she tries to think positive. Her hopes are dashed when Lord Besset and some other members are flabbergasted by the presence of a woman in the ceremonial chamber.

Undaunted, she returns to the home of the St. James Society the next morning to discuss the matter. She is again told she will not be allowed membership, but as a friend of the F.A.C, they would like her assistance in the matter of rescuing a young child. Anais and Geoff will pose as a married couple living next door to the evil uncle and find a way to get the little girl and her mother to safety. Of course, Anais agrees.

Let me insert something here, faithful reader. I have a pet peeve about weird names whose pronunciations are never explained. My brain hangs up every time I run across such names because it wants to try different ways of saying them. Stupid brain. Onward!

The basic plot is pretty standard for romances – our hero and heroine pretend to be married in order to rescue someone/uncover a plot, etc., and fall in love along the way. You would think introducing a paranormal element like The Gift would give new life to the plot. Not so much. There isn’t enough paranormal stuff to really rev things up and not much else to try to make the plot interesting.

I have to say I struggled to finish this book. If I had not been given this book to review, I would have set it aside very early on. I didn’t connect with the characters, the whole secret society thing didn’t catch my interest, and the overall plot didn’t engage me. Also, I find it annoying that the author is almost trying to rewrite history from earlier books – the hero and heroine are children of couples from earlier novels with nary a whisper of paranormal to be found.

All in all, I’m disappointed. I can’t point to any one thing that makes this a bad book. But I’d never say it’s a good one either. Apparently this is a trilogy. I hope Ms. Carlyle returns to her straight historical roots after she wraps this up. I really enjoyed several of her earlier books.

Grade: C-

Summary:

Passion and secrets simmer behind the elegant façade of Victorian high society in the second book of Liz Carlyle’s spellbinding Fraternitas trilogy . . .

Anais de Rohan was raised from childhood to become a Guardian—a covert warrior trained in the ways of a secret militia so ancient its existence is believed mere legend. When Anais presents herself for initiation, however, her male compatriots are impressed with nothing save her hot temper and dark allure.

But when one of the St. James Society’s darkest, most enigmatic leaders challenges Anais to prove herself, she boldly accepts. Courting ruin to pose as Lord Bessett’s new bride, Anais must travel with the handsome, ruthless nobleman on a mission to save one of their own—a little girl with frightening gift—from danger.

But as intrigue swirls about them, drawing them ever closer, Anais begins to realize that their mission is hardly the only challenge she faces, for Lord Bessett is proving a temptation too hard to resist. As for Bessett himself—well, he might be a soldier sworn to the Society, but he certainly isn’t anyone’s saint . . .

Read an excerpt.

Other books in the series:

LynneC’s review of In the Arms of a Marquess (Rogues of the Sea, Book 3) by Katharine Ashe
Historical Romance published by Avon 30 Aug 11

If you buy the book on the basis of the title, the blurb (such as it is) or the cover, you’ll be sadly disappointed. The story is darker, more ambitious and, in my opinion, an honorable failure, but there is nothing lighthearted about it. The story is crammed with plot, sometimes difficult to follow, with some nonsequitors that left me scratching my head, but a likeable central couple who deserve more page space to explore their relationship. Too much plot, too little romance.

Octavia Pierce arrives in India to stay with her uncle and meets a half-Indian boy who rescues her from a man threatening to kidnap her. So from the start I was expecting things to be a bit off-kilter. This is an obviously respectable girl, and her captors thought they’d get away with it? Hardly. I have to confess, I wasn’t engaged by Octavia and I couldn’t understand why Ben fell so hard, so fast for her. She changes with the plot, sometimes silly, sometimes very wise, and since I’m not fond of monkeys, her pet capuchin made me shiver a bit. Ick. Nasty monkey hands tangling in your hair. But others adore them, so I pretended the monkey is a different kind of creature. My own problem, nobody else’s.

Ben is similarly a bit of this and a bit of that. He’s described as powerful and hugely, hugely rich, and yet he’s deceived by someone the average reader will spot in half a minute. He’s supposed to be ruthless, and yet he has a heart as soft as a sponge, and demonstrates it most of the time. He’s handsome, “dusky,” “exotic,” yet he has no trace of foreignness about him, although he doesn’t try to hide his origins. The promise of him being much more powerful than anyone can ever understand is never borne out by his actions or his behavior.

If Ashe had left out some of the plot and taken more time to let the relationship between Ben and Octavia develop, it would have been a better book and a far better romance. If derring-do is what you’re looking for, then you’ll find it here, though don’t expect logic to work all the way through. But then, as a lover of Russell Thorndyke’s Doctor Syn books, I don’t always expect that. But it makes the romance a bit frustrating. “Darling! Come to bed and roger me senseless!” (knock on the door). “Oh wait, I have to go and do some plot!” – repeat a bit, and then let them stay together. Perhaps my recent reads of Harlequins, where the plot is far less important than the romance, has spoiled me. Octavia and Ben fell in love in the years the story leaves out, and you only get to read it in a flashback, so I do feel cheated on the romance side.

I wasn’t sure about the beginning, because the story immediately jumps into England seven years later, when Octavia is now twenty-five. There are lots of mysterious allusions to the past, and when she meets Ben again, he is a marquess and seems fully integrated into society, although in some parts it says he is not accepted in certain circles. If there’s one thing sure about British society and its nature, it’s that money talks, and the point is reiterated that Ben is a very rich man. Since his father was married to his Indian mother, there would be little reason for him to be rejected by his peers. And he doesn’t seem debauched enough to be rejected, either. Odd. But meh, it could happen, so I just accepted it.

The research is odd. Patchy. At times, descriptions and details, like the details of the Indian market or the descriptions of ships in the docks is accurate and well described, but at others it seems strangely lacking, such as the title errors (I’m a bit Lady Bracknell on that one. One might seem accidental, but two or more looks like carelessness – my humble apologies to Oscar Wilde). Language is a bit careless, too. Americanisms like “block” for street, or “we’re through” instead of “it’s over” or “we’re finished” or “sidewalk” for pavement are scattered through the book. A British reader would have cleared those up in no time. And the thought of a glass of cold tea makes any self-respecting Brit, or Indian for that matter, shudder in horror.

And a mansion in London with its own ballroom? By this period there were only two or three left, and one of those was derelict and another donated to an art institute. Nobody wanted the massive houses in town anymore, and hadn’t since the seventeenth century. References to “orangeat” which should have been “orgeat,” a particularly alcoholic cordial ladies were fond of, and other slips keep cropping up to tug me out of the story. There are other subtler indications that the writer is nearly there but not quite, such as giving her titled characters the same surname and title. There are very few of those, and that’s for a reason intimately wound up with the British psyche and social origins. That’s why I sometimes pick on what some call trivia. It shows a fundamental lack of understanding that then doesn’t deliver a realistic story of British life and mores. (Surnames were personal, derived from occupation, nickname and the like. Titles were a place, either the place of origin or the name of the estate that went with the title. So the title and the aristocrat weren’t the same as the person holding them – with the exception of the Spencers, but that’s where it gets more complicated).

Outside the romance, the plot has holes miles wide and fails to understand the nature of the burgeoning British Empire. Not surprising, since it was complex and fluid, but there is a basic misunderstanding of the nature of the British presence in India (read Flashman for a better picture!), when the British and the grandees, be they emirs or sultans, colluded to wrest all the value they could out of the ordinary citizen, using any weapons they thought expedient. However, the central mystery, when you finally discover it, is preposterous and unbelievable – about as believable as mail-order brides in the Old West looking at their fate as being sold into white slavery. It just didn’t make sense.

This is a story where the writer seems to detest the British aristocracy and all that it stands for, although the hero is a marquess. I think the story would have been stronger had the hero not been an aristocrat. It would have delineated the character better, if he’d been a wealthy nabob. I could see a great story depicting the struggle between the old world and the new, industrialized, middle class one that was just coming in, but making Ben a marquess put paid to that. I wonder if her editors imposed the marquisate on her?

The end, the final showdown, is badly done. Without spoilers, our hero confronts the villain, who is holding a pistol, then the villain explains everything in the style of the Evil Overlord, then he drops the pistol and they have a fight. Very cliché, and I want more. The whole conclusion is full of the melodrama. And, this being a Regency, there are no mustaches to twirl, which is a bit of a shame. And a cop-out or a loophole for more books in the series, I’m not sure. I wasn’t engaged enough by it either to chase her backlist or want more.

Ashe’s style is lovely, her prose smooth and the love scenes are gorgeous. At those times I could believe in the romance between the couple, but it seem incidental to a lot of the story. I wish Ashe had concentrated more on the characters and less on the plot.

Grade: C-

Summary:

She had never forgotten him…

Miss Octavia Pierce is witty, well off, and shockingly unwed. Still, she is far too successful in society to remain on the shelf forever, and her family has hopes that Octavia will finally make the perfect match. What they do not know is that years earlier Octavia was scandalously tempted by the one man capable of sweeping her off her feet—the man now known as the Marquess of Doreé.

A third son, never meant to inherit, Lord Ben Doreé has abandoned his past and grown accustomed to his illustrious new position of wealth and power. But he has never forgotten Octavia, and now she desperately needs his help in a most dangerous, clandestine matter. Although she claims she has put the memories of the passion they shared behind her, Ben is determined to once again have her in his arms—and in his bed.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

This just in…

Avon Publishing is hosting a Debbie Macomber-inspired online writing contest, and aspiring writers who participate in the “Make Your Dreams Come True” contest may find themselves enjoying an “American Idol”-type moment. That story won’t write itself, so what are you waiting for???

~ The winner will receive a cash prize of $500, and the winning entry will be published in the back matter of the paperback and e-book edition of Family Affair, Debbie’s mass market publication, which goes on sale in July 2012.

~ In addition, the grand prize winner may also be offered an Avon Impulse publishing contract!

~ “This is a great opportunity for a new voice in romance to be discovered,” says Liate Stehlik, Senior Vice President and Publisher of William Morrow/Avon Books. “It’s the publishing equivalent of ‘American Idol’ – entries will be reviewed by Avon editors, and the winner will be picked by Debbie Macomber herself. The possible exposure is amazing: the author is beloved by readers around the globe, and this short story could be read by millions of her fans.”

~  Three finalists will receive a collection of Avon Romances (approximate retail value: $100).

~  To enter, complete the entry form at www.familyaffaircontest.com.

~  Story requirements and other rules are also listed at that website.

~  The contest is now ongoing and the last entry will be accepted on September 30, 2011, 5:00 p.m. ET. So get to writing!

Consider yourself flashed!

LynneC’s review of One Night In London by Caroline Linden
Historical Romance published by Avon 30 Aug 11

This is the start of a new series from Linden, and since she’s a new-to-me author, I was looking forward to the read. However, this one proved to be a bit of a disappointment, because of its lax pacing and lack of real conflict.

Edward de Lacey is the second son of a duke. The book starts with the old man on his deathbed and several pages of “but I must tell you my secret!” before the duke dies in good old “It was Argh!” tradition. But the secret, or part of it, is vouchsafed by the family lawyer. The duke was married before he married the mother of the three sons who consider themselves his heirs. That would illegitimise them, and so they couldn’t inherit anything that wasn’t left to them personally, and would, of course, disbar them from the entail and the title. There is a cousin, Augustus, who would be the heir.

So Edward, who is the responsible one and runs the estate, goes to London to engage a solicitor. I wasn’t quite sure why, but I think Ms. Linden has confused the roles of a solicitor and a barrister. That continued to be an annoying niggle. A great house like that of a duke would have a regular “man of business,” or solicitor, and he would take care of all the estate business and engage a barrister when necessary. People don’t go directly to barristers as a rule, and a barrister’s only job is to represent the client in court. So why Edward would want a new solicitor  who seems to do a barrister’s job when he has a perfectly serviceable solicitor is a bit nonsensical. But it does mean that he gets to meet the heroine, Francesca.

Francesca is a widow, and she wants her niece back. She believes that her niece is being held by the family of her aunt against her will and being used as a drudge, and she wants to engage a solicitor to act for her in court (which he couldn’t do, not in the higher courts, anyway). The man agrees, only to be thrown into a frenzy by getting the case from Edward about the dukedom.

There is my other disconnect, because I’ve read Bleak House, which is about a real-life case of inheritance. The lawyers throw this one into such complexities that the estate is eaten up by legal fees and lasted generations. A case like this would be nuts to the lawyers, and there is one easy solution. The Crown takes away the title and reinvests it in the eldest son as the first of the dukedom of the second creation. It happened sometimes, and it sorted out legitimacies or, otherwise, created new conditions.

Why am I going on about this? Because the book does. The first 30% (I read the ARC on my Kindle, which does percents rather than pages) is full of it and little else. There is little character development or plot development and no tension or reason to read on. I nearly gave up, but I wanted to read at least half, to see if there’s any story at all in this.
Well, not really. The story about the niece kind of peters out and has a conclusion I find a little difficult to believe. The duke problem, of course, goes on to another book.

So I always say that the romance is about the characters, right? Okay. Edward doesn’t seem to have a character, apart from being steady and boring. There is nothing to attract me to him, other than his performance in the sack. He’s tall, dark, and boring. Francesca is similarly plodding and a bit boring. She has a nice life—and there’s a word that’s used inappropriately in this book—and except for the problem of her niece, everything’s hunky-dory.  And there’s a woman called Evelyn in this story, which was a man’s name in this period.

There is quite a lot of sex in the second half of the book, as if making up for lost time.

The book is reasonably well written, and most of the historical details are nicely done, although the author didn’t really create a world for me, just bits of one. Things like the heroine’s clothes, which are described as full and frothing (in the Regency?) took me out of the story occasionally, and the “g” word crops up a time or two. My main problem with this book is the lacklustre plot and characterless characters. I wasn’t really engaged in their story.

Oh, yes, and the frankly horrible cover. What is she doing? Presenting herself for doggy-style sex? Not the author’s fault, though, so I can’t hold that against her, except that I kept putting the book to the bottom of the virtual TBR pile because of it. But I read it all, and I don’t think I’ll be aching to read the next in the series. Sorry.

Grade: D

Summary:

A bargain that was all business . . . and pure passion.

Neither wealth nor beauty will help Lady Francesca Gordon win custody of her young niece Georgina, saving the girl from a cruel stepmother; she needs London’s top solicitor for that. But when Edward de Lacey, son of the powerful Duke of Durham, hires away the one man who can do the job, Francesca decides Edward himself must champion her case . . . if only she can melt the dashing lord’s stony heart.

Edward has reason to be guarded, though. London’s tabloids have just exposed a secret that could ruin his entire family. When Francesca offers a unique chance to undo the damage, Edward is forced to agree to a partnership . . . and now, each moment together feeds the flames of his scandalous longing for the passionate widow. But when Georgina disappears, fate will test them both . . . and leave their love hanging in the balance.

No excerpt available.

LynneC’s review of Star Crossed Seduction (Lords of the Seventh House, Book 2) by Jenny Brown
Historical Romance published by Avon Harper Collins August 30th 2011

If I’d read the book described in the blurb, I would have been a happy woman. Unfortunately, it’s nothing like that.  The description of this one intrigued me because it’s about an army officer and a street rat. No lords and ladies, even though the previous book had a lord for a hero. But I soon got bogged down in a welter of historical detail and astrological didacticism. If, like Ms. Brown, you’re a devotee of astrology, then this book might be for you, and certainly I can’t complain a huge amount about the history in this one, unless that there’s too much of it (I know, don’t faint!).

Captain Miles Trevelyan, Trev to his friends, is home on leave from India, so it’s a bit odd that he and his friend choose to wear their uniforms on occasion, because it was the convention for off-duty soldiers on half pay not to do that. But, anyway, a niggle, and it doesn’t bother me a great deal. He’s handsome, a professional soldier, not used to England, since he’s lived all his adult life in India.

Temperance is a street rat, a pickpocket, who gave her heart to a man called Randall, who is now, she believes, dead. When she tries to pick Miles’ pocket, he pursues her, and, in the ensuing struggle, gains the locket she always wears. But here comes my first disconnect. He kisses her and they get the instant connection thing. Wait—he kisses a street rat? These people had rotting teeth and stank more than somewhat. As a gentleman, he might just have noticed that.

Temperance and her friends are taken in by the heroine of the previous book of the series, to her refuge that she runs on astrological principles. Not too far a stretch to make, since there were all kinds of eccentrics around at the time. But in 1821, astrology wasn’t taken seriously in scientific circles and was derided by most. Everyone seems to take this woman seriously. She does the horoscopes of the girls she takes in and decides what to do with their lives accordingly. That is, to me, nuts. As is the assertion that when Temperance lies and gives not her birthday but that of her dead sister, Lady Hartwood spots that the owner of that birthday is dead. Does that mean everybody with the same birthday and time and place of birth are dead? So, as you can see, I’m an astrological skeptic, which makes me a hard sell for this book.

But I read books with elves and write books with vampires, so surely I can take a bit of astrological stuff and accept it for the space of the book? Well, I would, except there is so damned much of it. And it does read like didacticism. I gave up on the book after I got another lecture from Lady Hartwood and realised that, and my other disconnects, make me uninterested in what happens to the characters or the plot. I just don’t care.

There is a lot of history in this book and a lot of references to things that happened at this time. While I am familiar with the time and took most of it in stride, I don’t know how regular readers will take it and I don’t know why they should care. It’s set in 1821, firmly established as this is the year George IV finally was crowned as King, after all his years as Regent, and there are references to the Indian campaign and to the growing discontent among political firebrands, as they were known at the time. One of these themes would have been interesting, but it’s a bit like scattershot, especially in the early chapters—it is sprinkled all over in the hope that some of it might take. I wonder about the reference to Peterloo, for instance, which was a completely local affair and only became a national scandal after the military overreacted.

And the references to “dragoons,” as if they all belonged to the same regiment, is a bit off, too. Dragoons are only one type of soldier – light cavalry, i.e., they carried light weapons, were mounted, and were the lightning forces of the day – and the reference to Miles’ blue tunic (tunics came in a bit later for the army—at this period they were still coats) and blue trousers make me wonder. My father-in-law was a dragoon, but he was in an Irish regiment, so his uniform was green. Temperance’s assertion that the dragoons are all the same, that the ones at Peterloo were the same as the ones in India had me puzzled, but Temperance is a tempestuous heroine, much given to acting first and thinking later.

I really couldn’t like Temperance. She flings herself from one situation to another, and although we’re told she has a kind heart, it is the kind that gives things away to people and doesn’t really work for me. She accepts poverty, and worse, instead of taking what she was born with and making it better. She has the kind of idealism that people who have never known poverty imagine that poor people have for each other. Brown seems to want to make Temperance a bit of everything – intelligent, charitable, streetwise, gracious, a woman born to wealth who gave it up for an ideal—not only gave it up, but flung herself into the gutter. I think Temperance is a servant of the plot more than a living, breathing character, and I couldn’t warm to her. That’s the main reason I gave up on this one.

Miles is, well, the hardened military man thrown into schemes and devices not of his making. I think Miles is the more interesting character, but in the half of the book that I read, I didn’t get enough of him. I might have read on, but the heavy plot and the building “why should I care?” feeling eventually made me give up.

The dreariness of the prose, the throw-everything-at-it-until-it-sticks plot, and the dislikeableness of the main female character made me give up on this one. Oh, yes, and all that astrological stuff.

Grade: DNF

Summary:

Lovers or Enemies?

Captain Miles Trevelyan, on leave from active service in India, is heading out for a night on the town when he rescues a beautiful pickpocket from arrest. She’s the perfect choice for a few days of dalliance–beautiful, cunning, and completely disposable.

But Temperance has no intention of becoming the plaything of a man who wears the uniform of the solders who murdered her lover. Disarming Trev with a kiss, she escapes. But her sultry kiss opens the two Scorpio adversaries to an obsessive attraction that neither can elude–or possibly survive.

Following the success of her sensational debut novel, Lord Lightning, Jenny continues her Lords of the Seventh House series–in which each hero is a different sign of the Zodiac. A dark and sensual story reminiscent of the acclaimed novels of Loretta Chase, Anna Campbell, and Mary Balogh, but with a very tantalizing touch of the occult thrown in, Star Crossed Seduction is top-flight historical romance with a uniquely unforgettable difference.

No excerpt available.

LynneC’s review of The Bed and the Bachelor (Byrons of Braebourne, Book 5) by Tracy Anne Warren
Historical Romance published by Avon 26 Jul 11

If you want to read a historical where the heroine repeatedly date rapes the hero, then you’ve come to the right place. This is the book for you. But let me start at the beginning. This is a book that started a little bit iffy and carried on down, with a dislikeable heroine and a clueless hero. It posed a question for me. Is it okay to have date rape if the book is a historical and it’s the heroine who does it to the hero?

Let me backtrack a little, see if you agree with me.

The heroine, Sebastianne, is posing as a housekeeper in the household of a man with the unfortunate and unlikely name of Drake Byron. Lord Drake Byron, if you please. He’s the fourth son of a duke, and I presume I’ve come in on the tail-end of a series. Obviously using the “Mad, Bad and Dangerous” tag which was attached to Lord Byron by Lady Caroline Lamb, this is fixed firmly in an alternate Regency where the real Lord Byron doesn’t exist.

Okay, so I was extremely skeptical when Sebastianne got the job, despite being 22. Housekeepers were invariably mature women, who’d worked up through the household hierarchy and I don’t imagine any employer would even consider her for the job. But I let it go, because I wanted to see where the story went.

Until the end of the first chapter. Then Sebastianne reveals to the reader that she is a French spy. Oh dear. I avoid spy books set in the Regency. Spies weren’t gentlemen, they were considered liars and cheats, until the advent of James Bond, when Fleming put  a brand new and brilliant spin on what used to be a disreputable profession. And worse, she’s a reluctant spy, because they are holding her family to ransom. So she’s being blackmailed. Ugh. I’d rather have read a book with a committed French spy, someone who believed in what she was doing. But no, Sebastianne is a martyr.

She is there to get a copy of a cipher which the mathematically brilliant Drake has made up for the government. He keeps the key to his safe on a chain around his neck. So Sebastianne drugs him, then sneaks into his room one night.

What follows is an almost casebook example of date rape. She gives him the Regency equivalent of rohypnol. Makes him sleepy and randy. She sneaks into his room in her night clothes.  He half wakes, and wants her. He pursues her, she does the “no, no” thing and goes to bed with him. She gets the wax impression of the key.

This is what the Women’s Health site says about the effects of date rape:

• “You feel drunk and haven’t drunk any alcohol — or, you feel like the effects of drinking alcohol are stronger than usual.
• You wake up feeling very hung over and disoriented or having no memory of a period of time.
• You remember having a drink, but cannot recall anything after that.
• You find that your clothes are torn or not on right.
• You feel like you had sex, but you cannot remember it.”

Which is how Drake is described as feeling the morning after. Drake can remember having sex with Sebastianne, or Anne, as he knows her as, but he thinks it’s a dream, vaguely. Although he makes the approach to her, it’s clear to her that he’s not in his right mind. After all, she drugged him. If this had happened with the sexes reversed, the romance community would be up in arms, but it can happen the other way, too. And she isn’t remorseful, except with regard to herself. Would she get caught? Would he sack her before she’d stolen the papers from him?

Mind you, I’m almost in sympathy with her because of an earlier scene when Drake, coming home from an enthusiastic session with his perfectly nice mistress, has inner thoughts about lusting after his housekeeper. Very heroic, right? Erm, no.

The second time they have sex, Drake is drunk. So mark that down as two date rapes. He isn’t used to being drunk.

I really didn’t believe in Sebastianne, and I didn’t care for her. She’s a typical passive-aggressive rapist, denies her own feelings, denies his, and blames somebody else (the French). He’s a mathematical wiz who thinks it’s okay to have sex with one woman to get another out of his system.

The style is a little off. I have to give Warren kudos for trying to recreate the Regency era, although she peoples it with characters who seem to have been transplanted in the modern era. And cowboys. There is one scene in which Drake and his brother Cade discuss the issues over a cigar. She transports me to the old West, when characters had names like Cade and Drake, and smoked stogies. Certainly not the Regency era.

There are some details that aren’t quite right, as well. The “g” word turned up more than somewhat and several American terms like “quit” for “leave,” “candy” for “sweets” and the startling modern sentence, “I’m through with her.” But it won’t bother the average U.S. reader, and since American-authored historicals rarely travel far, that should work out fine. They’re common enough phrases for her readers not to notice, although to a British reader, it reads very “American” (so why doesn’t Avon employ a few British beta readers?) I did appreciate that she’s done some research into the era, but the household was more Downton Abbey (Edwardian) than Northanger Abbey, and some of the characters belowstairs seem to have come directly from that series.

Her style bothers me a bit, too. She describes something, then there’s a paragraph of static description, so that drags the book down and makes it a bit of a slog to read. I prefer it when details are incorporated into the action. But this seems to be the way she writes, or at least, she does in this book.

I’m really sorry this book didn’t work out for me. I did try to like it, I really did, and I did force myself to read to the end, but I’m afraid neither character redeems themselves for me.

Grade: D

Summary:

Everyone knows the Byron brothers are “mad, bad, and dangerous.” But the devilishly desirable fourth son, Drake, is too scholarly to misbehave . . . or is he?

Lord Drake Byron has no time in his busy life to worry about taking a wife. He is more interested in the unbreakable code he has developed to defeat Napoleon’s forces. Little does he know that the irresistibly lovely new housekeeper he’s hired is really a French secret agent.

Sebastianne Dumont is not at all who she seems to be. Forced to spy to save her family, she embarks on a mission that takes an even more dangerous turn when she falls in love with the surprisingly tempting man she must ultimately betray. And if she succeeds in her mission, will she also break Lord Drake’s heart, while leaving her own behind?

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

LynneC’s review of  by The Amorous Education of Celia Seaton (The Burgundy Club, Book 3) by Miranda Neville
Historical Romance published by Avon 26 July 11

I’m on a roll. You might recall, I spent a lot of last year looking for a new historical romance author to love. Well, I read the new Loretta Chase and loved it, but she didn’t count, because I’ve loved her books for years. However, I read my first Miranda Neville this week. And I loved that, too. I know she’s not new, but she’s new to me, and that counts, right?

The Amorous Education of Celia Seaton is an old story about the society dandy and the parvenu outsider. Me, I’m a sucker for those stories, if done properly. Cinderella, all that. We first meet Celia when she’s been kidnapped by a man called Constantine. She doesn’t know why. But Constantine takes all her money and possessions, leaving her with next to nothing. Not even her outer clothing. He does the same thing to Tarquin Compton, society dandy, when he encounters him. Except that he takes Tarquin’s memory, too, by knocking him on the head.

I didn’t like the start of the book overmuch. I’m not too keen on amnesia stories, and this one didn’t treat amnesia properly. It’s a serious illness, usually accompanied by other symptoms, but in this case, it’s the old knock on the head stuff. And Celia, instead of being frightened, resigned, or even angry, banters with her assailant. It’s not as if she doesn’t want to live anymore, and she doesn’t know the man who attacked her. Then, when she recognizes Tarquin as the man who ruined her chances in society by calling her a cauliflower, and realizing he doesn’t know who he is, she gives him a new name and claims him as her fiancé. The first third of the book is a road romance, and since I’m usually a sucker for that kind of story, I settled in to read.

But as the story goes on, I begin to like Celia more. And it is her story, far more than it is Tarquin’s. She has spirit, but she’s not stupid, just disorganized, and as I read on, I came to understand that. Tarquin is a dandy and a Corinthian (although Neville avoids using that term), so he enjoys fighting and pugilism. He’s dark and sleek, and the description made me think of an otter. Tarka the otter, to be precise. He never completely comes together for me, from the gangly boy his uncle took in hand, to the tall and distinguished leader of society. I think we’re told a little too much and not shown, even though part of the story takes place in a great country house.

His uncle, the man who mentored him, describes himself early on as not preferring women. Gay, in today’s parlance. Since it didn’t play a part in the story, and his sexual preferences are never referred to again, I couldn’t see why this detail mattered.

Celia has a McGuffin. Something lots of people in the story want, but she doesn’t know what it is. She has also purloined a book that Tarquin had, one of those dirty books gentlemen used to collect, purportedly by Aretino. So her sexual education is largely from the book, although she does get to practice on Tarquin.

There are parts of this story that don’t work for me. The villain, or villains, are a little toothless and the final showdown a bit on the clichéd side. When a certain place enterd into the story I knew it would feature strongly before the end. I also guessed at the nature and location of the McGuffin fairly early on, but I haven’t spoiled your pleasure by saying what and where. And this book isn’t edited particularly well. For instance, a gem was described as having “carets.” However, I had an ARC, so that might be sorted out by the time the book comes out. At the start of the book, there are several sentences that should really have been split into two, and some without commas where a comma would have made more sense. Add to that, the ladies’ hairstyles are referred to as “coiffeur”s a few times. But I want that left in. The idea that every Regency lady walked around with a hairdresser on her head was completely irresistible.

The development of the novel form is evolutionary rather than happening all at once. Scholars tend to agree that after beginnings all over the place, it really starts with Defoe and Robinson Crusoe really on the premise that you have to start somewhere. Throughout the eighteenth century the epistolary (written in the form of letters) and the narrative were the main ones. Pamela and Tom Jones being the most memorable, although everybody should read Roderick Random at least once. The books are usually comic in tone, although Fielding’s endless Clarissa and the utterly charming Evelina by Fanny Burney buck the trend. But all these books are “picaresque” in style. That is, the principle characters go through a series of adventures to get to their happy ending. Or their unhappy one. One of the reasons Pride and Prejudice was so revolutionary is that it went against that. It showed the development of character. Each scene meant something, either in terms of plot development or character development. Usually both. In this book, Neville seems to have returned to the picaresque style. Not every scene meant something. Some seem to be there just for comic effect, and the characters involved never meet again, only referred to once or twice.

While the plot isn’t as close-knit as the modern reader is used to, and sometimes hold a hole or two, or three, once I started enjoying myself, it didn’t matter as much. Character isn’t always bound as tightly to plot, either, so motivation is a little at odds. And while there is a big supporting cast, some of them aren’t as fully developed as they should be to make them interesting. And I can’t say that the sex scenes do that much for me, but since they are written in the style of the rest of the book, with wit and panache, I’m okay with that, too. But describing a penis as a “pintle” isn’t desperately conducive to hotness.

What I really enjoyed is Neville’s style. I don’t know if she had to revise the first chapters over and over, but once I got into the book, I really enjoyed it and just went with the flow. She has a light, witty style that is totally unlike the slapstick style that isn’t to my taste when I’m reading. I don’t necessarily want to guffaw, but I do like to smile sometimes. This book makes me smile quite a lot. I’m definitely up for the next adventure.

Grade: B+

Summary:

Being kidnapped is teaching Miss Celia Seaton a few things about life:

Lesson one: Never disrobe in front of a gentleman . . . unless his request comes at gunpoint.

Lesson two: If, when lost on the moors, you encounter Tarquin Compton, the leader of London society who ruined your marriage prospects, deny any previous acquaintance.

Lesson three: If presented with an opportunity to get back at Mr. Compton, the bigger the lie, the better. A faux engagement should do nicely.

Lesson four: Not all knowledge is found between the covers of a book. But an improper book may further your education in ways you never guessed.

And while an erotic novel may be entertaining, the real thing is even better.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

LynneC’s review of Kathryn the Kitten by Lavinia Kent
Historical Romance eBook novella published by Avon 28 Jun 11

With the blurb and a title like that, how could I resist? It was like a challenge. But it’s one that quickly dissipated.

It took me a while to get what the tagline was about. I’d thought it meant that the author had taken care over the details, researched the period. Silly me. It’s a reference to reality shows, I think, though it took me a while to get the point.

The book, short though it is, starts very slowly. There’s a scene with Kathryn, and a scene with her husband, Robert. They aren’t very good in bed together, although they are in love. Kathryn lost their baby and they hadn’t really got together since. But I read it. The research is enough to give the story some authenticity, but not enough to interest me. Clubs and society, a brief mention of current affairs. I read on.

Kathryn asks a friend about jazzing up her sex life. Friend obliges, showing her how to behave like a slut, because we all know how much men love that, especially upright and slightly stuffy dukes. Kathryn and huz do a bit better.

That’s about it, really. There is a confusing plot about a print in an apothecary’s shop. I’m not quite sure why it’s not in a print shop but instead the apothecary’s shop, full of the bottles and pills it contains, but there you go. Maids discuss the ladies in the print, who will, of course, have their own stories. Ladies of the day could expect to be immortalized in prints, and common folk could buy them and put them up in their living rooms. Livens the place up a bit. Of course, there are also scurrilous cartoons, scandalous in their subject matter, lampooning politicians in ways nobody could get away with today.

Kathryn seems obsessed with the print, and nobody could understand why, least of all me. Honestly, I didn’t get the point. I felt a bit thick, to tell you the truth, but I couldn’t understand what it’s about. I don’t watch many reality shows, only the X Factor and Strictly Come Dancing, so I’m probably missing an allusion to something else. I have no idea what.

There are a lot of Americanisms in the book, and when there aren’t any, the characters are speaking in Regency-ese, where words are sometimes contracted, sometimes not. It makes for a stilted read. And why call the heroine “Kathryn”? A twentieth century version of the name Katharine. In the Regency they might have thought that her parents couldn’t spell. Misspellings and alternative spellings weren’t too popular then. So we had King George instead of King Jorj. Shame, really. There are a fair few Americanisms, and the style is, well, flat and very simple. I’m afraid it didn’t engage my interest.

This is really a novella, at 33,000 words, but it seems much longer. Much, much longer. In a story where very little happens, and what does happen is predictable and devoid of interest, the best thing about it is the blurb and the way the story is sold. There are more to come, but they’ll have to get along without me.

By the way, I went to her website to check on this one and maybe get a nice cover pic. The only mention of this novella is a brief one on the news page.

Grade: D

Summary:

Regency England just got real(ity)

Episode 1: How Kathryn Got Her Passion Back

Kathryn, Duchess of Harrington, has the perfect life: a handsome duke for a husband, riches to spare, a house in Mayfair, and the right group of friends. The only thing she doesn’t have is her husband in her bed. But she’s about to change that. Enlisting the aid of her best friend, Linnette, who knows about these things even though she’s a duchess herself, Kathryn begins her seduction plan.

But Linnette knows a secret and it involves Kathryn’s husband. And, when that comes out, Kathryn’s marriage isn’t the only thing at stake. Can you say Afternoon Tea Catfight?

No excerpt available.

Sandy M’s review of Waking Up with the Duke (London’s Greatest Lovers, Book 3) by Lorraine Heath
Historical Romance published by Avon 28 Jun 11

I absolutely love Lorraine Heath’s books. There hasn’t been one book so far that hasn’t drawn me in completely, always from the first page. Every time I become enmeshed in her characters’ lives, I cheer for them, I get angry with them, I grieve with them, I cry with them and so much more. This trilogy of London’s Greatest Lovers has been a special treat. With each book, the stakes are higher, the emotion is riskier, and the love is simply beautiful.

The Duke of Ainsley is the youngest of these three brothers, but he’s always acted like the oldest. He’s responsible and generous. Like his older brothers, he’s also a ladies’ man. And sometimes he plays a little too hard and one time too many, tragedy results. Four years ago on a night of partying and drinking with his cousin and best friend, Lord Walfort, a carriage accident results in a paralyzed Walfort. The rest of his life will be spent in a wheelchair, and Ainsley is wracked with guilt. He was the carriage driver that fateful night.

For most of her marriage Lady Jayne has taken care of her husband, but not in the usual way. Caring for a man who cannot walk, nor do any of the activities he enjoyed before the accident, is difficult, not what she expected in her life, but Jayne does her duty for the man she loves. Her unimaginable hurt also stems from the fact she lost their child the night she found out about her husband’s accident. All of this she blames on Ainsley, the womanizer who is out for his pleasure only and feels nothing for the anguish he’s caused.

Then Jayne – and Ainsley – thinks her husband has truly lost his mind. He proposes that Ainsley father a child for them, something that Walfort cannot now give Jayne, the one thing she’s always wanted. Refusing such insanity is the only option Jayne has. Ainsley has a different view of the situation, even though he also refuses the proposal. At first anyway. He’s always been attracted to Jayne, lamented the fact Walfort asked for her first. He’d do anything to try to make up for his night of tragic revelry, anything but Walfort’s request, although Ainsley would dearly love to experience the heaven of having Jayne in his bed.

Walfort doesn’t give in and eventually talks Jayne into what she considers a betrayal of her wedding vows, despite the approval of her husband. But keeping the end result – a child – in the forefront, she prepares to spend the next month with Ainsley, hoping she can stomach the man touching her. She can only go forward knowing the whole interaction will be a business transaction and nothing more. What she doesn’t expect is learning about him, his love for his family, his regrets, his charm, his vulnerabilities, and his caring for those in his charge.

And Ainsley can’t resist this woman. He’s little by little gently seducing her, hoping to give her pleasure for her to remember in the years to come. The scenes between these two while at Ainsley’s cottage are wonderfully written. Full of emotion and sensation, fun and laughter, and long, lazy days and sensually pleasant nights, all of which they never thought they’d have together. Their lovemaking scenes are passionate and tender at times and at others they’re raw and furious, culminating in a love that neither can voice when it comes time for Jayne to return to her husband.

Again, after she’s gone, Ainsley tries to do the right thing. Stay as far away from Jayne as he can get – not thinking of the child they created together, nor of the times they spent enjoying every last minute. But when tragedy strikes again, when Jayne learns the truth about her marriage, Ainsley takes control as much as he can to save her from scandal and gossip. I love him even more when he finally shows Jayne every emotion he’s been holding back so she could have a good life, despite the secrets that later become known.

When I read Lorraine Heath, I just let every word flow over me and I have patience, trusting the emotion will follow, moving me from one end of the spectrum to the other, laughter to tears, all the while giving me substance of story and depth of character to make my reading experience simply lovely.

Grade: A+

Summary:

They are masters of seduction, London’s greatest lovers . . .

Renowned for his bedchamber prowess, Ransom Seymour, the Duke of Ainsley, owes a debt to a friend. But the payment expected is most shocking, even to an unrepentant rake—for he’s being asked to provide his friend’s exquisite wife with what she most dearly covets: a child.

Living for pleasure, they will give their hearts to no one . . .

Lady Jayne Seymour, Marchioness of Walfort, is furious that such a scandalous agreement would be made. If she acquiesces, there must be rules: no kissing . . . and, certainly, no pleasure.

Until love takes them by surprise.

But unexpected things occur with the surprisingly tender duke—especially once Lady Jayne discovers the rogue can make her dream again . . . and Ransom realizes he’s found the one woman he truly cannot live without.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

LynneC’s review of Silk is for Seduction (The Dressmakers Series, Book 1) by Loretta Chase
Historical Romance published by Avon 28 June 11

I’ve spent the last year looking for a new historical romance author to love. I failed. But when I turned back to my old favorites, I found this. This, ladies and gentlemen, is what I mean. This is a historical romance that will give you hours of sheer pleasure. Vivid characterization plus a recreation of a world long gone add up to an absorbing read.

Marcelline Noiret and her sisters own a dressmaker’s shop, and they want to become the best shop in London. The sisters between them have flair, a business sense, and numerical skills. Marcelline has the flair. Hearing that the Duke of Clevedon is to return home for his long-awaited wedding, she is keen to attract him to the shop. They need some high-profile clients. So she hies off to Paris to enchant the duke. Don’t ask. It works. Of course, they are engrossed with each other, but Marcelline, aware that her sisters and her little girl depend on her to do her part, doesn’t get carried away. I really like that about her. In common with most of Chase’s heroines, she’s an immensely practical woman. So when she does get carried away, it really counts.

Not that she does that for some time.

The duke is a big man, and he’s never quite felt like he fit into English society. I like him, but he isn’t as vividly drawn as Marcelline, especially at the beginning. No matter. He turns out to be a complete sweetie. He’s not an out and out bounder, like Dain of Lord of Scoundrels, but he’s not a goody-goody either. He’s been enjoying himself in Paris and he doesn’t really want to come home. But his foster-brother tells him he has to or his sister will consider the marriage off and start to look elsewhere. He needs direction. And, boy, does he find it with Marcelline, although he doesn’t realize it at first.

Their attraction, an engaging supporting cast, plus a touch of industrial espionage add up to an absorbing read.

Chase avoids the clichés I’ve read recently with admirable skill. The Other Woman, Clara, is a statuesque blonde, but she’s a nice person (and probably, I have to say, sequel bait). She and Clevedon like each other and they’re not opposed to marrying. When Clara and Marcelline meet, they are naturally wary of each other, but they tolerate each other and respect each other, too. I can’t see them ever becoming bosom buddies, but I like that, too.

Realism. Well, there are books about milliners, dressmakers, florists and so on becoming duchesses, but I tend to avoid them. This, people, is how you make it plausible. You set it in an era that is about to take seismic changes—the 1830s, when the aristocracy were about to take a tumble and the middle class to rise. You give the heroine a touch of good birth, enough to make her just about acceptable. You make a hero who isn’t happy with his life, a duke who isn’t as powerful as some other peers, despite his title, because he hasn’t bothered to pursue the connections and business interests that he should. You don’t hide the problems and make it all a fairytale at the end.

And you add the right detail.

Oh my God, what a difference this makes. Chase adds detail as it should be there. Detail the characters take for granted. Unusual aspects are seen through the eyes of people who would notice. And they take their way of life for granted, they know about hackneys and gas lighting and comfortable furniture and shop fittings. You don’t have to think about it because Chase does. There is a delicious undressing scene in the book that makes it obvious that a woman had to take a ton and a half of clothes off before she could get naked. Chase knows her way around an 1830s woman’s wardrobe. Drawers, which didn’t come in for all women until Victoria’s reign, but perfectly acceptable for a dressmaker to have. All those petticoats and padding and corsets, and—well, the scene is superb. Thank you for knowing that a woman had to work hard to undress. Completely different to my beloved mid-Georgian era, when women didn’t wear knickers, briefs, or drawers and wore stays, not corsets. I know Chase would know the difference, as I do.

The result is that I feel transported into the past. Chase does what I always ask of a writer of historical romance. She takes me into a different world, into her world, which seems increasingly to be the 1830s. Not strictly Georgian, as there was a William on the throne, and a time of transition. I believe this world. The behavior and expectations of the characters are right for this time, or seem so.

Silk is for Seduction isn’t without its flaws.

The book is set in the 1830s, which is, in my opinion, one of the ugliest fashion eras ever. Women’s skirts were ankle length and bell shaped. They had huge puffed sleeves and hairstyles were, frankly, weird, when women thought nothing of wearing a Hello Kitty style bow on their heads that was made of hair.

Chase knows this period. Sure, there were a few slips (dollhouse is an Americanism, and is anachronistic, but I’m sure Chase was aware of that), but I don’t care. They don’t intrude, and they didn’t stop me reading. If this book had been about these two characters without the care Chase takes to get her details right, it would have been interesting, but nowhere near as good as it is.

There is a fair bit of sequel bait. There is Clara herself, her brother Lord Longton and his attraction to Marcelline’s sister. There is another sister. I have no doubt we’ll hear their stories in due course.

I can’t wait.

Grade: A

Summary:

Brilliant and ambitious dressmaker Marcelline Noirot is London’s rising star. And who better to benefit from her talent than the worst-dressed lady in the ton, the Duke of Clevedon’s intended bride? Winning the future duchess’s patronage means prestige and fortune for Marcelline and her sisters. To get to the lady, though, Marcelline must win over Clevedon, whose standards are as high as his morals are . . . not.

The prize seems well worth the risk—but this time Marcelline’s met her match. Clevedon can design a seduction as irresistible as her dresses; and what begins as a flicker of desire between two of the most passionately stubborn charmers in London soon ignites into a delicious inferno . . . and a blazing scandal.

And now both their futures hang by an exquisite thread of silk . . .

Read an excerpt. (scroll down)