Book Lovers Message Board’s review of Dangerous in Diamonds by Madeline Hunter
Historical Romance published by Jove 26 Apr 11

How many times have you started a book and emailed all your friends, saying, “This is it, it’s the best evah!,” only to see the book deflate somewhat as the chapters unfold? The usual reason, for me at least, is my inability to continue to suspend my disbelief. And don’t get me wrong, I can suspend my disbelief faster than a sailor ordering a last round before closing time. I ripped through Dangerous in Diamonds and thoroughly enjoyed it, but upon reflection, I had a some second thoughts.

A few weeks ago, there was a Book Chat on the Book Lovers Message Board on Dangerous in Diamonds. A number of us counted down the days to the publication date. Our glimpses of the duke of sin during the earlier books on Hunter’s quartet had been tantalizing but potent. Castleford “entertaining” multiple women concurrently, Castleford getting things done on Tuesday, his weekly date with sobriety, Castleford stepping up to help a friend or a friend’s lady (a la mantle of a Jo Beverley Rothgar character). We were more than ready to read his story!

An evergreen question in Romlandia is “can this villain be redeemed?” But Castleford never seems the least bit interested in deviating from his self-appointed path to become a hero. Quite the contrary, he believes he has responsibilities towards his three best male friends (Hawkeswell, Albrighton, and Summerhays), “His own [responsibility] these days was to make sure that Hawkeswell did not follow his natural inclinations to allow sobriety and love to remove of all the fun in his life. It was becoming a hell of a chore, though.” But it is a truth devoutly to be respected in our genre: that the last two people left unattached at the end of the penultimate book, will, no matter how unlikely the notion, become a pair and fall madly in love and live happily ever after.

I’m going to approach my review a little differently ~ by sharing the comments of the participants in the Book Lovers Board book chat. First, thanks to Sybil for giving me this opportunity. In the interest of anonymity, the names have been changed to protect the innocent.

Meet Janie (that would be me), Karen, Laura, and Tammy. All interpretations are, of course, my own.

We all enjoyed the beginning:

• Tammy: I think it says a lot for someone when his servants could be trusted even in the most scandalous conditions.
• Janie: Don’t you think, Tammy, that Daphne was sick of her half-life way of living? Of always living with fear?
• Karen: (referring to the sexual scenes in the earlier books) As for how much sex he got, I think he was really bored. Being bad had lost its fun so he kept upping the ante. Once he got sober he found new things to be excited about.

Ethics:

• Tammy: I liked that Castleford had a set of rules and ethics he lived by. I don’t think he was moral, but he was ethical: he avoided innocents.
• Karen: Tammy, we saw that in the past books too – so not too much of a shock
• Janie: But his friends were so frank and funny, saying “OMG, are you really burning the bed you slept in with all those women?” That showed sensitivity.
• Laura: I don’t know if I felt that – ethics across the board – I’m not so sure so much with all the other women. But the consensus was that the sex in the other books was consensual and the women were *ahem* professionals.

Tie me up, tie me down:

Some of us are surprised that Castleford, suspecting as he did that Daphne had probably been sexually abused by his brother duke, would have tied her up. I’m of two minds. Yes, I believe that Hunter could have dispensed with that, but perhaps it’s to help Daphne take back her power and enjoy a more outré sexual adventure, knowing that it was safe.

• Laura: I’m so tired of bondage scenes …
• Tammy: No one who had been raped would let someone tie them up, even in play.
• Karen: (after musing that some bondage scenes can be quite sweet) … with Daphne’s history, it was pushing it a bit but maybe it was the way the author showed the new trust?  It would have been great if she had turned the tables and tied him up.

Really? Really! A sub-category all its own:

a)      What we find fairly believable – that he would cut back on his drinking, that his servants would be so forthright with him, and that he would lose interest in his work in progress, a Londoner’s guide to whoring.

b)      Castleford put a new spin on pleasure cruise as he tricks out his barge for a trip to Vauxhall Gardens for Daphne and their friends.

• Laura: the scene where he takes them on his boat and sets up tents for his/her friends to go have sex had me rolling my eyes.

c)      We threw the bullshit flag on him going to his doctor and asking for a clean bill of health. What, no STD testing? Just. Not. Even.

• Karen: (somewhat disagreeing with that viewpoint) I consider my books to be mind candy so I can overlook a great deal
• Tammy: He reminded me of the John Malkovich character in the movie Dangerous Liaisons: he was appealing, even though he was a drunken sleaze.

How did we like the heroine?

Unlike Castleford, who we understand better with each succeeding chapter, some of us still find Daphne hard to read. We all like her standing up to the mealy-mouthed villain and saving the day on her own, although it could have veered into foolhardiness.

• Karen: I didn’t dislike Daphne before, but I did like her better in this book, especially after losing her house was not an issue and she got bolder.

There’s much confusion over the late revelation that Daphne has a daughter (a consequence of her rape, years earlier). Why did Daphne visit her so infrequently over the years? To me it’s an unnecessary add-on and Tammy thinks, “It would be better without the daughter angle.” We all think Castleford’s temperate and reasoned approach to the daughter situation is believable.

Grade:

Karen & Laura: C+/B-

Tammy (for the story): B-/C+

Janie … really liked the believability of Castleford’s character transformation, because Hunter showed growth through small incremental changes: B

Tammy, for the characters, since they can make or break a book: B+

Summary:

The Duke of Castleford has been so bad for so long that scandal can’t be bothered to rise up around him anymore. To alleviate the boredom of his privileged life, he occupies himself with drinking and whoring, not to mention the occasional duel. When something piques his interest, however, he has been known to emerge from his ennui and employ his considerable mental faculties to finding answers to the questions that fascinate him.

When Daphne Joyes rejects this notorious hedonist’s seduction, she assumes that he will forget about her and continue on his path to hell. Instead her beauty, grace and formidable composure captivate him, and she becomes one of those fascinations to him. That he intends to have her, and soon, is actually the least of the dangers that his pursuit of her presents. More troublesome is his interest in her past and her history, and the way he keeps poking his nose into the secrets behind the distant relative’s bequest that gave him ownership of the property where she lives.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

Gwen’s review of The Sins of Lord Easterbrook (The Rothwell Series, Book 4) by Madeline Hunter
Historical romance released by Dell 3 Feb 09

This book has engendered such a wide range of reactions in the romance reading world, that I wasn’t’ sure if I should add my voice to the fray.  But I felt this book got short shrift by some reviewers and that I needed to stand up for what I enjoyed about it. 

This is the latest entry in the Rothwell series by Hunter.  You’ll remember that the previous book, Secrets of Surrender, was about a “spinster” wedding a “scoundrel” and several of the other books deal with scandal in equal measures.  So it’s no surprise that Hunter keeps our hero, Christian, and heroine, Leona, very much in the forefront of scandal with this entry.

There’s a delightful tendency of Hunter’s characters to want to TRY to avoid scandal, but perfectly willing to dive right into it if it’s unavoidable.  I love that in a historical – recognize it, and avoid if possible, or embrace it if there’s no other way around it.  The characters don’t force themselves into untenable situations just for the sake of proprietary.  I find that refreshing and it helps assuage my 21st century feelings of impatience with propriety.

Hunter has introduced an odd and mildly paranormal element to this book: Christian is empathic.  It’s explained as the main reason for his eccentricity in the earlier novels and for his seeming omniscience for all things to do with his family.  He struggles with this ability through this book and eventually seems to master it with the help of Leona – the one person who can block his ability, thus giving him respite from the deluge of another’s feelings.  He also comes to realize that his ability has flaws – something that is quite shocking to him since he proclaims “I am Easterbrook” in his oh-so-imperious manner.

Leona is more of a mystery to us.  Her personality and appearance is a mixture of East and West, as is her character and actions.  She accepts all parts of Christian, even if he did deceive her when they first met in Canton.  She’s also on a mission that Christian is determined to protect her from – finding out what really happened to her father.

This book, like several of those I’ve read lately, has a lot of historical intrigue and derring do in it.   It all spices up the plot, but doesn’t detract from what occurs between the main characters.  Unlike Secrets, that was all about the relationship between the hero and heroine, the historical detail in Sins takes a much more central stag.  We read more about what the East India Trading Company was doing in Asia and how many English noblemen made a fortune off of smuggling opium (among other things) under that company’s auspices.  It was all very interesting.

Nevertheless, the reason we’re reading the book is because of the romance and Hunter doesn’t fail us.  These two characters bring out the best in each other.  I enjoyed reading how they worked out the various misunderstandings and how they worked out how they could live together as man and wife.  It was fun to read Easterbrook come to terms with his emotions.  Some reviewers never were able to connect to him on this level.   I think I didn’t have any trouble since I, like the Easterbrook character, prefer to spend time alone, in my head as well.

This historical is not for everyone.  If you like your characters a bit odd and your romances non-traditional, then this is the book for you.  If you’re following the series, you definitely need to read it.

Grade: A

Read more reviews and information about this and other books in the series by following its tag.

Summary:

Journey back to a time of scandal, intrigue, and reckless desire in Madeline Hunter’s sensuous new novel, the tale of a man who will give up everything for the woman he’s determined to possess-even reveal his most sinful secret.

Only a desperate mission could bring Leona Montgomery face-to-face with the scoundrel whose dangerous sensuality once sent her fleeing from his arms. But she has under-estimated Christian, Marquess of Easterbrook. As irresistible as ever, his past swathed in mystery, Christian has his own plans for the woman he has waited seven years to claim. Yet once desire reignites, bringing a dangerous secret into the open, Leona will find herself bound to the seductive nobleman in ways she could never have imagined. Seven years have changed nothing: this man can tempt her to ruin with just one touch. With Leona’s reputation and hopes for her family’s salvation in tatters, she must follow the only course left to her…even as each step brings her closer to a shattering truth and a passion she can no longer live without….

Read an excerpt.

Other books in the series:

Sybil’s review of The Sins of Lord Easterbrook (The Rothwell Series, Book 4) by Madeline Hunter
Historical romance released by Dell 27 Jan 09

The Sins of Lord Easterbrook is a novel I have been waiting for since “the end” of The Rules of Seduction. Christian, Marquess of Easterbrook is a puzzle, an enigma, you know there is such a story there to be told.  Who is this man who walks around ‘half dressed’, obeys no rules but his own, does not suffer society and still manages to remain in favor.  He IS Easterbrook. And Madeline Hunter made us suffer through three books to get here, it is a damn good thing they were good books. Of course the problem that always leaves us with is… does the book live up to the wait?

To be completely honest, I got a few chapters into the book and was some what annoyed and put the book down. In fact I didn’t make it back to the book for a few weeks because I thought The Sins of Lord Easterbrook was going to take a turn off into a paranormal direction. It was rather short-sighted of me and I didn’t give the book enough of a chance, once I picked it back up and decided to just see where the author was taking us (and did learn that no woo woo was involved in Easterbrook’s Sins) it was all good.

The book opens with Lord Easterbrook trying very hard to find his ‘center’ and his valet pretty much thinking his job sucks.  There is a disturbance in the force so to speak and next we know Lord Easterbrook is having Leona Montgomery kidnapped (in a most polite way) off the street and taken to his home for a chat.  There she learns Christian, Marquess of Easterbrook, is really Edmund the same man who once stole her heart a life time ago and who she thinks might hold a key to why she is now in England.

This all happens in the first two chapters of the book.

As always she [Madeline Hunter] has wonderful characters, awesome detail and grand attention paid to her research.  Or she fakes it really well .  For someone like me who has pined for a character for as long as I have, and she did make me wait a good long while to get Christian’s HEA, she delivered and delivered well.

I know it seems like I am not giving you a ton of detail and I almost feel like I should say “sorry” but seriously – I put this book down or at least a month after waiting 100 years for it – you think I am going to give you spoilers?  READ it.

Grade: A

Read more info and reviews of this series by following the its tag.

Summary:

Only a desperate mission could bring Leona Montgomery face-to-face with the scoundrel whose dangerous sensuality once sent her fleeing from his arms. But she has under-estimated Christian, Marquess of Easterbrook. As irresistible as ever, his past swathed in mystery, Christian has his own plans for the woman he has waited seven years to claim. Yet once desire reignites, bringing a dangerous secret into the open, Leona will find herself bound to the seductive nobleman in ways she could never have imagined. Seven years have changed nothing: this man can tempt her to ruin with just one touch. With Leona’s reputation and hopes for her family’s salvation in tatters, she must follow the only course left to her…even as each step brings her closer to a shattering truth and a passion she can no longer live without.…

Read an excerpt.

Other books in the series:

As I was putting together a list of books I wanted to review (not the list PamP was asking for but hey a list *g*) I noticed a few odd things

Yes first is the fact, I do plan to start reviewing again.  Well that isn’t odd to me since I had hoped to start in January, if the Topamax would let me.  (If you wonder what I mean by that look up that side effects) To borrow a phrase from my neuro more on that later…

The thing that *I* found most shocking was there are so many books coming out on January 27 (yes that is today) that I thought were rather awesome books. Since it must be in celebration of my birthday (yeah it was the 22nd but really it is close), I thought I would use the 4pm review spot to make a list! Well and because I can *g*

The Sins of Lord Easterbrook by Madeline Hunter – I was going to put this review up today at 4pm, I know isn’t it like so cool how I just change the rules for myself (generally 4pm is older book reviews ) but tis a duckies choice to change her mind and I decided to showcase all the releases today.  And it should be NO shock that I adored this book.  For historical fans you really need to get your feathers on down to the bookstore and get this, or download it or whatev.  Easterbrook demands to be read.  Trust me on this.

ETS: if you didn’t already know this… Madeline has joind the ever delightful women over @ The Goddess Blog

(almost didn’t put this summary cuz is SO doesn’t fit IMHO)

Only a desperate mission could bring Leona Montgomery face-to-face with the scoundrel whose dangerous sensuality once sent her fleeing from his arms. But she has under-estimated Christian, Marquess of Easterbrook. As irresistible as ever, his past swathed in mystery, Christian has his own plans for the woman he has waited seven years to claim. Yet once desire reignites, bringing a dangerous secret into the open, Leona will find herself bound to the seductive nobleman in ways she could never have imagined. Seven years have changed nothing: this man can tempt her to ruin with just one touch. With Leona’s reputation and hopes for her family’s salvation in tatters, she must follow the only course left to her…even as each step brings her closer to a shattering truth and a passion she can no longer live without….

Montana Creeds: Logan by Linda Lael Miller – wasn’t sure if I should include this or not but it does show ‘in stock’ at amazon. It is the first in a back to back trilogy from HQN. I read all three books around the end of December beginning of Jan and adored them all (Dylan the next was my fave). LLM is an old fave of mine who is very hit or miss so it was a delight to read three books in a row that were really all hits. It is a contemp western trilogy with three very estranged brothers. It is a great mix of what I loved in LLM older novels and what still is wonderful in her recent work without slamming any doors. And she does some great men, Holly you really need to read these and tell me what you think .

Descendants of the legendary McKettrick family, the Creeds are renowned in Stillwater Springs, Montana—for raising hell…

After years of wandering, Logan Creed, a cowboy with a dusty law degree, has returned home. To put down roots, to restore his family’s neglected ranch…to have kids of his own proudly bearing the Creed name.

Divorced mom Briana Grant has heard the stories about her gorgeous neighbor. So Logan’s kindness with her young boys is a welcome surprise, especially when her ex reappears. And when an unknown enemy vandalizes her home, Logan shows Briana—and the folks of Big Sky country—just what he’s made of.

Instant Attraction by Jill Shalvis – One of Jill’s best contemps yet and grand fun. You can step over to Book Binge and get some an awesome look at the book with some excerpts, reader questions answered by THE Jill and reviews already done by Holly and company.

Accountant Katie Kramer is a quintessential good girl – working hard, recycling diligently, all the while trying to ignore the feeling that she doesn’t fit in anywhere. That’s all she wants. Well, that – and amazing sex, and the kind of daredevil escapade she can look back on when she’s crunching numbers in a dusty cubicle. Which explains why she just took a job in Wishful, California, working for Wilder Adventures and Expeditions. Waking up to find a magnificently built stranger towering over her bed – that part defies explanation…After wandering the planet for months following a life-changing accident, Cameron Wilder has come back to the only home he knows. Under other circumstances, he might be thrilled to find a gorgeous woman sleeping in his cabin, but now, while he’ll risk his body taking clients on adrenaline-drenched excursions, his heart is off limits. Still, Katie’s killer smile triggers something deep in his gut…among other places. Showing her how exhilarating it can be to stop balancing her life as if it was a check book is the biggest rush he’s ever felt – and an adventure Katie’s wishing would never end…

Dark of Night by Suzanne Brockmann – OUT TODAY and I admit I have gone back and forth with reviewing this cuz you people scare me. I am a spoilerwhore. I have read like oh three of these books. I liked Dark of Night, ask holly *g* who I texted repeatedly while reading it cuz I KNEW she would lurve that heeeee. But I am guessing what happens is gonna get a whole hellalot of omg how could SUZ!?!?! And I was just too dumb to be upset cuz I wasn’t invested enough to be… ::shrug:: and uh was that a spoiler?

Badly shaken after the loss of one of their own, the men and women of Troubleshooters Inc. go up against their most deadly opponents yet —- the clandestine organization called The Agency. Blackmail, extortion, murder: The Agency’s black-ops sector will apparently stop at nothing to achieve their objective. But this time they’ve gone too far and hit too close to home.

Led by former Navy SEAL Lawrence Decker, a team of investigators —- from FBI agent Jules Cassidy and former CIA operative Dave Malkoff, to Troubleshooters Sophia Ghaffari, Tess Bailey, and even receptionist Tracy Shapiro —- band together to uncover the truth, and bring the killers to justice.

But the stakes are raised even higher when Decker barely escapes an attempt on his life. It soon becomes clear that the hunters have become the hunted —- and the Troubleshooters are no longer just solving a crime -— they’re fighting for survival.

also out today I am currently reading for review but can’t rec one way or the other cuz I am not far enough into so buy at your own risk:
Highland Warrior by Monica McCarty
Sandy’s first Duck Chat Author!

I have just started this so I can’t say much about it yet.  So no need to start worrying yet Monica .

Night After Night by Kathryn Smith – This is the last of Brotherhood of the Blood series and I am pretty sure I have read it but the time I got the ARC hits about the time I was in the hospital so before I review it I need to reread it. Yes better living through chemicals. (this would be why I spent most of Nov and Dec rereading older romance novels but that is a list for another time)

My Man Michael by Lori Foster

I know many here do not care for Lori Fosters books but I do so have a soft spot for her.  I have loved this series and really enjoyed the last book.  I am only a chapter or so into this so can’t at all say if this one will work for me or not.

I am sure there are more books coming out today.  Like the SEP (that I really should make sure got to the reviewer it was suppose to go to… see my memory not so good) So what are you looking forward to that hit the shelves today? What have you read that you want to shout about that came out today? What did you write that comes out today? Feel free to pimp… it you know you wanna

Sybil’s review of The Rules of Seduction (The Rothwell Series, Book 1) by Madeline Hunter
Historical romance released by Dell 31 Oct 06

Since Gwen recently reviewed Secrets of Surrender (Roselyn Longworth and Klyle Bradwell’s tale), I figured I would review the book that started the Rothwell series. And a note as I happened to to read the review after having reread all the books: The Sins of Lord Easterbrook (Book 4), Secrets of Surrender (Book 3), Lessons of Desire (Book 2), and The Rules of Seduction (Book 1) (yes in that order *g*) and for anyone wondering if they can be read out of order and as standalones. Read on for more info but be warned I find it only fair since Madeline tried so hard to not have one book spoil the others (for those who do want to read them all) I am going to try not to be my normal spoilerwhorishself (I said try – I should get points for that).

The Rules of Seduction sets up the journey of The Rothwell series. A tale of a noble family, the Rothwells, and the Longworths trying like mad to hold on to their ‘gentry’ status. I rarely say this about a book but I honestly think if you pick up TRoS and read the first two chapters that will tell you if this book is one for you to try. The banter between Alexia and Hayden sets the tone for their interaction for most of the book as well as we are introduced to most of the Longworth’s. I admit I spent most of the time wanting to slap Timothy upside the head.

Alexia Welbourne is a graduate of life’s course on No Good, Awful, Very Bad Things, she knows when she see Lord Hayden Rothwell at her cousin’s home the worst kind of BAD things are about to happen. It is clear, it is in the air bad things are a coming and in something of a twist the reader learns right away that Timothy Longworth has been up to no good and is a bastard. Rothwell makes a huge mistake in giving him leave to tell his family whatever to save face and leaves Rothwell tied to his word to let them think he ruined them by removing the Rothwell family money from Longworth’s bank.

There are different plots and new discoveries you will no doubt find to feast upon. This is truly an amazing tale — one almost anyone could sit down and reread because there is so much to find. The thing is nothing overwhelms because at the heart of every book in the Rothwell series is the romance. And as with every Madeline Hunter novel, the characters are what set it apart. From the bond Christian, Hayden, and Elliot display to the friendship Alexia has with her cousin Roselyn and the outlandish Phaedra Blair. It is the human emotions and love these characters feel for each other and the things they have to overcome that make for such an emotional read and wonderful story I would highly recommend.

And it might just be me but Lord Hayden Rothwell did so remind me of David de Abyndon in some ways. If you have read both By Arrangement (and if you haven’t – why not?) and The Rules of Seduction I would love to know if you saw it as well *g*. My only real complaint is the same I had with By Arrangement in the way that both Hayden and David kept something from the heroine they felt they had to for WAY too long. At least in my opinion but it was a small thing and one I was able to overlook.

Grade: A

Read more about this series by following its tag.

Summary:

Dangerous. Sensual. Handsome as sin. Meet Hayden Rothwell, the shamelessly erotic hero of The Rules of Seduction and author Madeline Hunter’s most irresistible alpha male yet: a man of extraordinary passion and power, a man who can bring out the seductress in any woman….

He enters her home without warning or invitation-a stranger of shadowy motives and commanding sensuality. Within hours, Alexia Welbourne is penniless, without any hope of marriage. Until Hayden Rothwell takes her to bed. When one impulsive act of passion forces Alexia to marry the very man who has ruined her, Hayden’s seduction of Alexia is nearly complete. What Alexia doesn’t know is that her irresistible new husband is driven by a secret purpose-and a debt of honor he will risk everything to repay. Alexia is the wild card. Reluctant to give up their nightly pleasures, Hayden must find a way to keep Alexia by his side…only to be utterly, thoroughly seduced by a woman who is now playing by her own rules.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in the series:

Gwen’s review of Secrets of Surrender (The Rothwell Series, Book 3) by Madeline Hunter
Historical romance released by by Dell 20 May 08

Imagine my total surprise that while we have talked about this series on TGTBTU, we’ve yet to review any of the books!  Were I a late Regency/early Victorian young miss, I’d be having vapors right about now.  Someone pass the smelling salts and allow me to rectify this egregious oversight with a well-reasoned treatise on why this is a very satisfying read.  Plus, the next book in the series, The Sins of Lord Easterbrook, is out next week and now Sybil and I are both are squeeing about it… 

How was that for some pseudo-Victorian speak?  Not bad for a cowgirl from San Antonio, huh?  Well, minus the “squeeing”, of course.

I picked this book up because I love yellow and the cover caught my eye.  How’s that for a selection criteria?   Plus, I was pretty paranormaled out and was itching for a historical.  And, reading the blurb, this looked like just what I needed: well-born damsel in distress heroine, common man who makes good hero, some scandal, some redemption.  So I settled in for a nice long read.

Wrong.  Sucked this puppy down in 1.5 days.  Sob!  NOOO!  KAAAAHHHNNNN!!!!!!!!  Sorry.  Sorry.  Small break with reality there.  I’m back now.

So, I read this thing fast.  The story was engrossing and covered a LOT of ground.  Plus there were so many places the plot could have gone – so many side-stories that could have been pursued and the author would have had a perfectly good book.  There was the whole “run away with the brother” thing.  Then there was the “mine shaft collapse and rescue” thing.   The “rescue her from the rapist” thing.  It would have all been perfectly acceptable side-trips to take to bring about the conflict, climax, and denouement.  Instead, Hunter stays true to the main characters, keeps her focus, and lets the story be about the romance and not all the fluff and bother of all this other stuff.

Instead of a “road novel” or “social message” or “white knight” story, we get a story about a man and woman who are flawed, have made mistakes, have married according to their then-current social norms, and ‘find’ each other as well as themselves in the process.  They fall in love in the midst of a series of surprisingly torrid scandals (for the day – well, for today too), but still have some very big personal hurdles and lots of sacrifice on each other’s parts.

I loved the story of this hero and heroine, Kyle and Roselyn.  Were there small things about both characters that weren’t perfect in the book?  Sure, but I didn’t care.  I just loved the story.  At the start, Kyle is so proper and tightl-laced, the guy very nearly squeaked as he walked; and Roselyn is such a selfish idiot with some very boneheaded ideas that I wanted to slap her and say “wake up you ninny!”  But what’s wonderful is they both muddle their way through and, in the process, bring out the best in each other.  And isn’t that what a good marriage is about?

This is really a very lovely story of how to love someone.  How to let your partner be their own person, make mistakes and support them anyway.  How to be a friend before you’re a lover, but still be a lover when it counts.  It’s EXACTLY what I love to read in a romance novel – crisis, redemption, and resolution.  Overcoming what life throws at each of us every bloody day and still hanging in there, because if there’s one thing we all know, life is a bitch sometimes and having a supportive partner sure makes it easier.

You go a long way emotionally with these two characters.  Watching their process – well, reading about it – is worth the emotional investment.  Reading about all the fascinating secondary characters and trying to keep track of the rather large cast, is worth it.  Wondering if the author is going to take the easy way out and let the story devolve down one of the side trips is worth it.

I recommend this book to any fan of historical, or non-historical, romance.  It can be read as a standalone, but based on this entry, I’m going to have to find the other books in the series and absolutely get Lord Easterbrook’s entry next week.  Thanks, Madeline, for a terrific read – even if I did finish it in one night!

Grade: A

Read other information about this series by clicking on its tag.

Summary:

First he’ll learn her most intimate secrets. Then he’ll arouse her deepest passions. He’s the lover she’s been waiting for: the man who can rescue her from her wicked past-for a price-in Madeline Hunter’s tale of sin, seduction, and irresistible, impossible love.

He catches her eye across the dining room-a handsome stranger who stands out among the lewd noblemen and bawdy painted women. But their worlds are about to collide in a way Roselyn Longworth could never have imagined. For before the night is out, she will be auctioned off to the highest bidder…and Kyle Bradwell will lead her from one kind of hell to another. Yet from the moment he wins her, Kyle treats Rose with a gentleness she hasn’t known since a family scandal destroyed her reputation. And when she finally learns what is really driving Kyle, it’s too late. For Rose has fallen for the man who knows her most intimate secrets. Now he has stunned her with a proposal of marriage-the first step in a seduction that will demand nothing less than her complete surrender….

Read an excerpt.

Other books in the series:

The Sins of Lord Easterbrook by Madeline Hunter January 27, 2009

I WANT. The sqqquuueeeing you hear is me. WoOT!

there be blurb now too

Journey back to a time of scandal, intrigue, and reckless desire in Madeline Hunter’s sensuous new novel, the tale of a man who will give up everything for the woman he’s determined to possess—even reveal his most sinful secret.

Only a desperate mission could bring Leona Montgomery face-to-face with the scoundrel whose dangerous sensuality once sent her fleeing from his arms. But she has under-estimated Christian, Marquess of Easterbrook. As irresistible as ever, his past swathed in mystery, Christian has his own plans for the woman he has waited seven years to claim. Yet once desire reignites, bringing a dangerous secret into the open, Leona will find herself bound to the seductive nobleman in ways she could never have imagined. Seven years have changed nothing: this man can tempt her to ruin with just one touch. With Leona’s reputation and hopes for her family’s salvation in tatters, she must follow the only course left to her…even as each step brings her closer to a shattering truth and a passion she can no longer live without.…

AND excerpt although Madeline hon, feel free to hook us up with another *g*

Please and thank you. Now I must go read

I haven’t hurt anyone yet but it has come verra verra close…. it sort of makes me want to redo the blog template… or something…

The awesome nath has a review up of one of my favorite books, which happens to be the first in a series, The Rules of Seduction by Madeline Hunter. Why is this nifty you ask? Well it is apart of Keishon’s TBR challenge – if you don’t know it – GET THEE IN THE KNOW.

And her next book in the series comes out soon….

One of my favorite peeps to break bread with, KristieJ posts about teh… Harlequin Horrid Title Syndrome. What do you think? Is this a new trend?

Does it matter to you? What is the worst title you have seen? The best? Would you buy the book anyway? ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh what a great contests! I have some SSE to give away you know

In celebration of Cole’s writing and her back to back releases, Dark Needs at Night’s Edge and Dark Desires After Dusk, I’m giving away 15 copies of Dark Needs at Night’s Edge. They are currently sitting on my counter and I am anxious to send them out. So go forth and comment. I’ll randomly select you to win a copy of Dark Needs so you too can enjoy Kresley Cole and one of her innocent, beleaguered men.

To enter you have to comment… And you can get a sneak peek at the next book here. hmmm we need an excerpt of Dark Needs don’t we?

KarenS has her on special take on Cover Model Madness…

And go check out a review for a book we gave away as Chantal (who looks like she is working for an epub now… who the heck is Resplendence Publishing?) reviewed Private Party by Jami Alden. (oh and yes we will have an excerpt from Caught, Jami’s first Brava coming up soon!).

So what about you? What new with you?

Ok I am going to work toward getting all the nifty prizes logged today and we will start giving them out. Some of them will go to random comment in a post with these icons. WHAT icons?

SSE EXCERPT: Dear Santa by Karen Templeton

EXCERPT Part II: Thigh High: Thigh High by Bonnie Edwards

EXCERPT: Give Me a Texan: The Love Letter by Linda Broday

EXCERPT: Give Me a Texan: No Time for Love by Phyliss Miranda

EXCERPT: Give Me a Texan: A Shade of Sunrise by DeWanna Pace

EXCERPT: Give Me a Texan: Amarillo By Morning by Jodi Thomas

EXCERPT Part III: Thigh High: Twinkle Twinkle Little Thong by Bonnie Edwards

Excerpt from Viking Warrior, Unwilling Wife by Michelle Styles
new historical release from Mills & Boone with a UK release in June 2008

Yours, Mine…or Ours is book two in Karen Templeton’s Guys & Daughters series (Dear Santa, Yours, Mine…or Ours? and Baby, I’m Yours)

Excerpt of Taken by the Viking by Michelle Styles, coming 1 May!!
Historical romance released by Harlequin 1 May 2008

Excerpt Unlawful Contact by Pamela Clare aka the one to steam the screen

I am missing some and will add them tomorrow (I see Kresley Cole’s aren’t here). More excerpts to come from Lisa Kleypas, Jill Shalvis, Lynne Connolly, Stephanie Tyler, Caroline Linden, HelenKay Dimon, EC Sheedy, Liz Carlyle, Hope Tarr, Lora Leigh, Sabrina Jeffries, Jenna Petersen, Laura Drewry, Sydney Croft, Roxanne St. Claire, Jennifer Estep, Cheryl St.John and many more….

As well as some nifty prizes from t-shirts and books *g*. Some you will have to answer questions from the excerpts and other will be random drawings from the comments.

first recap can be found here

How Flashdance… LOL 

It’s Raining Excerpts!EXCLUSIVE EXCERPT: Secrets of Surrender by Madeline HunterEXCERPT Part I: Thigh High: Parlor Games by Bonnie Edwards

EXCERPT: Phantom Pleasures by Julie Leto

EXCERPT Part I: Unlawful Contact
EXCERPT Part II: Unlawful Contact
EXCERPT Part III: Unlawful Contact
EXCERPT Part IV: Unlawful Contact

SSE EXCERPT: Dear Santa by Karen Templeton

EXCERPT Part II: Thigh High: Thigh High by Bonnie Edwards

EXCERPT: Give Me a Texan: The Love Letter by Linda Broday

EXCERPT: Give Me a Texan: No Time for Love by Phyliss Miranda

EXCERPT: Give Me a Texan: A Shade of Sunrise by DeWanna Pace

EXCERPT: Give Me a Texan: Amarillo By Morning by Jodi Thomas

EXCERPT Part III: Thigh High: Twinkle Twinkle Little Thong by Bonnie Edwards

Excerpt from Viking Warrior, Unwilling Wife by Michelle Styles
new historical release from Mills & Boone with a UK release in June 2008

Yours, Mine…or Ours is book two in Karen Templeton’s Guys & Daughters series (Dear Santa, Yours, Mine…or Ours? and Baby, I’m Yours)

Excerpt of Taken by the Viking by Michelle Styles, coming 1 May!!
Historical romance released by Harlequin 1 May 2008

Excerpt Unlawful Contact by Pamela Clare aka the one to steam the screen

I am missing some and will add them tomorrow (I see Kresley Cole’s aren’t here). More excerpts to come from Lisa Kleypas, Jill Shalvis, Lynne Connolly, Stephanie Tyler, Caroline Linden, HelenKay Dimon, EC Sheedy, Liz Carlyle, Hope Tarr, Lora Leigh, Sabrina Jeffries, Jenna Petersen, Laura Drewry, Sydney Croft, Roxanne St. Claire, Jennifer Estep, Cheryl St.John and many more….

As well as some nifty prizes from t-shirts and books *g*. Some you will have to answer questions from the excerpts and other will be random drawings from the comments.

Yup!  It’s raining excerpts!  I have to say this is NOT the book I wanted. I know.. LE GASP! LE SHOCK! LE HORROR… but but but… I want, well really, I want THE SINS OF LORD EASTERBROOK! And lucky for us all it is coming out in this Fall. I know, no worries. I am working on getting over myself, but really until than… I do keep telling myself over and over “Syb it isn’t ALL about you” and slowly I am learning to believe it.

::blink:: okay, not really but I am working up to maybe accepting it *g* … hey I said maybe…

UNTIL then Madeline has a GRAND excerpt up on her site PLUS she has been her ever fab self and given us one of my all time favorite things…

…MORE!

First he’ll learn her most intimate secrets. Then he’ll arouse her deepest passions. He’s the lover she’s been waiting for: the man who can rescue her from her wicked past—for a price—in Madeline Hunter’s tale of sin, seduction, and irresistible, impossible love.

He catches her eye across the dining room—a handsome stranger who stands out among the lewd noblemen and bawdy painted women. But their worlds are about to collide in a way Roselyn Longworth could never have imagined. For before the night is out, she will be auctioned off to the highest bidder…and Kyle Bradwell will lead her from one kind of hell to another. Yet from the moment he wins her, Kyle treats Rose with a gentleness she hasn’t known since a family scandal destroyed her reputation. And when she finally learns what is really driving Kyle, it’s too late. For Rose has fallen for the man who knows her most intimate secrets. Now he has stunned her with a proposal of marriage—the first step in a seduction that will demand nothing less than her complete surrender….

UNEDITED Excerpt from Secrets of Surrender by Madeline Hunter

copyright 2008

She entered the garden through the back portal. As she passed the apple tree, a vague sound penetrated her thoughts. More curious than cautious, she followed the series of little thuds and scrapes around to the side gate.

A white shirt, stark in the gray day, obscured her view of the gate. It covered a strong back and broad shoulders, and gathered at the top of fawn breeches. Arms that were far from pale, exposed below rolls of shirt sleeve, held the gate by its sides. A dark head turned, revealing a strong profile.

Mr. Bradwell did not hear her while he lifted the gate and carefully set it right on its hinges. One of those hinges gleamed shiny and new.

The soft linen of his shirt and the snug fabric of his breeches revealed his form while he moved. The wind blew his dark locks, mussing them in a most appealing way. Despite his cravat and collar, he appeared rakish and romantic and very competent.

One sound push, one heavy thump, and the gate swung easily. He tested it, then began fixing his sleeves.

He saw her then. It bothered him not at all that she witnessed him working like this. He greeted her while he dressed himself.

She walked over and examined the gate. It had been broken for years.

“I noticed that it needed repair when last I visited,” he said, reaching for the coat lying in the grass.

“Thank you.” She seemed to say that to him a lot. Today, for some reason, it struck her as humorous, how often their conversations began and ended with her gratitude.

“Were you in the county again, Mr. Bradwell? Just riding by?”

He slid on his frock coat and set himself right. He looked very proper now. She had rather preferred him active and half undressed.

“I rode down from London just to see you, Miss Longworth. I have information about your soil, and a message from your cousin.”

He could have written with both. She suspected that he had really come about that kiss. Before this visit was over, he would probably try to kiss her again.

It was obvious now, that he wanted her. Oh, he did not leer or stare. Desire only increased the directness of his gaze and slightly darkened the vitality he exuded. This man was well practiced in hiding his hungers, but he could not control the tension his interest created and how it affected the air. And her. She was too happy today to lie to herself about that.

She should probably be insulted. Today it did not matter. Not his interest and not her response.

Maybe she would let him have that kiss. She would not even be hurt when he offered the special arrangement that she expected another kiss to presage. It would taint the memory of that night. It would show him to be less than chivalrous in the end, but that would not matter now either.

She would be gone soon. In a few weeks, Roselyn Longworth would disappear completely.

* * *

“Please come in and give me this news.” She led the way into the house.

She appeared much happier today. And very beautiful. Always beautiful.

He spied sprigs of grass on her cloak as he followed her. She had laid the cloak down out there in the hills. Since it was cold, he suspected she had been inside it when she did.

He pictured her in her isolation, a solitary figure stretched on the grass under the sky. He could understand why she might look up to the boundless expanse above. This was a nice house, but it was still a prison.

“I fear that I do not have any pie to offer you today.” She slid off the cloak and shook the grass away. “In truth I have nothing to offer you.”

“Your cousin sent some things. The basket is outside the front door. If you will permit me…”

She nodded while she added a little fuel to the fireplace in the drawing room. He fetched the basket. She sat on one of the wooden chairs and poked through the gifts, lifting each in turn while she smiled with delight.

She set the boxes of tea and biscuits on the little table. She lined up the bag of coffee, the bottle of wine, and the jar of honey.

“What is this down at the bottom?” She poked at the broad, wrapped form there.

“I think it is some cooked fowl. Duck or goose, I believe.”

She laughed. He had never heard her do so before. Not outright like this. It was a lovely laugh. Melodic. Angelic.

Watch yourself, Kyle lad. You’ll be writing bad poetry like an idiot soon.

“How like Alexia. Luxuries, but practical ones. You must join me in eating the fowl and drinking the wine, Mr. Bradwell. We will share a feast.”

“It might be best if you saved it all for yourself.”

“Nonsense.” She set the basket on the floor beside her. “Now, what news have you about my soil?”

He sat on another chair with the little table between them and the fire warming their shoulders. “The experiments done are theoretical, you must understand. However, they appear to show that the soil is depleted. Did your brothers never require the tenants to rotate their crops? It is recognized now as useful. In the least the old system of leaving fields fallow every third year should have been required.”

“My father collected rents, nothing more. His interests were in town, not here. After his death, no one truly managed the property. We assumed, wrongly it appears, that farmers would know how to farm and would not do so in ways that made the land less productive.”

“An extra field of crops is tempting. There are those who will exhaust the land and move on.”

She shrugged. “Apparently so.”

That shrug was her entire reaction. He had brought very bad news that would affect her meager income, but she appeared not to care.

Her eyes sparkled while she ran her elegantly tapered finger down the edge of the box of tea. He watched that distracted caress and imagined it on himself, sliding slowly down his side. He clenched his teeth to control what the little fantasy did to him.

He was glad she was not sad today, but she appeared almost drunk instead. He did not flatter himself that her big smiles and bright eyes were due to his visit.

“You are a bad liar, Mr. Bradwell. Alexia did not give you this basket. I think that you bought these items yourself.”

“What makes you think so?”

“Alexia would have sent a different company’s tea, and a different kind of biscuit. She also would have included soaps and hairpins and other practical luxuries that a woman cannot eat.” She grinned mischievously. She was definitely in high spirits today. Vivacious. Almost flirtatious.

“You have found me out, Miss Longworth. I hoped to avoid awkwardness by saying it came from your cousin.”

“Is this gift because of that kiss? There must be at least ten shillings worth of goods here, and that kiss was barely worth one. Then again, perhaps you hope for nine more.”

Now she was getting reckless. “The basket has nothing to do with the kiss, but with my concern for your health and lack of comforts. And perhaps to help you feel less sad about the implications of what I learned about your land.”

“Of course. My apologies for impugning your motives.” Her eyes mocked her serious words. She began setting the items back in the basket. “Let us sit to a proper meal. If you share it with me, the reasons that you brought it will not signify. Although, in a manner of speaking, nothing does anymore.”

He took the basket from her arms when she rose. He followed her into the kitchen. Her manner flattered him. It also stirred him. His desire had flared like oil touched by a torch.

However, her demeanor disturbed him too, and not because she spoke too frankly and had lost her cool grace. She acted like someone who had made a decision, one that rendered all proprieties irrelevant.

He wondered what she had been thinking out there while she lay in the grass under the gray sky.

Comment on this post and get a chance to win:

• a $25  gift certificate (Victoria’s Secret – home of the classy-yet-naughty unmentionables); and
• your choice of a book from Madeline’s backlist (except The Tapestry anthology – fresh out of those).

When you comment here, tell us your favorite Madeline Hunter  novel, favorite hero, favorite heroine, favorite line, or your favorite all-around anything.

Contest closes at midnight US Central tomorrow, Wednesday October 3rd.  Good luck and happy commenting!

Lessons of Desire by Madeline Hunter

If Phaedra Blair did not possess both style and beauty, the world would consider her merely strange. Since nature had blessed her with these qualities, society thought her almost interesting.

He first appears beneath her prison window as her savior—a sinfully attractive man whose charm and connections have ensured her release from an unjust arrest. But author and publisher Phaedra Blair quickly learns that the price of her “freedom” is to be virtually bound to her irresistible rescuer.

For Elliot Rothwell did not come solely on a mission of goodwill. He came to extract a promise that Phaedra won’t publish a slanderous manuscript that would destroy his family’s name, and he’s not above bribery, threats, or bedding her to get his way. And with each erotic encounter raising the stakes between them, Elliot discovers he’s ever more reluctant to lose this sensual game. . .or the unusual, provocative woman who is every bit his match.

Doesn’t it sound grand? This follows the wonderful novel, The Rules of Seduction. And just in case you haven’t already gone to get this and are still on the fence…

Here is another reason to agree with me you must have it

E X C E R P T

from Chapter 2

Lord Elliot strolled away like a man studying the architecture along the street. Phaedra closed the shutters and hurried to the other side of her apartment. She opened the window that looked out on the small garden in the back.

It took Lord Elliot some time to get there. Finally she saw him enter at the far end, through the door that gave out onto a fetid alley that separated the properties. His movements lacked any furtive hesitation. He walked toward her, tall and confident, like a man accustomed to doing as he pleased. Even without the angular face that nature had so blessed with beauty, his relaxed carriage and assured demeanor demanded that one be impressed.

She was so happy to see someone from home that she did not mind the critical glint in his dark eyes when he saw her. She had seen a similar flicker above Lord Elliot’s slow smile when they met at Alexia’s wedding. It was the reaction of a man who thought her vaguely amusing even though he disapproved of her appearance, her beliefs, her history, her family, her. . . .everything.

“Miss Blair, I am relieved to see you in good health and spirits.” Another of those slow smiles accompanied the greeting.

“And I am relieved to see you, Lord Elliot.”

“Alexia gave me the name of your hostel and asked I look in on you, to make sure you needed nothing.”

“That was kind of her. I regret that I cannot receive you properly now that you have called.”

“It appears that you cannot receive me at all.”

So much for him allowing a few pleasantries first. “No doubt you find my imprisonment surprising, even shocking.”

“I am a man rarely shocked and seldom surprised. I will admit some curiosity, however. You have only been in Naples a few weeks. It would take most people at least a year to amass sufficient crimes to deserve such punishment.”

“There have been no crimes, just a small misunderstanding.”

“Small? Miss Blair, that is a member of the king’s guard in front of your door.”

“I am not convinced the king put him there. One of the court functionaries has done this to me. He is a loathsome little man with too much power and a small intelligence.”

Lord Elliot crossed his arms, which made him look judgmental and powerful. She really hated it when men took that stance with her. It personified all that was wrong with their half of humanity.

“The guard spoke of a duel,” Lord Elliot said.

“How was I to know that these men are so possessive that they try to kill each other if women so much as speak with—–”

“Swords and daggers. Blood was drawn, the guard said.”

“Marsilio is a young artist. A mere boy. Headstrong but very sweet. I had no idea that he had misinterpreted our friendship to the point where he would challenge Pietro simply because I strolled along the bay with him.”

“Regrettably for you, Marsilio the headstrong, sweet boy is the king’s relative. He came out of that duel almost dead. Fortunately for you, the guard says he will live.”

“Oh, thank goodness. Although they do exaggerate here. As I understand it he was not badly hurt, even though any wound would be serious is such a climate. I am most contrite about the whole matter. I said so. I expressed my regrets and apologies in very slow English and also in Latin so I would be understood, but that officious, odious, stupid, little man would not listen to me. He even accused me of being a prostitute, which was beyond the pale. I explained that I have never taken a penny from any man.”

“Did you protest your virtue and honor, or did you tell the odious, stupid, little man that you think women should give themselves freely?”

She did not like the deep, knowing look in his eyes when he spoke his bald insinuation. If she were not in such a ridiculous situation she would let him know that she might be unconventional but that did not give him permission to be rude. Right now, however, diplomacy was required.

“I explained my belief in free love, which is not the same as giving oneself away freely, Lord Elliot. I tried to educate him. I would be glad to do the same for you, should we ever have a more opportune meeting.”

“What a tempting offer, Miss Blair. However, I expect the philosophical niceties were lost on your gaoler. Better if you had declared yourself a courtesan. They know all about that here. Radical concepts of free love, on the other hand—-well. . .”

His offhand gesture said it all. What do you expect, woman? You live outside the rules and even your appearance invites misunderstandings.

She swallowed her instinctive reaction once more. Arguing would only drive him away and she really wanted him to stay a while longer. She had not realized how lonely this apartment was, and how sad the isolation had become. Just hearing her own language was a comfort.

“Do you think that they will release me soon?”

Again that offhand gesture, only now it substituted for a shrug. “There is no constitution here. No sense of precedent as in England either. No codified rights. It is an old-fashioned monarchy. You could be released tomorrow, or sent back to England, or brought to trial, or you might remain in those chambers for years at the pleasure of the king.”

“Years! That is uncivilized.”

“I do not think it will come to that. However, it could be some months before your odious, stupid, little man loses interest.” He glanced across the face of the building, then to the garden door. “Miss Blair, I cannot lurk in this garden much longer or I may find myself a guest of the king’s guards along with you. I will arrange to have some food delivered to you, and leave a sum for the hire of that apartment which no doubt you still must pay. I will also ask the British envoy here to have someone check on you periodically.”

Good heavens, he was leaving! She might grow old in these few rooms, eventually starving to death when the money ran out.

She was not a woman who depended on men for support or protection. Lord Elliot’s side of this conversation had not endeared him to her either. The ambiguity of her future helped her overcome her natural aversion to asking this particular man for assistance, however.

“Lord Elliot,” she said, stopping him after he took three steps toward the garden door. “Lord Elliot, my situation and my station do not interest diplomats. I don’t suppose you would consider interceding on my behalf. I am sure the odious little man would be impressed by your family connections and your fame as an historian. If you spoke for me, perhaps it would help.”

His expression was sympathetic but not encouraging. “I am a younger son. My station is much diminished here, and my fame of little account. Nor does this court have reason to grant me any favors.”

“I am sure you will get a better hearing than I ever will. At least you know their language. I saw you conversing with the guard.”

“I am hardly fluent enough in this dialect to present your case well.”

“I would be grateful for whatever you attempt.” She did not think he should make her beg. What happened to chivalry? She did not believe in such sentiments, but his kind did. She was a damsel in distress and this gentleman should jump to help her, not stand in the garden looking like he wished he had never noticed her at the window above the guard.

He pondered her request. She felt her smile tighten into a beseeching grimace.

“This is not England, Miss Blair. If I am successful on your behalf you may not like the conditions they place on you in return for your freedom.”

“I will force myself to accommodate any conditions, although I pray that you try to keep them from shipping me back to England at once. I came all this way and I really need—I want to visit the excavations at Pompeii before I leave. It is a dream of mine.”

He thought it over an inordinate amount of time. His visible sigh communicated that his decision went against some better judgment. “I promised Alexia that I would see to your welfare, so I will do what I can. Finding the man whose order confined you may be difficult. Do you know his name? I would prefer not to ask around the court for the odious, stupid, little man. He might hear the description, which would not help my mission, and it probably applies to far too many court functionaries in any case.”

He had capitulated out of resignation to his sense of duty, not a genuine desire to assist her. She was too desperate to be particular about his motives. “His name is Gentile Sansoni. Why do you look like that? Do you know him?”

“I know of him. Your self-defense fell on deaf ears, Miss Blair. Sansoni does not speak English or even Latin. And he is Neapolitan through and through, which is not good news.”

© 2007 Madeline Hunter

Our guest author, Madeline Hunter, answers her top five most asked questions… 

Will you ever write more medieval romances?
It is hard for me to answer this question when I am involved in writing a book. I am totally involved in that world then and even thinking about another world is impossible. However, I will most likely return to the middle ages at some point in the future. It may not be a conventional romance, but possibly something more mainstream.

Does your personal life influence your characters and stories?

Yes and no. No in that none of my characters are based on people I know, or me. Yes because I am in every character to some extent, even the villains. And yes because while I do not base events on my private life, my experiences influence how I view certain things and even some choices. Often this is subconscious and I only realize it after the book is finished. For example, in By Design, I had a teenaged boy as a character. I think some medical issues with my own son at the time influenced me there.

What is the inspiration for your stories?

There isn’t really a set pattern. I have had books that began with one image. I have had others that began with the first scene. In these latter cases, a first scene or chapter comes to me, fully developed and formed,. It almost pops onto the computer screen. Then I have to come up with a story to fit that scene. Finally, many of my books begin with a character. The character is very vivid to me as a presence, and the story evolves from that personality.

How long did it take you to get an agent? To sell you first book?

The agent was found pretty quickly, so I just assumed the rest would follow quickly. It didn’t. I had six manuscripts written before I had my first sale.

Is all the research that you do really time-consuming? How do you research?

It is very time-consuming when I move to a new time period, then a bit less so for each book in that time period, then a bit less so for each book in a series. Research is cumulative, so early research is still available for later books. I have given workshops on research and it is hard to answer the “how?” in a brief posting. However, my quick advice is never to rely too completely on the web, to find a good library with interlibrary loan, and to read the footnotes in historical books because the exceptions and really interesting tidbits can often be found in them.

Now it is your turn! Have any questions for Madeline Hunter?

Yeah… she sort of answered the medieval one… sort of

Have any others? Go for it, she will be around today to try and answer them.

Our guest author, Madeline Hunter, ponders the imponderable – reader interpretations vs. writer intent.  Read on… 

This post is supposed to be about readers and reading, and it is. Only it is not about my toppling TBR pile. Instead I want to talk about how readers actually form and control the books they read.

Actually, I think that readers finish writing the books they read. Let me explain.

I received a nice amount of reader emails when my first book was published. Like any writer I was elated that someone had actually read the story that up until then had only existed in the minds of me, my agent, my editor and my best friend. Upon reading some of the emails, however, I began to wonder if all of these new fans really had read the story I had written.

The first eyebrow went up when a couple of them compared my book to those by a writer whom I admire, but that I don’t think my work resembles at all. Yet here were some readers gushing on how similar our books were.

Then I received some letters asking me to explain something in the plot that I thought was very clear. As in hit-you-over-the-head clear.

I received a lot of feedback about the historical detailing. I found this interesting because in order to carve that book down to something resembling a publisher’s word count, I had stripped out most of the detailing.

There were also readers who really fixated on some minor character. That walk-on with five lines somehow had become the reader’s best friend.

I chewed all this over. I continued getting emails like this with my following books. Reviews really could make me pause too. The question that would pop into mind with this feedback was “Did she read the book I wrote?”

I have concluded that the answer is “Probably not.”

Oh, they all read the words I had written. But reading is a creative process. Two minds are making that story. As a writer, I put down words to try and communicate the story unfolding in my head. The reader’s mind may add or subtract, may react more or less strongly than mine did, or may focus on small things that I barely noticed myself.

I figured out what was going on when I wrote a report at work one day. This committee report was somewhat critical of certain policies and how they were being implemented. When the report circulated, I began getting feedback from various department heads. Every single one had missed the main point of the report, even though it was boldly and baldly stated several times. Instead, to their reading, that report was really about them and their departments.

When we read a novel we are a lot like those department heads. We are not clean slates that the writer gets to chalk up at will, totally controlling our absorption of the story. We all bring our histories and our experiences and our personal baggage with us, and it subconsciously affects how we read every book.

For example, we relate to characters with whom we share some experience or characteristic. We react badly to characters who trigger memories of people we really dislike. If the heroine reminds us of the girl in high school who made our life hell, the story is going to have a hard time engaging us in a positive way. If the reader thinks my hero is like the guy who just dumped her, there is a good chance she will not finish the book. Even a name can affect how a reader relates to a character.

I learned from my readers that reading is not a flat experience. Every word and every sentence does not get absorbed equally, and different minds absorb different things in different ways. Our minds emphasize scenes, words and phrases that interest us for whatever reason and more easily forget ones that don’t.

Of course, sometimes a reader writes to me and her letter indicates she read exactly the book I thought I wrote. That is always nice. Actually it is exciting. Oh my gosh, I think. She totally got it. She didn’t miss anything.

But sometimes a reader picks up one of my books and reads a story that isn’t nearly as good as the one I wrote.

And sometimes a reader reads one that is better.

Interesting post, Madeline!  I’ll admit I haven’t thought of this, but I totally see your point!  How about you readers and writers out there?  Ever read a book and think one thing, then go back to it years later and get something totally different out of it?  How about characters – love them one time, hate them the next?

Today’s guest author, Madeline Hunter, shares her view on coloring within the lines (or not!)… 

About four years ago I fulfilled a life-long dream when I took my family on a Mediterranean cruise. I don’t remember when I first fixated on a vacation like that, but it was right up at the top of things I wanted to do before I died. So I saved my pennies and finally I sprang for the big splurge.

While on the cruise, we toured the Amalfi Coast south of Naples, then visited the Roman ruins of Pompeii. The drive along the coast was worth the cost of the trip in itself.

The road snakes along the hillside, high above the sea. The drop to the sea is straight down in many places, and an incredibly steep slope in others. Towns and villages cling to this land, hanging over the deep blue water. Inlets and bays abound that are like fjords. It is so steep, so awesome, that my husband who suffers from dizziness at heights could not look out the coach window.

Punctuating this dramatic landscape, perched on fingers of land overlooking the sea, are medieval watchtowers, built when the Normans controlled this land. As we approached one I had a fantasy of a woman standing at the window, looking out. She was a lovely, unusual woman with long red hair, someone out of place in southern Italy and very Celtic in appearance.

That was the first seed of LESSONS OF DESIRE. That tower and that coast and that woman. No plot, no names, just images. I knew that one day I would write a book that used this setting.

Even though the rules said I should not.

Now, we all know that there are no rules when it comes to romance novels except that the story end happily. Actually, the “official” RWA definition speaks of the story ending optimistically, I believe, which even leaves a bit of leeway on the happy part.

So, no rules. None that are written and even fewer that are admitted. And yet rules have a way of taking hold anyway. No one ever announces them. No editors carve them in stone. Readers do not savage writers who disobey. The rules just show up, get passed around, and put limits on what writers are allowed to do.

Normally it is the “market” that is blamed. The “market” does not allow this or that. The “market” isn’t good for stories with widows, it is said. The “market” abhors flashbacks. The “market” will not accept the death of a child. The “market” will not accept infidelity or adultery.

I began writing not knowing any of the rules. I joke that I was out in the wilderness when I wrote my first novels, oblivious to anything about the “market”. So I broke a lot of rules. I opened one book during the year of the Black Death and, yes, a youth died in chapter two. The hero expected to die as well. No, he didn’t die. I did not need a rule to tell me not to kill off the hero.

Even after I left the wilderness of my isolated writing and learned the rules, I sometimes broke them. I had adultery in a book, knowing full well that I would lose some readers over it. It was the book that had to be written for those characters, however.

Which brings us back to the reason I was not supposed to use that spectacular setting of the Amalfi coast. One of the rules that has always surprised me is the one that says you can’t set an historical romance outside of Great Britain.

Well, you can, but it won’t sell. Well, it will sell, just not as strongly as your other books. Editors warn writers about this. Some forbid writers from moving the characters to another country even for a chapter.

I first heard about this rule while I was revising a story that, you guessed it, took place outside of Great Britain. Great, I thought. Here I am, almost done with this story, and NOW you tell me.

My editor had not clued me in. She had read the synopsis and approved it. Another writer gave me the news. Leave England, she warned, and your sales are doomed.

Too late. The book was published with most of it taking place in Brittany, not Britain. Titled THE PROTECTOR, it has become one of my best selling titles.

That was because it was a medieval romance, another writer explained. For Georgian and Regency, you better stay in England.

Only I had an idea for a story that began in France. A really compelling idea. It would be my first book in this new time period and I really wanted it to do well. Maybe I could change the setting to Scotland or something. Maybe. . .

I wrote the book and set the first third in France. It was my first one in THE SEDUCER series. It made the New York Times list and it too is among my books with the highest number of sales.

Well, another writer said, France is different. Sometimes you can get away with France. Just don’t go farther afield. Don’t go to, say, Italy. Books set in Italy bomb.

Except that I had an idea for a story that . . .  well, you know the rest.

So here I am, waiting to learn the results of the first week of sales for LESSONS OF DESIRE. Will the market figure out that a good chunk of it takes place on the Amalfi coast? Will readers avoid it if they do a bit of skimming in the store and realize it isn’t all in England? It begins there and the last third takes place there. The main characters are very English. But the rule says I wasn’t supposed to go there. Italy, the common wisdom insists, is outside the “market’s” comfort zone.

The “market” means readers. Readers like you. Do you insist that all your stories stay in England or Scotland for their entirety? The rule did not appear out of thin air, after all. It is the result of many books that had disappointing sales that were attributed to the setting not being England. So maybe the rule is a good one. Maybe the market does penalize those stories set elsewhere.

Maybe up until now I have just lucked out.

What do you think?

With LESSONS OF DESIRE I finally exorcised the image of that woman with long red hair at the window. And I used the tower. It plays a very special role in the book.

No really… she will be here.

Lessons in Desire is OUT NOW! Go grab yours so you can talk about it with us on Tuesday. It shall be grand.

She was beyond fun and just too much the few times I spoke to her in Dallas. I am guessing Gwen will adore her too. Maybe we should be afraid *g*.

Lessons in Desire is the follow up to The Rules of Seduction. If you haven’t already read it and loved it muchly, my review is here. Then you can run out and pick up both of them.

Lessons of Desire by Madeline Hunter 

He first appears beneath her prison window as her savior—a sinfully attractive man whose charm and connections have ensured her release from an unjust arrest. But author and publisher Phaedra Blair quickly learns that the price of her “freedom” is to be virtually bound to her irresistible rescuer.

For Elliot Rothwell did not come solely on a mission of goodwill. He came to extract a promise that Phaedra won’t publish a slanderous manuscript that would destroy his family’s name, and he’s not above bribery, threats, or bedding her to get his way. And with each erotic encounter raising the stakes between them, Elliot discovers he’s ever more reluctant to lose this sensual game. . .or the unusual, provocative woman who is every bit his match.

I so can not wait to read this book! The first book in this new series, The Rules of Seduction, was just grand. And the excerpt at the end of it for this book made me want to read it RIGHT that second.

Sadly that didn’t happen, but soon my friends, soon. But before that (hopefully in the very near future) Madeline will be sending us an excerpt to post! Even better is the fact she will be a guest on the blog in October. I know… makes you wanna sqqqquuueeee doesn’t it *g*.

Sybil’s review of The Rules of Seduction by Madeline Hunter

Alexia Welbourne is a poor relation of The Longworth family. Unknown to any of them, except Timothy (head of the family), they are all living on borrowed time. By chance Hayden Rothwell enters the picture and the clock stops. Timmy has been a bad, bad boy but due to a debt Hayden allows him to try to keep his honor and save face – at least with his family. Timmy’s bright idea is to blame his ‘ruin’ on Hayden. 

This comes to light in one of the first scenes as Alexia gives Hayden a tour of her soon to be old home. These are two great characters and the dialogue is wonderful. They are both adults and they behave that way. Alexia is scared and unsure of her next steps but she doesn’t fall apart and wait for someone to fix it for her.

Hayden Rothwell reminds me of David de Abyndon from By Arrangement. They are both basically good men who have done some bad things. They find themselves in situations not of their own making and try to fix them best way they can. And they both keep a stupid secret from their wives for too long.

They do end up with their wives differently and I admit I found Hayden and Alexia’s first ‘love’ scene together jarring. I expected it to go differently. I didn’t really think he would go through with it. The Rules of Seduction is a perfect example of how to use sex and love scenes to add to the characters, their relationship and move the story along. So much happens from that dirty attic floor to the last page.

The plot is tried and true but with enough of Hunter’s plotting and wonderful characters to make it interesting, entertaining and different. If you have marked Madeline Hunter off your to buy list or haven’t tried her in a while give this one a shot. The Rules of Seduction is a really great read and from the sneak peak for The Lessons of Desire this is a series to watch.

Grade: A-

Which means I spent the weekend rereading book… two I didn’t even remember reading. And that sort of spilled over to the week. 

Dreaming of You by Lisa Kleypas was my first reread last Friday. Derek and Sarah… what more do you have to say. I love this book. It is just wonderful.

Which lead me to read Tiger’s Eye by Karen Robards since people tend to say it is like DoY. I must have skimmed it the first time I read it because I didn’t remember reading it until the very end with the bathtub scene, which that scene still annoys me.

Go figure… I can see how it gets compared to DoY but DoY blows it away. A good read I would rate about a C.

I then moved onto Forbidden Love by Karen Robards and poof read that too. And sorry maili, I liked it. I would rate it about a C-, it is way flawed but a nifty guilty pleasure read.

The next on the hit list aka randomly picked off the shelf was The Seducer and The Sinner by Madeline Hunter.

I still love both of these books. Madeline Hunter is one of my favorites and she has a way with an old plot. She can take it and make it new, fresh, fun and exciting. I wish we could get another Medieval out of her but I am still in love with this series and so need to read LoS. I dont think I ever really read it, more like skimmed and marked it as a want to read later.

Beauty Like the Night and The Devil You Know by Liz Carlyle came next.

I adore Liz Carlyle and am looking forward to her new series. The funny thing is The Devil You Know is the first book by her I read and I hated it. I didn’t pick up another one of her books until AWoV was recently rereleased and after falling in love with her short story in Big Guns Out of Uniform Let’s Talk About Sex.

Now I have no idea if it has to do with reading BLtN first and having read AWoV so I understood Bentley more than I did the first time but I just fell in love with this story. Rosario has a great review for the story and it pretty much sums up what I love about it. I would say to enjoy Carlyle you need to read her earlier works. So it is a good thing she is having them reprinted and at GREAT prices. What a great way to get new fans.

So what is my point in all this? I have been reading, just not the 10+ books I am suppose to read for AAR reviews. But I think I have found my groove again. So off I go to try my hand at new books. I also have company this weekend, so I really need to kick my ass into gear.