C2’s review of One Dance with a Duke (Stud Club Trilogy, Book 1) by Tessa Dare.
Historical romance published by Ballantine 25 May 10

There Lady Amelia D’Orsay was – daydreaming about her plans for summer at her family’s country cottage while listening with half an ear to the latest gossip – when, across a crowded ballroom, she sees him. You may be asking, “Who? Her perfect man? Her dream lover?” Oh no, faithful reader, nothing so lovely and romantic…Lady Amelia spotted the man who can potentially ruin her brother’s life. And she has some things she wants to say to him.
Spencer Dumarque, Duke of Morland, is a member of the Stud Club *snicker* – a group of gentlemen that all own shares of a famous retired race horse. He has not hidden the fact that he wants to own all the shares – and isn’t above unscrupulous behavior to reach that goal.

Spencer hates attending balls. He can force himself to attend briefly, favoring one of the Season’s beauties with a dance at midnight, but then he’s gone. Imagine his surprise when, just as he is about to ask his choice of partner to dance, a young woman appears in front of him and grabs his hand. He has no choice but to dance with her, unless he wants to cause a scandal.

As they begin to waltz, Amelia tells Spencer that she knows her brother owes him a great deal of money and asks him to forgive the debt. He refuses. Not the most auspicious start to a courtship, is it? Still, they must continue dancing and a banter of sorts begins between them. Spencer finds himself unwillingly intrigued by his dance partner. And so does Amelia.

Suddenly, Spencer sweeps her out of the ballroom and into the garden – literally picks her up and carries her out. And not for any sort of romantic entanglement – he just needed to leave the room. Immediately. While they are in the garden, two other members of the club arrive with the news that the club’s founder has been killed – and Spencer is told he is a suspect because he has been so openly in pursuit of the horse. Since the founder, the Marquess of Harcliffe, and his sister grew up near Amelia, she insists on accompanying them to inform Lady Lily of her brother’s death.

Leaving the ball so abruptly with Spencer and spending the rest of the night in the company of men could spell doom for Amelia’s reputation. Spencer, having recently been reminded that life is short, realizes that he is in need of an heir and, therefore, a wife. Also, he has a young ward who will be making her debut into society in a few years and she needs some female guidance. He convinces Amelia to marry him by making her see all the advantages of the situation – she will have her own home, she will receive a monetary settlement that will improve her family’s situation, and she will have children. They marry and head off to one of his country estates.

I enjoy the courtship-after-marriage storyline, I have to say. It seems more real somehow. The couple is sharing a home; they are forced to spend a good bit of time together for the sake of appearances, if nothing else. Feelings can develop easily. The relationship between Spencer and Amelia develops in a lovely fashion. Neither one is interested in falling in love but, as they get to know each other, they just can’t help it.

The mystery of the death of the club’s founder will continue through the rest of the series, I’m guessing. So get in on the ground floor and pick up One Dance with a Duke. It is a lovely, sweet read.

Grade: B+

Summary:
True temptation begins at midnight…

A handsome and reclusive horse breeder, Spencer Dumarque, the fourth Duke of Morland, is a member of the exclusive Stud Club, an organization so select it has only ten members — yet membership is attainable to anyone with luck. And Spencer has plenty of it, along with an obsession with a prize horse, a dark secret, and, now, a reputation as the dashing “Duke of Midnight.” Each evening he selects one lady for a breathtaking midnight waltz. But none of the women catch his interest, and nobody ever bests the duke — until Lady Amelia d’Orsay tries her luck.

In a moment of desperation, the unconventional beauty claims the duke’s dance and unwittingly steals his heart. When Amelia demands that Spencer forgive her scapegrace brother’s debts, she never imagines that her game of wits and words will lead to breathless passion and a steamy proposal. Still, Spencer is a man of mystery, perhaps connected to the shocking murder of the Stud Club’s founder. Will Amelia lose her heart in this reckless wager or win everlasting love?
Scroll down for EXCERPTS (audio and regular).

Other books in this series:

Liviania’s review of (Re)cycler by Lauren McLaughlin
Young adult released by Random House 26 Aug 09

I read Cycler because I enjoy novels that tackle gender issues, but I found it disappointing.  But when Sybs asked me to review (Re)cycler, my basic reaction was, “Why not?”  I’m glad I did that, because this is one sequel that is far better than its predecessor.  I recommend skipping Cycler and going straight to (Re)cycler.  It might be a little confusing, but Lauren McLaughlin does a fine job of summarizing what came before.

First improvement?  Jack gets something to do.  He’s no longer stuck in a room with nothing to do but read porn.  Instead, he’s trying to find friends despite the fact he’s never been socialized.  He did get secondhand experience from Jill, and quickly finds himself reacting to situations like a girl rather than a teenage guy.  While struggling with his masculinity, his relationship with Ramie becomes more strained as she follows her own interests and dreams.  (And I think Ramie may have some interest in Jill that causes frustration.)

As for Jill, she’s been separated from her boyfriend and finds herself in control of her body for shorter and shorter periods of time.  It’s a nice reflection of the way she’s trying to take control of her body by losing her virginity.  It’s a prickly topic that I don’t want to get into in a book review, but McLaughlin does a very good job of showing how girls are supposed to be good and supposed to put out and how it becomes more complicated when you’re taught your first time should be special but also that you shouldn’t make a big deal of it because then you’re letting the patriarchy win.

And here’s another advantage of both Jack and Jill being out: wacky hijinks.  (I’m surprised that no one thinks Jack/Jill is a crossdresser.)  The change between the two has become a lot more fluid, which leads to a lot of awkward situations, including Jack getting stuck naked in an alley.  It’s often ridiculous, but it falls on the side of funny rather than stupid.

(Re)cycler is a great examination of what it means to be in your late teens and deciding who you are.  Jack wants to be a man’s man, but he’s doesn’t really know what that means and is uncomfortable with the fact he’s subconsciously gendered female.  Jill wants to be feminine, with a proper romance and everything, but worries that she can never be a real girl since she does share a body with a guy.  I like that both of them are somewhat scared of Jack’s relationship with Jill’s boyfriend, Tommy.  (I do miss Tommy being on the scene, though there are several interesting new characters on the scene.)

I hope there’s a third book in the series.  I feel there are enough ends left open to justify it, even if (Re)cycler‘s conclusion is much more solid than Cycler‘s.  McLaughlin has matured her characters into people I’d like to spend more time with, in addition to improving her presentation of ideas.

Grade: B+

Summary:
How do you grow up, if who you are keeps changing?

Jill McTeague is not your average high school graduate, she’s a scientific anomaly. Every month for four days she turns into Jack, a guy—complete with all the parts. Now everyone in her hometown knows that something very weird is up with her. So what’s a girl (and a guy) to do? Get the heck out of town, that’s what! With her kooky best friend, Ramie, Jill sets out for New York City. There both she and Jack will have to figure out everything from the usual (relationships) to the not so usual (career options for a “cycler,” anyone?).

As in Cycler, the first book featuring Jack and Jill, author Lauren McLaughlin deftly weaves the downright mundane with the outright bizarre in a story that, while defying classification, is peopled with characters that readers can fully relate to.
Read an excerpt here.

Liviania’s review of Cycler by Lauren McLaughlin
Young adult released by Random House 26 Aug 08

Lauren McLaughlin’s debut ambitiously approaches the concept of gender with a main character who cycles between female and male. It sounded somewhat weird but still cool to me, so I decided to give it a shot. In a double dose of unfairness, immediately after Jill becomes female again she gets to deal with her period, cramps and all. Jack only replaces PMS.

Unfortunately for McLaughlin, the issue I found more interesting in the book is not addressed at all. Cycler involves child abuse. The parents lock Jack in, becoming more and more oppressive. Instead of helping Jill come to terms with her unique biology, they teach her to hypnotize herself and forget everything she does as a boy. Without their actions Jack might not have even developed a separately personality; he could still be Jill in a male body.

That’s not to say McLaughlin shies away from interesting issues. Jill’s crush, Tommy, comes out as a bisexual to her, which does nothing to help her resolve her confusion regarding her gender identity. Jack falls for Jill’s best friend Ramie and his emotions sometimes bleed over. Of course, I wanted even more from these that I got in Cycler.

Jill and Jack’s pursuit of separate lives leads up to a big mess at prom, as must happen in any book set in the senior year of high school. (Really, nothing that exciting happened at my junior or senior prom, unless you consider people dancing to rap pulse-pounding action.) Then the book ends shortly after. The note at the back says a sequel is in progress but I still want falling action. What if Ramie or Tommy is attracted to both Jack and Jill? Do Jack and Jill have any idea how they live after the events leading up to and during prom? The end didn’t feel resolved to me. It felt like things were about to be resolved and then BOOM. No more pages.

Overall Cycler didn’t quite live up to my excitement. It was funny and I liked the characters, but I kept feeling like it had potential for more. I really hope there will be a sequel because I desperately want to see the consequences of the climax. Despite there not being a cliffhanger I feel like I was left hanging.

I feel I should also mention that while Jack and Ramie’s relationship is a little creepy (though there’s a revelation at the end that changed things a lot for me except I didn’t get to see how it affected the characters), Jill and Tommy’s is really cute. Jill uses an old-fashioned self-help book from her mom to try to get his attention. Not the best idea. Even with her cycle, Jill’s still a typical YA girl.

Grade: C+

Summary:
AS FAR AS anyone at her high school knows, Jill McTeague is an average smart girl trying to get her dream date to ask her to the prom.

What no one knows, except for Jill’s mom and dad, is that for the four days Jill is out of school each month, she is not Jill at all. She is Jack, a genuine boy—complete with all the parts. Jack lives his four days per month in the solitude of Jill’s room. But his personality has been building since the cycling began. He is less and less content with his confinement and his cycles are becoming more frequent. Now Jill’s question about the prom isn’t who she’ll go with, but who she’ll be when the big night arrives.
Read an excerpt here

LauraD’s review of Playing Dead (Prison Break, Book 3) by Allison Brennan
Romantic Suspense released by Ballantine 30 Sep 08

I was quite happy to find Allison Brennan’s Playing Dead in the Big Box of Books that Sybil gave me. I’m a huge fan of romantic suspense, and I’ve enjoyed Ms. Brennan’s work before, so my expectations were quite high when the cat and I became one with the couch.

Claire O’Brien is an insurance fraud investigator and the daughter of a disgraced policeman-disgraced because Tom O’Brien was convicted of killing his wife and her lover. He has always maintained his innocence but since Claire had found him in the house with the bodies, she has never been able to believe him. After Tom was convicted, Claire was taken in by another officer and his family, as she had no one else. Four months ago, her father broke out of jail and he is asking for Claire’s help to prove him innocent.

FBI agent Mitch Bianchi lied about his identity to get close to Claire, thinking she knew where her father was after the jailbreak. He didn’t count on falling in love with her, and he didn’t count on bodies starting to pile up as the real killer began to try and cover what little evidence was left behind years before. He knows that eventually he will have to tell Claire who he really works for, and that she will probably hate him for it.

“Playing Dead” is a good, suspenseful story. Claire really doesn’t want to believe her father, but information about his case is revealed bit by bit and his version of events becomes more and more plausible. There are some really creepy scenes that are from the killer’s POV, and I have to admit the killer’s identity took me completely by surprise. I appreciated the author’s effort to include some solid forensic details, so the crimes were grounded in reality. While those kinds of details might make a book a little “darker”, to me they add an authenticity to the story that makes it much more engaging.

What was missing were the emotions and relationship between Claire and Mitch. Their affair had already been established at the start of the book, although Mitch had done some significant lying. They spent the majority of the story apart, at first leaving messages on each other’s cell phones and then just plain broken up. It felt like the author had a lot more fun with the villains in this story than she did with the h/h. Independently they were well drawn characters, but as a couple I never felt a spark.

Allison Brennan has ended another trilogy with a smart tale of greed and hate bested by love and justice. “Playing Dead” will keep you up reading later than your bedtime, but you might not have the best of dreams afterward-Ms. Brennan’s villains tend to be everyday folk gone twisted. I’m hoping Claire and Mitch do indeed have a HEA.

Grade: B

DEAD MAN RUNNING

Sentenced to death for crimes he didn’t commit, ex-cop Tom O’Brien is now a hunted fugitive. After fifteen years in prison, he’s determined to prove his innocence–but first he must convince his daughter, whose testimony helped put him behind bars, that he has damning evidence of a plot to frame him.

Claire is no longer the naïve teenager who arrived home to find her mother and her mother’s lover shot dead and her father holding the murder weapon. She’s a successful fraud investigator who assumes everyone lies. Though Claire is convinced of her father’s guilt, curiosity propels her to look into the disappearance of a law student who claimed to have proof of Tom’s innocence. But seeking answers only leads to more questions, reinforcing Claire’s belief that there’s no one left to trust.

Obsessed with the O’Brien case, FBI agent Mitch Bianchi befriends Claire under false pretenses, certain that Tom is not only innocent but in grave danger–and not just from the cops. As the three race toward the truth, a murderous conspiracy tightens its noose–and Claire becomes the target of an ice-cold psychopath who will kill to protect his secrets.

Read an excerpt (scroll down).

This is a new YA novel hitting the shelves at the end of the month. I was somewhat surprised at the plot… is it just me or is this pretty original? What you think of it?

Cycler by Lauren McLaughlin

AS FAR AS anyone at her high school knows, Jill McTeague is an average smart girl trying to get her dream date to ask her to the prom.

What no one knows, except for Jill’s mom and dad, is that for the four days Jill is out of school each month, she is not Jill at all. She is Jack, a genuine boy—complete with all the parts. Jack lives his four days per month in the solitude of Jill’s room. But his personality has been building since the cycling began. He is less and less content with his confinement and his cycles are becoming more frequent. Now Jill’s question about the prom isn’t who she’ll go with, but who she’ll be when the big night arrives.

Lynne Connolly’s review of Into the Fire (Troubleshooters, Book 13) by Suzanne Brockmann
Contemporary Romance hardcover released by Random House 22 Jul 08

‘Into the Fire’ is Suzanne Brockmann’s latest Troubleshooters/Team 16 book and as it’s a great read. I wrote this review before I saw the one by Laura D, and it’s really interesting to see the differences between our views of the book.

Vinh Murphy disappeared after a sniper took his beloved wife down, years before. Now he’s back, newly sober and ready to discover what’s left after that devastation. Best friend Hannah, now deaf after an infection in her leg went badly wrong, is waiting to help. She’s been in love with Murphy for years, only he doesn’t quite realise it. For that matter, he doesn’t believe in himself.

Also in the mix is Izzy Zanella of the SEALs, and the daughter of one of his colleagues, Danny Gillman, who Izzy calls “fishboy.” Although Izzy didn’t get Danny’s eighteen year old sister pregnant, he wants to look after her and make sure she gets the care she needs in her pregnancy. But Izzy and Eden might just have a shot at a relationship, not just a way to get Eden the health benefits she needs.

Add to that an explosive plot. Tim Ebersole, leader of the Freedom Network, who were behind the hit on Murphy and his wife, is dead and the Network, a Waco style extremist group, is about to appoint a new leader. But they want to tidy up some loose ends, a move that slowly escalates through the book to an explosive ending and one that leaves a fascinating thread at the end that I for one am gagging for. If her next book isn’t about it, I might just take a trip to ask her why not.

I wouldn’t advise anyone new to the Teams to start here, as it contains characters you’ve already met and may have an investment in. Having said that, I’d say ‘ read this.’ Suz Brockmann shows people how to write grown up romances. Characters with names like Tom, Dave, Danny and Jimmy people her books. No vampires, no Dantes or Gabriels, no deus ex machina to appear in the final act, wave a wand and make everything all right.

These people live hard and occasionally suffer hard. You feel they are real. Murphy doesn’t bounce back after his wife’s death. One couple in the book, paired up in a previous novel, don’t have their happy ending, and another are still working their way towards theirs. You see, there is a cast of characters and you do have to work a bit to remember, but it’s so worth it.

Brockmann is superb at delineating character. You know who she is talking about and you can visualise them. You get a multitude of pov’s, all of whom are there because they need to be there, not because she wants to put them in.

I loved it and I can’t wait for the next one. If you want a book with explosive action, some really heartbreaking scenes and some heartwarming ones too, you can’t go far wrong with Brockmann.

Grade: B

Summary:

Vinh Murphy-ex-Marine and onetime operative for the elite security firm Troubleshooters Incorporated-has been MIA ever since his wife, Angelina, was caught in a crossfire and killed during what should have been a routine bodyguard assignment. Overcome with grief, Murphy blames the neo-Nazi group known as the Freedom Network for her death. Now, years later, Freedom Network leader Tim Ebersole has been murdered-and the FBI suspects Murphy may have pulled the trigger. To prevent further bloodshed, Murphy’s friends at Troubleshooters scramble to find him and convince him to surrender peacefully.

Murphy himself can’t be sure what he did or didn’t do during the years he spent mourning and lost in an alcohol-induced fog. He does know he occasionally sought solace from Hannah Whitfield, a former police officer and the very friend who’d introduced him to his beloved late wife.

But Hannah, still grappling with the deafness that resulted from an injury sustained while on duty, was fighting her own battles. For years Hannah had feelings for Murphy, and one painful night their suffering brought them together in a way neither expected-and both regretted.

Murphy is ready to rejoin the living. As always, he finds himself knocking on Hannah’s door, and as always, his longtime friend welcomes him back into her home. Yet even as Murphy slowly rebuilds his splintered life, hecontinues to fight his growing feelings for Hannah.

Then he learns of Ebersole’s murder and comes to believe that the Freedom Network has targeted him-and Hannah-to avenge their leader’s death to violence. Now Murphy must face the terrifying prospect of losing another woman he loves.

As the Troubleshooters desperately search for him, Murphy races toward a deadly confrontation with the Freedom Network and ultimate choice: surrender his life in hopes that Hannah will be spared, or risk everything to salvage whatever future they may have together.

Read an excerpt.

LauraD’s review of Into the Fire (Troubleshooters, Book 13) by Suzanne Brockmann
Contemporary Romance hardcover released by Random House 22 Jul 08

I never thought I’d long for the good ol’ days, when the only part of a Brockmann novel that irritated me was the WWII flashback sequence. But I’ve got to admit, the hot mess that is Into the Fire had me wishing for something as simple as that to be disappointed in. Instead there were 4 different plot lines, one of which finally finished off a love triangle that probably has some fans howling with betrayal. Oh, and remember Sam’s ex-wife MaryAnne? She’s back, re-incarnated as Izzy’s new love interest. Kidding. Sorta.

There’s no use giving any sort of synopsis, there’s just waay too much going on. Ostensibly our main characters are Vinh Murphy and Hannah Whitfield. (He’s not a vampire, he’s half Vietnamese.) Vinh’s wife-who was also Hannah’s best friend-was murdered in a previous book. He is now suspected of killing the white supremacist who incited her murderer into action, but Vinh was so deep into drinking he doesn’t remember if he did it or not. He and Hannah are trying to figure out whether or not he’s guilty.

Hannah is a former police officer, injured in the line of duty. She is now deaf, and one of her legs is permanently disabled. After her injuries, she too took refuge in alcohol for a while. Despite this, she has no trouble lip-reading or speaking, or really communicating in any way. Unless the plot requires her to not hear something. She and Murphy realize they have always loved each other. Since she is a heroically injured ex-police officer with life altering permanent disabilities, it’s ok to not hate her for being alive. Every time they have sex, they cry, because Murphy’s wife-who was also Hannah’s best friend-is dead.

Next up, we have Tess and Jimmy/Nash/Diego. Things aren’t going well for these two; Jimmy is keeping secrets and Tess thinks he’s having an affair. Jimmy has been going off on all kinds of secret missions, and coming back with injuries that he shouldn’t have. Dave actually knows this as well, and thinks that maybe Jimmy is still working for the Agency, even though supposedly he and Decker quit the Agency years ago. Totally unnecessary side-story, and does anyone even really care about Tess and Jimmy?

Decker, Dave, and Sophia. Suz-o-philes have been waiting for about 5 books for the Decker/Sophia story to play out on the big stage. Sorry kids, it whimpers out in the background of this book. Decker’s been keeping a big, bad secret from everyone and it takes the psychiatrist/Agency spy that Tom Paoletti hires to help everyone finally deal with the death of Murphy’s wife-and Hannah’s best friend-to get that secret out of him.

Oh, wait. I almost forgot the SEALs! Can’t have a Brockmann book without a SEAL or three. Y’all remember Izzy? Izzy looks up one night, sees an underage girl in a bikini, and within the next few chapters is married to her. And she’s pregnant. Throw in internet porn, VD, and about 6 trips back and forth to Las Vegas. I found her more irritating than the infamous MaryAnne, and if Brockmann can redeem this girl I will bow to her.

I’ve got to say, I actually laughed towards the end of “Into the Fire”. Not only is there a large cast of active players, but the author name-checks almost every character who doesn’t have a participating role in this book. (It was nice to see Stan again, lol.) At the end of the climactic battle, all these characters are literally coming out of the woods, armed with fully automatic weapons, and it was so much that I had to giggle. I kept expecting to see the Team 10 guys.

Ultimately, Into the Fire suffers from Too Much. Too Much going on, Too Much drama. Too Many characters with Too Many problems. Makes me sad, because I have so many of her books on my keeper shelf.

Grade: D

Summary:

Vinh Murphy-ex-Marine and onetime operative for the elite security firm Troubleshooters Incorporated-has been MIA ever since his wife, Angelina, was caught in a crossfire and killed during what should have been a routine bodyguard assignment. Overcome with grief, Murphy blames the neo-Nazi group known as the Freedom Network for her death. Now, years later, Freedom Network leader Tim Ebersole has been murdered-and the FBI suspects Murphy may have pulled the trigger. To prevent further bloodshed, Murphy’s friends at Troubleshooters scramble to find him and convince him to surrender peacefully.

Murphy himself can’t be sure what he did or didn’t do during the years he spent mourning and lost in an alcohol-induced fog. He does know he occasionally sought solace from Hannah Whitfield, a former police officer and the very friend who’d introduced him to his beloved late wife.

But Hannah, still grappling with the deafness that resulted from an injury sustained while on duty, was fighting her own battles. For years Hannah had feelings for Murphy, and one painful night their suffering brought them together in a way neither expected-and both regretted.

Murphy is ready to rejoin the living. As always, he finds himself knocking on Hannah’s door, and as always, his longtime friend welcomes him back into her home. Yet even as Murphy slowly rebuilds his splintered life, hecontinues to fight his growing feelings for Hannah.

Then he learns of Ebersole’s murder and comes to believe that the Freedom Network has targeted him-and Hannah-to avenge their leader’s death to violence. Now Murphy must face the terrifying prospect of losing another woman he loves.

As the Troubleshooters desperately search for him, Murphy races toward a deadly confrontation with the Freedom Network and ultimate choice: surrender his life in hopes that Hannah will be spared, or risk everything to salvage whatever future they may have together.

Read an excerpt.

Are you as addicted to Jean Johnson‘s Sons of Destiny series as I am? We’re halfway through this series of 8 books about 8 Warrior/Mage brothers (4 sets of twins) in an alternate universe similar to our medieval times except magic is the norm. A prophecy about the disaster(s) that will happen as each brother falls in love prompts their people to exile them to an isolated island.

My favorite so far is The Master, book 3 (Dominor and Serina), but I’ve enjoyed every one of them and can’t wait for the mysterious Rydan’s story.

Huge congrats go out to Jean for this announcement she made on her Yahoo Group, MoITWF (Mob of Irate Torch Wielding Fans). Not only are The Sons of Destiny being printed in German, but they’re launching an entirely new imprint:

Yes, proof positive I’m being translated and printed in Germany!

My first book “The Sword”, has been retitled “Sons of the Isle” in German (because they have this cultural thing about how military terms and romance novels just don’t mix very well), and is being launched as part of an entirely new book imprint, “Penhaligon”.

…I’ve had to sit on this news for a couple of weeks now, because Maria Duerig, one of the senior editors at Randomhouse.de, wanted me to wait until the Penhaligon book line was officially announced through her publishing house before letting the word get out through other means. This week, she gave me the go-ahead, and so I’m going ahead by sharing this beautiful cover with all of you, yay!

I must say, -this- is very close to how I originally pictured the cover of The Sword to look–I am very pleased with how it came out! Sure, it doesn’t have any sexeh-chest-bits, but isn’t that a gorgeous cove? Straight off the rockier stretches on the west side of Nightfall Isle, I swear…

Anyway, for those of you who speak German, the website for the imprint is http://www.penhaligon.de and the website for my book in particular is: http://www.randomhouse.de/book_new/edition.jsp?edi=280654…and they’ve labeled it “Romantasy”…which I think is a particularly good way of describing the genre for the SoD series!

Don’t you just love that label, ROMANTASY? It’s perfect for these surprisingly sexy Sword-and-Sorcerer-lite books. My favorite part about these books? The characters actually use the bathroom! In fact, in book 1, The Sword, Saber and Kelly bond over a mutual bout of raging diarrhea. No, seriously!

Watch for the re-release of the previous Sons of Destiny books in mass market paperback:



And in trade:
Followed by The Storm (2 Sep 08), The Flame (2 Dec 08), and The Mage (3 Mar 09)

Lawson’s review: Her Only Desire: A Novel by Gaelen Foley
Historical Romance released by Ballantine Books 07 Mar 27

Exotic settings, daring missions, court intrigue, and breathtaking escapes can make for a great story. Unfortunately in Her Only Desire these things don’t tie together well enough to have the neat little bow at the end of the book.

Georgiana Knight, or Georgie, is named after her scandalous aunt Georgiana (from the Knight Miscellany series from Foley). Her aunt is her idol, and she reads a book of essays about how “wedlock is padlock”. Georgie is introduced tearing through a spice market in Calcutta on a horse on her way to saving a dear friend from suttee.

Georgie is fiercely loyal to her friends, very intelligent, and has serious abandonment issues because her mother died when she was young. Her father and brothers also go off and leave her alone most of the time and she feels like an orphan. Her fears usually trigger some sort of panic induced asthma attack which she can only end through yoga.

Since she’s left on her own a lot, she’s pretty spoiled too. Very used to getting her own way (hence the intervention in suttee, even if it is a barbaric and demeaning practice, it used to be very sacred to Indian life) and expects to charm every male around her to fall at her feet.

Ian Prescott, the Marquess of Griffith, is a diplomat in Calcutta on his way to stop a war between a majarajah and the British army in India. When he sees Georgie tear through the spice market he follows and narrowly saves her from an angry Indian mob.

Ian has been a secondary character in the other Knight books. He’s noble, proper, but he’s got a fiercesome and passionate dark side. Ian’s really not all bad, he’s noble, honorable, and has a fiercesome (but slightly dark) passionate side. He works well enough as a leading man in this book.

When Ian continues on into India’s interior for his diplomatic work, Georgie follows even though Ian told her to stay in Calcutta for her safety. Court intrigue, daring missions and breathtaking escapes follow. Georgie is forced to leave her beloved India halfway through the book and the rest of the story unfolds in England.

The pacing and tone of Her Only Desire never really take off. There is action, action, dialogue, travel, description, description, action, description, more description, and I take some time looking up stuff on the internet about India and the courts of the majarajahs. I spent about as much time reading about Indian history and culture on the net as I did reading the first half of the book.

The second half was alright, but we don’t find out that Ian has a deep dark secret until the last quarter of the story. It’s slightly hinted at sure, but he’s not too tortured about it until that last quarter of the book.

Neither Georgie nor Ian are very well developed, some of the Indian secondary characters seem rather sketched and stereotypical. The scenes in England are pretty mundane and predictable. There is some good action, but again, the pacing is not what it could be.

What was very well done in the book was descriptions of locations (India), fashions, and food. I was more excited about dinner scenes than I was the sex scenes (and given that Georgie’s inner dialogue tells us she’s read the Kama Sutra and is obsessed with sex this is probably a bad thing). The food just sounded so tasty. Foley always does a good job with description of setting and other things, but the characters lacked development and the idea they would have long lasting chemistry doesn’t really fly.

Maybe the Knights should have ended with Jack’s story, because this branch of cousins doesn’t seem very interesting.

Grade: C-

From the exotic splendors of India to the elegant ballrooms of Regency London, celebrated author Gaelen Foley pens the enthralling tale of a luscious beauty who has sworn never to call any man her master, and the powerful marquess whose passion threatens to conquer her. . . .

Born into the wealthy British ruling class of India, Georgiana Knight is as unconventional as she is beautiful. She has sworn not to marry till she meets a man who will treat her as an equal–but that vow doesn’t appease her sensual curiosity. When Ian Prescott, the Marquess of Griffith, arrives on a mission to defuse the threat of war, she is immediately drawn to the mysterious and darkly handsome diplomat, and cannot resist provoking the hidden lust that smolders beneath his cool surface.

Ian is mesmerized by Georgie’s alluring mystique but burdened by a dark secret. And she is a temptation he cannot afford. But when she becomes entangled in his mission, she must be secreted away to England for her own safety. Georgie finds herself in the unfamiliar world of aristocratic London, where Ian becomes her guide, her confidant . . . her seducer. His incendiary kiss sets her soul on fire, and Georgie knows she will never be satisfied until she has made this magnificent man her own.