all book related reviews
With a title like Once Wicked, I was expecting something along the lines of a Susan Johnson historical. Luckily, it didn’t turn out to be that kind of a book, but I still found it a disappointing read. This is another historical that sounds and feels too much like a contemporary at a costume party,…
Recently, on one of AAR’s discussion lists, there was a discussion about the quality of current Regencies. I used to buy Signet Regencies quite regularly, and although April Kihlstrom wasn’t a must buy like Joan Wolf and Carla Kelly, I did often buy and enjoy her books. When I received Miss Tibbles Investigates, I was…
Connie Brockway provides a strong finish to her trilogy about the children of Ronald Merrick, the despicable Earl of Carr. This final installment centers on Carr’s daughter Fia, who has spent the last few years doing everything she can to escape her father’s influence, but fearing deep in her bones that she can never escape…
Unlike most authors today, Eloisa James gets a lot out of the omniscient point of view. She uses it to provide irony and wit without confusing the reader. Also, she had the guts to rewrite her book prior to paperback publication to make it more accurate. Too bad a couple of big misunderstandings dragged the…
Danelle Harmon’s newest, The Defiant One, is a lot of fun. I sat down with it on a Saturday afternoon and finished it on the same day. It’s a delightful romantic comedy with compelling characters and a crazy “mad scientist” plot. Believable? It’s about as believable as Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde or Frankenstein’s Monster…
Many of you older readers out there may remember the smash bestseller The Far Pavilions by M.M. Kaye. I read the very lengthy (though flawed) novel and enjoyed it, but for me the true blessing that resulted from its success was the reissue of Kaye’s earlier novels in their entirety, in particular Shadow of the…
Got the reading doldrums after reading a dreary or disappointing book? Can’t seem to find a sexy romance that will make you smile from ear to ear? Well, I’ve found a book that may temporarily cure your reading woes. It’s a skinny little series romance called Kiss The Cook and it’s a major steal at…
A writer as prolific as Nora Roberts is bound to have some misses among all her hits. For me, this was definitely in the miss category. Roberts doesn’t cover any ground here that she hasn’t covered before (and better) in other books. Brian Donnelly is hired by Travis Grant to train horses. When Brian first…
You’ve heard the phrase “never judge a book by its cover”. This is especially true in romance novels because the covers often misrepresent the story. The Gentle Season has a very nice cover: great-looking man, pretty woman, Grand Canyon backdrop (no, they never go there). You may wish to look at this cover often if…
For years I’ve been searching for the perfect romance novel. The one I can give to my husband and say, “Here, read this and then tell me romance novels are fluff.” What I’m searching for could well be the Holy Grail of all romance novels, because if the first one I give him fails, he…
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