The Club : All About Romance

The Club

Grade : D

When I read historical romance, I read it for two things – the history and the romance, both of which must be believable. In The Club there is little of either, and what is there is farfetched.

To find a missing friend, Jane St. Giles, Lady Sherringham, is willing to take extraordinary risks – like dressing in disguise to enter a sex club created for London’s elite married couples who sometimes like to trade spouses. Though hoping to find clues to her friend’s whereabouts, she runs into her friend’s brother, Christian Sutcliff, who is on the same quest. While at first she’s resentful of Christian who left her friend to suffer through an abusive marriage, she needs his help to make any headway in her investigation.

Christian, Lord Wickham, notoriously known as Lord Wicked, fled England years earlier to escape the consequences of a duel and the scorn of his father. Unfortunately, he left his sister, Del, vulnerable to his father and then her husband and the guilt of those actions eats him alive. When he has no other option but to work with Jane, a beautiful girl from his past, feelings resurface and he must prove himself worthy by keeping her safe and finding his sister.

As they investigate, it becomes clear that there is far more to Del’s disappearance than what they first thought. As it becomes apparent that Jane is threatened, Christian decides he must keep her near without thought to the repercussions. When murder is committed and Christian becomes the main suspect, Jane knows she must stand by him and help him prove himself to others as well.

With a cast of Uncle Creepys attempting to wreak havoc on England’s innocents, the typical redeemed rake, the abused heroine, and multiple villains, and you’ve got way more twists than any one story needs. On top of all the characters, there’s also a mystery to solve and suspense to wade through.

Two-thirds of the story moved slowly and the stilted language of the characters bogged it down even further. However, as the plot twists unravel during the last third of the story, the momentum increased as did my interest in the resolution.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t impressed with Sharon Page’s version of Regency England. Though the hero and heroine were likable, their story didn’t grab and hold my attention until near the end, and that adds up to a D.

Reviewed by Heather Brooks

Grade : D

Book type : European Historical Romance | Historical Romance

Sensuality : Hot

Review Date : April 28, 2009

Published On : 2009