Traditional Regencies, as all familiar with the sub-genre know, usually limit the characters’ sexual interaction to “kisses;” any more than that would be contrary to the period, and traditional Regencies are nothing if not accurate to their time. That said, however, a lot of Regency authors make the mistake of keeping their characters’ emotions in…
All the stories in this anthology involve taming a Regency Rogue. Taming a rogue is a great fantasy, and the plot of many a wonderful romance novel. The rogues in these stories are not really all that roguish, but one of them is a nice tortured hero. His story is the best of the bunch.
The Vampire Viscount manages to be a number of interesting things in a brief 224-page space. This is a book that may sneak its way onto a number of AAR’s Special Title Listings. It’s a vampire story, which is unique enough for a Regency. It’s also a redemption story, an arranged marriage romance, and it…
Many novels, no matter what the genre, feature a story with a lot of action, but whose main characters (in romance, the hero and heroine) do not change as a result of that action. Even though the action is resolved by the end of the book, it somehow seems more satisfactory if the characters actually…
The Girl with the Persian Shawl is not a showy, angst-filled book full of deep emotions and action galore. Rather, it’s of the quiet, drawing-room drama variety; it’s full of normal people who happen to be living in the Regency. No one is larger than life. At first the book just seemed mildly pleasant and…
Even when it fails miserably, there’s something admirable about an author taking risks when she writes, especially if it’s within the constraints of a fairly strict genre. Rhonda Woodward’s A Spinster’s Luck takes absolutely no risks at all, resulting in a competently-written but absolutely dull Regency Romance. It seems as if Woodward slotted in all…
Patricia Veryan is lauded as one of the grande dames of Regency writers, and has long been in my TBR pile. It seems, however, that with the Georgian romance The Riddle Of The Deplorable Dandy, this experienced writer has fallen prey to the most simple of writer edicts: show, don’t tell. Not to mention that…
The Wedding Journey is a rather whimsical title for a book that so clearly juxtaposes humanity’s potential for both great good and terrible evil. A more accurate, if less appealing, title would be Retreat Into Hell. That would better convey what these characters have to confront and overcome. Elinore “Nell” Mason is the daughter of…
My reaction to Donna Simpson’s A Country Courtship was startling. It is rare to find a book that manages to be both boring and teeth-grittingly annoying. I procrastinated on this review because I like traditional Regency Romances and was hoping I would find something to like in this book. The fact that I’ve enjoyed Simpson…
What’s better than a house party book? A Christmas house party book, of course. Members of the Regency list I hang out on know that my ears perk up with the mention of the words “house party,” and nothing seems to suit a house party better than snow storms and mistletoe. Donna Simpson’s latest book…
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