Meet All About Romance Editor/Senior Reviewer

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Editor/Senior Reviewer/Ombudswoman

About Me

I’ve always been a voracious reader, my first glom having occurred in fourth grade when I read Little Women and proceeded to read everything Louisa May Alcott ever wrote. Many times. I came to romance in the mid-nineties through the Jane-Austen-to-traditional-Regencies-to-historicals route. Jane Austen remains an enduring obsession, and I am one of the moderators at Pemberley, a website devoted to the Certifiable and Incurable Jane Austen Obsessive.

On the non-reading front, I have a degree in Music Education and live in the desert southwest of the United States, where I operate a private studio and give piano and vocal lessons. I am also a church organist and choir director, and a mother to two cats: Abigail the Princess and Gabriel the Great White Hunter.

Personal Reading Tastes

What I’m a sucker for in a book:

Arranged marriages, governesses, tortured heroes, friends-to-lovers romances, house parties, great hero grovels, sappy declarations of love, brainy heroes, and heroines who wear glasses.

What I don’t particularly care for in a book:

First person narrative, chick-in-pants historicals, and the overuse of pet names.

What drives me absolutely nuts in a book:

The Big Misunderstanding, head-hopping, incorrect title usage, poor (or no) period research, and martyr heroines to gambling/drunken fathers or brothers.

Favorite Romance Authors

Favorite Romance Authors

  • Mary Balogh

  • Jo Beverley

    Best Discovery/Buried Treasure Authors

  • Liz Carlyle

  • Deborah Simmons

    My Biggest Glom

  • Mary Balogh

  • Carla Kelly

    • Favorite Characters

    Favorite Hero

  • Derek Craven, Dreaming of You by Lisa Kleypas
  • Rothgar, Devilish by Jo Beverley

    Favorite Heroine

  • Jessica Trent, Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase

    Most Tortured Hero

  • Thomas Blackwood, Winter Garden by Adele Ashworth

    Strongest Heroine

  • Vivian Swift, Heart of Deception by Taylor Chase

    Favorite Couple

  • Jessica Trent and Sebastian Ballister, Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase
  • Desdemona Carlisle and Harry Braxton, As You Desire by Connie Brockway

    Best Villain

  • Earl of Walgrave, My Lady Notorious by Jo Beverley

    • Least-Favorites

    Most Disappointing Book

  • A Man of Many Talents by Deborah Simmons

    Worst Book

  • Sinful by Susan Johnson

    Book with Most Purple Prose

  • Tempted by Fire by Thea Devine

    Authors I Have Given Up On

  • Stella Cameron

    Authors Others Love That I Don’t

  • Elizabeth Lowell

    Most Annoying Lead Character

  • Charlotte Collins, Noble Destiny by Katie MacAlister

    • Favorite Romance Novels

    Absolute Favorites

  • Dreaming of You
  • by Lisa Kleypas
  • Lord of Scoundrels
  • by Loretta Chase

    Favorite Classic

  • Twelfth Night
  • by William Shakespeare

    Favorite Short Stories

  • The Demon’s Mistress
  • by Jo Beverley
  • in In Praise of Younger Men
  • The Hunting Season
  • by Liz Carlyle
  • in Tea for Two

    • Favorites by Sub-Genre

    European Historical:

  • Dreaming of You
  • by Lisa Kleypas
  • Lord of Scoundrels
  • by Loretta Chase

    Regency:

  • Mrs. Drew Plays Her Hand
  • by Carla Kelly
  • The Notorious Rake
  • by Mary Balogh

    Medieval:

  • The Warlord
  • by Elizabeth Elliott
  • Taming the Wolf
  • by Deborah Simmons

    Alternate Reality:

  • Kiss of Fate
  • by Mary Jo Putney
  • Bewitching
  • by Jill Barnett

    • Favorites by Plot Type

    Cabin or Road:

  • Winter Garden
  • by Adele Ashworth
  • With This Ring
  • by Carla Kelly

    Funny:

  • The Vicar’s Daughter
  • by Deborah Simmons
  • The Viscount Who Loved Me
  • by Julia Quinn

    Sexy:

  • Untie My Heart
  • by Judith Ivory
  • Winter Garden
  • by Adele Ashworth

    • Favorites by Mood

    Comfort Reads:

  • Ravished
  • by Amanda Quick
  • The Proposition
  • by Judith Ivory

    Most-Hanky Reads:

  • Miss Milton Speaks Her Mind
  • by Carla Kelly
  • One Perfect Rose
  • by Mary Jo Putney

    Guilty Pleasures:

  • Scandal’s Bride
  • by Stephanie Laurens

    • Non-Romance Favorites

    Favorite Author

  • Jane Austen

    Favorite Book

  • Persuasion by Jane Austen

    Favorite Classic Novel

  • Every other Jane Austen novel

    Favorite Mystery

  • Gaudy Night by Dorothy Sayers

    Favorite SF/Fantasy

  • The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

    • Favorite Women’s Fiction

  • The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan

    Favorite YA Book

  • Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

    Favorite Set of Connected Books

  • The Mallorens by Jo Beverley

    Book Most Often Reread

  • Dreaming of You by Lisa Kleypas
  • Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase