Just to let you know: It was really, really close. Sophia Hathaway is a spoiled, selfish, pampered heiress to social-climbing parents. At the beginning of the book she has abandoned her aristocratic fiance at the altar and, with her art supplies in one trunk and four dresses in another, she boards a ship for the…
One of the reasons I don’t always like inspirationals is that the spiritual element seems forced, inauthentic, or overdone. In When Love Blooms by Robin Lee Hatcher, this wasn’t the case at all. The religious tones of the book are actually at times more believable than the romance. Emily Harris is a privileged young woman…
After three long years, Connie Brockway has written another historical romance, with the promise of more to come, as well as more contemporaries. As one who mourned the loss of her unique historical voice I say, “Huzzah!” So Enchanting has a similar feeling to her wonderful Bridal Season, and while it is not quite up…
I have been fan of Barbara Metzger ever since I read Bething’s Folly back in 1980s. She is one of the few authors I buy on name alone because she always succeeds in amusing me. The Scandalous Life of a True Lady did not disappoint in that regard, though it was not as laugh out…
I have a confession to make: I used to think Nine Coaches Waiting by Mary Stewart a prime example of a Guilty Pleasure. Very well written, but verging on melodrama, and thus only to be enjoyed with a touch of embarrassment. Rereading it for the purpose of this review, I realized I couldn’t have been…
Murder in the North End is the fifth book in P.B. Ryan’s Nell Sweeney mystery series set in post-Civil War Boston. While this series has been generally quite enjoyable overall, this new installment is weaker than the others, and the lack of romantic denouement feels forced. Nell Sweeney is still acting as a governess/substitute mother…
The Rules of Seduction takes place against the backdrop of economic panic and a growing lack of trust in England’s banks. Lord Hayden Rothwell, the younger brother of an eccentric marquess, has discovered that the bank where he kept some of his family’s money has defrauded him. The person responsible is Timothy Longwell, the younger…
Jane Eyre is not a pure romance novel. It’s a complex work combing elements of the coming-of-age story, the roman à clef, the gothic novel, and more. Despite its complexity, though, the heart and soul of Jane Eyre is the passionate love between Jane and her employer, Edward Rochester, and it’s their love story that…
Though His Dark Desires takes place in the midst of a sultry New Orleans summer, it represents something quite the opposite for romance readers: a welcome breath of fresh air. Don’t get me wrong – I’m a bonafide Regency girl from w-a-a-a-y back. But somewhere along the way, a steady diet of All-Regency-All-The-Time, interspersed with…
Before writing this review, I spent some time considering my view of wastrels as heroes. Is it necessary for one to be entirely redeemed and a pillar of society by the book’s end or can a hero remain largely unchanged if he becomes immensely lovable? Well, the hero of One Little Sin challenged my definition…
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