The acknowledgements that follow the last page read: “For the simplicity of language I’ve achieved, I thank my two mentors: Ernest Hemingway and Jean Renoir.” A more perfect statement has yet to be uttered. Gene Wilder’s first novel, My French Whore: A Love Story, is simple in the extreme and touching. I loved every word….
When I read the blurb on the back of the Queen’s Handmaiden I thought, “Ugh, it takes place over a decade.” I generally dislike sagas. When I started reading the novel, I thought, “Ugh, it’s in the first person”. I generally find it harder to get into the story when it is in the first…
Great historicals are quickly becoming the Woolly Mammoths of Romanceland, but books like Karen Ranney’s The Scottish Companion give me hope for the future. The bare bones plot is nothing new: cold nobleman with certain death looking over his shoulder must wed with all haste and produce an heir. He arranges a match with a…
This type of book is not a typical romance. For one, it’s not a straightforward romance novel, but neither is it quite chick lit or straight fiction. Another unique quality? It’s written by a man. That alone will make many women curious. But this book is good in its own right – it’s clever, sweet,…
On rereading Barbara Hambly’s Bride of the Rat God for the purpose of writing this review, I was surprised once more by what a truly superb novel it is. On rereading, I found new details to savor, ones that I had overlooked before because I had been too caught up in the excitement of the…
Eve Kenin (aka Eve Silver) went on my auto-buy list the second I finished Driven. This book packs a wallop, no doubt about it. The action never stops, but the characters are compelling and unforgettable. Finishing the book was difficult because I didn’t want to leave them or their adventures behind. In post-Apocalyptic Earth, one…
If you’re a fan of Michael Mann’s film of The Last of the Mohicans (yes, the one with the delightful Daniel Day Lewis in it), then Rising Wind may be just the book for you. It’s the story of class-divided lovers who bond under difficult circumstances and find each other, survival, and love. The hero…
Emma Holly is just a pleasure to read. Sexy, erotic, hot, steamy, it’s true, but also smooth, considered, well-crafted, and oh-so-easy to read. Holly is one of those writers whose writing never gets in the way of the story. Fairyville, Arizona isn’t like other towns. Fairyvillers are always just a little different, have something just…
If you’ve ever seen the classic movie Tom Jones you know just how much fun bawdy innuendo can be. I was reminded of that film and it’s irrepressible joie de vivre as I read The Serpent Prince and, considering my extreme fondness for Tom Jones (not to even mention the incredible deliciousness that was the…
Despite hearing a lot of good things about Rachel Gibson from my friends, I had yet to read one of her novels. Now, I figure it’s better late than never – within days of finishing this one, I already had two books from Gibson’s backlist at the top of my TBR pile. And if they’re…
End of content
End of content