4 ½ stars. Wonderful story. Problem with audiobook narrator’s breaths.
I think my favorite trope is seeing a character change - like this. Gilly was sm4 ½ stars. Wonderful story. Problem with audiobook narrator’s breaths.
I think my favorite trope is seeing a character change - like this. Gilly was small, skinny, shy, quiet, and obedient - doing whatever his overbearing uncle and others told him to do. Even with marriage the uncle says it’s time you get engaged to Harriet, so he does. He’s 24. Gilly decides to go on a journey alone without his valet or other hired help. On that journey things happen that allow Gilly to act differently and to see himself differently than he had before. I was delighted and surprised. And there were humorous parts. It’s a little slow to start. But the last third was fulfilling.
This is not typical romance, but it has a happy romantic ending. This is primarily Gilly’s coming of age story. The heroine has a small role.
A minor complaint for the author. She called characters by different names, sometimes the first name, sometimes the last name. I was confused about the two Wares and then Gideon and Gaywood sounding similar. Gideon Ware (the son of Lord Lionel) was also called Captain Gideon or Captain Ware. Mathew Ware (the son of Lord Henry Ware). Charles Presteigne (Harriet’s brother) was called Charles, Charlie, and Gaywood. Now that I’ve looked them up after reading the book, they don’t seem as confusing. But at the time I was confused.
AUDIOBOOK NARRATOR - Phyllida Nash. Her breaths were annoying and distracting. When talking to someone in person one does not hear breaths. Parts of the story were ok, but several times I was thinking when is the next breath going to come? They interrupted the story. Narrators: PLEASE listen to the recording of yourself and if you hear your breaths, use a different microphone - or stand farther away from it.
DATA: Narrative mode: 3rd person. Unabridged audiobook length: 14 hrs and 26 mins. Swearing language: none. Sexual content: none. Setting: 1818 England. Book copyright: 1948. Genre: historical fiction with romance.
OTHER BOOKS by Georgette Heyer: My favorite books are: These Old Shades, Cotillion, and Friday’s Child. My second favorites: Devil’s Cub, Lady of Quality, The Convenient Marriage, and A Civil Contract....more
Horseback riding western and romance. The author reminds me of LaVyrle Spencer.
This book kept me walking on the treadmill long past when I normally stHorseback riding western and romance. The author reminds me of LaVyrle Spencer.
This book kept me walking on the treadmill long past when I normally stop - twice. That’s a sign of a good book. I have NOTHING BAD to say. The author does it right. She doesn’t use cheap devices like stupidity and contrivances. The characters are likeable. The relationship develops in neat ways. Bret does smart things catching outlaws. I liked Hassie’s role in catching outlaws and other things.
There are three sex scenes with mild details. They added to the relationship.
DATA: Narrative mode: 3rd person. Kindle count length: 4,440 (334 pages). Swearing language: mild. Sexual language: mild. Number of sex scenes: 3. Setting: 1871 and 1876 Missouri, Colorado, and other western states. Copyright: 2014. Genre: western historical romance.
BOOKS BY THIS AUTHOR: 5 stars. Without Words - neat things happen - not depressing 4 stars. Beautiful Bad Man - depressing child abuse and bad guy’s evil deeds 4 stars. Dancing on Coals - depressing treatment of Native American Indians 3 ½ stars. Into the Light - not depressing, but relationship a little bland 2 stars. Sing My Name - too depressing, I lost sleep Eyes of Silver, Eyes of Gold - I’m won’t read because it will depress me - per advice from my friends ...more
4 ½ stars. I enjoy the author’s choices and dialogue.
Like the first book in the series, this is not great writing, but I felt good while reading it. T4 ½ stars. I enjoy the author’s choices and dialogue.
Like the first book in the series, this is not great writing, but I felt good while reading it. The happiness flowed into my other life. And that makes it 5 stars for me.
I wish more regency romances were like this. Too many authors use inaccurate assumptions and secrets for excessive drama and suspense. Gracie does not. I’m not talking about Damaris keeping a secret about her past. That was reasonable. Here’s an example of something I liked. After sex, Damaris makes an assumption that is wrong. Another author would have Damaris leave the guy and not say why. But Gracie has the guy sense something wrong, ask her about it, and not give up until she tells him. So she tells him, and then he explains why the assumption is wrong. I was pleased because I am used to other authors who would draw that out for extended conflict. Sometimes I don’t mind drawing it out, but many times I do.
I loved the character Freddy. He was entertaining. He fears and avoids muffins (irritating females chasing him for marriage). Aunt Bea mistakenly thinks he likes to eat baked muffins. He does not correct her. So she frequently serves him muffins, and then he has to think of ways to avoid eating them, like throwing one in the fire, but then he worries there might be a smell.
HEROINE WAS RAPED IN THE PAST. Some readers might want to know this. The rapes were not shown in detail, but they were mentioned. The f-word was used regarding this.
AUDIOBOOK NARRATOR: I really enjoyed the narrator Alison Larkin. I frequently complain when a female narrator uses a weird voice for the hero, and Larkin used a weird voice for Freddy. He did not sound sexy at all. He almost sounded comical. But this narrator is so wonderful with emotional interpretations - I loved it, weird Freddy and all. I loved the way she interpreted Mrs. Jenkins (a very minor character) who was Damaris’ boss at the pottery shop. I plan to look for more books that she narrates. However, one of my friends was disappointed with the narrator, so it’s a personal preference.
DATA: Narrative mode: 3rd person. Unabridged audiobook length: 12 hrs and 31 mins. Swearing language: mild. Sexual language: none, other than the f-word mentioned above. Number of hero/heroine sex scenes: two. Setting: 1816 mostly England. Book copyright: 2014. Genre: regency romance....more
Conversations and events were fun, likeable, enjoyable. It’s charming. Emotionally fulfilling.
This is not a great book, but I’m giving it 5 stars becaConversations and events were fun, likeable, enjoyable. It’s charming. Emotionally fulfilling.
This is not a great book, but I’m giving it 5 stars because I was in such a happy mood during the two days I was listening to it. I was smiling all the time – during and not during.
It reminded me of Georgette Heyer books. I like the author’s choices - what the characters do, how they react, what they say. There was a blackmail attempt and my initial reaction was uh oh, this could be a downer. But it wasn’t. The author did not string it out with secrets and drama. I felt good with what happened. It was not what most authors do. That is still strange to me. I give the author credit. I like her choices.
I liked the way Lady Bea would call Abby Miss Burglar. I liked the way Bea did not like vegetables. I liked Freddy’s attitude and fear of muffins (irritating females chasing him for marriage).
The only thing off for me was sex before marriage did not fit the characters. I would have preferred seeing the wedding first. I also would have liked more romantic relationship development – seeing Abby and Max spending time together.
NARRATOR: The audiobook narrator Alison Larkin did an excellent job. I loved her emotional interpretation of characters. She made Freddy sound odd, but that was ok. Her voice for the heroine reminded me of Julie Andrews -- lovely. I was surprised that a friend of mine was disappointed with the narrator. So this clearly is a personal preference thing.
DATA: Narrative mode: 3rd person. Unabridged audiobook length: 10 hrs and 53 mins. Swearing language: none other than Good God. Sexual language: none. Number of sex scenes: two. Setting: mostly London, England 1805 and 1816 England. Book copyright: 2013. Genre: regency romance....more
Twice I kept reading long past my reading time because I didn’t want to stop. That is unusual for me. Engaging charactersWow. Really engrossing story.
Twice I kept reading long past my reading time because I didn’t want to stop. That is unusual for me. Engaging characters. Lots of conflict. This reminded me of Rhett and Scarlett (Gone With The Wind). A turbulent relationship. Whitney was so stubborn thinking she wanted another man Paul for so many years (like Scarlett wanted Ashley). Whitney also made trouble for herself because of her pride. Clayton the rich duke was madly in love with her. But when he thought she deceived him or betrayed him, he went into a rage and treated her cruelly - twice. She was innocent but he didn’t give her a chance to explain. They both did foolish things, but I won’t call it stupid because their ridiculous actions fit their proud, stubborn, and emotional motivations. He loved her so much that he was emotionally whacked.
There is one rape but she does not resist. I was intrigued that she was hurt but loved him and cried in his arms for comfort after. He realized his error and was in the depths of depression because he hurt her. He made amends - big time.
TWO VERSIONS OF THE BOOK: I read the expanded longer version. Some reviewers complained that Clayton was too abusive in the original version, which made me reluctant to read this. But I think the author changed or softened the abusive element in the longer version. Whitney My Love was Judith McNaught’s first book published in 1985. She felt she ended it too abruptly. So she added scenes and enhanced other scenes in the special edition published in 1999.
DATA: Narrative mode: 3rd person. Story length: 706 pages. Swearing language: mild including religious swear words but rarely used. Sexual language: mild. Number of sex scenes: 4. Setting: 1816 - 1820 England and France. Copyright: 1985 and 1999. Genre: regency romance....more
4 ½ stars for lovers of historical romance. Smart strong heroine. Great relationship development. It was fun.
STORY BRIEF: In 873 Vikings travel to Engl4 ½ stars for lovers of historical romance. Smart strong heroine. Great relationship development. It was fun.
STORY BRIEF: In 873 Vikings travel to England to raid a monastery. They are ambushed and kept as slaves by the Saxon lord Royce. Norwegian woman Kristen is among them. Royce cannot resist her. And she wants him too.
OPINION: Kristen’s intelligence, attitude, and fighting abilities might be stretching believability - as to typical women in those days, but it made a good story. There’s good plot and no stupidity. I really enjoyed this.
Some readers did not like Royce because he kept Kristen in chains and bedded her every night while he was engaged to another. I didn’t mind that. He had good reasons. It was obvious he was falling in love with her and didn’t want her hurt.
There is one attempted rape. A guy (not Royce) grabs Kristen and kisses her, but she fights and gets away before anything else can happen. A few sex scenes are bodice-ripper style. He wants her but won’t force it. But she wants him to attack her, so she baits him to do it.
SERIES: This is second in a trilogy but can be read as a stand alone. Books 1 and 3 are Fires of Winter and Surrender My Love.
DATA: Narrative mode: 3rd person. Story length: 363 pages. Swearing language: mild. Sexual language: none to mild. Number of sex scenes: 6. Setting: 873 Norway and England. Copyright: 1987. Genre: historical romance, Vikings....more
4 ½ stars. Unique characters that you want to watch. It’s different. It feels good.
Montgomery is famous for her Anne of Green Gables series published 4 ½ stars. Unique characters that you want to watch. It’s different. It feels good.
Montgomery is famous for her Anne of Green Gables series published 1908 to 1921. The Blue Castle was published in 1926. I believe this is her only romance book. It is appropriate for young adult.
I enjoyed it all the way through. I loved the variety of characters. I feel like I’ve known parts of people who were like Valancy’s horrible relatives. Another reviewer “A Customer” described it well. “Valancy, a 29 year old woman has lived in a scornful, repressive, loveless home her entire life, too crushed to resist, and to fearful to flee. Her family continuously torments her because she is unmarried and has no possible chances. Day after day passes in a soul-killing home among smug, uncaring, spiritually dead relatives. But drastic circumstances give Valancy the courage to defy her family, and to escape to a life of her own choosing.”
I delighted in Valancy’s subtle revenge when she said what she thought and did what she wanted - much to the horror of her relatives.
I enjoyed Valancy’s love relationship with a strange misunderstood man. I don’t know if they had sex. That was not part of the story.
If I could change something, it would be more relationship development showing the falling in love.
DATA: Narrative mode: 3rd person. Kindle count length: 2,734 (335 KB). Swearing language: mild. Sexual content: none. Setting: probably around 1926 Ontario, Canada. Published 1926. Genre: historical romance....more
4 ½ stars. I felt so good reading this. Toddlers and having a baby play a larger role than normal for a romance novel.
I read the paperback several yea4 ½ stars. I felt so good reading this. Toddlers and having a baby play a larger role than normal for a romance novel.
I read the paperback several years ago and recently listened to the audiobook. I liked it even better this time. The audiobook narrator Kate Forbes was wonderful.
What a lovely story. It felt different from most romance novels. It was written 23 years ago and reflects some of that thinking. It was very sweet. A few times I was teary-eyed - the kind of tears that come from good things happening to people who really need it because of their circumstances. I kept waiting for arguments or fights to separate the couple and was surprised when that did not happen. Instead things just kept getting better and better. The relationship and the individuals were growing and getting better through most of the book. I wasn’t used to that. Sure there was a problem separating the couple near the end (“the formula”). I enjoyed how that resolved.
I loved the wedding vows page 146. She thinks she’s not pretty. This guy truly, truly loves her (and her children) - soooo neat. If you’re looking for hot passionate sex, you don’t want this. Yes there is sex, but it’s softer and secondary. The main attraction is love not lust.
STORY BRIEF: Eleanor was raised by religious fanatic grandparents, not allowed out of the house, never had friends, made fun of at school. She married, had children, and her husband died. She lives as a recluse. The locals call her crazy. She’s currently pregnant and needs a husband so she puts an ad in the paper.
Will was an orphan, spent time in jail, is a drifter, got a job but was fired when they learned he’d been in jail. He’s hungry. He sees Eleanor’s ad and applies for the job.
DATA: Narrative mode: 3rd person. Story length: 389 pages. Swearing language: moderate including religious swear words. Sexual language: mild. Number of sex scenes: 8, most of them brief. Setting: mostly 1941 Whitney, Georgia. Copyright: 1989. Genre: american historical romance, WWII....more
4 ½ stars. Wonderfully likeable characters. Lots of laughter for me. I didn’t want to stop reading.
REVIEWER’S OPINION: I gave this a high rating becaus4 ½ stars. Wonderfully likeable characters. Lots of laughter for me. I didn’t want to stop reading.
REVIEWER’S OPINION: I gave this a high rating because very few books make me laugh. The funniest parts are Sherry’s guy friends helping Sherry be responsible for Hero’s care. When Sherry first travels with Hero, the guys are helping him figure out where she should sleep, how to hire an abigail for her, etc. There’s one scene where Hero’s former guardian Mrs. Bagshot visits Hero. Sherry walks in with a comment to Hero, but as soon as he sees Mrs. Bagshot, he says “My God” and immediately leaves the room. It had me laughing.
One of my frequent complaints with romance novels is how the author creates conflict to separate the couple. Not so in this book. I was impressed. I could easily understand how Sherry was angry at leaving his hunting fun to fix things with Hero once again. His anger and proposed solution made sense from his point of view.
Toward the end, some events felt contrived and a bit silly, but I accepted them since the rest was so good. One of Heyer’s strengths is creating so many different types of characters. I was intrigued and entertained with weird Ferdy. His mind was slow and his thinking odd. During one event, he was reminded of the Greek goddess Nemesis he heard about in school. Then when he wrote a note to Sherry his mind wandered in his note, which was so confusing it was funny. He meant to write a metaphor but made it sound like a Greek fellow was after them. A lot of different things happen in the book. It was a fun read all the way through.
The narrator Eve Matheson was wonderful – as usual.
STORY BRIEF: Sherry is 24 and will inherit his wealth at age 25 or when he marries. His uncles manage his money and are too restrictive. He suspects one of the uncles is skimming money from estate. He has no desire to marry, but he wants possession of his money. So he asks the local beauty Bella to marry him. She refuses. He decides to head to town and marry the first girl he sees. As he is driving, he sees Hero sitting by the road. Her parents died early and she is being raised by Mrs. Bagshot. She is treated poorly, and Mrs. Bagshot plans to send her away to work as a governess. She is 17. She is crying. Over the years Sherry has been a bit of a bully to her, but he always liked her. When he tells her his plan to marry the first girl he sees, she laughingly says “that would be me.” As he thinks about it, he decides she would be a good choice since she would let him continue his current lifestyle of gaming and chasing women. There’s no way for her to pack her bags without alerting her guardian, so Sherry takes her as she is, and off they go to London. When he gets there, his friends help him decide where to put her up for the night and where to get clothes, etc.
Hero is like a kitten and that’s what Sherry and his friends call her. She is so innocent and trusting of others that she is constantly getting into scrapes. Sherry and his friends repeatedly come to her aid. Although they marry, they don’t kiss or sleep together. Sherry treats her like a younger sister. She does everything she can to make Sherry happy. He doesn’t know that she loves him.
DATA: Unabridged audiobook length: 13 hours 46 minutes. Narrator: Eve Matheson. Swearing language: none. Sexual content: none. Setting: 1816 England. Book Published: 1944. Genre: regency romance....more
A delight from the beginning. I was smiling a lot during the book. Wonderful storytelling.
REVIEWER’S OPINION: Characters are so entertaining. The way JA delight from the beginning. I was smiling a lot during the book. Wonderful storytelling.
REVIEWER’S OPINION: Characters are so entertaining. The way Justin speaks and the things he says are so funny to me. One of his oddities is calling his younger brother Rupert (an adult) and his ward (19) “my infants.” Rupert has some hilarious action and comments. For example, someone is kidnapped, and Rupert follows on foot chasing the horse drawn vehicle. He then continues following the kidnappers doing odd things. I laughed at how Rupert was so excited and saw this as an adventure. He thought this was great fun – even as he was getting shot. I’ve read many novels that included kidnapping, but I’ve never read one where the victim’s friend saw it as fun. This is an example of why the writing is different with the unexpected.
As I was listening to a conversation between the Comte and his wife toward the end of the book, I thought how well done to see their motivations and feelings through dialogue, rather than having the author “tell” us.
Although I knew it was a possibility, I didn’t expect the ending. It almost seemed odd, but yes it was a happy ending.
I listened to the audiobook version. The narrator did a wonderful job “acting” the parts of the various characters. This is so much better than tv and movies. And it’s 11 hours of entertainment. There are different narrators. I listened to the one by Cornelius Garrett.
STORY BRIEF: The Comte needed a son so he could keep the family estate. The Comte’s wife delivers their only child, a girl. The Comte switches the baby with a local farmer’s baby boy. He pays the farmer to move away and raise the girl Leonie as his own. Twelve years later the farmer and his wife die. Their son Jean moves to Paris and opens a tavern. He takes Leonie with him and makes her dress as a boy. As a boy she is called Leon. Leon is beaten and mistreated during that time. One night as she is running from Jean, she bumps into Justin. Justin is intrigued with her appearance. He buys her from Jean to be his page. This is where the story begins. Leon continues dressing as a boy. Later Justin has her dressing as a girl and learning society manners. Then he introduces her to society. Justin has a motive beneath all this. He has hated the Comte for twenty years and plans revenge.
DATA: Unabridged audiobook length: 11 hours. Narrator: Cornelius Garrett. Swearing language: none. Sexual content: none. Setting: 1756 France and England. Published: 1926. Genre: historical romance, female disguised as male....more
4 ½ stars. Light-hearted romantic adventure with quirky and endearing characters.
REVIEWER’S OPINION: I couldn’t decide between 4 and 5 stars, but I rou4 ½ stars. Light-hearted romantic adventure with quirky and endearing characters.
REVIEWER’S OPINION: I couldn’t decide between 4 and 5 stars, but I rounded to 5 because I continued thinking about it afterwards and am glad I read it.
This was written more than 50 years ago and is dated in some ways. It’s an example of a wonderful variety of characters whose “natures” create romantic conflicts. It’s a nice change of pace from the typical popular character types in most romances written today. It’s also a welcome change from the typical good-guy-bad-guy plots. I can see how Heyer became famous, and I think this would be a good novel to start with if you haven’t read any of her. The British dialogue may be a little hard to understand, but you can get used to it. I liked this as an audiobook. I’m not sure how I would feel reading it in paperback. Because I was doing the audiobook, I found it helpful to print the list of characters from the website heyerlist org under Who’s Who. The ending was great. I loved the secondary story about Lord Dolphinton.
COMMENTS FROM OTHER REVIEWERS: The following Goodreads reviewers said some excellent things worth repeating. Thanks guys.
Abigail A (source of my title above – she sums it up well)
Katharine “The heroine is (typically for Heyer) impulsive and a bit strong-minded and clueless at the same time, but somehow manages to be wholy charming instead of obnoxious.”
-inbetween_ “My eyes did sting at that one line, though: “What I mean is, like you to have everything you want. Wished it was me, that's all.””
Dlora “I just finished Cotillion and was enchanted with it. I'm always intrigued with the titles of a book and I had wondered why Heyer had chose cotillion for this novel. As I recall, a cotillion is a formal ball and almost at the end of the novel I realized that the characters were dancing around each other, coming together and moving apart, just like a dance. I loved it. The main dancers are Kitty Charing and her "cousins" who are dancing to the tune of their rich irascible uncle who will leave his fortune to Kitty if she marries one of his grandnephews.”
STORY BRIEF: Kitty’s parents died. Matthew Penicuik was a friend of her father’s and became her guardian. He is gout ridden, irascible and sharp tongued. His relatives rarely visit. He’s wealthy but rarely spends money on Kitty. He won’t let her travel to London or have pretty clothes. The story begins when Matthew announces that he will leave his entire fortune to Kitty if she marries one of his five great nephews. If she does not, his fortune will go to charity. Kitty apparently does not want to marry any of his great nephews. She wants to go to London to search for a job as a governess and maybe meet someone she could fall in love with and marry. Also she would like to have a few weeks of fun in London, something Matthew would never allow. Freddy is one of the nephews. He is wealthy and into clothes. He’s not the scholarly type, but he has practical knowledge. He’s the good friend type. Kitty asks him to help her with a favor. She wants to pretend they are engaged and that Freddy needs to take her to London to spend time with his parents. Freddy is reluctant at first, but he agrees. Matthew then reluctantly allows Kitty to go to London and gives her a small amount of money to spend on bridal clothes. They come up with a reason as to why they are delaying making a public announcement of their engagement.
Kitty sees the best in people. When she sees a need, she feels she must help others and thinks up hoaxes to accomplish this. But sometimes she’s a bit clueless and her hoaxes need help. Of course Freddy is pulled into it and helps her. The story is mostly about Kitty’s time in London and her interactions with others.
Jack is the handsome, arrogant ladies’ man - another of the nephews. Kitty had a crush on him while growing up. When Jack heard of Matthew’s fortune going to Kitty, he planned to be the one to marry her, but he wasn’t ready yet. He wanted to continue his single lifestyle with mistresses for a while. He thought that all he had to do was crook his finger and Kitty would come running. This was Jack’s belief, but we don’t know Kitty’s thinking about Jack until later.
There were some scenes that had me laughing out loud. I loved the characters. It was fun to see how fighting added spice to theVery enjoyable romance.
There were some scenes that had me laughing out loud. I loved the characters. It was fun to see how fighting added spice to the relationship and the characters looked forward to their spats. It was well done. I'm going to try more from this author. Sexual content: mild....more
One of the best romantic novels ever. I loved the characters and plot. Several parts had me squealing out loud with delight.
Very fun read.
Sexual conteOne of the best romantic novels ever. I loved the characters and plot. Several parts had me squealing out loud with delight.
Very fun read.
Sexual content: not evaluated. I read this book before I began counting sex scenes and describing the language. As I recall it was probably moderate. Setting: 1818 London. Copyright: 2006. Genre: regency romance.
To date I've read the following Lynsay Sands books. 3 stars. The Switch. Copyrt 1999. Review Date 8/11/08. 2 stars. Sweet Revenge. Copyrt 2000. Review Date 5/29/08. 2 stars. Always. Copyrt 2000. Review Date 8/11/08. 1 star. Love Bites. Copyrt 2004. Review Date 5/29/08. 2 stars. The Perfect Wife. Copyrt 2005. Review Date 6/14/08. 5 stars. Love is Blind. Copyrt 2006. Review Date 1/22/07....more
4.5 stars. It's touching, lovely, sad and happy. I couldn't put it down.
I didn't want to stop reading it. 1990s Susan Butler is in a fatal car crash. 4.5 stars. It's touching, lovely, sad and happy. I couldn't put it down.
I didn't want to stop reading it. 1990s Susan Butler is in a fatal car crash. Her guardian angels give her a second chance to live by whisking her back into the body of Margaret Johnsbury who died falling from a horse. Margaret had been mean, vicious and hurt many people. All of a sudden Margaret's body has the soul of Susan, who is loving and good. Maggie refers to Margaret's body with Susan's soul.
My heart went out to Maggie who had to find the strength and courage to face social ostracism and hatred. All people snubbed her and shunned her. Yet, she withstood it while she continued her quest to get her husband to see the real her and hopefully to love her. I was awed when Maggie would fight back the tears and try to smile while suffering the punishment that was so well deserved by her predecessor but not at all deserved by her. I loved her personality. It was fun seeing her make some jogging clothes to wear back then. She had no shoes, so she would jog barefoot in the sand.
Sexual language: mild. Number of sex scenes: two. Setting: 1990s and 1888 Newport, Rhode Island. Genre: time-travel historical romance.
To date, I’ve read one other book by Jane Goodger. My 2 star review of “Marry Christmas,” Copyright 2008, was posted 10/10/08....more
I was surprised at how often this book had me laughing out loud, and that alone is the reason I gave it 5 stars inEnjoyable fluffy read, witty author.
I was surprised at how often this book had me laughing out loud, and that alone is the reason I gave it 5 stars instead of 4. The dry sarcasm in several comments was hilarious. I enjoyed the characters. Mentally quick Emma is a school headmistress and falls for the duke. The arrogant and condescending duke dislikes and distrusts all women. He believes the school does nothing more than teach girls how to trap a husband. He ends up changing his mind about the school and the students, and of course he falls for Emma. Sexual content: moderate....more
The story begins in 1871 with Rafe on the run from bounty hunters. He is shot and goes to a doctor’s home where Dr. Annie Parker treEnjoyable western.
The story begins in 1871 with Rafe on the run from bounty hunters. He is shot and goes to a doctor’s home where Dr. Annie Parker treats his wounds. She tells him his wounds will need medical care for three days, so he kidnaps her to keep her with him while on the run.
Most of the story happens while they are on the run together. There are some neat things happening toward the end of the book. The ending was great.
AUDIOBOOK NARRATOR: Natalie Ross did a great job.
DATA: Narrative mode: 3rd person. Story length: 312 pages. Swearing language: moderate plus s*** a few times. Sexual language: moderate. Number of sex scenes: eleven. Setting: 1871 Arizona. Copyright: 1992. Genre: historical western romance....more
**spoiler alert** 4.5 stars. Entertaining story. Fun and interesting characters. I had tears of happiness at the end.
Billy had been physically abused **spoiler alert** 4.5 stars. Entertaining story. Fun and interesting characters. I had tears of happiness at the end.
Billy had been physically abused as a child and ran away from home at age 13. He became a gang leader with admirable qualities.
CAUTION SPOILERS: Toward the end, I loved the scenes of Jacinda with Billy's father. She took his abuse without offense and responded in ways that wowed me. On page 317, Billy asks her "How could someone do that?" referring the way his father treated him growing up. I loved her answer. Part of her answer follows: "Humanity, my dear, is a blind, mad parade of sorry fools. People are flawed, and sometimes they make terrible mistakes. You must never let yourself be deceived into thinking that your father's hideous mistakes were somehow your fault." I definitely recommend this book. There were a lot of good ideas and some interesting events.
DATA: Sexual language: moderate. Number of sex scenes: five. Setting: 1816 England. Copyright: 2003. Genre: regency romance.
To date there are seven books in the Knight family series, of which I have read six, as follows. My review for His Wicked Kiss was posted to Amazon on 2/6/07. All the rest are posted on 5/26/08. The Duke (4.5 stars) Lord of Fire (2 stars) Lord of Ice (3.5 stars) Lady of Desire (4.5 stars) Devil Takes a Bride (2 stars) His Wicked Kiss (3 stars)...more
5 stars for THIRTY-SIX VALENTINES by Julia Quinn. Excellent story. I loved the characters Susannah and DaThis book contains the following four stories.
5 stars for THIRTY-SIX VALENTINES by Julia Quinn. Excellent story. I loved the characters Susannah and David. Their honesty was refreshing. There was also some wonderful and thoughtful conversation. During the summer of 1813, Clive courted Susannah. Then, he publicly humiliated her by announcing that he was going to marry Harriet. Susannah became the subject of gossip, lies and ostracism. In January, 1814, Susannah was a wallflower at a party when Clive's older brother David asked her to dance. His purpose was to apologize for Clive's behavior. But, he ended up intrigued and enjoyed the conversation with her. They accidentally met again at the theater with interesting conversation. After that, David invited her to go ice skating. The rest of the story was wonderful.
CAUTION SPOILERS: I loved the conversation on page 318. Susannah asked David why he didn't want Clive to marry her the previous summer. David said "I love my brother, but he has his flaws, and he required a wife who would need him and depend upon him. Someone who would force him to become the man I know he can be. If Clive had married you he would have no need to be strong. You would have been strong for the both of you. Clive would never have had any reason to grow."
I also loved the following thoughtful conversation, starting on page 340. David asked Susannah what she saw in Clive. Her answer was "Clive always seemed so happy and free. It was contagious. Somehow it was exciting to be on his arm. When you're with Clive everything seems brighter. It's almost as if he has a glow to him, and everything that comes into contact with it seems somehow better than it really is. Everyone seems more beautiful, the food tastes better, the flowers smell sweeter. But at the same time, I've come to realize that he shone so brightly, everything shone so brightly, that I missed things. I didn't notice things I should have done." She continues with an example. Then David said "So it wasn't the man himself you loved, so much as the way he made you feel."
Sexual language: mild. Number of sex scenes: one. Setting: 1813 and 1814 London. Copyright: 2003. Genre: regency romance.
For a listing of my reviews of other Julia Quinn books, see my 3 star review of "The Duke and I" posted on 6/28/08.
3 stars for ONE TRUE LOVE by Suzanne Enoch. Nice story. Pretty good. The hero is madly in love with the heroine. When Anne was born, she was promised in marriage to Max by agreement of the two sets of parents. Other than as an infant, she never met Max until she was 19. Max lived in Yorkshire. Anne lived in London. Max comes to London to marry her and take her back to Yorkshire. He falls in love with her immediately upon seeing her. She is mad that he never corresponded with her over the years. She does not want to marry him or leave London. Max wants her to love him back so he stays for awhile and woos her. Max's intense love-at-first-sight for her was a little unbelievable, but it made the story more interesting.
Sexual language: mild. Number of sex scenes: one. Setting: 1814 London. Copyright: 2003. Genre: regency romance.
2 stars for TWO HEARTS by Karen Hawkins. Ok, but it didn't grab me. At times I wanted it to be over. Liza has been best friends with Royce for years. Liza is wealthy, smart about business, and wears garish, colorful clothes. She loves living in the city and shopping. At age 31 she decides she wants to get married and is willing to settle for someone less than ideal. She has selected Durham who raises cows and lives in the country. Her friend Royce is against the marriage and realizes he feels more for her than he thought. For much of the story, both Liza and Royce have feelings for each other that they don't want to admit to themselves.
Sexual language: mild. Number of sex scenes: one. Setting: 1814 London. Copyright: 2003. Genre: regency romance.
2 stars for A DOZEN KISSES by Mia Ryan. It was ok. It was different. Terrance was shot in the head while in the military. It caused a speech impediment. His brain was sound, but frequently he couldn't get his mouth to communicate his thoughts accurately. As a result, there was miscommunication. Caroline was a little odd. She was sensitive and cried easily. At times she would say or do odd or inappropriate things. The story did have a sweet ending.
Sexual language: none. Number of sex scenes: one partial scene. Setting: 1814 London. Copyright: 2003. Genre: regency romance....more
One of the greatest romance novels ever written. I loved it.
The characters, the conversations and the interactions between Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth werOne of the greatest romance novels ever written. I loved it.
The characters, the conversations and the interactions between Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth were wonderful. Even though it was written over 200 years ago, it was creative and enjoyable. There was no sexual language, and there were no sex scenes. Setting: 1800s England. Genre: historical romance....more
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