I’m going to admit right off the bat that I’ve only read a couple of books by Ms Laurens, and that the last one I read was such a disappointment that I’ve not read her since. Her writing style is too flowery and repetitive for my taste, and I found the characterisation severely lacking. That…
Readers were introduced to the Cabot sisters in the first in this four-book series, The Trouble with Honor (review here). The two eldest sisters – Honor and Grace – are only a year or so apart in age, and have both had a couple of seasons. Although beautiful, witty, and much sought-after, neither has accepted…
I can never decide what to think of spy novels set in historical England. On the one hand, you have authors like Joanna Bourne who craft rich novels full of intrigue. On the other, you have novels about people who are seriously unprepared to be a spy—like Virginia, Lady Burke. Virginia, or Gin as she…
It’s always fun when a series goes back in time and shares the story of someone with whom you’ve already read a good bit about. The eldest Blackshear brother, Andrew, has appeared in all three of the books in Ms. Grant’s series as a caring, staid, married father. His marriage to Lucy was mentioned in…
I’m a sucker for a good marriage-of-convenience story, and this one is very good indeed: In fact, Strangers at the Altar is one of the best historicals I’ve read this year. The book features a pair of very likeable protagonists who come across as two ordinary people trying to deal with events which have caused…
I trust Tessa Dare enough that she has made it onto my auto-buy list. While I do keep tabs on many authors, eagerly awaiting news of their new books, there are very few authors whose books I buy immediately without question. I’m hesitant now to take a leap of faith and trust that someone can…
When you see a book called The Rake’s Handbook {Including Field Guide}, what assumptions do you make? It’s a sad fact of life that we often do literally judge books by their covers. Although I knew I shouldn’t, when I heard “Including Field Guide,” I immediately began assuming it would be a silly story full…
Note: This is available in a digital edition for $4.74 at Amazon and other retailers. Anthologies often turn out unevenly, a result which might seem inevitable. Given that different authors have different voices which don’t all appeal to the same reader, it makes sense. However, Wish Upon a Snowflake ended up being one of those…
What is it about dukes? There are an absolute ton (not to be confused with the ton found in oh so many Regency romances) of dukes in Romancelandia. There are dangerous dukes, dukes who can’t be trusted, devilish dukes, in general far too many dukes to count. Well, we can add Dukes Behaving Badly to…
With This Ring is the third in a series of books about the oddball collection of Worthington siblings. The focus here is nineteen year-old Elektra, who is determined to repair the family fortune by making a hugely advantageous marriage which will also serve to wipe some of the Worthingtons’ more outrageous and eccentric antics from…