The story of Cupid and Psyche is, hands down, my favorite myth. So many other myths end unhappily with people being turned into flora because of personality flaws or being sentenced to drag a rock up a mountain for eternity for daring to defy the gods. Depressing stuff. In contrast, the tale of the joining…
Beast by Judith Ivory is one of my two all-time favorite romance books and also simply one of the best books I have ever read. When I read books or watch movies, afterwards I have a certain feel for them, a textural sensation. Beast has left me with one of the richest, most voluptuous “feels”…
Author Linda Jones has written a series of books based on well-known fables, the latest of which is DeButy & the Beast. Now, you’d think that DeButy would be the heroine and The Beast, her eventual true love. But the author has put a fresh and funny twist on this theme, for Dr. Julian DeButy…
By all counts, Taming the Beast ought not to work at all. It is improbable in a high degree; Laura does not even see Richard’s face until page 143 since he spends most of his time skulking around in the dark and shadows sharing long talks and deep kisses with her. But such is the…
The Secret Pearl is a book that grips you by the throat from the very first scene, and never lets you go until the end. The first chapter of this book is utterly shocking. A man we have barely met hires a prostitute we know nothing about for a night of his pleasure. As we…
We all know the current trend: romance author hits the big time and scores a hardcover deal. Of course we’re thrilled that our favorite writer is finally garnering the attention she deserves, but secretly we cringe because we fear we’ve lost yet “another one” to mainstream fiction or gritty suspense. I’m sure most of you…
Winter Garden by Adele Ashworth is the sequel to Stolen Charms. Heroine Madeleine DuMais is a Mata Hari-type Frenchwoman spying for the English. Winter Garden brings her together with another English spy, Thomas Blackwood. Thomas has had Madeleine summoned to England ostensibly to help him with a smuggling investigation, but it is quickly obvious that…
Texas Destiny is a Beauty and the Beast story, a road romance, and quite possible the most tear-inducing book I have ever read in my life. I’ve often thought if I could get a copy into the hands of all the fans of romance novels and then buy stock in the companies that make hankies,…
Yes, it’s now six in a row. All of Elizabeth Hoyt’s historical romances have received DIK status here at AAR. As with many readers, I have followed the author since she appeared on the scene in 2006 and read each book as it was published. Two of her previous books earned places on my personal…