The last book in Mary Balogh’s excellent seven book historical romance Survivors’ Club series features the kindest man in the world and a happy spinster. About a decade ago, George, Duke of Stanhope, turned his estate into a hospital and took wounded Napoleonic War veterans into his home. Six of the patients, a woman and five men, stayed behind when the others left and over three years of healing formed an intense bond. Each of them has now had a love story and embarked on a new life, so […]
Half a Cannonball with a Full Classic
4.5 stars Venetia was my first Georgette Heyer novel which seems odd given my love of the genre and the author’s lauded status in it. I did try to read it once before, but didn’t get very far. This time, I kept going and was well rewarded for my determination. Venetia, as much as almost any romance I’ve read, is about the heroine’s effort and insistence on choosing her own life. Much of the tension in the novel comes from Venetia saying, “I want this,” repeatedly and dealing with virtually everyone else […]
I’m keeping this author – even if she isn’t bringing anything new to the table
Beth Ellen was very generous and let me read her library copy of this book even before she did. THAT is a good sister. This is my first full length book by this author. I really enjoyed her novella that takes place concurrently with this story. Between this book and that novella I’m adding her to my ‘must pick up from library or on sale’ list. There are very few authors these days whose books can command full price in from me. Heath is a […]
The perfect palate cleanser
I had no idea what to expect going into Ridiculous, a book that was free on Kindle eons ago and subsequently left to rot in the digital ether. My attitude upon finally starting it was basically “I guess I should get around to reading this old thing,” which is now hilarious because if I had any clue how much I would have enjoyed this book I would have read it immediately. What you have in Ridiculous is a cross-dressing regency romantic comedy. I put it […]
A Frump, a Virago, a Maneater, and a Manipulator Walk Into a Book
Four and a quarter stars. The four Reluctant Bride Collection novels, jaunty in tone and virtually chaste, provided a great introduction to Megan Bryce’s work. Connected by theme, but not characters, each of the books in this Regency historical romance series tackles a female stereotype and features an unusual and fiercely independent heroine: To Catch a Spinster – The Frump To Tame a Dragon – The Virago To Wed the Widow – The Maneater To Tempt the Saint – The Manipulator What I enjoyed most was that […]
Your brain, not your body, makes you worthy of great love.
4.5 stars In a genre built on, and sustained by, a set of established tropes that the reader instantly recognizes — and even selects for — it isn’t too often that I read a new romance where my main impression is, “Well, that was different!” Tropes work, and standards appear in every genre (though they’re disparaged much more often in romance,) and the skill of the author is revealed by his/her ability to work within their architecture and still craft a memorable, distinct, and competent […]
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