Review: The Duke of Desire

Posted on September 18, 2018 by Sheila

I received this book for free from Netgalley in order to prepare an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

The Duke of Desire (The 1797 Club, #9) by Jess Michaels
Series: The 1797 Club #9
Published by Passionate Pen on September 18, 2018
Genres: Historical
Goodreads
four-stars

FINAL DECISION: Quite enjoyable story of a notorious rake who finds that his past misdeeds are coming back to haunt him when the woman he is intrigued with will have nothing to do with him. As to two begin to fall, all of the past and mistrust threatens any chance for a future.

THE STORY: Robert Smithton, Duke of Roseford, immerses himself in sexual excess although his life is beginning to separate him from best friends who all moving on to married life. When the Countess of Gainsworth returns to society after the notorious death of her husband, Robert plans on seducing the widow. What he doesn’t expect is that Katherine seems to hold a hatred of Robert although he has just met her. Katherine blames Roseford for the circumstances which led to her being forced to marry and has no intention on being Robert’s next conquest.

OPINION: I enjoyed reading the interactions between Robert and Katherine. I was a bit disappointed that Robert was not as wild as I expected from his history. I think, in fact, he was tamer than some of the other heroes. He was nicer than I expected.

What I really enjoyed was how Robert really wants what his friends have but doesn’t know how to reach out for what he wants. And I really loved that he is confounded by his attraction to Katherine and falls for her hard.

I didn’t find Katherine’s journey as compelling as Robert’s, but I liked her strength as a character and her unwillingness to sacrifice her own self-worth. She has her freedom and intends on living her best life despite her father, and she certainly isn’t going to be a doormat for Robert.

WORTH MENTIONING: We get quite a few updates on the prior couples in the series.

CONNECTED BOOKS: THE DUKE OF DESIRE is the ninth book in the 1797 series. The romance here is self-contained and can be read as a standalone although the characters from the series make significant appearances here. The relationships make this series better read in order.

STAR RATING: I give this book 4 stars.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley in order to help prepare this review. I was not required to write a review or to write a positive review. All opinions contained herein are my own.

Review: Drawn to the Marquess

Posted on September 4, 2018 by Sheila

I received this book for free from Netgalley in order to prepare an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Drawn to the Marquess (Imperfect Lords, #2) by Bronwen Evans
Series: Imperfect Lords #2
Published by Loveswept on September 4, 2018
Genres: Historical
Goodreads
four-stars

FINAL DECISION: I enjoyed this book because the focus, besides the obvious romance, is on these two characters who are damaged and yet find in one another a reason to move beyond their fears.

THE STORY: Stephen Hornsby, Marquess of Clevedon, is determined to see everything he can before he goes blind. When he bids for a painting, he finds his competition is a beautiful widow, Lady Penelope. Stephen is determined to experience the beauty of seeing Penelope naked and in passion. Penelope has her own motives. She needs Stephen’s help. She certainly isn’t interested in becoming another conquest for the determined rake. She already was married to a man who betrayed and used her emotions and dreams against her. She will never get involved with another man and risk herself or her emotions.

OPINION: I admit to being a sucker for a damaged hero. Stephen struggles with his increasing blindness. It makes him question just about everything about himself. I liked his journey throughout the book as he discovers what is important about himself — both in his own eyes and in those around him. Balancing his “weakness” with his strength as a hero was done skillfully demonstrating that any weakness that Stephen senses in himself doesn’t overwhelm all the strengths he has. I especially loved that Penelope flat out tells him that he is strong enough to overcome his challenges.

Penelope is a woman of strength and determination. She has a horrible past, but she has not allowed it to make her cower in fear. Instead, she has built a life for herself and intends on doing what is right no matter the consequences.

The dynamic between Penelope and Stephen was interesting because the need for reassurance that each needs ebbs and flows with the events in the story. I liked that about the couple. They both don’t want to trust, they both have fears and they both have to open themselves up to the possibility of being hurt.

The plot of the story about the death of Penelope’s husband serves its purpose in the story. I wasn’t particularly interested in the resolution, but it did push Stephen and Penelope into situations which challenged them individually and as a couple.

WORTH MENTIONING: For readers of ADDICTED TO THE DUKE, we get a nice little update on Alex and Hestia.

CONNECTED BOOKS: DRAWN TO THE MARQUESS is the second book in the Imperfect Lords series. This book has overlapping characters, but the romance is completely separate and can be read as standalone.

STAR RATING: I give this book 4 stars.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in order to help prepare this review. I was not required to write a review and I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions contained herein are my own.

Review: The Duke with the Dragon Tattoo

Posted on August 28, 2018 by Sheila

I received this book for free from Netgalley in order to prepare an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

The Duke with the Dragon Tattoo (Victorian Rebels, #6) by Kerrigan Byrne
Series: Victorian Rebels #6
Published by St. Martin's Paperbacks on August 28, 2018
Genres: Historical
Pages: 336
Goodreads
five-stars

“There are only two indisputable facts in the world: The sun will rise in the west, and I’ll come for you. Always.”

FINAL DECISION: My favorite book since the first two in the series, this book took my breath away and I fell in love with the main characters. Passionate and dramatic with humor and underlying sweetness, the story fulfilled all the promises that began in the first book of the series.

THE STORY: The notorious pirate is known only as the Rook. A man without a past, without a name. Twenty years ago, he awoke in a mass grave and was pulled from death by Lorelei Weatherstoke. The Rook was once given the name of Ash by Lorelei who nursed the young man back to health and began to dream of a future with him. Until the moment that they were betrayed in an act which separated them for two decades. Now the Rook has returned for his revenge and to claim the woman who he has never forgotten. Lorelei, however, finds that the young man she once loved has now become someone that she should fear and flea at all costs.

OPINION: The first romance book I ever read was A Pirate’s Love by Johanna Lindsey in the 1980s. Since that first taste, I’ve always had a soft spot for pirate heroes and I have read a lot in the intervening years. But many of those pirate hero books are problematic bodice rippers. The book (whether intentional or not) is a re-imagining of the old trope.

Here, the Rook is a notorious, dangerous and murderous villain on the high seas. He has done horrible things, but we also get to see the events which sent him on the path he is on. Significantly, however, this is not excuse but understanding. Like the other heroes in this series, the Rook has been damaged by his past. Poverty, desperation, physical and mental torture, rape and constant violence has created a man with only one weakness — the sweet and innocent woman who cared for him and brought him back from the dead.

And this is why the power dynamic is so different in this story. The Rook can abduct Lorelei and keep her captive on a ship where his word alone rules, but he cannot impose his will upon her. Both because Lorelei is stronger than one might expect (after having survived her own trials) and the Rook cannot possess the woman he wants if he crushes everything about her that he desires. Lorelei, however, will also not be placed on a pedestal for the Rook to admire from afar. She is a woman who wants to make her own stand by the man she loves.

There were so many good moments in this book that had humor, drama, mystery, murder, betrayal and a deep and abiding romantic love between the main characters. There are significant appearances by characters from prior books. Although I had figured out some of the Rook’s secrets, the reveal was so well done that I had a great sense of relief in that something from the beginning of the series was finally fulfilled. (I have to add that I love that long time readers of the series get closure on some issues without impeding new readers enjoyment).

This book reminds me of how amazing the first two books in this series was. Indeed, although the last three books were good, this book feels like the completion of a trilogy that began with the first two books.

This book goes immediately on my keeper shelf.

WORTH MENTIONING:Sometimes I read these books with great despair because almost every book introduces characters for whom I would love to read their story, but as the author turns to a new series, I fear that some of these stories might go untold. .

CONNECTED BOOKS: THE DUKE WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO is the sixth book in the Victorian Rebels series. This book can be read as a standalone, but is much more satisfying after reading the entire series. This book pays off stories that began in the first book in the series.

STAR RATING: I give this book 5 stars.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in order to help in preparing this review. I was not required to write a review or to write a positive review. All opinions contained herein are my own.

Review: Marry Me by Sundown

Posted on August 27, 2018 by Sheila

Marry Me by Sundown by Johanna Lindsey
Series: Callahan-Warren #3
Published by Gallery Books on July 10, 2018
Genres: Historical
Pages: 368
Goodreads
three-stars

FINAL DECISION: Just okay for me. The characters were nice, but the story was really, really slow to get into. Things ended up nicely and I enjoyed it overall, but not a book I would look to read again.

THE STORY: Violet Mitchell traveled from London to her family’s home in Philadelphia to find that her father has gone west to try and solve the family’s looming money problems. Violet follows and find that her father is dead and needing to find his mine to save the family. Morgan Callahan doesn’t believe the woman who has come snooping around is his deceased partner’s daughter. So he kidnaps her to find out what she is really doing.

OPINION: There wasn’t anything in particular that I didn’t like about this book. It just felt a little flat to me and it took a long time for me to get into the story. By the time the story picked up in the last half of the book, it was too late for this to be a great book for me.

The characters were nice and I liked reading about the western setting, however, I didn’t find the characters compelling and vibrant such that I would want to read their story again. I especially had a problem with Morgan who remains a mystery in his thoughts and motivations for almost the entire book. It made him feel too distant and indistinct to be a fascinating character.

I also really didn’t feel the connection between these characters for most of the book. They didn’t clash, it just didn’t feel like a deep passionate connection either.

Overall, I liked the book, and I liked the story in a general way — meaning that when I finished it I didn’t feel that I had wasted my time reading it, but I don’t think I’d pick this book up again wanting to revisit these characters or their story.

WORTH MENTIONING: This book explores mining in the west. For me this was the most interesting part of the book.

CONNECTED BOOKS: MARRY ME BY SUNDOWN is the third book in the Callahan-Warren series. Although there are some appearances by overlapping characters, this book operates as a complete standalone.

STAR RATING: I give this book 3 stars.

Review: When a Duke Loves a Woman

Posted on August 25, 2018 by Sheila

When a Duke Loves a Woman (Sins for All Seasons, #2) by Lorraine Heath
Series: Sins for All Seasons #2
Published by Avon on August 21, 2018
Genres: Historical
Pages: 400
Goodreads
five-stars

FINAL DECISION: I absolutely adored Thorne in this book. He is kind and a true gentleman. Gillie is fierce, strong and independent but caring. And I’ve lost track of the times that Heath has brought me to tears in one of her books — including this one.

THE STORY: Antony Coventry, Duke of Thornley had an extraordinarily bad day. Left at the altar by his bride, Thorne goes searching for her in Whitechapel and finds himself robbed and left for dead. Gillie Trewlove comes across the seriously injured stranger near her tavern and finds herself responsible for nursing him back to health. She also ends up agreeing to help Thorne search for his runaway bride. As the two search, the connection between Thorne and Gillie grows. But these are two people who cannot live in the other’s world no matter how much they may want to.

OPINION: I absolutely loved Thorne in this book. He is such a fine man. From the moment he meets Gillie, he finds his worldview changing, but he is always respectful and kind to those around him. I just love a guy who is willing to turn his world around for the woman he loves. At every stage in this book, Gillie is important to him. He respects her. He wants to understand her. And he puts her above his own wants and needs. Absolutely loved him.

Gillie is a strong and kind woman. Independent, she handles her dominant brothers and never accepts being thought of as inferior because of being female. She knows her mind and has managed to make a profession for herself as a tavern owner. Yet she has a shyness and a desire for quiet that may seem contradictory to the bright woman who manages a tavern and yet it seems completely in character.

I loved these two together. Their different stations seem destined to keep them apart even though they quickly find that they want to try and bridge that distance. What I really liked is that there is not some big external bad keeping them apart, but their own expectations and the world’s expectations.

Heath has a way of writing that rips my heart out. Even though I KNOW there will be a happy ending, I found myself openly weeping during the story. Beautiful and tragic and such an expression of love and hopelessness. The characters, the emotion of the story and the fact that I really cared about these two make this a wonderful read that I will definitely turn to again.

WORTH MENTIONING: This book sets up the next book in the series with Finn.

CONNECTED BOOKS: WHEN A DUKE LOVES A WOMAN is the second book in the Sins for All Seasons series. The romance in this book is self-contained. Although there are overlapping characters in the series, this book can be read as a standalone.

STAR RATING: I give this book 5 stars.

Review: The Murder at Mandeville Hall

Posted on August 21, 2018 by Sheila

The Murder at Mandeville Hall (The Casebook of Barnaby Adair, 5) by Stephanie Laurens
Published by Savdek Management Pty Ltd on August 16, 2018
Genres: Historical, Mystery
Goodreads
three-half-stars

FINAL DECISION: The mystery was good, but the solution was pretty obvious to me from the beginning. In compensation, however, the romance was a nice diversion as the two get to know one another and solve the crime.

THE STORY: Alaric, Lord Carradale has been a rake but something has changed recently and he is considering looking for a bride. Unfortunately, the sweet innocent young woman that would be the typical bride is someone who would likely bore Alaric in a week. While attending a house party by his friend and neighbor, Alaric ends up stumbling across one of the young women who is attending the party dead in the bushes. The young woman’s cousin immediately comes across Alaric and it appears that he is the most likely criminal. Constance Whittaker has arrived too late to help her cousin but is determined to find the murderer. Soon Constance and Alaric have teamed up to solve the murder and bring in Barnaby Adair, his wife Penelope and Inspector Stokes of Scotland Yard.

OPINION: I enjoyed this book, but the balance of the story wasn’t as good as others in the series. The mystery was intriguing all the way until the reveal. Unfortunately, I had pegged the villain from the start and the exact reason for the crime. It made the resolution of the mystery anticlimactic.

While I enjoyed the story between Alaric and Constance, I missed seeing more of Barnaby and Penelope. Because there was no real conflict between Alaric and Constance other than the crime, I liked them as characters, but their relationship wasn’t really something that I had to root for.

This was a fine one time read, but I have enjoyed others in the series more.

WORTH MENTIONING: The hero here briefly appeared in THE CURIOUS CASE OF LADY LATIMER’S SHOES.

CONNECTED BOOKS: THE MURDER AT MANDEVILLE HALL is the seventh book in the Casebook of Barnaby Adair series. The story here is self-contained, but Barnaby Adair and his wife and the Scotland Yard investigator are continuing characters. Here, however, they are not as prominent as the couple and thus this is a good standalone in the series.

STAR RATING: I give this book 3.5 stars.

Review: The Confounding Case of the Carisbrook Emeralds

Posted on August 9, 2018 by Sheila

The Confounding Case of the Carisbrook Emeralds by Stephanie Laurens
Series: Casebook of Barnaby Adair #6
Published by Savdek Management Pty Ltd on June 14, 2018
Genres: Historical, Mystery
Goodreads
four-stars

FINAL DECISION: This is really a mystery with only a dash of secondary romance — not between the main characters — this is really the continuing stories of Barnaby and his wife Penelope and their friends who have joined together to work through mysteries of the aristocracy. I enjoyed this mystery and getting to see the characters again.

THE STORY: Miss Cara Di Abaccio is accused by her aunt of stealing the family jewels. This begins an investigation into the theft conducted by Inspector Stokes along with Barnaby and Penelope Adair, Stoke’s wife Griselda, and their friends Violet and Montague. Barnaby’s own cousin, Hugo, has taken a romantic interest in Cara and knows she is innocent. The investigation takes a serious turn when one of the maids is found dead.

OPINION: I enjoyed this book which is really a mystery and the romance is really minimal unlike the others in the series. I believe that because of the recurring characters, I didn’t mind that the “romance” that is new here isn’t particularly interesting to me. Instead, I really liked the updates about the characters that I already loved.

The story was one that kept me turning the pages until the end because I liked that there were various stories going on which all had to be resolved in order for the mystery to be “solved”.

The mystery was a good one with a well-developed group of suspects. Each character has a purpose for being in the story and felt like a developed personality. Each character has secrets that are revealed in the course of the story. This is a mystery really based on the characters and thus having a cast of interesting suspects is vital. I enjoyed these characters and their motivations kept the story moving.

WORTH MENTIONING: Very clean story with no sex except implied.

CONNECTED BOOKS: THE CONFOUNDING CASE OF THE CARISBROOK EMERALDS is the sixth book in the Casebook of Barnaby Adair series. The mystery in this book is completely self-contained. The characters who do the investigation continue through the series and we get some personal moments and information, but this book can be read as a standalone.

STAR RATING: I give this book 4 stars.

Review: The Vixen

Posted on August 7, 2018 by Sheila

I received this book for free from Netgalley in order to prepare an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

The Vixen (Wicked Wallflowers, #2) by Christi Caldwell
Series: Wicked Wallflowers #2
Published by Montlake Romance on August 7, 2018
Genres: Historical
Pages: 366
Goodreads
four-stars

FINAL DECISION: Enjoyable historical romance with interesting characters. This story has been done before but the characters make this a lively story. I wish there was more emotional connection between the characters early on because the last twenty-five percent of the book was wonderful.

THE STORY: Investigator Connor Steele is hunting for a child who might have been kidnapped. His work takes him back to St. Giles from from which Connor escaped. But St. Giles cannot be rubbed off so easily and his investigation reunites him with Ophelia Killoran. As children, each had saved one another. Now Ophelia has taken onto herself the job of protecting the children, but Connor’s investigation brings into question exactly what Ophelia is doing and where are the children coming from. The two share a past and are suspicious of one another in the present.

OPINION: I liked this book, but I never got emotionally engaged enough to love it. The story is well constructed and the characters are interesting.

Both Connor and Ophelia struggle with the line between the criminal and poor elements and the aristocracy. Ophelia’s brother wants to marry her off to an aristocrat to help drag their family from the lower classes. Connor was adopted by an aristocrat but still has the muck of his past with him.

The characters have a good journey, but — for me – there was something missing. Intensity or emotional connection. Something that would pull me through the pages, pull at my heart and make me love the book.

Fans of Caldwell will find much to love here. The class conflicts are better developed here than in the last book. I enjoyed these characters together. The reading was easy and not particularly deep until the last quarter of the book.

The last quarter of the book was amazing. The intensity, the connection, the passion was wonderful. The rest of the book felt like a setup for the end, but the end definitely paid off.

WORTH MENTIONING: Trigger warning: sexual assault.

CONNECTED BOOKS: THE VIXEN is the second book in the Wicked Wallflowers series. The book can be read as a standalone although the characters are overlapping between the books.

STAR RATING: I give this book 4 stars.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in order to assist with preparing this review. I was not required to write a review or to write a positive review. All opinions contained herein are my own.

Review: Heartless

Posted on August 6, 2018 by Sheila

Heartless (The House of Rohan) (Volume 5) by Anne Stuart
Series: The House of Rohan #5
Published by Impeccably Demure Press on May 14, 2018
Genres: Historical
Pages: 316
Goodreads
three-stars

FINAL DECISION: Loved the couple was completely lukewarm about the plot of the book which seemed to have some pointless complications. Struggled through the first half and enjoyed the second.

THE STORY: Emma Cadbury is having a second life as a surgeon after years of being the youngest madam in London and a prostitute before that. What she doesn’t need is the complication of Brandon Rohan. Emma met Brandon when he was recovering from serious war injuries and she urged him to live. Several years have passed and Brandon’s memories of those times have been clouded by his prior addiction to opium. When someone tries to murder Emma, Brandon is determined to protect Emma even if she wants to stay away from the man she knows is not for her.

OPINION: This book was okay but a disappointment to my expectations. I read the prior book years ago and I had anticipated Emma and Brandon’s book so much. While I still loved Emma and Brandon together, I was greatly disappointed by the story in this book.

The entire first half of the book was a slog to get through. There was not enough of Emma and Brandon’s relationship and a lot of stuff that was intended to complicate their relationship and ended up being annoying and abandoned by the end. There is the “other woman” story that went absolutely nowhere but was the primary reason that Emma and Brandon couldn’t get together quickly.

The murder attempts didn’t work as well in the beginning as the setup.

The second half of the book was much better. When the focus turns to just Emma and Brandon, the pace picked up, the intensity of the character’s relationship increased and I enjoyed reading the second half very much.

So this is a book that ultimately ended up okay for me, but I didn’t enjoy the first half of the journey which seemed mostly pointless.

WORTH MENTIONING: I liked the epilogue, but can’t help but wish that we actually got to see the events.

CONNECTED BOOKS: HEARTLESS is the fifth book in the House of Rohan series. While each book in this series is about a different couple, there are overlapping characters. Indeed, the story of this book began in the prior book in the series, SHAMELESS, and I think this book is better read after that book (even though the events are summarized here).

STAR RATING: I give this book 3 stars.

Review: Born to be Wilde

Posted on August 3, 2018 by Sheila

Born to Be Wilde (The Wildes of Lindow Castle, #3) by Eloisa James
Series: The Wildes of Lindow Castle #3
Published by Avon on July 31, 2018
Genres: Historical
Pages: 384
Goodreads
four-half-stars

FINAL DECISION: Slow burn story of two people who have known each other and yet don’t know one another at all. I loved the intense emotional aspects of the story and how these two discover one another.

THE STORY: Lavinia Gray is desperate after discovering that her mother is an addict, spent all their money and stolen from family and friends. She needs to marry immediately before the scandal is discovered so she approaches Parth Sterling to propose marry. But he turns her down. The fashion obsessed and shallow Lavinia is not the type of woman Parth intends to marry and, in fact, he has a much more suitable candidate in mind. Parth, however, promises Lavinia to help her find a groom. Parth’s efforts only seem to make Lavinia more attractive to him as he discovers the real woman that he dismissed so easily.

OPINION: I ended up loving this book. It took a while to grow on me because Lavinia and Parth seemed so mismatched in the beginning. But as the two really began to know one another and as the book concentrated on the emotional lives of these characters, I began to fall with them as they fell for one another.

For a book that feels light and funny, this book has a a deep undertone — like Lavinia herself. I enjoyed that the book begins with Lavinia at her most desperate and then becomes how Lavinia finds a way to save herself. As she does, she shows Parth who she really is and Parth begins to fall for her.

The romance between Parth and Lavinia takes the time it needs to develop. It allows for the emotional depth of the characters and the relationship to be emphasized. I loved that the book really rests on these two characters and their relationship rather than all the external story.

One of the characteristics of the series has been that the hero really has to take the leap into the fire for the heroine emotionally. The Wilde men are emotional and passionate when they recognize the woman for them. I love that about them and Parth shows that he is a true Wilde even if he wasn’t born with the name.

WORTH MENTIONING: I loved, loved, loved being able to see more of North and Diana and there are some beautiful moments with them. This is a must read book for fans of these two.

CONNECTED BOOKS: BORN TO BE WILDE is the third book in the Wildes of Lindow Castle series. The romance in this book is self-contained and can be read as a standalone. I think, however, that the characters in this book are better understood when the series is read in order.

STAR RATING: I give this book 4.5 stars.

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Tag Archives: Historical

Review: The Duke of Desire

Review: Drawn to the Marquess

Review: The Duke with the Dragon Tattoo

Review: Marry Me by Sundown

Review: When a Duke Loves a Woman

Review: The Murder at Mandeville Hall

Review: The Confounding Case of the Carisbrook Emeralds

Review: The Vixen

Review: Heartless

Review: Born to be Wilde