TBR Challenge 2012: Never Love a Lawman by Jo Goodman

I don't get this, it happens every single month! I swear I get my TBR read done a few days before the challenge, but I always find myself scrambling on the day the review is due! And here I am again... and worse, I actually started my review over the week-end this time! Although I did leave the most important part for last - my opinion ^_^; And of course, today had to be crazy busy. Ugh!! Next time, I should start with that part of the review first LOL. Okay, all complaining aside, the most important is that I did it!! Six months in a row, baby! Yay!

So this month, the theme for the TBR challenge was Western. If you've visited my blog long enough, you'll know I'm not a fan of western romance. However, I do buy a few, mostly because everyone enjoys them so much LOL. That means if I decided to stick with the theme, the choice was going to be easy :) And this month, I went with the easy way... Actually, there was actually only one book that came to mind and it was  Never Love a Lawman by Jo Goodman which has been sitting in my TBR pile for a couple of years already. Also, I've already read Marry Me, the sequel. So I thought it was time to pick up Never Love a Lawman... and keep reading to find out what I thought of it!

PS - Poll for the Week-End's Minis feature closes tomorrow! Cast your vote if you haven't done so yet!


Never Love a Lawman by Jo Goodman

published by Kensington in September 2009

Rachel Bailey may seem like just a beautiful newcomer to most of Reidsville, Colorado, but Sheriff Wyatt Cooper knows she's much more. Through a twist of fate, Rachel is the inheritor of a very valuable commodity: control of the railway that keeps the isolated mining town connected to the world. That is, she will be, if she agrees to the surprising stipulation in her benefactor's will-that she marry Wyatt.

Rachel has no choice: refusing the marriage could put all of Reidsville in the hands of an outsider, and not just any outsider but the cruel tyrant she has come here to escape. Yet living with Wyatt will be her greatest challenge. For he has a tempting way about him that makes Rachel forget theirs is a marriage in name only- until her frightening past shows up to remind them exactly how much they have at stake...

Genre: Historical romance, Western
Series: Reidsville series, Book #1

The Story: Rachel's family has worked for Clinton Maddox, a man who has made his fortune in railroads, in one function or another for two generations. She herself has served as a companion and also nurse once Mr. Maddox was afflicted by a stroke. Unfortunately, she had to run away because of Mr. Maddox' grandson unwanted advances and found refuge in Reidsville, Colorado. What Rachel doesn't realize until Mr. Maddox' death is that she's been manipulated to end up in Reidsville as upon his death, she is to inherit 50% shares of the town's mines. However, for the mines to be profitable, they need the railroad spur which Rachel is also going to inherit... but only if she marries the sheriff, Wyatt Cooper.

Rachel is not interested in marriage, but for the interest of the town, she has no choice... So she decides to go with a marriage of convenience that strikes more as a partnership. As for Wyatt, he has been asked to look after Rachel and he intends to do so... especially now that he realizes that there is a real threat coming after her.

My Opinion: For me, Ms Goodman is an author I'm a bit wary about. Simply because I feel she has the habit of blindsiding her readers ^_^; Although I guess my comment is unfair to Ms Goodman and instead, I should put the blame on the person that comes up with the back blurbs. Blurbs are important because they're supposed to give a description of the storyline and I buy a lot of books based on blurbs. So I don't appreciate  it when the blurb is all nice and rosie and wham bam, there is a very dark topic/theme that rears its head up and set up the tone for the rest of the book. It's not that I don't read books with dark themes or issues, it's just that I like to be in the mood for it ^_^: Anyway, I've been caught by surprise a few times with Ms Goodman's books and that's why I don't read more of her. However, with Never Love a Lawman, I did do my homework so it wasn't an issue :)

All in all, Never Love a Lawman was an interesting book. What really worked for me was the hero, Wyatt Cooper! He's the type of character that I really enjoy: observant, really good judge of character, enigmatic and very clever :P He always has an answer ready and a trick up his sleeve that will surprise you. I liked how layered his character was, how much more than meet the eye he was :) The cowboy/sheriff was his game face, the one he was the most comfortable with... but I really liked all the others :P In contrast, I thought Rachel wasn't as interesting. Actually, the word interesting is wrong, the accurate one would be likable. She appeared so prickly and at times, it works to have a prickly heroine... but not when your hero is so amiable ^_^; I just didn't get why she was so distant, didn't feel it was necessary. Mentally, I do understand the need - she was in hiding after all. However, she's going business and was really settling down. In fact, I don't think Forster would have gone after her if it wasn't for her inheritance. Was she going to live the rest of her life that way? Really, Rachel had great qualities: strong, resilient and competent... but she wasn't friendly and I couldn't relate to her and that lowered the "like" factor. And I don't think the romance helped ^_^;

It's not that the romance wasn't good. I'm always for a marriage of convenience and the circumstances that led to this one were interesting :) Also, I liked how the relationship developed, that Rachel and Wyatt had time to  get to  know and trust each other. My issue is I felt the couple lacked passion :( I didn't feel a connection between the two... even after they became lovers. They had sex, but was it more? When did Rachel fall in love with Wyatt? And why?

Finally, the storyline was quite interesting - battles for inheritance usually are... but once again, I had a few issues. First, I thought the business with the mines was a bit confusing. The how and why they kept its success a secret... However, the biggest issue was the pacing. It seemed really slow at times and it's not that nothing happened, but that's the feeling you get. From the beginning of Never Love a Lawman, you know that Rachel is running and hiding from someone. And slowly, we find out why... The thing is, it doesn't take long for Ms Goodman to establish that she will be found. So throughout the book, you're waiting for that big showdown. But there's a lot happening prior to it and these events all seem disjointed ^_^; They are there to develop the characters, for them to get to know each other and it's simply too obvious. Most of them, had not thing to do with the storyline... So that's why it feels like nothing happening :(

One last niggle: the villain. I actually  liked the confrontation Rachel and Wyatt had with the villain... the thing is, I don't like how it ended. For once, I really wished  the villain had been brought down by justice. The way it ended was a bit anti-climatic. As a whole, I would have liked for the confrontation to be longer, to be a bigger part of the story.

As I said, Never Love a Lawman was an interesting book and it kept my attention. I really liked the hero and surprisingly, the setting :) It was so very western, what with the bank, the saloon and the railroad LOL. The town of Reidsville was fun to read about. Unfortunately, these two elements couldn't completely offset the issues... and as I wrote this review, more just kept coming to mind ^_^; And that's why I'm downgrading Never Love a Lawman a notch from my initial grade.

My Grade: C+.

Review: The Rake by Mary Jo Putney

Ugh, I'm so sorry about the lack of posts and reviews lately!! Work is again kicking my butt ^_^; I don't know if it would have been this way had my co-worker been here... I'd like to say no LOL. In any case, I have been run around like a hen without a head, trying to get things done. It didn't help that my boss asked for some stuff out of the blues that demand some calculations and preparations :( Like stuff I only do once a year or two years ^_^;

As usual, I don't have any posts ready to go up for when I'm in a pinch. I really need to work on that! The good news though is today should be more relax (yay!), so I'm taking advantage of it and here we go! Enjoy :)

The Rake by Mary Jo Putney
published by Signet (NAL) in September 1989 and re-printed by Kensington in March 2012

Disinherited and disgraced, Reginald Davenport's prospects cried for a dire end. But fate has given him one last chance at redemption—by taking his rightful place as the heir of Strickland, his lost ancestral estate. Davenport knows his way around women, yet nothing prepares him for his shocking encounter with Lady Alys Weston.

Masquerading as a man in order to obtain a position as estate manager of Strickland, Alys fled a world filled with mistrust and betrayal. She was finished with men—until Strickland's restored owner awakens a passion she thought she would never feel. A passion that will doom or save them both... if only they can overcome their pasts.

Genre: Historical romance
Series: None

The Story: Reginald Davenport is a rake of the first order. However, what people don't realize is that a lot of his behavior and defiance stem from his bad relationship with his uncle, the Earl of Wargrave, a very hard man with strict ideas of how to treat his heir. For most of his life, Reggie thought he would succeed his uncle... until the man died and a grandson who came from nowhere inherited the title and fortune. As a result, Reggie finds himself at loose ends, not knowing exactly what to do with his life, but growing tired of being a rake. At 37 years of age, carousing and getting drunk have lost a lots of its appeal, especially of late as Reggie has started blacking out after excessive drinking. And then, his new cousin offers him Strickland, an estate in Dorset, which was actually Reggie's childhood home till he became an orphan... and his by right as the estate belonged to his mother's family.

Alys Weston is not happy about this change of owner, rightful heir or not. She's been the estate manager for Strickland for four years now and has so far been able to hide her gender from her employer. It was easy with the old Earl, as he had no interest in Strickland and therefore, never came for a visit. When the new Earl came, she was able to pretend sickness in the family and avoided meeting him... But what if Reginald Davenport takes an interest to his estate? She's been an excellent estate manager and the books show it, but will results matter when he discovers she's a woman? In addition, Alys has her three charges to worry about - one of them a young woman and another, a young and impressionable young man. It can't be good for them to be around a rake such as Davenport and his reputation sure precedes him!

Neither Alys and Reginald is what each other expected... but they like what they see! And as they get to know each other, friendship turns into something more. But can a rake really change his lifestyle? And what secrets does Alys hide?

My Opinion: It's been a while since I last read a book by Ms Putney and while it was enjoyable, it didn't really wow me. As a result, I haven't really  kept up with her new releases and as such, The Rake wasn't on my radar... until I read Hilcia's commentary :) Luckily for me, The Rake being a reprint, I was able to easily find a copy and good thing too, since it was such an enjoyable read!

What I really liked about The Rake was how well-developed it was. The book is quite thick and Ms Putney really utilizes all these pages to flesh out the characters and establish a relationship between Reggie and Alys. I felt that was refreshing because in a lot of romance books lately, the romance seems rushed and the characters, superficial ^_^; However, in this case, we really got to know the characters and more importantly, they got to know each other :)

Personally, my favorite character in The Rake was Reggie. He is most assuredly a rake, but what makes him so likable is that he's honest about it and assumes the responsibilities and consequences it entails. I also liked his sense of honor... He probably doesn't see it as such, but Reggie has definite ideas on what he will do and what he won't and most of the time, it puts him in the good guys column LOL. Also if he'd been allowed to follow his dreams - to go into the army, I reckon Reggie wouldn't be such a different man :) Something else that I found interesting was Reggie's restlessness at the beginning of the story. How he was growing tired of his lifestyle... I think at 37 years old, it makes sense right? :) In most historical romances, a rake ceased being one when it comes time to settle down, get a wife and some heirs. However, Reggie no longer has such obligations and still, he's growing restless. I really liked that he had questions and doubts about his lifestyle even before he met Alys; I liked that for once, it wasn't a woman or family that made a rake change. Instead, it was the rake himself! I also liked our heroine, Alys :) Mostly because she was so unusual for her time, not only being an estate manager, but being competent as well! Although I think it would have been more fun to see here more at work. At the beginning of the book, she's a bit mad because she feels she has to prove herself again, even though she's been estate manager for four years now. The thing is, there was no concrete examples of that throughout the book. Once Reggie showed up, you don't see any tenants coming to complain about her or cause any problems. In addition, I think she pales a little in comparison to Reggie. She does have an interesting background story, but the character herself, I didn't feel like I got a good sense of who she was.

I did enjoy the romance in The Rake. I really liked that they didn't fall into bed right away. Reggie is attracted by Alys, but he doesn't want to screw things up - her being his estate manager and all. First, I liked that Reggie kept her on for her competence. She's proven herself and the books show the result and there was no doubt for him. I also liked that he was mindful of her reputation. All in all, because we got to see the attraction grow while the relationship was established and friendship bloomed, I really could believe that Reggie and Alys fell in love with each other :) Also, I believed the romance worked because of the honesty between Reggie and Alys. That was really lovely and refreshing. One thing though is I wished Alys had more trust in Reggie. I know she was in charge of 3 youngsters and therefore, cannot help but worry about Reggie's reputation... and a few times, I felt she got caught up with it. It was okay when she first met Reggie, but once she got to know him, I feel she should have trusted him a lot more...

As I mentioned, The Rake is quite a thick book and therefore a lot of things happened. Some of it was mundane, related to the estate, which was fun to see. I loved that Reggie had always wanted to wash sheep when he was younger and this time, did not miss the opportunity LOL. A lot of what happened was also more personal and was meant to really flesh out the characters. I liked that Ms Putney addressed Reggie's problems with alcohol. Obviously, back in those time, people were not aware of alcoholism which is exactly where Reggie was heading for. So that was very interesting. What worked less for me though is that his father and godfather just happened to struggle with alcoholism as well. I know it can run in a family, but I would have liked to see Reggie deal with it on his own. I think that in The Rake, Ms Putney tried her best to balance the different aspects of the story and I really enjoyed the mundane stuff and the more personal issues and conflicts. However, I think she failed a bit when it came to the intrigue that was related to Alys' identity. Some of it was just too predictable and she did a great job at the build-up, but when it happened, it was a bit anti-climatic, which was unfortunate.

My Grade: B+. Overall, The Rake was a really good read and I can see why Ms Putney won a RITA with The Rake. If she has more books like this one, I'll definitively be reading more of her in the near future :)

Review: My Wicked Little Lies by Victoria Alexander

Well, looks like I'm on a roll!! Wooohoo! Just too bad it's coming at a cost - my reading. Then again, not many books I feel like reading, plus there's curling, so I better just blog when the muse is here, right? :)

Today on the program is a buddy review over at Breezing Through :) My partner is Hilcia and we're discussing one of my favorite authors' new release, My Wicked Little Lies! Click here for the review :) By the way, don't you think the cover is pretty? :P


My Wicked Little Lies by Victoria Alexander
published by Kensington in January 2012

Evelyn Hadley-Attwater has it all--a genteel Victorian life replete with loving husband, ball gowns and elegant parties. No one, including the man she married, suspects that she was once "Eve," a spy for England's most enigmatic intelligence agency. Summoned for one final assignment, the excitement of her former life and memories of her mysterious, flirtatious boss "Sir" prove too tempting...

Adrian Hadley-Attwater is a respectable, dignified gentleman. But even the most proper gentlemen have secrets of their own. Secrets from the rest of the world, from their families, from their wives. Secrets that have a price. Now, as a veil of secrecy frays, a tantalizing game of cat and mouse will test the bounds of unfailing love...

Genre: Historical romance
Series: Sinful Family Secrets series, Book #2

Review: The Perfect Mistress by Victoria Alexander

Oookay. I was only planning to jot down a few notes about The Perfect Mistress by Ms Alexander, but it flowed so well it has already turned into a review... I'll take it, LOL!

Before getting to the review though, I want to ask... Anyone think this blurb sounds familiar?!? I have a nagging feeling that perhaps this book was meant to be published by Avon a few years back, but they decided not to? Ah well, it could just be me :)

One last thing... Wow, looking at this book, I swear it looks like a book published by Avon. The texture of the cover (mat instead of glossy), the inside flap with the couple embracing on a couch... I wonder if it's Kensington's new strategy to attract more readership to their historicals?

Okay, the review now :)


The Perfect Mistress by Victoria Alexander

published by Kensington Zebra in January 2011

A dazzling new romance in which one otherwise proper lady discovers the passion that is her legacy...

Widowed Julia, Lady Winterset, has inherited a book—a very shocking book—that every gentleman in London seems to want. For a charismatic businessman, it’s a chance to build an empire. For a dashing novelist, it could guarantee fame. But to a proud, domineering earl, it means everything...

Harrison Landingham, Earl of Mountdale, can’t let the obstinate Julia release the shameless memoir that could ruin his family’s name. But the only way to stop her may be equally sordid—if far more pleasurable. For his rivals are intent on seducing the captivating woman to acquire the book. And Harrison isn’t the sort to back away from a competition with the stakes this high. Now the winner will claim both the scandalous memoirs and the heart of their lovely owner...

Genre: Historical romance
Series: TBA

The Story: I think the blurb is being overly dramatic ^_^; Julia, Lady Winterset, has been widowed for three years and has financial troubles. She has recently inherited "The Perfect Mistress," her great-grandmother's memoirs. Indeed, Lady Hermione was quite scandalous back in her lifetime, becoming a widow at a young age and deciding to live her life as she wanted. These memoirs seem to be Julia's solution to her problems, as it is a well known fact that scandal sells.

However, Harrison Landingham, Earl of Mountdale, is not enthusiastic at the idea since his father is a chapter in the memoirs. Harrison has worked hard to keep his family scandal-free and he intends to keep it that way, which means acquiring the memoirs and destroying it. Not unsurprisingly, Harrison's offer is refused after he was an ill-mannered boor and thus, he has to come up with a different plan...

My Opinion: Let's jump right into the review :) The biggest problem with this book was the H/H and their romance. To put it plainly: the characters were boring ^_^; Harrison was too pompous and stuffy. In this kind of storyline, you expect the hero to change, that his dynamics with the heroine will bring out the more boyish or relaxed side of him... Open his eyes to his life and what it could be and usually, this is all done through fun stuff. However, it wasn't the case in The Perfect Mistress. There were many mentions about how Harrison changed, how his behaviors were surprising... but I don't think it was change in his personality, it wasn't Harrison being less pompous and stuffy ^_^ If it was, he wouldn't have blundered every time he opened his mouth. Yes, he was acting out of the ordinary for him, most probably because he was attracted to Julia, but that doesn't mean it was a permanent change in his personality. As for Julia, I just didn't connect with her and thought she was boring. Yes, she was smart and striving to be more independent - no real choice given her situation, but it didn't make her interesting. Actually, it is exactly as one of the character said:

"Lady Winterset (Julia) is perhaps as intelligent as Lady Smithson although I don't think she completely trusts that intelligence. She has been taken care of, you see, proper marriage and all that. I think she is still realizing she can indeed take care of herself although I'm not sure she wants to."

This passage describes Julia to a T. I think what makes Julia uninteresting is her indecisiveness - not really knowing what she wants (except solving her financial trouble) and where she's going. Have she known or at least been a bit more confident, she would have been a better heroine.

As for the romance, my biggest problem is that the characters "fell in love" too quickly. See, I'm not convinced it was love. Yes, there was something between them from the beginning - they annoyed each other. Sure, they rubbed each other wrong and that could be due to attraction... but after a few meetings, to say that it was love? Not buying it, because they really didn't know each other well enough for it. Also, I didn't feel the chemistry. It's fun sometimes to see characters argue, best each other with words... but in this case, it was mostly Harrison saying the wrong thing... and may I say, stupid thing ^_^; So yeah, the romance didn't work for me... and that's a big problem when reading romance ^_^;

The rest of the book though was great. The writing was actually excellent ^_^; and I enjoyed the secondary characters a lot. I wouldn't mind if Ms Alexander was planning books for Portia and Veronica, I'm actually hoping for it, because Julia's two friends had something about them. A vivacity that Julia was lacking. The storyline was interesting and could have been better with different H/H. My favorite parts of the book though were definitively the interactions between Harrison and his father. It's rare in historical romances that the hero's father is still alive (because otherwise, how would he have a title?) and most of the time, the relationship is not good. In this case, even though Harrison and Lord Kingsbury are complete opposite, they respect and love each other. It was great to read about a sane father/son relationship :) It was also fun to hear Lord Kingsbury's input about Harrison's life :)

My Grade: C-. It was hard choosing my grade for The Perfect Mistress, because my first reaction was that this book was okay only, therefore a D. However, I think that if I had the chance to read it in one sitting instead of a few pages here and there, I do think I would have enjoyed this book more. Also, despite the fact that the characterization and romance, two major components, were weak, the writing was great and I love all the rest :P Plus, I'm still looking forward to Ms Alexander next book :) So I think C- is a good grade :)

TBR Day: This Can't Be Love by Kasey Michaels

Woohooo! I made it for TBR Day this month! Go me! LOL. Hopefully, I'll have this review up in time ^_^; I've just spent the last couple of hours playing Bejeweled Blitz instead. Sigh.
Let see, I was looking for something to read last week-end. I opened one of my boxes and this was at the top of it. I simply picked it up and started reading :D


This Can't Be Love by Kasey Michaels
published by Zebra Kensington in March 2004

One Crazy Summer...

If Molly Applegate marches to the beat of a different drummer, it's probably a naked bongo player. Gorgeous and free-spirited, Molly's set for life – provided she stays employed ten months out of the year as stipulated in her parents' will. To keep the inheritance flowing, she works as a lingerie model, a mansion-sitter, a singing-slash-roller-skating carhop... you name it, Molly's done it. But a weekend gig babysitting her cousin Jane's daycare business might just lead to something permanent with would-be client Dom Longstreet. He's a Broadway producer who could make all her dreams come true... if only she'd let him...

Dom's idea of "summer vacation" is hosting a working retreat for the cast of his upcoming musical spectacular. Sure, he's also promised to babysit his niece and nephew for two weeks, but that's what the local daycare center is for, right? Unfortunately, the place will be closed just when he needs it, according to the beautiful – and exasperating – woman he finds in charge. In exchange for room and board on his estate, Molly Applegate agrees to watch the kids. But Dom can't stop watching Molly, who's fast becoming the unlikeliest of muses... and maybe – just maybe – his perfect leading lady...

Genre: Contemporary romance
Series: Sequel to This Must Be Love

The Story: Dominic Longstreet is a successful Broadway shows producer who works hard and plays hard. While his brother (the lyricist) is on his second honeymoon, Dominic is supposed to enjoy himself and take a break. Instead, he's scheduled practices and rehearsals and therefore, needs someone to keep an eye on his niece and nephew and out of his way... which is why he enrolled them in Preston Kiddy Kare. However, Preston Kiddy Kare is closing for its annual two weeks vacation and as a result, Dominic has a little problem on his hand.

Molly Applegate was helping out her cousin taking care of Preston Kiddy Kare. She's intrigued and interested by Dominic and therefore decides to play nanny for the next two weeks. Molly is an heiress and her parents will stipulates that she has to work 10 out of 12 months in order to access her trust fund. Being a nanny qualifies, so all is good :)

Quickly, Molly's joie de vivre becomes contagious and Dom realizes that he indeed really needs to relax... and also works on his relationships with his niece and nephew. Then, there's this wild attraction between Molly and Dom, but he's put out as Molly keeps warning him that she'll be gone as soon as the two weeks are over... Unfortunately, Dom cannot solely focus on winning Molly over as he has to deal with his diva stars.

My Opinion: This Can't Be Love was a mixed bag for me. On one hand, I really liked the characters and the storyline, but the romance was a bit so-so.

I was really surprised at how quickly I was engaged by this book. I really liked Molly's character. Her joie-de-vivre really reached me; she was simply so fun and everyone around her had fun. All the other characters were quite interesting as well. I liked our hero, Dom Longstreet. Dom works hard, is a bit arrogant and temperamental. All the characteristics you would find in a good and successful producer. He's not a stuff shirt, so it's not exactly the "happy-go-lucky heroine thaws stuff-shirt hero" trope, but close enough :) I thought the kids, Lizzie and Little Tony, were fun. Poor kids though, named after their own parents ^_^; They weren't too cutesy and they were really part of the storyline, so that I really enjoyed :) As for the rest of the cast, they were fun albeit a bit stereotypical :)

The story is pretty simple but it works :) I liked the fact that Molly's identity as an heiress wasn't the big secret, the big conflict. Even Molly's issues were okay with me, because they were believable. What I didn't like was that they mess the romance. Molly and Dom kept going back and forth - get together or not get together. Have sex, but does it mean more or not? I thought it made the whole book draggy in the middle. The romance was also very fast, so it was hard to keep track what Molly and Dom were feeling about the relationship :(

It's unfortunate, because I loved the rest of This Can't Be Love. There were some very fun scenes and I had a few LOL moments :) The proposal scene with the attorney as a witness was great LOL. However, I just feel that the romance was not up par with the rest of the book and it definitively dragged it down :(

My Grade: B. All in all, This Can't Be Love was a fun book with great characters :) It was very easy to get in, but the difficulty was staying in. It's really unfortunate the romance wasn't better. However, I'm very glad I read it, because it was a book focused on the characters and relationships and it reminded me of how much I enjoy Ms Michaels' contemporary romances :) I do have This Must Be Love somewhere in my TBR pile, so I'll try to dig that one out soon.

TBR Day: When He Was Wicked and Present Danger

Sigh, I thought I won my battle against my addiction of Bejeweled Blitz... turns out, not ^_^; Spent the whole day playing instead of writing this review :( Ah well, going to have to work harder to fight it :P It always helps though once I'm at the top of the leaderboard LOL.

Now, switching topics... How's the weather for everyone? I mentioned in an earlier post that we've been having great weather... I mean, WOW weather for March/spring... Very sunny and so far, only one day of rain! The temperature is also quite warm... However, it's totally wrong for guys to wear shorts this early in the year! Yes, shorts!!! I've seen a couple of guys in downtown and even the neighbor teenager... there's still some snow on your lawn!  So very wrong and as I said, scary!!

Changing subject again, now onto the reviews :D So I missed last month's TBR challenge and as a result, I aimed for a two-fer this month :) Well I succeeded LOL and one of them even fit this month's TBR challenge's theme! I wouldn't have known if Ames haven't told me :P Of course, the most difficult is to review the books in time...


When He Was Wicked by Julia Quinn
published by Avon in July 2004

In every life there is a turning point.

A moment so tremendous, so sharp and breathtaking, that one knows one's life will never be the same. For Michael Stirling, London's most infamous rake, that moment came the first time he laid eyes on Francesca Bridgerton.

After a lifetime of chasing women, of smiling slyly as they chased him, of allowing himself to be caught but never permitting his heart to become engaged, he took one look at Francesca Bridgerton and fell so fast and hard into love it was a wonder he managed to remain standing. Unfortunately for Michael, however, Francesca's surname was to remain Bridgerton for only a mere thirty-six hours longer - the occasion of their meeting was, lamentably, a supper celebrating her imminent wedding to his cousin.

But that was then... Now Michael is the earl and Francesca is free, but still she thinks of him as nothing other than her dear friend and confidant. Michael dares not speak to her of his love…until one dangerous night, when she steps innocently into his arms, and passion proves stronger than even the most wicked of secrets...

Genre: Historical Romance
Series: The Bridgertons, Book #6

The Story: Michael Sterling fell in love with Francesca Bridgerton at first sight. Unfortunately for him, she was about to marry Michael's beloved cousin, John Sterling - Earl of Kilmartin. For the two following years, Michael was able to suppress his feelings for Francesca and they have become good friends, confidants even. Then, the unimaginable happens: John, the cousin Michael considered as his brother, Francesca's beloved husband, dies unexpectedly. Everything becomes worst when Francesca miscarries and Michael officially becomes the 9th Earl of Kilmartin. Grieving for John, unable to face his feelings for Francesca and his responsibilities as an earl, Michael escapes to India for a life of adventure.

Michael finally comes back after four years, believing that he can once again suppress his feelings for Francesca. At the same time, Francesca is now ready to remarry as she wants to have a family and children of her own... and Michael quickly realizes that he was mistaken - he is not over Francesca... and she is in for a shock.

My Opinion: So this is kind of funny... I was a late-comer to The Bridgertons series. In fact, the reason why I ever got into it was because When He was Wicked sounded interesting and it was many bloggers' favorite. So I got all the series, started from the beginning... and simply never made it to When He Was Wicked LOL. Then, not too long ago, Ames read it (see her review here) and it was enough for me to finally pick it up :)

I don't know if it's because I read The Next Best Thing by Kristan Higgins recently, which basically had the same premises in a contemporary setting, but I wasn't wowed by When He was Wicked as so many others have been. Oh, it was a good book for sure, just not a wowzer.

I really liked the hero, Michael Sterling. Such a tortured man! Granted, the torture was of a different type, but that doesn't make the feelings less real. I don't think there can be many things worst than being in love with your brother/best friend/cousin's wife. Not being able to confess, always having to hide the feelings and if everything goes wrong, you could lose everything. In addition, it was so ironic that a rake like Michael has finally found a woman with whom he'd like to settle down, but she's the only woman with whom he can't. Then, there was the death of John, the loss of John's child and taking John's place... I don't blame Michael for freaking out and running away. Despite all that was going on, Ms Quinn also managed to make Michael sound yummy :) LOL, such great writing... However, I wasn't too happy with his character when he decided to marry Francesca. There just wasn't transition between the tortured man and the one determined to marry his love... The turn-around took place too fast and it made his character seemed kind of inconsistent. He's taken such length to keep his distance, hide his feelings and understand that once he lets go, it's like the dam has broken... But why has the dam broken? I thought that there should have been more to the process than Colin saying "Why don't you marry her yourself?" Other than that, I really thought Michael was very yummy :)

As for Francesca, I didn't dislike her, but I didn't liked her either... She was just kind of bland. Holly mentioned in the comment section of Ames review that the readers don't really know Francesca at all. It's not exactly that readers don't know her, but it's more Ms Quinn telling readers that Francesca has been reserved and quiet and just left it at that. There's no real development to her character, no real growth. There's no real change to her character throughout the book. A lot of the book was focused on Michael agonizing about his feelings for Francesca, his inner thoughts... However, when it comes to Francesca, the inner monologues are glossed over...

When He was Wicked is really about Francesca and Michael and their relationship. There is no secondary plot and not many secondary characters either. I thought that the first part about John's death was very good and up to the part where Michael returns and is debating his feelings was very satisfying... However, it all goes down for me when Francesca runs back to Kilmartin - the country home. I don't blame her for running away... it's just the whole, "Should I marry Michael or not" and not being sure about her feelings that became a bit tedious.

My Grade: B. I'm glad I finally read When He was Wicked. As a whole, I was happy with the book, I liked it and it was different than the rest of the series. It just wasn't a wowzer for me.


Present Danger by Susan Andersen
published by Zebra Kensington in February 1993

On the run from her ex-husband, Aunie Franklin doesn't want another man telling her what to do. She's learning to take charge of her life.

James Ryder is finally getting his brothers' troubles straightened out-- the last thing he needs is another responsibility thrust upon him. But somebody's got to teach this little southern belle some street smarts.

Two people from different worlds, learning that in some areas they aren't so very different after all. But just when they start to believe there's a chance of their worlds meshing, the phone calls begin...

Genre: Romantic Suspense
Series: none

The Story: Aunie Franklin is a Southern belle who married an older man for the money and prestige he could bring to her. While the marriage was not as ideal as she hoped, the last draw came when he refused to give her a baby because it would ruin her figure. That's when she decided to divorce him despite the protests of her family and that's when he showed his true face.

Battered, Aunie escapes to Seattle where she hopes she can start a new life away from her ex-husband and family. This time around, Aunie plans to use her brain instead of her beauty to make her way. She finds the perfect little apartment near the college she intends to attend, except her new landlord has a stick up his behind.

James Ryder is a popular cartoonist who doesn't want any more complications in his life. Coming from a rough neighborhood, he's trying to straighten out his brothers with little success. Seeing Aunie's battered face, he knows she's going to be trouble and so, they both start off on the wrong foot. However, it's clear that James can't keep his distance from Aunie...

My Opinion: I'm a fan of Ms Andersen, so I've been collecting her backlist. Present Danger is one of her oldest books and so I was happy to finally find a copy :) I didn't have high expectations for it, as I haven't heard much of this book... and it's good thing since it turned out to be so-so.

To me, it all came down to the characters. For some reasons, they just weren't very likable to me. I admire Aunie for admitting she was a trophy wife and wanting to make herself better with this second chance, but admiring and liking is not the same. As for James, I thought sometimes, he was really rude. It's one thing not to want to be involved in other's problems, but you don't have to be rude :( And the worst is that, straightening out other people's problem seems to be Jame's favorite hobby. He just can't help himself... so he shouldn't blame others for it, but himself. I just didn't care much for Aunie and James and so I wasn't really invested in their relationship. James was a very contradictory character and so it was a bit annoying... He kept saying he didn't want to be involved or commit in a relationship or like Aunie, but at every occasion, it jumped in feet first.

The story wasn't bad though... but again, it's hard to get into it if you don't really care about the main characters and it focused a lot around James and Aunie. There was also a lot of secondary characters that played filler, but that was okay.

What annoyed me most though was the accents. Lori made a comment about it in a review of hers (here) and I totally agree with her. It's distracting to read accents... and there wasn't one accent in Present Danger, but three!! Reading "woo-mon" simply drove me insane, ugh. If characters have accents, just mentioned it in the story... and let the readers imagine it. We already imagine the rest, so one more thing won't kill us LOL.

My Grade: C. Not the best Susan Andersen book out there, but considering this was her second book only and it's been written more than 15 years ago, it was okay :) Lots of things change in the romance and real world. It does sustain the test of time, but I don't know, I don't think it's a story we would see nowadays. To be labeled as romantic suspense nowadays, I think it should be a lot more gritty and perhaps, gory. In any case, it would have worked better if I'd have liked the characters, I'm sure of that :)

TBR Day: He Said Yes by Patricia Waddell

Another month, another TBR challenge... I have a question about TBR pile. I mean, all the books we buy "technically" go into the TBR pile, right? No matter its release dates. For this challenge, the books we read must have a release date prior to 2008 or 2009... So does it matter how long the books stay in the pile? Say I bought a book yesterday with a release date of 2003 and that I read it... Does it qualify for the TBR challenge? I sure hope so :) Although I always though, books in my TBR pile had to be in my TBR pile for a while to qualify as TBR books... Hmmm.

Anyway. Once again, my entry doesn't correspond to this month's theme "friends to lovers" or "unrequited love"... but then, you all know that I'm pretty bad under pressure ^_^; In addition, I'm kind of an impulse reader, so...


He Said Yes by Patricia Waddell
published by Zebra/Kensington in September 2003

ALWAYS A GENTLEMAN...

Evelyn Dennsworth may not be entitled to use the word "Lady" in front of her name, but that doesn't stop her from behaving like one. Even a vicar's daughter turned Bond Street shop girl can rise above her meager beginnings if she tries hard enough--unless her temperamental employer decides that she has stolen a noblewoman's brooch...

Marshall Bedford, Marquis of Waltham, is a man surrounded by women. Namely, his stepmother and his two sisters, one of whom is about to be launched into society. Yet adding another female to his life is appealing--especially if she is lovely, charming, and kissable. A shop girl may not be quite what he had in mind, but he can't allow the prison wagon to haul away the frightened young woman he saw in the couturier's boutique. Especially when he suspects that her only act of thievery will be stealing his heart...

Genre: historical romance
Series: Gentlemen Club/He Said, Full-length book #1 (there is an anthology somewhere)

The Story: Marshall Bedford, Marquis of Waltham, has just decided that he needed a mistress when he comes across of Evelyn Dennsworth, a Bond Street shop girl. He is immediately taken with her and is trying to find a way to ask her to become his mistress when she is accused of theft. Marshall takes her under his wing, offering protection and taking care of legalities.

After getting to know Marshall, Evelyn agrees to become his lover, but not his mistress. As his lover, she will be able to impose her conditions - that their liaison will only last the summer. Marshall agrees and brings her back to his country estate where Evelyn becomes his lover and his stepmother's companion.

My Opinion: I bought this book after reading Lori's review for the Re-Read Challenge. Lori seemed to enjoy it a lot and I was intrigued by the storyline :) I'm glad that I picked it up because it was a very enjoyable read :)

In a way, the story is quite simple and that's the joy of it. No murder, no mystery, He Said Yes focuses on relationships and mainly on Evelyn and Marshall. There are some secondary characters and storylines and they get their own development, but they never overshadow the Evelyn and Marshall and I'm glad for it. For once, it didn't scream "sequel!" :)

I really liked Evelyn's character. I thought she was very strong, yet showed some vulnerability. It made her real. I liked the fact that she didn't jump at the opportunity to become a Marquis' mistress, even though she was attracted to Marshall. I liked that Marshall wasn't able to convince her right away, that he needed to persuade her and in a way, woo her :P Even better, when she finally accepted, she put her foot down and imposed conditions :) Go Evelyn! At the same time, I'm glad that Marshall didn't take advantage of Evelyn. Yes, he saved her... but it wasn't conditional on the fact that she becomes his mistress (I know some characters that would have seized the opportunity...). I think he was looking for someone who would care for him, even though he would not marry her.

I thought that Evelyn and Marshall's relationship progressed well and the story was well developed around it. I'm so happy that it wasn't rushed, that they had time to know each other. I liked the fact that Marshall and his stepmother got along well... I think that the dislike between stepmothers and stepchildren has often become a cliche. So for once that everyone in a family got along well, yay! I liked how both characters fell in love with each other and the conflict at the end was appropriate :) The resolution as well ;)

This was my first book by Ms Waddell and it won't be my last. Right now, I'm waiting for the second book of the series to be shipped. I hope it'll be as good.

My Grade: B+.

Review: Falling in Love by Pauline Trent

Well, earlier this week, I posted my entry for Keishon's TBR challenge... and I thought, why not be done with Brie's Contemporary Romance challenge as well? So this month, I would only have the Re-Read challenge left. Good idea no? Of course, to me, Brie's Contemporary Romance challenge is the easiest to fulfill each month, given that contemporary romance is my favorite genre :)


Falling in Love by Pauline Trent
published by Zebra/Kensington in January 2009

After years in the military, Chris Montgomery is looking for somewhere to relax and recharge, and Lambert Falls, with its tree-lined streets and picturesque town square, seems ideal. Chris expected that a stranger in town would attract suspicion and gossip. He didn't expect to meet someone like Angie Kane, with her warm, open smile and self contained air that are instantly intriguing. Angie has built a satisfying life for herself, one she's not willing to uproot for someone who's just passing through. But Chris is quietly persistent - not to mention handsome and charming. Against her own better judgment, Angie finds herself falling deeper than she ever intended - until one phone call forces her to choose between the town she's always loved, and a man she can't imagine living without...

Genre: contemporary romance
Series: none

The Story: Chris Montgomery was with the Green Berets, but was injured in his last mission. He has now recovered and decided to settle down in Lambert Falls, where his grandfather left him a plantation house. He is immediately attracted to the sheriff's niece, Angie Kane. Although the attraction is mutual, Angie is reluctant to start a relationship with Chris. She's been hurt in the past and she feels that there's a gap between her and Chris. In addition, she expects Chris to want to leave Lambert Falls in the future... and that's one thing she'll never do.

My Opinion: I basically bought this book on an impulse and if I remember correctly, to reach a certain amount in order to use a coupon. The result? I really enjoyed Falling in Love and am glad I bought it!

Like the title says, the story of Falling in Love focus on Chris and Angie falling in love, their relationship. Chris is new in town, meets Angie and feels attracted to her. However, Angie is not ready to start a relationship... so with the help of a relatives, her uncle Bobby and her younger sister, Carter Ann, he slowly courts her and wins her heart :) I liked how the book only focused on Chris and Angie's relationship and how slow they took it. This type of books is so rare these days ^_^;

I liked both Angie and Chris' characters. I really felt for Angie and could relate to her. She's afraid, she doesn't have much confidence in herself and she can't see why Chris would be attracted to her. She's not bold like Carter Ann and has difficulty going after what she really wants. I like the fact that the people around her liked her so much and how her family helped Chris to court her... Her relationship to both Carter Ann and Bobby was heart-warming and it was funny how Carter Ann and Chris maneuvered Angie into situations so she could go after her dream. As for Chris, well he's the nice guy, the kind I wish I will meet in the future. Someone's patient, attentive and affectionate. He can be sneaky at time, but in a good way :)

I liked the issues that Angie dealt with, because I thought they were realistic, especially for a woman from a small town. Also, Ms Trent didn't spend too much time caricaturing the secondary characters from a small town. Like I said, she focused on Chris and Angie... I really like Carter Ann's character as well. At first, I wasn't sure, but she turned out to be a very nice and thoughtful woman, a loving sister. I hope she does get her own book :) Finally, I think that Ms Trent did a wonderful job writing Angie and Chris' storyline. It was believable and sweet, especially when Chris left to help his superior. Those communications and letters were so sweet :)

My complaints on this book are minor... like I'd like to know the reason of Angie's dislike towards Langdon Howard. I also felt the ending was a tiny bit rushed, a few extra pages would have helped. However, it doesn't affect the quality of the book. Overall, Falling in Love was a solid book and very enjoyable. I'll be reading more of Ms Trent in the future :D

My Grade: B. Like I said, a solid book :) Refreshing in both the storyline and characters. It reminds me a tiny bit of Virgin River, but with less "action/event." If you're looking for a book about the H/H, you should give this a try :)

Review: Marry Christmas by Jane Goodger

I first heard of Jane Goodger from Dev when she reviewed When There is Hope. The story sounded good or perhaps Dev made it sounded good... either way, I was determined to give it a try. It took me a while, but thanks to Dev, I got my hands on When There is Hope and simply loved it :D

Unfortunately, When There is Hope is the only book by Jane Goodger I was able to enjoy because most of her backlist is out of print... and as I mentioned in some previous posts, I really have difficulty finding older books. Then, the good news came a few months ago when I was looking at upcoming books... Jane Goodger was having a new book coming out: Marry Christmas!

Getting my hands on Marry Christmas was a whole story by itself :) All I can say is thank you to Jane Goodger for sending it to me!! It was incredibly generous :)


Marry Christmas by Jane Goodger
published by Zebra Kensington in October 2008

A Christmas wedding to the Duke of Bellingham. Any other socialite in Newport, Rhode Island, would be overjoyed at the prospect, but Elizabeth Cummings finds her mother’s announcement as appealing as a prison sentence. Elizabeth has not the slightest desire to meet Randall Blackmore, let alone be bartered for an English title. Her heart belongs to another, and the duke’s prestige, arrogance, and rugged charm will make no difference to her plans of elopement.

Against his expectations and desires, Randall Blackmore has inherited a dukedom and a vast estate that only marriage to an heiress can save. Selling his title to the highest bidder is a wretched obligation, but to Randall’s surprise his intended bride is pretty, courageous, delightfully impertinent—and completely uninterested in becoming a Duchess. Yet suddenly, no other woman will do, and a marriage in name only will never be enough for a husband determined to win his wife in body, heart, and soul…

Genre: historical romance
Series: Book #1

The Story: Elizabeth Cummings is 19 years old and is the richest heiress in Newport, Rhode Island. The young lady is crushed when her mother announces that she is to marry the Duke of Bellingham... because she's in love with another man.

Randall Blackmore never expected to be Duke of Bellingham. Unfortunately for him, he has inherited the title along with a huge debt... As a result, he has not choice than to marry an heiress, although he is reluctant to marry an American. However, he'll have to get over it since Elizabeth's father has offered him 1,000,000 pounds as a dowry.

Then, surprisingly to both, Rand falls in love with Elizabeth... but when faced with Elizabeth's betrayal, Rand cannot close his eyes on it and becomes a changed man... When Elizabeth realizes how foolish she's been, believing a fortune-hunter instead of her kind husband, it is up to her to win his heart once again.

My Opinion: I really enjoyed this book. So the story is not new... young, foolish girl is in love with a man, but has to marry another one. Although usually, the hero is the man she is in love with, not the other one :P Then, I happen to love marriage of convenience books, so this was really perfect for me.

I loved Randall. He was such a great hero. I think what sets him apart from most is his integrity and his honesty. Yes, he was desperate for money, but it bothered him that she was in love with someone else and gave her a chance to bail out of the wedding... However, what I loved most is how honest with his feelings he was. Admitting to himself that he was in love with Elizabeth and then, telling her. Then, when he felt betrayed, the 180 degrees he did... He was very humane and that's quite a nice change from all the aristocrats out there. He wasn't overly charming, he wasn't a rake, he wasn't tortured or stuffy. He was just a simple, normal man that happened to become a duke... and he didn't let the power go up to his head. I guess that when it's not accompanied by big pouches of money, it's easier :P

Unfortunately, I can't say I loved Elizabeth. She was strong-minded and I guess she was really in love or believed herself in love... and in any other situation, it would have been admirable that she stood her ground and so on... however, on this one, I agreed with Randall... it's not possible to be in love with someone after only spending 2 hours with him. Perhaps because as a reader, I could see the whole situation... but seriously, her pseudo-relationship with Henry didn't warrant that degree of loyalty. That's why I found it her annoying at times. Also, how could she forget about the necklace? Seriously!! I totally understand why Randall hit the roof... At least, Elizabeth knew that she was in the wrong. So that's in the plus column for her.

Overall, I thought Ms Goodger did a real good job with this story. The basic idea wasn't original; however, Ms Goodger was able to make it original. For example, I like how it was the hero that went to America to meet his bride instead of the American heiress hunting for a husband in London. I enjoyed seeing the American scene and how the American socialites could be snobbier than than the ton in London. I also liked the set up for the next book in the series, especially since I enjoyed Maggie's character more than Elizabeth.

My Grade: B. I would have given a higher grade if I've liked Elizabeth's character more... however, it did not stop me from enjoying Marry Christmas :) I'm definitively looking forward to the next book in the series. Fans of historical romance that are looking for something different, Marry Christmas is what you're looking for :P

Review: Price of Desire by Jo Goodman

Today is the first day we received urine sample from actual patients!! Yay!! That means we're doing the real thing! LOL :) I think I'm going to like Tuesdays in the future, LOL :)

**END OF THE DAY: forget what I said above... I'm once again annoyed at the professor. Sigh, I think there's going to be a lot of up and down in this work relationship. Sigh.

Anyway, I went to the bookstore to cheer me up and bought a couple of books :) More on those later :) Right now, let's go to my review :)


Price of Desire by Jo Goodman
published by Zebra Kensington in August 2008

Olivia Cole is devastated to learn that her ne're-do well brother has promised her to the operator of a London gaming hall as payment of his debts. Olivia accepts her fate-even if it means that her reputation will suffer from living among rouges and gamblers. But when she meets the sexy and mysterious Griffin Wright-Jones, the Viscount of Breckenridge, Olivia has more than her good name to worry about-for he rouses in her wanton thoughts she's never dared entertain-until now...

Griffin wears the scars of his life on his striking face, Although he wants Olivia like no other woman before, he doesn't force her to share his bed-a difficult task considering how beautiful she is. But with each passing night Griffin and Olivia's resolve weakens until finally they take their greatest gamble on one night of reckless pleasure...

Genre: historical romance
Series: loosely connected to If His Kiss is Wicked

The Story: After having been on her own for a few years, Olivia Cole, disowned by her father, takes refuge with her younger brother Alastair. Unfortunately for her, the younger man has contracted a debt of 1000 pounds at Breckenridge's gaming hell and has given up Olivia as a marker. Having no choice, Olivia stays at the gaming hell, waiting for her brother's return... however, as time passes, she wonders if he will. Meanwhile, attraction is growing between Olivia and Griffin; however, Griffin knows not to push. Olivia has secrets and he intends to find out what they are...

My Opinion: I know a lot of bloggers that love Jo Goodman's books and that's why I keep trying them. I enjoyed One Forbidden Evening and If His Kiss is Wicked enough that I only hesitate a little before buying it. Finally, it's Rosie who made me picked it up. Unfortunately, Price of Desire didn't do it for me :( Mainly, I thought that the beginning was extremely slow. In my opinion, not much happened for half the book. Yes, Olivia and Griffin got to know each other better and while I'm happy they didn't surrender to lust for so long... there just wasn't any action. Oh sure, there was the gentleman villain who attacked and almost raped Olivia... but it wasn't difficult to guess who sent him.

To me, the book only picked up when Olivia and Griffin finally became lovers. Starting for there, you zipped through the end quite rapidly. I think that with the shift of relationship between the main characters, there was a change of mood as well. Sure, there were some dark moments, but I thought that it became more playful and happy... then just boring ^_^;

In addition, Ms Goodman's style is always an obstacle for me. I think that the problem is a lack of familiarity in the writing style as well as between the characters. It makes the writing style very polite and a bit cold and I have difficulty reading such style. It doesn't help that Ms Goodman keeps surprising me with darker topics in her books :( She did it in A Season to be Sinful and A Forbidden Evening. Of course, I wouldn't mind to be surprised if it was in a more joyful manner instead of these dark topics :( Seriously, I don't think anybody likes reading about sexual abuses, but those are realities in life and therefore happens in books. I'm aware of it and I don't avoid reading such books... Thing is, the way Ms Goodman incorporates these topics in her storyline, I always feel like she's taking me by surprise - seriously, I don't expect them... although, it's true that there were big hints in Price of Desire.

Price of Desire is not a total loss however. I liked Olivia and Griffin and all their layers. They were two highly intelligent and clever characters who found ways to survive the circumstances. Also, credits go to Ms Goodman who took a common plotline - the heroine being used to pay a debt, and turned it into something different and less typical. I did think that there were some loose ends and some issues that Ms Goodman could have resolved more clearly, but there were minor in comparison to all what happened.

My Grade: C... Personally, I think it's going to take a while before I picked up another of Ms Goodman's books even if I have enjoyed some of her books in the past... The writing style just doesn't suit me :(

Review: Elijah by Jacquelyn Frank

Yay! My first review of the year!! LOL, there was a couple of books I was excited to get at the end of the year 2007... that I've gotten and read :) So I'll try to review them...

So let's get the ball rolling! The first book I'd like to review is Elijah by Jacquelyn Franks. I've reviewed Jacob, but not Gideon... I'm still waiting for Ames to read Gideon so we can buddy review... so blame her LOL :)


Elijah by Jacquelyn Frank
published by Zebra books in December 2007

They are called the Nightwalkers, an ancient race devoted to protecting the world from the darkness of the Necromancers. And their proudest warrior is Elijah, a man who bends for nothing and no one...until one woman brings him to his knees...

SOME FEELINGS YOU JUST CAN’T FIGHT

He is known as the Warrior Captain—a master of every weapon, a fierce soldier sworn to protect his kind from violence. Powerful, relentless, merciless, Elijah has always won every battle he’s ever taken on—until now. Ambushed by Necromancers, he is left for dead only to be rescued by a woman who could very well deliver the final blow…Siena, the Lycanthrope Queen.

For over a decade, an uneasy peace has existed between the warring Lycanthropes and Elijah’s people, and he’s not about to let his guard down now around their queen.

But Siena’s will is every bit a match for Elijah’s own, her sleek and sensual nature waking a hunger within him that he cannot deny. Now, the Warrior in Elijah is consumed with a different battle—winning Siena’s heart by giving her pleasure beyond all boundaries. What starts as attraction and arousal soon burns into a passion with consequences that will echo through the ages for both their people. And as would-be enemies become inseparable lovers, another threat approaches, one with the power to destroy them all...

Surrender to the night.

Genre: paranormal romance
Series: The Nightwalkers, Book 3

Hmmm, let see. It's been a while since I last wrote a full review, so I don't know from where to start... LOL. Okay, here we go…

The Story: In the previous books, Ms Frank has built a world that's in tumult – after years of wars between the Nightwalkers creatures, they have finally reached a truce and they now have to cooperate in order to fight off new threats. In Jacob, Ms Frank has focused mainly on demons and their ways and how through the centuries, they’ve been modified and changed from what was originally the truth. In short, the whole truth being discovered resulted in the rebellion/treason from two female demons who have created a "sect" composed of humans, necromancers and witches who hunt all Nightwalkers creatures (i.e. demons, vampires, weres, etc.). So at the beginning of this book, we read about Elijah who's been ambushed by this sect and is about to die... luckily for him though, Siena appears in her were-animal shape and rescues him. Both of them are stuck together for a number of days… During that time, they are wildly attracted to each other and both succumbed to their lust, even if they do not entirely accept what the other is. See, demons and were-people have been at war for hundreds of years and have just been living in peace for the past 14 years. Siena is the new Queen of her people and Elijah is the Captain of the demons and it’s been said that he killed a great number of Siena’s people. So being together is not a very good option; however, they don’t have a choice because Siena and Elijah are mates.

My Opinion: To be completely honest and why shouldn’t I, I had several problems with this book. First is the fact that Siena and Elijah got together so fast, especially while Elijah was injured. Why not work out the problems before hopping to bed together? See the problem is not only the fact that Siena is a were and Elijah is a demon, the biggest issue is that Siena will only mate once. This means that whoever she chooses as her first lover will be her mate eternally… and as Queen, she can hardly pick a demon as King, especially not a demon that has killed hundreds of her people. However, she gives in to temptation after holding up for a decade and jump into bed with Elijah. Then, a day or two later, she has to leave… and Elijah barely makes it home due to injuries… I was quite @_@ that he could have sex but not make it home.

By the way, after all the drama of “He’s a demon, I can’t mate with him even though I had sex with him,” the solution in order for them to get their HEA ending was almost too easy, too simple.

My other problem with this book is that it seems to me there are too many restraints to the characters because of the world building. I mean, demons have to be and react a certain way because they are demons, vampires get to be this way because they are vampires. I understand that in order to make the creatures interesting and new to the readers, authors have to come up with some ideas and particular traits; however, it seems to be too much in the Nightwalkers series and it really stifles the characters in my opinion. It might have been better also if there was no “Imprinting” which is how the mate system is called in this series.

Finally, because of the drama between Elijah and Siena, the politics between all the different kind of creatures and the treason/sect story, I have the feeling that I didn’t get to know the characters very well. I was given the major lines, their reactions, but never got to see development.

My Conclusion: Despite my issues with the book, I do like Ms Frank’s writing and I think she has many good ideas. However, all those ideas were a bit too much for one book. I’m not sure how I feel about the world building anymore. I enjoyed it at first when it was only the demons, but I feel it too strict when you factor in the other Nightwalkers. I am still looking forward to the next book which is Damien and features the lord of vampires. I’m hoping that his love interest won’t be a demon as I need a break from them… and I’ll decide after that book whether or not I should continue the series. For people who want to continue the series, you should definitively read Elijah since many events are happening and it’ll impact the future of the series. However, if you simply want to read a romance, then you might want to skip this book and pick up another one.

Grade: C

Review: Hell's Belles by Jackie Kessler

Ugh... I ate too much. I always eat too much when my mom cooks spaghetti... but really, my stomach is really full. On other news, I bought more books today... but that's not new... however, I was lucky. Well, I think I was lucky. Went to the bank and found a 10$ bill on the floor... no one was there, so I kept it. However, my mom says it's not lucky to find money... Went to a bakery, was planning to buy a croissant or something and they were on the house :) So yeah, a pretty good afternoon :D

Anyway, I wrote my first review of the week this morning:


Hell's Bellesby Jackie Kessler: 3.75/5

published by Zebra Kensington in December 2006

Once Jezebel was a powerful succubus, capable of seducing men and sucking out their souls. Then Hell put a bounty on her head, and now Jezebel's hiding in New York City. Working as an exotic dancer is a piece of cake, but she hadn't counted on meeting Paul Hamilton, a man haunted by his past. Good-bye, succubus; hello, lovestruck. Learning all about how complicated--and pleasurable--love can be, Jezebel thinks she's turned her back on Hell. But Hell hasn't stopped looking for her. Jezebel holds dangerous secrets, the kind every Underworld creature would do their worst to protect. Demons are closing in...but it's her love for Paul that could have deadly consequences.

Series: Hell on Earth, Book #1
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Succubus

Review: I like the book and I was pleasantly surprised. Sure, I read the back blurb and wanted to read it for awhile, but that didn't guarantee that I would like the book right? Also, succubus are a bit out of my comfort zone. Another pleasant surprise was the beginning of the book. From reading the black blurb, I thought she was already settled and everything. Instead, we accompany Jezebel on her run and learns about the reasons through flashbacks. All in all, I thought the series had good potential, enjoyed the book which made me want to read more. However, the writing style takes a bit of getting use to and Paul is not developed enough ^^;

The Characters - I like Jezebel and I like how she stood up and decided to take her life in her hands when she was unhappy, even if it put her in danger. She definitively has more depth than you'd think a demon has and she's something :D I'm also happy that she's not entire clueless as how to behave like a human, since as a succubus, she did have to appear human.

Now Paul is yummy :D No wonder Jezebel falls for him so quickly :D He's a cop who has lost his fiancee to a hit-and-run a few years ago. Because he couldn't handle the pressure his soon-to-be-in-laws were putting on him, he moved to New York. There's an instant connection between Jezebel and him and he's determined to pursue it. I have to say, although he's yummy, there was something that bothered me: he was hanging out in a strip-club ^^; Not usually an attractive trait in a hero, but then, at the end it made sense. Also, I liked how he tried to understand and help Jezebel. I know that I did say that he was not developed enough, but I guess that given the fact that Jezebel is the main character, it is understandable that the focus is on her and so, the author did a good job.

Other characters we get to meet are Jezebel's best friend - a fury, Daun - an incubus and also, Jezebel's friend and Lilith - queen of Hell. There's also a few of Jezebel's co-workers, but really, the book mainly focused on Jezebel, which is good :D

The Style & Writing - This is where it started getting tricker. Basically, I didn't have any problem with her writing style, as in how she formulates her sentences, dialogue and so on. What took a bit more of getting used was how Ms Kessler broke down the book. Basically, Hell's Belles is divided into many parts (I think 6) and each part is given the name of a character. First was Jezebel, than the fury friend, Paul and etc. So the story is told, but in each part, there'll be a flashback of Jezebel and whoever is the character of this part. This wasn't a bad idea, but the problem was the transition between the parts. The transition wasn't always smooth, which results in breaking the flow, and it was a bit confusing at first. So it took a little bit getting used to, but still, I was able to enjoy the book.

The Cover - I think the cover is nice :D I guess there's a leg fetish going on in the cover industry, but I don't mind. I think it's better than a man's torso ^^;

Am I keeping this book? Yep, I am. I'm also going to buy the next one when it comes out :D

Anything else? Well, I wasn't sure I would like to read about a succubus, because of all the sex... I'm the kind of person who likes faithfulness and usually one man-one woman relationship. However, the characterization, setting and story won me over, but I'm still ticked at Jezebel for having sex with Daun, even if he was in the disguise of Paul...

Quick review

Good morning everyone!

You know, I really like it to come to work early... it's 8am right now (I've been at work for an hour already) and there's 4 persons in the lab, me included... no one to look over your shoulder to see if you're working or not :P Which allows me to do some blog hopping and this quick review.

A Season to be Sinful by Jo Goodman: 3/5

So after reading One Forbidden Evening earlier this summer, I got curious and wanted to read A Season to be Sinful, mainly for Sherry, the viscount, but also for the 3 scoundrels Pinch, Dash and Midge. All in all, the characters did not disappoint me that much; however, I cannot say that I loved this book.

So one night, Alexander Graham, viscount Sheridan also known as Sherry, went to the theater with his mistress and almost got stabbed. He assumed that the one trying to stab him was thief; however, this say thief stumbled over his own blade. Hmmm, after consideration, Sherry wondered how the thief could stabbed himself instead of stab him and so, Sherry has been going around, asking to be led to the thief to give him some money. Of course, he didn't find the thief, but another night, three boys show up and ask for the money in order to save their teacher, Miss Lily Rose. At this point, Sherry is pretty shocked that his assaillant was a woman and ask the boys to guide him to her, along with his physician. At this point, Sherry manages to save the live of Lily and become protective of the three scoundrels. Once Lily is strong enough, they depart to his country estate where Sherry, prior to the accident, had decided to go live permanently, because he does not enjoy London. Of course, Sherry and Lily become involved...

... and this is about the part that I stop reading the book. Not because the story wasn't good, but because the plot took a turn that I didn't care for. See, Lily Rose, real name Lilith, was raised at the Abbey of Sacre-Coeur in France. When she was about 16 years old, this English baron came to look for a governess for his children... Yeah right, the pervert came to look for a toy and his sight settled on Lily. At Sister Mary Joseph urgence, Lily runs away and is supposed to make her way to England, but she ends up in the Baron's clutches and become his toy for the next 1 or 2 years... This was part of the plot that I didn't expect and seriously, it totally threw me off. I guess the readers are made to believe that Lily escaped the fate of becoming the baron sex toy by running away and living on the street, and so that's what I believed. However, that's not what happened and really, that's not what I was expecting to read... and that's why I put the book down. Wasn't interested anymore. Next time, dear author, please give me more warning ^^; What I really found unbelievable though was that in a few years, Lily rebound and she was able to make love with Sherry without any problem, I even think that she seduced him and in many instances, initiate the kiss.

Mind you, I don't need my heroines to all be virgins and I have to admit, that it's becoming a common plot, esp. in historicals and so I embrace it when there's some differences in plot. However, I'd believed that when you've been used sexually as she was, you'd be wary a bit... and I just thought that it was quite unbelievable that she could make love with Sherry with no fear or other feelings. So yeah, didn't like that part of the book... actually, what happened is that it made me really sad... You know, you never really like to read about a woman being sexually abused, even less when she's been used and psychologically manipulated. Good for her to have escaped, but that didn't redeem what happened in my heart and so, I didn't really read the end of the book, because at this point, I know I would not have liked the book.

Otherwise, I thought the first half of the book was very well constructed and showed great promises. However, as Tara Marie once said, Jo Goodman's books tend to be long and I think that was the case with this book too...

So that's it. Have a nice day :D

Some not so recent reads...

Hello everyone,

I'm a bit behind in my blogging... not that I've been reading a lot lately. it's more like books that I've finished a while ago and forgot to blog ^^; So I'll catch up on those. Lately, I've been so busy... started the new job. it's quite interesting, but I'm still figuring out what time I should work. The schedule is flexible, as long as you work 8 hours + 30 min. if you take lunch... The thing is the traffic... it would probably take 40 min. from my house to there if there wasn't any traffic... but instead, it takes me 1h15. To come home, it's even worse... can take me 2 hours ^^; One of my co-worker lives near me and she works 6:30 am to 2:30pm... It sounds strange, but at least, she misses all the traffic... but can I wake up that early? no idea... and then, I still didn't get the pass to get access to the building.

So yeah, I've spent most of my time in my car lately, not fun. Esp. since I can't read. Then, once I get home, I do this, watch that... and end up having no time for reading. sigh... if this is the work life, I'd rather remain a student.

Okay, enough about me...


The Comeback Kiss by Lani Diane Rich: 3/5

This book was a decent read, but I was a bit dissappointed by it. I've read some reviews of it in blog land and everyone seemed to enjoy the book a lot. Maybe I was expecting too much or maybe it was the mood in which I read it. So many stuff seemed unreal as I read the book. I know, it's fiction and it's romance... not realistic often happens, but in this book. I think it's because the author tried to tell a story and she wanted it to be realistic, but what she came up with... It really didn't grab my interest and makes me want to read it again. Howeever, the characters are quite attaching and likable and the book made me laugh at some point.

One Forbidden Evening by Jo Goodman: 3.5/5

So I bought this book after reading Kristie's good word for the author and review of the book. I've been reading a lot of historicals lately, much more than I normally do. So what to say about this book? I liked it because it was quite original... For once, the main character (female) wasn't a virgin! Yes! She even seduced Ferrin :P Anyway, the setting was quite a surprise for me and I have to say, it worked. What didn't work tho was the part where Cybelline went to the countries and Ferrin followed her, but under his best friend's name... The whole country part was a bit unnecessary in my opinion... Also, I don't agree with Tara Marie's opinion that the intrigue was superfluous. I thought it was a nice and interesting twist. I also liked the Cybelline's brother, Viscount Sheridan and so I'll probably look for that novel.

So basically, the story was quite good, altho perhaps a bit dragging in the middle. I enjoyed it and liked how different this book was from the zillions other historicals.


You Made me Love you by C.J. Carmicheal: 2.5/5

This book wasn't bad, but I think it wasn't enough. It seems she had so many characters that the author tried to develop that she neglected the plot a bit. I liked the characters because they all seem quite realistic. The setting of the books wasn't bad either, but quite frankly, I didn't like Simone, the dead wife. I didn't like the ending, because it was quite predictable. The murderer turned out to be the only one in the group of friends who didn't get any attention.... no much suspense.

Anyway, not a bad book, but could have been better. Also, quite a forgettable book. It doesn't impact the readers much.


So, last but not least...

Match me if you can by Susan Elizabeth Phillips: 3/5

This is the book I managed to read this week and quite frankly, I didn't read it all. Why? Well, I read the ending, which I quite enjoyed. Then start the book over and didn't really like the beginning. So basically, I've read from the middle to the end :P
I liked Annabelle, but poor girl... to be stucked with that kind of family? Argh... I understand the parents, but even the big bros... all her family makes her sound like she's mentally retarded instead of , not independant, but rebellious. As for Heath Champion, he was an okay guy.... but what a work-alcoholic. Lucky they had that prenup contract :P So yeah, the story wasn't so bad, but the beginning wasn't so interesting either. You have the usual: guy's looking for a wife and he has an image in mind, but he ends up falling in love, altho he can't admit it, with the complete opposite of what he was looking for.

By the way, I know ppl like to read series and I guess it's easier for the author to write them, but please... when is it too much. I mean, how many couples did we have to re-visit in this book? 4-5? man... and she keeps introducing football players! argh! Oh, and Pippi (altho, very ugly nickname) and her cell phone fetish was hilarious. So was the Smurf part too.