When The Marquess Met His Match

I know every author wants readers who will love their books, but sometimes I think that makes for a harsh mistress.  Maybe I'm the only one who does this, but when an author manages to not only write my favorite romance novel of all time (Breathless) but has written two other "keepers" in the Bat Cave stash (To Dream Again and Conor's Way) - I'm always afraid I'll judge Laura Lee Guhrke, perhaps unfairly, based on her past performances and my expectations.  I started When The Marquess Met His Match, her first new release in two years, with some hesitancy.  I mean, if I don't love it to bits, does that make the book a failure?  The answer is, of course, no.  I liked it.  I really did like it.  I didn't outright love it - but it's still a good read.

Lady Belinda Featherstone is a young widow, which is just the way she likes it.  Her family was "new money" back in the US, which means none of the snooty blue bloods there would even bother to look her way.  So when a dashing British nobleman sweeps her off her feet, she falls head over heels and agrees to marry him.  Only to find out after the fact that he doesn't feel the same way about her and married her only for her sizable dowry.  When her husband dies while in the arms of his latest mistress, Belinda is left with nothing.  Charles burned through her dowry and Daddy lost the family fortune in the last stock market crash.  So Belinda must rely on her friends, her connections and luck - making herself over as a matchmaker.  She pairs up lovely American heiresses who cannot crack society at home, with British lords looking for an influx of cash.  Belinda, naturally, gets a finder's fee, and everything is going along swimmingly - until Nicholas, Marquess of Trubridge shows up at her door.

Nicholas has been living in Paris for the last several years and is great chums with Belinda's brother-in-law.  It's a connection that does not serve him well, given that their collective reputations precede them.  Deeply estranged from his father (a Duke), Nicholas is home to fetch a bride because Daddy has cut off his trust fund.  Nicholas has spent his entire life doing whatever will displease his father the most, so he gets it in his head to marry an American heiress - then he can tell Daddy to go to the devil. The problem is that he needs Belinda's help and she seems rather disinclined to do so.

I've always felt Guhrke is a bit under appreciated, skill-wise, as a writer - and the reasons that make her really good are on display here.  She excels at writing adversarial relationships.  The kind of romances where the hero and heroine are at odds, do a lot of verbal sparring, and try to one-up each other for a good portion of the story.  These are not easy to write, with many a writer trying to pull it off and leaving the reader feeling like they just spent 300+ pages with jackasses.  Guhrke has a way of writing these types of stories with a lot of verve and spunk.  Part of the reason she excels at this is because of her characters.  Her characters tend to be practical, forthright people - but with mountains of hidden, aching vulnerabilities.  Her very best stories, in my estimation, feature heroines who aren't stupid, know the way the world works, put on a brave face for the world - but hide a lot of inner pain. 

Both Nicholas and Belinda have their hidden vulnerabilities.  Nicholas has major Daddy Issues, and basically plays the rake to show the man that he cannot control him.  Belinda put her heart on the line and had her girlhood dreams of the fairy tale crushed by her rat-bastard husband.  They both worked for me as characters, but they're not always easy people to like.  Nicholas makes no bones about wanting to marry for money, but at least he's honest about it.  Belinda is a bit more troublesome.  For someone who had her naivete soullessly crushed, you'd think she'd be a bit more practical.  She's appalled that a blatant fortune hunter like Nicholas would dare darken her doorstep.  I mean, really sweetheart?  What about all those other men sniffing around the girls you are helping make matches?  Just because they aren't honest about wanting to marry for money doesn't make them somehow better.  Again, at least Nicholas is honest.  Given her track record to have Belinda still holding on to romantic ideals strained for me.

But they make up for it with their banter.  If this were the 20th century Nicholas and Belinda would have been cast in a Spencer Tracy / Katharine Hepburn picture.  The verbal sparring is top-notch, and once the two strike up a bargain (of sorts) that doesn't put an end to the games.  And what does verbal sparring really mean?  Yeah, foreplay.  Basically Nicholas and Belinda spend a big chunk of this story in a long dance on the way to hitting the sheets.

It's a quick, lively read featuring two spunky characters.  I wasn't madly in love with it, but I did finish the whole affair positively chomping at the bit to get my hands on the next book in the series.  The author does a good job of setting up her future books without being excessively intrusive, and given the brief glimpses of Edie in this story?  May cannot get here soon enough.

Final Grade = B-

Digital Review: Ripped

Yes, I'm well aware that this is probably the 324th review of Ripped by Sarah Morgan that you've seen plastered all over the Internet.  It's been a venerable squee-fest pretty much across the board.  My review isn't going to sway too far afield from the accolades, but let's just say my reaction is more reserved (maybe it's the librarian thing?).   Oh don't mistake me, it's good.  But there are caveats - because, you know, this is me.  It's all about going into it knowing exactly what it is. 

Fun.

It's "fun" erotic romance. 

The kind of erotic romance you need every now and then to pick yourself up because real life keeps smacking you upside the head.  Will it change your life?  Doubtful.  For those of you who work in public service, think of it like a nice glass of wine and a hot bubble bath after a long day/week/month/eternity of dealing with jackasses.

That's this novella.  It's a glass of wine and a bubble bath.

Sarah Morgan has written scads of books for Harlequin Presents, and it's a foundation that serves her well here.  Not only with the short novella word count, but also with the hero, Nico Rossi.

Nico Rossi wasn't a good boy.  He was a bad boy dressed in a good suit.

He's everything good about a well done Presents hero.  He's smoking hot, drives a fast car, wears great clothes, carries a serious torch for the heroine and is Italian.  That's pretty much all you need to know about him, and pretty much all you learn.  This story is told in first person (which I love!) from the heroine's point of view.  It's Hayley Miller's show, which is fine because not only is she smart and sexy, but she's funny as hell.

The story opens with Hayley at her ex-boyfriend's wedding.  He's marrying one of her former friends.  Hayley is more upset that she wasted ten months of her life on Charlie than she is that he's getting married - still it took some serious balls for the happy couple to ask her to be a bridesmaid.  She only agrees to save face.  I mean, she can't have everyone thinking she's home crying her eyes out and gorging herself on ice cream.  So she crams herself into a hideous dress that doesn't fit and almost dies of boredom while the ceremony drones on.  In fact it drones on so long that when she finally is able to breathe a sigh of relief?  Yeah, her dress splits open.  As in major wardrobe malfunction.

Riding to the rescue is Nico, who is playing the part of best man.  Hayley is mortified, what with her breasts on display for the entire congregation.  However she's also mortified that her humiliation happens in front of Nico.  Not only is the guy smoking hot, but he also faintly disapproves of her.  I mean, he doesn't seem to like her very much.  Turns out Hayley has never been more wrong in her life.

That's basically it.  Think of it as Harlequin Presents Meets Chick Lit.  Hayley is funny and smart, but is naturally a magnet for disaster.  Nico is every woman's dream wrapped up in a Tom Ford suit.  The sparks immediately fly and there's enough chemistry flying around to generate power for a small English village.  Hayley's sister, Rosie, pulls a few strings, and voila!  Hayley is forgetting all about her silly New Year's resolution to stay far away from relationships and falling head over heels.

What saves this from being just another hot-sex-book is the message behind it.  It's one I think almost every woman will be able to relate to - which is to say that relationships aren't about conforming into who the other person wants you to be.  It's about finding that person who loves you for who you already are. 

So hot sex, nice message, and a smoking hot hero that I really wanted a lot more of.  I know it's a novella, but damn I wanted to crawl around in Nico's head a bit more (and inside his Tom Ford suit - uh, while he's wearing it.  Too much you think?).  It's sexy fun and while it didn't change my life?  It's just the sort of story I want to read this time of year.  It's a Calgon-take-me-away sort of book.  It's a I'm-feeling-mopey-and-want-to-stab-someone book.  Read it when you're in a bad mood, because certainly it will immediately cure whatever is ailing you.

Final Grade = B+

Falling for the Highland Rogue

I've been reading romance, somewhat exclusively, for almost 15 years.  I know the genre has changed in that time, but sometimes it takes a book like Falling for the Highland Rogue by Ann Lethbridge (published by that old gray lady Harlequin no less!) to really hammer the point home for me.  If this book had existed 15 years ago a lot (yes, I'm tarring and feathering, but y'all know I'm right!) of readers on various listservs and message boards would have likely been clasping their hands to their chests and demanding smelling salts.

Charity West used to be a lady, but now she's a fallen woman.  Seen as nothing more than a common whore.  In reality she was a terrible whore, a cold fish with "clients," so when Jack purchases her contract, the madam is more than happy to oblige.  Jack is a gambler with his sticky fingers in a lot of pies.  Essentially he uses Charity like a gangster moll.  She's there to aid him in his criminal enterprises.  They're now in Scotland, looking to secure whiskey for Jack's club back in London.  Everybody knows the Gilvry's have the best whiskey in all of Scotland, even if they are running it illegally to stay one step ahead of the English taxmen. 

Logan Gilvry is the youngest brother (yes, this is book three in a series), with the face of an angel that often lead people to underestimating him.  He spies Charity across the room and whamo!  She's the most beautiful woman he has ever laid eyes on, but one look into her eyes and he knows this is a woman who will tell you down is up and like a fool you'll believe her right up until the moment she drives a knife in your back.  Plus, Jack is no fool.  He's playing at some sort of game, and Logan needs to figure out what it is.  In the meantime, to gain a advantage Jack starts arranging for Charity and Logan to spend a lot of quality alone time together.

This is a romance of two people who aren't terribly nice.  Logan and his brothers are criminals.  Oh sure, you can dress it up as romantic as you'd like - the Scottish working class sticking it to the evil, evil English - but they're breaking the law.  Period.  Charity is about as far from a nice girl as you can get.  Sure, it's out of necessity.  Jack is not a nice guy and if Charity has any hope of getting away from him she needs to get her hands on plenty of cash.  That means she'll lie, cheat, bat her eyes, seduce, and flaunt the assets that God gave her.  But you know what?

I adored both of them.  Hook, line, sinker, loved them both.

I tend to get frustrated when the message is, often, in the genre that the boys can be as bad as they want to be and we're expected to love them - but the girl?  She better be home skipping through the forest, singing to various woodland creatures, and baking cookies for poor orphan children, or else she's a no good skank who doesn't deserve him.  I love it (love it!), when the heroine's morals are just as dubious as the hero's, and better yet?  She doesn't apologize for them.  This is the way she is.  This is the hand that life has dealt her.  She made some mistakes, trusted the wrong man, but she's not about to roll over and die.  She's got to find a way and this is it - so deal with it boyo.

That doesn't mean she doesn't have a fit of conscience once she becomes emotionally involved with Logan.  But true to form, she goes about trying to save his ass by falling back on what she knows best, striking deals with less than dubious characters, batting her eyes, and lying through her pretty little teeth.  And Logan?  In typical hero fashion wants to save her.  The problem is saving her could very well mean bad things for his family.

As much as I enjoyed it all, the story did begin to lose steam for me in the final chapters.  The conflict of this story is very much like a continuity series - which is to say that the immediate villain is dealt with, but there's a puppet-master behind the scenes that is still at large.  I also wanted more of Charity's past.  The author tap-dances around it mostly, dropping us hints, and giving us a few crumbs for us to string to the whole thing together.  I found her character so interesting that I think I just wanted a lot more of this spelled-out for me so I could wallow in every glorious angsty minute of it.

The greatest compliment I can give this story is that it's different, in a good way.  It utilizes a familiar setting for readers featuring a historical back-drop that isn't anything new - but fills it with the type of characters that we hardly ever see.  Get your hands on it and save it for that case of Romance Genre Ennui that inevitably befalls every genre reader now and then.  In case of emergency: read this book.

Final Grade = B+

Traveling To The Badlands

I'm over at Heroes & Heartbreakers today offering a "First Look" of Badlands by Jill Sorenson.  This is the third book in a series, and one I've been dying to get my hands on every since I finished book one (Aftershock).

I might have squealed, out loud, when I noticed this book on Netgalley.  Seriously.  It's a rare, beautiful thing when Wendy gets excited about a romance series.

Head on over and read all about my take on Penny's and Owen's romance.

The Month That Was November 2013

Me:  Whew!  Sorry it took so long for me to get here kiddo.

Lemon Drop: That's alright Auntie Wendy, I've been keeping plenty busy.

Me: Oh really?  With what?

Lemon Drop:  Two words: Fire. Men.

Me: Oh boy.  It might be time for us to have a little chat.  But before we do that, let's talk about what I read last month.  I spent the Thanksgiving holiday traveling, which meant no work sucking out my soul and a chance to relax.  So I managed to get eight books read last month!

Everything You Need To Know by HelenKay Dimon - Contemporary romance novella, Cosmo Red Hot Reads, 2013, Grade = B-

• Heroine who runs an exclusive online dating site meets her match in one of Washington D.C.'s most notable eligible bachelors.  The pacing felt a little off to me at times, but otherwise good, clean, sexy fun.

Single Dad's Christmas Miracle by Susan Meier - Contemporary romance, Harlequin Romance, 2013, Grade = C

• Heroine at loose ends takes job tutoring hero's troubled children.  A Mary Poppins romance with plenty of angst, but a wee bit of Magical Thinking and I felt the childrens' "issues" were easily handled with minimal effort.

Rumors That Ruined A Lady by Marguerite Kaye - Historical romance, Harlequin Historical, 2013, Grade = B+

• Good girl listens to her Daddy and marries the man he chooses for her - only to find herself tossed out on her ear with vicious gossip being spread about her.  Riding to the rescue, the hero - who saves her from an opium overdose.  Oodles of angsty goodness.

The Duke of Shadows by Meredith Duran - Historical romance, Pocket, 2008, Grade = B

• My TBR Challenge read for the month.  I loved the first half of this story that takes place in India.  But once the action moves to England in the second half, my interest began to wane.

Backfield in Motion by Jami Davenport - Contemporary romance, Boroughs Publishing, 2013, Grade = B-

• Tomboy heroine with a full plate finds herself hopelessly distracted by the hero, a guy with a pretty boy façade that hides a whole lot of emotional pain.  There are a lot of elements at play here (maybe too many), but the author ties up all her sub plots well.  My only quibble?  The hero is kind of a jerk at times.

Unraveled by the Rebel by Michelle Willingham - Historical romance, Amazon Montlake, 2013, Grade = B

• Heroine with a Big Ol' Secret finds herself dodging the attentions of her childhood sweetheart, the hero.  Lurking in the shadows?  The dastardly villain.  More angst than you can shake a stick at, and I lapped up every glorious bit of it.

Sleigh Bells in the Snow by Sarah Morgan - Contemporary romance, HQN, 2013, Grade = B+

• Scrooge heroine agrees to work over Christmas hoping to escape the holiday.  Instead she falls under the spell of the hero and his family.  Loved the small town feel and appreciated that the author didn't bog her story down with a bunch of extraneous saccharine and goofy shenanigans that, sadly, befall a lot of small town single title contemporaries.

Return of the Cowboy Doctor by Lacy Williams - Historical romance, Love Inspired Historical, 2013, Grade = B

• Heroine with dreams of going to medical school finds herself distracted by medical student hero who has returned home to secure additional funds.  A sweet romance that puts a modern "she wants it all" spin on a historical heroine.

Me: Lemon Drop, sweetie - you're only three years old.  Don't grow up too fast.  There will be plenty of time for boys later.

Lemon Drop:  Auntie Wendy, what exactly are you talking about?

Me: You know, your fascination with firemen.....

Lemon Drop:  But I like firemen!  They get to ride around it big red trucks, and wear cool helmets, and even have these cool masks they wear over their faces.  Oooooh, and they can get in water fights whenever they want!

Me:  Oh, so you're not interested in firemen because, um.....

Lemon Drop:  You aren't making any sense Auntie Wendy.

Me:  Never mind.  Carry on.

Over At H&H

I've had two posts go live over at Heroes & Heartbreakers this week.

First up, a First Look of Forged in the Desert Heat by Maisey Yates - which is one of the all-time most glorious of Harlequin Presents sub-categories.....a sheikh romance.  I'm not a big fan of sheikh stories, but this one is pretty good, mostly because the author makes her heroine self-aware and the hero has all the delicious angsty baggage we've come to expect from Presents heroes over the years.  If I were grading it, I would say this one landed somewhere around my B-/B territory.

The other post was a collaboration, the first in a series of "Best of 2013" where H&H bloggers talk about their three favorite reads of the last year.  While I still plan on doing my usual year-end round-up on this blog (so many good B+ reads to talk about!), you can get a sneak peak over at H&H where I mention three A-rated titles I read last year.  Coincidentally, all books featuring "older" heroines. 

TBR Challenge 2013: The Amnesiac's Christmas

The Book: A Christmas to Remember by Kay Stockham

The Particulars: Contemporary romance, Harlequin SuperRomance #1453, 2007, Out of print, Available digitally, Connected to previous book, Man With a Past.

Why Was It In Wendy's TBR?:  It's a SuperRomance and it's a Christmas book.  How could it not be in my TBR?

The Review:  Y'all need to bear with me because I have no idea how the hell I'm going to assign a grade to this book.  I mean, really - I have no clue.  There was so much I liked here and yet?  I didn't read the first book in this series.  Oh, I have Man With a Past.  It's in my TBR (because, hello, what book isn't?).  Maybe if I had read that book first I wouldn't have been so annoyed with the "plot twist" the author put in halfway through this story.  Because, you know, I would have known said "twist" was coming and would have been prepared for it.

Marley Pierce wouldn't believe it if she hadn't seen him with her own eyes.  Beau Buchanan is back in town.  The same Beau Buchanan who seduced his way into her panties when she was eighteen.  The same Beau Buchanan who went hot and heavy with her for two glorious weeks her first summer away from home.  The same Beau Buchanan who knocked her up and couldn't run fast enough when she told him she had a bun in the oven.  Beau Buchanan ruined her life, shattered her family, and Marley has spent the last five years trying to redeem herself in the eyes of her family and the small town where she lives.  She owns the local nursery and has gotten the contract to do the landscaping at a new housing development.  And Beau Buchanan?  His Dad's company won the contract to do all the electrical.  Oh fun times!

Beau doesn't remember Marley, he wishes he did.  A Marine, he was wounded in Iraq.  Those wounds included a serious conk on the head - which means Beau is suffering from "retrograde amnesia."  The doctors assure his father he'll likely remember things "in time" but during this recovery period Beau is to get therapy and "remember on his own."  In other words, no coaching.  Which is kind of tough for Marley since he 1) ruined her life and 2) is now playing the amnesia card.

I immediately got sucked into this story.  Beau was a Grade A Jerkface.  I mean, the guy was a douchebag.  So it's easy to understand why Marley is floored to see him waltzing into her life again.  And then she meets this "new Beau" and is really confused.  He's so unlike the guy she knew at eighteen.  He has changed from the lying reprobate he used to be.  But her life is, well, complicated.  She's got a brother who wants to kill him, an ultra-conservative dickhole father and a mother who has been popping pills to hide from the world thanks to her "whore" daughter.

Seriously, can you imagine Sunday dinners at that house?

Anyway, it's a good little story.  Things are moving along swimmingly.  I start to wonder how the author is going to get Marley and Beau together given their past history together, even if Beau doesn't remember it - then whamo! 

The plot twist.

Sigh.

Which, you know, maybe would have been fine if I hadn't been so blindsided by it.  But that twist basically changes the entire story for the reader.  I was no longer reading the story I had become invested in.  How?  Because the twist changes the story.  It changes everything I had been reading for the first half of the book.  And dammit all to jingle bells, I had become invested in THAT story.

Which leaves me in a quandary.  I liked the characters, I loved the angst, I really enjoyed the author's style (so glad I have more books in my TBR!) - but I cannot tell a lie.  The plot twist kinda ticked me off.  Because again, it changed the story I was reading.  It took away the story I had become invested in.  And to a certain extent?  That twist robs the reader, and Marley, of what I think we both deserved and needed.  Closure.

So for lack of a better answer?

Final Grade = C

And since I know it will drive some of you crazy if I don't say - please highlight to see the spoiler plot twist:  Beau isn't really Beau.  He's Beau's buddy, Jack Brody.  They were in the Marines together and they apparently look A LOT alike.  So much so that when Jack is recovered wearing Beau's dog-tags (which is explained), everyone thinks that he's Beau.  It's only after an incident involving a food allergy that Beau's father realizes that his son ain't his son.  They buried Beau, not Jack.  Jack is alive.  Beau is dead.  Beau doesn't get the chance to be redeemed and Marley doesn't get the chance to 1) confront him and/or 2) cut off his balls.  Frankly, that kinda pissed me off.  /end spoiler

Please keep the spoilers out of the comments, just in case.  Thanks all!

Digital Review: The Wicked Confessions of Lady Cecelia Stanton

Warning: Frothing at the mouth, naughty language (I swear - a lot) and spoilers abound.

It was while I was working on my monthly shopping list post of "unusual historicals" for Heroes & Heartbreakers that I ran across The Wicked Confessions of Lady Cecelia Stanton by Viveka Portman.  A novella from Harlequin Australia's Escape line, I was immediately intrigued by the description that promised me an erotic romance with a strong girl-on-girl angle.  By my count, I'm one of three erotic romance readers who thinks there isn't nearly enough f/f pairings, so whenever I see a whiff of it, especially from a "mainstream" publisher?  I'm all over that like white on rice.  So yes, I was more than eager to love this novella.  Instead it left me angry.

Very, very angry.

And in typical fashion?  Yeah, it's all ruined by the penis.  OK, maybe not the penis.  Just the asshat the penis is attached too.  Oh and the insipid brain-dead heroine who is married to the asshat attached to the penis.

A sweet young virginal Miss Thang, Lady Cecelia hasn't even had a full first Season before her Daddy pairs her up with Lord William Stanton.  The same Lord Stanton who is a notorious rake.  Seriously, no orifice is safe when Stanton's penis walks into a room - the fish even stop swimming.  So needless to say, the wedding night is a disaster since her husband is intoxicated and has all the finesse of a 16-year-old boy who gets his date in the back seat of his father's Buick.  Comforting Cecelia in her hour of need is her maid, Bess - whom she has known since childhood.  Bess assures her that sex ain't all bad and volunteers to show Cecelia the ropes.  An "education" if you will.  The idea being that once Cecelia learns how awesome-sauce sex can be, she'll welcome her randy husband's attentions.  Seriously sweetheart?  Caligula would be easier to keep up with.

Anyhoodle, things go along quite swimmingly until Cecelia gets pregnant and Stanton is told he needs to keep Little Mr. Venereal Disease Petri Dish away from his wife.  Oh, and gentle readers?  Cecelia ends up having five (count 'em five!) children over the course of this story.  And every time she gets knocked up?  Stanton wanders off to London to debauch every whore in a 50 mile radius, with rumors of his infidelity getting back to his wife in record time.

Now this is an erotic story, and the presence of multiple partners isn't exactly unheard of, let alone shocking.  The problem is that Stanton's infidelities hurt Cecelia terribly.  The emotional component of her being "hurt" makes a colossally huge difference here.  It's one thing if she knows about and "condones" his philandering.  It's something else entirely when the learned knowledge of his screwing everything that stands still for three seconds emotionally wounds her - which it does.  Stanton is crude, uncouth, and has all the polish of a cheap carnival ring that turns your finger green.  He's like the little boy who gets caught with his hand in the cookie jar, says he's sorry, but really isn't.  And why should he be truly sorry?  Why should he be remorseful?  Because during her first pregnancy he stays well and truly gone until the damn baby is three months old!  Gambling away their resources!  Screwing everything in sight!  Cecelia is lonely.  She's hurt by her husband's massive jackassery.  And then he comes waltzing back home, falls to his knees, apologizes like the little boy that he is and.....

SHE FORGIVES HIM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And then she gets pregnant four more times, the pattern repeats itself four more times and she keeps forgiving him.  Until finally, while pregnant with Baby #5, he doesn't go to London, he stays home and she gets aroused when she spies on him debauching the damn wet nurse.

I just can't even.

ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So what about the reason why I read this novella in the first place.  You know, the girl-on-girl action?  Well, first off - it's not exactly painted with a descriptive brush.  Honestly, it's pretty PG.  Bess and Cecelia also aren't exclusive to each other.  I mean, obviously.  Bess is a comely young lass who enjoys male attention and Cecelia is busy forgiving her jackass husband all the time.  This part of the story is almost like an after thought.  Very little time is spent here.  Instead our time is spent reading about Asshole and Doormat Girl - which....

I just can't even.

The worst though?  Yes, it gets worse - rumors start circulating that Cecelia isn't faithful and Asshole actually gets ANGRY with HER?!?!?!  She tells him off, but then STAYS!!!!!  She doesn't pack up the fifteen million babies he's gotten her pregnant with and head to London.  She doesn't kick him out of the house.  She lets him STAY?!?!?!?!?  Then when she finds out about the wet nurse he's banging under the same roof where they RAISE THEIR CHILDREN, she confesses her relationship with Bess to him.  Douchebag is, shockingly /end sarcasm, pretty OK with this confession (duh) and then Cecelia agrees that maybe it would be OK for Bess to join the husband/wife unit during Play Time.

So Douchebag Asshole Walking Venereal Disease(s) not only can whore around and have his doormat wife keep taking him back - but now he's rewarded by also getting to enjoy watching his wife with her female lover.

I just can't even.

The lesson of this story is apparently forgive your husband everything under the sun ladies, and it's OK to have your little lesbian tail on the side - just so long as in the end you let your husband know about it and let him sit in on your dalliances.

I just can't even.

You know why I'm drawn to erotic romance?  When it's done right, it has a strong feminist core.  It's about the heroine's journey.  It's about the heroine "winning."  It's about the heroine being OK with her sexuality and not being punished for it.  In a word, it's subversive.  It celebrates female sexuality in a world that often belittles, stifles and punishes woman for having even the most simple of desires.  This story?  This story is none of that.  This story rewards a "hero" who is the worst sort of asshole and the heroine loses.  Oh sure, she'll get her sexual kicks, but at what cost?  Because at the end of the day?  This guy doesn't love her, despite what he may say.  He's amoral and narcissistic.  And how exactly is a woman who puts up with this sort of nonsense a romance heroine?  I'll tell you - she's not.  She's weak.  She's losing.  And the worst part is she's perfectly content to keep on losing just so long as she can have her Bess-on-the-side and partake in a little voyeurism while her husband screws the household staff.

I just can't even.

Now I'm off to find the nearest bottle of vodka.  If you'll excuse me.

Final Grade = F

Digital Review: Under a Christmas Spell

I think it's pretty well documented that I like to read "short," no more so than this time of year.  I understand why some readers dislike shorts, but for me I think they are a great way to evaluate writers.  Writing in a short format takes a certain sort of skill - one that not all writers possess - and just as I have "autobuy" authors in longer formats?  I have "autobuy" authors in shorter formats.  Barbara Monajem is one of those writers.  She tends to handle tight word counts well, and her historical short stories for Harlequin Historical Undone are always interesting, if not always successful, reads for me.  Under a Christmas Spell is one of the successful ones and is a nice holiday story that blends light paranormal elements with one of my favorite historical backdrops - the country house party.

Napoleon finally vanquished, Lord Valiant Oakenhurst has come home to England.  However, he has one more mission - a rather absurd one in his opinion, but orders are orders.  An incubus, Valiant is told to find a way into a house party and awaken the dormant sexual nature of Miss Theodora Southern.  Someone higher up the food chain wants the chit to marry and she has some silly notion that she'll only marry "for love."  The belief is that once Valiant gets her all hot and bothered that she'll be more, uh....receptive to suitors.  Things get complicated though when he see Lucille Beaulieu traveling with Miss Southern.

Lucie and Valiant go way back to the war.  She's a succubus and they were both spies.  Lucie thwarted a mission for Valiant back then, and while he was none to pleased about it?  Yeah, he's still go the hots for her. So why the deuce is Lucie at this silly house party?  Turns out she's there on a similar mission as Valiant's, except her target is the host - Lord Westerly.  He's a fine, upstanding Lord - someone that needs to get making babies for God and country.  Except ever since he's been back from the war?  Yeah, Westerly has had no eye for the ladies.  The hope is that Lucie's particular brand of seduction will "awaken" his needs and get him on the marriage mart.

The paranormal elements are painted with a light brush, and I liked that both hero and heroine had dubious pasts that have led to their paths crossing more than once.  Lucie, in particular, is exceedingly happy that the war is over - having grown tired of the various games.  While Valiant may scoff at all things Christmas - the big (and really only) appeal to this mission for her is that she's going to have a nice English country holiday, complete with Yule logs, pudding, and wassailing.  However Valiant being on the scene worries her.  I mean, what if he's there because he has orders to dispose of her?

I can see some readers getting through this story and wishing there was more.  The war years for both hero and heroine are glossed over a bit, and the paranormal world-building cannot really be delved into great detail considering the word count.  The way it reads, it sounds like Valiant, and possibly Lucie, are magical beings born from non-magical parents.  Lucie is an orphan, Valiant basically disowned by his family.  This is all glossed over considerably, but I did enjoy the author's take on the incubus/succubus mythology.  For me it's more "fun" here than say, the ol' "they're demons!" take on the idea.  Lucie and Valiant are just.....really hot and have that knack for invading dream space.  Good looks, charisma, that "it factor" - in this day and age they'd be movie stars.

There's a connected short story in this duet, Under a New Year's Enchantment, coming out in January that will wrap everything up by continuing the story of Miss Southern and Lord Westerly.  As it stands, I'm glad readers aren't quite done seeing Lucie and Valiant.  They found their happy ending, but they'll be back.

Final Grade = B

Reminder: TBR Challenge for December

For those of you participating in the 2013 TBR Challenge, this is a reminder that your "commentary" is due on Wednesday, December 18.

The theme this month is Holiday Reads.   Any and all holidays are welcome, but let's be honest - something tells me more than a few of us are going to be reading Christmas stories.  But what if you loathe Christmas romances and no other holidays are represented in your TBR?  Never fear!  Remember, the themes are totally and completely optional.  The themes aren't important - it's the act of reading something, anything!, that has been lying neglected in your TBR pile.

I hope you had fun participating and/or following along with this year's TBR Challenge.  Interested in joining for 2014?  Please see the newly created 2014 TBR Challenge Information Page for details.

Annoucing the 2014 TBR Challenge!

That's right kiddies - we're doing it again!  In another continuing bid into deluding myself that I'm actually making progress up the mountain, I will host a TBR Challenge for 2014.

What is the TBR Challenge?  Simply put, it's where readers pick up a long neglected book from their TBR pile, read it, and comment on that read on the 3rd Wednesday of every month.  The idea is to read those long neglected books that you just had to get your hands on at the time, but have been languishing in your pile, all lost and forgotten.

Commentary on your chosen TBR read can happen anywhere online (your blog, Facebook, GoodReads, Twitter, a message board etc.) just provide me with a link when you sign-up so interested readers can follow all the challengers!

This is a voluntary challenge and I want this to be fun.  Hey, life happens.  If you have to skip a month, there will be no ridicule.  Likewise, while there will be bragging rights for those that complete the challenge without skipping a single month - there is no pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

Since some readers like a little guidance, I will also be keeping with tradition and providing themes.  These themes are totally voluntary.  If you don't have anything in your TBR that fits, the theme doesn't appeal, or you just want to read something else - go for it!  Again, this is meant to be a fun challenge.

Monthly Review Dates And Theme Suggestions

January 15 - We Love Short Shorts! (Short stories, Novellas, category romance)
February 19 - Series Catch-Up (pick a book from a series you're behind on)
March 19 - New-To-You Author (an author you've never read before)
April 16 - Contemporary romance
May 21 - More Than One (An author who has more than one book in your TBR pile)
June 18 - Romance Classics (classic book, classic author, classic trope/theme etc.)
July 16 - Lovely RITA (past RITA winners or nominees)
August 20 - Luscious Love Scenes (erotic romance, erotica, a "sensual" read - leave those "just kisses" books alone this month!)
September 17 - Recommended read (a book recommended to you by someone)
October 15 - Paranormal or romantic suspense
November 19 - Historical romance
December 17 - Holiday themes (Christmas, Thanksgiving, Valentine's Day, it's all good!)

If you are interested in signing up for next year's challenge, please leave a comment on this blog post, or e-mail me, providing me with a link to where you will be posting your commentary every month.

The information page for this challenge, along with the links of all the participants can be found on the sidebar of this blog - just click on the 2014 TBR Challenge logo.

Curious about what the TBR Challenge entails?  Never participated before?  Here are links to some of my posts from previous years. 

2013 TBR Challenge
2012 TBR Challenge
2011 TBR Challenge

It really is a lot of fun, the themes are totally optional (if that is a concern) plus it's a way to ensure you're making some sort of progress on all those books you're currently hording (surely I can't be the only one). 

Sign-up officially begins now.  C'mon, don't be shy!

Unusual Historicals List At H&H

My December "shopping list" of "unusual historicals" has gone live over at Heroes & Heartbreakers.

December is never known for being an orgy when it comes to new book offerings.  Publishers tend to pull back after the bonanza that is the big fall/autumn push.  However it's really light for "unusual" historicals this month.  In fact, my list is basically a giant advertisement for Harlequin.  Which is just the way it fell.  Hopefully we'll see a little more variety in titles, and publishers, at the start of the new year.

Return Of The Cowboy Doctor

Writing is never easy, but sometimes I think achieving "sweet" (or "gentle") is exceptionally hard for a writer to pull off.  There's that very fine line between sweetly satisfying to rushing to your dentist to fill a newly formed cavity.  Lacy Williams is my go-to author for when I simply want a sweet, gentle read that won't send me into a diabetic coma.  Return of the Cowboy Doctor continues her Wyoming Legacy series and features Maxwell White, who I fell in love with when he was a little boy in a previous book, The Homesteader's Sweetheart.  Maxwell is now all grown up, and oh my!  He's grown up fine.

Maxwell White still has two years left before completing medical school, but he finds himself coming home due to a lack of funds.  His plan is to make some money helping his brother Oscar on his ranch and pulling some extra hours with the local doctor.  He's hoping that working alongside with Dr. Powell will be a valuable learning experience.  What he didn't plan on?  Becoming powerfully attracted to the doctor's daughter, Hattie.

Hattie Powell has the misfortune of being born a female.  Against her mother's wishes, she has been helping her father with his practice for the last several years.  She's a very competent nurse, but what she really wants is to go to medical school.  It's a dream she desperately wants, and she's even close to securing a scholarship (only an interview remains).  The problem is that she's been unable to convince her parents.  She's hoping that by being efficient, competent and invaluable to her father, that he will somehow open his eyes and realize that Hattie going to school is an obvious next step.  Except now Maxwell White is in town, and she's worried this medical student may distract her father when she desperately needs his focus firmly placed on her.  Adding further complications?  Having successfully thwarted her mother's attempts at matchmaking, Hattie finds herself hopelessly distracted and attracted to the quiet, shy cowboy.

While Williams writes for the inspirational Love Inspired Historical line, her books tend to be very subtle when it comes to the religious elements.  Honestly, half the time I think the only reason Harlequin has placed her in this line (as opposed to Harlequin Historical) is that she keeps her books sex-free.  Obviously this is a western, so the church plays an important role in this story - mostly as a community gathering place, but also as shelter during a time of crisis for the small town.  But other than that?  Readers can rest assured that the author won't be trying to convert them.

Maxwell is a textbook example of a Beta hero.  He's shy, quiet, and reticent.  Also, despite his adoptive mother's best efforts, he still awkward around women.  He's not suave or debonair.  More often then not he has a tendency to open his mouth and insert his foot.  He's attracted to Hattie, charmed by her drive and intelligence.  But when it comes to opening his mouth and talking to her?  He's has no idea what he's doing.

In turn it's not hard for Hattie to notice handsome, unsure Maxwell.  Especially when all her single girlfriends start manufacturing various "ailments" to spend time in his company.  What charms her the most?  Besides the fact that he really seems clueless about all of that - is that Maxwell really sees her.  I mean, really sees her.  He immediately questions why she hasn't applied to medical school.  He hits on her secret dream immediately when her own parents haven't opened their eyes to that fact.

The crux of the conflict is that this is a historical story and Hattie is a woman who wants it all.  She's desperate to go to medical school, even though she knows it will not be an easy road to travel.  But then she gets distracted by Maxwell.  She falls for him.  Hattie wants it all, but given the era we're dealing with?  She doesn't think she can have it all.  It's either marry the man and squirt out babies or go to medical school and become a spinster.  Or is it?  How the author resolves this conflict is ultimately what makes the story.  Hattie wins, and as the reader - we all win right along with her.  And shy, hesitant Maxwell?  Well, he finally figures out that to get the girl - you need to find the right girl first.

Final Grade = B

Sleigh Bells In The Snow

For every romance reader who loves Christmas-themed stories there are just as many readers who strongly dislike them.  I can understand this, because the holiday season is often tough, emotionally, on a lot of people.  Also, let's be honest Christmas romance fans, it's easy for the schmaltz to creep in.  How many books have we all read featuring Pollyanna heroines sprinkling Christmas fairy dust over the surly Scrooge-like hero until her brand of saccharine somehow manages to win him over but leaves the rest of us with a massive toothache?  What Sarah Morgan gives readers with Sleigh Bells in the Snow is the exact opposite.  She's somehow managed to deliver a story for all the non-Christmas romance fans out there.

A Brit living in New York City, Kayla Green hates Christmas.  The hoopla, the forced "good cheer," the endless office parties, the tinsel strewn over every object that stands still for more than five seconds.  She really dislikes the holidays.  Kayla is all work, no play, and because of this is the rising star at the PR firm where she works.  So it's only natural that she's tapped to handle the incoming Snow Crystal account.  A resort in Vermont, it's a family business working on it's fourth generation.  Unfortunately it's in trouble, which leads to prodigal son Jackson O'Neil coming home to try to right the ship.  Even though he's a successful businessman in his own right, he's getting a lot of static from the other members of his family.  He's hoping hiring Kayla, a decision the family isn't universally overjoyed about, will drum up what Snow Crystal desperately needs - paying customers.  Even so, he's shocked when Kayla volunteers to spend the week of Christmas at the resort to work on her proposal.  Who willingly would give up their Christmas holiday to work?

Kayla, that's who.  All Jackson has to say is "secluded cabin" and Kayla is all in.  She can hide out in Vermont, burn the midnight oil, land the Snow Crystal account and avoid Christmas all at once!  Or so she thinks.  She's not quite prepared for Jackson's family or Jackson.  Everything about this plan soon spells certain doom for Kayla's wounded heart and before you know it she ends up falling for her client hook, line and sinker.

What a lovely role-reversal this story was!  Not that Jackson is a Pollyanna who wants to sprinkle Christmas fairy dust all over Kayla, but he is a man who believes in and is devoted to his family.  Even when they're being a massive pain in his ass.  Snow Crystal is where Jackson grew up.  It's where he and his brothers learned to ski.  It's where they found themselves.  And it's also the source of a lot of their own personal baggage.  Jackson comes home to clean up the mess left by his recently deceased father and to prove to everyone (especially his grandfather) that he's the man who can ensure that the family business will be around for future generations.

Kayla is haunted by an epic screwed-up childhood.  She's always felt like an outsider looking in, and no other time of year has a way of accentuating that quite like Christmas.  Not only does Jackson disarm her, but his entire family has a way of crawling under her hardened exterior.  Then when Jackson decides that they should stop ignoring the chemistry that is coursing between them?  It only gets worse for her.  Why can't he just keep his distance and let her bury her head in her work?

Morgan channels all the elements and charm of a small town contemporary without drowning the reader in all the things that can make small town contemporaries annoying.  She develops the family dynamic and wisely keeps the focus of the story strongly on the family members.  She includes a couple of non-family member workers at the resort in order to set the stage for the future books in the series featuring Jackson's brothers (hey, those guys are going to need heroines!).  She creates a cozy holiday vibe to the Snow Crystal resort and has Kayla experiencing all that can be offered at such a place during that time of year.  Slowly, as the heroine begins to thaw - the romance blossoms.  It's a great first book in a series, and just the ticket to get you in the proper holiday mood.

Final Grade = B+

Unraveled By The Rebel

Unraveled by the Rebel by Michelle Willingham is the second book in her Secrets In Silk series.  I had a mixed reaction to the first in the series, but I tend to like Willingham's books and the promise that at least a couple of the sisters would end up with "non-titled" heroes propelled me into trying this story.  I'm glad I did.  Not only did it explode the mercury in my Angst Thermometer, it was a really good read.

Juliette Andrews is the daughter of a baron.  For the last several years the family has been at their Scottish home while Daddy has been busy fighting Napoleon on the continent.  The family finances have fallen into disrepair leading the eldest daughter, Victoria, to secretly sew and sell sexy lingerie (the corsets are flying off the shelves in London!).  This enterprise is, obviously, held as a closely guarded secret because if the truth came out?  The family would be ruined.  Juliette helps this enterprise by keeping the books and tinkering with her father's ledgers so their mother is none the wiser.  She is also in love with local boy, Paul Fraser.  She's above him in station, but it doesn't stop from young love blossoming.  That is, until Paul's father is lynched by the villain, an earl whose lands border the Andrews' property.  Paul is sent away to live with his uncle in Edinburgh and starts medical school.  While he's away, he and Juliette write each other.  Until one day, Juliette's letters simply stop coming.

Juliette stops writing Paul because she's ruined.  That dastardly earl?  Yeah, becomes obsessed with her in hopes of securing her family's lands.  He manages to get Juliette alone and rapes her (this event takes place before the start of the book - so readers are saved from actually reading about it as it happens).  Not only that, but there were "complications" from the brutality.  Juliette believes she is unfit to be any man's wife, let alone Paul's wife - a man she does desperately care about.  And now Paul is back home, putting on the full court press.  He's proposed.  Repeatedly.  She's said no.  Repeatedly.  He's determined to find out why Juliette is pushing him away.  He thought she cared about him.  Will he be able to convince her?  And more importantly, what will happen when he finds out that the man who murdered his father also brutalized the woman he's always loved?

Oh the angst!  The glorious angst!  Willingham has never been shy about writing gut-wrenching, soul-crushing angst and she really slathers it on in this book.  Juliette has an epic Big Secret and Paul is the very definition of a Hero In Pursuit.  These two are perfect for each other, they love each other, but given Juliette's trauma and complicated life - it's easy to see why she would feel the need to push Paul away for his own good.  Lucky for her, and the reader, that Paul doesn't give up easily.  There's also a bit of a Dickensian twist to Paul's back-story, and while I probably should have been annoyed about it - I wasn't.  Juliette needs protecting, and time to recover her sense of personal strength, and this twist to Paul's story achieves that goal.

If I had one quibble about this story it's that I'm not sure it stands alone perfectly well.  I think it can be read without any knowledge of the first book, but I don't think readers will get the same experience.  The first book really lays the groundwork for the family lingerie business, and also delves more deeply into the absence of the girls' father.  What this book accomplishes that I'm not sure the first book did?  It really cements the series.  While I finished the first book merely vaguely curious about the other sisters, I finished this story anxious to get my hands on the final two books in the series.  Willingham has created four sisters who all have distinct personalities, but yet still read like four women who really could be sisters.  They're not just playing "types."  They're sisters.  As the reader, you understand their differences, but totally buy into the idea that they all could have sprung from the same womb, and been raised in the same environment.

It's a really good, angst-filled, emotionally-draining read.  Now I just need to wait for Amelia's book.

Final Grade = B

Digital Review: Backfield in Motion

Backfield in Motion by Jami Davenport is the fourth book in the author's series about a fictional American football team, the Seattle Lumberjacks.  It's one of the very few romance genre series that I am currently, unabashedly, hooked on.  What has been the selling point, for me, is the entire world the author has been able to create - the team, the organization, the players, the coaches, the front office, just everything that goes into the world of professional athletes.  So while I didn't quite enjoy this story as much as some of the earlier entries, it's still a solid addition that propels the series forward.

Bruce "Bruiser" Mackey is the team's star running back and, outside of the quarterback, Tyler, the face of the franchise.  And oh what a face it is!  Bruce is a pretty boy, something he plays up for maximum effect.  This is the guy who does underwear ads.  Who is known to have not one, but two, good-looking women on his arm at any one time.  But behind that impossibly sexy face and charming smile?  There's a lot of secret pain.

Mackenzie Hernandez is on the grounds keeping crew at the Lumberjacks home stadium.  She's a bit of a tomboy and is seen as "just one of the guys."  Which normally is OK with her - except she's got a really annoying, really distracting crush on Bruce.  Bruce, who thinks she's "one of the guys."  Bruce who will play pool with her, pal around with her, and drink beer with her.  Bruce who doesn't see her as a woman at all.  Or so she thinks!  Anxious to win an annual scholarship the organization awards every year, Mac knows she needs to "network" to increase her chances.  The problem being?  Bruce gets roped in to help her and things get, well, complicated.

I love a good Ugly Duckling/Cinderella story, and that's what the author goes for with Mac.  Mac knows who she is and what she wants - it's just that life keeps throwing up road blocks.  Besides being dismissed out of hand because she's not "girly" - her family is still haunted by the disappearance of her older brother.  Her father is obsessed, tracking down every half-baked "lead" that comes his way and spying on the merry widow.  Naturally Mac not only has to deal with this fallout, she also finds herself drawn into "helping" her father with his various snooping.  It doesn't leave any time for having a life.  It doesn't leave any time for Mac to move on.  So when sparks start flying between her and Bruce?  It's a real eye-opener for her.

In turn, Bruce has some interesting baggage - also involving a doomed brother.  This gives our couple "something in common" outside of football, and provides some emotional heft to the sexy contemporary vibe of the romance.  What didn't quite work as well for me?  Well, Bruce.  He's kind of a jerk.  Which is funny since it's the team quarterback, Tyler, who is the Asshole With The Heart Of Gold figure.  No, Bruce is just kind of a jerk.  His only real friend on the team is the back-up quarterback.  The same back-up who has a "thing" for Mac.  Bruce gives pause for like, three seconds, and steamrolls his way into Mac's panties anyway.  OK sure, Mac doesn't have the hots for Brett - but still.  I mean, isn't there an unspoken Guy Code about such things?  I also found myself wanting a bit more on Bruce's family situation.  More time spent with his mother and sister would have been welcome in really delving behind that pretty boy façade he'd built up.

In the end this is a good story.  The author tackles a lot here (the romance, the mystery of Mac's brother, there's even a kid thrown into the mix) and ties up all her threads nicely.  I didn't inhale it in quite the same way I did the previous books in the series, but it's a nice addition and moves things forward for Brett's story - which I cannot wait to get my hands on.

Final Grade = B-

Back From Thanksgiving Hiatus

Like a bad penny that keeps turning up, I'm back from my hiatus.  We spent Thanksgiving with the in-laws, which meant Wendy was out in the boonies with no cable TV, no computer, and if you don't have Verizon as your cell phone provider?  Yeah, you don't have a cell phone.  Plus, you know, I spent the week in freezing temperatures with about a foot of snow on the ground.  Let's just say what passes for cold around the Bat Cave seems downright tropical in comparison.  So, what happened while I was away?  Well, a few things.....

+++++

My latest list of "unusual historicals" went live over at Heroes & Heartbreakers.  November was an intriguing month.  Usually these lists feature a little bit of everything, but for November it was all America vs. Great Britain.  So while the settings may be familiar, there is a nice variety.  Everything from whisky runners to those upstart colonists! 

Head on over and check it out.

+++++

Warning: Spoilers for Season Four of Boardwalk Empire commencing in 3, 2, 1.....

Since I was away in the boonies with no cable TV - that meant I had to wait a whole week to watch the season finale of Boardwalk Empire.  We finally watched it last night and....

Sigh.

This was a pretty mediocre season for me.  I spent the whole season waffling between annoyance and disinterest in the Dr. Narcisse character and while I "get" he almost has to be included in a show that essentially plays around with real historical events/characters - ugh, J. Edgar Hoover.

And then there is Richard.  Poor, doomed Richard.  Yes, realistically I knew this guy wasn't destined for Fairy Tale Happy Land - but couldn't it have been a bit more epic and not quite so sad?  Like, you know, the season three finale when he shoots up the brothel?  Basically Richard rides off into the sunset because he 'effs up.

So much for a blaze of glory.

Oh well.  At least we still have yummy pictures of Jack Huston sans Richard's mask to keep us warm at night.

+++++

I got a lot of reading done while I was away, so expect several book reviews over the next few days.  You know, just as soon as I carve out some time to write them.  A nice mix of contemporary and historical romance and not a single dud in the bunch!  Yippee!

Stay tuned.