December 26th, 2009 — 2.5 Stars, Australia/New Zealand, Book Review, Category, Contemporary, Cooking, Great Britain, Housekeeper/Maid, J-L, Secret Baby, Travel, Tycoon
When Cristo Verón, owner of a vastly successful private plane company, heard that his soon to be brother-in-law might have gotten some maid pregnant in Australia, he hops on the soonest flight out to check the woman and her claim out. He expects to find a pretty face and not much else, instead he finds that Isabelle Brown. She is not what he expects and pretty soon Cristo is determined to have this little housekeeper as his mistress. Will he figure out he wants her all to himself or will he lose the only thing money can’t buy?
Magnate’s Make Believe Mistress is a quick read. There were some inconsistencies that I wondered about as I read. For instance, why did he check out the woman’s claim instead of the potential father? Why not hire a detective to sniff her out? It is an interesting spin on the "secret-baby" plot though, so I give Bronwyn Jameson credit for that.
I was there was more meat to this romance. I kept waiting for something big to happen. There really wasn’t a whole lot of conflict to the story once the hero figured out the heroine wasn’t pregnant, but her sister. No angsty blow-up that either party had to overcome. I was expecting Cristo to fume like most romance novels heroes, but he didn’t. It would have been refreshing if it didn’t seem so odd considering his character.
The story was decent, but not something I’d reread again.
Rating: 2.5 Stars
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October 4th, 2009 — 3 Stars, Arabia/Middle East, Book Review, Category, Contemporary, Gambling, Interracial, Kings, Princes, Sheiks, Chiefs, M-O, Racing, Rogues and Rakehells, Sheik/Desert
My only complaint is that this novel isn’t longer! I feel like this was a good start and now the author should flush it out with more details, more scenes, more, more, more. The ending was much too rushed to wrap everything up to my satisfaction. I felt like I read half a book only to get about four paragraphs of the ending. I feel very deprived. Pout.
This story is very chaste, no sex and only a few passionate kisses. The build up was there and could have developed further. I did enjoy the line about her response to him making a mockery of her modesty.
Pollyanna (Polly) has devoted her energies into Shelton, the historic seat and castle of the ducal Missenden family. Polly’s mother, had been the family’s housekeeper for years and married into the Missendens, but Richard’s offspring do not approve. Anthony the heir puts up the most fight and subsequently Polly has never felt she belonged. She does not have any rights on the castle that has always been her home and Anthony would just as soon be rid of her and the castle. (He gambles and the money would help him pay his debts.)
It’s time for a change. Joining her friend Minty’s documentary production crew Polly is off to Amrah, the Arbian kingdom her great-grandmother fell in love with (at a price.) Polly is also instantly drawn to Amrah’s playboy sheik, Rashid.
For his part, Rashid wants to keep a close eye on Polly. He’s determined to find out if she knew and was behind her stepbrother’s plot to swindle him on a thoroughbred horse. Of course his intentions and attentions get muddled as his motivation changes from revenge to lust.
Rating: 3 Stars
Originally posted 2009-01-20 05:21:53. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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June 27th, 2009 — 4 Stars, Book Review, Crime and Protection, Foster/Orphan, Gentry, Great Britain, Historical Romance, Housekeeper/Maid, Lisa Kleypas, Revenge, Secretary, Widow or Widower
Have you ever picked up a novel and about halfway through feel like there's something you should know about it because it seems familiar? I thought I was going insane! I couldn't remember the book, but I remembered the characters. I was certain I hadn't read it before but how could I explain my knowledge of the main characters and the two of the side characters? Thank heavens I finally figured it out! Lady Sophia's Lover is the second of the Bow Street Trilogy. The first is Someone to Watch Over Me
. Where I recognized the characters was from the third Worth Any Price which follows the brother of the heroine in LSL. Nothing like solving a mystery to start off my day!
Sophia Sydney is out for revenge. She wants to destroy the man who sent her brother off to his death. Sophia is certain of her facts and equally certain of Sir Ross Cannon's cruelty and guilt. It seems fortuitous when an ad to be his secretary appears in the papers. Taking it as a sign, Sophia appears in Cannon's offices on Bow Street determined not to take no for an answer.
Ross is completely stunned by Sophia. Her very presence shatters his carefully constructed walls. He tries to regulate her into a housekeeping position instead of the secretary position. Her argument that he didn't specify gender completely flummoxes him and before he knows it, Sophia is both his secretary and his housekeeper.
Sophia is equally dazzled. The fat, old, wig wearing man she expected is not there. The man she sees is not the man she pictured. Ross is distinguished, virile, and devastating. While Sophia is trying to gather evidence against Ross and his runners, she finds herself hopelessly drawn to him. Will love win out over vengeance?
Rating: 4 Stars
Buy: Lady Sophia's Lover
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June 9th, 2009 — 1.5 Stars, 2 Stars, Book Review, Children, G-I, Gentry, Georgian, Great Britain, Housekeeper/Maid, Kidnapping, Mistress or Courtesan, Runaway, Scarred Hero, Widow or Widower, Writer
It is just Hoyt's terrible bad luck that I read the The Raven Prince
for the very first time just two days before I got this book from the library. I know it's in bad form to judge a book based on another book, but as both are by the same author, I figure this could be the exception to the rule. To Beguile a Beast read like a poor man's version of the Raven Prince. There were so many similarities between the too, it was astonishing.
Some of the similarities include: the fairytale story at the beginning of each chapter, the conditions of the poor heroes, and the positions of the women in the hero's life. They are all the same or at least very, very similar. Proof (spoilery):
TBAB = To Beguile a Beast
TRP = The Raven Prince
Fairytale:
Truth Teller soldier fairytale in TBAB.
The raven prince fairytale in TRP.
Heroes:
Hero is scarred in TBAB: Missing eye, missing fingers, facial scars.
Hero is scarred in TRP: Pox marks all over face and body.
Both heroes are gruesome looking.
Hero in TBAB writes on flora and fauna of New England.
Hero in TRP writes on agriculture.
Heroines:
Heroine works as housekeeper in TBAB.
Heroine works as a secretary in TRP.
Similar Hero Character backgrounds:
Hero in TBAB lost his fiancé to fever.
Hero in TRP first wife died in child birth.
The only big difference that I saw was:
Heroine in TBAB has two children.
Heroine in TRP has no children.
I was bored with To Beguile a Beast. It may be because I read Raven Prince so soon before reading this book. I believe, however, that I would have disliked it even without reading Raven Prince. The magic in the tale simply wasn't as enthralling as the Raven Prince. I closed Raven Prince feeling satisfied and happy. I struggled to make it through each chapter of To Beguile a Beast. I was glad to finish TBAB, simply so I could move on to another story. If you read it, do you feel the same way?
Rating: 1.5-2 Stars
Buy: To Beguile A Beast
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April 2nd, 2009 — 2.5 Stars, 3 Stars, Contemporary, D-F, Guest Reviews, United States of America
By: Cara Lynn, guest reviewer
Janet Evanovich is one of my favorite writers. I really enjoy her Stephanie Plum series. So when I saw Wife for Hire, I figured I'd give one of her other books a whirl. It's quite lightweight and fairly short (especially since the print is larger, which is a bit annoying to me.)
I give it a 2.5-3.
It was a fun and fast read, not nearly so complex in characters or plot as the Plum novels. But it was a good diversion.
Hank Malone, from Vermont, and Maggie Toone, from New Jersey, are made for each other. Both were trouble in their childhoods, neither wants a life that is particularly predictable.
Malone has advertised for a pretend wife in order to look stable enough to qualify for a bank loan to run his apple orchard. Malone is also hoping to avoid the women who are chasing him. What he advertises for and what Toone is are two different things.
Toone is in process of writing the memoirs of an aunt, who just happened to be a madam.
Throw in assorted characters, such as Elsie, the housekeeper, who is particularly funny, a bit like the grandma in the Plum novels, but different; both sets of parents, who in their own ways are characters themselves; long time friends and small town busybodies, and you have a recipe for a lot of fun along with some twists and turns.
Of course, they fall in love, getting involved very quickly, maybe a bit too quickly for me. Throw in some assorted (funny) kidnappings, due to a misunderstanding, and things get complicated, but are eventually sorted out.
All's well that ends well. And it leaves you with a smile on your face.
Buy: Wife for Hire
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Originally posted 2008-12-04 03:27:58. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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