SisterGoldenBlog

Bedding the Heiress
by Cathy Maxwell

Avon, 2007, ISBN #978-0-06-112180-7
Historical Romance

When a loathsome rake steals one of her most cherished family heirlooms –and nearly her virtue as well! –Francesca Dunroy devises the perfect plan to put him in his place. At a ball being held in her honor –she didn’t ‘take’ in her first season, now her family is determined to get her a match in her second –she’ll offer him a clandestine kiss sure to convince him to return what is rightfully hers. But in the dark hallways surrounding the ballroom, Francesca makes a terrifying mistake. She seduces the wrong man!

The recipient of Francesca’s caresses is none other than Justin Maddox, London’s newly titled duke and most eligible bachelor. A defiant Scotsman who disdains London society, he’s sworn to steer clear of the ladies of the ton, but he can’t escape the memory of Francesca urgently pressing her lips upon his… and neither can she. But when a shocking and dangerour secret from Justin’s past resurfaces, the couple will have to risk tattered reputations and treacherous enemies to nurture what has quickly become true love.

While this book is clearly one from the middle of a series, it does read just fine as a stand alone title.

The hero is a charming fellow, and his story is a true fish out of water story. He was stolen from his family when he was an infant, and he was raised in a remote town in Scotland. He became a skilled and proud blacksmith named Tavis. Then (sometime in a prior book of the series) he was reunited with this twin brother and returned to his destiny –as the eldest twin, and christened Justin, he’s the true duke! In this story, Justin has been back in London for about two weeks and, while he displays general discomfort and confusion over courtesy and rules, he’s generally doing just find. He does bring with him and hides a sword that serves only to bring in Scottish rogues desperate to get it, but the sword is clearly a plot device for a future story (or a common thread in the series, that won’t be resolved till the end).

The heroine is another matter. Francesca is a somewhat older debutante, due to the untimely death of her mother and subsequent mourning period, and she is a major heiress. She is also a seriously spoiled brat who spends half of the book angsting about how awful her dad is for having remarried before formal mourning was over and behaving spitefully toward her new stepmother (who is younger than Francesca). I’ve never seen a heroine behave so nastily and unremorsefully. Lest you think I exaggerate, here is a prime example:

While she’d [Francesca] dressed, Regina had been twirling and arranging her own blond curls. Francesca had caught her admiring herself before. It was all part of her stepmother’s silliness. She was like a child.

Francesca walked right over to the vanity, picked up the brush, and shouldered Regina out of the way of the mirror.

Somehow we’re supposed to think that this behavior is acceptable because she’s been so poorly treated by her dad getting remarried? I found that I couldn’t.

Not for me.

Marked by Passion
by Kate Perry

Grand Central, 2009, ISBN #978-0-446-54100-8
Paranormal Romance

Rules for the (very) reluctant Guardian of the scroll:

#1  DON’T lose the above artifact you’ve inherited from your ancestors –no matter how much it starts messing up your life.

#2 DO learn how to control its powers. (And, yes, that means putting up with the uber-complicated Guardian lessons from your father’s meddling ghost.)

#3 DON’T trust anyone. Especially Rhys, the mysterious bad boy who’s always one step ahead of you… and as irritable as sin.

#4 DO anything to keep the scroll from landing in the wrong hands. Even if that brings on a heartbreaking betrayal, an evil you never saw coming, and a choice you may not live to regret.

Not to be confused with the musician Katy Perry, the author of Marked by Passion, Kate Perry, launches a new series with this novel. And she kicks this series off with a fun, hip and passionate romp.

Gabrielle “Gabe” Sansouci has a problem. She’s just inherited a family legacy –an ancient scroll with magical powers and the disapproving ghost of a father she hasn’t seen in 15 years. She decides to ignore both as best as she can, but the powers prove too difficult to ignore… or control.

Rhys Llewellyn (refreshing –a Welsh hero!) is a hot new customer in the bar where Gabe works and he’s watching her closely. And following her in his sleek, expensive automobile. And calling her ‘love’ in a sexy, husky, Brit accent. Oh, and saving her from mysterious stalkers.

The tension between the hero and heroine is hawt, hawt, hawt and compelling. The author knows precisely how to ratchet up the tension between them, while interweaving a bit of intrigue. It’s clear they’ll end up together but they have major trust issues to work through –at least Gabe does. Rhys just personifies male patience in this story. Yum!

By the end of the book, I was satisfied with the major plot points and romance resolution, but I couldn’t help feeling that there were a few minor plot and character details that were left unresolved. Details specific to these two and their relationship, not things that are likely to be addressed effectively in a later book in the series with another couple as the centerpoint.

But, all in all, a fun, smart story. I’ve already bookmarked the next in the series to purchase when it’s available (due out the end of September –yeah!).

Highly recommended!

Between the Devil and Desire
by Lorraine Heath

Avon, 2009, ISBN #978-0-06-135564-6
Historical Romance

The ladies of the ton won’t stop whispering about deliciously wicked Jack Dodger –once a thieving street urchin, now the wealthy owner of London’s most exclusive gentleman’s club. There’s no pleasure he hasn’t enjoyed, no debauchery the handsome scoundrel won’t provide for the lords who flock to his house of carnal intrigue.

Olivia, Duchess of Lovingdon, would never associate with such a rogue. So when Jack is named the sole heir to the duke’s personal possessions, the beautiful, well-bred lady is outraged. Now, Olivia is forced to share her beloved home with this despicable man.

But Olivia’s icy disdain is no match for Jack’s dangerous charm. His touch awakens desire. His kiss demands surrender. She will struggle to bar Jack from her heart… but her body, coveting divine release, will not let her bar him from her bed.

From the very first sentence in Chapter 1, the tension and rivalry between Jack and Olivia leap off the page of this book.

The devil had come to call.

Jack’s life had always been difficult. His mother had sold him as a child and he eventually ended up on the streets of London learning how to fend for himself as a thief. As a young adult, with a little financial backing from an unnamed sponsor, Jack opened a club for the rich and idle and soon had become a successful business man. If there’s one thing that Jack had learned in his life, it was to value money and property and he made it his life’s mission to keep acquiring more of both. So, when he is presented with the will of a man he’d barely known, which turned over all unentailed monies and properties to Jack in exchange for his guardianship for the Lovingdon heir, Jack happily agrees and immediately sets out to inventory his new acquisitions.

One of the things I enjoyed most about this story, was Jack. He was wonderfully consistent and open about his greed. Everything included in the inheritance he immediately sees as ‘his’ and he makes no bones about it. If the widow Lovingdon wants anything, he’s happy, of course, to consider selling it to her. For a good price. He even goes so far as to suggest that her room, board and clothing may be his property, unless she’s willing to work for him as a hostess.

Jack is an absolute delight and his character remains refreshingly open and consistent throughout the story. He reminds me not a little of Clark Gable’s acting as Rhett Butler. He’s plain talking and bold. And he enjoys tweaking the very proper widowed Duchess.

Olivia has been raised to be an exceptional wife and hostess. She married the man her father asked her to and, even if she found herself very lonely after giving her husband his heir, she never expected much different from her life. She did her duty. And when her elderly husband died, she expected to retire to the country and raise her son in peace. Then she found out about the will and wondered if her husband hadn’t been insane before he died.

Afterall, what Duke in his right mind would leave the guardianship of his heir to a known ne’er–do-well owner of a House of Vice? They were expected to live in the same house? To get along? Not if Olivia has anything to do about it.

Olivia is no slouch herself. She’s no selfish Scarlett, she’s a smart, refined woman who is determined to protect her son from the questionable morality of his new guardian. Even if she is mildly intrigued about the fellow in some deeply repressed area of her mind, she just knows he’s trouble and she’s determined to remove her son from his influence. Olivia remains very true to her character until she grows a bit and learns what she really wants.

There were a very few moments in this story where I started to *rolleyes* at sterotypical romance cliche situations but, to my delight, Ms Heath turned them on their ear. For example, when Jack convinces Olivia to dress like a boy to go with them to the Crystal Palace, not only does everyone realize it’s a bad idea, they choose the one day of the week that the masses go (and the ton will be unlikely to be present to recognize her), and NO ONE IS FOOLED by her disguise! It’s fun to hear the background comments as people remark on the oddity of a girl dressed like a boy. Refreshing.

Overall, this was a delightful read and one I didn’t want to end.

Highly recommended!