Romance

Review of The Silver Skull by Anne Renwick

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Synopsis (from Amazon):
An illegal border crossing. A fake marriage. A mad German count determined to create an army of unbreakable soldiers.

Lady Olivia is not all she seems. Trained for marriage to an assigned political target, her skills lie in programming household steambots to serve tea, dress her hair… and sound the alarm while she picks locks and listens at doors. Humiliated by a failed assignment, she decides to redeem herself by tailing a suspected double agent.

Lord Rathsburn must flirt with treason. Struggles to cure a horrible disease have met with unexpected complications. The cells he engineered can make a man’s bones unbreakable, but the side effects are fatal. He believed the research terminated… until his sister was kidnapped by a German count. Her ransom? A cure.

Piloting a stolen dirigible, he uncovers an unlikely stowaway, Lady Olivia. Arriving together at a crumbling castle, an impossible task is set before them: cure the count’s guardsmen. Amidst their fake marriage, a very real growing attraction, dying guardsmen and escalating hostilities, Lady Olivia and Lord Rathsburn are thrust deep into the world of international medical espionage from which there may be no return.

Review:
In the beginning I was quite sad because I expected that the Elemental Web Chronicles would continue on with Thornton and Amanda, and that they would continue solving crimes and working for the Queen. Once I got over that and gave Olivia a chance, I came to find the story quite amusing and enjoyed it.

Although I understand that Olivia’s abilities and intelligence were supposed to be suspect in The Golden Spider, I found it hard to believe the complete change in mentality that her mother was now shown/said to have. Although some characteristics of Olivia’s remained the same, the difference in her in this compared to how she was in The Golden Spider was at times hard to fathom. Treating this like a completely different novel, not necessarily one that should have flowed from one book to the next, made the changes easier to accept.

I quite liked Lord Rathsburn. He was gruff and not the greatest at dealing with people, much like the scientists I know. His familial loyalty was endearing, as was his sense of honour.

I did enjoy this novel quite a bit, though not as much as The Golden Spider.

Star Rating: 

Review of The Golden Spider by Anne Renwick

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Synopsis (from Amazon):
A stolen clockwork spider. A forbidden romance. A murderous spy on the streets of London who must be stopped before it’s too late.

Lady Amanda is tired of having both her intelligence and her work dismissed.
After blackmailing her way into medical school, she catches the eye of her anatomy professor from the moment she walks into his lecture hall. Is he interested in her? Or only her invention-a clockwork spider that can spin artificial nerves?

Lord Thornton, a prominent neurobiologist, has been betrayed.
Secret government technology has been stolen from his laboratory, and a foreign spy is attempting to perfect it via a grisly procedure… using gypsies as test subjects. The last thing he needs is the distraction of a beautiful-and brilliant-new student, even if her spider could heal a deteriorating personal injury.

Until her device is stolen and used in the latest murder.
Lord Thornton has no option but to bring her into his laboratory as well as the investigation where they must fight their growing, yet forbidden, attraction. Bodies accumulate and fragile bonds are tested as they race across London, trying to catch the spy before it’s too late.

Review:
Why did I wait so long to read this book? It was absolutely wonderful! There was everything one could want in a steampunk/gaslamp style novel: there was a plucky and intelligent protagonist who wasn’t willing to just take what society deemed acceptable as her future, a brooding intelligent gentleman, mystery, and forbidden romance!

Amanda was instantly connected to me (perhaps due to us having the same first name, Amy being a short form used for publishing). She is so intelligent but also a society lady, so her struggle to find someone who didn’t just see her as a baby maker was both realistic and frustrating, making her quite relatable. Thornton was equally relatable in his desire to get things done, done right, and even if it killed him to do it himself, he’d be sure it was finished.

I definitely recommend this book to anyone and everyone. I loved it, especially the ending!

Star Rating: 

Review of The Princess, the Pea, and the Night of Passion by Rosetta Bloom

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Synopsis (from Amazon):
Getting to happily ever after has never been so sexy or so much fun. Passions run high in this retelling of the classic fairy tale The Princess & the Pea.

In this grown-up version of the famous fairy tale, Arabian princess Adara is running from her old life and a forced betrothal. Adara, an exotic beauty, wants love and passion, but knows she can’t get that back home. When a raging storm halts her escape, Adara seeks refuge in the first dwelling she sees.

Prince Richard is tired of the trite, vain, frigid princesses his mother introduces him to in hopes he’ll marry. On this stormy night, the blue-eyed prince is in the mood to love a woman, but he’s all alone.

Adara arrives on the castle doorstep, saying she’s a princess in need of help. The queen is doubtful and decides to lock Adara in a room with a pea to determine if the girl is as royal as she claims. Richard believes the beautiful, charming stranger, but he wants her locked in a bedroom for other reasons.

When Richard and Adara hook up, there’s more than a pea-sized bit of passion involved….

(This is an adult fairy tale; steamy romance included.)

Review:
This wasn’t steamy, it was just somewhat bad. The prince has an overly sexual mindset and that’s all he thinks about. If this had been written by a male that might be more acceptable, but there was very little spark in my mind, and overall, sex sex sex. Not a fan, won’t read this author again.

Honestly, had the fairy tale focused more on the different cultures and a relationship BEYOND sex between Adara and Richard, it would have been a far different and much more enjoyable read.

Star Rating: 

Review of The Wisdom of Madness by C. J. Archer

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Synopsis (from Amazon):
With Alice determined to discover the truth about her past, and Seth determined to help her, the couple find themselves sucked into a world where nothing is as it seems and no one can be trusted. On the run to escape a mad queen’s wrath, and with an entire realm looking for them, tensions fray and friendships are tested.

Even worse for Seth, shocking secrets he’d rather leave buried are brought to the surface.

Joined on their adventure by an irritable Gus and a mysterious Eva, the four friends must learn the truth of Alice’s past so she can forge her future.

But a future with whom? And where?

Review:
I was wrong about what would happen with Alice! How frustrating! I would like another book (or series) to wrap up everyone’s lives… okay, I just never want to leave this series and want it to go on forever.

Charlie and Lincoln are not truly present in this book, and are more like the side characters that most of the our others have been throughout the series, however, I didn’t find that detracted from the story at all. I ended up liking Eva more than I did before.  Alice really grew as a person, instead of being a shy wallflower, she did what she believed right to keep everyone safe. Eva was very similar, instead of sitting back and keeping quiet, had to learn to use her voice and all of her hard learned knowledge to help those she cares about.

All in all, this book series is my current favourite in its genre, with my only other most favourite series being Harry Potter.

Star Rating: 

Review of Taming the Wild Captain by Gemma Blackwood

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Synopsis (from Amazon):
Most girls have only one objective on their first Season in London: to land a wealthy husband. Alice Sharp is no different – until a mysterious theft threatens to ruin a dear friend. The investigation leads Alice deep into London’s underbelly. But how is a young, unmarried woman in 1820 to catch a criminal?

Fate sends Alice a guide to London’s darkness in the form of Richard Kirby. A Captain of the militia, a prolific gambler, an established flirt and a notorious rogue, he is happy to while away his leave in the clubs and gaming hells of London.

There is nothing that should bring them together…except the magnetic power of the attraction neither Alice nor Kirby can deny.

Can Kirby help Alice catch her thief? Will Alice lead Kirby into Society’s good graces? Should a beautiful young debutante ever accept the hand of a wild Captain?

Alice must take matters into her own hands to find the answers…

Review:
Alice is both a well trained lady, but willing to do what it takes to help her friends, and learn more truths than what she was ever aware of within her family. She’s relatable, spunky, and one cannot help but see how frustrating it is for her to not be allowed to do what she feels needs to be done. Kirby, but experience, age, and sex, is far more capable of traversing the world, and finding himself realizing that there could be more to life than using your wits to overcome people. I quite enjoyed the mysterious twist, and how it was resolved.

Star Rating: 

Review of A Cinderella for the Duke by Abby Ayles

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Synopsis (from Amazon):
…It’s time to act based on her heart…

Lady Louisa Frasier is in a sad situation. With her brother, the Earl of Gilchrist, gone to America with his wife, and her best friend, the Duchess of Wintercrest, taking care of her own young children far up north, Louisa seems to have no friends to keep her company.

It is when her mother, the dowager countess, suggests a visit to her aunt in the lake district that prospects seem to look up for Lady Louisa. The Dowager Countess and her sister have not been on the best of terms, and Lady Louisa’s single goal is to mend the broken bond.

Arriving in their quaint country town, Lady Louisa soon learns that her aunt, Lady Hendrickson, has no desire to regain any family connection and instead seizes the opportunity to use Lady Louisa until she can take no more.

Henry Vaughan, the Duke of Rowland, has reluctantly returned to his country seat. Upon his Uncle’s most insistent request he is to acquire a wife before he may return to the life he has enjoyed.

Undoubtedly this will be an easy task as he has no preference as to whom the woman shall be, and plenty of distant country ladies will happily flock at the opportunity to be a Duchess.

The Duke’s indifference changes in an instant when a chance meeting with a masked mystery woman at his own private masquerade fills his every waking moment. Who was that enchantress? Why has she hidden herself despite his desperate attempts to find her?

Lady Louisa has no intention of telling the Duke that she was the one he met that fateful night. Her aunt is wholly set on snagging the Duke for her oldest daughter. Despite her growing attraction to the Duke of Rowland and the fact that this could quite possibly be her only chance at finding true love, she must keep her promise to make peace with her aunt’s family.

Will the Duke ever find his mystery lady in green?

Will Lady Louisa find her own strength to stand up for herself and find her own path to walk in life?

Review:
Louisa is a kind, considerate woman who wants nothing more than to help. She isn’t looking to find a match, or do anything more than mend the relationship between her mother and her aunt. Unfortunately, her aunt takes advantage of her, and still, Louisa goes on to make a friend of one of her cousins, learns about plants, and helps the community.

When told that she cannot attend a masquerade, she decides then and there that she shall go and enjoy herself. While she does meet and truly start to care for the Duke, she knows she cannot do anything about it for fear of what her aunt might do to make not only she, but the cousin she is friends with miserable. She is self sacrificing, and it is her kindness, but also her intelligence, that make her an enjoyable protagonist to read and explore life with.

Star Rating: 

Review of The Duke’s Defiant Debutante by Gemma Blackwood

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Synopsis (from Amazon):
The reclusive Duke of Redhaven is not somebody to be trifled with.

Fortunately, neither is Miss Angelica Stirling.

Lively, clever, and rather too outspoken, Angelica does not have high hopes for her first London Season… not that she particularly cares. Who needs a husband when you have a good book?

When she receives a surprise proposal from Edward Thorne, Duke of Redhaven, it seems too good to be true. And it is.

The Duke is handsome, mysterious, and brooding – and everything Angelica doesn’t want in a husband. Is one of the biggest fortunes in England really worth the trouble?

Edward returns to London after a decade’s self-imposed exile in need of one thing: a bride. But his strategy of proposing to the first agreeable-looking girl he meets backfires spectacularly. Angelica is anything but the docile debutante he took her for.

Before long, Edward is facing a predicament he never imagined. Angelica has run away from London – and she’s taken his heart with her.

Review:
I absolutely adored Angelica as a protagonist. She’s spirited, opinionated, and not exactly willing to do what society deems acceptable just because that’s what is considered proper. Angelica’s biggest issue is trusting those she shouldn’t, which blows up spectacularly.

While I enjoyed the story, I did think that the melodrama could have been easily avoided had Angelica talked to Edward instead of taking flight, especially believing the word of someone that so far she had no reason to trust and didn’t actually know, except that there was something between he and her betrothed.

Star Rating: 

Review of Engaging Mr. Darcy by Rachel John

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Synopsis (from Amazon):
“Angry people are not always wise.” – Jane Austen

After a standoff in the pizza parlor, Elsie Bennet has decided Fitzwilliam “I-Throw-Fitz” Darcy is the worst customer she’s ever encountered. Also the best looking, but that’s beside the point. She’s horrified to discover Will is not just passing through her small town, he’s her new neighbor.

Will Darcy has all the money and time he could ask for, and yet life never seems to meet his expectations. When his best friend, Charlie, starts dating Jane Bennet, Will becomes their unhappy third-wheel. The solution? Bring along Jane’s sister, Elsie, a girl who challenges him, makes him laugh, plagues his thoughts, and unfortunately, hates his guts.

Will might control a lot of things, but he won’t control her. Elsie’s already been warned away by her new friend, Jeff Wickham, who found out the hard way that Will is not someone to be crossed. Things would be so much simpler if she was attracted to Jeff. But she’s not. She’s attracted to Will, and the tug-o-war between her mind and her heart is going to drive her mad.

A modern day take on Pride and Prejudice with all the characters you know and love.

Review:
This is probably one of my favourite modern day versions of Pride and Prejudice, after The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. This is an original take in which Jane and Elsie actually work and help support their parents. Jane is as kind and practical as ever, and Elsie is, as our Elizabeth/Lizzy always is– feisty, hot tempered, and perfect.

The twist on what Jeff did to Will’s sister was definitely not something I’d anticipated, but I found that it really added an extra layer and depth to the story. Like every version of the story, I hated Caroline. I also really liked how Charlie seemed intelligent about business, but completely hopeless about romance. While Darcy is ever a snob, it was neat to see him trying to give Charlie the right idea of what to do to not be a massive jerk.

The whole Jeff/Darcy thing was really well done, and what Jeff did to Lydia was quite genius too. It never would have occurred to me to put together the events that Rachel John did, and I think that altogether, this book is definitely on my top Pride and Prejudice retellings list. I highly recommend!

Star Rating: 

Review of Once Upon a Time Travel by Sariah Wilson

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Synopsis (from Amazon):
Once upon a time…

Recent college grad Emma Damon knows the Rose Room in Hartley Hall is off limits, which is exactly why she can’t wait to get inside. Once she enters the forbidden room, Emma learns more about the history of the museum than she ever intended to know.

Waking up confused and shocked in 1816, all Emma wants is to return to her cozy home with flushing toilets and disposable razors. But when she’s mistaken for someone else, Emma must pretend to be everything she’s not. About to be engaged to the Earl of Hartley’s brother, Emma fails miserably at playing the role of a sophisticated lady.

Hartley is determined to ensure that the quirky and adorable woman marries his brother – despite his ever-growing attraction to her. After loving and losing, he refuses to fall prey to the shackles of love. But as his desire for Emma increases, he knows he must forfeit his happiness for his brother’s future. After all, there’s no such thing as happily ever after.

Or is there?

Review:
A quite well rounded story, expertly switching from the modern world to 1816. Emma is unique when thrown backwards in time, and it’s refreshing to see someone who doesn’t wish to be idle and do nothing (or only have countless children). Watching Emma and Hartley get to know each other and become closer while learning just how much manly knowledge Emma has is quite amusing. One cannot help but root for our time traveling heroine, wanting her to find a way to have everything she didn’t as an orphan.

Star Rating: 

Review of #Starstruck by Sariah Wilson

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Synopsis (from Amazon):
“You’ve done better.”

With one uncharacteristically sassy tweet to her longtime celebrity crush, Zoe Miller’s life turns upside down. Ultrahot A-lister Chase Covington doesn’t just respond to Zoe’s tweet, he does the unthinkable: he messages Zoe directly. Now she must decide between walking away or meeting her crush in person.

Chase knows better than to trust anyone from the Internet, but Zoe’s saucy challenge has totally caught his interest—and her girl-next-door personality is keeping it. He’s been burned enough to know he needs to keep his heart close. But his feelings for Zoe might be a lot more than just an online flirtation. He just has to convince her…

When the press gets wind of Zoe and Chase’s secret relationship, their romance turns into tabloid headlines. Will they be able to hold on to their Hollywood love story?

Review:
There are parts of this story I absolutely loved, and others I found predictable. Chase has a troubled past, and after letting Zoe in, he finds he doesn’t trust her (despite saying he does). Zoe, on the other hand, lets Chase into her life completely, meeting her family and seeing how he gets along with her much younger siblings. Zoe doesn’t want anything from Chase except to spend time with him, get to see and know the real him, but between Chase’s fame and his trust issues, while reading it is really up in the air whether or not they can reconcile their very different walks of life.

Star Rating: