Started Reading: August 2, 2007
Finished Reading: August 3, 2007

This is a romance set in the 14th century, where we also have murder, betrayal, madmen, soldiers, and politics weaved into a single story. I enjoyed it, yes. =) It had been a wonderful read since I thoroughly enjoyed and liked the characters.

Elise was an orphaned young woman but was abused by her husband. She had been enduring the abusive marriage for two years until one night, in defense she almost killed him. She and her faithful servant, Annora, threw the good-for-nothing man into the river and started a journey to a faraway town.

Of course, all heroines have a hero and for this novel, hers is a rake and a rogue, dark and tall, stereotypically, who’s out for revenge. They meet, fall in love - or in lust, get into trouble, bleed, almost die, and then finally the two live happily ever after.

The end.

But, more than that, the best parts of the novel and the main reason I loved it is when Sir Nicolas was involved (and, no, it has nothing to do with the name, LOL). He’s probably one of the few villains I actually came to like and love. In this case, I might have been more interested to to read what had happened if things actually went the way he wanted them too. And he isn’t even actually the Master villain - he’s more like another pawn of a worse character. But because he was actually insane, I liked him even more. I just had to laugh at the contradictory aspects of his dynamic character.

(more…)

Started Reading: April 10, 2007
Finished Reading: April 10, 2007

I’ve always loved Amanda Quick’s novels and characters, though I’ve yet to see an Amanda Quick hero who isn’t cold, distant, and holds a low esteem of women. While Julian Richard Sinclair, Earl of Ravenwood, was not a very unique character, I liked Sophy Dorring. She wasn’t a reputed beauty (although a lot of men still vied for her attention in the book, she wasn’t exactly a diamond of the first water - as they’d call the walking paragons of beauty). She also knows her bounds and limits, though she loves herself enough to have demands of her own. Sophy wasn’t too stubborn and daring, and I was very amused with her notions of honor and determination to be treated equally, at least in a sense, as a man.

I also admired her when she did not push through with revenge when Julian asked her to go back to Ravenwood. I was glad she had the sense and the selflessness not to have her own way to protect Julian. =) Like most of Amanda Quick’s heroines, I liked Sophy very much. I just don’t understand why these historical romance authors couldn’t make their heroes different when their heroines pretty much are in each novel. Though they have the usual streak of stubbornness and determination (I think this is why I like Fanny Price of Mansfield Park. She’s such a passive character and she’s very different from these historical romance women but she still manages to have a happy ending. I’ve yet to see a historical romance author make a story out of such a character!), they have their certain flaws and unique traits. Meanwhile, the men are always titled rakes (and for them all I have to say is, “Same old, same old.”).

Started Reading: April 5, 2006
Finished Reading: April 5, 2006

I should have known that with the title, this was nearly all about lust. I can’t really like characters who couldn’t make up their minds - who say things but do exactly the opposite. They tarnish the image of women that make men presume they mean “yes” when they say “no”. I’ve read Rules of Engagement and I really find it ironic that Christina Dodd had governesses for characters and contrary to the notion that they should have been trying to live a life of virtue, the women were very much volunteering to be laid. Definitely not a woman I would love reading about.

There was some mystery and murder that made the plot more interesting than usual - but that’s often a given factor in most historical romances. You’ve got to have some criminal act happen to put some spice.

I guess, what I liked about the novel was the humor and the aunts. : D They were so cute that without them, the novel will most probably be dull. However, this is the kind of book you’d read once, enjoy it a bit while getting annoyed at the same time, and then keep it back on the shelf in order to read something better.

Started Reading: March 25, 2007
Finished Reading: March 25, 2007

When I started reading this, I immediately thought it was bound to be very funny, if not very good. The first few pages were already giving me amusement:

“ll have the carriage readied and have the valet pack my clothes. We’ll leave within the hour. Incidentally, if you decide to back out of our agreement at any time during our journey, I will strangle you.”

She shot him a sardonic glance. “You w-wouldn’t be so nervous about that if you hadn’t tried this with an unwilling victim l-last week.”

“Touche. Then we may describe you as a willing victim?”

“An eager one,” Evangeline said shortly, looking as though she wanted to be off at once.

And I do love a character who asks good questions. xD

“That’s the story?” St. Vincent asked with an incredulous scowl. “The heather comes from the tears of a girl over her dead lover?”

“Aye.”

“Then how in God’s name can it be a token of good luck?”

Sebastian was a selfish kind of rake (as Cam said, “The only love match is between St. Vincent and himself.”), arrogant too, and he has moments when he flaunts it. They’re common in most historical romances, but Sebastian hasn’t lost humor (or the ability to invoke humor from the reader) that you don’t get tired of having another one of those soon-to-be-transformed rakes playing a role in the novel. I like his wit very much. =D

Meanwhile, heroines are usually diamonds of the first water, traditional ugly ducklings recently turned into swans, that it’s actually refreshing to find one who stammers and is somewhat shy. And she’s not annoyingly perfect, thank goodness. Not very stubborn, obedient to an extent, and she doesn’t defy the hero at every chance. Definitely a change. A good change. =)

The story was alright, though it did left some things unsettled. I mean, St. Vincent (a.k.a. Sebastian) vowed revenge against Evie’s uncle/family (okay, not exactly revenge, but it came close to “not getting away with it”) but no final conclusion to that issue happened at the end of the book. And it ended so abruptly…so I wasn’t really satisfied with how it was ended. A few other chapters would’ve done the trick, I think.