The Countess Confessions by Jillian Hunter

March 5, 2014
In the beginning...in the beginning...in the beginning...

http://www.jillianhunterauthor.com/
I usually like Jillian Hunter books, especially her older ones, but for me The Countess Confession was just passable. When it started, I thought, "oh this is going to be fun." Emily, our heroine, seems to always be getting in trouble and Damien, our hero, is trouble. He's a Boscastle, he's a spy, he's a manly man. But about halfway through the book, they are hopping into bed with each other and I thought, Hey, wait a minute, isn't that a little too soon? Then I looked down at the page count, noticed how far into the book I was and was surprised. I was surprised because even halfway through the book at bed-jumping time, it still had the feel that it was just getting started. In fact, all the way through the book I kept waiting for a middle and it just never happened.

Damien and Emily were could-have-beens. They could have been great characters, but their development just never went anywhere. The plot meandered all over the place after the initial promise of a good story. I was greatly disappointed. And, by the way, why would our hero ask a question when someone’s tongue is wrapped around his Mr. Toad? It was like being in a dentist chair and being asked, "how's your vacation?" I could only hear Emily replying, "Flaaaaggg blmoxo slup." That wasn't really her reply, but seriously, her mouth is occupied - she cannot answer - so don't start a conversation.

There is a moment toward the end of the book when Damien is telling Emily why he loves her and that was a nice touch. If only the rest of the book had been that good. Bottom line, this is not my favorite Jillian Hunter book - I didn't care about the heroine and hero, they just were not interesting... and they could have been.

Time/Place: England early 1800s
Sensuality: Hot but boring