Memories Schmemories Part IV, Entwined by Emma Jensen

No website, check out book list at: http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/j/emma-jensen/

Sad to say, Emma Jensen is one of those authors who is no longer writing. She wrote 13 books, and won numerous awards, starting with traditional Regency and progressing to longer historical books. Whenever you picked up a Emma Jensen book, you knew that you would be getting a book with plenty of witty dialog and humor in it.

I would say that if you want to read one of Jensen's books, Entwined is probably one of her best, although I remember some of her Regencies being pretty humorous. This story has two wonderful characters: the hero, Nathan, is scarred and partially blind, and Isobel, the heroine, is loaded with the typical loathsome family (at least the men). Her father and brothers are selfish drunken guys and Isobel is close to being a martyr. Also, for those of you who cringe when they read "och" and "dinna fash yourself," be prepared for some Scottish slang. However, there is also some wonderful Gaelic in this book; I just wish I could hear it instead of read it. I love hearing Gaelic, but I digress.

Nathan was incredibly sexy and he fell in love with Isobel at first smell. Everything about him is based on scent, sound and touch. He can only see Isobel in a vague blur... and at the end of the book he does not miraculously regain his sight. Isobel was a strong heroine. She has a wee bit of temper and isn't afraid to stand up to Nathan. One of my favorite parts was the continual bantering between the two main characters. I love witty dialogue. (This is not the same as I love you, I hate you dialogue.)

There is a secondary murder plot going on and the thought crossed my mind that maybe this was one of the first of those "friends who spy for their country" books. This was written in 1997 and I'm not sure when that phenomenon flooded the publishing world. Some of the secondary characters obviously are intended to have their own books, but the main thrust of the story is the romance between Nathan and Isobel.

The weak parts of the book are Isobel's father and brothers. They are important to the plot in the beginning, because they are the reason she marries Nathan. However, the brothers show up later and I'm not sure why... that plot-line doesn't seem to go anywhere. I also felt the ending was just a little rushed. I would have liked to see things tied up a little bit neater... However, now that I've read this book, I feel the urge to read some of her others and ignore my growing TBR pile (but I won't.)

So, if you've never read Emma Jensen, take the plunge - try this one or one of her traditional Regencies: Best Laid Schemes, A Grand Design, His Grace Endures and Fallen (a sequel to Entwined)

Time/Place: Regency England
Rating: or Couldn't make up my mind
Sensuality Rating: Hot

Desires of a Perfect Lady by Victoria Alexander

Ta da...The winner of my first 2010 Snooze Award goes to Desires of a Perfect Lady.
http://www.victoriaalexanderbooks.com/
After reading this book, I went back to the first book in her series and was surprised to see that I liked it. Because, after reading this book, I was seriously considering crossing Victoria Alexander off my auto-buy list. This book did have a major impact on the creation of the snooze award, an award that hadn't even crossed my mind before...that must be some sort of honor.

Well, citizens, let me tell you, I really had a hard time getting through this one. It is a very bad sign when one keeps putting a book down and drifting off for a little nap.

I really thought I'd enjoy this one, Sterling Harrington is one of my all-time favorite type of hero. A stuffed shirt. Love stuffed shirts and I did enjoy his interaction with his mother. However, there was no chemistry between he and the heroine, Olivia. Plus, this was another "on the road" treasure hunt book, however, you'd think with all of the moving around and hunting there would be something...some little spark of excitement...after all we go to Egypt, Venice and London. Pass by all the other countries in between.

There is everything in this book, adventure, villains, my favorite type of hero and...nothing, it just didn't go anywhere...Once again, the hamster in wheel syndrome.

I guess, since I liked the first one, I'll read the next one...but this one...

See, I even nod off when writing about it.

Time/Place: Victorian Everywhere
Rating:
Sensuality: Weak Hot

In For a Penny by Rose Lerner

http://www.roselerner.com/
Romance reader alert!! We have struck gold!!!

Don't let the absence of heaving bosoms, naked limbs or bare chests on the cover fool you - this is a romance novel. And what a romance novel it is! The back blurb says: "the grit of Dickens and the true-to-life, breathing characters of Austen." And, for once the back blurb is correct.

It is always an exciting moment for me when I find a debut author who can write, and let me tell you Rose Lerner is a major talent. All of the characters in this book are well-rounded; however, they are not the typical people we find inhabiting a lot of romance novels today. In fact, they all seemed to have a little bit of a bite to them and they did remind me of Charles Dickens' characters. Oh sure, the author occasionally throws in a modern word, but I was so engrossed with this story I didn't have time to care.

The hero, Nev, isn't the brightest bulb in the box, and occasionally he reminds me of a frat boy. The heroine, Penelope, more closely resembles current romance standards, but I loved her. These two are worlds apart; he's an aristocrat and she's from the working class. He needs money, she has it. A standard plot, but to watch them struggle toward that HEA is truly an amazing journey. There are a lot of misunderstandings, but after each one the couple became stronger. At one point, they had so much to overcome that the heroine wanted to run away, and I can't say that I blamed her.

In For a Penny is a charming, witty, touching, and at times the struggle may make the reader a tad bit apprehensive... I know it did me. Watch for a wonderful scene with Nev and cutting up food, and I'm not going to say anything else, except it was a "aww" moment.

The book felt a bit rushed at the end, some loose ends not tied, but overall this a wonderful, wonderful book and Rose Lerner is an author to keep your eyes on.

Time/Place 1819 England
Rating:
Sensuality Rating: Hot

Provocative in Pearls by Madeline Hunter

http://www.madelinehunter.com/
Well, I liked Ravishing in Red better than Provocative in Pearls. And, once again the first part of the book was slow. As I said before, I think Madeline Hunter is one of the better writers of Medieval romance around, but when she journey's into Regencyland sometimes there is a clunker, but what author hasn't had a clunker. And, this book isn't a clunker, I just liked Ravishing in Red better ...and here's why...

When we are reacquainted with the heroine, Verity aka Lizzie, we find out the mystery surrounding her character. You see, she faked her death to avoid staying married to Grayson. Now, I found this storyline a bit distasteful, because she didn't really seem to take into consideration what her death would mean to those she left behind. And, I wasn't really sure what she hoped to gain by faking her death. When found again, she shows hardly any remorse for the pain her deception may have caused. So, I didn't really care for her until the second half of the book.

Grayson was ok, but I found both he and Verity to be pretty manipulative when it came to sex, and let me tell you there's plenty of that in this book.

Then at the end of the book a number of plot-lines come to a screeching halt. We see a number of the manly men jumping on their horses to rescue Michael, but we don't get to be in on the rescue...he's just there in the carriage. The last we see of the character Colleen, she's walking away from Grayson with a tear in her eye...why? I don't know. I could speculate, but I'm lazy and I like to be told things in my romance novels. There are the e-e-v-i-l Mr. and Mrs. Thompson, they get a good talking to and just sort of disappear. I'm betting that there was some sort of editor chop-i-tis involved in Ms. Hunters work. It's too bad that there is such a thing as word count in the publishing world...sometimes.

Also, let me dwell a little on the secondary character Castleford. He has made an appearance in both books and I find myself becoming quite fascinated with him. He is portrayed as a complete whore-monger and a drunken one no less. So, I am really looking forward to his transformation into the hero in the fourth book, Dangerous in Diamonds. A lot of times those transformation don't work, so I'm keepin' my fingers crossed.

Even though I liked the first book better, I am hooked on this series and looking forward to the remaining ones.

Time/Place: Regency England
Rating:
Sensuality: Hot!

Upcoming books

In case any of you are wondering. The Hey Delia list of upcoming books is arranged by category, and then alphabetically by the authors first name. The historical books are always first!! Of Course!!

Ravishing in Red by Madeline Hunter

http://www.madelinehunter.com/
I bought this in February, read the first few pages then put it back in my TBR pile. So, then March came along and I bought Provocative in Pearls and put that in my TBR pile and stared at Ravishing in Red.

Girding my loins, I started reading Red, after the first 60 pages I became immersed in the story. The further along I read the more I didn't want this book to end. And, there is some really amazing writing in this book, I was especially interested in the way everything fell together so naturally. I'd be interested to know how Ms. Hunter plotted her story.

I loved the heroine Audrianna, she's a very naive woman without being silly. She's also a very honest woman and one of the great things about this book is that she and the hero Sebastian talk to each other. And, when I finished this story there was no doubt in my mind that these two were going to have a long relationship. Sebastian is a very complex hero, and the scenes between he and his brother Morgan are wonderful. (Note to Ms. Hunter - please give Morgan a story.) The secondary characters are well-written, and, I suspect that all of the hero and heroines from the series have been introduced. Ms. Hunter has sucked me into wanting to read the entire series. Even though the mystery plot is a minor backdrop to the characters, there were some things I didn't see coming.

Spoiler of sorts: Watch for a most amusing scene when Audrienna promises to be faithful to Sebastian.

So, this book is well-worth reading. I am looking forward to the rest in the Rarest Blooms series: Sinful in Satin, fall of 2010 and Dangerous in Diamonds, spring of 2011.

Time/Place: Regency England
Rating:
Sensualigy Rating: Hot

Memories Schmemories Part III, Dreaming of You by Lisa Kleypas

Published in 1994
http://www.lisakleypas.com/
All I have to say is two words: Derek Craven!!!

If you have never read a Lisa Kleypas book, you're in for a treat with Dreaming of You. In my humble opinion, this one is her best. This is a sequel to Then Came You and the characters from that book make an appearance in this one. However, Dreaming of You is most definitely a stand alone book.

This book has a delightful, well-bred heroine, Sara Felding, who in the process of doing some research for a book that she is writing, stumbles across a violent assault in the making. Well, it's Sara to the rescue and with the handy-dandy little gun she carries around she accidentally kills one of the perpetrators and scares away the other. And who has she saved? You guessed it - Derek Craven.

Ah, Derek Craven. If I had a list of favorite romantic heroes, Mr. Craven would be there amongst the top ten. Now, Derek isn't your typical hero, no siree. He's had some pretty hard knocks in his life. He's a bastard who was raised by prostitutes (and by the way, at the end of the story he doesn't magically find out that he is the missing heir to a dukedom). He is a man who grew up in the underworld of London, doing all kinds of nasty, unsavory things just to survive... from chimney sweeping, body snatching and some things he just doesn't talk about. And, never once does he apologize for any of this. He does feel unworthy of the love that Sara brings to him, which is why he pushes her away. There is a short separation in this book, but don't worry.

There is plenty of sexual tension, and some very touching moments as these two remarkable characters struggle to find their HEA. Sara and Derek make a wonderful earthy couple and Dreaming of You is a must-read for people who love romance books.

So, get yourself a cup of hot chocolate, put your feet up and indulge in a tremendous, absorbing book. I promise you, you won't be disappointed.

Lisa Kleypas has been published since 1987, and most of her books are in a series. She just recently expanded into the contemporary romance field, but hasn't stopped writing historicals. I've included a list of some of her other books that you might enjoy: Devil in Winter, Worth Any Price, Lady Sophia's Lover, Then Came You, It Happened One Autumn, Where Dreams Begin, Seduce me at Sunset. It is also my understanding that the contemporary books Sugar Daddy and Blue Eyed Stranger are good, but I've never read them so I really don't know.

Time/Place Regency England
Rating:
Sensuality Rating: Hot