Review - The Lady Most Likely...

Title: The Lady Most Likely...
Author: Anthology: Julia Quinn, Eloisa James and Connie Brockway
Publishing Date: 2010
Genre: Historical
Rating: B
Sensuality: Hot
Book Disclosure: I purchased a new copy.

Lady Finchley, the sister to Hugh Dunne, the Earl of Briarly, decides to throw a party at her country house inviting the most eligible young ladies. Hugh has decided that it is high time to get married after recently being close to death. He has asked Carolyn to help him find a suitable wife. Carolyn not only plans to match make for her brother but for her best friend Georgina too, who was widowed young. Not two, but three couples find love at this country party.

I don't usually read anthologies but this one caught my eye with the great list of authors participating. I really liked that all three stories were related by taking place at the country party and involved all the same characters. There are three distinct couples who find love at this party. I am not going to go into specifics because part of the fun of reading the book is discovering who ends up with who.

I felt that the stories flowed seamlessly together to where I would not have been able to identify the different authors if not for the labeling at the top of the page. I did however feel that the character Hugh's personality went from mildly appealing to greatly appealing by the end of the story. I like the direction the author's took his character and I enjoyed his romance the best. I thought all three stories were fun to read, but not overtly exceptional. This anthology is just a nice way to pass the time and I enjoyed the three sweet stories.

Review - Mr. Cavendish, I Presume

Title: Mr. Cavendish, I Presume
Author: Julia Quinn
Publishing Date: 2008
Genre: Historical
Rating: B-
Sensuality: Warm
Book Disclosure: I received a used copy from paperbackswap.com.

The neat thing about Mr. Cavendish, I Presume is that it tells the same story as The Lost Duke of Wyndham but from a different perspective. The first book, TLDOF told the story from Jack Audley's and Grace Eversleigh's points of view. Now MCIP is told from Thomas Cavendish's and Amelia Willoughby's points of view. Thomas may or may not be the Duke of Wyndham since Jack Audley is his cousin of whom no one knew existed. Thomas will travel with an entourage of people to discover if indeed Jack's parent's marriage is legitimate and if so then Thomas will no longer be the Duke. To make matters even more complicated Thomas has been engaged to Lady Amelia Willoughby since they were young children. Thomas has put off his responsibility in marrying her and now that he finds she may not be his intended he discovers that he is more bothered by that fact than actually losing his title.

What I liked. Julia Quinn does a very good job of showing instead of telling the story. There are a lot of really great scenes between Amelia and Thomas where they are open and frank with each other. I liked that Amelia has a backbone where Thomas is concerned and decides she is tired of waiting around for him. Her impulsive nature is good for Thomas because he is too serious and stuffy most of the time. I thought it was interesting that Ms. Quinn decided to write the same story but using different perspectives. It was neat to see the same scene being played out but getting a different view of it.

What I didn't like. I had some issues with Thomas. I hated that he kept Amelia waiting and took her for granted. His indifference was hurting Amelia and because he was so self absorbed it took him a while to see that. It also took Thomas a painfully long time to realize that if he wants Amelia then he needs to go after her and win her affection. Basically, Thomas was such a Nob! The good thing is that at least Thomas grows throughout the story.

Review - Ten Things I Love About You

Title: Ten Things I Love About You
Author: Julia Quinn
Publishing Date: June 2010
Genre: Historical
Rating: C+
Sensuality: Warm
Book Disclosure: Received a used copy from Paperbackswap.com

Ten Things I Love About You is book three in Julia Quinn's Bevelstoke series. Annabel Winslow's large family of 10 siblings and her widowed mother are depending on her to marry well. Lord Newbury desperately needs to sire a son or his title will pass to his nephew Sebastian Grey, whom he despises. Lord Newbury is twice Annabel's age with wrinkles and flabby jowls. But she is willing to throw herself on the knife for her beloved family. The situation becomes complicated when Annabel meets the charming and hansom nephew.

Ten Things I Love About You was a nice story about two nice people, who were in a not so nice situation. Annabel and Sebastian were fine characters, but I felt like the book lacked that piece of pizzazz to really garner my interest. I hate to say it, but I was more than a little bored reading this book. It just had a hard time of holding my attention. It wasn't badly written by any means, but at the same time I didn't feel like there was anything that lends itself to really making an impact.

Sebastian is a sensitive man, and readers who like Beta characters will really like him. I myself thought he was a little too soft, but I like them really Alpha, so don't mind me. It's just there were times when Sebastian would be giving an inner monologue and it would come across as a little bit girly. I also thought the eeevil Uncle was too much and didn't really seem to fit with the story. It seemed like overkill to me. Okay, so the consensus now that I have summed up my thoughts is that I was not crazy about this book. Read it at your own risk!

Here is what others had to say:

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This book can be purchased in print or kindle format from Amazon.

Review - What Happens in London

Title: What Happens in London
Author: Julia Quinn
Publishing Date: June 2009
Genre: Historical
Rating: B
Sensuality: Warm
Book Disclosure: Borrowed from the library

I have to admit I wasn't going to read this story. I am not one for spy plots in romance (Joanna Bourne being the exception) and plus I had already had over 10 books on my wishlist for June when this book was released. Then I started noticing all the positive reviews around the blogosphere and I couldn't resist adding it to the pile. While not being my favorite read of 2009, I was still happy to have picked it up. I couldn't help but be charmed by Harry.

Over tea with her friends, Olivia Bevelstoke discovers that her neighbor to the South, Sir Harry Valentine is rumored to have murdered his fiancé. Now, Olivia doesn't quite believe the hype, but she can't resist the lure of spying on him from her bedroom window. Harry notices the pretty young Miss watching him and can't make heads or tails of it. Eventually, he is given and assignment and he is supposed to watch her, or actually the Russian Prince who has shown an interest in Olivia.

The best thing I enjoyed about What Happens in London was the clever and witty conversation between Harry and Olivia. At first, the two do not like each other. They fence with words, often trying to outdo the other. Harry thinks Olivia is cold and aloof, but once he gets to know her he wonders how he could have ever thought her cold. She is very fun after she develops a friendship with Harry. Harry is more of a Beta hero, except in his interaction with the Russian Prince. I got a kick out of their interaction. It was like watching the male animal perform a territory ritual - quite amusing.

This book is loosely related to The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Carver. I didn't read that book and I never felt lost in this one although there was a very small reference to it.

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This book can be purchased in print or kindle format from Amazon.

Series Sunday - The Bridgertons

Ahhhh, The Bridgertons. It's like revisiting with old friends who I haven't had the pleasure of seeing in a while. When I first started reading romance one of the first books I ever read was Romancing Mr. Bridgerton by Julia Quinn. Little did I know that this was the third book in an eight book series about the fun loving Bridgerton family. Since, I am considering The Viscount Who Loved Me for Nath's re-read challenge, I thought I would do a post about this wonderful series.

This series is set in England during the regency era. It is about a family of eight children all now grown each finding a love of their own. They are a very close knit family and while I would not call them dysfunctional, they are far from perfect. Julia Quinn has managed to balance the right amount of humor with angst and it is a winning combination, indeed. I personally don't feel like the books need to be read in order for full enjoyment. I didn't read them in order (gasp), and I got along just fine and loved them all. For those that are interested:

Here is the series publication order:
1. The Duke and I (Daphne and Simon)
2. The Viscount Who Loved Me (Anthony and Kate)
3. An Offer from a Gentleman (Benedict and Sophie)
4. Romancing Mr. Bridgerton (Colin and Penelope)
5. To Sir Phillip, With Love (Eloise and Phillip
6. When He Was Wicked (Francesca and Michael)
7. It's In His Kiss (Hyacinth and Gareth)
8. On the Way to the Wedding (Gregory and Lucinda)

Julia Quinn has a lovely website just brimming over with information about this series including a family tree and 2nd epilogues for many of these books. If you are interested definitely check it out.

Review - The Lost Duke of Wyndham

Title: The Lost Duke of Wyndham
Author: Julia Quinn
Publishing Date: 2008
Genre: Historical
Rating: B
Sensuality: Warm

Grace Eversleigh’s parents died of fever five years ago leaving her orphaned at seventeen. The dowager Duchess of Wyndham took pity on Grace and employed her as her companion. The two of them are coming home from a party when their carriage is pulled over by highwaymen. The highwayman in question is very suave and debonair. The Duchess thinks she recognizes him as a relation to the house of Wyndham as he is the spitting image of her dead son John.

Ms. Quinn certainly writes an entertaining historical. Jack Audley is quite the character, with his witty charm and sharp intelligence. He steals the show in this book, leaving Grace to fade somewhat into the background. While the book begins from Grace’s point of view in third person, the majority of the rest of the book is told from Jack’s perspective. Also, with the plot centering on the question of Jack’s lineage, the focus tended to remain on Jack, forcing the story to be more hero-centric. I didn’t really mind this, since Jack was a vibrant character. The only problem I did have with it was when Jack would wax poetic about the love he felt for Grace. The prose came across slightly flowery and didn’t match Jack’s masculine persona. It would have been more appropriate coming from Grace.

The plot was great. The question of Jack’s identity and how everything was going to be resolved satisfactorily added quite a bit of tension to the book. I kept wondering to myself, “How in the heck is Quinn going to fix this mess?” Not to worry she does deliver on that aspect. I did think that after a big secret is revealed the ending was too abrupt. I wanted a little more closure on how things were going to work out for the individuals involved.

One thing that may have influenced how I read the book was the fact that I know there is another book, Mr. Cavendish I Presume that tells the same story from Thomas’s point of view. (Thomas was the legitimate Duke that Jack was usurping.) I noticed, as I was reading The Lost Duke of Wyndham, that there were scenes that sort of left holes in the book and I imagine they will be a part of Mr. Cavendish I Presume.

Here is what others had to say:

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