by misscz on April 13, 2009
in 1 Star, 2 Stars, 3 Stars, 4 Stars, 5 Stars, Christine Feehan, Christine Merrill, Eve Kenin, Georgette Heyer, Housekeeping, Jessica Andersen, Kelly Hunter, Lori Devoti, Nalini Singh, Penny McCall, Sharon Ashwood
Being behind on reviews has had an unexpected plus side.
By having that gap between finishing the book and when I actually sit down to put my thoughts on paper, I have a better take on which books stay with me. Since I have to refresh my memory on some points, I usually have to do a little re-reading. If I really love the book, I tend to keep reading after I found whatever it was that prompted me to refer to the book. That’s a bit annoying, since I should be writing, not reading. The harder it is for me to put aside the book, the more likely the book is going to be a 5-star book, flaws and all.
With that in mind, I’m going to go ahead and give ratings to the books I’ve already posted. I’ll eventually update the individual review posts. Reminder: anything I give a 3-Star or above is a guarantee that I will try other books from the author.
Five Stars: LOVED!
- Dawnkeepers (Jessica Andersen)
- Bedded for Diamonds (a.k.a. Priceless) (Kelly Hunter)
- Ravenous (Sharon Ashwood)
- Dark Crusade (Lori Devoti)
Four Stars: Liked a lot!
- Driven (Eve Kenin)
- An Unladylike Offer (Christine Merrill)
- Ace is Wild (Penny McCall)
Three Stars: Enjoyable Read
- Slave to Sensation (Nalini Singh)
- Cousin Kate (Georgette Heyer)
- Shadow Game (Christine Feehan)
report
I mentioned in my 2008 wrap-up post that I might change how and/or when rate a book.
In 2007, I did not rate the books until the end of the year. By having to think back and re-read reviews, I was able to sift through and determine which books still stood out in my mind (5), which were good/enjoyable reads (4 and 3), and which were okay and not-so-okay (2 and 1).
In 2008, I rated each book after I finished it.
Looking back — and trying to decided which of the 19 5-star books were my favorite of the year – I saw immediately that books like Personal Demons by Stacia Kane and Nightkeepers Jessica Andersen (books that still stand out in my mind) wouldn’t even be in the top 20, let alone the top 10. And there were a few sentimental 5-star books — the Gilded Age mystery series books with Nell Sweeney, for instance. I loved the series as a whole, and loved Nell and Will — but in retrospect, I would have given some/all of them 3 or 4 stars (I read four books last year)
Now that I’ve tried both ways, I think that the 2007 method was more accurate than last year’s. Therefore, starting with the review of Dawnkeepers, the rating will be left blank — or TBA (to be annonced) — until the end of the year. The exceptions will be books that are Did Not Finish (if I even bother trying to review it), and books I absolutely know aren’t going more than a 2-star — I think those will be few, easy to figure out, and my opinion is not likely to change with the passage of time.
The two books I’ve already rated (Hail to the Chef and Innocence Unveiled) will retain their ratings.
Christina
A Lady of Rare Quality
Author: Anne Ashley
Copyright: 2006 (Harlequin); pgs. 297
Series: Harlequin Historical #200 (Regency)
Sensuality: Kisses
Who: Annis Milbank and Deverel Greythorpe (Viscount Greythorpe)
Summary: They’ve never seen Viscount Greythorpe listen so intently when a lady speaks. To have caught the eye of this esteemed gentleman, Miss Annis Milbank must be a lady of rare quality.
Comments: This book was a nice change of pace, after Black Ice and Silent in the Grave. I particularly liked Deverel and Annis. The viscount is a serious man, but not a recluse or a rake. Up until he meets Annis, his criteria for his potential viscountess is that she be a kind and affectionate mother. Once he gets to know her, he realizes he also wants an intelligent and capable wife as well. Annis is just that. However, Annis is not really looking for a husband. She’s financially comfortable and she’s not after a title. All that Deverel can do is ask her to stay longer, hoping that she’ll grow to like him well enough to accept his proposal. For her part, she has grown to admire and respect him during her stay at Greythorpe. She doesn’t realize the depths of her feeling for him until she believes he’s on the brink of proposing to another woman.
The rest of the story I thought was so-so. There is a small mystery as to who has a grudge against Deverel and why. I thought the who was obvious — though the why wasn’t what I suspected.
I liked the author’s book, Beloved Virgo, much better than this one. But, as I stated above, I was looking for a “quieter” book, and it fit the bill.
Started: 18 February 2008
Finished: 24 February 2008
Just Ok
Rating:
handbook
Night Life
Author: Elizabeth Guest
Copyright: 2007 (Berkeley Sensation); pgs. 289
Series: 1st in the Pharaohs Rising series
Sensuality: Hot
Who: Dr. Christine Day (Egyptologist) and Adrian King/Merneptah Seti
From the back: Venerable pharaoh and ancient god of the Nile, Adrian King once sat upon his throne and led his people nobly, only to be betrayed. But a sacred ritual has allowed him to reawaken thousands of years after his death — as a vampire. Now the owner of the Royal Palace, a hotel and casino in Las Vegas, he is haunted by dreams of a beautiful woman — and by the dawning of an evil presence.
Comments: This is another book I picked up, based on the review at All About Romance. With it’s twist on vampire mythology, something I don’t read a lot of — yet, I thought I’d give it a try. I had already looked into JR Ward’s series and took a pass on it. I’m trying to keep an open mind about vampires-as-romantic-leads (beyond Angel and Spike, of course).
This book had a lot of potential. The author is fascinated with Egyptian pharaohs and it shows in the details. It was interesting and I had no trouble picturing the setting. As for the characters, Adrian is larger than life, as befitting a pharaoh. His love for the woman in his dreams inspired him to write poetry in her honor and create a special perfumed oil for her. Christine, born into a family of Egyptologists, has always had a connection to the past, though she never realized that the man in her dreams was Adrian, until she actually meets him. They make a nice couple: Adrian is cultured, well-bred, polite, and Christine is a sensible, intelligent, woman.
One of my issues with the book wasn’t that they got together so quickly, it was with the fact that author didn’t devote some page space to the vampire-lore she was creating. Christine, intelligent academic that she was, should have been asking a thousand questions, on behalf of the readers. I thought that the author would have developed the mechanics a bit more, weaving it into the narrative here and there. Instead, it was vague and a little confusing. The other issue was the antagonist. He shows up late in the book and is dealt with very quickly — and very dramatically (though I liked how that played out).
Will I read the 2nd book? Yes. I’m hoping that the author will be a little more detailed with her world-building. There were several secondary characters that were interesting — people from Seti’s court. They are in a similar predicament as their pharaoh and I’m curious to see what happens to them.
Started: 2 February 2008
Finished: 9 February 2008
Just Ok
Rating:
international
An adventurer and privateer serving the Queen’s spymaster, Sir Christopher Hamilton is dispatched to watch over Anne Marie Fraser. Held hostage because of her treacherous father’s support of Mary Queen of Scots, Anne Marie’s cloistered plight angers and than frustrates Kit. Rescuing her from her father’s cruel hands, Kit seeks permission from the Queen to marry.
Author: Anne Herries
ISBN: 0-373-30517-6 (Harlequin Historical)
Finished/Tossed: 27 August 2007
Who: Anne Marie Fraser and Sir Christopher Hamilton
When: 1586-1588
The third book of The Elizabethan Season — the autumn of her reign — spans a two year period (1586-1588). It is the period that sees the execution of Mary of Scots. It is also the period that sees both a great triumphant — the defeat of the Spanish Armada — and a great personal tragedy — the death of her beloved Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester.
Anne Marie Fraser leads a mostly uneventful life. She is being used as leverage, to ensure her father behaves himself. The couple who care for her are kind and love her like a daughter – and she loves them — yet she still feels that she must obey her father. So far, that’s been pretty easy to do. The Makepeaces allow her to practice her Catholic faith discreetly. As the Queen’s ward, Elizabeth will decide if and when she marries, and that man will be a loyal Protestant — someone Lord Fraser would definitely object to.
Walsingham is convinced that Fraser has been in contact with Anne Marie and that he is also involved in the most recent plot to put Mary on the throne. He sends Kit to spy on Anne Marie. Beth Makepeace is Kit’s kinswoman. He’s met Anne Marie, ten years ago when she was ten, and he’s not really comfortable about spying on her. He knows her life’s been hard and she has no freedom, and he thinks her whole situation is unfair to her. One of the things I liked about this book was scene where they meet for the first time since she was a girl. Anne Marie is sitting with her sketch book, contemplating the sea and wishing for a color palette, when she hears someone ask her what she’s doing. Startled at first, she does recognize him and they enter into a casual conversation as if the last time they saw each other was ten minutes ago, not ten years.
Kit is immediately smitten with her, making it all the more difficult for him to spy. He doesn’t want to pry, but he tells that if she needs someone to confide in, she can come to him. In the meantime, Kit takes her riding every day and promises to take her to a fair. Anne Marie is thrilled with these little freedoms. And she’s falling in love with Kit.
Things start going wrong for them after Kit leaves to make his report to Walsingham. Ann Marie is kidnaped by Bevis Frampton. Kit rescues her, but her attitude angers him and he lets her believe that he’s been ordered to marry her. From that point on, both misconstrue each other’s behavior. Kit does love her, but because he hasn’t explained what really happened when he saw the Queen, he thinks her cold behavior means she doesn’t love him. So Kit decides he won’t force his attentions on her and he tries to subtly woo her. Anne Marie thinks his restraint is a sign he doesn’t want her so she strives to remain reserved, not wanting to have her heart broken. It gets to the point that Kit is driven, in anger, to London — and possibly into the arms of a mistress. His mother decides to take action, though her efforts almost make things worse.
Sir Nicholas and Lady Grantly (Lady in Waiting) are Kit’s neighbors so they have a few scenes. Sir Oliver Woodville (Maid of Honor) is mentioned, but does not appear. And of course, Bevis Frampton is up to his old tricks, though he’s not much of a presence in this book.
Just Ok
