The Rogue is Back in Town by Anna Bennett
⭐️⭐️
Probably three stars for the first bit of the book and maybe two for the rest.
Lord Samuel Travis is given the task of clearing tenants out of one of his brother's properties in order to get back in good graces with said brother. He is surprised and delighted to find Miss Juliette Lacey and her eccentric uncle living at the property. Julie and Sam must fight their attraction to each other if they both want to get what they want.
So their meet cute was great and they were adversaries (something I love in a romance) for all of two seconds before they allowed their attraction and lust to take over. Their first kiss seemed out of place and too soon after they met. And shortly after that Juliette threw propriety to the wind and let Sam have liberties with her. It just made the love story hard to believe and made it seem like they were more in lust.
The best part about the whole thing was the uncle.
-Reader
*I received an eARC from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Sunday, December 10, 2017
When You Love a Scotsman by Hannah Howell
When You Love a Scotsman by Hannah Howell
⭐️⭐️
The idea of the plot was better than the execution of it.
Lieutenant Matthew MacEnroy is just trying to survive the war and make it back home when he and his men happen upon Abigail Jenson's home as she's fending off Rebels. Impressed with her bravery, Matthew helps her to the next town when she has nowhere else to go.
The pacing of this story was just bizarre to me. They literally knew each other for a day before he kissed her for the first time and it came out of NOWHERE. There was zero buildup to the attraction. I remember checking to see what percent of the story I was on and if I had missed something.
There also seemed to be very little of a plot here. The plot from the blurb happens in the first 5% of the book. It made for a tedious and boring read.
-Reader
*I received an eARC from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
⭐️⭐️
The idea of the plot was better than the execution of it.
Lieutenant Matthew MacEnroy is just trying to survive the war and make it back home when he and his men happen upon Abigail Jenson's home as she's fending off Rebels. Impressed with her bravery, Matthew helps her to the next town when she has nowhere else to go.
The pacing of this story was just bizarre to me. They literally knew each other for a day before he kissed her for the first time and it came out of NOWHERE. There was zero buildup to the attraction. I remember checking to see what percent of the story I was on and if I had missed something.
There also seemed to be very little of a plot here. The plot from the blurb happens in the first 5% of the book. It made for a tedious and boring read.
-Reader
*I received an eARC from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Thursday, December 7, 2017
Wallflower Most Wanted by Manda Collins
Wallflower Most Wanted by Manda Collins
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Despite some slow spots, this title was still pretty enjoyable.
Miss Sophia Hastings is yet another talented young lady who is co-owner to Beauchamp House. Sophia is a talented painted whose works are considered scandalous by some. Still, she is determined to put them on display in a local art show.
Reverend Lord Benedick Lisle is rather open-minded and is impressed with Sophia's talent...and her beauty. When it becomes clear her controversial artwork has landed her in the middle of trouble, Ben realizes that the last woman he thought he should marry is the only one he wants.
I personally get kind of sick of the "rogue that's slept with EVERY woman who would have him" trope so a vicar was a nice change. Ben is a very sweet man and I enjoyed reading about him. As someone else pointed out, anytime Ben's day-to-day life was brought up it was usually glossed over with "vicarage business" rather than actually telling what he was doing.
I liked Sophia, too. She was a very determined and independent woman. I did find her stubbornness at wanting to be involved with the mystery to her own detriment to be a little off-putting.
In all honesty, the mystery that was the main plot of the novel wasn't that engaging even though I had no clue who the culprit was. All the action regarding the mystery happened near the end of the novel and I skimmed quite a bit to get to it.
I will definitely be checking out the next title in this series.
-Reader
*I received an eARC from NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review.
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Despite some slow spots, this title was still pretty enjoyable.
Miss Sophia Hastings is yet another talented young lady who is co-owner to Beauchamp House. Sophia is a talented painted whose works are considered scandalous by some. Still, she is determined to put them on display in a local art show.
Reverend Lord Benedick Lisle is rather open-minded and is impressed with Sophia's talent...and her beauty. When it becomes clear her controversial artwork has landed her in the middle of trouble, Ben realizes that the last woman he thought he should marry is the only one he wants.
I personally get kind of sick of the "rogue that's slept with EVERY woman who would have him" trope so a vicar was a nice change. Ben is a very sweet man and I enjoyed reading about him. As someone else pointed out, anytime Ben's day-to-day life was brought up it was usually glossed over with "vicarage business" rather than actually telling what he was doing.
I liked Sophia, too. She was a very determined and independent woman. I did find her stubbornness at wanting to be involved with the mystery to her own detriment to be a little off-putting.
In all honesty, the mystery that was the main plot of the novel wasn't that engaging even though I had no clue who the culprit was. All the action regarding the mystery happened near the end of the novel and I skimmed quite a bit to get to it.
I will definitely be checking out the next title in this series.
-Reader
*I received an eARC from NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review.
Tuesday, December 5, 2017
To the Duke, With Love by Amelia Grey
To the Duke, With Love by Amelia Grey
⭐️⭐️
To be completely and totally honest, I shelved this book a few weeks ago with the intention of coming back to it...and I forgot. It was a chore just to get to 12% and I couldn't imagine finishing it.
This was a definite case of lust at first sight as both characters were having fantasies about each other within the first few minutes of meeting each other. For me, this makes a tedious read.
I didn't feel like the infamous letter from the first book was much of a threat given that Hawk already had a husband lined up for his sister. Take out that element and the fact that both characters want in each others' pants from the beginning and there's not much here to keep me reading.
I MIGHT give the third in the series a shot.
*I received an eARC from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
-Reader
Tuesday, November 28, 2017
A Devil in Scotland by Suzanne Enoch
A Devil in Scotland by Suzanne Enoch
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I always try to be upfront about my dislike of a certain trope (in this case second chance romance) and while this is technically not a second chance romance, the H/h still had a history. That being said, I thoroughly enjoyed this title anyway.
Callum MacCreath is immature and irresponsible. He has no plans beyond getting his next drink and it stunned to find it his brother is planning to marry his childhood friend, Rebecca. In a case of not realizing what he's got until its gone, Callum leaves Scotland for ten years.
Rebecca knows she made the right choice when she married Callum's brother, Ian, instead of Callum but she still misses Callum terribly while he's away. She is surprised but secretly glad when Callum returns after being away for so long. They begin working together to unravel the mystery surrounding Ian's death.
I highly enjoyed this title and had trouble putting it down. I couldn't wait to find the next clue about what really happened to Ian and that kept me reading probably more than anything. A lot happened in the novel, and I enjoyed almost every minute of it. I liked both Callum and Rebecca, though I thought Callum could be overbearing at times. Rebecca was an intelligent heroine throughout without having any TSTL moments.
I did feel like the romance itself was a bit tepid even with a few love scenes. Perhaps it was because of their history but there just wasn't much heat between Callum and Rebecca. I still found the love story believable (perhaps more so because of the lack of heat). I really enjoyed the fact that there wasn't a lot of "if only" from either character.
The major issue I had with this title was the use of "I reckon" over and over again. It was enough to drive me crazy but the story still managed to overshadow even that.
-Reader
*An eARC was provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I always try to be upfront about my dislike of a certain trope (in this case second chance romance) and while this is technically not a second chance romance, the H/h still had a history. That being said, I thoroughly enjoyed this title anyway.
Callum MacCreath is immature and irresponsible. He has no plans beyond getting his next drink and it stunned to find it his brother is planning to marry his childhood friend, Rebecca. In a case of not realizing what he's got until its gone, Callum leaves Scotland for ten years.
Rebecca knows she made the right choice when she married Callum's brother, Ian, instead of Callum but she still misses Callum terribly while he's away. She is surprised but secretly glad when Callum returns after being away for so long. They begin working together to unravel the mystery surrounding Ian's death.
I highly enjoyed this title and had trouble putting it down. I couldn't wait to find the next clue about what really happened to Ian and that kept me reading probably more than anything. A lot happened in the novel, and I enjoyed almost every minute of it. I liked both Callum and Rebecca, though I thought Callum could be overbearing at times. Rebecca was an intelligent heroine throughout without having any TSTL moments.
I did feel like the romance itself was a bit tepid even with a few love scenes. Perhaps it was because of their history but there just wasn't much heat between Callum and Rebecca. I still found the love story believable (perhaps more so because of the lack of heat). I really enjoyed the fact that there wasn't a lot of "if only" from either character.
The major issue I had with this title was the use of "I reckon" over and over again. It was enough to drive me crazy but the story still managed to overshadow even that.
-Reader
*An eARC was provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Friday, November 17, 2017
A Duke in Shining Armor by Loretta Chase
A Duke in Shining Armor by Loretta Chase
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I thought this title was a lot of fun and can't wait for the next!!
Lady Olympia Hightower is surprised to find herself at her wedding to the Duke of Ashmont and is suddenly incredibly unsure she wants to go through with said wedding. Hugh, the Duke of Ripley, is Ashmont's best friend and is determined to make sure Olympia marries Ashmont.
I thought this book was a fun road trip story. I laughed out loud (sometimes in my kid's Taekwondo class) several times. I loved all of the characters (I'm already looking forward to Ashmont's story) and found the situations the characters found themselves in to be fun and believable.
I will definitely be reading the next title in the series!!
-Reader
*An eARC was provided by Edelweiss and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I thought this title was a lot of fun and can't wait for the next!!
Lady Olympia Hightower is surprised to find herself at her wedding to the Duke of Ashmont and is suddenly incredibly unsure she wants to go through with said wedding. Hugh, the Duke of Ripley, is Ashmont's best friend and is determined to make sure Olympia marries Ashmont.
I thought this book was a fun road trip story. I laughed out loud (sometimes in my kid's Taekwondo class) several times. I loved all of the characters (I'm already looking forward to Ashmont's story) and found the situations the characters found themselves in to be fun and believable.
I will definitely be reading the next title in the series!!
-Reader
*An eARC was provided by Edelweiss and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
It's Hard Out Here for a Duke by Maya Rodale
Hard Out Here for a Duke by Maya Rodale
⭐️⭐️⭐️
While not my favorite of the series, I did enjoy this title.
Before I really begin this review I feel like I need to disclose something: second chance romances are my least favorite. I have turned away many books because the H/h were previously together and were being reunited. Having said that, this title wasn't exactly a second chance romance in the traditional sense but for the first half of the book it certainly felt like one. There was a lot of "if only" in the first half of the book and a few times I seriously considered giving up on it.
I didn't give up, however, and the second half of the book made up for it. It was so much better than the beginning of the book and I really enjoyed it. I liked both James and Miranda and felt like they went together so well.
I enjoyed getting to see James learning to deal with his new responsibilities (whether he wanted to or not). And I felt like there was a real obstacle to his and Miranda's relationship besides their (very brief) history together. It wasn't something a simple conversation could overcome and that's often the worst part of a second chance romance.
I felt like this title was missing much of Miss Rodale's light and fun storytelling but it was still an entertaining read and I look forward to whatever she has coming next!!
-Reader
*An eARC was provided by Edelweiss and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
⭐️⭐️⭐️
While not my favorite of the series, I did enjoy this title.
Before I really begin this review I feel like I need to disclose something: second chance romances are my least favorite. I have turned away many books because the H/h were previously together and were being reunited. Having said that, this title wasn't exactly a second chance romance in the traditional sense but for the first half of the book it certainly felt like one. There was a lot of "if only" in the first half of the book and a few times I seriously considered giving up on it.
I didn't give up, however, and the second half of the book made up for it. It was so much better than the beginning of the book and I really enjoyed it. I liked both James and Miranda and felt like they went together so well.
I enjoyed getting to see James learning to deal with his new responsibilities (whether he wanted to or not). And I felt like there was a real obstacle to his and Miranda's relationship besides their (very brief) history together. It wasn't something a simple conversation could overcome and that's often the worst part of a second chance romance.
I felt like this title was missing much of Miss Rodale's light and fun storytelling but it was still an entertaining read and I look forward to whatever she has coming next!!
-Reader
*An eARC was provided by Edelweiss and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
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