B- Reviews

REVIEW:  The Duchess War by Courtney Milan

REVIEW: The Duchess War by Courtney Milan

Dear Ms. Milan: When your books and novellas work for me, they are among my favorite historical romances. When they don’t, it’s not always clear to me why, and often I wonder if it’s my reading approach rather than the book itself. I wanted to read your latest novel for a couple of reasons: it(…)

REVIEW: Cracking the Dating Code by Kelly Hunter

REVIEW: Cracking the Dating Code by Kelly Hunter

Dear Ms. Hunter: Within a relatively short time, your books have become auto-buys for me. They provide the emotional angst and alpha hero Harlequin Presents are famous for, but it seems you are always trying to do something interesting with your heroines, pushing them well beyond the “doormat” designation some associate with the line. Your(…)

REVIEW:  Naughty & Nice 3-Story Bundle (Room at the Inn, All I Want for Christmas Is You, and One Perfect Christmas) by Ruthie Knox, Molly O’Keefe, Stephanie Sloan

REVIEW: Naughty & Nice 3-Story Bundle (Room at the Inn, All I Want for Christmas Is You, and One Perfect Christmas) by Ruthie Knox, Molly O’Keefe, Stephanie Sloan

Dear Ms. Knox, Ms. O’Keefe, and  Ms. Sloan: I suspect a conspiracy. Every anthology I’ve read this year, composed of three novellas, contains one novella much weaker than the other two. I can’t figure out if the point is to get the writer of the lesser work to be considered a writer on par with(…)

REVIEW:  Love in the Afternoon by Alison Packard

REVIEW: Love in the Afternoon by Alison Packard

Dear Ms. Packard: When I saw that your debut novel was set in the world of soap operas, I couldn’t resist. I watched soap operas with my grandmother when I was a little immigrant kid, newly arrived in the US, and I only gave them up completely a few years ago. Plus, Kathleen Gilles Seidel’s(…)

REVIEW:  Merry Sexy Christmas Anthology by Beverly Jenkins, Kayla Perrin, Maureen Smith

REVIEW: Merry Sexy Christmas Anthology by Beverly Jenkins, Kayla Perrin, Maureen Smith

Dear Ms. Jenkins, Ms. Perrin, and Ms. Smith: I’m a sucker for Christmas stories, and anthologies are a great way to try out new authors, so a Christmas anthology can be a double winner for me. While I’ve read one of the contributors to this volume before, but the other two were new to me.(…)

REVIEW:  Silent Night: A Lady Julia Christmas Novella by Deanna Raybourn

REVIEW: Silent Night: A Lady Julia Christmas Novella by Deanna Raybourn

Dear Ms. Raybourn: While waiting for the next “Lady Julia” mystery novel, I noticed that this little novella is on offer for the Christmas season. It’s not long, it’s not complicated and it’s not that different from any other Lady Julia story. If readers like this world and it’s people, it should be a nice(…)

JOINT REVIEW:  An Infamous Marriage by Susanna Fraser

JOINT REVIEW: An Infamous Marriage by Susanna Fraser

Dear Ms. Fraser: Jennie: I requested your book from NetGalley more or less on a whim; the blurb described a couple who hastily engaged in a marriage of convenience finally coming together after having been separated by the hero’s military service, and the obstacles they face. I’ve recently read and enjoyed several similar stories, so I(…)

REVIEW:  Running Wild by Linda Howard, Linda Jones

REVIEW: Running Wild by Linda Howard, Linda Jones

Dear Ms. Howard and Ms. Jones: I’ve read one collaboration by you before and it was a … less than successfully executed paranormal romance. I had low expectations going into this book but I was secretly hopeful. Linda Howard’s books remain some of my favorite in the genre. I keep waiting for the magic to(…)

REVIEW:  Tempting the Player by J. Lynn

REVIEW: Tempting the Player by J. Lynn

Dear Ms. Lynn: A sports romance! A sexy sports romance!  This is my kind of book. Chad Gamble is an all star pitcher for the Nationals whose contract is up.  Chad takes full advantage of his star power, cavorting with models, actresses and all manner of female flesh. his antics, however, are not impressing management. (…)

REVIEW:  Miss Buncle Married by D.E. Stevenson

REVIEW: Miss Buncle Married by D.E. Stevenson

Dear Readers, “Miss Buncle Married” takes up nine months after the close of “Miss Buncle’s Book” with Barbara Buncle now happily married to her publisher Arthur Abbott. They live fairly blissfully in Arthur’s house near London with the only blot on their happiness being the tiresome round of social obligations both finally admit to each(…)

REVIEW:  Getting Hotter by Elle Kennedy

REVIEW: Getting Hotter by Elle Kennedy

Dear Ms. Kennedy: I’ve really enjoyed this series you have written for Samhain and my biggest regret were that they were novellas and not full length stories. Getting Hotter is the first full length novel and while I enjoyed it, so much of the text was given to building up the secondary romance that I(…)

REVIEW:  Banished to the Harem by Carol Marinelli

REVIEW: Banished to the Harem by Carol Marinelli

Dear Ms. Marinelli: Captivity narratives are a staple of the romance genre, but rarely is it ever done correctly. And yes, I do believe that there is a correct way in which a captivity narrative is carried out in a book. The idea is that one person, usually the woman, is kidnapped by the another(…)

REVIEW:  Ghost Planet by Sharon Lynn Fisher

REVIEW: Ghost Planet by Sharon Lynn Fisher

Dear Ms. Fisher, Science fiction romance is one of those subgenres I hear so much about but have never really gotten into myself. Since I’m in one of those reading kicks where I want to try everything new (to me), I figured now would be as good a time as any. So when I saw(…)

REVIEW:  Rescue My Heart by Jill Shalvis

REVIEW: Rescue My Heart by Jill Shalvis

Dear Ms. Shalvis, I’d looked forward to reading Rescue My Heart, the third in your Animal Magnetism series.  I enjoyed the first two books in the series and was ready to learn Adam’s and Holly’s story. I liked Rescue My Heart, although I struggled a bit in the beginning with the characterizations of Adam and(…)

REVIEW:  Slammed by Colleen Hoover

REVIEW: Slammed by Colleen Hoover

  Dear Ms. Hoover, I’ve been trying to keep a lookout for new YA books to try, so when NetGalley touted this book and its sequel in an email, I requested the titles. Unfortunately, I don’t think these books are really what I’m looking for in YA: a compelling novel intended for a teen audience(…)