All's Fair in Love and Seduction by Beverley Kendall (e-book)

I was not very impressed by Beverley Kendall's debut novel, Sinful Surrender -- but there was something about the story that made me continue to follow Kendall's work -- but not that closely.

I passed on her second novel, A Taste of Desire -- and, when she offered this e-book for free, I decided to give it another go.

I have to say, Kendall has grown since her first book. I thoroughly enjoyed this story. I love the clash of wills of Elizabeth and Derek. (And I wished that their story was longer!)

I've gone ahead and ordered a copy of her second book and will preorder the 3rd book in the series, An Heir of Deception. (I read the teaser on the back of the e-book and it's amazing!)

Unraveled by Courtney Milan

In one word? Wow.

In two words? Ohmygod. Wow.

Of the three brothers, Smite was always the most interesting and his story is aMAzing.

Smite is a magistrate and is known as Lord Justice because he is uncompromising, exact and deliberate. He has been that way all his life and in all aspects of his life.

His brothers, Ash and Mark, and their wives have all accepted who he is and tiptoe around him -- as though he were surrounded by broken glass.

But Miranda refuses to bend to his personality. She has seen glimpses of a different Smite and she likes what she has seen.

Smite is equally fascinated by Miranda. It is obvious that she doesn't belong in the slums of Bristol but he can't figure out where exactly she ought to be.

In an impulsive move, he asks her to be his mistress for one month -- hoping he could indulge and then move on.

But Miranda's life is complicated and she brings these complications with her. She is indebted to The Patron, an unknown entity that rules the slums.

Smite is also very complicated. The sight and sound of water upsets him. He can't have his face touched. He allots only 20 minutes for sentiment each day. And he has a photographic memory -- which means, he can never, ever forget his past.

But Smite keeps it all in check. He is very together, which infuriates his older brother (who wishes he could help Smite with something ... anything.)

I love the Turner brothers. I love the names their mother gave them. The impression from the very first book in the series is that the three brothers hate their names and keep it a secret.

One realizes that Miranda is truly special when Smite reveals his true name andall Miranda says is, "Your mother named you after the rainbow?" -- it is Miranda's very unique point of view that Smite needs in his life.

Miranda and Smite are wonderful characters. Complex without being convoluted. Broken without being fragmented. Challenging without being irritating.

This is Courtney Milan's first major foray in self-publishing -- she took her time with this book. (Originally scheduled for release earlier in the year) -- and I appreciate it.

It was masterfully written -- and wonderfully balanced.

I can go on and on with superlatives.

To say this was a page-turner would be an understatement.

Seduced by the Highlander by Julianne MacLean

I'm on the fence about this book. I really enjoyed MacLean's previous series (Pembroke) and MacLean wrote one of my favorite romance novels of all time (The Mistress Diaries) -- but this book confused me.

The premise seemed a bit implausible -- Lachlan believes the curse that Raonaid placed on him and seeks her out to have the curse removed. It takes him 3 years to find her.

Catherine has no memories of the last 5 years of her life. She believes Lachlan would be able to help her regain them and asks him to bring her back to the Highlands.

Then they discover she's a twin. And they apparently know Raonaid's whereabouts (she's the lover of the Macdonald's mortal enemy -- and Lachlan's cousin's brother-in-law.) O_o

When Raonaid and Catherine first meet, there is no doubt that they are twins -- and they decide to travel back to the Montgomery estates to confront their family and to find answers.

And Lachlan finds out from Raonaid that the curse isn't real. (There's a bit of inconsistency in Lachlan -- he knows Raonaid is a seer and even once mentioned that she wasn't a witch -- didn't it occur to him that curses were not something Raonaid could do in the first place?)

There's a lot of traveling and a lot of wanting but not having in this book -- Maclean is very good at moving the story forward but there was very little substance in between the major moments of the story.

Lachlan and Catherine didn't have much chemistry -- and their back stories are not that compelling.

Julianne MacLean is publishing a Regency (?) romance next -- I'm really looking forward to that one.

The Virtuoso by Grace Burrowes

The Virtuoso is Valentine's story. Valentine is the youngest son of the Duke of Moreland and is forever trying to find a way to live out of his family's shadow.

He does so by playing the piano. Well. So well that he is known as a virtuoso. But a sore hand and a doctor's orders prevents him from doing the one thing that he feels defines him -- and he is lost once more.

One night, a game of cards and lady luck in his favor gives Valentine another opportunity -- he travels to Little Weldon to inspect his "newly-acquired" property and is pleased to discover that a former acquaintance lives nearby.

Ellen, Baroness Roxbury, lives a quiet life -- and loves her garden.

When Valentine shows up in her quiet little town, she doesn't know if she should be pleased or worried. They had met a year before ... and shared a kiss. They never expected to meet again but, now -- they were living in close proximity to each other and the attraction from one year before is stronger and more irresistible.

But things were happening around them -- bonfires and loose tile roofs -- and a tree falling on to Ellen's cottage.

And why was Ellen living so modestly in a place so badly in need of repair? And where was all the money from the tenant farms going?

Valentine is determined to uncover all the secrets Ellen keeps --

And Ellen wants to discover Val's secrets as well.

Why did Valentine have so many titled friends? What sort of furniture did he make that made so much money?

I loved Val's hesitation to reveal his identity -- it worked on two levels -- on the basic level, Valentine didn't want to lord around (pun intended) his title and connections. On the greater level, I guess it was because Val didn't know exactly who he was. He was searching for his own identity, outside of being his father's son and being good at playing the piano.

The whole crisis of identities comes into a wonderful climax when a piano is delivered to Valentine's new home and he shows Ellen who he is by playing.

Grace Burrowes is a wonderful storyteller and one of my great discoveries -- her stories are charming and wonderfully written.

Engaged in Sin by Sharon Page

This book annoyed me -- I finished it but it annoyed me.

This is Sharon Page's second mainstream historical romance -- and I think she is still trying to find her place in romance world. She's very good at writing sex scenes -- but even that was not very well done in this book.

Anne is desperate and on the run -- she believes she is guilty of murdering Madame Sin, the owner of the brothel where she has been working in. She pretends to be the courtesan hired to "entertain" the Duke of March.

Devon was blinded in the wars and is hiding from the world in his hunting box.

He is "charmed" by Anne's persistence and allows her to stay for one day. (And has sex with her.)

One day becomes one week and then one month, etc -- and they have sex a lot. (I was confounded by the one on the swing.)

The best part of the story was when Anne was trying to teach Devon to "see" again and I loved the part where they go out in the rain.

The story was well-plotted and had an okay beginning and an okay resolution -- but it wasn't a story that stood out. A lot of it was cliche: she falls in love with him and runs away so that she doesn't taint him or his title -- he finds her and they have sex and she runs away again, etc.

And she gets pregnant.

Sigh.~

For me, Sharon Page's best work was still her Rodesson's Daughters Trilogy --