Showing posts with label 2014 mini reviews. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2014 mini reviews. Show all posts

Monday, May 26, 2014

Musing Mondays: Mini Reviews

MusingMondays5

Musing Mondays asks you to muse about something related to reading/books each week…...

Posting mini reviews of two romance novels. One historical, other contemporary...


Nicholas Morgan, an orphan,  discovers that he is the legitimate heir of the Marquess of Harteford. He sees and marries Lady Helena Harteford, who he thinks is sweet and innocent. So he can't give in to his raging desires. Their wedding night is a disaster. Lady Helena is desperate for his attention and follows him to a bawdy house. 

There in the darkness, Nicholas is driven by lust for her, thinking of his wife, although he does not recognise her. Helena acts like a harlot but can't tell him that. He has dark secrets from his past unable to share with her. 

Both had potential but the author did not give them much due. Helena is no waif and Nicholas is flawed. That should have made the novel readable. But it dwelled too much on sex, which did not work out for me. 

The Passionate Greek by Catherine Dane (Contemporary Romance)

Melanie poses as  nanny for her 9 month old daughter. She had given up all rights to her daughter when she went to prison. Nicos can't forgive Melanie for her betrayal. 

I liked the way they both cared for the welfare of the infant. Nicos might hate her but he could see her bonding with her daughter. The writing is good but this too did not work for me because of, what else, too much sex!! I skipped pages to get to the ending!!

Monday, April 14, 2014

Musing Monday: Mini reviews of two historical romances

MusingMondays5
Musing Mondays asks you to muse about something related to reading/books each week…...

I am going post mini reviews of two historical romances:

Winter Heart by Jane Bonander 

This novel speaks about horrors of mental institutions in 19th century America. Dinah Odell has been put in one such institution by her greedy uncle. Daisy, a dying nurse at Trenway, helps Dinah escape and take her place caring for a mentally unstable girl at a ranch in California. Tristan Fletcher is a rancher. Dinah has to care for his sister Emily. Dinah is in hiding from her uncle and Tristan has been too scarred in his past to contemplate a serious relationship with anyone. But they are both drawn to each other. Will their past lives drive them apart?


The Officer and the Bostoner by Rose Gordon 

Set in 1845 Texas, it is a fast paced Western Historical Romance. Allison Pierson, a well to do Bostoner, is stranded in a military fort in Indian Territory while travelling to meet her fiance. Captain Wes Tucker insists she must marry to be able to stay safely in the fort. Having no other choice, she agrees to   marry him. Allison falls in in love with Wes and he with her. Her fiance turns up, wants her to be with him or he will destroy Wes. (Now her fiance has always lied about her father owing him money but the reverse is true. Allison is unaware of all this). She agrees as she she does not want Wes to be hurt. Wes learns the truth, is wealthy in his own right and goes to confront her greedy fiance. 

Monday, March 17, 2014

Mini Reviews of Three Karen Robards Historical Romance Novels

Dark Torment by Karen Robards


Dominic Gallagher has been sent to Australia for Crimes against the Crown. Sarah Markham insists that her father buy him when she sees him being flogged by the Captain's Whip. In a way, she saves his life but the rebel is in no mood to be in her debt. 

While working in her father's land, Sarah and Dominic find themselves in close proximity and passion blossoms. Sarah is in a dilemma for feeling like this for an indentured servant. Then they discovered that someone wants Dominic dead....the big question is why?

Lady Gabriella Banning is devastated when she learns that her half-brother, the Earl of Wickham, has died on his tea plantation in Ceylon. She and and her two younger sisters are now penniless. Gabby has to think fast! 

Without letting her sisters know, she pretends that the Earl of Wickham has allowed for the London season for her beautiful sister Claire. She thinks that as soon as Claire finds a match, the truth will have to come out.

When she arrives in London, she finds Marcus, the Earl of Wickham is already in residence at their home. But both know the truth. That  the Earl of Wickham is very much dead. She can't expose him now with so much at stake. 

When sparks fly, Gabby and Marcus seem to be an odd pair of siblings wrongfully in love with each other. London society is buzzed with the scandal....the big question being....how is it going to affect Claire's future prospects?


It is second in the series of the Banning sisters. The very beautiful Claire Banning is now married to a rich nobleman. However, he turns out to be a wastrel. She has been left alone in one of his estates but she wishes for her rightful place in society by being near her husband, 
While travelling to her husband's estate on the coast of Sussex, she is kidnapped and confined in a cabin of ship with her kidnapper.

Hugh Battancourt, who works secretly for his country, realizes he had kidnapped the wrong person as soon as she tells him who she is. But he can't let her go without endangering both their lives. Claire thinks she has found true love in Hugh Battancourt but she knows they have no future as she is married. He makes sure she goes home safely. And then he turns up after a few months, now as a nobleman. He knows that someone is trying to eliminate her....

Karen Robards sure knows how to write Historical romances. Her heroines are strong characters. They have guts and are unafraid. The suspense element is good too. The edge is all there and one enjoys reading her novels.

Monday, March 3, 2014

Musing Mondays: Mini Reviews

MusingMondays5
Musing Mondays asks you to muse about something related to reading/books each week…...

This time I thought of posting a couple of Mini Reviews. 
Charity has escaped a fundamentalist religious community that wants to keep her captive. She crashes her car in the middle of a storm, and is saved by Russ, who provides her shelter, comfort, and  heat to forget about the storm outside. But Russ has secrets of his own and Charity isn’t safe.

I liked how it began. Russ is protective of Charity. There is suspense element. However there is a lot of erotic stuff which was a big no no for me. I prefer good old romance. Not something that borders on BDSM! NOT FOR ME!


Flynn Rogers has been in love with Winter Mitchell since she was all of 12 years At that time he was playing a vampire on TV. Nine years later she gets to plan his son's birthday party. He is engaged to actress Melissa Irish although the relationship is not exactly romantic.

Winter falls for Flynn which is reciprocated. It gets complicated for all involved as Winter and Melissa have to maintain a facade for media. 

The story started out good but it is too explicit for my liking. I am no prude but I don't like to read about sex every other page. This too borders on BDSM. A big NO NO!!

MORAL OF THE STORY: DO NOT DOWNLOAD FREE E-BOOKS WITH LURID COVERS