The Raven Prince Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Wow! I am blown away by this debut novel. I simply could not put it down until I had read every steamy page.
Edward is a broody discontented earl that at heart is just lonely. He's not your typical hero. He is scarred, has a big nose, thin lips and is described as unattractive. He does have a gorgeous body, though. His scars run beneath the skin as well and he carries some real emotional baggage. He reacts by lashing out and throwing fits of temper thus scaring off his previous secretaries.
Anna has fallen on hard times and shows up for the position of secretary while Edward is away. Upon his return, Anna has firmly settled into her role and Edward is enchanted by her tantalizing mouth. She is plain, but he cannot stop thinking of her mouth. He has no one else to replace her so what's an earl to do when faced with temptation? He keeps her in his employ, much to his future...ahem...discomfort.
What follows is page after page of sexual tension that Ms. Hoyt cleverly builds to a climax that is so hot even I, who am pretty jaded, was left breathless. The love scenes are exquisitely and graphically written, however, not in a clinical way. For those who love hero-jealousy and emotional angst, there's a bit of that as well. As they fall in love I felt they were meant for each other.
The story moves quickly-too quickly as I didn't want it to end-and I never felt it bogged down at any point. I highly recommend this book. I wouldn't have changed a single thing.

Click Here to see more reviews about: The Raven Prince

There comes a time in a womanrsquo;s life when she must do the unthinkable - and find employment. For the widowed Anna Wren, that means taking a job as female secretary for the Earl of Swartingham. Secretaries are always male - never female - as Anna well knows but the real downfall of her career is the realisation that she is falling in love with Edward de Raaf - the Earl. But when she realises that he is going to visit a brothel in London to take care of his 'manly' desires, Anna sees red - and decides to take advantage of the opportunity to also take care of her 'womanly' desires - with the Earl as her unknowing lover. But the Earl has another reason for going to London. He is formalising his betrothal and trying (with little success) to forget about a secretary that has no right being female. Unhandsome, he knows that no woman wants him. Except for the mysterious lady with whom he spent two unforgettable nights at Aphroditersquo;s Grotto, the most scandalous brothel in London. But when Annarsquo;s plan is revealed, a bit of blackmail is thrown into the mix, a proposal is rejected and even the Earl himself will be unprepared for the intrigues that ensnare them.

Click here for more information about The Raven Prince

Read More...

The Duke of Shadows Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Lest you be deceived, this is not a rompy, light-hearted English historical like we see so often. This is a real, gritty story of love during wartime.
In 1857, Emmaline Martin's parents are escorting her to India to marry her lifelong fiancé, but their ship is lost at sea and Emma is the only survivor. Continuing on to Delhi alone, Emma, an artist, begins to see the cracks in the English society she's always known, and also entertains the doubts she's held for years about her fiancé. Adding fuel to her new introspection is Julian Sinclair, her fiancé's cousin who is somewhat marginalized by society because he's one quarter Indian.
Julian is a playboy straddling two worlds. Heir to an English Duke, he struggles to reconcile his two cultures. When an Indian uprising turns the English colonial world upside down Julian helps Emma escape and they take a rough journey toward safety.
This book was magnificent. It has been so long since I enjoyed a new historical this much. It has so much going for it I don't know where to begin. First, the setting: the first half of the book takes place in India, which I love. Duran's India is raw and real and exhilarating. She has a grasp of action and battle scenes rarely seen in Romance, my heart was honestly pounding during one scene. Her grasp on not only colonial India, but on Victorian London society make the book more like an experience than a read. Clearly she knows her stuff.
But the best part of this book--oh my gosh--is the characters. Emma is a complicated, genuine woman. She's independent for her time, but not a transplanted twenty-first century woman either. Her character development is the best I've seen in a heroine for longer than I can remember. She's a real artist: she feels her feelings, lets her heart overwhelm her, and doesn't fear passion.
Julian takes a bit of a backseat to Emma's internal journey, but he's still a compelling hero in his own right. I love his struggle with his English and Indian identities, it's very well done. He's had a pretty hard luck life, but he doesn't have a lot of ridiculous hang-ups or anything. Really, he's the perfect hero for this book, he has depth and shadows, but they're not overwhelming.
My only small quibble is that later in the book Emma gets emotionally hung up on something she did during the uprising that doesn't feel right to me. What she did, and why she did it was perfectly understandable, and it's hard for me to imagine the Emma from the first half of the book letting something like that get to her, and it feels like something forced to keep some suspense in the plot. But even still, it's a minor irritation in an amazing book.
I give The Duke of Shadows 5 stars out of 5, which I've never done. It's a good thing I didn't check the Amazon reviews before I bought this (it was an impulse buy at Borders after I read the first couple of pages) or I may never have found it as it has only excellent reviews, but in this case I have to say I heartily agree with them. Imagine my surprise, though, when I see on Amazon that this was a debut novel! Wow. Can't wait to see what Duran does next.


Click Here to see more reviews about: The Duke of Shadows

In a debut romance as passionate and sweeping as the British Empire, Meredith Duran paints a powerful picture of an aristocrat torn between two worlds, an heiress who dares to risk everything...and the love born in fire and darkness that nearly destroys them. From exotic sandstone palaces... Sick of tragedy, done with rebellion, Emmaline Martin vows to settle quietly into British Indian society. But when the pillars of privilege topple, her fiancé's betrayal leaves Emma no choice. She must turn for help to the one man whom she should not trust, but cannot resist: Julian Sinclair, the dangerous and dazzling heir to the Duke of Auburn. To the marble halls of London... In London, they toast Sinclair with champagne. In India, they call him a traitor. Cynical and impatient with both worlds, Julian has never imagined that the place he might belong is in the embrace of a woman with a reluctant laugh and haunted eyes. But in a time of terrible darkness, he and Emma will discover that love itself can be perilous -- and that a single decision can alter one's life forever. Destiny follows wherever you run. A lifetime of grief later, in a cold London spring, Emma and Julian must finally confront the truth: no matter how hard one tries to deny it, some pasts cannot be disowned...and some passions never die.

Click here for more information about The Duke of Shadows

Read More...

The Forgotten Garden: A Novel Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)A four-year-old girl waits alone on a dock in Australia for parents who never come. Her only possession? A tiny white suitcase containing no information about who she is or how she came to be abandoned.
Nell is a foundling, and what a rare foundling she is. A stow-away on an ocean liner, she refuses to tell even so much as her name. Until in her 60s, over-protected by a loving foster father, she has no clue how she came to be alone on that dock. Hers is the mystery that unfolds in this long novel spanning more than a century, five generations, and two distant continents.
Enthusiastic fans of Kate Morton's first novel, "The House at Riverton," will thrill to her second, "The Forgotten Garden." Like her first, this is a novel whose female characters are finely and fully drawn, and whose males are wispy and insubstantial. How its women interact, how they love and hate one another, how their interplay moves through tragedy and redemption will provide hours of pleasure for her fans.
Morton's excellent pacing creates a page-turner that is hard to put down, although its length might give pause to those who suffer from carpal tunnel syndrome. Morton tells her story not only through the actions of her characters but also through fairy tales that work on several levels and provide clues to the mystery's final solution. Many readers will have guessed the solution long before the end of the book. Nevertheless, Morton maintains reader interest throughout.
Overall, this is a highly satisfying read. It's fun to watch the author weave the lives of women into a rich tapestry of life and love, anger and betrayal. However, the novel is not without its weaknesses. First, as mentioned above, Morton's male characters are weak and insipid and never come to life. Second, the love interest at the end of the book does not mesh with the rest of the work. It is almost as though an editor said, "You'd better add a little love story here," so Morton did.
The book's flaws, while mildly unsettling, are not serious enough to spoil a great read. If you enjoy long stories about generations of women, you will love "The Forgotten Garden."

Click Here to see more reviews about: The Forgotten Garden: A Novel

Click here for more information about The Forgotten Garden: A Novel

Read More...