Reading Fanatic Reviews
Romantic FantasyDaring the Detective by Riley Cole
Daring the Detective*
Mismatched Pair Seeks Answers
Zadie, the heroine, is immediately uneasy when she comes to the Restitution League to ask them to take her case. She was expecting to find fellow thieves and other reformed criminals, not a police detective. Not quite sure whether to trust sharing the full story with the Sweets and the detective, she ultimately decides that her aunt’s life is more important than the possibility of arrest. Her aunt has gone missing under suspicious circumstances, and she fears that her business of retrieving stolen objects has led one of her victims to strike. Detective Caleb, the hero, believes he knows her type and suspects she is keeping details from them. The League does take up her case, but will everything change when other law enforcement believe that Zadie is not only involved in her aunt’s disappearance but also in her murder? Will romantic sparks fly between this honorable detective and a tarnished lady?
For those who read the two previous books in the Restitution League series, it will come as a surprise that this book is not about one of the Sweets. After all, Briar still hasn’t met found her mate. The writing in this book is not quite as snarky and humorous as the first two books, but this read about a very mismatched pair who have a hard time trusting each other in the face of danger is a compelling one. Detective Caleb puts his career in jeopardy, and Zadie’s very life may hang in the balance.
Scarred by Meghyn King
Scarred*
Heroine Confronts Her Past
Scarlett, who left her hometown as soon as she could, comes back for her twin sister’s wedding. Scarlett hasn’t been back because she was bullied severely in high school for her weight and her crush on one of the football stars. Her treatment back then destroyed her, and she acts out sexually because of it. She has no desire for a permanent relationship, and she has a string of one-night stands. She decides that a good way to get back at least one person in her hometown is to have a one-night stand with one of the perpetrators, Ethan, the one she had a crush on, to show him what he missed. Of course, it isn’t that simple. She has rules for her one-night stands, and she ends up breaking them with him.
What motivates Scarlett to act differently than she usually does? What exactly is the dynamic between her and Ethan? Will Scarlett finally be able to sort out her thoughts and feelings about what she suffered when she was younger?
This book is very unusual for contemporary romance in that it looks at not just one but two difficult topics, bullying and domestic abuse. It’s easy to see how the teenage bullying changed Scarlett, altering not only her perceptions of herself but how she reacted to those around her (not just men). In an ironic twist, one of Scarlett’s main tormentors became the victim of domestic abuse. The author did a good job of showing how and why these two women were at odds but were able to come around to a better understanding in part based on the pain of their pasts.
Note: This book has highly graphic descriptions of sexual acts with many sexual scenes described in slang terms for body parts and actions. There is a lot of profanity both in the sexual scenes and outside them.
The Awakened Prince by Elise Marion
The Awakened Prince*
Returned Prince Fights Battles on Many Fronts
Prince Serge, the second son and prince of his land, awakens after a one-year coma to find that his younger brother has become king after the battle that placed Serge in a coma killed their elder brother, Lionus. Damien, the new king, feel guilty about taking what he sees as his brother’s position and offers Serge a new option: Marry their dead brother’s wife, Isabelle, and rule with her in her land of Barony. Serge has loved Isabelle for a long time but feels guilt about his feelings and doesn’t want to wed her, knowing that she had loved and still loves his brother.
Because of an old woman’s predictions about dire consequences and her own dreams, Isabelle after some waffling decides to marry Serge even though her heart belongs to Lionus. For a very brief time, the two are happy until Serge confesses his love for her. Isabelle does not react well to this and confesses her emotional quandary to her lady’s maid, which Serge accidentally overhears. Relations between them become strained for a long while they continue to have sexual chemistry.
But much more is going on in this book besides their personal problems. War threatens. When Serge goes off, Isabelle decides to join and train with a band of female warriors.
Will Serge and Isabelle resolve their differences? Can she–and he–move past feelings of guilt about their relationship? Will this queen of Barony fight alongside her warriors in the looming battle?
This was a page-turning read. The only part I didn’t like was that Serge and Isabelle were at odds for so long.
There were several things I loved about this book. I enjoyed the first part when Serge comes back from his coma. The author did a good job showing his disorientation and his struggles. He is haunted by the images of watching his brother be killed in battle as well as the mistreatment he had at the hands of the enemies. He struggles physically and mentally with his battle wounds, as well as mentally with the guilt for what he feels for Isabelle. Once they marry, he is blissful but just a little guilty until it all crashes around him when he overhears her. You could sense his despair at that moment. The author does an excellent job in the sections about the women warriors. It is so unusual to have female warriors in a romance in general, but I’ve rarely seen a whole regiment of them. It was lovely to see this band of strong women work together and fight with their queen beside them.
If you enjoy fantasy romance with strong female characters, you might enjoy this book.
S’more Event by Wendy Meadows
Available at Amazon only
Free with Kindle Unlimited
S'more Event*
Chocolate-Driven Cozy Mystery
This is a cozy mystery taking place in a fictional New England town. Things get off to a rocky start when ten pounds of chocolate go missing from one of the stores there. The owner first accuses chocolate-loving parrot, Spot. But of course, one bird can’t eat that much chocolate. Soon, a much more dire event takes place. A woman is found dead. Who could have done such a thing and why? Does the missing chocolate have anything to do with the murder?
This is a relatively short book that doesn’t take long to read. At first, I was a little annoyed at the initial bit about the parrot eating the chocolate, as that scene did go on for a bit, when it is obvious that a parrot couldn’t eat that much! However, things got a little less silly, thank goodness, when the murder happened. I enjoyed the main character, Hillary. She is a recent widow, and she feels like Spot, her parrot, helps keep her memory of her husband alive. The police chief has a romantic interest in her, but she’s not quite ready or another relationship.
The book had some of the common issues with grammar, punctuation, and spelling that many books seem to have today, but it was not overly distracting from the story.
If you enjoy short cozy mysteries with a food bent, you might enjoy this one.
The Benefits of Extensive Reading by Lory Lilian
At the time of this writing, only available at Amazon.
The Benefits of Extensive Reading**
So-so Story Plagued by Egregious Errors
Titles of Jane Austen fan fiction often arise from famous quotes or phrases from the original book. I’ve seen a variety of them, but I don’t think I’ve seen one that had to do with this particularly infamous quote of Mr. Darcy’s when he said that a woman should improve her mind through extensive reading.
Reading that sets off the romance in this book. Unlike in canon, where Elizabeth and Darcy spend a half hour reading but not conversing while in the Netherfield library, in this version the couple accidentally gets locked into it after midnight after an inebriated Mr. Hurst broke the doorknob. They aren’t alone for long; Bingley and Mr. Darcy’s valet find them.
Of course, Mr. Darcy tells Elizabeth that if anything gets around about this incident he will marry her to save her reputation. He has the shock of his life when she tells them that not only would she not marry him even in such a circumstance, but she doesn’t like him at all.
Bingley is an interesting character in this particular variation. In regard to Jane, he is a stronger man than he is in canon and in most JAFF versions. But he keeps slipping up and nearly giving away that Darcy and Elizabeth were locked in a room together.
Will Bingley be able to keep his mouth shut? Will Darcy be able to make Elizabeth fall in love with him?
There are some things I found annoying in this book, and I’ll mention the smallest ones first. The initial displeasure for me was when Mr. Collins spread his incorrect facts about Mr. Darcy being engaged to Ann; it is just one of those flat devices that we often see in P&P JAFF. At least in this version, he did so deliberately, not accidentally, as he already had designs Elizabeth and was trying to blacken Darcy’s reputation for her. This did cause Elizabeth some distress, of course. The other disappointment was the nearly superfluous Wickham who was brought in but very late in the story, somewhere around 60%. Funnily enough, I had recently written a guide for my editing blog about looking at your writing from a developmental level, and I actually stated in that post make sure your villain doesn’t come in two-thirds of the way through your novel! (If you surf to the guide, it is in the Analyze Your Reverse Outline section.) At least, Wickham ends up to be a minor nuisance, which was refreshing, as again Wickham can be overdone in these variations.
The most annoying and frustrating part of the book was the utter and complete lack of copyediting and proofreading. I’ve seen a lot of badly edited books, but this was one of the worst. A variety of errors–and a lot of them–including some I’ve never seen before. Sometimes words were repeated right next to each other. Sometimes ending punctuation was left off. Quotation marks were either placed too often in the same line of dialogue or not place at the start of dialogue. There were spacing issues both around periods (for instance, no space between the period after Mr. and the Bingley following it in one spot) as well as around en-dashes that set off certain parts of text. I believe the author is using the British way of that kind of punctuation, where a space should exist on either side of it, but quite often one of these spaces was missing, making the construction look lopsided. This is a well-known and well-loved author. I find it hard to believe that she can’t afford a good copyeditor or at least a proofreader.
In all I found this book to be disappointing. The story itself didn’t offer enough variation from what we see in JAFF, and the errors alone make it almost unreadable in parts. I was pulled out of the story so often that sometimes I felt like I kept reading just to keep watching the trainwreck.
Seducing the Scientist by Riley Cole
Available at Amazon only
Free with Kindle Unlimited
Seducing the Scientist*
Edison Meets His Match in Female Scientist
If you’re familiar with the first book of series about the Restitution League, you know about the cousins who are the core of it. This is Edison’s story, and has he ever met his match! The league investigates a case brought to them by a man who is clearly lying about it and find themselves embroiled in a need to protect a female scientist on the brink of sharing her world-changing discovery. Will the League be able to keep her safe? Will her invention fall into the wrong hands? Will others take credit for what she has done?
Just like the first book, I found this story to be delightfully well-written. In the parts narrated by Edison, he comes across as cocky, slightly jaded, and on the prowl for his next adventure or female. His commentary is often quite amusing, like when he said the heroine had “the delicacy of a stevedore,” which made me laugh out loud. Other sections are narrated by Philomena and Ada; the former is Edison’s sister who was the heroine of Book 1, and the latter is this book’s heroine. I love Ada. She’s a strong, smart woman who has taken care of herself and her grandmother while pursuing her interest in science. Ada is a smart cookie but vulnerable, too, especially in her dealings with men about whom she might have a romantic interest as well as those who would belittle her mind and discoveries.
Those who enjoyed Philomena’s and Spencer’s story in Book 1 will be happy to hear that we continue to see their relationship grow and flourish in this book.
This delightful series about the Restitution League is for readers who appreciate strong women, good-hearted rogues, witty internal monologue and external dialogue, and stories where good–even if in the guise of reformed criminals–triumphs over evil. Personally, I can’t wait for the next installment!
For whatever reason, this book is listed as Saving the Scientist on Goodreads.
Secrets and Solace by Jana Richards
Secrets and Solace*
Taboo Topic Explored in Second Installment of Love at Lake Solace Series
The second book of the Love at Solace Lake series features Harper’s sister Scarlet and Ethan’s brother, Cam. If you enjoyed the love story between Harper and Ethan, you get to see their wedding from Scarlet’s perspective before they leave on their honeymoon to Paris. Scarlet and Cam must work together in several circumstances, and they have an almost immediate mutual dislike even though they are also somewhat drawn to each other. Scarlet doesn’t appreciate that Cam seems to think Harper is just after Ethan for his money. Ethan doesn’t like this either, and after a particularly rude statement during the wedding brunch, Ethan tells Cam that he will not put up with this treatment of his wife. Cam has a young daughter, Tessa, born out of wedlock and is an alcoholic who has been dry for three years.
Alcoholism is not a typical backdrop or source of conflict in a romance, but the author has done a good job showing how this has impacted Cam in the past and affects him in the present, decreasing his feelings of self-worth, which causes problems in his relationships with women. He’s a good father to Tessa despite his alcohol issues and problems with women.
Both Cam and Scarlet have secrets, Scarlet’s having to do with her parents’ death. She witnessed an argument that occurred between them just before their accident, and she believes she is responsible for what happened. I love how these first two stories in the series start with each girl’s memory of the day their parents died; we are privy to the same sentinel moment from different perspectives.
What will happen as Scarlet, who’s working on publicity for the lodge, works with Cam as he is renovating the lodge? Will they continue to butt heads? Will they come to a greater understanding of each other? And will that lead to more? Will secrets cause more distance between them?
I love the complex world the author has woven for this series. So far, each sister is totally unique in her fears, goals, and motivations. Their men, too, are unique–a lottery millionaire and an alcoholic contractor. Yet, overarching these stories is the underpinning mystery about the girls’ parents’ relationship and deaths as well as the modern story of renovating the lodge that pulls all these people together in a satisfying way.
If you enjoy the first book of the series, which I thought was a well-written book, you will enjoy this love story of the siblings of the first couple. If you like steamy romance that isn’t afraid to embrace difficult topic, you might enjoy this book.
I received a free copy of this book, but this did not affect my review.
The Butterfly by Victoria Vale
The Butterfly*
Exceptional Tale of Love’s Triumph over Madness and Despair
What a fantastic book by Victoria Vale! I was only familiar with her work from reading The Villain Duology, which I gave a four-star review to a while back. I had a sense from that book that I would enjoy this extension of the series, but I had no idea how moved I would be by it.
Note: This book definitely needs a trigger warning. If discussion of mental illness, drug abuse, drug withdrawal, child abuse, or sexual assault trigger you in any way or make you squeamish, then you should pass on this book. That said, the author deftly handles these delicate subjects.
This is stated to be a sequel to The Villain Duology, but I think it could be read either between the two books of the duology or after. Of course, if you read it between the two books of the duology, there are spoilers in this book; this book and the second book of the duology essentially take at the same time (except for the flashbacks), so either one could be read first. But you definitely need to read the first book of the duology before either of the others, as it sets up the two main characters in this book and gives a little bit of the background of their story.
This book artfully weaves the childhood and young adult past of the two main characters along with a contemporary plot taking place in Regency England when they are adults. For most of the book, these plots weave back and forth between past and present chapter by chapter, though at a certain point it switches only to the current Regency time.
We first meet ten-year-old Niall, our hero, as he enters his earl’s home with his father so the elders can discuss a pressing issue. This is the first time young Niall has seen any place beyond a stablemaster’s cottage, and he is transfixed by the opulence he sees. He cannot resist touching one of these beautiful items in the room, and when the elders try to get his attention, the item drops and shatters. Young Neil is ashamed. As he cleans this up, he secretes a tiny, perfect, but jagged portion within his sock. This is the same time that he sees Lady Olivia (we assume) for the first time. He is transfixed with her delicate nature. The jagged piece of porcelain becomes a metaphor in the story
As the children at the manor house grow up, they become friends. Niall, Olivia, and her stepbrother Adam play together, and Olivia even teaches Niall to read when she realizes that he is illiterate. As teenagers, Olivia and Niall have an attraction both know can go nowhere due to their relative stations, but they continue to act on it when they can.
In the modern Regency part of the story, Olivia–mentally broken after her rape and time in the asylum for unwed mothers–is in the deepest throes of madness and laudanum addiction when the story begins. After deeply slashing her wrists in order to feel anything, she determines that she will get off the laudanum even though that is what quiets her nightmares. We witness her harrowing withdrawal from laudanum and even her slipping back. I am an RN, and I thought the author did an exceptional job of showing the pain of years of nightmares and laudanum withdrawal.
Our hero, Niall, is a Scot through and through. But if you’re expecting a kilt-wearing and claymore-wielding Highlander, you will be disappointed. But you shouldn’t be; Niall is an exceptional hero. Yes, he is very rough around the edges, but that is understandable given the way that he grew up. But no matter his rough edges, he loves Lady Olivia and supports her through all of her struggles with the strength and the courage a brave knight, as Lady Olivia has always called him. Lady Olivia could ask for no better man to help support her through her years of madness and despair and still give love and affection as she heals and comes out of her fog.
My only complaint, if you could call it such, is that Lady Olivia did not call Adam to heel for his treatment of Daphne. As a young woman who was ruined in the most egregious way, she would be the only one who could shame him about his actions. If he were truly a loving brother, could he subject another woman to ruin as Olivia suffered? She did think about it and even spoke briefly to Niall about it, but she never confronted Adam.
While another author might dance around the sexual aspects of the story, Victoria Vale doesn’t shy away from telling about young Niall’s and Olivia’s youthful experiences, Olivia’s rape by Lord Bertram, and Olivia’s sexual reawakening. As I was reading the book, knowing the author’s style, I wasn’t sure how she was going to approach Niall and Olivia’s the first time, but she did so with emotional honesty and restraint, creating a scene in which Niall truly shows how much he comprehends Olivia’s struggle but still follows through as a loving and respectful man.
The author did a neat-and-tidy job of tying up the various plot lines of the story, even resolving threads I hadn’t realized needed to be. With the swift succession of scenes at the end, the author leaves the story on a triumphant note, so different than when the book started.
So long as the triggers mentioned above and explicit sexual content don’t bother you, you will find this book to be an exceptional, emotional read.
Love to Declare by C. B. Maurice
Love to Declare*
A Trying Time at Customs
I think this title is a little bit misleading. This is a very short story that mostly just details a problematic trip through Customs for young women who has just come back from a year teaching primary school children English in Korea. There is a young man, Jake, whom she didn’t know before her plane trips to get her to the US, but stands by her during this drama.
I wonder if the author just had a particularly trying time at Customs after one of her plane trips abroad. That being said, this short story can be read in less than a half hour–perhaps while you’re waiting in line!
Surrendering to My Spy by Dawn Brower
Surrendering to My Spy*
Romance and Espionage in Regency England
The hero, Lord Dominic, Marquess of Seabrook, some years ago did a reverse Darcy with the only woman he has ever loved, telling her that she was the last woman he would ever marry. In his mind, he was doing this to protect her, as his job as a spy during the Napoleonic wars could put his loved ones in jeopardy. Lady Rosanna, the heroine, took this to Heart, and it has made her a more sad and reclusive young woman. Now, Dominic has one last mission to do, and then he can move on with the rest of his life. He is in great hopes that he can convince Lady Rosanna that they have always belonged together. To complicate matters, his last mission involves him staying as a guest at her brother’s home, where she lives.
Will Dominic be able to repair the damage he caused in their relationship? What exactly is happening at the brother’s home? Will secrets bring them together or tear them apart?
The book has some of the common issues with grammar, punctuation, and usage that are typical in books these days, but this did not detract from the enjoyment of the story. This is another book where I take slight exception to the cover (second one this week!); Regency ladies did not wear slouchy, off-the-shoulder gowns..
If you enjoy Regency romance with a little bit of espionage, this may be the book for you.
Used To Build My Websites
NetGalley Badges