Fool for Love by Eloisa James

http://amzn.to/29dRZ9o
The Woman
Lady Henrietta Maclellan longs for the romantic swirl of a London season. But as a rusticating country maiden, she has always kept her sensuous nature firmly under wraps -- until she meets Simon Darby. Simon makes her want to whisper promises late at night, exchange kisses on a balcony, receive illicit love notes. So Henrietta lets her imagination soar and writes...

The Letter
A very steamy love letter that becomes shockingly public. Everyone supposes that he has written it to her, but the truth hardly matters in the face of the scandal to come if they don't marry at once. But nothing has quite prepared Henrietta for the pure sensuality of...

The Man
Simon has vowed he will never turn himself into a fool over a woman. So, while debutantes swoon as he disdainfully strides past the lovely ladies of the ton, he ignores them all...until Henrietta. Could it be possible that he has been the foolish one all along?


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This had all the elements for the perfect story: an arrogant lord who is brought down by the love of a woman who is so far from what he expected yet perfect for him in every way. I so wanted to love this book but it really missed the mark for me.

I liked the premise of the story and at first I liked and was rooting for both Henrietta and Simon as they seemed to play off each other well. However it wasn't long before my liking for both Simon and Henrietta took a turn for the worse. Simon was described as an elegantly perfect man who wore an astonishingly large amount of lace over his clothing including his red velvet suits. Despite the reason for the lace being explained away, the image of a man, any man, in a red velvet suit does not tend to make me giddy with lust! I could also understand Henrietta and was sympathetic to her plight however when she schemed to trap Simon into marriage simply to suit her selfish wants I really questioned her as leading lady material.

As well as the main story there was the story of Esme and her baby which, despite taking up a fair number of pages, was never resolved by the end of the book. There was also mutterings of Simon's best friends Rees and his estranged wife and talk of a married Duchess who seemed to have been previously engaged to one of the other characters within the book. I now realise that this book is part of a series after Duchess in Love and before A Wild Pursuit and Your Wicked Ways although if I'm honest this book did little to make me want to read the rest.

Finally, the number of modern Americanisms in this book was truly appalling - babies 'spitting up' and people telling others to 'give over' were just two of the more memorable that had me shaking my head in annoyance. Then you have to add in the surprisingly frequent amount of spelling and grammar mistakes littered throughout the text as well as some baffling instances of repeated words.

I've read and very much enjoyed Eloisa James before but I would only recommend this book to avid fans or those reading The Duchess Quartet in order. It's not truly terrible but it just didn't grab or hold my attention to any degree. 3 stars.


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369 pages



Holy shit - these covers are hideous!



Click to see other books by Eloisa James



The Seduction of Scandal by Cathy Maxwell

http://amzn.to/29eeRE8It's never wise to blackmail a highwayman.

Lady Corinne, rebellious daughter of the duke of Banfield, refuses to marry Lord Freddie Sherwin. Yes, he's the catch of the Season and the man her father chose for her. He's also the most despicable male of her acquaintance. With her wedding only weeks away, she flees and finds herself a prisoner of the notorious Thorn!

Who says the devil isn't a woman?

The rich and powerful tremble at the highwayman's name, while England's villagers rejoice in his bold exploits. His identity is a secret; his life a mystery until Lady Corinne tumbles into his arms. If the Thorn wants her silence, he must hide her until her wedding day passes. It's a devil's bargain and one that can only lead to a hangman's noose.

Corinne believes it the perfect plan until her highwayman reveals a passionate lover's heart, and she realizes that in the seduction of scandal, she may have found the hero she's been waiting for her whole life.


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This is the fifth book in Maxwell's Scandals and Seductions series after A Seduction at Christmas, The Earl Claims His Wife, The Marriage Ring and His Christmas Pleasure. Corinne briefly featured in the last book but apart from that the books stand very much alone and in this one at least, there are no appearances by the main characters from previous books.

From start to finish I really loved this book. It is full of intrigue and romance all the while maintaining the lightness that put me in mind of The Scarlet Pimpernel. However, the real highlight of the book for me had to be Thorn. When we first are introduced to him I was intrigued as to how he would fare as a romantic lead but he turns out to be a brooding, tortured and lonely man who desperately needs the love of a good woman. I liked Corinne too and together the pair had good chemistry. The writing was sharp and this is the kind of story you're desperate to pick up again if you can manage to put it down in the first place.

My one negative about the book was the sheer number of typos. It drove me mad to see duplicated words, spelling mistakes, grammatical mistakes on top of the smattering of Americanisms dotted throughout the book. I realise that this isn't necessarily the fault of the author so it's a shame that it affected my feelings about a book whose characters and storyline I otherwise very much enjoyed.

Having said that, if you like regency romances that you can get lost in and really root for the characters then I would very much recommend this book to you despite its faults. 4 stars.


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389 pages


Scandals and Seductions series:

For Love or Legacy by Ruth Cardello

http://amzn.to/29bkZcUNicole Corisi will lose her inheritance if she doesn’t find a way around the terms of her father’s will, but she will have to partner up with her estranged brother’s rival to do it. As pretense becomes painfully real, Nicole will have to choose between Stephan and the family he is driven to destroy.

Stephan Andrade has been planning his revenge ever since Dominic Corisi unscrupulously took over his father’s company. With Corisi Enterprises gambling its reputation on the success of a new software network for China, Stephan finally has his chance to take back his legacy. Dominic’s younger sister, Nicole, asks Stephan for his help and provides him with an opportunity to exact his revenge on a personal level.

It all goes smoothly until he falls in love.



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This is the second in the Legacy Trilogy after Maid for the Billionaire and before Bedding the Billionaire. You probably could read them on their own but it's so much better if you read them in order so you know who's who in the supporting characters and situations.

Although looking forward to this book I was wondering whether I would identify with Nicole as she seemed a bit snippy in the first book. I was glad to be proven wrong as she instantly came across as a real woman who had insecurities but a real strength about her. She was fun and likeable and a great foil for the delicious and broody Stephan. The pair also had good chemistry although I would have liked to see a little more action between the pair in the earlier stages!

The storyline was interesting and I was always keen to pick up the book and continue where I'd left off. The writing flowed and the style was very readable. The book also nicely set up Jake and Lil's story which I'm very much looking forward to. And I have to make mention of the second last line of the book which I thought was so sweet and made me swoon!

Like with Maid for the Billionaire, I feel that this author shows exactly how Mills and Boon Modern/Harlequin Desire books should be written. Men who are powerful without being too arrogant and women that are strong enough to tame them. I am really enjoying Ruth Cardello's books and would recommend you give her a try. 4 stars.


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222 pages
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