Simply Unforgettable by Mary Balogh

I am such a Balogh fan. If my house was on fire and I could only grab a few books on my way out the door, I'd pick most of them off my Balogh shelf. I can't think of another author who has moved me as much. That's one reason the Slightly books were so disappointing for me - although I liked the last book in the series, there were two or three that were actually unreadable. I began to wonder if Mary Balogh had been abducted by aliens.

I'd heard more promising things about this series, but when I started this book, I was immediately worried. The "we're strangers, let's jump in bed" plotline is hard for me to swallow under the best of circumstances, and it didn't seem like Balogh was doing anything to make it more appealing to me. When the book turned around in the second half, I was so relieved...

Simply Unforgettable by Mary Balogh
(2005, Regency Historical) 9/18/08
Grade: 4

When schoolteacher Frances Allard is stuck in a snowstorm with Lucius, Vicsount Sinclair, she is initially annoyed, then attracted to him. They spend the night together, thinking they will never see each other again. Frances is resigned to her life as a teacher, but Lucius can’t stop thinking about her, and is determined to find a way for them to be together.

Initially, I found this book a bit annoying and dull. I didn’t find either the hero or heroine particularly interesting or sympathetic (he was arrogant, she was passive). It didn’t make a lot of sense for them to go to bed together - I really didn’t see this great attraction between them, and it seemed like just a plot point by the author. However, the book improved dramatically once that section was over, and the two separated. Lucius, in particular, became a much more interesting and sympathetic character once he realized that he cared for Frances (almost in spite of himself). I love a hero who will move heaven and earth to be with the heroine. Frances was still a less interesting character - in particular, I got a bit tired of the hints about her “mysterious past” - but the last few chapters were so touching and emotional, in true Balogh style, that I had to give it a better grade.

I'm such an emotional reader - I can forgive a lot of flaws, if I close the book with that happy "aahhh" feeling. A book that leaves me feeling warm and fuzzy will always get a better grade from me.