Marrying the Captain by Carla Kelly

I'm so pleased that Carla Kelly is back writing for Harlequin Historical (and I hope they're paying her well!). Although her books aren't always as "romantic" as I prefer, she has a unique voice, and I would hate for her to be lost to the romance world.

Marrying the Captain by Carla Kelly
(2009, Regency) 1/21/09
Grade: 4

Captain Oliver Worthy is on a brief leave from the French blockade, waiting for his ship to be repaired. He agrees to look in on Lord Ratliffe’s illegitimate daughter, Eleanor, and is soon enchanted by her and her family. But Oliver is unwilling to marry when his life is in constant danger - and Nana doesn’t want to burden him with a wife who will never fit in.

Carla Kelly is unparalleled in her depictions of ordinary heroes and heroines, and she does a wonderful job here with Oliver and Nana. She’s particularly good at creating military heroes, and she really brought her naval hero to life. (The heroine is a more typical “too good to be true” type, but she’s well written.) There were many scenes that stood out here, as the hero and heroine quietly spent time together. However, the book didn’t really stand out from other Carla Kelly books. It dragged a bit in the middle, and the action scenes felt tacked on at the end. Overall, it just felt predictable, although well executed - nothing that really excited me. But still, a good Carla Kelly book is still well worth reading, even if it’s not that different than the ones that went before.

Although Carla Kelly has dealt with illegitimate heroines before, this almost seems like a trend in romance - I've seen more illegitimate heroes and heroines in the past year than I ever have before. I'm intrigued - with all the mistresses and so forth, there had to be a lot of them running around Regency England, and it's a side of life we don't see very often.

Best of 2008

This has been an excellent reading year for me. I read more books this year (102) than in any year since 1996 - the last year before I started working full time. (Amazing how having a job cuts down on your reading time.) My continued unemployment probably explains why I read so many books this year, but it's not the only reason. I found a lot more books I wanted to read this year! 28 of the books I read were from 2008, which is more than I've bought in any year, in close to a decade. Finally, the romance publishers were putting out serious, "angsty" historicals again, in between all the paranormals and erotica. Nice for me, and probably for a lot of other romance readers as well.

I didn't have a keeper this year (Grade of 5), but that probably has more to do with my pickiness than anything else. But I had 8 books that I graded at 4.5, which means they were really enjoyable, the best books of the year. Three of those books were from 2008.

Simply Magic by Mary Balogh (2007)
A Heritage of Shadows by Madeline Brent (1983)
The Discarded Duke by Nancy Butler (2002)
His Captive Lady by Anne Gracie (2008)
A Kiss To Dream On by Neesa Hart (1999)
To Seduce a Sinner by Elizabeth Hoyt (2008)
Beyond Breathless by Kathleen O'Reilly (2007)
The Lost Duke of Wyndham by Julia Quinn (2008)

There were a lot of other books that got very good grades (4). A lot of grading depends on my emotional reaction to a book, and a lot of these books might have gotten a higher grade on another day. They were all good reads. I won't link to all of them but it's a quick overview. (I included a couple of books that I read in early January, but were 2008 books.)

Barefoot in the Grass by Judith Arnold (1996)
Simply Love by Mary Balogh (2006)
Simply Perfect by Mary Balogh (2008)
Simply Unforgettable by Mary Balogh (2005)
A Most Unsuitable Man by Jo Beverley (2005)
The Spymaster's Lady by Joanna Bourne (2008)
Your Scandalous Ways by Loretta Chase (2008)
Kiss The Cook by Jacquie D'Alessandro (2000)
After the Kiss by Suzanne Enoch (2008)
The Monk Upstairs by Tim Farrington (2007)
Nobody Does It Better by Jan Freed (1997)
Shores of Desire by Tracy Grant (1997)
His Secret Past by Ellen Hartman (2008)
The Pirate Lord by Sabrina Jeffries (1998)
Proving Herself by Yvonne Jocks (2001)
Summer Campaign by Carla Kelly (1989)
Like No Other Lover by Julie Ann Long (2008)
Mostly Married by Lisa Manual (2004)
Because of You by Cathy Maxwell (1999)
A Man to Rely On by Cindi Myers (2008)
Beguiled by Susan Spencer Paul (1998)
Ain't She Sweet by Susan Elizabeth Phillips (2004)
Lady of the Knight by Tori Phillips (1999)
White Picket Fences by Tara Tyler Quinn (2000)
Lean On Me by Jill Shalvis (1998)
Rain Shadow by Cheryl St. John (1994)
Cold as Ice by Anne Stuart (2006)
Long Night Moon by Theresa Weir (1995)

Mostly historicals, with a few series books and a couple of contemporaries.

Happily, there were few bad books this year - although that's in large part because I had little patience for them. Any book that wasn't working for me by page 50 got a quick skim, and if it didn't look promising, into the trade pile it went. (Or into the paperbackswap queue.) So most of the disappointing books never ended up in my database. But there were a couple of exceptions:

My Darling Caroline by Adele Ashworth
The Wicked Ways of a Duke by Laura Lee Guhrke

The surprising thing about these two books is that both of them were very popular. I think both made several "best of the year" lists. I definitely didn't see the attraction.

Now, I'm looking forward to 2009. The new Carla Kelly is on its way to me - I'm hoping it will be my first great read of the New Year!

After the Kiss by Suzanne Enoch

Don't judge a book by its plot description. That's the lesson I can learn from this book - I never would have bought this book if I'd run across it at a bookstore, because it sounds so silly. The plot description is correct, but only a small part of the story. Unfortunately, it's hard to judge a book if you can't trust the back blurb - I bought this book based on a review, but it seems like reviews are getting scarcer these days. (And I haven't had a great history with Suzanne Enoch - I hated one of her previous books.) So, how do you find good reads? It's hard to tell...

After the Kiss by Suzanne Enoch
(2008, Regency Historical) 1/16/09
Grade: 4

Sullivan Waring, the bastard son of a Marquis, only became a thief to recover his mother’s paintings, but when he’s caught by Lady Isabel Chalsey, he can’t help but steal a kiss. Isabel can’t decide what to do about her mysterious thief, so she decides to hire him to teach her to ride, and keep him close at hand, so she can consider him more closely...

I didn’t expect to like this books as much as I did. The plot sounded ridiculous when I read the description, and I thought it would be a silly romp. It wasn’t that at all. Both the hero and heroine were well characterized, and the attraction between them was really well done. I believed that Sullivan and Tibby yearned for each other - it wasn’t just lust - and I found myself completely caught up in their seemingly doomed affair. I also appreciated that the ending stayed true to what had gone before. I almost gave this book a higher grade, because I found myself caught up in the book, but the beginning and ending were both a bit slow, and it wasn’t as deeply emotional as the best books I read this year. Maybe 4 and a quarter stars.

The last of my 2008 books! (I'm sure I'll read more 2008 books at some point in the future - books that I missed for one reason or another - but this is the last one of the books I bought in 2008. 28 completed books in all - not bad, considering how few books I've bought in previous years.

A Man To Rely On by Cindi Myers

Harlequin Super Romance is probably my favorite series line. I like the focus on realistic characters and real-life problems. But, I'm still a picky reader. I'm reluctant to buy HSR books without a specific recommendation, because I don't really like books about babies and kidlets, and it seems like they're everywhere in this category line. Even if you pick up a book that doesn't seem to feature this plotline, you get halfway through and WHAP, there it is. And then there are the garden variety bad books - books with cardboard characters, silly plotlines, etc. It's disappointing - and with a limited book budget and not much time to read, it bothers me to buy a book that turns out to be unsatisfying. So, I wait for recommendations. Unfortunately, it can be hard to get recommendations for HSR's - it seems like most readers prefer Blazes and Presents (ick), and those are the ones that get reviewed. So, I never hear about the good HSR's. I'm glad I heard about this one - even a fleeting comment on a discussion list is enough for me to give a book, so I'm not buying completely blind.

A Man To Rely On by Cindi Myers (HSR 1530)
(2008, Contemporary Series) 1/16/09
Grade: 4

Marisol was always the “bad girl” of Cedar Switch, Texas, until she left home at 16. After 20 years, she’s returned, but she’s now a single mother with a teenage daughter, and the death of her sports star husband has brought more scandal. Is she willing to give Scott Redmond a chance, even though he’s trying to rebuild his life after a stint in rehab?

Although the basic storyline was a bit predictable, the characters gave the familiar plot more depth and emotion. Marisol was a well drawn character, and it was nice to see her regaining her confidence and learning to put the past behind her. (Familiar story, but well done.) The hero is more unusual. Not only does he have a history of drug addiction, but he’s also struggling with anxiety attacks. Not a typical hero, but I found him compelling, and he has his own “rebuild my confidence” story. That made this book stand out from a lot of other category books. I also appreciated that the author didn’t fix everything with a bow on top at the end, although it felt a little rushed in the last pages. Overall, this was a very enjoyable and satisfying category read - a little predictable, but overall, a good read.

A storyline that might be a little thin for a full length book can be just right for a category. As long as the characters are well-drawn, I don't mind a predictable plot, especially in a short book that doesn't have room for a lot of plot exposition.

Sex, Straight Up by Kathleen O'Reilly

I've had mixed results with Harlequin Blaze. On one hand, a lot of good authors write for this line, and it's one of the few lines where you won't see cutesy-wootsy babies on every cover. On the other hand, most of them are based on the premise, "if the sex is good, it must be love". I don't really buy that, and I often find the sex scenes detract from the development of the relationship. I keep reading them because some of them are enjoyable, but I kind of wish the best Blaze authors would write their stories in other Harlequin lines, where a sex scene every 20 pages isn't a book requirement.

Sex, Straight Up by Kathleen O'Reilly (HB 388)
(2008, Contemporary Series) 1/12/09
Grade: 3.5

Seven years after losing his wife on 9/11, Daniel O’Sullivan still wears his ring, and can’t imagine another woman - until he meets Catherine Montefiore. At first, he thinks it will just be a fling, but when an audit of her grandfather’s auction house throws them together, he begins to think more seriously about whether he can move on, and make a new life.

Although I liked the hero and heroine in this book, it was a little bit overstuffed, and the relationship between the hero and heroine was kept in the background for too long. I found Daniel a particularly sympathetic hero. His devotion to his wife and his struggle to move past her death was very well written and emotional. I also liked Catherine, but I didn’t find their relationship all that realistic until the last chaper or two. There were a lot of sex scenes, but for a long time, it felt like the only thing between them was sexual attraction. Maybe it was because we got a moment-by-moment accounting of the state of Daniel’s cock. The storyline about the audit of the auction house wasn’t all that interesting, and it took time away from deepening the relationship. Overall, I enjoyed the book, and I particularly enjoyed the hero, but it didn’t quite work for me.

One thing I appreciate about Kathleen O'Reilly are her New York settings. It's such a refreshing change from the endless small towns of Harlequin land.

Your Scandalous Ways by Loretta Chase

I've had mixed results with Loretta Chase. I'm one of the few people who didn't love Lord of Scoundrels - I enjoyed it, but it wasn't the be-all and end-all of romance for me. But I've had a pretty good track record with her books on the whole - most of them have been enjoyable at least. I started reading this book a couple of months ago, and was so intrigued by the first chapter that I decided to set it aside for a time when I wasn't so distracted by other things. And then I didn't get back to it until now.

Your Scandalous Ways by Loretta Chase
(2008, Regency Historical) 1/11/09
Grade: 4

Francesca Bonnard has lived on the Continent since her divorce, taking lovers and scandalizing society. But when the British government wants secret letters incriminating her ex-husband, they send James Cordier, a spy who is ready to retire and live a normal life. But there’s something about Francesca that makes him forget about all that...

This book was fascinating from the first page, and featured unique characters and a terrific setting of Venice. I especially loved the heroine, who was intelligent and fun, and far from the usual romance heroine. The hero was more typical, but I loved the way he appreciated Francesca for who she was, instead of trying to turn her into something else. The setting was almost a character unto itself - I was swept away by Venice, without being lectured (as so many authors do when they use exotic settings). However, despite all the good points of this book, I wasn’t drawn into the romance as much as I would have liked. The book was so plot-heavy, it didn’t leave a lot of time for exploring the character’s emotions. We’d get a hint, and then we’d be swept along on the next twist and turn of the plot. So, I’d call it very good, rather than great - but definitely worth reading and unique.

I only have a couple of books left from 2008, and it's nice to end on a good note (rather than my last couple of reads - the Guhrke that was so disappointing, and after that, three or four books that I couldn't even finish. Hopefully those last remaining reads from 2008 will be worth the effort.

The Wicked Ways of a Duke by Laura Lee Guhrke

The Wicked Ways of a Duke by Laura Lee Guhrke
(2008, Victorian) 1/5/09
Grade: 2

Seamstress Prudence Bosworth is dazzled when she meets the indebted Duke of St. Cyres, but she never imagined it would go further - until she inherits a fortune from a father she never knew. Suddenly she’s the heiress that everyone wants, but the Duke is pure of heart and loves her for herself... doesn’t he?

This book had an interesting premise, but it was doomed by a heroine who was so naive, she came across as too stupid to live. For more than three quarters of the book, she is convinced that the hero never knew she was an heiress - even though she knows he’s in debt, and it’s been in all the newspapers. There’s naive and then there’s dumb. Maybe the book would have been more believable if the heroine had been a 17 year old sheltered debutante, but the heroine supposedly had lived on her own for years and supported herself. I had to wonder how she survived. I found Rhys slightly more appealing, especially as he found himself warming to the heroine and dreaming of a life with her - but even that was pretty much dropped at the end. By the end of the book, I just wanted it to be over.

I rarely write reviews of books that I rate this low, mostly because I don't bother finishing them. There are lots of books that hit the trade pile by page 100 - probably many that were better than this one! But I kept reading because (1) I kept hoping the author would turn it around somehow and (2) I had a glimmer of interest in the hero. But by the end, I was wishing I'd tossed it. I will continue on to book three in the series, and hope it's an improvement!

And Then He Kissed Her by Laura Lee Guhrke

The first book I read by Laura Lee Guhrke was To Dream Again, which is still on my keeper shelf, although I haven't read it in many years. It has a very similar plot to this one - repressed heroine learns to take chances - but I don't remember finding the heroine as blind in that one. But romance has changed since that book came out, and a heroine thinking about the consequences of sex is out of fashion these days.

And Then He Kissed Her by Laura Lee Guhrke
(2007, Victorian) 1/4/09
Grade: 3.5

After five years as a secretary to Viscount Marlowe, Emma Dove knows all about his mistresses and his charm. But when he refuses to even read her etiquette books, she decides to take a chance and go out on her own. And Harry suddenly sees his bland secretary with new eyes. Can she resist his sensual advances, knowing that he is determined to never marry?

This book had a lot of charm, but I found the characters inconsistent. The basic plotline (the repressed heroine learns to enjoy life) was familiar, and fairly charming, but as the book continued, I began to get frustrated with the heroine. She starts out as practical and intelligent, but she loses her brains when the hero starts kissing her. And it didn’t seem realistic for her to throw all thought of consequences aside. It seemed like the heroine “knew” she was in a romance novel, and Harry was a romance hero, so she didn’t have to think about what might happen. (The Victorian setting and focus on etiquette made this loom more largely for me as a reader than it might have in a Regency.) The hero is also inconsistent, although he shows more depth as the book goes on - he seemed more clueless than deliberately stupid. Overall, the writing was smooth and I found the book entertaining, but the hero and heroine’s attitudes kept grating on me, which spoiled the book for me somewhat.

I debated about how to rate this book, because I really did enjoy many aspects of it - but with all of the emphasis on Victorian mores, the heroine's attitude just kept bugging me, like an uncomfortable itch. One of my annoyances in romance is Romance-itis, i.e. the hero and heroine act in ways that don't really make sense unless the hero and heroine "know" that they're in a romance novel (and therefore the happy ending must occur). I prefer the heroines to at least consider what might happen if the hero doesn't have "Romance Novel Hero" tattooed on his forehead. All romance is a fantasy, but I like at least the illusion of reality in my books.

The Spymaster's Lady by Joanna Bourne

It's always difficult to judge a book that's been praised and hyped - and this one was the darling of all the romance lists when it first came out. I had to put it aside and wait a little while, so I could try to read it more objectively.

The Spymaster's Lady by Joanna Bourne
(2008, Regency Historical) 12/29/08
Grade: 4

Annique Villiers has spent her life as a spy for the French, and she’s known everyone in the Game as the expert Fox Cub. But when she is captured by the English spymaster Robert Grey, she has finally met her match - and perhaps love as well.

I was impressed from the beginning of the book by the character of Annique. In just a few pages, the author had created a character who was unique and specific - a character that came to life. And the background of spying during the Napoleonic wars was fascinating, and well depicted. However, there were some major flaws as well. First, the plot depends on Annique doing something very stupid and out of character, which frustrated me and pulled me out of the story. And secondly, I never really felt an emotional connection between Grey and Annique. They respected each other, admired each other’s skills - but love? It wasn’t developed at all. So, it was an interesting book, with a fascinating and unique heroine, but not really a successful romance.

After reading this book, I can see why so many people liked it - and why others hated it. I'm somewhere in between. I admire its originality, but I ended up feeling a little disappointed as well.