Love Irresistibly by Julie James

I haven't had a lot of luck with 2013 books so far - but this one was at least promising...

Love Irresistibly by Julie James
(2013, Contemporary)  6/18/13
Grade: 4

Brooke Parker is the general counsel for a restaurant chain, and usually she enjoys her work - even though she spends most of her time answering emails and putting out fires.  But when she meets Assistant U.S. Attorney Cade Morgan, she begins to wonder if career is all there is - or if she needs more balance in her life.

Like all of Julie James’s books, this one felt refreshingly modern.  It was nice to read a book set in a city, with characters who love their jobs and don’t feel that they have to apologize for that.  Brooke eventually looks for more balance in her life, but it’s not so she can be a “better woman”.  Cade likes her just as she is - ambitions and all.  The only negative was that the book felt fairly predictable.  There just wasn’t much conflict between the hero and heroine, and the hero’s father issues, and the heroine’s career issues, felt a bit predictable - the outcome wasn’t a question.  I enjoyed it, but it didn’t exactly keep me guessing.  

I want more contemporary books that feel fresh and modern, but sometimes it's hard to keep the conflict going in those cases!

Vacation Reading

I read several Regencies when I was on vacation - none of them really outstanding.

Her Hesitant Heart by Carla Kelly
(2013, Regency)  6/10/13
Grade: 3.5

Susanna Hopkins left an abusive husband and fled West to a garrison town in Montana.  She plans to serve as a schoolteacher to the officers’ children.  But she is intrigued by surgeon Major Joe Randolph, who is one of the few people at the fort to show her compassion.  She must learn to get along with the others at the fort, despite her scandalous past, and find her place in this new world.

This was a well written book by Carla Kelly but the romance seemed so inevitable, I found myself impatient with everything else in the book.  There were so many secondary characters, I found myself slightly overwhelmed.  I just found the whole book a little dull.  

The Wicked Wager by Margaret Summerville
(1987, Regency)  6/11/13
Grade: 4

Olivia Dunbar is one of the most delectable beauties in London, but she has refused one suitor after another.  She make a wager with friends to marry the next man who walks by - who turns out to be Lord Ramsay, a reclusive and scholarly man from Northumberland.  Olivia soon forgets the wager, especially once she learns more about Lord Ramsay, but can she convince him her feelings are real?

A charming Regency - nothing all that groundbreaking but the characters were well drawn and interesting.  Lady Olivia is quick to dismiss the wager and finds Lord Ramsay is more interesting than her more conventional suitors.  Ramsay is more of a cipher but he’s willing to become more social if it means spending time with Olivia.  A trifle but an amusing one.

The Ramshackle Suitor by Nancy Butler
(2000, Regency)  6/12/13
Grade: 4

Lucy Parnell has escaped from her stepbrother and is working as a governess, but is spending a few weeks on the Isle of Man searching for a child who might be her sister’s daughter.  She stumbles upon Roderick Kempthorne, one of a roguish group of friends who decide to help her.  She soon finds that Roderick will defend her from her stepbrother - and help her with her myseterious quest.

This was an entertaining and well written Regency.  The mystery of the lost child was well done and kept me guessing throughout the book.  Roderick was a fun rogue hero.  This wasn’t one of Nancy Butler’s best books, but it kept me turning the pages.

I also read a couple of Chet and Bernie mysteries by Spencer Quinn, which were enjoyable.  Surprisingly, no great reads from my vacation reading.