Saturday, April 28, 2012

Review: To Bewitch a English Knight by Alena Stuart

Review: To Bewitch An English Knight by Alena Stuart

Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars

Philandra is on the run! A life of exile wouldn't be bad if she hadn't stabbed the wrong man, an English Earl engaged to her sister. Fleeing through the woods she hopes to evade capture, and strongly believes, regardless of original intentions, she will be hanged if caught. Aa gathering storm and the urge to seek shelter brings her into the hands of Sir Thomas. He's a knight on a mission, but can hardly believe that this small-statured female had ill intentions to his lord. Thomas is drawn to Philandra, and desires to claim her for his own. To do so would go against his sense of honor unless the real villian can be brought to justice.

The Good: The overall story and plot is decent and believeable, and a strong cast of secondary characters leave some wiggle room for future books. The language isn't overbearing with the highland tone, and I found it easy to follow along with the characters banter.

The Bad: I became confused by a few details in the story, especially involving the ultimate defeat of the villian. Philandra and Sir Thomas' tension and conflict is somewhat muted toward the end of the book, and I really wanted a little more then what was provided, I understand this is a short but I don't think the writing was as tight as it could have been. I was also a bit let down by the romance portion, which at times seemed forced and the circumstances behind the main characters coupling seemed manufactured for the stories sake.

Ultimately, I believe the author has a good start, but I would look to future works from Stuart if you're looking for a well-honed gem. To Bewitch An English Knight doesn't quite make the mark.

Sunday, April 15, 2012

I'm disappearing... I'm writing

They say: 'Absence makes the heart grow fonder'. In the case of this blog I'm not sure if that's true. I'm due to churn out some reviews I've promised over the last couple months, but I've been bitten-- by the writing bug. I'm plotting like crazy, going insane because I've relinquished my pants.

I've taken up conflict boxes, excel spreadsheets, and turning points. There are days when I think the torture will never end, and others where I know I'm doomed to never put a decent word to the .doc. While I'm pulling my hair out you can still catch reviews over at The Season and at Indie Books R Us, if that's what you're looking for.

As far as what I'm working on... I'll never tell; at least not yet. I don't like jinxing myself. Instead I'll keep the momentum rolling, cross my fingers, and pray that I'll write the actual book sometime in the near future.Until then it's plot until my eyes are seeing spots, and the characters are so ingrained in my brain that I start having conversations with them.

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Reading List: March 2012

As you can see I'm running a bit low this month, but in my defense the day job has heated up a bit. I'm working some long hours plus doing a few other things.

1. Immersed in Pleasure by Tiffany Reisz*
2. Here There Be Monsters by Meljean Brooks
3. Somebody to Love by Kristan Higgins**
4. Much Ado About Rogues by Kasey Michaels**
5. The Husband Hunt by Lynsay Sands
6. A Rogue by Any Other Name by Sarah Mclean
7. Beguiling the Beauty by Sherry Thomas**
8. Pleasure for Pleasure by Eloisa James
9. The Art of Duke Hunting by Sophia Nash**
10. Gastien Part 1: The Cost of the Dream by Caddy Rowland***
11. The Lesson Plan by Jackie Barbosa
12. Skies of Fire by Zoe Archer**
13. How to Ravish a Rake by Vicky Dreiling**
14. Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire
15. This Heart of Mine by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

Plans for much more book reading in the month of April. Also expect a sudden burst of reviews in the first couple weeks of the month. After that I'm thinking of going dark.... you know, books don't write themselves.

*Review available or upcoming on this site.
**Review available or upcoming on The Season
***Review available or upcoming on Indie Books R Us