Review: Temptation & Twilight by Charlotte Featherstone

Review: Temptation and Twilight by Charlotte Featherstone

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

For back cover blurb or more information about the author visit Charlotte Featherstone's website here.

Three words that describe this book: anxious, agony, and sensual

Featherstone is a master of sensual description and emotion. In the final book of The Guardians trilogy she once again shows us how she can squeeze every ounce of feeling from the encounters between two people. For Elizabeth York and Iain Sinclair there's plenty of feeling, secrets, and dwelling emotions between once lovers.

Elizabeth is essentially the character we know and love. Mentioned in previous Guardian books, Elizabeth is blind. Featherstone has created a wonderful, strong woman that manages to operate without her sight, which makes the sensuality of the story ten times better. Add in a secondary man in the competition ring and things are downright hawt! Yes, you heard right, there's competition for Elizabeth's hand. Dedicated readers to the series will remember the man Elizabeth was introduced to at the party during Pride and Passion. Oh, and just to confirm this storyline is parallel with Pride and Passion, with the timing of the two being one and the same. There's a few dark moments in this story along with a dark recollections of what happened after Elizabeth and Iain connected the first time.

Now to the subject of Iain. This is was a man that I was extremely attracted to visually, but I found him a bit more sensual then emotional for most of the book. He's Scottish and extremely possessive, which seems to be the main focus of his attentions toward Elizabeth. Along with a deep desire for forgiveness and a need to repent for his previous sins against her, though he's not aware of all of them. Every time he took a step towards an emotional element he'd counteract it by sexually approaching Elizabeth. Halfway through the book it got a bit annoying and I really wanted Iain to grow a bit more. He finally grew, but just a bit slower then I would have enjoyed.

Overall, Temptation and Twilight is a decent book and wraps up the tale of the Guardians for those who've read previous books in the series. By now we know the face of the true villain, but seeing his ultimate defeat at the hands of this group of heroes and heroines is still enjoyable. Iain wasn't nearly as much fun in person as I expected, but Elizabeth exceeded all of my previous expectations.

Review: Too Tempting To Resist by Cara Elliott

Review: Too Tempting to Resist by Cara Elliott

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Release Date: May 1st, 2012

For more info and back cover blurb visit Cara's website here.

A flourishing romance, a sensuous coupling, and the language of flowers...

Elliott easily makes horticulture the sexiest thing ever in this story of an unlikely pair drawn together by chance, and a love of nature transcending beyond simplistic view. In one corner there's the sister of a lord, a widow, bent on keeping her freedom to live without a husband, and determined to save her brother from ruin.

Lady Eliza Brentford is finally free.. of marriage. She would prefer to keep things that way if her brother would just quit attempting to live the frivolous life. Eliza is a delight! She's a painter, a lover of flowers, and one who speaks there language. I have a lot of respect for a woman who protects family and endears people to her by providing care and intelligence. Unfortunately, for Eliza her brother doesn't think of her as a benefit, but as a hindrance. Another part of Eliza is she's closed off to sexual aspects. She's never really experienced anything along the lines of desire or passion. Meeting Gryffin, Marquess of Haddan will change that.

Gryffin is a man of interesting tastes, typically known for his debauchery and insane pursuits. Yet lately the pursuit has lost it's luster. I found a man searching for something meaningful a wonderful storyline for the rakehell. He's looking for more and his travels lead him to Eliza. The air sizzles, the common interests delight, and before you know Gryffin is looking for any reason whatsoever to be near her. Gryffin is one of those heros that's enchanted with the unfamiliar, and in this case the unfamiliar is a female creature he can't seem to shake. I liked this hero as much as I liked the heroine. The setting, the subplots, and the character development was extremely enjoyable.

My only caveat was the fact that Gryffin and Eliza spent a lot of time building false tension and conflict. You could have developed plenty of different scenerios to excite the reader without a misunderstanding between Gryffin and Eliza occurring. For me the 'misunderstanding' line is the most overused in the business and I prefer plain speaking. Honesty and trust build relationships.

Overall, this is a good story about two people who should have been together all along, but just weren't ready to be. It's a great mid-way point for Elliot's Lords of Midnight trilogy, and I can't wait for the final installment and hellhound Cameron's tale. If you enjoy Stephanie Laurens you'll like this book.

Review: Scotsmen Prefer Blondes by Sara Ramsey

Review: Scotsmen Prefer Blondes by Sara Ramsey

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

For more the back cover blurb or more info on this author visit Sara Ramsey's website here.
A second dose of heart stopping romance and how a woman can release the animal in any man.

Amelia Staunton is on a mission to help her friend wed, and wed well. That means a trip to a castle in Scotland. Amelia hopes to stand by her friends side and get some inspiration for her latest story. Instead she finds herself attracted to the very man her friend would marry Malcolm MacCabe.

Determined to be the Laird his people need, and keep the tenants in Scotland MacCabe needs a respectable wife who can give him an 'in' to the hearts and minds of the English Lords. Amelia is no such woman, but MacCabe can't help the attraction to her defiant and fiery nature nor the desire such actions spark. Soon the two are caught in situation warranting the unthinkable marriage between the two with no escape. Can the desire and love growing between them survive all?

Amelia, a writer and a woman with a sharp tongue. I loved her! She's very stubborn, but when it comes to caring about someone she has a heart of gold. This character has a beautiful way with insults too, and knows just when those barbs are gonna hurt the worst. There are many moments where Amelia has a problem with keeping her mouth shut, but surprisingly this part of her character didn't ruin the story it enhanced the conflict because I didn't really know what she was gonna say next. A woman who speaks her mind isn't always a bad thing. ;)

MacCabe is the domineering male, who's not always the brightest when it comes to judging people. Amelia's mouth and tendency to let whatever fly out of it is more of a turn on for him; rather than a turn off. Now, readers of the blog will know I'm a sucker for alpha's. MacCabe is pretty close, but not quite there. Regardless I liked him and his ignorance when it came to not figuring out Amelia's writing secret sooner.

Ramsey definitely has a theme with her Muses of Mayfair series. The ladies have secrets and the men getting entangled with them either have to step up to protect the ladies or abandon them... if you want to know what happens then you'll just have to buy the books. Let's just say regardless of MacCabe's decision there's plenty of hoops to jump through and a historical good time. I'm definitely primed to get my greasy paws on the last of this trilogy.

Review: Once Upon a Wicked Night by Jennifer Haymore

Review: Once Upon a Wicked Night by Jennifer Haymore

Rating: 3.0 out of 5 stars

Release Date: February 1st, 2012

For backcover blurb and more info on Jennifer Haymore visit her website here.

Not a novella, and left a little bit of wanting.

For those looking for the reasons behind Haymore's Donovan sisters seeking to erase scandal and prevent scandal then this little novella is definitely worth a peek. I've never read a single novel by Haymore and this novella was my first jump into her writing. For those who've read the first book in the Donovan series reading this piece will not affect anything. For those who haven't read a thing... stop here.

Let me first say that this really wasn't a novella, it felt more like an epilogue and a prologue/ segway between books 1 and 2 of this series. I enjoyed the writing style, and will admit to finding a fondness with Haymore's ways of depicting villians. What I did not enjoy was being teased relentlessly and then unable to buy the next book in the series. Improper advertising is what this is.

Now, Haymore does provide plenty of set up, and if you've already read the 2nd book in the Donovan series Once Upon a Wicked Night may be worth the read if you want stage center for what went down between Olivia and the horrendous Marquis of Fenwicke prior to book 2. Die hards for this series may be interested as well.

I'll admit this is also a great sampler of Haymore's storytelling abilities, and she does a good job of creating tension and emotional attachment. For those reasons I give this 3 stars and plan on reading another novel to learn more.

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.