Historical Romance Review: Heather by Cordia Byers
In Heather by Cordelia Byers, stuff occurs while characters are like marionettes being pulled by strings to the next scene. 1 star
Month: March 2022
Happy One Year Birthday to Sweet Savage Flame
It’s March 30, 2022! As always, Sweet Savage Flame is a little late to the party, even our own. We’re night owls so days don’t start until late morning for us. One year ago today, we uploaded our first post to this blog/ website, Welcome to Sweet Savage Flame. We had modest ideas for what we’d be doing, and now we’re branching out to be amateur historical record keepers of the romance genre.
Category Romance Review: Beloved Deceiver by Flora Kidd
Flora Kidd’s Beloved Deceiver still sticks out in my mind for one big reason. It’s the only Harlequin/Mills-and-Boon I’ve read to feature a hero from the Dominican Republic, which is my parents’ birth country. 3.45 stars
Historical Romance Review: Nebraska Fire by Lauren Wilde
This review is of Nebraska Fire by Lauren Wilde, a Zebra Lovegram romance. Nebraska Fire is not a flawless book, but it is good enough to warrant a 4-star grade.
Covers of the Week #51
For the week of Monday, March 28, 2022, to Sunday, April 3, 2022, we’re ending the month of March with the theme of green romance covers.
Real-Life Romance: 60 Cheap Dates To Enjoy With Your Partner
In this new segment, we’ll be discussing romance–in real life. There are so many things you can do with the one you love. Here are 60 cheap date ideas that you can spend both indoors and out.
Historical Romance Review: Rebel Vixen by Dana Ransom
In Dana Ransom’s Zebra Heartfire romance, Rebel Vixen a Southern woman and Northern soldier find love during the Civil War. As the Civil War rages throughout the United States, Miss Savannah Russell is on a ship in the Caribbean where she saves a Yankee sailor’s life. 5 stars
Games And Puzzles #1
Try our new romance word search puzzle. If you like this, we’ll create more puzzles, from crosswords to jigsaws to quizzes, and more! Let us know in the comments if you like this new feature!
One Book, Multiple Covers #1: The Velvet Promise
We’re introducing yet another new feature here at Sweet Savage Flame! This One Book, Multiple Covers series will look at the original cover art for a popular romance novel and then compare it to re-issues and foreign language or alternate editions. Today, we’re focusing on The Velvet Promise by Jude Deveraux.
Category Romance Review: Could It Be Magic by Gina Wilkins
Gina Wilkins’ Could It Be Magic is a comfy romance read. It’s a sensually-charged Harlequin Temptation from the early 1990s. Gwen DeClerck is a staid, young widow, who had been married to a man twice her age. When Jeremy Kane, a famous magician moves next door, he turns her stable world upside down with excitement and passion. 4 stars
Historical Romance Review: Yankee Mistress by Ashley Snow
This review is of Yankee Mistress a standalone from May 1989 by Ashley Snow, published by Zebra/Kensington as a Zebra Heartfire. 1 star
Covers of the Week #50
For the week of Monday, March 21, 2022, to Sunday, March 27, 2022, we’re celebrating our 50th edition of Covers of the Week, and the 1 year anniversary of Sweet Savage Flame with futuristic romances that are out of this world.
Happy Vernal Equinox (First Day of Spring) 2022
Happy Spring! (Or if you’re located on the other side of the planet, Happy Autumn!) There’s nothing like the first romance in bloom. In Latin languages, the word for Spring translates into “first-seen” (Italian, Spanish, & Portuguese “primavera”) as in, the first seen sight of life–or love.
8 Irish Romances Set in the Emerald Isle
As it is St. Patrick’s Day, we thought you might be in the mood for something a little bit Irish. These eight old-school historical romances are set on the Emerald Isle. We’ll be reading Irish romances on March 17. Whatever way you’re spending your day, spend it doing something you love!
Historical Romance Review: Defy Not the Heart by Johanna Lindsey
Defy Not the Heart is a favorite of mine. It’s a wonderful, funny, and romantic medieval historical romance by the late, great Johanna Lindsey. 5 stars
Category Romance Review: Wish on the Moon by Sally Wentworth
Wish on the Moon by Sally Wentworth has gotten mixed to low reviews around the internet, but it’s a romance I fully enjoyed. This is an unusual romance because technically, the heroine is “the other woman.” She comes in and breaks up a seemingly happy engagement–and not just a random stranger’s but her cousin’s. 4 stars
Cassie Edwards: A Formula For Success (and Controversy)
In a previous post, I wrote about one of my favorite authors, Cassie Edwards. Before plagiarism allegations ended her career, she was billed as the “Queen of Indian Romance.” In this post, I will write about the formula Mrs. Edwards used to become a New York Times bestselling author of Native American romances.
Historical Romance Review: Texas Triumph by Victoria Thompson
This review is of Texas Triumph, #2 in the “The Cowboy and the Lady” series by Victoria Thompson. This is the follow-up to her book, Texas Treasure.
Covers of the Week #49
Here in the United States, March is recognized as Irish Heritage Month. This week also sees the arrival of St. Patrick’s Day, who is the patron Saint of Ireland. For the week of Monday, March 14, 2022, to Sunday, March 26, 2020, let’s appreciate some romance covers featuring American-set romances with protagonists of Irish ancestry.
Stepback Covers Part VII: Stepback & Modern Romance Novels
By the dawn of the 21st millennium, the stepback was the pinnacle of cover art in the romance genre. The combination of a best-selling author, a prominent artist, and fantastic design aesthetics meant quality all around. The stepback was an acceptable middle-ground and proved to be constant in an era of transformation.
