Historical Romance Review: Rapture’s Rendezvous by Cassie Edwards
Rapture’s Rendezvous is not one of Cassie Edwards’ bests. The characters vacillate between whiny and likable in this historical romance. 2.5 Stars
Unknown
Artist is unknown and probably cannot be determined.
Historical Romance Review: Forbidden Ecstasy by Janelle Taylor
This review is of Forbidden Ecstasy (“Ecstasy/Gray Eagle Series #3″) by Janelle Taylor. The “Stockholm Syndrome romance” between Gray Eagle and Alisha keeps me from giving Janelle Taylor’s Forbidden Ecstasy a five-star rating. 4 Stars
Historical Romance Review: Wild Island Sands by Sonya T. Pelton
This review is of Wild Island Sands by Sonya T. Pelton. It is a hot mess of tens of thousands of words–over 526 pages–yet saying absolutely nothing. 1 Star
Historical Romance Review: Rapture’s Rage by Bobbi Smith
This review is of Rapture’s Rage by Bobbi Smith.
Historical Romance Review: White Lion’s Lady by Lara Adrian (aka Tina St. John)
For anyone who loves historical or medieval romance, White Lion’s Lady by Lara Adrian (aka Tina St. John) is an absolute keeper. I highly recommend it. 5 stars
Historical Romance Review: Rapture’s Ransom (aka Not Quite Married) by Betina Krahn
This review is of Rapture’s Ransom by Betina Krahn.
The book begins in the South of England in 1787. It is here that Brien Weston, the heroine of the book, lives–a better term might be exists–with her father, Lord Lawrence Weston, the sixth Earl of Southward. The relationship between father and child is strained and becomes even more so when Lawrence, after a trip to France, announces he has affianced Brien to a man, Raoul Trechard, whom she has never met. 4 stars
Category Romance Review: The Italian’s Wife by Lynne Graham
Lynne Graham’s The Italian’s Bride is unusual from her other books I’ve read in the past.
Holly Samson is the first Graham heroine I can recall who was not a virgin, and who’s borne another man’s child. The hero is typical of her heroes: dark-haired, ultra-masculine, ridiculously wealthy, smitten with the heroine, and of Italian descent. 3.62 Stars
Category Romance Review: The Marriage War by Charlotte Lamb
The Marriage War by Charlotte Lamb may not have the worst hero in Harlequin Presents history, but he certainly ranks up there in the top twenty. .5 stars
Category Romance Review: Liar’s Moon by Heather Graham
Liar’s Moon, a Dell Candlelight Ecstasy Supreme by Heather Graham is an overwrought foray into romantic suspense. There’s intrigue, murder, and a long-ago love affair between a teenage girl and a much older, close family friend. Events lead to a dramatic and happy conclusion in this so-so-category romance.
Category Romance Review: Dark Fire by Elizabeth Lowell
Dark Fire by Elizabeth Lowell, a 1988 Silhouette Desire takes us on a trek through the jungles of Peru. 4 stars
Historical Romance Review: Passion’s Paradise by Sonya T. Pelton
Passion’s Paradise by Sonya T. Pelton is a wonderfully terrible book. However, it was oddly entertaining, like a terrible movie you watch just to shout inanities at the screen.
Category Romance Review: An Outrageous Proposal by Miranda Lee
Miranda Lee’s An Outrageous Proposal is an outrageously sexy Harlequin Presents. Laura had been happily married to Dirk Thornton. Laura was so obsessed with having a child, however. Soon their difficulty to conceive led to a divorce. But now Laura wants Dirk back. 4.5 stars
Historical Romance Review: Sweet Savage Love by Rosemary Rogers
Where to begin with this review? Sweet Savage Love by the great Rosemary Rogers is–along with The Flame and the Flower–the blockbuster historical that launched a new genre: the modern romance novel. Published in 1974, this doorstopper epic was a monumental game-changer in an era of social transformation. 4.24 stars
Historical Romance Review: The Present by Johanna Lindsey
Over 22 years and under two different publishers, Johanna Lindsey wrote 12 romances about the Malory & Anderson clans. These books were massive hits with her many fans. Her novel, The Present, is moderately short at just over 300 pages. It tells two parallel love stories set in different eras in England, portraying the Malory clan in the past and the “present.” For no matter how time changes, the love lives of the family remain the same. 3 1/2 stars
Category Romance Review: Marriage on the Rebound by Michelle Reid
Michelle Reid’s Marriage on The Rebound is about keeping it all in the family. Shaan Saketa is unique for a Harlequin Presents circa 1998 heroine, as she’s of mixed ethnic heritage: English and Lebanese. It’s her wedding day. Unfortunately for Shaan, she’s about to be dumped at the altar. 4 stars
Historical Romance Review: Sunset Temptation by Jane Toombs
This review is of Sunset Temptation, a standalone novel by Jane Toombs. The stultifying boredom I felt reading it means no positive grade from me. 1.11 stars
Category Romance Review: A> Loverboy by Judith Arnold
Published in 1991, Judith Arnold’s A> Loverboy is the final installment in the Harlequin American Romance line “A Century of Romance” series. A> Loverboy is a humorous romance about two coworkers falling in for each other in an unusual way. Before there was “You’ve Got Mail” with Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks, there was this book. 4 stars
Historical Romance Review: The Lord of Hawkfell Island by Catherine Coulter
In The Lord of Hawkfell Island by Catherine Coulter Mirana is a young, unmarried woman who lives with her brother in a massive fortress. When he’s away, their home is attacked by Viking raiders seeking vengeance against him, as the Viking leader Rorik blames him for the death of his wife and child. Usually, a hero grieving over his lost love is grounds for me to dislike a historical romance, but thanks to Rurik, I had plenty of other reasons to despise this “love story.” 2 1/2 stars
Category Romance Review: Whisper to the Waves by Helen Beaumont
Whisper to the Waves is a good contemporary romance that with a little tweaking could’ve been an excellent one. It was published by RCA Marketing in 1982 in its Sapphire Romance series.
4 stars
Contemporary Romance Review: A Violation by Charlotte Lamb
A Violation, a full-length novel by category author Charlotte Lamb, isn’t a straightforward romance, somewhere more between women’s fiction and romantic fiction. Like so many of her works, the major themes are the philosophy of love and what are the defined roles of being a man and a woman, especially when it comes to amorous relationships. 3 stars
