Upcoming Historical Romances

I don't read nearly as many historical romances as I like to, there just isn't enough time!  But here are three that are on my list.

The next installment of Tessa Dare's wonderful Spindle Cove series comes out in a few short weeks!  I really love this series and would highly recommend it.

A Lady by Midnight ~ August 28

A temporary engagement, a lifetime in the making...

After years of fending for herself, Kate Taylor found friendship and acceptance in Spindle Cove--but she never stopped yearning for love. The very last place she'd look for it is in the arms of Corporal Thorne. The militia commander is as stone cold as he is brutally handsome. But when mysterious strangers come searching for Kate, Thorne steps forward as her fiance. He claims to have only Kate's safety in mind. So why is there smoldering passion in his kiss?

Long ago, Samuel Thorne devoted his life to guarding Kate’s happiness. He wants what's best for her, and he knows it's not marriage to a man like him. To outlast their temporary engagement, he must keep his hands off her tempting body and lock her warm smiles out of his withered heart. It's the toughest battle of this hardened warrior's life...and the first he seems destined to lose.

Carolyn Jewel's second book in her historical series in which I love the covers and the blurbs have me intrigued. 

Not Proper Enough ~ September 4

The Marquess of Fenris has loved Lady Eugenia from the day he first set eyes on her. Five years ago, pride caused him to earn her enmity. Now she’s widowed, and he’s determined to make amends and win her heart. But with their near explosive attraction, can he resist his desire long enough to court her properly?

After the death of her beloved husband, Lady Eugenia Bryant has come to London to build a new life. Despite the gift of a medallion said to have the power to unite the wearer with her perfect match, Eugenia believes she won’t love again. And yet, amid the social whirl of chaperoning a young friend through her first Season, she finds a second chance at happiness.

Unfortunately, the Marquess of Fenris threatens her newfound peace. Eugenia dislikes the man, but the handsome and wealthy heir to a dukedom is more charming than he has a right to be. Constantly underfoot, the rogue disturbs her heart, alternately delighting and scandalizing her. And when their relationship takes a highly improper turn, Eugenia must decide if the wrong man isn’t the right one after all.

Lorraine Heath's second book in her Lost Lords of Pembrook trilogy.  I still have the first book on my TBR pile but that won't stop me from adding this one!

Lord of Temptation ~ September 25 

Three young heirs, imprisoned by an unscrupulous uncle, escaped—to the sea, to the streets, to faraway battle—awaiting the day when they would return to reclaim their birthright.

Once upon a time, he was Lord Tristan Easton—now he is Crimson Jack, a notorious privateer beholden to none, whose only mistress is the sea. But all that will change when exquisite Lady Anne Hayworth hires his protection on a trip into danger and seduction. . .

Desperation brought Anne to the bronzed, blue-eyed buccaneer. But after the Captain demands a kiss as his payment, desire will keep her at his side. She has never known temptation like this—but to protect her heart, she knows she must leave him behind. Yet Tristan cannot easily forget the beauty—and when they meet again in a London ballroom, he vows he won't lose her a second time, as fiery passion reignited takes them into uncharted waters that could lead the second lost lord home.

What future historical romances should I add to my list?

February Reads...

Why Batman? IDK, never was a fan but maybe if he looked like this...

February was short and sometimes a very sweet month. I managed a total of 12 books and only one audio because, *sob*, my mp3 player broke. I'm suffering withdrawal while dealing with trying to get a replacement. So tempted to go to Sam's Club and get an IPod. Anyway... here's the list. ~

Slow Heat/Jill Shalvis/Contemporary ~ A
Hunting Ground/Patricia Briggs/Urban Fantasy ~ B+
Tell Me Lies/Jennifer Crusie/Contemporary (audio) ~ C
Crazy Beautiful/Lauren Baratz-Logsted/YA Contemporary ~ A
My Soul to Lose/Rachel Vincent/YA Fantasy ~ B+
My Soul to Take/Rachel Vincent/YA Fantasy ~ A
Kindred in Death/J. D. Robb/Futuristic ~ B+
Lord Ruin/Carolyn Jewel/Historical ~ B
Open Season/Linda Howard/Romantic Suspense ~ A-
The Iron King/Julie Kagawa/YA Fantasy ~ A (review to come)
The Texan's Wager/Jodi Thomas/Historical ~ A
Shades of Midnight/Lara Adrian/PNR ~ B (review to come)
What the Librarian Did/Karina Bliss/Contemporary ~ A (review to come)

Overall a very good month. Lots of wonderful reads. I attribute that to the great reviews from all of you book pimping bloggers. So I thank you and my ever growing TBR pile thanks you. :D

Oh, I almost forgot. Bookcases - Abby got a new one and I managed to be good for nearly 2 weeks, then I got a new one too. I swear I didn't plan it, it just happened. :)

March looks to be a great month for new releases. Take a peek at the Slide widget on the right side bar and see what I'm looking forward to for March.

TBR Challenge Review: Lord Ruin

Lord Ruin

Carolyn Jewel

Historical Romance/London/1818

Leisure Books/December 2002

Purchased

*Very Mild Spoiler*

From the back cover ~

The Duke of Sin

The Duke of Cynssyr didn't believe in love. He planned to marry for beauty. But a night of unforgettable passion left him a changed man -- a man tied to a bespectacled spinster. Anne Sinclair's long legs drove him wild with desire, and her quick wit challenged his mind. Ruined for any other, the notorious rake had only one choice; to court his wife. To win her condfidence, however, nothing less than his love would do.

The Divine Sinclair

Anne Sinclair had sworn to protect her sister from the infamous Lord Ruin. Yet she never expected to sacrifice her own virtue. Forced to give the rogue her hand in marriage, she vowed never to relinquish her heart. But Ruan worshopped her body and valued her intelligence, making Anne long to succumb to the ultimate temptation: falling for her husband.

This months theme called for hero in pursuit or virginal hero. I started reading Jodi Thomas' The Texan's Wager because the hero is a virgin and I like Thomas' writing. It turns out I've read that one before. LOL The memory is the first thing to go. It will be my re-read for the month. Then I decided to go with the hero in pursuit theme and chose Carolyn Jewel's Lord Ruin. I've heard much about Carolyn Jewel with regards to her recent historical novels. All good. So when I came across a few of her older novels, Lord Ruin and The Spare, I added them to the ever growing tbr pile. I also like the look of the cover of Lord Ruin. For some reason the hero reminds me a bit of Jackson Montgomery from All My Children. I always liked Jack, except when he was married to Erica.

Carolyn Jewel has written an entertaining regency novel with a murder mystery subplot thrown in. I could have done with less of the murder plot and more of Anne and Ruan together. I liked when they simply talked to each other. That's when they began to realize that first impressions and clichés can be very wrong.

In the beginning they each had very specific ideas of what they thought the other was like. Anne believed Ruan was a rake who cared only for finding pleasure. Ruan thought of Anne as a spinster and couldn't see past her spectacles. Once Ruan gets Anne between the sheets he finds out there's much more to her than he thought. They marry but Anne is determined there will be no emotional attachments and in fact suggests a divorce. Ruan explains that they can not divorce since it would destroy him and he would no longer be part of Parliament or the Privy Council. So it looks like they are stuck.

Anne is the eldest daughter of the four Sinclair sisters. She is also thought to be the least attractive, in fact, her sisters are considered very beautiful, with many admirers, while Anne is considered rather plain. Anne is resigned to her fate of caretaker for her widower father and looking out for her two unwed sisters. While I liked her most of the time there were times when she truly got on my nerves. In part, she was too damn polite. There was a scene that really got me pissed off at her. Ruan's mistress shows up at the ball being held to introduce Anne to society as the new Duchess of Cynssyr. Anne catches them in a compromising situation and she just takes it, like that's how it's suppose to be. She's upset and hurt but she keeps her cool and apologizes for interrupting. ~

Anne backed away from the sofa. "Forgive me, Cynssyr. I did not know you had company." She had every reason to expect this of Cynssyr, so she didn't understand why the sight of them together felt like a dagger to the heart.

"Perhaps in future you will wait for an invitation to enter," he said irritably. Nothing in his expression betrayed the slightest guilt for being closeted with another woman. This woman. One of the most beautiful women she'd ever seen in her life. page 127

I know it was considered the norm for aristocrats to have mistresses even after they married but to have her at his home, during a ball for his wife?! I'm not sure who I was more angry with - Ruan for what he did or Ann because she just took it in stride. Do you think that's how women really dealt with infidelity during that time period? Sadly, they probably did since they were dependent on the husbands and society condoned it. I expect for many it was the rule rather than the exception so I have to give Jewel credit for including it even though it pissed me off. And I figure being pissed off at the characters is better than indifference.

Ruan is a hero that I didn't like, then I liked him a little, then he got on my bad side (see above paragraph) then I found myself slowly starting to like him more and more. He is a product of his upbringing and society but his experiences in war have left a profound mark on him. He does have this attitude of snobbish aristo but that I think was more because that's what the ton expected of him. So that's what he gives them. He is a very powerful man and uses that power to make life better for the less fortunate and help all of his country men, not just the wealthy. He's also very sexy and can't seem to keep his hands off of Anne. That might have helped win me over just a little. : )

The scenes I liked the best were with just Anne and Ruan. When they would talk about everyday things, about Ruan's work in Parliament, about Anne's interests. When they talked you could see how well they fit together, how much they enjoyed each others' company. The physical side of their relationship was important as well. Sure, they got to know what gave their partner pleasure but they also showed that vulnerability that no one else saw. They were both amazed at how great the physical attraction was and how neither of them could keep their hands off the other. The cover may be tame but Jewel can definitely write scorching hot sex scenes.

That brings us to what I liked the least - the mystery subplot. I just felt that it intruded on the developing romance of Anne and Ruan. There were quite a few secondary characters to keep track of that were involved in the kidnappings/murders. There were the victims, the suspects, the investigators, Ruan and Anne's friends and various family members. At times they overshadowed Anne and Ruan and I sometimes just wanted to skip over those parts.

So overall a decent read that left me curious to read more from Ms. Jewel. Which is good since I have a few more of her novels on the tbr pile.

Rating: B

Read Chapter 1