Some Other Books I've Read Lately

What a Gentleman Wants by Caroline Linden is Ms. Linden's second book. I bought this book after seeing this post on Kristie(J)'s site about publisher's promoting new authors by offering their books at a lower price. This book was only $4.99 new.

This is a British historical. I think it's the Regency period, but with no dates and few historical references, I'm not positive nor historically savvy enough to figure it out. Anyway the most important thing for me, again, is that I feel and believe the characters are behaving true to the time period.

Both Marcus Reece, Duke of Exeter and widow Hannah Prescott do that in WHAT A GENTLEMAN WANTS. They have been thrown together and married by proxy, and with no little trickery, by Marcus' twin brother David.

While I do have issues with how far and how long Marcus and Hannah stretch the true circumstances of their marriage, I was very involved in the emotional whirlwind each of them were caught in. Marcus has cut himself off from most feelings in order to function as he thinks a Duke must and Hannah is still recovering from her husband's death and the circumstances he left her and their daughter. This is a book with lots of sexual tension and longing. It is not overdone or stretched beyond what is either realistic or appropriate for the times. There is much more that could be explored to be sure, but I see so many possibilities in Ms. Linden's writing that I'm going looking for her first book What a Woman Needs.

I'm the Vampire, That's Why by Michelle Bardsley . This is a contemporary vampire book. A small farming town is attacked by a beast who is turning its' residents into vampires right and left. I'm the Vampire is very similar in tone to Katie MacAlister's vamp books. Ms. Bardsley does have humor and wit to spare, however, where she misses in this book, IMO, is that while Katie MacAlister's vamp books make you believe that odd bits of magic, vampires running around, and a bit of the surreal has happened to perfectly regular folks, this book just makes those things seem silly. It was a little over the top for me. Even with the moments that made my eyes roll, I also laughed, so I'm inclined to give Ms. Bardsley another try.

As You Desire by Connie Brockway I scrounged this book up at my UBS just because it was on the 2004 AAR 100 Romances list. I've read Brockway in the past and couldn't remember reading this particular book.

The best part about the book is that it takes place in Egypt in 1890. The author's web site describes it this way:

In Victorian-era Egypt, wunderkind Desdemona and deliciously disreputable Harry try not to fall in love as they race for a hidden treasure.

I enjoyed the back drop of the story very much. Even so, the book was only an okay read for me. I thought the heroine, Desdemona Carlisle, needed a little too much rescuing. I would have liked to understand more about any conflicts or feelings she had about being a genius child prodigy. It was only briefly touched on and I thought would have added depth and dimension to Desdemona.

As for Harry Braxton and his big secret...I figured it out almost immediately. I think knowing what we do, as readers, about both of these characters that his fear of discovery by the woman he loves was a little hard to swallow especially since he knows (because she told him) how she feels about him.

This was an enjoyable read. Light and fluffy. Harry and Desdemona are likeable and have some witty exchanges that are entertaining. However, this isn't a book I would put in my top 100.