The Convenient Marriage (1934) Georgette Heyer The Earl of Rule has decided to finally get married. As he’s not particular about who he marries, he decides to request the hand of Elizabeth Winwood. Unfortunately, Elizabeth is in love with someone else, so her younger sister Horatia decides that Elizabeth should not have to make the […]
First Drop of Crimson (2010) Jeaniene Frost I actually really like Jeaniene Frost’s writing, and loved all of the Night Huntress books I’ve read so far, even the ones I picked up in trepidation, thinking, “this can’t possibly be anywhere nears as good as I’m remembering the earlier books in the series to be.” However, […]
Under Her Skin (2009) Ilona Andrews, Jeaniene Frost, Meljean Brook So, this was the first full book I read on the Nook. I love Ilona Andrews and also really like Jeaniene Frost, so I figured I couldn’t go too wrong for three bucks. These are three short paranormal romances, focusing on shape shifters, but also […]
Tempest’s Legacy (2011) Nicole Peeler First and foremost, this is a boinking book. There is less boinking than in the last book, and the boinking actually wasn’t superfluous but was instead important to the course of the story, but still. Boinking. So be aware. Jane True is back in Rockabill, trying to recover from the […]
Footsteps in the Dark (1932) Georgette Heyer Peter, Margaret, Cecelia and Charles (Cecelia’s husband) have inherited an old house in the country–the Priory. Some claim the house is haunted, and others claim to have seen the figure of a ghost on the grounds. But the four–and their aunt Lilian–refuse to be driven from the house […]
Frederica (1965) Georgette Heyer Lord Alverstroke is a selfish rake who hates–more than anything–to be bored. When his sister as well as their cousin ask him to throw a ball to launch their daughters, Alverstroke refuses unequivocally. Frederica has come to London determined to find a good marriage for her beautiful younger sister, while keeping […]
Devil’s Cub (1932) Georgette Heyer It took me a ridiculously long time to realize that this is (sort of) a sequel to These Old Shades. Dominic Alistair, Marquis of Vidal, is the son of Justin Alastair, the Duke of Avon, and he is, if possible, more of a rake than his father. And her certainly […]
Cotillion (1953) Georgette Heyer Kitty Charing has been adopted by the very rich and very unpleasant Matthew Penicuik who has decided that she will inherit his entire fortune–if she marries one of his great-nephews. Odds are on Jack, who is Uncle Matthew’s favorite (and Kitty’s too) but Kitty doesn’t like being told what to do, […]
The Secret History of the Pink Carnation (2005) Lauren Willig Parts of this story I absolutely loved–Spies! Napoleonic France! Daring women! And did I mention spies! Other parts of the story I liked less well. It is a story within a story–an historian gets access to letters and diaries that she hopes will lead her […]
Faro’s Daughter (1941) Georgette Heyer Max Ravenscar is one of the most wealthy men in London, but seems to care little for high society and fashion. Yet, as trustee of his nephew’s fortune, a call from his sister to keep Adrian from marrying the niece of a woman who runs–of all things!–a gaming house, send […]
Bayou Moon (2010) Ilona Andrews Yes, yes, I know. Two floating head books in a row. But not only was I on vacation, but this is an Ilona Andrews book, and I love those. The first book in The Edge series had Rose attempting to survive on the Edge and raise her two younger brothers, […]
The Last Twilight (2008) Marjorie M. Liu Rikki Kinn is a virus hunter for the CDC, and she’s in Africa looking at what may well be a new outbreak of Ebola. Unfortunately, a contagious and deadly disease turns out to be the least of her problems, when she discovers that she is being hunted–but no […]
These Old Shades (1926) Georgette Heyer Justin Alastair, the Duke of Avon, is walking through Paris one night when a youth dashes out of an alley and runs into him. After first checking for his purse, the Duke starts to berate the boy when a large burly man who claims to be the older brother […]
A Wild Light (2010) Marjorie M. Liu Maxine’s birthday starts out well–killing a demon, birthday party with her loved ones, unfortunately it doesn’t stay that way, and she wakes up to blood, death, and no memory of what happened. Hmm… now that I look back over my past reviews, I find myself less surprised at […]
Blameless (2010) Gail Carriger I loved Soulless, the first book in this series. I thought Changeless was good with the exclusion of the ending, which I despised, so I had mixed feelings about starting Blameless. Alexia is pregnant, and Lord Maccon–who is a werewolf and an immortal–has thrown her out, believing that the child cannot […]
Eye of Heaven (2006) Marjorie M. Liu After picking up a random Dirk & Steele book when I had accidentally left the house without one, I’ve been picking up the available books in the series as I come across them. For the most part this is not a fantasy series per se, in that you […]
The Grand Sophy (1950) Georgette Heyer Horace Stanton-Lacy needs to get his daughter married. He also needs to go to South America on a diplomatic mission, thus he Sophy to stay with her aunt in London, where he hopes she can be introduced to society and find a good match. The Ombersley house, however, is […]
Tracking the Tempest (2010) Nicole Peeler First off, there is a lot of boinking in this book. I’d forgotten about that in the time that had passed between this book and the first. Once I remembered that and was able to move myself into that frame of mind, I thoroughly enjoyed Tracking the Tempest. In […]
The Wild Road (2008) Marjorie Liu Why yes, this is a floating head & torso romance. However, as I am on crutches and spending a lot of time waiting, I needed a diverting book to keep in my purse, and since I enjoyed The Fire King (another floaty head romance book set in the same […]
The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker (2009) Leanna Renee Hieber Picked this up a few weeks ago after breaking my leg, but as I was on pain killers, I couldn’t focus and put it back down. Now that I’m still laid up but no longer spaced out, I’m tearing through books and came […]
The Masqueraders (1928) Georgette Heyer A couple weeks ago I decided I wanted something completely different to read. After coming upon a review of The Masqueraders by Georgette Heyer, “I thought this might be a fun read,” and ordered it. I will admit, the language took some getting used to. The book is set in […]
Fall of Light (2009) Nina Kiriki Hoffman The first Nina Kiriki Hoffman book I read was Fistful of Sky, which I read in a single sitting and absolutely loved. Fall of Light is set in the same world was Fistful of Sky, only the main character is Opal, Gyp’s sister, and these events take place […]
Dead and Gone (2009) Charlaine Harris When I first discovered the Sookie Stackhouse books the were like a revelation: Romance can be fun? Really? And they were fun! Mysteries, vampires and sex that wasn’t completely ridiculous! Then at some point, they started to get ridiculous. It seemed as if every supernatural creature adored and wanted […]
Changeless (2010) Gail Carriger Well, that was disappointing. As I have mentioned repeatedly before, I really dislike cliffhanger endings. When I read a book, I like the story arc to end at the end of the book. This doesn’t mean I dislike threads that carry from story to story–that’s fine. But what I do NOT […]
Spider’s Bite (2010) Jennifer Estep Gin is an assassin called the Spider. She makes a good living, and her handler wants her to retire, but she’s not sure she’s ready–after all, she’s still young, what would she do? All of her family is dead, and the only people she’s close to are her handler (who […]
Dragon Wytch (2008) Yasmine Galenorn I don’t much like Camille. I don’t like fashion. And I really don’t like characters who think, talk and obsess about sex constantly. Which is pretty much all Camille does. When she’s not having sex, she’s talking about having sex or thinking about having sex. Plus, she’s so fabulous she […]
Changeling (2007) Yasmine Galenorn When I read Witchling, the first book of the Sisters of the Moon series, I wasn’t impressed. I really liked the story, but the main character was obsessed with fashion and sex, and those are not my favorite themes. But the second book in the series was written from the point […]
Never After (2009) Laurell K. Hamilton, Yasmine Galenorn, Marjorie M. Liu, Sharon Shinn The only reason I have this book a second glance after seeing Laurell K. Hamilton’s name was because I’ve read books by Yasmine Galenorn, Marjorie M. Liu, and Sharon Shinn and loved what I read. So I grabbed the book, despite my […]
Tempest Rising (2009) Nicole Peeler Where to start with this book? First, the cover, which is what drew my attention. It’s got a manga Halloween feel to it, with snakes and tombstones and seals and a naked girl/woman with giant eyes. That’s not something you see every day. Excellent job there. Next, the story. Jane […]
Soulless (2009) Gail Carriger Alexia Tarabotti doesn’t have a soul. This isn’t a particularly well known fact, since the only people who can recognize this are the supernatural–vampires, werewolves etc. But when she is attacked by a vampire at a ball, she is (quite willingly) drawn into an intrigue, against the wishes of Lord Macon […]
The Fire King (2009) Marjorie Liu This is a kissing book. I knew that when I picked it up, because it had a floating man head on the cover, and that swoopy writing you only see on romance covers. But I was somewhere without a book, and when I stopped at the grocery store to […]
Destined for an Early Grave (2009) Jeaniene Frost Cat is no longer working for the government slaying rogue vampires. She and Bones are off to Paris for a well-deserved vacation. Unfortunately, Cat remains the only living half-vampire, and her unique position remains a threat to the undead. Although the initial story seems to have come […]
From Dead to Worse (2008) Charlaine Harris For awhile there I was getting frustrated with Charlaine Harris while it seems as if Sookie was the most attractive and beguiling woman in the entire world and everyone wanted to boink her. Whatever. I don’t care if she is part fairy, things were just getting a bit […]
At Grave’s End (2009) Jeaniene Frost Cat and Bones are still working for Homeland Security, but Cat’s been working long enough that her disguise has worn thin–especially since Bones has become quite recognizable in the vampire world. To make things worse, Cat’s father is still looking for her, and doesn’t want a happy family reunion. […]
One Foot in the Grave (2008) Jeaniene Frost It’s been four years since Cat walked away from Bones–four years that she’s been working for a special group in the FBI to deal with the undead. But her past is now coming back to haunt her–not just the fact that she still loves Bones, but also […]
Halfway to the Grave (2007) Jeaniene Frost Cat is half-vampire, and since her mother has told her of her history, has dedicated her life to killing every vampire she can find. Her heritage gives her heightened senses and strength beyond that of a normal human, but her hunt is surprised one night when she meets […]
By Camelot’s Blood (2008) Sarah Zettel I’ve been waiting for this book since before Luna lost it’s collective mind and dropped Sarah Zettel and this series. (And if anyone from Luna reads this, it’s made me more reluctant to buy books in the Luna line, wondering if another series I like will be summarily dropped.) […]
All Together Dead (2007) Charlaine Harris It’s been awhile since I read a new Sookie Stackhouse story. They’re now published in hardback first, and as much as I enjoy her stories and her writing, I don’t much care for hardback books. I also wasn’t sure they were worth $25. So I placed it on pre-order […]
Silent in the Grave (2007) Deanna Raybourn To say that Silent in the Grave annoyed me would be a vast understatement. This book had tons of high recommendations, and I cannot for the life of me figure out why. First, the heroine, who is supposed to be intelligent, tends towards sheer idiocy. Sure, she’s well […]
And Only to Deceive (2005) Tasha Alexander The deception in this book? The text, “A Novel of Suspense.” I’ve been in the mood for historical mysteries, and so when this one came up recommend on Amazon–and on sale–I decided to try it. My feelings when reading this book kept swinging between annoyance and hopeful interest. […]
Definitely Dead (2006) Charlaine Harris First things first, this book had me laughing out loud, and reading passages to Michael. That usually only happens for Steven Brust books, but in multiple places Charlaine Harris nailed the dialog, and forced me to keep interrupting Michael game so he could laugh with me. Additionally, for those of […]
Dead As A Doornail (2005) Charlaine Harris Dead As A Doornail is the fifth book in Charlaine Harris’ Southern Vampire series, and full of complications and murder and danger. Someone is killing the double-natured, and since Sookie’s brother Jason was bitten, he’s in the same danger as the rest. I really liked several different things […]
Under Camelot’s Banner (2006) Sarah Zettel Under Camelot’s Banner is the third book in Sarah Zettel’s Camelot series. There isn’t a specific name for this series, but all the books have Camelot in the title, so that’s obvious enough. Books published by Luna typically have a romantic or erotic element, however, they also tend to […]
For Camelot’s Honor (2005) Sarah Zettel In a burst of paranoia, I held of reading this book, for fear that it wouldn’t be as good as the previous in this series, In Camelot’s Shadow. Once again I was proven to be just that–paranoid. I was pleased to discover that Sarah Zettel did a good job […]
In Camelot’s Shadow (2004) Sarah Zettel I knew when I started the book that this was going to be a fantasy/romance. Perhaps for that reason, or perhaps because the romance was well done, and I haven’t read a well written romance before. But whatever the reason, I really liked this book. I picked it up […]
The Southern Vampire Mysteries: Dead Until Dark (2001), Living Dead in Dallas (2002), Club Dead (2003), Dead to the World (2004) Charlaine Harris If I told you I’d been reading erotic, vampire mysteries, would you still respect me? If the answer is “No,” too bad. Since the Victorian part of my soul has to deal […]