Got this in audiobook for a "mini review" for the Speaking of Audiobooks at AAR. Didn't like it any better in audio - narrated by Justin Eyre, who I did like. What follows in my original review here from April 2009:
I can't believe I read this one out of order!! It's actually #4 in the series after Beware A Scot's Revenge which I read last.
This one was just average/mediocre - the whole setup/premise was a little too contrived for my taste. First, the prim schoolteacher and the rake are the protagonists - (yawn) - and the prim schoolteacher has a dark secret she cannot reveal about her father, and wants to use the rake to get the resolution, so she arranges for him teach Rake Lessons at the school (this is the School For Heiresses series) to prove he can be a responsible guardian. Yes, if you are thinking "WTF?" like I was, then we agree on the premise: it's inane. It's something about his being desperate to be the guardian of his niece to protect her from his aunt - so desperate, he'll teach the lessons; meanwhile, Ms Prim Schoolteacher is also desperate, hence her convincing Mrs. Harris to allow his niece to attend if he'll prove he's responsible.
Because of her so-called "dark secret", she pretty much lies throughout to the rake - and yet she expects him to be honorable?? Once she finally gets what she wants - well, whatever, it sorta became The Big Misunderstanding - meanwhile, he's immediately attracted to her like he has never been before to any other woman, in spite of his reputation and vast experience. Doesn't that get old after a while? So he has to have her, whatever it takes and...
Jeffries writes an enjoyable enough story but this one pushed my "so what" buttons, hence the 3 stars.
Showing posts with label Sabrina Jeffries. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sabrina Jeffries. Show all posts
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Beware A Scot's Revenge by Sabrina Jeffries ****
This one is actually the 3rd installment in the School For Heiresses series, and I read them out of order. As it turns out, it didn't really change my experience much, if any, since there didn't seem to be any particular continuing story lines in the series.
This one is about Venetia Campbell, a Scot whose mother died in childbirth of her second child. Her father, the Earl of Duncannon, was so heartbroken, he took Venetia to London, and left their Highland property to an overseer to run.
Lachlan Ross, who is also the Scottish Scourge, is after the earl because the earl borrowed money from Ross's father which he never has repaid. The Ross clan is now suffering and needs the money, but the earl is refusing to pay. So he's taken up highway robbery, mostly from Duncannon's friends (which he did in an earlier book). And now, in desperation, he kidnaps Venetia - his childhood friend that he hasn't seen since the family moved away so many years ago.
Venetia had a childhood crush on Ross, and so her first reaction is actually that she is glad to see him and learn that he isn't dead, as was reported. But after she realizes what is happening, she becomes pretty feisty and tries on several occasions to get away. He intends to hold her for ransom so that her father will repay the loan.
But there is a reason the loan was actually forgiven by Ross's father - a reason that the earl doesn't want to reveal, and Ross Sr. never told anyone about before he died.
The attraction between Lachlan and Venetia is more believably written than the protagonists' story in book 4 (Let Sleeping Rogues Lie) and they end up getting married (sort of hand-fast) in Scotland before her father comes to pay the ransom, and before the real reason is revealed. Once revealed, Ross is so ashamed at how he bullied the earl that he almost succeeds in sending Venetia back to London with her father - but, as in all good Romance novels, they finally reconcile and get their HEA.
There's a secondary romance with an older couple, Venetia's aunt and Lord Seton, Lucy Seton's widower father.
I enjoyed this one - 4 stars.
This one is about Venetia Campbell, a Scot whose mother died in childbirth of her second child. Her father, the Earl of Duncannon, was so heartbroken, he took Venetia to London, and left their Highland property to an overseer to run.
Lachlan Ross, who is also the Scottish Scourge, is after the earl because the earl borrowed money from Ross's father which he never has repaid. The Ross clan is now suffering and needs the money, but the earl is refusing to pay. So he's taken up highway robbery, mostly from Duncannon's friends (which he did in an earlier book). And now, in desperation, he kidnaps Venetia - his childhood friend that he hasn't seen since the family moved away so many years ago.
Venetia had a childhood crush on Ross, and so her first reaction is actually that she is glad to see him and learn that he isn't dead, as was reported. But after she realizes what is happening, she becomes pretty feisty and tries on several occasions to get away. He intends to hold her for ransom so that her father will repay the loan.
But there is a reason the loan was actually forgiven by Ross's father - a reason that the earl doesn't want to reveal, and Ross Sr. never told anyone about before he died.
The attraction between Lachlan and Venetia is more believably written than the protagonists' story in book 4 (Let Sleeping Rogues Lie) and they end up getting married (sort of hand-fast) in Scotland before her father comes to pay the ransom, and before the real reason is revealed. Once revealed, Ross is so ashamed at how he bullied the earl that he almost succeeds in sending Venetia back to London with her father - but, as in all good Romance novels, they finally reconcile and get their HEA.
There's a secondary romance with an older couple, Venetia's aunt and Lord Seton, Lucy Seton's widower father.
I enjoyed this one - 4 stars.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Only A Duke Will Do by Sabrina Jeffries ****
This is the second in the School for Heiresses series. The heroines are all graduates of Mrs. Harris's school for young ladies, nicknamed the School For Heiresses. This story takes on the changing politics in the 1820s in England, and the mixture of the romance and the politics makes it very interesting. To be honest, the first half or so of the book was starting to seem pretty average but the last third or so, where Simon and Louisa begin to struggle with their relationship and their politics is what made it a 4-star read to me.
Louisa is the bastard daughter of the king. She has vowed never to marry - for 2 reasons. The first reason is that she wants to remain a spinster in order to continue her political aspirations, but the real reason is that she watched her half sister, the Princess Charlotte, die in childbirth. 7 years before the start of the story, she was besotted with Simon, the future Duke of Foxmoor. He had seduced her, offered to marry her - then left her to serve in the English government in India for 7 years.
Simon came back from India a changed man. He was a hero for his actions in a battle there and was lauded to have served his country well. But his backstory includes a grandfather, formerly a Prime Minister, who had worked on Simon to train him to think love was impossible and that women were never to be trusted.
Simon is approached by the king and asked to marry Louisa in order to stop her political activities. Louisa is involved with a group of women working on prison reform. They go to the prisons to help the women there. The king believes Simon is the only man she'll agree to marry. But she proves harder to seduce now, having spent 7 years building up her shell.
Eventually he uses the one method to guarantee success - after she is seduced, he sets up a situation where they will be discovered, forcing a marriage. During this courtship, they try to bargain with each other so that each gets what he/she needs from the relationship - neither play fair, in my opinion, and this was the part that started to get on my nerves.
But after they are married, and he begins to support her side politically, she is lulled into thinking all will work out. But she isn't exactly forthcoming with him about her issues either - which forces another showdown after they are married.
The real conflict comes when Simon has to make a choice - stop supporting the reforms and force Louisa to stop as well, or miss out on his opportunity to realize his political ambitions. This part is where the historical aspects are mixed into their story and for me became more interesting.
So I went from a 3-star to a 4-star opinion at the end.
Louisa is the bastard daughter of the king. She has vowed never to marry - for 2 reasons. The first reason is that she wants to remain a spinster in order to continue her political aspirations, but the real reason is that she watched her half sister, the Princess Charlotte, die in childbirth. 7 years before the start of the story, she was besotted with Simon, the future Duke of Foxmoor. He had seduced her, offered to marry her - then left her to serve in the English government in India for 7 years.
Simon came back from India a changed man. He was a hero for his actions in a battle there and was lauded to have served his country well. But his backstory includes a grandfather, formerly a Prime Minister, who had worked on Simon to train him to think love was impossible and that women were never to be trusted.
Simon is approached by the king and asked to marry Louisa in order to stop her political activities. Louisa is involved with a group of women working on prison reform. They go to the prisons to help the women there. The king believes Simon is the only man she'll agree to marry. But she proves harder to seduce now, having spent 7 years building up her shell.
Eventually he uses the one method to guarantee success - after she is seduced, he sets up a situation where they will be discovered, forcing a marriage. During this courtship, they try to bargain with each other so that each gets what he/she needs from the relationship - neither play fair, in my opinion, and this was the part that started to get on my nerves.
But after they are married, and he begins to support her side politically, she is lulled into thinking all will work out. But she isn't exactly forthcoming with him about her issues either - which forces another showdown after they are married.
The real conflict comes when Simon has to make a choice - stop supporting the reforms and force Louisa to stop as well, or miss out on his opportunity to realize his political ambitions. This part is where the historical aspects are mixed into their story and for me became more interesting.
So I went from a 3-star to a 4-star opinion at the end.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Never Seduce a Scoundrel by Sabrina Jeffries ****
This is the first in The School for Heiresses Series, about young women who graduated from finishing school and their teacher, Mrs. Harris. Our first heroine is the spirited Lady Amelia, who has always longed for adventure. Being a proper young lady, she has had to live vicariously through other's tales, and keeps journals containing news stories and other's tales of travel and pirates and battles and such.
She meets the American Major Lucas Winter at a ball held by his distant cousin Kirkwood, while she is roaming the family's private quarters, going to put a note from a friend on Kirkwood's pillow. While looking for Kirkwood's room, she goes into Winter's instead and learns from correspondence on his desk that he is in search of a woman named Dorothy, and considers Amelia's stepmother Dolly his possible suspect.
When she is found in the hall, she determines to become a spy in her own right to find out why he suspects Dolly. Using her not-well-honed acting skills, she acts ever the flighty, flirty chit to see if he'll reveal any answers. He decides she's as brainless as she acts, but doesn't reveal anything. He also decides that courting her might provide him with more information about her stepmother - the woman he knows as the wife of the man who defrauded his father.
During the mock courtship - which Amelia agrees to, for her own purpose of finding out why he wants Dolly - the 2 inevitably fall for one another. It's slow - but Amelia has done quite a lot of adventurous reading, including some tales of harems that heat up her seduction. Lucas begins to take issue with another suitor, and begins to torment the fellow by sitting outside her home cleaning weapons. Since this other suitor, "Lord Pompous", is quite mad, it pushes him to abduct Amelia to Gretna Green - where Lucas follows and grabs Amelia for himself. She only has 3 choices - marry Lord Pompous, marry Lucas or be ruined.
Their adventure has just begun, though, because then they have to fight off a Scottish thief and escape his clutches, all before returning home and facing Dolly - is she the wife of Theodore Frier, the man who embezzled from Lucas' father?
It was a fun read - some slightly unorthodox situations - a little bit of suspense - a very happily-ever-after - nothing extraordinarily moving but still I liked it, so I'm rating it 4 stars.
She meets the American Major Lucas Winter at a ball held by his distant cousin Kirkwood, while she is roaming the family's private quarters, going to put a note from a friend on Kirkwood's pillow. While looking for Kirkwood's room, she goes into Winter's instead and learns from correspondence on his desk that he is in search of a woman named Dorothy, and considers Amelia's stepmother Dolly his possible suspect.
When she is found in the hall, she determines to become a spy in her own right to find out why he suspects Dolly. Using her not-well-honed acting skills, she acts ever the flighty, flirty chit to see if he'll reveal any answers. He decides she's as brainless as she acts, but doesn't reveal anything. He also decides that courting her might provide him with more information about her stepmother - the woman he knows as the wife of the man who defrauded his father.
During the mock courtship - which Amelia agrees to, for her own purpose of finding out why he wants Dolly - the 2 inevitably fall for one another. It's slow - but Amelia has done quite a lot of adventurous reading, including some tales of harems that heat up her seduction. Lucas begins to take issue with another suitor, and begins to torment the fellow by sitting outside her home cleaning weapons. Since this other suitor, "Lord Pompous", is quite mad, it pushes him to abduct Amelia to Gretna Green - where Lucas follows and grabs Amelia for himself. She only has 3 choices - marry Lord Pompous, marry Lucas or be ruined.
Their adventure has just begun, though, because then they have to fight off a Scottish thief and escape his clutches, all before returning home and facing Dolly - is she the wife of Theodore Frier, the man who embezzled from Lucas' father?
It was a fun read - some slightly unorthodox situations - a little bit of suspense - a very happily-ever-after - nothing extraordinarily moving but still I liked it, so I'm rating it 4 stars.
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