A thoroughly satisfying Regency from one of our finest historical romance authors.
A vindication of the rights of shrews.
Lord deGriffith has finally had enough of his bluestocking daughter, Cassandra. After she openly challenges her father's fellow Member of Parliament about a bill she thinks will hurt the poor, he sets a new rule—her beloved sister, Hyacinth, may not marry, or even participate in her first season, until Cassandra herself marries. Frustrated, Cassandra leaves London, where she crosses paths with the notorious Lucius Beckingham, Duke of Ashmont, after her carriage crashes. She was infatuated with Lucius as a young girl but has since lost all patience with his disreputable behavior. As he tries to help Cassandra and her groom, who is badly hurt in the crash, Cassandra finds herself in a difficult position, without an appropriate chaperone, and Lucius—whose fiancee has just run off with one of his friends—offers to marry her. Though years ago this would have pleased Cassandra, and she’s still attracted to him, she no longer trusts the man he’s become—“beautiful, godlike, and hopeless.” Only later, after they are caught in a compromising position, will she agree to a sham engagement to salvage her reputation. Ashmont jumps at the chance to be closer to Cassandra, hoping that before it’s time to break it off, he’ll win her back—and with each day, he comes closer to his goal, with a little help from Mary Wollstonecraft. This book, second in Chase’s Difficult Dukes series, is a typically complex and engaging story from the author, rich with subplots and moments of intrigue. With a hero set on winning his heroine from the start, the suspense is derived primarily from just how far Ashmont will have to go to win back his Cassandra, and readers who like a groveling duke will enjoy his pursuit. Though it’s second in a series, new readers can jump right in, though fans of the first, A Duke in Shining Armor (2017), as well as those familiar with The Taming of the Shrew or Ten Things I Hate About You, will enjoy several subtle touches throughout the book.
A thoroughly satisfying Regency from one of our finest historical romance authors.Pub Date: Dec. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-06-245740-0
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Avon/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Haphazard and undemanding.
A sports agent’s first official client is the man she dumped years ago in college.
After two years of hard work as an underling, Nora Mackenzie is finally being promoted to full-time sports agent. She’s worked hard, kept quiet, and allowed men in the office to call her Mac—a nickname she hates—all to show she’s a team player and “one of the guys.” Unfortunately, her boss instructs her to sign Derek Pender, a football player coming off an injury, who happens to be the man she heartlessly dumped in their senior year of college. Derek signs with her for revenge, seeing it as his opportunity to pay Nora back for callously breaking his heart eight years earlier. He insists she be at his beck and call: answering his emails, running his errands, cooking dinner for his dates. He also refuses to let her explain why she broke up with him without warning or explanation. Nora feels she has no choice but to acquiesce to Derek’s humiliating demands, since she’s worked too hard to let him ruin her dream job. She hopes he’ll thaw and they might become friends, but Derek’s bad behavior is designed to hide the fact that he’s still in love with her. Nora’s characterization is uneven, veering between anger at how she’s treated in the male-dominated field to immature bickering and bantering with Derek. Although Adams likely meant for Derek and Nora’s interactions to have an enemies-to-lovers vibe, the characters instead seem juvenile and stuck in the past. The novel is fueled by a string of tropes—second chance romance! married in Vegas! only one bed!—each randomly deployed to keep the book going despite thin characterization and wan plotting.
Haphazard and undemanding.Pub Date: April 2, 2024
ISBN: 9780593723678
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Dell
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.
The sequel to It Ends With Us (2016) shows the aftermath of domestic violence through the eyes of a single mother.
Lily Bloom is still running a flower shop; her abusive ex-husband, Ryle Kincaid, is still a surgeon. But now they’re co-parenting a daughter, Emerson, who's almost a year old. Lily won’t send Emerson to her father’s house overnight until she’s old enough to talk—“So she can tell me if something happens”—but she doesn’t want to fight for full custody lest it become an expensive legal drama or, worse, a physical fight. When Lily runs into Atlas Corrigan, a childhood friend who also came from an abusive family, she hopes their friendship can blossom into love. (For new readers, their history unfolds in heartfelt diary entries that Lily addresses to Finding Nemo star Ellen DeGeneres as she considers how Atlas was a calming presence during her turbulent childhood.) Atlas, who is single and running a restaurant, feels the same way. But even though she’s divorced, Lily isn’t exactly free. Behind Ryle’s veneer of civility are his jealousy and resentment. Lily has to plan her dates carefully to avoid a confrontation. Meanwhile, Atlas’ mother returns with shocking news. In between, Lily and Atlas steal away for romantic moments that are even sweeter for their authenticity as Lily struggles with child care, breastfeeding, and running a business while trying to find time for herself.
Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.Pub Date: Oct. 18, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-668-00122-6
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2022
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
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