When hubby's away...

...I don't play much but I do have more time to read.

Last month when he went on his annual ski trip with "the boys", I picked up two Harlequin Historicals. Sadly, both were disappointing. One was too period, which isn't a criticism; obviously it was simply not to my taste. I can't read Georgette Heyer either. Besides, the paternal streak many heroes feel towards their Regency belles in books of this fashion I find a real turn off. I actually skipped a few of the love scenes, a telltale sign that it's time to move on.

The other historical, which I was quite excited about after reading the back jacket cover, ended up driving me mad. From the blurb and first few chapters, I imagined the heroine to be tough, beautiful, a real fighter, but then, at every turn, the poor thing seemed to dissolve into a fit of tears. It's a wonder the delectable male (and he was quite something; the woman was daft not to fall into his arms) still pursued her.

This has happened to me before. I've trusted the publisher as opposed to the writer herself and gone awry. I shall continue to pick up the works of my favourite Harlequin Historical authors—such as Nicola Cornick, Michelle Styles, Diane Gaston (I did enjoy her recent Innocence and Impropriety), Gail Ranstrom, and Deborah Hale. Or perhaps turn to another line altogether. My recent introduction to the Presents line has piqued my interest to say the least. Thanks, India!

This time while hubby is away, I discovered that one of my all-time favourite authors has turned her hand to children's literature. I thoroughly enjoyed Jeanette Winterson's Tanglewreck—think orphaned girl charged with the task of healing the rent in time that has wrought havoc in not only her native England but the entire world. Next on the list is Libba Bray's A Great and Terrible Beauty. I'm much more comfortable in the Victorian period, anyway.

I can forgo romance for a week or two.

Book Review

What I'd really like to do is provide a review of my critique partner's latest offering (you'll all love it, believe me!); however, since her editor has not yet finished with the manuscript, I'd better keep mum and instead tell you about another romance I recently read.

Lord Greville's Captive

The book title is a misnomer. Or, at the very least, the contraction is misleading. For it is not the heroine of Nicola Cornick's latest contribution to the Harlequin Historicals line who is in thrall to her conqueror but the exact opposite: It is Lord Greville who is the captive.

Throughout Cornick's tale, set during the English Civil War, it is Lady Anne Grafton who commands attention. From the moment she strides into the enemies' camp to bargain for the safety of her people — in a masterful first chapter told from the hero's perspective — the reader is held spellbound by the lady's pluck and courage. I found myself falling in love with both characters: he for his strength, might and utter masculinity (to-die-for, girls!), and she for her strength of mind and purpose.

Grafton and Greville are on opposing sides of the war, Lady Anne holding fast to fealty to her king and to a promise, and Simon Greville to the right of the people to stand together against tyranny. Will their differences keep them apart? (Surely they will). Will love conquer all? (Of course it will.) You may know how the story ends but it's the struggle to get there that counts, and I promise you'll not be disappointed. This 17th-century tale, just what I ordered in fact, is replete with tension, adventure and, best of all, passion galore.

For those of you in the UK who have Cornick's highly acclaimed Regency romp Deceived on your wish list, word has it that the UK edition is out this month. Don't miss it or Lord Greville's Captive.

Merrily Deceived: A Book Review

One of my all-time favourite romance novels, Kathleen E. Woodiwiss's Shanna, opens with a prison scene. There is something about a dark prison and a shadowy, taciturn male hero, not to mention a desperate female, to engage the interest.

Nicola Cornick's recently released Deceived (HQN Romance) starts out similarly. To escape two unpleasant fates, debtors' prison or exile to Europe, Isabella Standish marries a man she believes safely shut away in debtors' prison, a man she jilted at the altar years ago in favour of a European prince. Widowed and left with enormous debt by her wastrel husband, Isabella is unaware that Marcus Stockhaven is no pauper and has vengeance in mind for the lovely princess.

A battle of wits ensues when Stockhaven appears on the scene, disconcerting the remarkably composed heroine. Cornick, a master of the Regency drama, delights the reader with innuendo, double entendre and tonnish scenes aplenty, all rife with tension and suppressed passion. The intervening years have not diminished the chemistry between the characters; in fact, the sexual tension is palpable, as is the pain, distrust and fear of loving again. Isabella and Stockhaven are complex characters battling the events of the past; fortunately, they are totally likable and refreshingly authentic.

In the end not a single soul is deceived, least of all the reader.

Keep an eye out for the other romantic subplots, particularly that of Isabella's sister, known by the ton for her beauty, wit, and acerbic tongue. (A girl after my own heart.)

By the way, few of Woodiwiss's novels have remained on my keeper shelf over the years. My tastes have changed and I have little patience these days for flowery prose. Cornick's novels, on the other hand, are every one of them keepers.