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Let me preface this review by saying that there are a few aspects of a romance novel that I require in order to enjoy the book.. first, I want a happy ending where the two main characters end up together. Secondly, I like there to be some “romance”, not just “sex” through most of the story. This book had neither of these two things.
I have read a few of Ms. MacAlister and enjoyed her humor. I especially liked “Men In Kilts”. I was hoping that this book would be just as funny. While it did have some humorous moments and “lines”, it was not as funny as some of her other books.
I started to realize that I was not really enjoying this story when I was half way through and thought to myself.. “They don’t even LIKE each other yet!”. Sure, the two main characters, Pia Thomason and Kristoff, had sex by then but it was just sex. No chemistry. And before they hook up, there is a very odd “sex” scene with Pia and Krisoff’s friend, Alec. I’m still not sure what was going on there.
Even though I was not liking the story and was starting to get confused by the multitude of characters.. fellow tour group members, vampires, brotherhood members as well as a whole slew of ghosts who followed Pia around.. I still decided to stick it out to atleast see how the hoped for “romance” would come about. I’ll admit that for the last quarter of the book I skipped some of the details hoping to get to the meat of the romance soon. Sadly, the romance never happened! You know that feeling you get when watching a really good television show and it all of a sudden cuts to “to be continued”? Well that’s how I felt at the end of this book. Disappointed and let down. I enjoy books that are a part of a “series” and I don’t mind if background stories continue from one book to another. However, in a romance novel, I want the main characters to fall in love in the course of one book. That was not the case with this book.
I guess that I am forever doomed to not know the fate of Pia and Kristoff because I will NOT be reading the next book in this series.
Here’s the test of truly good film. If you can sit in the front row of the theater, craning your neck for 2 3/4 hrs .. and still say it was worth it, then it’s a good film! That’s what happened to me last night. My friend and I got the last two seats for a special screening of “Australia”. We weren’t sure if we would stay, but decided to wait and see once the film started. It didn’t take long for the movie to hook us.. and we knew we were in for the long haul.
I’ll have to admit that while I had seen the trailers and read a few things about the film, I didn’t know what the actual storyline was going to be. It’s based on the now defunct program carried out by the Australian government to remove children of “mixed race” ( Aboriginal and white) from their homes and separate them from the rest of society. These children have been known in the Aboriginal world as “The Lost Generations”.
The film begins with one such child telling the story. This part of the film has a real Baz Luhrmann feel to it. There is comedy, music and spectacle along with a surreal almost “graphic novel” background. Once the story is begun, it never stops. I am not a fan of “almost” 3 hr films, but I wasn’t constantly looking at my watch during this one. There are no “slow” parts. If there is not some real action, there is spectacular Australian scenery to captivate you.
The acting is strong, especially newcomer, Brandon Walters, as “Nullah”. I had read that Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman were uncomfortable with their love scenes because they are friends in real life, however, it looked to me as if they overcame it. There is chemistry between the two. You believe the love story.
There is a wealth of talent in the supporting cast, including the obligatory appearance of Jack Thompson in a perfect role for him. Other familiar faces are Bryan Brown and David Wenham who both succeed in making you totally dislike their characters. One actor who I’d like to see more from is Ben Mendelsohn who played Captain Dutton. I feel that an actor must really being doing a good job if they make me think “I want to know more about THAT character!”. This can be said about “Capt. Dutton”.
There will be times when you cry tears of joy, tears of sadness, times when you will be holding your breath, times you will want to cheer… all of which makes the 2 3/4 hrs fly by.
Bastion Club #7
After reading this book, can say that Stephanie is still definitely on mark with her writing.
As I started reading the book I was thinking about whether or not she is still in my top 5 authors..
I feel like I’ve fallen in love with so many new authors lately, that maybe Stephanie would “slip” in the list.
I was only about 1/4 of the way through and realized.. she hasn’t slipped at all. I just love her books.
I remember when the Bastion Club Series started.. and I thought that there was no way that I’d love it
as much as I did the Cynsters.. well.. that didn’t turn out to be true.
This latest addition to the Bastion Club series.. Christian Allardyce, 6th Marquess of Dearne’s story is exceptional. There is the normal “mystery” as well as an intense, heart wrenching romance.
Christian and Leticia had been in love before he went off in “His Majesty’s Service”… through a series of misunderstandings and misinformation.. he returns to civilian life thinking she is lost to him forever.
When Christian and Leticia reconnect.. the story intensifies. I like that when he finds out why Leticia married while he was away.. that he doesn’t argue about how his “mistakes” contributed to the events leading to her decision. And while he “decides” early on what their future will hold.. and he does what some might consider manipulation.. to me he took a very respectful path. He wasn’t so much “manipulating” as he was “convincing”.
One of the things that Leticia came to realize was that he respected her feelings.. and her reasons for them.
He didn’t try to write them off.. or try to trivialize them.And let me say.. the methods he uses to “convince” her of his love and trust.. makes for some very steamy love scenes!!
If you are a SL fan.. you’ll love this book. If you haven’t read any of her books. or any other Bastion Club book.. this can be a “stand alone” story.. although it’s better if you’ve read the other Bastion Club books..mostly for the Daziel mystery. Otherwise there really isn’t any background that is lost by not reading the previous books.
As with all of the Bastion Club books..there are some more “clues” as to Daziel’s true identity.. his title specifically. There are some fairly humorous scenes where the rest of the “club” try to get those who know his identity to tell them.. but the “punishment is too high” so they are left frustrated again!! If you read the “preview” of his book.. you find out the exact details of his title and why he has been hiding his identity. The bad part.. the book doesn’t come out for another year!! Fall 2009!! Ackkk
I had thoroughly enjoyed Ms. Thomas’ first book, “Private Arrangements”, so I was looking forward to her second effort. “Delicious” not only lived up to my expectations.. it exceeded them.
In this book the author uses food and epicurean delights.. as a backdrop for a complex story of love and longing and sacrifice with a “Cinderalla” theme. The main characters are not your usual ones found in historical romances. Verity Durant is a mature woman in her 30’s who works “below stairs” as a cook, albeit an exceptional cook! Stuart Somerset is the bastard son from a prominent family. He has risen high in the world of law and politics and has an even more promising future.
I love to read a book where the characters have much going on “below the surface”. It adds to the complexity of the story and makes it interesting for the reader to figure out motivations and possible conclusions, without having said conclusions be too obvious as often happens in traditional romances.
Even the secondary characters in this book have complicated backgrounds and personalities that make you just as interested in them as you are in Verity and Stuart.
The book is written with flashbacks to ten years prior in alternate chapters. Sometimes I find this confusing, but in this book it wasn’t that way. The situation was “different” enough that you didn’t lose track of which time frame you were in. It also allowed you to not know the “full” background story until almost the end of the book.
While the final scenes are somewhat expected as the only possibly conclusion that will result in a happy ending for all, there are still interesting twists and turns to how it all comes about. Some characters surprise you right up to the last minute.
If you are looking for a period piece romance with a few different twists, I highly recommend this book!
Let me preface this review by saying that there are a few aspects of a romance novel that I require in order to enjoy the book.. first, I want a happy ending where the two main characters end up together. Secondly, I like there to be some “romance”, not just “sex” through most of the story. This book had neither of these two things.
