I picked up this title because it was recommended to me as a historical with a mystery and a slow-burn romance. I like all those words. I like them quite a bit. What I ended up with was a narrative that, the more I thought about it, didn’t make sense because the first half of the story didn’t match the second. Former soldier Adam Drummond is working for the British government undercover as a majordomo … Continue reading To Love a Duchess by Karen Ranney →
I really loved The Lass Wore Black by Karen Ranney, like I-should-be-working-but-I’m-gonna-read liked it. I found myself stealing whatever snippets of time I could to finish the novel. To top it off, it’s a Beauty and the Beast story, my favorite fairy tale trope. Now, I like my historical romances meaty (insert joke here) and filled with character-driven conflict. Ever since I read Pride and Prejudice as a teen, I’ve loved romances where the hero … Continue reading The Lass Wore Black by Karen Ranney →
Colonel Moncrief of the Lowland Scots Fusiliers is in a ticklish situation. One of his captains, Harry Dunnan, refuses to write to his wife, and this has her so worried that she has resorted to writing him to find out if her husband is alive and well. The problem is, Harry Dunnan doesn’t give a rip about his wife (or other men’s wives, or honor, or honesty, or his horse, or other people’s lives—yes, he’s … Continue reading Till Next We Meet by Karen Ranney →
I should’ve liked this book more than I did. It seems to be the highest-rated out of all the Highland Lords novels, which have thus far gotten variations of B grades from me. It has a lot of elements I normally enjoy: a hero’s who’s been literally tortured, a look into the wackiness of 18th-century medicine, and the promise of loads of hot hot hot monkey sex. But I think a combination of too much … Continue reading To Love A Scottish Lord by Karen Ranney →
Sarah and I recently had a discussion about romance novels that come in a series, and I bitched briefly about how I don’t like it when I’m reminded of how every member in the series met their soulmate through extremely melodramatic circumstances. The third book in Karen Ranney’s Highland Lords series, The Irresistible MacRae manages to avoid this particular pitfall, so big props to her for daring to write a sweet story about two genuinely … Continue reading The Irresistible MacRae by Karen Ranney →
It’s always nice to find that a sequel is as good as, if not better than, its predecessor. When the Laird Returns, the second book in Karen Ranney’s five-book series about the MacRaes, is pretty damn decent. There’s enough derring-do to keep you interested in the action, the characters fall in love and learn to compromise and grow with each other along the way, and there aren’t any annoying overused plot devices (like the “hero … Continue reading When the Laird Returns by Karen Ranney →
Can I just say this? I normally fucking hate Scottish romances. Between the incessant “och’s!” and “ye’s” and using the words “lass” and “Sassenach” in every other sentence, many historical romances set in Scotland tend to be pretty damn cheesy. (As an aside: Word is objecting to my use of “normally fucking hate” and is delicately suggesting that I change it to “normally am fucking,” “normally fuck” or “normally was fucking.” It says something about … Continue reading One Man’s Love by Karen Ranney →
In this week’s podcast episode, we’re looking at the advertisements and features inside the June 2014 issue of Romantic Times, aka RT Book Reviews. We’ve got So Many Small Presses that no longer exist, plus some really, really weird feet. Yup, feet! You can also find all the RTRW content at our category page for Romantic Times Rewind. And, most importantly, if you want to listen and follow along with this entry, we have more … Continue reading Romantic Times Rewind: June 2014 Ads and Features! →
In this week’s podcast episode, we’re looking at the book reviews for the June 2014 issue of Romantic Times, aka RT Book Reviews. Ready for an absolute mile and a half of cover art? I am! Let’s do this! You can also find all the RTRW content at our category page for Romantic Times Rewind. And, most importantly, if you want to listen and follow along with this entry, we have more detail in the … Continue reading Romantic Times Rewind: June 2014 Review Images →
It’s time for part two of our Romantic Times Rewind visit to the May 2014 issue, where we take a tour of the ads and features inside! As I said two weeks ago, I wasn’t sure what having the images inside the podcast entry would do so I’m doing a separate post for each one. PICTURES AHOY Y’ALL. You can also find all the RTRW content at our category page for Romantic Times Rewind. And, … Continue reading Romantic Times Rewind: May 2014 Ads and Features →
I’m honestly not sure what having all the images from the episode in the podcast entry would do to the feeds it serves, so I’ll be doing a separate entry with all the visual aids and linking it. You can also find all the RTRW content at our category page for Romantic Times Rewind. And, most importantly, if you want to listen and follow along with this entry, we have more detail in the audio, … Continue reading Romantic Times Rewind: May 2014 Review Images →
