This RITA® Reader Challenge 2015 review was written by Qualisign. This story was nominated for the RITA® in the Paranormal Romance category.

Here is Qualisign's review:

No disclaimers, just a flat out apology for leaving this review until after the deadline and after the excellent review by TheoLibrarian was published. Life just got away from me, big time.

My (brief) review:

Because TheoLibrarian provided such an excellent review yesterday, my comments will simply add a few additional impressions from a second reader. After a difficult first chapter, where Lord Ian Chance and a multitude of his friends and a relation were introduced in a gambling and not-quite-bawdy house, and a somewhat more pedantic but more easily followed second chapter introducing Corinna Mowbray as she orchestrated a salon/gathering at her home, the book finally caught its stride in with the body switch, realized through Chance’s eyes. When I got to this point, I actually said “oh” out loud, and with a smile I settled in for what I was hoping would be an novel take on what had begun as a pretty standard Regency.

As noted by TheoLibrarian, the shocking experiences of waking up in another’s body or of first seeing one’s body through another’s eyes, were only recounted by one of the characters, not both. I would have loved to have Corinna’s inner voice on waking up for the first time to her hairy, muscled, naked, and pointy outer shell! Even without having equal time inside their heads, the section where the two were trying to function in their switched bodies and lives was the most enjoyable in the book.

The author did an excellent job in showing how much they each had to learn about the other in order to function, much less to find a way to return to the status quo. The metaphorical walk in another’s shoes is an utterly appropriate device for a romance. In this case, neither the audience nor the characters were privy to the histories that made both of the main characters react to each other so viscerally and so negatively, and that was an excellent choice by the author. The body switch was essentially the only paranormal device, but it was done effectively both for the character growth and for the overall pacing of the story.

Okay. TheoLibrarian appropriately addressed consent issues with being put into someone else’s body. Both were relatively respectful of the other’s bodies except for Chance’s decision, aborted mid-scheme, to compromise Corinna’s reputation while in her body. WTF?! That scene, even after he rethought his horrible plan, just kept plaguing me throughout. Corinna, in Chance’s body, determines that Chance is the most honorable person of all time—but how could he be if he even thought about compromising Corinna’s reputation? That was the kicker for me. It went from a solid B to a B- at best, but still a C+ at worst.

In summary, the writing was good after the first two overpopulated introductory chapters, the premise was fun, and the romance was a slow and believable build, with the caveat given by TheoLibrarian that Chance’s declaration of lifelong passion for Corinna was somewhat of a shock. I did enjoy reading it. Thank you TheoLibrarian for your thoughtful (and timely!) review.

And more apologies to the Bitchery for my tardiness.