Tag Archives: Stephanie Laurens

The Capture of the Earl of Glencrae by Stephanie Laurens

Posted on February 1, 2012 by TBRG| 1 Comment

Title: The Capture of the Earl of Glencrae

Series: Cynster Family bk 18 & Cynster Sisters bk 3

Author: Stephanie Laurens

Genre: Historical Romance

We joyfully request your attendance at the wedding of Miss Angelica Cynster … but not until she and her hero lay to rest an ancient grudge in the Scottish Highlands!

Headstrong Angelica Cynster is certain she’ll recognize her fated husband at first sight. And when her eyes meet those of a mysterious nobleman, she knows beyond a doubt that he’s the one. But her heart is soon pounding for an entirely different reason—when her hero abducts her!

The eighth Earl of Glencrae has no choice but to kidnap Angelica, the one Cynster sister with whom he hadn’t wanted to tangle. But to save his castle and his clan, he must persuade her to assist him—and he’s prepared to offer marriage to seal the deal!

This review is a by both Heather Byrony. They both read it and have different takes on this book.

Heather’s Review

One of my auto-buy historical authors is Stephanie Laurens. As soon as I discovered her years ago I had to read everything in this series. I think I read book seven first then had to go to the book store and buy each of the previous books. I was hooked and in love. There was something about those Cynster males that made me want one of my own, (shh don’t tell dh I said that). I have to say that while I have read every book in this series I have not liked everything.

This book reminded my why I and fell in love with this series in the first place. A hero and heroine who know who they are, have an external conflict that brings them together and they work together to resolve. Dominic and Angelica reminded me a lot of Devil and Honoria in how they behaved towards each other, with a bit of Scandal and Catriona, Amanda and Martin, and Amelia and Luc thrown in. Angelica is a character who knew what she wanted and went after it. She is very much a Cynster in the way she thinks and reacts to Dominic and why he has done what he has to her sisters. Dominic on the other hand has no clue what to make of Angelica other than she affects him in a way he isn’t used to. I do have to say one of my favorite parts of the book was when the rest of the Cynster’s were together trying to figure out where she was, and how the women and men behaved. This book is definitely one of my top 10 books of hers, and made me want to re-read the other’s books. If your a fan of this series then you will like if not love this book.

Grade A

Byrony’s Short Review

This is actually my first novel by Stephanie Laurens and–to be honest–I don’t think I’m motivated to check out any others anytime soon. I enjoyed the characters and there was enough romance (something which I sadly find to be lacking in many other “romance novels” lately), but all the same I had to force myself to finish The Capture of the Earl of Glencrae. My main issue with the story was that there didn’t seem to be enough conflict between the hero and the heroine to keep my interest; the heroine was always very smart and easily figured everything out, the hero reluctantly fell in love with her as par for the course–but that happened easily, too… In fact, the external conflict with the hero’s mother and the goblet seemed very anti-climactic as well. I wish I felt another way, but I was, to put it simply, bored. C

So there you have it, Heather loved it and Byrony didn’t, which is okay.

Heather’s Grade A

Byrony’s Grade C

For a complete list of the books in the series please visit Stephanie Laurens site.

Posted in Review

Tagged Grade A, grade C-, Reviewed by Byrony, Reviewed by Heather, Stephanie Laurens, The Cynster Sister's Trilogy, The Cynsters Series

Viscount Breckenridge to the Rescue by Stephanie Laurens

Posted on August 18, 2011 by TBRG| 2 Comments

Title: Viscount Breckenridge to the Rescue

Series: The Cynsters bk16

Series: The Cynster Sisters Trilogy bk 1

Author: Stephanie Laurens

Genre: Regency Historical

Three heros, three rescues, three weddings.

You are cordially invited to the wedding of Miss Heather Cynster

…but not before she encounters kidnappers, danger, and a daring rescue at the hands of Viscount Breckenridge.

Determined to hunt down her very own hero, one who will sweep her off her feet and into wedded bliss, and despairing of finding him in London’s staid ballrooms, Heather Cynster steps out of her safe world and boldly attends a racy soiree.

But her promising hunt is ruined by the supremely interfering Viscount Breckenridge, who whisks her out of scandal-and straight into danger when a mysterious enemy seizes her, bundles her into a coach, and conveys her out of London.

Now it’s up to the notorious Breckenridge to prove himself the hero she’s been searching for all along

I am a very picky historical romance reader. In fact it takes a lot to make me want to read them, even though when I first started reading romance books it was historical that I read. Course those were all set in the Wild West, however from the first moment I read a Cynster Family book I was hooked on Stephanie, and will buy her books as soon as they come out.

Heather Cynster is a character that we have seen glimpses of but knew nothing about other than the fact that she was Gabriel and Lucifer’s little sister and was friends with Gabriel’s wife Althea’s sisters.

Heather is a Cynster to her toes, as the saying goes. She is stubborn, certain that what she is doing is the only course of action especially as others of her family are in danger. When she decides to follow in her cousins Amanda (On a Wild Night) and Amelia (On a Wicked Dawn) footsteps and find her hero she had no clue what it would lead to.

When Breckenridge looks up and sees Heather Cynster the lady that drives him nuts and not in a good way standing in the door way at a party that she has no business being at, he does what comes naturally to him and forces her into leaving by not very nice means. Not trusting her to do what he wants her to do, he follows her outside to make sure that she gets in her coach and witnesses her kidnapping.

What happens after that was a journey that neither one of them expected. Heather stays with the kidnappers in a bid to find out who wants her or her sisters kidnapped. Breckenridge only agrees if she meets with him nightly. It is in these nightly visits that they begin to really get to know each other as people and not as peers in society.

When they finally make their escape and travel across Scotland to get to The Vale those feelings that started in their nightly meetings grow stronger, especially when they are forced to pose as husband and wife.

When they finally reach The Vale a whole new set of problems arise between these two. As Breckenridge knows what must be done and is even looking forward to it, Heather wants no part of it. What transpires next almost had my heart breaking.

Okay what I loved about this book. Heather is great character, she is bold and daring and has a sense of right and wrong that won’t let her save herself just to put one of her sisters in jeopardy. Everything that she does is to protect them. She also knows what she wants in a husband and will settle for nothing less, especially as none of her cousins, cousins-in-laws, sister-in-laws have.

Breckenridge is a character that I didn’t even realize I wanted more of till I figured out who he was and remembered how much I liked him. When he sets out to rescue Heather he does it because it is the right thing to do, and he doesn’t want to face her brothers and cousins and explain why he did nothing. As he follows her and comes up with a plan that will rescue her, he realizes why she has always rubbed him wrong. From that point on it is all about his future.

I really liked this book and was getting excited as they got towards The Vale because Scandal is one of my favorite characters in this series. However once they got there I started to get irritated with Heather, in fact she was driving me absolutely crazy with her thinking and reasoning. In the end though it made sense to me as I realized that she was being true to herself, even if I didn’t think that she was being fair to Breckenridge.

What I didn’t like about this book was that it seemed really wordy to me. There could have been a lot more dialogue between the two of them especially as they were walking across Scotland and less internal dialogue. I also didn’t like how she kept calling her brothers Rupert and Alasdair, I had no clue who they were and had to look them up. In all the other books she has always referred to them by their nicknames and in one book she commented that the only person that called them by their real names was their mother. I also would have liked to see more of the Cynster family, especially her brothers.

Over all I have to say though that I really liked the book and thought that it fit in with the other books in the series.

Grade A-/B+

On a side note you will notice on the cover of this book there is a Kiss and Teal label this is a new campaign where a portion of the sale of this book will go to Ovarian Cancer Research. Before she became a successful writer Stephanie Laurens was a cancer researcher. Please visit the website and see a complete list of books that will are participating in this campaign.

Other books in the series..

The Cynster’s

Devil’s Bride A Rake’s Vow Scandal’s Bride A Rogues Proposal A Secret Love All About Love All About Passion The Promise in a Kiss On a Wild Night On a Wicked Dawn The Perfect Lover The Ideal Bride The Truth about Love What Price Love The Taste of Innocence Temptation and Surrender

The Cynster Sister’s Trilogy

In Pursuit of Eliza Cynster (coming Sept 2011)

The Capture of the Earl of Glencare (coming Jan 2012)

Posted in Historical, Review

Tagged Grade A-/B+, Reviewed by Heather, Stephanie Laurens, The Cynster Sister's Trilogy, The Cynsters Series

Royal Weddings

Posted on April 20, 2011 by TBRG| 2 Comments

Royal Weddings

Stephanie Laurens, Galen Foley and Loretta Chase

You are cordially invited
To help celebrate the Royal Wedding of
Prince William to Catherine Middleton
As we present a 77 page original anthology
Written by three utterly wonderful authors!

Stephanie Laurens’ The Wedding Planner: Lady Margaret is proud plan the ton’s most important nuptuals—including that of a prince. But it’s Lady Margaret who falls in love . . . with dashing Gaston Devilliers!

Gaelen Foley’s Ever After: How scandalous! Eleanor Monford, Countess of Archer, is in love with her own husband. And as Princess Charlotte of England weds Prince Leopold, Eleanor’s “secret” is about to come out.

Loretta Chase’s The Jilting of Lord Rothwick: On the eve of Queen Victoria’s wedding to Prince Albert, the Marquess of Rothwick learns his fiancée, Barbara Findley, has broken their engagement! So he desperately rides out of London to seek her out . . . and to win her back.

What is better than a Royal Wedding? Not much in my opinion, especially if the Princesses to be is a commoner. I remember watching Princess Diana’s wedding as a 6 yr old wanting to be her when I grew up. I wanted her wedding. Obviously I didn’t grow up to marry the royal prince, but I did marry my prince and he is just as handsome. This month we will celebrate our 12th wedding anniversary and yes I may give him crap about the fact that we have never celebrated our anniversary, I wouldn’t change a moment of my life with him.

So when I got the email about this special book written to help celebrate the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton and that one of my favorite historical authors was a part of it I knew that I would be reading it at the very first opportunity. Which just happened to be my lunch break. I devoured the entire book during my lunch and have since gone back to re-read it a couple of times. It is a very short read that took me about 45 minutes as the stories are very short, but they are sweet.

I loved every single one of the stories. I thought that they were the perfect length for a short fun read. If you are looking for a quick escape then look no further than this book. You won’t be disappointed.

Grade A

Posted in Review

Tagged Gaelen Foley, Loretta Chase, Regency Romance, Reviewed by Heather, Stephanie Laurens

Winners, Winners Everywhere

Posted on October 23, 2010 by TBRG| 1 Comment

Thanks everyone for the wonderful comments this last week! Now let’s get to the good stuff:

The winner of The Reckless Bride by Stephanie Laurens is:

Cathy M.

The winners of Play of Passion by Nalini Singh are (yeah, you read that right, the publisher was kind enough to send out two books instead of one since the response was so good):

Emily

Shannon C.

The winner of The First Love Cookie Club by Lori Wilde is:

Karen

Please email your mailing address to thebookreadinggals @ gmail (dot) com

Posted in winner

Tagged Lori Wilde, Nalini Singh, Stephanie Laurens, winners

The Reckless Bride

Posted on October 11, 2010 by TBRG| 9 Comments

The Reckless Bride

Black Cobra Quartet bk 4

Stephanie Laurens

What do you get when you take a girl that has denied who she is her whole life, and the fourth son of a titled lord that has been in the army and served in India for his whole adult life and is on a dangerous mission where he has to act against his nature, which gave him the nickname of Reckless? A great story is what you get.

He races to complete their mission against escalating odds–his task made more perilous when he loses his heart.

She’s determined to defy convention and live a solitary life–until she tastes the reckless pleasure found only in his arms.

Drawn together by fate, united by fiery passion, they pursue their shared destiny…one they’ll live to see only if they unmask the Black Cobra.

This book gives us the conclusion of the Black Cobra Quartet where the crucial piece of evidence that is needed to see the end of the Black Cobra is in the hands of Rafe. Along the route he comes into contact with Loretta and her aunt as they travel back to London after traveling the Continent.

I enjoyed this book a lot as we got to see a different part of Europe than we normally get to see in regency romance. Rafe and Loretta were also a great couple. Rafe refusing to act on his growing feelings for Loretta because of who they both are, and also because of his mission, until they get to London and everything has been resolved.

Loretta of course being a woman that has finally come into her own, does what we do best and takes control of the situation, forcing Rafe to well man up about his feelings.

This book also gives us the conclusion of the Black Cobra and let me tell you when I got to the end well it wasn’t what I was expecting and yet it made complete sense. I thought it ended the whole series really well. Once I started to read it I couldn’t put it down and was completely caught up in the story. In fact I got several complaints from the men in my house about me ignoring them and only reading this book.

If you haven’t yet picked up this series in this reviewers humble opinion this is one of the best historical series, and you will not be disappointed.

do you have a favorite historical series? One lucky commentator will receive a copy of this book.

If you missed the other books in the series here they are….

Grade A

Posted in Historical, Review

Tagged Black Cobra Quartet, Grade A, Regency Historical, Stephanie Laurens

The Brazen Bride

Posted on October 6, 2010 by TBRG| 3 Comments

The Brazen Bride

Black Cobra Quartet bk 3

Stephanie Laurens

As a Stephanie Laurens fan I didn’t even realize that this book had come out till I got the newsletter email from her about it, and then my bookstore didn’t even have a copy of it, so after finally hunting it down I had to finish the books that I was already reading before I could devote my time to this book.

Shipwrecked, wounded, he risks all to pursue his mission – only to discover a partner as daring and brazen as he.

Fiery, tempestuous, a queen in her own realm, she rescues a warrior – only to find her heart under seige.

Bound by passion, linked by need, together they must brave the enemy’s gauntlet to win all their hearts’ desire.

As the third book in this series, we already know who the bad guys are and what they are after, we also know all of the players in the story except for the heroines. When it comes to the men in Stephanie’s books I love them all, however I haven’t always liked the heroines as they have driven me simply nuts, and made me want to throw my book at the wall. Now I haven’t done that, but I have skipped over the parts where the heroine is in them. That is until the book 2 in this series and this book.

I absolutely loved the heroine in this book. Linnet is unlike any heroine that Stephanie has written before and as someone that has read all of her books I can say that with some confidence (if I am wrong please let me live in my ignorance). I don’t want to give away the surprise of the heroine but trust me she is worth reading this book for.

Logan has always known who and what he is, that is until he wakes up with no memory, and has to figure out some things and what he wants for the rest of his life, and he wants Linnet, only he has to finish his mission.

This is a book that makes you want to keep reading even though you know how it will end, mostly because of the characters and their personalities and also to see how this will end. Stephanie sets up the setting for the last book in the series beautifully with both the bad guys and the last hero.

This book may become one of my favorite of hers. Once again Stephanie was able to transport me completely to regency England and make me feel like I was in the story.

Grade A

Posted in Historical, Review

Tagged Black Cobra Quartet, Grade A, Regency Historical, Stephanie Laurens

Thanks & Recap

Posted on September 4, 2010 by TBRG| 4 Comments

Just wanted to give a huge shout of thanks to all the authors who helped us out this week and to everyone who stopped by. Heather and I are really excited about starting this venture together and I hope you all have fun along the way with us.

We will post the winners on Sunday so plan on checking in to see if you are one of the lucky ones.

Just in case you did not get a chance to see the author responses to our question we asked here they are again. If you can figure out which author is new to this post you might win a book also. Just post a comment and we will draw a winner from the correct answers

We asked a few of our favorite authors what their go to books or authors are right now and where do they go to relax and read. Here are their responses.

Carly Phillips: http://www.carlyphillips.com/ A few months ago I would have said I’m a true contemporary reader. Only. That’s still the case … without the only! I’ve recently strayed into a genre I never thought would hold any interest for me – paranormal. It’s been a fantastic break from my normal reading and when I’ve devoured my contemporary authors and am waiting for a new release. As for which authors, in contemporary – my fellow Plotmonkeys, Leslie Kelly aka Leslie Parrish, Julie Leto, and Janelle Denison … and also Toni Blake, Erin McCarthy’s racecar series, Victoria Dahl, Jill Shalvis, Rachel Gibson. And now in my new paranormal phase, I’m devouring Nalini Singh, Meaghan Hatfield, Larissa Ione. As for where? On my Kindle … wherever I can. In bed usually since reading is a treat for when I can relax but in my car while waiting for the kids works too!

Erin Nicholas: http://www.erinnicholas.com/ I almost always go for contemporaries first, though I have favorites in historical, erotic, and paranormal too. I have a few go-to authors who always deliver for me but the two that first come to mind are Erin McCarthy and Susan Andersen. I have a big chair by my picture window that I love to curl up in with my Kindle!

Susan Mallery: http://www.susanmallery.com I’ve always been a romance fan. Romance novels are my go-to books, though of course I read in other genres from time to time. Romances affirm my view of the world as a good place where men and women find a way to avoid killing each other, despite sometimes overwhelming temptation. I read everywhere, but if we’re talking a truly relaxing read, there’s nothing like curling up on the sofa with a good book.

Anna Campbell: http://www.annacampbell.info/ A great historical sweeps me away into a world of romance like nothing else so when I’ve got spare time, I tend to read the competition (LOL!). I love to read in bed, especially when it’s raining outside!

Alexandra Hawkins: http://www.alexandrahawkins.com/ No contest–Romance. I read all sub-genres. Where do I like to read? The sofa in my family room reclines so it’s a comfy place to read.

Sarah MacLean: http://www.macleanspace.com I love historicals, but when I’m just trying to get away from work, I love contemporaries. Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Rachel Gibson, Kristan Higgins, and when I run out of them, I’m always down for the One Click packs for Kindle from Harlequin! As for the where, anywhere my dog is curled up is always a first choice.

Stephanie Laurens: http://www.stephanielaurens.com/ I read a lot of different genre fiction. Always genre, but it could be crime/mystery, fantasy or romance. I read in bed, pretty much every single night. I have a silk-covered, silk-fiber filled comforter, European pillows to prop myself up with, and my cats always come to sit with me–one on my stomach, the other between my calves. As far as they’re concerned, that’s how it has to be

Nalini Singh: http://www.nalinisingh.com/ I have quite eclectic reading tastes and depending on my reading mood, will read anything from thrillers to sf/fantasy, to any number of sub-genres of romance (of course!) and more. I read some non-fiction as well, partly for research purposes and partly just because the topic interests me. Some of my favorite authors are Anne McCaffrey, Mercedes Lackey. Anne Bishop, Christine Feehan, Meljean Brook, Ilona Andrews, Patricia Briggs, Jayne Castle/Jayne Ann Krentz, JD Robb, Julie Garwood, Jude Deveraux, Lisa Kleypas…and seriously, I could keep going. I love reading, and I’m always trying out new authors alongside my favorites. My most recent “finds” have been Joss Ware (love the Envy Chronicles!) and Jess Granger with her futuristic romances. As for where I read – everywhere I can!

Jessa Slade: http://jessaslade.wordpress.com/ As a writer, I consider it my sacred duty to read. I have a breakfast book, a backpack book, a bedside book, and a bathtub book. And usually a few more besides I read a lot in my genre — urban fantasy romance — but like most booksluts, I’ll peel back the cover on anything. At RomCon this year (where I met the Book Reading Gals!) I had the chance to sit with Nalini Singh, C.L. Wilson and Christine Feehan. It was like my bookshelf sprang to life!

Erin Kellison: http://www.erinkellison.com/ Chances to relax are seldom with little kids and a book on deadline, so I have to steal time to get my reading fix. I generally choose fantasy, but really enjoy a lot of genre fiction. I had surgery last week and got to read Mockingjay in one sitting. Love that feeling of sinking into a book. My favorite place to go? The beach. Combine that with a book and a lazy afternoon and I am in heaven.

Leslie Parish: http://www.authorleslieparrish.com/ Whenever I want to read purely for enjoyment, I tend to stay away from romance because I’m so immersed in it in my job, I just want something different for down-time.So I typically pick up a horror or thriller novel (Stephen King is my favorite) or something so funny it leaves me breathless (Christopher Moore is my go-to author for this!) I most recently read The Passage by Justin Cronin, a futuristic vampire/zombie armageddon story and really loved it.

Posted in Contemporary

Tagged Alexandra Hawkins, Anna Campbell, Brenda Joyce, Christina Dodd, Christine Feehan, Contemporary, Elizabeth Hoyt, Erin Kellison, Erin Nicholas, Historical, Jessa Slade, Johanna Lindsey, Julia Quinn, Launch, Leslie Parish, Melissa Mayhue, Paranormal, Sarah MacLean, Stephanie Laurens

Historical

Posted on September 2, 2010 by TBRG| 9 Comments

Today we will discuss my favorite genre, Historicals. These are my go to books when I am stressed out or just need to escape to somewhere else I reach over and grab a good historical. I love how I can experience another time and place for a little while, without leaving the comforts of now. I am also grateful to these authors for doing such great research and trying to make things as accurate as possible, I have learned a lot from reading their books. Some of my favorite historical authors are: Julia Quinn, Lisa Kleypas, Anna Campbell, Brenda Joyce, Julie Garwood.

The very first romance bookthat Heather ever read that wasn’t a harlequin was a historical that took place in Wyoming, it was Johanna Lindsey’s Brave the Wild Wind, from the moment she read this she was hooked. She would hide the books behind her school books and read Johanna Lindsey instead of schoolwork. To this day this genre is one of her favorites and some of her favorite authors are Stephanie Laurens, Johanna Lindsey, Julia Quinn, Elizabeth Hoyt and Julie Garwood. There is nothing better than picking up a book and being transported into the past. She even used some of the history she learned in historical romances to help her write a paper in one of her anthropolgy classes and got an A on it.

What are some of your favorite historicals and do you have a favorite time period or place that you love to read about?

One commenter will win some fabulous books

Now some more of our author answers:

Alexandra Hawkins: http://www.alexandrahawkins.com/ No contest–Romance. I read all sub-genres. Where do I like to read? The sofa in my family room reclines so it’s a comfy place to read.

Tagged Alexandra Hawkins, Anna Campbell, Brenda Joyce, Elizabeth Hoyt, Historical, Johanna Lindsey, Julia Quinn, Julie Garwood, Lisa Kleypas, Sarah MacLean, Stephanie Laurens

Temptation and Surrender

Posted on February 27, 2010 by TBRG| 4 Comments

Temptation and Surrender

Cynster Family bk 16

Stephanie Laurens

Handsome, wealthy, and well-born, Jonas Tallent has everything a gentleman needs to enjoy London society to the fullest – and he has. He’s played cards until dawn, flirted with eligible young ladies, and made love to some ineligible ones.

But now he’s restless, bored with the mindless frivolity and careless pleasure, so its with a sense of relief that he takes up the reins of his family’s estate in rural Devon. His most pressing need is to hire a new manager for the inn–the center of village life. Such a small task, yet he discovers few decent applicants are willing to live in a quiet country backwater.

Then genteel but impoverished Miss Emily Beauregard applies for the position. Jonas’s initial response is an emphatic “no!” Ladies, especially one as attractive as Emily, belong in the ballroom or the bedroom, not running an inn. But with no alternatives, he grudgingly allows Emily to try, and she rapidly proves herself worthy, resurrecting the inn with tact and skill.

But Em has a secret. Its not only the need to provide for herself and her orphaned siblings that has brought her to Devon. She’s surreptitiously searching for a family treasure hidden in the village, the only clues to its location a cryptic rhyme handed down through the generations. Emily is determined to solve the puzzle, find the treasure and reinstate her family to its rightful place in society.

Yet Em hasn’t bargained on Jonas. His experience is temptation, his attentions irresistible, and he’s determined to aid her in her quest. He eventually persuades her to trust him, and together they unravel the clues . But someone else is watching, waiting, and once the family legacy is unearthed, the villain strikes, threatening Em, her family, and the love she and Jonas have discovered in each others’ arms.

REVIEW: I wasn’t sure if I was going to like this book. Having been disappointed in the last book that was related but yet not related to the Cynsters I put off reading this book. On a recent Stephanie Laurens bing I re-read all the Cynster books, and decided to finish off the series with the latest Cynster family book.

I liked Jonas in Lucifer’s book All about Love, but never really thought much about him, besides that. There was never a glimpse of him in the other books, he wasn’t friends with Dillon (What Price Love), Charlie (The Taste of Innocence), and Gerrard (The Truth about Love). So when I picked up this book it was like the other books hadn’t happened.

Jonas is a man that knows what his role in life is. He will take over his father’s role in the village as magistrate, as well as all of this other business endeavors and become Lord of the Manor. However his father is still alive and kicking. Bored with the London scene he returns to Cloyton, just as his father has to leave to help take care of family, leaving him in charge of everything.

The first order of business is finding someone to run the inn. Finding someone to take over managing the inn has become the bane of his exisetence, so when Em walks in asking for the job, he decides to give it her.

Emily has an agenda of her own. She is there looking for the means to protect her family. She has spent the last several years acting as a servant for her greedy uncle, all the while bidding her time till her 25th birthday, when she becomes the sole guardian of all her siblings. That time has come and now she is proceeding to the next step in her plan. She never expected to find Jonas all that he demands from her.

There are times I think when strong women can rub you the wrong way, and there were times when Emily really got on my nerves with her single mindedness. She felt things for Jonas that she had never felt before, and had no clue how to deal with, and she couldn’t talk to her sister because she was in love with the vicar, and wasn’t fighting it. The only other woman that she could confide in if she chose was Jonas sister.

In the other Cynster books the hero at least I think has always been at the core of the story and we get much more form his perspective. In this story however I didn’t get that. It felt more like Jonas knew who he was, what his role was and what he wanted from Emily, once he figured out what it was exactly that he wanted from her. This book felt and read, at least to me, more about Emily and what she wanted, almost like a self discovery book. The romance and heat between them almost secondary to her real goal and aim.

Overall I enjoyed the book, especially as I had no real expectations of the book, having waited several months to pick it up after it had come out, when I normally by her books hot off the shelves, at least the paperback ones. It isn’t my favorite in the series, but it is a good one.

I give this book a 4 out of 5.

Tagged Cynster Family Series, regency romance, Stephanie Laurens

Monday Author Spotlight

Posted on August 3, 2009 by TBRG| 9 Comments

What time is it? It’s time to spotlight an author.

It is time to introduce you to a new author,

or re-introduce you to an old favorite.

Whichever the case may be, pull up a seat and meet…
…………

Stephanie Laurens

I discovered Ms. Laurens several years ago on a jaunt to the library. I read one of her Cynster family books and was hooked. The next day I went straight to the book store and bought all of her books that were there. She has since become one of my all time favorite authors, and quite possible my favorite Regency author.

Here is a little blib about her from her website….
Stephanie Laurens originally began writing as an escape from the dry world of professional science. Her hobby quickly became a career when her novels about the masterful Cynster cousins captivated readers, making her one of the romance world’s most beloved and popular authors. She subsequently introduced the equally unforgettable members of the Bastion Club. Currently living outside Melbourne, Australia with her husband and two cats, she has been writing historical romance novels for more than 20 years and is a New York Times, Publishers Weekly, Wall Street Journal and USA-Today bestseller.

Ms. Laurens has just released the last book in her Bastien Club series Mastered by Love. Knowing that the book was going to be released here in the States last week, and that I would be doing a spotlight on her today, I emailed her asked her if I could interview her. She graciously agreed. Here is that Interview…

1- When did you first meet the Cynster family and the members of the Bastian Club?

The Cynsters started with DEVIL’S BRIDE, and all six cousins, all the other cousins, their parents, and Lady Osbaldestone were there from the start. That was back in 1996. The Bastian Club guys came along much later, in early 2002. Again, the seven of them were all there from the beginning, as was their commander, Dalziel.

3- Are any of your characters based on real people, Helena and Lady O come to mind?

No, not at all. My principal and secondary characters are always totally imaginary. Mind you, I’ve been contacted more than once by people wanting to know who the Cynsters really are, and where their houses are – even travel agents wanting to organize Cynster tours. Also people researching genealogy, asking what information I have on my characters’ real lives because they have relatives with the same name.

4- What are you currently working on?

I’m tremendously excited over my latest project – THE BLACK COBRA QUARTET. The first two books, THE UNTAMED BRIDE (late Oct 09) and THE ELUSIVE BRIDE (late Jan 09), are finished, and both are fresh and different, with more adventure and excitement and drama, but with my usual degree of romance and passion. And the settings are both familiar and new, with a touch of the Orient and all points between adding spice to Regency England. I’m just gearing up to do the third book, THE BRAZEN BRIDE, which opens with a shipwreck. Later in that book, we have pirates, but with a twist. And then I’ll be pulling out all stops for the final book in the quartet, THE RECKLESS BRIDE, which culminates in a huge Christmas gathering. All four books have the Bastion Club guys and their wives, the first six Cynster cousins and Chillingworth, and their wives, as well as Royce and Minerva and their family, all featuring in secondary roles. If how much fun I’m having writing these books is any guide, then readers are going to have a ball watching our four heroes and their lady-loves battle to bring the villainous Black Cobra to justice.

Thank you to Ms. Laurens for doing this interview.

In honor of the completion of this series, I am going to be giving away the first two books in this series, Captain Jacks Woman & The Lady Chosen. Just leave a comment here, and on Sunday night I will draw a name.