The Secret Life of Lady Julia by Lecia Cornwall

I have really enjoyed all of Lecia Cornwall's previous works but this one just did not click with me as much.  It features a plot with political intrigue and that is just not a plot I enjoy personally.  I also felt like the romance between Julia and Thomas needed a bit more attention.  After a passionate meeting in the beginning, they do not speak to each other again until half way into the story.  There were a lot of people and names and it got a bit confusing and overwhelming for me and I would have just like a bit more time focused on the couple and their personal issues.  After all, Julia has a very large secret that Thomas does not find out about until the very end and I felt like it was all glossed over a bit too easily.

However, I did really enjoy the different locale we saw.  Quite a bit is set in Vienna which was refreshing and exciting and the attention to detail was very well done but a bit overwhelming for me.  So while this did not work for me, it will appeal to romance fans who enjoy the political angle with some mystery and heat.  But for me, 3 1/2 stars this time.

eARC provided by Avon Books via edelweiss

New Covers

Quite a few really lovely covers found out and about this past week. It's long! :)

I am so excited that Maggie Robinson's new series is going to be a mass market paperback release (her previous books are all trade which equals higher prices).  I have really enjoyed her work so I am looking forward to the start of the Ladies Unlaced, In the Arms of the Heiress out July 2nd.  The house in the background reminds me a bit of Downton Abbey :)

Oh, pretty!  The Secret Life of Lady Julia will be out May 28th.  Love the blue and the flower and the little attention to detail on her dress.  I will definitely be reading this one.

I really like gold on the cover and with the addition of the purple sky in the background..lovely.  Love and Other Scandals is the start of a new series or a stand alone, not sure yet.  Look for it July 30th.

And now for a stretch of really lovely green covers!  I have yet to read anything by Adrienne Basso so maybe I will change that with How to Be a Scottish Mistress, which is set for release July 2nd.

Nicola Cornick is also an author I have been meaning to read and collecting all her books.  The Lady and the Laird is the start to her new Scottish Brides series so hopefully I get a chance to read it.  Look for it July 30th.

Yay!!  A new Julie Anne Long!  And the cover!  Love.  I love that she is looking right at you and her dress is gorgeous.  It Happened One Midnight is book eight in her Pennroyal Green series and one I can't wait for its  June 25th release!

Juliana Gray was added to my auto buy list this past year and How to Tame Your Duke is the start of a new series, set for release June 4th.  Added to my list to buy!

How to Lose a Bride in One Night (what a fun title!) is book three in the Forgotten Princesses series by Sophie Jordan.  This cover reminds me a bit of Cinderella fleeing the ball so it will be interesting to see if something like that happens in the book which will be out July 30th.

This is such a fun and flirty cover for the newest Cynster novel by Stephanie Laurens.  I also love the attention to the background detail.  The Taming of Ryder Cavanaugh reaches shelves June 25th.

Isn't this an eye-catching cover?  The lighter colors really work well together.  My Notorious Gentleman is book six in the Inferno Club series and should arrive July 30th.

And finally here is the lush cover for the newest from Karen Ranney, The Devil of Clan Sinclair.  I love when they include stepbacks and the gold is very striking.  Look for this title July 30th.

 Whew!  What a great batch of covers!  Which titles are you most looking forward too?

How to Deceive a Duke by Lecia Cornwall

Lady Marguerite Lynton is doing whatever it takes to protect her family from the poor house and when a duchess appears and asks her older sister to marry her grandson, the notorious Devil Duke of Temberlay, she feels like their fate in life is finally changing since her fathers sudden death.  But her sister is not strong enough to deal the the devil and runs away and Meg does what she feels she must do...she marries the duke instead.  After all, it is his fault he does not know the difference between her sister, a beauty, and herself, not a beauty according to her family.  However, when Nicholas finds out the truth he is livid.  He is already disgusted with having to marry at all, but he needs his grandmothers funds after his brothers death.  He never expected to inherit a dukedom and had no training for it and does not want to shoulder all the responsibility it entails now, instead going to war and he has no desire to be with a woman that can be bought so easily and plans to treat her with little respect.  However, after the truth is revealed, he finds himself falling for this fiery, strong beauty who seemed to be overlook by her whole family.  Yet he can not express his feelings and it does not help that Meg constantly sees the worst in him at all times.  Nicholas takes a drastic measure that shakes the foundation of their shaky marriage and may cost them both everything. . .

I thought this was a wonderful book!  I loved Meg.  She is bold, confident, fiercely protective, smart and sassy and a great balance to Nicholas who comes across rude, arrogant and selfish but underneath that layer he is smart, sexy and also protective.  Together they make a good couple but they both lack the art of communication a bit and trust is a huge issue between them that needs to be overcome.  I loved watching the sparks fly between Meg and Nicholas and how they were trying to deal with their feelings without hurting themselves in the process.  The added presence of the grandmother, who is determined to have an heir, adds more problems.  I do wish Meg had had more faith in herself but having grown up with a father that believed ladies are to add to their husbands value and that she was the ugly one amongst her fair sisters made it hard for to see her true beauty, inside and out.  I also did not really care for the way the ending played out as I felt Nicholas behaved a little selfishly and there was really no explanation or apology for it.  Overall though, I flew through this and found myself laughing, sighing, smiling and thoroughly entertained.  4 stars

eARC provided by Avon books via edelweiss

New Covers

New covers from out and about this week. . .

Having read and enjoyed the first books in Jess Michaels' Mistress Matchmaker series, I am anxious for book two--For Desire Alone.  She shared the upcoming cover and it is rather lovely but I do like the green pop from the previous cover a bit more.  Look for this one November 6th as an ebook.

Delilah Marvelle sure seems to have gotten some pretty sexy covers for her Rumor series!  Book three, Forever a Lord, is no exception.  I still have not read the first two books (hanging head in shame) but I am determined to be caught up by the release of this one, December 18th.

Wendy Vella is a debut author with Loveswept and she has grabbed my attention with this lovely cover!  The Reluctant Countess will be an ebook set for release January 14th and is a "Cinderella story of whirlwind passion between a dashing earl and a beautiful countess—and the secret that threatens to tear them apart."  You know how I love Cinderella stories :)

Lecia Cornwall has a new book this November (27th) and it features a woman who takes her sisters place at the altar to save her family.  I really enjoy those storylines!  I'm not quite sure about the cover but it fits in nicely with a mysterious bride theme.  Anyways, I can't wait for How to Deceive a Duke!  Looks like lots of hijinks :)

Well, I hope I padded your wishlist a bit more :)  I know I will be picking up all these titles either on my own or maybe as a holiday gift.  Time to start working on that list. . . :)

The Price of Temptation by Lecia Cornwall

The Price of Temptation takes a common regency storyline--that of a nobleman disguising himself as a servant in an attempt to gain secretive information--and adds a few twists and turns to still make it fresh and exciting.  Lady Evelyn Renshaw knows she is the wife of one of Englands most hated traitors and since she truly has no idea where he is, she can just ignore the gossip.  However, when a Frenchman attacks her one day asking where a fabled, magical flag is she realizes that she needs to buck up and is grateful when a mysterious stranger rescues her.  When that same mysterious man appears at her home to work as a footman, she is intrigued and a bit attracted to him.  Unfortunately,  Captain Sinjon Rutherford, or Sam as Evelyn believes, is hiding quite a few secrets of his own and as Evelyn and Rutherford grow closer, the web of lies grows more intricate and telling the truth gets more and more difficult until it is too late.

Overall I really enjoyed this book even though I personally I am not a huge fan of the deception storyline.  I thought Evelyn transformed from a quiet, unassuming woman into a bold, confident woman that will not stop until she has her life the way she wants it.  Her attraction to the lowly footman Sam was instant but she dismisses it...he is just a footman...but the inclusion of her three, silly and almost spiteful sisters (who seem to only think of themselves first and foremost) make her consider a lover and the results are sure to have you needing a fan handy!  How Rutherford is found out to be the notorious Captain Sinjon is quite funny and quite sad at the same time as you can just see the wall go back up around Evelyn after Rutherford had broken it all down.  There are many unexpected twists that it will keep you flipping the pages to find out what is going to happen next.  And like I said, even though I personally do not enjoy seeing our heroine get deceived by our hero, the reasons behind the undercover spyness are necessary to this storyline and it works well.  Lecia Cornwall has delivered a story that is sure to make your heart pound with all the twists and turns, lies and cleverness, danger and intrigue along with a love and attraction so strong it almost jumps out at you.  4 stars

I received this ebook from Avon via netgalley.com
 
Other books by Lecia Cornwall with the same characters but not necessary to read in order

All the Pleasures of the Season by Lecia Cornwall

Lady Miranda Archer believes she has found the perfect man but the moment she accepts his proposal the ice forms on him and she begins to regret her decision.  Her heart truly belongs to the second son of a baron, Gilbert, but being the granddaughter of a duke she knows that marriage can never happen.  Thankfully, her brother knows that the Earl of Kelton is no good for his sister and when Mirandas precious sapphires from her late mother go missing and turn up in the most unexpected spot, the engagement is quickly called off.  The only thing to do is go to her grandfathers and tell him and Miranda is terrified of disappointing him.  Little does she know that Gilbert is also on his way to see her grandfather but for a very special reason.  Can these two lovebirds find a way to convince her grandfather that love tops all?

Overall, this is a delightful holiday novella!  The storyline was interesting and moved along nicely with just enough sparks and heat to keep me wanting to know how this would all play out.  I enjoyed watching Miranda and Gilbert deepen their feelings for each other but I do wished we had seen a bit more of their past.  I loved the wonderful, fun, bossy family of the Archers and all the happiness of trimming out a castle for the holidays.  You could just feel like you were with them while trampling through the forest to gather all the holiday goods.  There was a deep sense of tradition that was followed that I also appreciated.  As it seems to be with all novellas, I wish it had been longer but this really was a complete story for me, besides wanting a bit more back story on Miranda and Gilbert.  When you are looking to take a break from all of the holiday festivities, Lecia Cornwall delivers a perfect holiday treat for a couple hours!  4 stars

I received this ebook from Avon via netgalley.com

Previous book with characters featured

Secrets of a Proper Countess by Lecia Cornwall

Lady Isobel Maitland is trapped in a life that she can not stand. She is basically being held hostage by her late husbands mother and brother, as his will stated that they would be in charge of their son and her fortune. Isobel is forced to stay in her widow weeds far longer than normal and is not allowed to cause any scandal, for fear that her harlot blood from her mother will ruin the good name of the family and damage her son the future Earl. But one night at a masked ball, where her in-laws did not attend, she lets down her guard for a moment of passion with the scandalous Marquess of Blackwood, Phineas Archer (every time I saw the name Phineas all I could think of was Phineas and Ferb, lol).

Blackwood has his own agenda for attending the ball but has no problem being swayed by the lovely 'Yasmina' and when she departs with out telling him her true name, she is all she can think about. Imagine Isobels surprise when Blackwood turns out to be the brother of her new friend and then her hurt and anger as he does not even recognize her or bother to give her a second glance. As Blackwoods mystery he is investigating, as he is an undercover spy, unravels clues start to point to the mysterious Yasmina as being involved possibly in the plot to distract him. When Blackwood finally realizes who exactly his mystery woman is he is stunned! How can this dowdy lady be such a passionate, warm women away from everyone but him? His investigation continues and Isobel is drawn deeper and deeper in as it becomes clear who has been pulling the strings of her life and many others.

This is Lecia Cornwalls debut novel and I very much enjoyed it. Her writing was excellent and I just wanted to keep turning the pages to find out if my suspicions were correct (some were some were not). Yes, everything was wrapped up nice and neat at the end. Yes, this plot has been used quite a bit before and isn't overly fresh this time around. Yes, the romance between Isobel and Blackwood didn't seem too real to me..more lust like. Yes, I wanted to smack some of the secondary characters and even Isobel and Blackwood at times but his family does add a nice sense of evenness. But even with all that, to me, this was still a great debut novel and I look forward to more from Ms Cornwall! 3 1/2 stars