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3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
Justina Penny isn't very impressed with the book her club is reading. I mean, really, why would somebody choose a Mr. Darcy if there's a Mr. Wickham hanging around in the wings. And who in their right mind would be attracted to that dreadful Mr. Wainwright who's only in town to settle his uncle's estate? Just because the two of them have a past doesn't mean that she wants to have a future. Especially not with him.
Darius Wainwright has had his own problem with women. The one he truly loved ran off with someone else (and I assume this will be explored in the second book in the series) and his innate shyness has made it nearly impossible to talk to anyone else. But there's just something about Justina Penny that makes him want to take a second look.
I fell into a deep like with the secondary characters in this book and cannot wait for the rest of them to get their stories. Justina and Darius were fine as well though some parts of their story could have been better put together.
I saw this book several times but never thought about reading it until a review from The Good, The Bad, and the Unread.
Darius Wainwright has had his own problem with women. The one he truly loved ran off with someone else (and I assume this will be explored in the second book in the series) and his innate shyness has made it nearly impossible to talk to anyone else. But there's just something about Justina Penny that makes him want to take a second look.
I fell into a deep like with the secondary characters in this book and cannot wait for the rest of them to get their stories. Justina and Darius were fine as well though some parts of their story could have been better put together.
I saw this book several times but never thought about reading it until a review from The Good, The Bad, and the Unread.
Once Upon a Kiss was an absolute delight to read and one that I highly recommend to fans of Jane Austen retellings. Here we have a wonderful free-spirited heroine and a lovable socially awkward hero who’s very Darcy-esque.
Justina Penny is an unconventional young lady living in a sleepy little village. She’s known for her many missteps in society. She’s quite aware that she’s not nearly as lovely or ladylike as her elder sister, and knows that she’ll never be a man’s first choice. But that doesn’t mean that she wants to sit back and cry about it, and she certainly doesn’t do so when an eligible gentleman comes to town even if he is the Wrong Man.
Darius Wainwright is a reticent man and he’s had one horrifyingly embarrassing introduction to Justina in Bath. He’s quite shocked to find her in the village of Hawcombe Prior, and as much as he’d like her to stay away, he can’t seem to stop contriving of ways to spend time with her.
This was quite a humourous and delightful read. The humour is something this author always does very well, and I found myself continually smiling throughout this book. I also loved the obvious parallel to Jane Austen. It was rather adorable that Darius was such an obvious Darcy, and I for one, loved seeing his side of the story. I can only hope that the author will continue to use Austen’s works as a frame for future stories in this series. If the suggestions I were picking up in this book were what I think, it looks like we may be getting a Persuasion retelling in the next book. Persuasion is my favourite Jane Austen book, so I certainly hope this is the case.
Ultimately, this book was witty, silly and just plain fun. It wasn’t overly dependent on the more romantic aspects, but the dialogue between the hero and heroine was spot on. I think this book (and the other’s by this author) will appeal to you if you enjoy Kate Noble’s historicals. Like Fresnia’s work, they’re not super steamy, but they are smart and funny.
Justina Penny is an unconventional young lady living in a sleepy little village. She’s known for her many missteps in society. She’s quite aware that she’s not nearly as lovely or ladylike as her elder sister, and knows that she’ll never be a man’s first choice. But that doesn’t mean that she wants to sit back and cry about it, and she certainly doesn’t do so when an eligible gentleman comes to town even if he is the Wrong Man.
Darius Wainwright is a reticent man and he’s had one horrifyingly embarrassing introduction to Justina in Bath. He’s quite shocked to find her in the village of Hawcombe Prior, and as much as he’d like her to stay away, he can’t seem to stop contriving of ways to spend time with her.
This was quite a humourous and delightful read. The humour is something this author always does very well, and I found myself continually smiling throughout this book. I also loved the obvious parallel to Jane Austen. It was rather adorable that Darius was such an obvious Darcy, and I for one, loved seeing his side of the story. I can only hope that the author will continue to use Austen’s works as a frame for future stories in this series. If the suggestions I were picking up in this book were what I think, it looks like we may be getting a Persuasion retelling in the next book. Persuasion is my favourite Jane Austen book, so I certainly hope this is the case.
Ultimately, this book was witty, silly and just plain fun. It wasn’t overly dependent on the more romantic aspects, but the dialogue between the hero and heroine was spot on. I think this book (and the other’s by this author) will appeal to you if you enjoy Kate Noble’s historicals. Like Fresnia’s work, they’re not super steamy, but they are smart and funny.
I've been hit or miss with historical romances lately -- a natural side effect of randomly selecting books off the library shelves -- and I really wanted a hit after the last miss, so I chose Once Upon a Kiss. This isn't my first Jayne Fresina, and I felt reasonably certain she'd deliver.
And she did. Oh, how she did! And better yet, I knew it by the first paragraph of the second chapter.
You see, characters and tension drive the plot of any book, and Jayne Fresina does such a good job of introducing Darius and Justina that I knew, even before they met, sparks would fly. I wasn't disappointed. Darius is quiet, regimented, and likes structure. Justina is, quite naturally, the exact opposite.
Once Upon a Kiss has more than a few laugh out loud moments, for Justina attracts trouble without even trying, and you can't help liking her. Darius is, well, he's Mr. Darcy, but still very much his own character.
Justina and her friends from their book club (which I'm glad, by the way, that this is the beginning of a series that will feature them) are reading Pride and Prejudice. Once Upon a Kiss is a cheeky Pride and Prejudice retelling (at least, that's how I'd consider it; I've not seen anything anywhere that says it actually is), using the book itself to highlight what's going on with the characters.
This book pokes fun at romance novels and characters in them in a way that's quite hilarious and meta. And yet, Once Upon a Kiss is a sweet and lighthearted romance that was fun and adorable and I already want to read the rest of the series, even though the next book isn't even out yet.
And she did. Oh, how she did! And better yet, I knew it by the first paragraph of the second chapter.
You see, characters and tension drive the plot of any book, and Jayne Fresina does such a good job of introducing Darius and Justina that I knew, even before they met, sparks would fly. I wasn't disappointed. Darius is quiet, regimented, and likes structure. Justina is, quite naturally, the exact opposite.
Once Upon a Kiss has more than a few laugh out loud moments, for Justina attracts trouble without even trying, and you can't help liking her. Darius is, well, he's Mr. Darcy, but still very much his own character.
Justina and her friends from their book club (which I'm glad, by the way, that this is the beginning of a series that will feature them) are reading Pride and Prejudice. Once Upon a Kiss is a cheeky Pride and Prejudice retelling (at least, that's how I'd consider it; I've not seen anything anywhere that says it actually is), using the book itself to highlight what's going on with the characters.
This book pokes fun at romance novels and characters in them in a way that's quite hilarious and meta. And yet, Once Upon a Kiss is a sweet and lighthearted romance that was fun and adorable and I already want to read the rest of the series, even though the next book isn't even out yet.
This was a nice, sweet read that was a perfect sick read. It wasn't at all mentally demanding, didn't require me to follow some sort of convoluted mystery, and didn't make me want to tear up (unlike the sneezes that wouldn't stop).
This was everything that the last book by her should have been. The writing was leaps and bounds better, I enjoyed the characters way more, and the progression of the romance was much better than before.
I liked Justina much better than Molly, she was a little ridiculous and silly, I'm not gonna lie but she was also meant to be so it wasn't really a problem. It was nice to see a protagonist in a romance novel be this silly and be proud of it, it kept things interesting especially when you were waiting to see what new shenanigan Justina was gonna get into. Seeing the world through her eyes was so entertaining, I actually laughed out loud a few times and I even had to stop reading to collect myself because I was laughing so hard.
One line comes to mind and I believe it went something like, "Miss Milford bellowed across the room like a cow overdue for milking," and I absolutely lost it.
Darius was a nice change from the male love interests that I've read so far, he's very quiet and shy, very awkward and introverted, doesn't really understand how social interactions work, and it was just nice to see a male love interest that was the klutzy clumsy one for once in my life.
I thought the romance here progressed much better than in the previous book that I read which was really nice and it made the end all that much more satisfying when they finally got together (even though I knew that they would end up together).
And the writing was just in general much better and way funnier this time around than it was before. Is this in any way a literary masterpiece? No. Did I enjoy it and would I recommend it for a quick read and a fun time? Sure.
I liked Justina much better than Molly, she was a little ridiculous and silly, I'm not gonna lie but she was also meant to be so it wasn't really a problem. It was nice to see a protagonist in a romance novel be this silly and be proud of it, it kept things interesting especially when you were waiting to see what new shenanigan Justina was gonna get into. Seeing the world through her eyes was so entertaining, I actually laughed out loud a few times and I even had to stop reading to collect myself because I was laughing so hard.
One line comes to mind and I believe it went something like, "Miss Milford bellowed across the room like a cow overdue for milking," and I absolutely lost it.
Darius was a nice change from the male love interests that I've read so far, he's very quiet and shy, very awkward and introverted, doesn't really understand how social interactions work, and it was just nice to see a male love interest that was the klutzy clumsy one for once in my life.
I thought the romance here progressed much better than in the previous book that I read which was really nice and it made the end all that much more satisfying when they finally got together (even though I knew that they would end up together).
And the writing was just in general much better and way funnier this time around than it was before. Is this in any way a literary masterpiece? No. Did I enjoy it and would I recommend it for a quick read and a fun time? Sure.
Super fun historical. I loved Justina & Darius and the allusions to Pride & Prejudice. I liked the friendship between the Book Club Belles and especially between the two sisters. The character have enough issues to keep them interesting but this isn't angsty at all (which is fine by me). It reminds me a bit if Tessa Dare in tone. And in the inclusion of an usual pet. I love pigs and Sir Mortimer Gubbins is no exception.
Sweet pride and prejudice variation, with a bit different storyline and a bit of sex, this was a great book!