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gemmalaszlo's review
1.0
I've read and enjoyed books by this author before, including The Courtesan and Rogue's Lady, so when I found this book at my local thrift store, I eagerly snapped it up. But I was left very disappointed in this book.
My big complaint was the hero. The guy had sex on the brain! Whenever the heroine was around, I swear he never thought with the head on his shoulders. All he can think of is getting her into bed. Even when he first sees her, soaked through and looking pretty much like something the cat dragged in, he gets aroused by her. Okay, I can accept that. Then, the next morning while she's recounting her story, he barely pays attention and instead ogles her bosom. Nice. It reminded me of one of those sleezy guys who never bothers to look a woman in the face when she's talking to him. Not sexy. While I certainly want the hero to be sexually attracted to the heroine, I also want him to view her as something more than just a sex object.
Then, he decides that she's probably telling the truth about being an impoverised gentlewoman, and not a doxy, except that she has "plump bite-me lips and lush, fondle-me breasts", which make him think otherwise. Excuse me? Any woman with a nice figure is automatically a woman of low virtue?! He then goes on to think that he feels sorry for the man who tried to rape the heroine--since she's so tempting it must have been difficult for the man to resist. I beg your pardon?!!! If a woman is beautiful, then a man can't help it if his lusts lead him to try to rape her? It was too much for me. Wallbanger.
I'm just glad I didn't read this one first, or I might have missed out on some of this author's other fine books.
My big complaint was the hero. The guy had sex on the brain! Whenever the heroine was around, I swear he never thought with the head on his shoulders. All he can think of is getting her into bed. Even when he first sees her, soaked through and looking pretty much like something the cat dragged in, he gets aroused by her. Okay, I can accept that. Then, the next morning while she's recounting her story, he barely pays attention and instead ogles her bosom. Nice. It reminded me of one of those sleezy guys who never bothers to look a woman in the face when she's talking to him. Not sexy. While I certainly want the hero to be sexually attracted to the heroine, I also want him to view her as something more than just a sex object.
Then, he decides that she's probably telling the truth about being an impoverised gentlewoman, and not a doxy, except that she has "plump bite-me lips and lush, fondle-me breasts", which make him think otherwise. Excuse me? Any woman with a nice figure is automatically a woman of low virtue?! He then goes on to think that he feels sorry for the man who tried to rape the heroine--since she's so tempting it must have been difficult for the man to resist. I beg your pardon?!!! If a woman is beautiful, then a man can't help it if his lusts lead him to try to rape her? It was too much for me. Wallbanger.
I'm just glad I didn't read this one first, or I might have missed out on some of this author's other fine books.
mrsbooknerd's review
2.0
I wasn't sold on this novel. The plot was good, the characters okay, but it was the dialogue, I mean holy smoke, it was so cheesy I was surprised the words weren't printed directly onto cheese slices.
`Ooh Ned! Watch as I misread all the baddies and over use the exclamation point in speech!` said stupidly and frustratingly naive Joanna.
If the lead couple had been a bit more kickass and less swoony then this may have been a three. Alas.
`Ooh Ned! Watch as I misread all the baddies and over use the exclamation point in speech!` said stupidly and frustratingly naive Joanna.
If the lead couple had been a bit more kickass and less swoony then this may have been a three. Alas.
jacqueline1989's review
1.0
Pages survived: 74
I'm not sure why, but I'm going through an apparent reading-slump.
And, even more odd, for this particular novel, I couldn't say for certain why it was that this particular book wasn't doing it for me. But, regardless, I knew something was missing and it just plain wasn't working.
Normally, I'm not a fan of reading book reviews before having read the book itself first. One, I hate spoilers, and two, I notice quite often that my tastes are very specific and don't always parallel others'. However, for the case of Justiss' From Waif to Gentleman's Wife, reading AAR's book review on this book helped immensely!
First of all, the review illustrated for me why I was not enjoying this particular story. Quite frankly, the characters were sickeningly sweet. They were just too two goody-two-shoed for me. Writers creating the right balance of personality for protagonists is not an easy job. If they're too much of a butt hole, the reader (or at least, I) loses respect for them. If they're too Mrs.-And-Mr.-Perfect, they become gag-worthy.
So, no doubt, it's not an easy job. But, it's an important job. And, sadly, one that, with this book, Justiss failed at, miserably. Ned, the hero, made dry toast look spicy while his heroine, Joanna, was the embodiment of Perfectly Perfect Perfection. And, while this might've changed over the duration of the story, I couldn't keep stomaching it in the short term enough to wait for such to eliminate itself in the long.
There were further issues that I no doubt would've had with this book, had I continued to read it. Plot points that would've no doubt driven me batty, but since I learned about such after reading a review on the novel, I can't note those as being reasons for my DNF decision. Still, I'm glad that I decided to let a review choose whether or not I finished this book. My instinct said it wasn't working, and it was right.
I'm not sure why, but I'm going through an apparent reading-slump.
And, even more odd, for this particular novel, I couldn't say for certain why it was that this particular book wasn't doing it for me. But, regardless, I knew something was missing and it just plain wasn't working.
Normally, I'm not a fan of reading book reviews before having read the book itself first. One, I hate spoilers, and two, I notice quite often that my tastes are very specific and don't always parallel others'. However, for the case of Justiss' From Waif to Gentleman's Wife, reading AAR's book review on this book helped immensely!
First of all, the review illustrated for me why I was not enjoying this particular story. Quite frankly, the characters were sickeningly sweet. They were just too two goody-two-shoed for me. Writers creating the right balance of personality for protagonists is not an easy job. If they're too much of a butt hole, the reader (or at least, I) loses respect for them. If they're too Mrs.-And-Mr.-Perfect, they become gag-worthy.
So, no doubt, it's not an easy job. But, it's an important job. And, sadly, one that, with this book, Justiss failed at, miserably. Ned, the hero, made dry toast look spicy while his heroine, Joanna, was the embodiment of Perfectly Perfect Perfection. And, while this might've changed over the duration of the story, I couldn't keep stomaching it in the short term enough to wait for such to eliminate itself in the long.
There were further issues that I no doubt would've had with this book, had I continued to read it. Plot points that would've no doubt driven me batty, but since I learned about such after reading a review on the novel, I can't note those as being reasons for my DNF decision. Still, I'm glad that I decided to let a review choose whether or not I finished this book. My instinct said it wasn't working, and it was right.
wonderturtle's review
3.0
I liked it. This story involved an exploration of class differences in a nuanced way that I really appreciated. I felt the differences between the landed and titled gentry vs. gentlemen/women vs. servants and the working classes was really highlighted in an accessible way to a modern reader. I also liked the descriptions of the countryside and land and architecture and interior design styles. While the plot seemed quite predictable, I thought the settings and characters were interesting. I also enjoyed the political details that added some depth to the story. I would seek out other books by this author in the future.
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