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3.99 AVERAGE
3.99 AVERAGE
Definitely a good addition to the Regency romance genre. If you like the genre, you will like it. If you don't, you won't.
i liked it enough to give 4 stars but i have kinda problem with sarah maclean's books that it often happens that characters say they can't love each other, then having heated moment, then running away from them, then realizing they actually love other person and running more to say it and all of this is just very tiring to read it sometimes.
This is quite a fun and steamy historical romance between an adventurous spinster and a generic rake, but I just find rakish male characters a bit annoying – and I’ve had bad luck choosing historical romance, because I can’t seem to be able to escape them. Looking forward to reading more from Sarah MacLean though!
Even in 2010, weren't we done with the 'I'm not pretty enough to be loved' trope? Didn't we set it on fire and set ourselves free?
The first 100 pages of this book were a five stars. There weren't the annoying italicized inner thoughts every five seconds that pop up in later books, Callie was interesting, Ralston was sexy - we were having a great time. And then, it all falls apart and gets messy. Most of the chapters seemed to follow an identical pattern of 'hero and heroine meet in some situation, they argue, one pisses off the other, hero tries to solve every problem with sex, they have some kind of sexual encounter, heroine either cries or decides something's wrong and makes a hasty exit. They never communicate. Repeat 10-20 pages later'.
And there was a duel 15 pages before the end? I mean...come on. It just didn't feel like a particularly well-structured or thought-out novel, like there were a million ideas that were all crammed in there. It felt quite 'same-y' to books I've read before, particularly when it came to the heroine, Callie. While she was initially introduced as an intelligent romantic pining after one man, she very quickly became like most other heroines in regency romances - submissive, bland and with a spine that had the structural integrity of cooked pasta.
Also - Ralston tries to solve every problem with kissing. And there were some SERIOUS red flags being thrown up there when it came to actually listening / communicating / not forcing someone to do something they've said no to? Like? If you find that sexy, I've got some questions for you...
It was fine, is what I'm getting at. The main characters kind of ruin it and the writing, after page 100, felt samey. Sex scenes were strong - I appreciated the variety and diversity of them - but there was a lot of waffle inbetween.
The first 100 pages of this book were a five stars. There weren't the annoying italicized inner thoughts every five seconds that pop up in later books, Callie was interesting, Ralston was sexy - we were having a great time. And then, it all falls apart and gets messy. Most of the chapters seemed to follow an identical pattern of 'hero and heroine meet in some situation, they argue, one pisses off the other, hero tries to solve every problem with sex, they have some kind of sexual encounter, heroine either cries or decides something's wrong and makes a hasty exit. They never communicate. Repeat 10-20 pages later'.
And there was a duel 15 pages before the end? I mean...come on. It just didn't feel like a particularly well-structured or thought-out novel, like there were a million ideas that were all crammed in there. It felt quite 'same-y' to books I've read before, particularly when it came to the heroine, Callie. While she was initially introduced as an intelligent romantic pining after one man, she very quickly became like most other heroines in regency romances - submissive, bland and with a spine that had the structural integrity of cooked pasta.
Also - Ralston tries to solve every problem with kissing. And there were some SERIOUS red flags being thrown up there when it came to actually listening / communicating / not forcing someone to do something they've said no to? Like? If you find that sexy, I've got some questions for you...
It was fine, is what I'm getting at. The main characters kind of ruin it and the writing, after page 100, felt samey. Sex scenes were strong - I appreciated the variety and diversity of them - but there was a lot of waffle inbetween.
Excuse me while I read Sarah MacLean’s entire body of work
Great relationship development-- substantial roadblocks, without trying too hard or veering too trite. Adding the rest of the series now.
Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake by Sarah MacLean
Avon, 2010
397 pages
Historical; Romance
First in trilogy
3/5 stars
Source: Bought
Summary: Callie is tired of being the perfect spinster and is spurred to try living her life anew after hearing some less than flattering comments. To that end, she approaches the Marquess of Ralston, the man she's been in love with for ten years, in order to have her first kiss. He sees an innocent who nonetheless provokes and intrigues him as well as the solution to the problem of his untutored sister.
Thoughts: I mostly enjoyed MacLean's The Season and I saw largely positive reviews of this book so I thought I'd try it. Once I got past the insanely long title, I was not enchanted. I expected a lot of humor after enjoying the Austenesque The Season but it was not really funny. I was intrigued by the concept: a confirmed spinster decides to start pushing the bounds of propriety, including brazenly romancing a rake. And I liked Callie a lot. I also appreciated her points about the sexist society in which they live-very different fare than I usually see in romance novels. I somewhat liked the hero, Ralston. He was very devoted to his brother and newfound sister. That sister Juliana will be the heroine of the third book and she was lovely. She was raised in Italy and shares a mother with the brothers; all of them were abandoned by the mother. Because of that, Ralston has vowed never to love (see where this is going?) while Callie is adamant that she will have only a love match.
I didn't enjoy Callie's adventures as much as I wanted to because Ralston kept interfering in a patronizing way. His slowness in not realizing that he loved her was infuriating and after he compromised her, his proposal of marriage sucked majorly. There was also a lot of kissing and sex scenes which despite my love of romance novels is my least favorite part (I know for some (many?), that is the main reason to read them but I prefer humor and the clean ways they spend time together.) However if you like that, you would probably enjoy this.
Overall: Two idiots (eventually) in love and a severe lack of humor hamper my enjoyment.
Cover: I really love the heroine's dress although there is again a cut-off head.
Avon, 2010
397 pages
Historical; Romance
First in trilogy
3/5 stars
Source: Bought
Summary: Callie is tired of being the perfect spinster and is spurred to try living her life anew after hearing some less than flattering comments. To that end, she approaches the Marquess of Ralston, the man she's been in love with for ten years, in order to have her first kiss. He sees an innocent who nonetheless provokes and intrigues him as well as the solution to the problem of his untutored sister.
Thoughts: I mostly enjoyed MacLean's The Season and I saw largely positive reviews of this book so I thought I'd try it. Once I got past the insanely long title, I was not enchanted. I expected a lot of humor after enjoying the Austenesque The Season but it was not really funny. I was intrigued by the concept: a confirmed spinster decides to start pushing the bounds of propriety, including brazenly romancing a rake. And I liked Callie a lot. I also appreciated her points about the sexist society in which they live-very different fare than I usually see in romance novels. I somewhat liked the hero, Ralston. He was very devoted to his brother and newfound sister. That sister Juliana will be the heroine of the third book and she was lovely. She was raised in Italy and shares a mother with the brothers; all of them were abandoned by the mother. Because of that, Ralston has vowed never to love (see where this is going?) while Callie is adamant that she will have only a love match.
I didn't enjoy Callie's adventures as much as I wanted to because Ralston kept interfering in a patronizing way. His slowness in not realizing that he loved her was infuriating and after he compromised her, his proposal of marriage sucked majorly. There was also a lot of kissing and sex scenes which despite my love of romance novels is my least favorite part (I know for some (many?), that is the main reason to read them but I prefer humor and the clean ways they spend time together.) However if you like that, you would probably enjoy this.
Overall: Two idiots (eventually) in love and a severe lack of humor hamper my enjoyment.
Cover: I really love the heroine's dress although there is again a cut-off head.
Ok, this was fun. I am not a fan of historical romances as they seem really boring and uptight. This was so much better. The heroine is whip-smart and ready to break out of her spinster lifestyle and explore life. None of this had to be with wanting to land a man. She was simply doing this for herself. Rock on girl. Thank you Read Harder Challenge for sending me down this road. I doubt other historical or period piece romances will be this fun but at least I can say there is one.
emotional
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
My first Sarah MacLean, and it won’t be my last :) thoroughly enjoyable story about a near-spinster wallflower. Finished sweetly