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3.78 AVERAGE
3.78 AVERAGE
Loved it, couldn't put it down! I rarely give a book five stars, but I thought the book was well written. I was completely lost in the story. Brisbane was dark and mysterious, Lady Julia was naive and could be sort of an airhead then come across as smart. I thought the time period came through. There were some lines that made me laugh, there was sadness, I will definitely continue with the series.
After tearing through Kerry Greenwood's Phryne Fisher series in a handful of months, I needed another period mystery/romance series to fill the void in my heart! Deanna Raybourn and Lady Julia do not disappoint.
Loved this series. The characters sparkle and enchant. Love that is in Victorian England and has murder, mystery and romance. Can't wait for the next one this fall.
I really liked the writing style in this book, but I had some major issues with it. It's a first person narrative, but the narrator does not think the way the main character thinks. The effect is that the main character almost seems to have two completely unrelated personalities. The narrator seems rational and sensible, whereas the heroine behaves in ways that are petulant, childish, and bratty! Her servants treat her as though she is much better than most aristocrats, but she is as oblivious and indifferent to them as anyone from the time would have been. She can be excepting of everything that is viewed as a vice or a sin in her era, but tradesmen rising to the nobility? For shame! One trope in this book that irritates me is the idea that a man who is vaguely threatening and disturbing is therefore attractive. This must happen to people because it is so common in books, but personally I find it inexplicable and unrelatable. Finally, the supernatural element seemed over the top and unnecessary to me. Despite all this, I really did like the style of writing and will be interested to read other books by this author in the future.
*3 stars*
It doesn’t come close to A Curious Beginning also by the same author, but it was still pretty fun!
It doesn’t come close to A Curious Beginning also by the same author, but it was still pretty fun!
I feel the needs to shot Brisbane with some testosteron booster liquid.
MAN NEEDS TO ACT WHEN IT'S TIME TO ACT :(
But overall, quite enjoyable and fun ride.
3.8stars for the first book.
I hope the second one wouldn't betray me.
MAN NEEDS TO ACT WHEN IT'S TIME TO ACT :(
But overall, quite enjoyable and fun ride.
3.8stars for the first book.
I hope the second one wouldn't betray me.
I enjoyed this book quite a lot. There were times when I felt like it was falling short of my expectations and other times when it exceeded them. I wanted to sense more chemistry between Lady Julia and Brisbane. But I am certainly looking forward to Lady Julia #2.
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I vacillated back and forth on how I felt about this book most of the way through. It had some good aspects that I enjoyed, but it also had some things that just didn't connect for me at all. In the end the description "it was okay" that Goodreads uses to describe a two-star rating was the best way for me to settle on this book.
As other reviewers have noted, the character of Lady Julia seems to be trying to be a multitude of qualities, which in the end for me was simply not believable. She was sometimes painfully repressed and correct so utterly of her time. But at other points she was so modern as to push the boundaries far past credibility for me. I appreciate that the author was attempting to demonstrate Julia's wish to be more progressive, and to push past her self-imposed strictures, but it just did not ring plausible for me. I had a great difficulty maintaining a like for Julia as she vacillated between following the rules and breaking them. She also did some incredibly foolish things, and that always annoys me, especially in a female protagonist. I wanted better from Julia and she never *quite* got there for me.
Nicholas was a bit more likable for me, but again as others have noted, I did not feel any romantic connection between him and Julia at all. It just did not feel plausible and I couldn't suspend disbelief enough to see them as a romantic couple at all.
The story itself was well written and had some interesting, if disturbing and dark, aspects, but I like best books where I feel a real connection to the characters. That was missing for me in this book, so while it had its moments and I did finish it, I can't say I loved it. There are other series in this vein which worked better for me, such as Anna Lee Huber's Lady Darby books.
As other reviewers have noted, the character of Lady Julia seems to be trying to be a multitude of qualities, which in the end for me was simply not believable. She was sometimes painfully repressed and correct so utterly of her time. But at other points she was so modern as to push the boundaries far past credibility for me. I appreciate that the author was attempting to demonstrate Julia's wish to be more progressive, and to push past her self-imposed strictures, but it just did not ring plausible for me. I had a great difficulty maintaining a like for Julia as she vacillated between following the rules and breaking them. She also did some incredibly foolish things, and that always annoys me, especially in a female protagonist. I wanted better from Julia and she never *quite* got there for me.
Nicholas was a bit more likable for me, but again as others have noted, I did not feel any romantic connection between him and Julia at all. It just did not feel plausible and I couldn't suspend disbelief enough to see them as a romantic couple at all.
The story itself was well written and had some interesting, if disturbing and dark, aspects, but I like best books where I feel a real connection to the characters. That was missing for me in this book, so while it had its moments and I did finish it, I can't say I loved it. There are other series in this vein which worked better for me, such as Anna Lee Huber's Lady Darby books.