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A review by guiltlesspleasures
Angel in a Devil's Arms by Julie Anne Long
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.25
This, the second in the Palace of Rogues series, felt flat to me compared with the effervescent Lady Derring Takes a Lover.
It started out so strong, with Lucien, Lord Bolt, coming seemingly back from the dead and scaring people left, right and center. It was one of the greatest character intros I’ve read, made all the better by the delightful Dot’s saucer-eyed reactions.
Lucien is back to seek revenge for a plot years ago that saw someone try to kill him by throwing him in the Thames while he was drunk. In the ensuing years, he has earned his battle stripes, made his fortune, and come back lean, mean and looking for the people who wronged him. I love that trope.
Sadly, we don’t get much of it. There are a couple of great scenes where he scares the living bejeezus out of people, but I wanted more of that. Instead, he falls in love with Angelique Breedlove almost immediately and decides that all he wants is to make her happy. And this is at like 68%.
I don’t always need books to be super plot-heavy and actually love a character-driven romance. But there wasn’t enough character development for either of them to make it work.
Also, the epilogue is really long and consists of an introduction to the next couple, which felt like an odd choice. And the cover — ugh.
Still, 3.25 stars because Julie Anne Long’s writing is so beautiful and there were some lovely moments.
It started out so strong, with Lucien, Lord Bolt, coming seemingly back from the dead and scaring people left, right and center. It was one of the greatest character intros I’ve read, made all the better by the delightful Dot’s saucer-eyed reactions.
Lucien is back to seek revenge for a plot years ago that saw someone try to kill him by throwing him in the Thames while he was drunk. In the ensuing years, he has earned his battle stripes, made his fortune, and come back lean, mean and looking for the people who wronged him. I love that trope.
Sadly, we don’t get much of it. There are a couple of great scenes where he scares the living bejeezus out of people, but I wanted more of that. Instead, he falls in love with Angelique Breedlove almost immediately and decides that all he wants is to make her happy. And this is at like 68%.
I don’t always need books to be super plot-heavy and actually love a character-driven romance. But there wasn’t enough character development for either of them to make it work.
Also, the epilogue is really long and consists of an introduction to the next couple, which felt like an odd choice. And the cover — ugh.
Still, 3.25 stars because Julie Anne Long’s writing is so beautiful and there were some lovely moments.