Review: Firelight ( Darkest London #1) by Kristen Callihan

Firelight by Kristen Callihan

• Pub. Date:February 2012
• Publisher: Grand Centeral Publishing
• Pages: 400
• Series: Darkest London #1

http://kristencallihan.com/

"London, 1881
Once the flames are ignited . . . 


Miranda Ellis is a woman tormented. Plagued since birth by a strange and powerful gift, she has spent her entire life struggling to control her exceptional abilities. Yet one innocent but irreversible mistake has left her family's fortune decimated and forced her to wed London's most nefarious nobleman.


They will burn for eternity . . . 


Lord Benjamin Archer is no ordinary man. Doomed to hide his disfigured face behind masks, Archer knows it's selfish to take Miranda as his bride. Yet he can't help being drawn to the flame-haired beauty whose touch sparks a passion he hasn't felt in a lifetime. When Archer is accused of a series of gruesome murders, he gives in to the beastly nature he has fought so hard to hide from the world. But the curse that haunts him cannot be denied. Now, to save his soul, Miranda will enter a world of dark magic and darker intrigue. For only she can see the man hiding behind the mask."

First Sentence: The knowledge that Archer would soon end the life of another cut at his soul with every step he took.


Review: Firelight is now one of my favorites in the paranormal/historical romance genre. It was intriguing, Gothic, action packed full of mystery and murder, and it reminded me of a darker version of Beauty & the Beast and Phantom of the Opera all mixed in one.Needless to say I was sucked into the novel within the first few pages.

The characters were amazing. I was able to connect with both the main characters Lord Archer and Miranda. I loved the fact that Miranda was a strong character who had a sharp tongue on her and was not fearful of anything.  As for Lord Archer he is the ideal tortured hero I couldn't help but fall in love with his character. I also liked how the mystery around him unravels in bits and pieces. Then there was the romance between the two, all I have to say is that the two were perfect for each other both stubborn, passionate and with secrets that haunt them everyday.

Overall Callihan did a wonderful job with Firelight the writing, the characters and the world building all done very well. I loved that this can be a standalone since the next book in the series is obviously about Ian whom I would love to get to know more of especially since he already sparked my curiosity in Firelight. I will definitely be buying this novel to add to my bookshelf because I can see myself reading this again and again.

Review: Victoria and the Rogue by Meg Cabot

 Victoria and the Rogue by Meg Cabot

• Pub. Date: March 2003
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers 
• Format: Mass Paperback , 241 pp

"Victoria
Growing up in far-off India, wealthy young heiress Lady Victoria Arbuthnot was accustomed to handling her own affairs — not to mention everyone else's. But in her sixteenth year, Vicky is unceremoniously shipped off to London to find a husband. With her usual aplomb, however, Lady Victoria gets herself engaged to the perfect English gentleman, even before setting foot on British soil.


The Rogue
Hugo Rothschild, ninth earl of Malfrey, is everything a girl could want in a future husband: he is handsome and worldly, if not rich. Lady Victoria has everything just as she'd like it. That is, if raffish young ship captain Jacob Carstairs would leave well enough alone.


Jacob's meddling is nothing short of exasperating, and Victoria is mystified by his persistence. But when it becomes clear that young Lord Malfrey just might not be all that he's professed to be, Victoria is forced to admit, for the first time in her life, that she is wrong. Not only about her fiance, but about the reason behind the handsome ship captain's interference."

First Sentence: "Lady Victoria?"
Victoria turned at the sound of her name being called so softly from across the ship deck.

Review: I got this book as a swap and didn't have high expectations for it, which helped me enjoy it that much more. This was definitely a fluff read and I loved every minute of it. The characters were entertaining, there was lots of scandals that kept things interesting. There were romantic moments that me just go "awwwwww" and then there were moments that made me want to slap the hell out of the main character Vicky for being so prideful. Oh! and top it off with a cheesy ending it made for a perfect read especially when I want to get away and just read something quick and light hearted.

Review: Never A Gentleman by Eileen Dreyer

                                                  Never A Gentleman by Eileen Dreyer

• Pub. Date: April 2011 
• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
• Fromat: Paperback 433pp

"HE HIDES HIS TRUE COLORS . . .

Miss Grace Fairchild is under no illusions about her charms. Painfully plain, she is a soldier's daughter who has spent her life being useful, not learning the treacherous ways of theton. She may have been caught in a scandal with society's favorite rogue, but how can she marry him when it means losing herself?

WHILE SHE HIDES HER TRUE SELF . . .

Diccan Hilliard doesn't know which of his enemies drugged him and dumped him in Grace's bed, but he does know the outcome. He and Grace must marry. To his surprise, a wild, heady passion flares between them. Yet Diccan is trapped in a deadly game of intrigue Grace knows nothing about. Will his lies destroy Grace just as he realizes how desperately he needs her? And how can he hope for a future with her, when an old enemy has set his murderous sights on them both?"

Review: I found this to be a slightly frustrating read. I find the heroine to be a complete pushover, and what made it worse is that she is the daughter of a soldier, who has been to several countries,faced dangerous situations, taken care of soldiers in the battlefield but yet she lets everyone walk all over her and take complete advantage. We are also constantly reminded about how plain and un-pretty she is.

Then there is "The Scene". Diccan, Grace's husband is cheating on her with his mistress and Grace watches the whole thing through a peephole. If that's not bad enough her reaction was beyond shocking, to sum it up she asked him to do all the things she saw him do to his mistress to her!  At that point I was ready to close the book up for good. And if it wasn't for the fact  that Eileen Dreyer has such an excellent way with her words I would have. The plot did redeem itself a little in the second half of the book.

Review: Dracula In Love by Karen Essex

Dracula In Love by Karen Essex

• Pub. Date: August 2010 /Released in Paperback/Hardcover July 2011
• Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
• Fromat: Paperback 368pp

"Karen Essex turns on the heat in this transporting and darkly haunting new tale of love and possession that puts forth the question: What if everything you knew about Dracula . . . was wrong? 

From the shadowy banks of the River Thames to the wild and windswept coast of Yorkshire, the quintessential Victorian virgin Mina Murray vividly recounts in the pages of her private diary the intimate details of what transpired between her and Count Dracula—the joys and terrors of a pas­sionate affair and her rebellion against a force of evil that has pursued her through time. 

Mina’s version of this timeless gothic vampire tale is a visceral journey into the dimly lit bedrooms, mist-filled cemeteries, and locked asylum chambers where she led a secret life, far from the chaste and polite lifestyle the defenders of her purity, and even her fiancé, Jonathan Harker, expected of her. 
Bram Stoker’s classic novel was only one side of the story. Now, for the first time, Dracula’s eternal muse reveals all. What she has to say is more sensual, more devious, and more enthralling than ever imagined. The result is a scintillating gothic novel that reinvents the tragic heroine Mina as a modern woman tor­tured by desire."

Review: Karen Essex did an incredible job retelling Bram Stokers Dracula. Dracula in love was told from Mina's  perspective, and I loved it just as much as the original.

The first half of the novel was a lot of background information on Mina, which I found interesting. The novel really picked up for me when we got to the asylum. I was reading Dracula In Love in the middle of the night so yes, I was slightly creeped out but couldn't stop myself from turning the page. Essex did a great job with keeping the suspense. I also loved how on point Essex was with the treatment of women during that time period.

Essex brought on new twists and turns that held my interest all the way to the very end. I was honestly rooting for the count in this one, which is why I was a little saddened by the ending. I felt as if Jonathan Harker did not deserve Mina. I seriously thought Mina would have picked the Count especially after learning about their past and how strong their love for each other was.

There is also quite a few passionate sexual scenes, which fit perfectly with the atmosphere that was created in the novel. Dark,Sexy, and Captivating describes Dracula In Love down to a T. If you are looking for an overall great read you will not regret picking this novel up.

Review: The Heir by Grace Burrowes

The Heir by Grace Burrowes

• Pub. Date: December 2010
• Publisher: Sourcebooks
• Format:Mass Market Paperback , 448pp
• 
  

"AN EARL WHO CAN'T BE BRIBED

Gayle Windham, Earl of Westhaven, is the first legitimate son and heir to the Duke of Moreland. To escape his father's inexorable pressure to marry, he decides to spend the summer at his townhouse in London, where he finds himself intrigued by the secretive ways of his beautiful housekeeper...

A LADY WHO CAN'T BE PROTECTED...

Anna Seaton is a beautiful, talented, educated woman, which is why it is so puzzling to Gayle Windham that she works as his housekeeper.

As the two draw closer and begin to lose their hearts to each other, Anna's secrets threaten to bring the earl's orderly life crashing down - and he doesn't know how he's going to protect her from the fallout"

My Review: I really enjoyed reading The Heir. The main characters were really well developed and they had a lot of depth to them which made them very believable. 

Although not most likely to happen in Regency England the plot was entertaining. Gayle Windham the heir to the Duke of Moreland escapes to his summer house in London to avoid his fathers constant pressure of marriage.Upon his arrival he meets Mrs. Anna Seaton a beautiful housekeeper who has ladylike ways and does not fit the mold of a typical housekeeper.

Burrowes did a great job in keeping the mystery around Anna Seaton. I found myself reading through the more than 400 page book just to find out who she was and what terrible thing her and her sister Morgan were running away from. As much as I was glad to reach the reasoning behind their running off and their true identity it felt like the problem solved too quickly for something that was left a mystery for entirely the whole entire story.

There were a few characters who did grow on me and that would be the brothers of Gayle Windham - Valentine and Dev I found them more entertaining than the main hero.

If you are big on the accuracy of historical romance novels this book might annoy you slightly seeing how there were few things that happened in the plot that was just unrealistic for that time period, unfortunately I can't list them without giving spoilers. For me personally I was able to overlook it and enjoy the book for what it was.

I did have to double check and make sure that I didn't miss a book in the series when I was reading The Heir since there were characters being thrown in that made me think I should already know who they are. I usually don't mind a ton of characters but only if they are well introduced and that just wasn't the case with many of the "extra" characters. I really thought this was a second book to the series but it is the first.

Regardless of the few negative aspects I talked about regarding this book it was still a good read. I loved Grace Burrowes writing style and seeing how the second book to the series is about Dev one of my favorite characters besides Valentine I do look forward to reading the next book in the series.