A delightful fantasy for awkward, intrepid women.
An American woman who's not to everyone's taste finds love with an upstanding British viscount.
Leonora Garrison has come to London with her friendly brother and crass, social-climbing mother to find investors for their manufacturing business, which has been foundering since the death of her beloved father. Her curiosity extends not only to the workings of mechanical items—including the newfangled "writing machine" she's trying to get off the ground—but also to matters more personal, so she sneaks out of her hotel for a visit to the Elysium, a club where it's rumored women can have their fantasies fulfilled. When John Castleton, Viscount Wyeth, stops by the same night, the club's owner, his half-brother Aiden Trewlove, asks a favor: Since they're short staffed, would Rook, as he's known, mind educating a spinster who desires her first kiss? Rook has spent his life suppressing his passion, not wanting to be associated with the reckless way his father produced unwanted children (including Aiden) with a string of mistresses. But he agrees to help, and when he meets Leonora in a dark room, their kiss leads to unexpectedly seismic feelings for both of them. After they meet again, at a dinner party for nobles who might invest in Leonora's company, they tumble into a series of further sensual encounters—Heath can spend pages deliciously describing the way they each long for another kiss—but when they're caught in a compromising position, they have to decide whether a compelled marriage is what they want. This final book in Heath's Chessman series, like the others, features a brainy woman who wouldn't make a traditional bride for a nobleman, and it's a pleasure to watch Rook appreciate the very qualities in Leonora that many men find odd. Heath fans will enjoy spending time with the Chessmen and the Trewlove family, catching glimpses of previous couples, but Leonora's mother could have served her purpose in the story without being so stridently awful.
A delightful fantasy for awkward, intrepid women.Pub Date: Feb. 20, 2024
ISBN: 9780063114715
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Avon/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
PERSPECTIVES
Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.
The sequel to It Ends With Us (2016) shows the aftermath of domestic violence through the eyes of a single mother.
Lily Bloom is still running a flower shop; her abusive ex-husband, Ryle Kincaid, is still a surgeon. But now they’re co-parenting a daughter, Emerson, who's almost a year old. Lily won’t send Emerson to her father’s house overnight until she’s old enough to talk—“So she can tell me if something happens”—but she doesn’t want to fight for full custody lest it become an expensive legal drama or, worse, a physical fight. When Lily runs into Atlas Corrigan, a childhood friend who also came from an abusive family, she hopes their friendship can blossom into love. (For new readers, their history unfolds in heartfelt diary entries that Lily addresses to Finding Nemo star Ellen DeGeneres as she considers how Atlas was a calming presence during her turbulent childhood.) Atlas, who is single and running a restaurant, feels the same way. But even though she’s divorced, Lily isn’t exactly free. Behind Ryle’s veneer of civility are his jealousy and resentment. Lily has to plan her dates carefully to avoid a confrontation. Meanwhile, Atlas’ mother returns with shocking news. In between, Lily and Atlas steal away for romantic moments that are even sweeter for their authenticity as Lily struggles with child care, breastfeeding, and running a business while trying to find time for herself.
Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.Pub Date: Oct. 18, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-668-00122-6
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2022
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
This slightly smutty monster romance feels more like a spectacle than a deliberately paced story.
A woman travels to Scotland to unravel her late father’s past and meets a grumpy Scotsman with his own secrets.
Keyanna MacKay was brought up by a single father who was always tight-lipped about his upbringing, so when he dies, she’s left with no family. Key decides that learning about his life before he left Scotland would be a good way of keeping his memory close and perhaps connecting with long-lost relatives. She discovers a grandmother and other extended family in Scotland, but they’re hardly welcoming. “I know who you are....And you shouldn’t have come,” are the first words her grandmother says to her. Lachlan Greer has little patience for the American he’s already written off as clueless. When he witnesses Key’s snubbing by her family members, his grumpy demeanor gives way to begrudging pity, and he starts helping her navigate the local community and try to build a bridge to her grandmother. At first, this book seems to be a contemporary romance with light magical undertones involving a family’s mysterious curse, but it quickly devolves into a monster romance heavy on shock value. While monster romance can be fun, it doesn’t work here. Key and Lachlan’s chemistry is bumpy, and the pace of their relationship as they go from disastrous first impressions to a happily ever after is all over the place. Ferguson tries to combine too many elements—including a grumpy-meets-sunshine pairing, a mystery with sensitive family dynamics, and the complicated logistics of falling in love with a cryptid—leaving several threads not fully resolved. The setting is the most positive element, with Scotland’s lush greenery providing the perfect whimsical background for hunting down long-buried family secrets.
This slightly smutty monster romance feels more like a spectacle than a deliberately paced story.Pub Date: Dec. 3, 2024
ISBN: 9780593816851
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Berkley
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
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