Review: The Lion's Daughter (Scoundrels 01) by Loretta Chase

May is going to be a very romantic month on this blog - as we promised you in the previous post there is going to be plenty of reviews covering all kinds of romantic fiction. Let me start with a classic: Loretta Chase and the first part of her 'Scoundrels' series, The Lion's Daughter.

Synopsis:

Varian St George, baron Edenmont, is an English peer who knows Davies and Byron. He is also a handsome, penniless whore, shamelessly sponging money off naïve women whenever he can. A jackal and an opportunist – that’s him. While he was traveling through Italy, seducing different rich and bored wives in order to earn his upkeep, the fate made him accompany a young boy, Percival, for a fee of course, to Albania.

There he meets the love of his life – a scrawny girl with green eyes and a mop of red curls, known as ‘a little warrior’ or ‘the Red Lion’s daughter’. Some people also call her ‘a spitfire’. Her name is Esme and her father, Jason Brentmor, has been just assassinated while in service of the Vizier of Janina, Ali Pasha or so they say. Esme needs a white knight rather badly – another suitor, far less civilized than Varian, is waiting impatiently to wed her and she doesn’t fancy him, not even a bit.

Varian, although hardly as noble as a real knight should be, falls in love, seduces the girl and marries her properly which is like a huge leap of faith for him – Esme is poor as well. Still she has a rich, eccentric grandmother who might or might not provide for the young couple. Unfortunately the old lady is hardly willing to throw good money after bad – and who can blame her? Varian is facing a big challenge : he must try to rescue whatever can be rescued from a shambles called his life and persuade everybody, his young wife and his own family included, that this time he means it. You must admit it is a scarier task than slaying a dragon.

What I liked:

The main heroine, Esme, was a great character. She was intrepid, funny, intelligent and far more independent than your average female romantic interest - a fearless rebel with a tender heart but a temper that runs hotter than fire and her flaming red hair. It always bodes well for a book, romance or not, if I like the main lead so don’t be surprised by the rest of my review : yes, I did like this one, I liked it very much. How not to like a book after reading such a scene?

“Esme’s lips were twitching as she gave the letter back to her grandmother.

“It ain't funny,” the old lady growled.

“Not only amusing but imaginative,” Esme said. “They say I have tattoos on my hands, wear a ring in my nose, and in this garb—and nothing else—I dance lewd dances in your rose garden. By the light of the full moon. Mrs. Stockwell-Hume does not mention my howling at the moon as well, but perhaps her London friends will think of that in time.”

Her beloved Varian wasn’t bad either; as his name, St Georges, indicates, he was simply predestined to save virgins from dragons even if he was the dragon itself. :) Still he will feature in the ‘dislikes’ section as well -  I suppose carping about romantic heroes is my second nature. One thing is sure: I really appreciated the lack of misunderstandings between Esme and Varian. Practically from the very beginning they had a degree of trust, or at least a degree of strength of character that allowed them to put themselves in the other person's shoes and not jump to conclusions about nefarious motivations if anything went wrong.

What I didn’t like:

Here you go. 

Varian was too pretty, too honourable and reformed too fast for an inveterate womanizer, a rake and a coxcomb. If only he was given more time...By the way imagine what Jane Austen would say: a baron, possibly married but with two younger, eligible brothers, is never visited by any of his curious neighbours while reparing the crumbling ancestral  mansion. No curious maiden ever set her foot in the proximity, no hen-pecked husband, forced by his wife to make the acquaintance for the sake of his daughters, called with a visit, no intrepid servant appeared near the Mount Eden estate...was it a desert or an English countryside? It seemed as if the poor man worked in a complete void.

Apart from that the political intrigue in the book  was overdone to the point of being incredibly complex and confusing. I enjoyed Albanians customs but the rest hardly made sense. Fortunately it was also very skippable.

Final verdict:

If you want to read something "mindless" after all the "heavy" stuff you've done recently this is a perfect position. Don't think too much about the plot concerning the politics of the region, focus on relationship and you'll be fine. The humorous parts are quite enjoyable and the book is definitely different, good enough to read at least once.

BTW the other parts of the series were reviewed by me as well: here you can find Lord of Scoundrels and here Captives of the Night  - enjoy!

Review: Lord of Scoundrels (Scroundels 03) by Loretta Chase

Form: pdf file, e-book

Genre: regency historical romance

Target audience: adult women

Synopsis:

He is an inveterate rake with a lot of money. An ugly, dark beast with a big nose and big…everything else. Intimidating, admired and feared whenever he chooses to be.  She is a beauty and a proper lady but from an impoverished family. If he wants something he buys it immediately. She has a nose for business but she doesn’t necessarily want to get married. They fall in lust. He wants her but so far he’s been avoiding ladies like plague so he hardly knows what hit him. He ruins her reputation but not because he wanted to, as she thinks. She shots him. They marry. They fall in love. She learns about his by-blow. He is afraid he might lose her but it might be far more complicated than that. Will they stay together? Yes, they will. End of the story.

What I liked:

Overall I hate romances as a genre but I admit there are exceptions. Loretta Chase’s book is one of them. Why? First of all this author uses thorough characterization which always in my eyes constitutes a redeeming quality.You would think other romance writers should know it as well. Well, most of them don’t. Chase knows how to construct characters who break the standard romance novel stereotype which is another big advantage.

For example in this one you are presented the title Lord of Scoundrels not only as a ready-made, brutal rake extraordinaire but also as a lonely, rejected, ugly child who had to fight his way into other people’s hearts. A child who had to learn early how to mask his fear and weaknesses with brutality, laughter and disdain. Such a well-thought-out background, even if a bit simplistic and also a bit spurious, makes you warm even to a cold-blooded scoundrel, in other words a prime jackass material. You see, he’s been traumatized so you kind of understand Dain's sexist, obstinate view of women. Somebody has to be blamed.

Our heroine, Jessica Trent, is prepared very well to take control and tame the ‘Beast’ – she comes from a big family and has dealt with unruly boys all her life (once again the background presented by the author helps us understanding how come a proper miss knew such deft methods).

In fact the story begins when Jessica has to intervene in order to save her stupid brother, Bertie, from a complete ruin. That nitwit has got himself deep into debts trying to emulate the lifestyle of his idol, Sebastian Ballister the Marquess of Dain, the title scoundrel. If Bertie sinks, he will drag down his sister as well so our intrepid girl decides to confront the source of her brother’s idiocy. I was thoroughly enchanted by Jessica's refreshing and realistic acceptance of her attraction to Dain. These two quickly find a common tongue – their sparring is fun, with plenty of chemistry and sparks flying around. These two are more than a match for each other and their sense of humour suited me perfectly. Just not to sound groundless let me quote one excerpt here:

“With the world securely in order, Dain was able to devote the leisurely bath time to editing his mental dictionary. He removed his wife from the general category labeled "Females" and gave her a section of her own. He made a note that she didn't find him revolting, and proposed several explanations: (a) bad eyesight and faulty hearing, (b)a defect in a portion of her otherwise sound intellect, (c) an inherited Trent eccentricity, or (d) an act of God. Since the Almighty had not done him a single act of kindness in at least twenty-five years, Dain thought it was about bloody time, but he thanked his Heavenly Father all the same, and promised to be as good as he was capable of being.”

Jess also provides a very nice definition of romance which suited me very well:

"In my dictionary, romance is not maudlin, treacly sentiment," she said. "It is a curry, spiced with excitement and humor and a healthy dollop of cynicism." She lowered her lashes. "I think you will eventually make a fine curry, Dain―with a few minor seasoning adjustments."

To sum this section up the beauty of this story is that long after I've closed the book, I still could remember those small episodes and funny dialogues - describing them in more detail here would be spoiling the story - that just seem so real, a feature usually non-existent in other romance novels.

What I didn’t like:

I admit the plot, construction-wise, was so-so: predictable, artificially divided into two parts (before and after the marriage), with some unnecessary complications (the icon) and redundant characters like Charity Graves, the mother of Dain’s illegitimate son. However I grant it, there was one good twist: (spoiler, highlight to read or skip) the heroine shooting her love interest to get him cornered and force him to make the right decision was unexpected.

Some descriptions of sex scenes made me smirk or even laugh out loud and not for a good reason. I don’t know, maybe this book just aged badly (it was released in 1995) or maybe it’s just me but I found them inadvertently funny instead of steamy with sentences like these:

"He trailed his tongue over one sleek eyebrow" (oh goodness, you will get some furballs my dear tomcat!)  or "Yes, Kill me, Jess. Do it again."

 Correct me if I am mistaken but I suppose you can die only once, unless you are James Bond…

I also admit that the use of a dialect (Phelps, one of Dain’s servant is responsible for it) sometimes made me to question my sanity and my own comprehension of the English language. How would you understand such a beauty:

"Nuss give it to you when your ma run off, 'n you was sick some'at fierce from it"

There were also several annoying repetition in the text - for example after reading it you know, intimately, how both characters smell because the author took pains to tell you so every chapter or two using always the same set of words. Considering how relatively short the story is, it's not like I'd forget these details. A good edit could remove a lot of those repetitions or change them a bit so the narrative is more bearable.

Finally let me only register my profound surprise that such a whoring bastard like Sebastian Ballister the Marquess of Dain never caught any of these unpleasant diseases…

Final verdict:

It was a good read. Not earth shattering or steam-up-my-glasses but good. Still, all you, romance lovers, be warned: this praise comes from an unromantic girl. Lord of Scoundrels is a strange romance. It might not fit in your perception of the genre. It is also hardly a faultless book but those are rarities indeed.

Review: Captives of the Night (Berkeley Sensation/ Scoundrels #2) by Loretta Chase

Genre: Historical Romance (1820s England), murder mystery
Form: e-book, pdf format
Target audience: adults

Why I read this?

Why I have to explain myself? Well, ok, I just feel like explaining… Every time I read a romance book I think I need to explain…oh well…maybe because a romance, historical, paranormal or contemporary, is not exactly my favourite genre. I read this novel only because it was recommended to me - otherwise I wouldn't touch it for sure . Apparently this is part 2 in the 4 book series. Here are the titles of other parts:  The Lion's Daughter (01, out of print), Lord of Scoundrels (03), The Last Hellion (04). Here you go. Let's get back to the review.

Synopsis:

After a visit of three strangers in their nice Venice apartment 17-year old Leila Bridgeburton finds herself all of a sudden a penniless orphan as the body of her dear papa is floating in one of the canals. She is just one step away from being thrown out on the streets and facing a very bleak future. Fortunately a prince charming in the person of a young, handsome Francis Beaumont rescues her. Instantly smitten with his young charge, he seduces Leila first and then, very chivalrously, marries her (my hero!). They move to Paris where Leila studies painting and leads a relatively comfortable life. End of the story? Nah. Just a beginning.

About six years later Francis's hedonistic lifestyle and complete lack of common sense have aged him significantly, weakening his body and garnering him legions of enemies, his wife among them. Leila, now a talented portrait painter, finds herself utterly disgusted with her savior. Francis’s primary function is to act as a buffer against the many men interested in pursuing her but Leila becomes more and more outraged when her husband openly entertains whores in their house and takes drugs. They quarrel a lot. Of course he claims that, somehow, it is still her fault. However, when he turns up so conveniently dead in their London house, it's Leila who has to face murder charges. The investigation is led by Comte d'Esmond, a man of many talents who not only moves easily within the highest levels of society but has also spent the past ten years as one of the government's most trusted and discreet covert operatives. Because of his skillful maneuvering  she is acquitted but she must help a quiet investigation, initiated by government officials. They fear the fallout from Francis's numerous blackmail and extortion schemes which were financing his bad habits - they could do irreversible damage to the ranks of careless statesmen and aristocrats alike.

The investigation promises to be lengthy and tedious. Neither Leila nor Esmond are particularly happy about his involvement in the case, as their relationship, since he orchestrated a meeting in Paris the year before, has been a tug-of-war between attraction and resistance. Esmond is a man with a dark and treacherous past, Leila has been gravely disappointed by her late husband. However, she knows she must find the culprit and clear her name if she wants to pursue her artistic career. Not to mention the fact that the murderer might be after her as well. Will they find who murdered Francis and for what reasons? What else will they discover during that process?

  

What  I liked:

This book was 70% mystery and 30% romance – that’s why I think I appreciated it more than an average romantic novel. We get here a mysterious death puzzle with plenty of viable and interesting suspects and secondary characters, two fascinating protagonists, a complex interrelationship and an escalating emotional and sexual tension (yes, in this exact order, not the other way round). I found it very well executed, not unlike plots in books of my favourite romance writer, Courtney Milan.

When it comes to the seduction – it was realistic. The whole situation could be described shortly this way: "the husband lusts after d'Esmond, who's after the wife, who only wants to be left alone to paint but somehow couldn’t get d’Esmond out of her head for a reason or two". A romantic triangle? Hardly. Most of  it takes part after the demise of dear Francis and very rightly so, that man was up to  no good.

Now some more about the mystery, revolving around Francis’ killer, and the main characters, trying to solve the said mystery.

The criminal puzzle, which takes up much more space than the romantic thread, is clever. Francis, a great baddie, was a real deviant who loved blackmailing people and made them dance to his own tune. He had so many enemies you are rather spoiled for choice. Reading about his exploits and strategies you start to admire his wife. You see, Leila is one of these heroines who develop before the eyes of the reader. Soon she becomes so much stronger and savvy that the frightened, drugged young girl, introduced at the very beginning. She is nicely rounded, has a depth and passion. She did love her husband at first but she couldn’t save him from his own demons. What’s more, she is so clearly Esmond's match, both of body and mind, that their inevitability as a couple with a satisfying HEA stretching out before them, became a given for me from almost the start. Both of them have scars and wounds to heal. Neither character wallows in their misfortune. The Comte is decidedly not as serene as he appears on the surface. Leila Beaumont has been emotionally damaged by her husband and can't trust men at all – as soon as she realizes how many secrets the Comte is keeping she knows she can't trust him either. And yet they have to work together and she slowly begins to unpick his story and find out more about him, much against his will. 

I was rather afraid, reading about the Big Misunderstanding that was trailed from about a third of the book, a bit silly plot device which is very often used and abused in such novels. Fortunately the author did something rather better with this than you would usually expect in this kind of fictional narration. 

What I didn’t like:

First let me tell you that I am simply puzzled by the cover art, presented above. We see a man with a very modern haircut peeping through some bed hangings or curtains; he's got a definite five o'clock shadow and completely hairless arms (waxed? shaved? both?). He certainly doesn't look like an Albanian masquerading as a French Count in 1829, who is described as having slightly overlong blonde hair  and amazingly sapphire blue eyes. He also doesn’t look like Francis Beaumont – his face is far too young and too fresh, without any those tell-tale symptoms of drug abuse. I really don’t understand who he is and what he is doing here - it seems as if the book got a cover from another story. 

Speaking about Albanians - I didn’t read the first part of this series so I might not know all the facts but it simply galled me that the omniscient narrator several times referred to Count d’Esmond  as a ‘barbarian’ or  wrote about his 'barbarian half'. It seems she did so to emphasize the fact that the man came from a very wild and exotic country, apparently full of man-eaters, dragons, vampires and such. I found it rather unjust. If it was said by other characters I would understand - at that time British people treated everything non-British as simply 'barbarian'. However, it was stated by that wretched omniscient narrator...and she should have known better. For example Francis was never called a barbarian because he was a British citizen who lived many years in Paris. It didn’t matter that he was clearly a sadist and a drug fiend, it didn’t matter that he loved to blackmail his victims and was not above exploiting them psychologically and sexually…but he was not a barbarian, he was British…hmmm…

Final verdict:

This one really exceeded my expectations in a very positive way. I caught myself several times thinking 'it is really good! how come it is so good?'  If you feel like reading a romance novel I highly recommend this one. You can always make a nice dust jacket out of a newspaper sheet and hide that stupid man on the cover.