First up this week is Debra Mullins's Just One Touch (Avon). Lady Caroline Ware's rescue from thieves by Rogan Hunt is just what her ailing father needed--someone to marry his daughter to protect her from her cousin, his heir. Caroline has issues from her past that make a normal marriage difficult, and Rogan has a temper that doesn't help. I wanted to like this one a lot more than I did, but for me, it was just okay, not a keeper. I liked Caroline more than I did Rogan, and if you can't fall in love with the hero, that's a problem for some readers. This one's earned three of Cupid's five arrows.
Next is Sharon Sobel's Lady Larkspur Declines (Signet Regency), with Lady Larkspur faking an illness so being jilted by her fiance doesn't seem as bad. Doctor Benedict Queensman, however, is not fooled, though he doesn't give away her secret. Regency fans may like this one, though the constant pretense of frailty may wear on you.
Jocelyn Kelley's A Knight like No Other (Signet Eclipse) is next, with Avisa de Vere one of many young women training as knights in an abbey established by Eleanor of Aquitaine. Her first duty outside the abbey is to protect Christian Lovell, though he doesn't know it. I couldn't quite suspend disbelief enough for this one, though it's an interesting premise. If you're looking for something different, you might want to check it out. For me, though, it's not a keeper--and if you prefer a lot of steam, you may be disappointed--so I'm only giving it three arrows.
Finally, we have Ruth Ryan Langan's Ashes of Dreams (Berkley). Cole Donnelly and his son Devin have come at just the right time for widow Amanda Jeffrey. They need food and shelter, and she needs help with her farm. This is another sweet story, though not entirely convincing in the romance end of things. I'd figured out the slight mystery long before the reveal, so that came as no shock. This one is also not a keeper for me. It's earned only three arrows as well.
Until next time, happy reading.
