Just Say Yes, by Phillipa Ashley

After much anticipation, my little package from Amazon.co.uk arrived late last week. After a fun two to three day read, I've discovered a few things about Phillipa Ashley's writing. For one, her characters work in these great industries in some seriously fun locations. For another, it seems someone is always relocating, either to run away to or run from something. Unraveling the mystery of why they are running and then watching her characters try to figure out the backstories that make them so interesting is an integral part of her modus operandi. But this book goes a bit further, as it actually teaches a lesson on abusive relationships.

Lucy Gibson meets Nick (Bagel Boy) Laurentis, a would-be entrepreneur working in a sandwich shop (aptly named Love Bites). When Nick wins the top spot on an Apprentice like show (complete with a British Donald Trump look-a-like), Lucy's life is turned upside down, and the only one seeing what is truly happening is her author friend Fiona. Fiona tries to convince Lucy that Nick's treatment of her is controlling at best and abusive at worst. Lucy does not see it, but we do. And so will you. And when the final show-down (literally) occurs between Nick and Lucy, unlike tens of millions of viewers of Hot Shots, you'll be relieved. And that, without giving too much away, is the premise of this new novel.

Lucy is chased by the aftermath of her decision to Tresco Farms, a small holiday farm in Cornwall, where Fiona has a cottage. Assuming another identity so the paparazzi cannot find her, Lucy meets owner Josh Standring and his girlfriend Sara. (I must stop here and point out that fans of Richard Armitage will recognize a myriad of small references in this book that refer back to his acting career. They were fun to spot, and Josh's last name is the most obvious of those. But enough of Richard.) Lucy and Josh don't think much of each other at first, but that starts to change, and when Sara gets wind of it, she turns into pure evil, which is pure fun to watch.

Did I love the characters in this book? Yes and no. I absolutely loathe Nick, and Josh could stand to be a bit less morally upright, considering his background. I loved Lucy and Fiona, the latter because she sees things as they really are, and the former because even though she's caught up in something she can't control, she pulls herself out and makes something of her career and her life that she can be proud of.

There's a rather nice surprise at the end of this book that you won't see coming. I'll add two further observations without giving away the ending. When a guy tells you he doesn't like to be lied to, believe him. When he tells you there are no second chances, don't.

Phillipa Ashley's Just Say Yes follows in the footsteps of her earlier efforts. There's lovely bits of humor where you least expect them. It's also a page turner that leaves you with that feeling that you've spent some time with interesting people you would like to know yourself. I know that's exactly what I look forward to when I open a book.

Hearts and Minds by Rosy Thornton

Forrest Gump is my favorite movie. And you might well be thinking what does my favorite movie have anything to do with Rosy Thornton’s new novel, Hearts and Minds? Nothing really, except that I can’t help but think of that famous quote; you know, the one about life being like a box of chocolates. Before this book arrived in my mailbox, I wasn’t quite sure what I was going to get. But one week later, after devouring page after page, I can tell you that it was indeed a sweet surprise, eloquently written and beautifully told.

Hearts and Minds is a compelling story about the inside politics at a prestigious University steeped with history and tradition and, at times, crippled by both. The pivotal character is Dr. Martha Pierce, Senior Tutor at St. Radegund’s College, an all women’s institution, representative of one of the many separate colleges that comprise Cambridge University. Dr. Pierce is in many ways like many of us - a woman trying to find the elusive balance between work and home. While successful in her career, she is struggling with significant personal issues, including a clinically depressed teenage daughter, a severely underemployed spouse, and her own overwhelming sense of guilt. Professionally, she is a woman on the verge of enormous upheaval; her tenure as Senior Tutor has been extended temporarily beyond her third term in order to smooth the way for the new Head of House. But before this transition period is over, Martha will have to make some difficult decisions regarding her own career.

Just why would this transition require Martha to stay on past the end of her term? I’m very glad you asked. The answer would be James Rycarte, former BBC executive and first male Head of House. New to the world of academia, Rycarte stumbles through his first few months as Master of St. Radegund’s, dealing with an unfamiliar tangle of bureaucratic red tape and the blatantly open and sometimes hostile opposition to his presence at the college.

Throughout the book, Ms. Thornton paints these characters in perfect counterpoint. Rycarte is a man out of his element, stretching boundaries and his own personal limits while trying to win the respect of his colleagues, some of whom would very much like to see him pack up and leave. Martha, on the other hand, has been at St. Radegund’s for over twenty years. Confident and able, completely at ease in the institution, respected by all, Martha is the one faculty member Rycarte can turn to for support and guidance. Interestingly, just as James finally finds his footing, Martha’s own world seems to fall apart.

Ms. Thornton’s writing is eloquent and descriptive with intricately drawn images and richly expressive dialogue. As an American, I do admit to needing the first two chapters to find a rhythm, but then I was happily off and running, despite my own limited exposure to the Queen’s English. I also found the setting absolutely fascinating and Ms. Thornton’s descriptions of it prompted me to spend several contented evenings on my own discovering more about Cambridge.

So, life is indeed like a box of chocolates. And sometimes, just sometimes, you are lucky enough to open a box and find it has all of your very favorites.

Hearts and Minds is a must read.

Treat yourself.

Decent Exposure, by Phillipa Ashley

I love a good contemporary romance, and this book is a perfect example of why I love them so much. In fact, I loved both books I’ve read by this author, and can’t wait to read her new release, Just Say Yes. But I’m getting ahead of myself, as I’ll next review Wish You Were Here, after I re-read it (no hardship there, believe me).

This is the story of Emma Tremayne, an erstwhile Londoner exiled to Cumbria due to circumstances mostly beyond her control (well, except for a tossed smoothie, but who’s counting). Emma finds herself the PR person in the local tourist board of Bannerdale, a picturesque town, complete with lakes, mountains and plenty of wayward tourists and locals lost in the hills, needing to be rescued by the Bannerdale Mountain Rescue Team. Will Tennant is a member of said team. He’s also a philanthropist, entrepreneur and a hottie.

Emma’s task is to raise funds for a new base for the Rescue Team. Her idea is to get those mountain men to pose for a nude calendar, the proceeds of which will be used to help fund the base. Emma and Will butt heads immediately on the idea. Will’s resistant, but agrees to become Mr. July.

This sets up the story of these two individuals. Ms. Ashley layers these characters with back stories that pretty much keep them apart for most of the book. The sexual and emotional tension is so high that you just cannot stop turning the pages. What happened to Emma and her last boyfriend and her boss to make her so distrustful of men and so reluctant to get involved with a client? What happened to Will and his former fiancee to warrant his reputation as a serial seducer? Can we believe what we first hear about him, or is this man more than what he seems, in a good way? Will these two get together and stay together? And is there another love scene (sorry, had to ask)?

Ms. Ashley writes Emma as a strong, independent woman with a vulnerability born of her experience that makes her insecurity so believable and so pathetic at times that we can't help but feel sorry for her. Will is edgy, secretive and so magnetic as he decides to let go of his past and take a chance on a new relationship, afraid of getting hurt, but not being able to help himself. We are let in on Emma’s past fairly quickly, but Will’s remains a secret until the last quarter of the book. This allows us to experience that boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl back formula that is so necessary to a good romance. It’s the plot device that keeps us hooked. And it makes that last page so darn satisfying.

Ms. Ashley can tell a contemporary story. Her writing is descriptive, and her dialogue is crisp and very, very funny in places least expected. Will’s calendar picture and Emma’s response to it was priceless. And there was one line about a beeper in a pocket that had me laughing out loud.

Read this book. If you are a fan of contemporary romance, you won’t be disappointed. Emma and Will had me at hello.

A Perfect Gentleman by Barbara Metzger

What can I say? If I like a restaurant, I go back. Many, many times. So it is with authors. And Barbara Metzger is like my favorite New Jersey diner; I know exactly what's on the menu.

In A Perfect Gentleman, Ms. Metzger finds the winning recipe once again as she matches up a poor but well-meaning, services-to-let peer with a headstrong heiress in charge of the family business. Aubrey, Viscount Wellstone ("Stony" to his friends), is barely keeping it together, his father having gambled away the family fortune, leaving Stony several crumbling family homes, a spendthrift young stepmother and a pile of debt. Fortunately, Wellstone is nothing if not pragmatic and has managed to find a way to acquire some much needed funds; he finds himself self employed as a ladies' escort, sought after by the wealthy men of the Polite World to squire sisters, daughters and wives to events they themselves would rather not attend. Stony, at all times the perfect gentleman, does well in this endeavor until one of his friends, handling the business overflow, compromises a young deb. With his own reputation in shreds, it's back to square one for Wellstone, until a note from Miss Ellianne Kane arrives. Miss Kane is beautiful and rich and needs Stony's services to help solve a very personal mystery.

Coincidently, I like my eggs fried and my heroes flawed. And while I’m not sure how Ellianne takes her eggs, I can tell you that she also appreciates Stony’s shortcomings. Now add in a sense of humor, a sense of honor and a sensuous smile and you have the makings of some very satisfying fare. This book is a fast paced, hilarious romp through Regency London's drawing rooms, ballrooms and morgues. Yes, I did say morgues. And, no, I’m not going to explain. Suffice it to say that the story line holds an element of the macabre, and as Stony will attest, may not be for those with a weak constitution. But don’t let that aspect deter you from experiencing one of the best Barbara Metzger novels I have read so far.

This one is well done.

The Beautiful Stranger, by Julia London

The last book in the Rogues of Regent Street series, The Beautiful Stranger was read during a break from the Outlander series. Outlander, however, was never too far away. When I started reading this particular book, lo and behold, there was a Jamie, a Fraser, a story set in the Highlands of Scotland and plenty of Sassenach, verras, lassies and lads to keep me warm until I finished it and could get back to the other Jamie. I was, briefly, a happy camper!

The story revolves around Lord Arthur Christian. One of the three surviving Rogues, he is handed the task of foreclosing and recouping a financial investment made on Scottish farm part-owned by his deceased friend, Phillip, Lord Rothembow. Of course, the farm is in the Highlands, so seeking a change of venue from London, he travels North to discuss terms with the lawyer involved in the sale (the other Jamie) and the original owner of the farm himself (the other Fraser), who, unbeknown to Arthur, is recently deceased.

On the way, he literally runs into the widow of Fraser McKinnon (Kerry, just Kerry, thank you very much) who is literally stranded on the road to the farm. Neither Arthur nor Kerry have any idea that Arthur is about to foreclose on the very property Kerry is fighting to keep. Sounds good, aye??

It is, up until this point.

The characters’ attraction to each other is so palpable that it basically blows off the page right at you. Arthur has never met anyone like Kerry, but knows that she is not what he is looking for in a wife. She is geographically undesirable, so to speak, and she’s a farmer's wife, and Scottish to boot, a nationality Arthur has no love for after spending some time among the natives. May I add that the Scots Arthur encounters have no love for Arthur either, calling him a lobsterback and a Sassenach. You get the picture. So what is Arthur to do when he realizes he has stumbled upon the very property he is foreclosing on? He leaves without telling Kerry that he is the one doing the evicting, trying to reverse the process before it's too late. It would have been smart of Arthur to inform Kerry why he was leaving, but then the book would have ended right there; an attractive alternative considering what happens next.

When Arthur realizes that Kerry actually knows about the eviction, he rushes back to Glenbaden in time to witness Kerry do something that will make both of them fugitives from Scottish law.

So, on to England they go. This part of the novel is the typical fish out of water story of Kerry adjusting to life in the ton, helped along by the other Rogues’ wives. I’d like to say that there is something different here, but unfortunately, I’ve read stories with this theme many times before. The difference here is that Cinderella does not exactly get to dazzle at the ball, but decides to return to the pumpkin and face the reason she had to leave Scotland in the first place.

This book does have the requisite ingredients of the typical historical romance, but it’s not one of Julia London’s best efforts. It’s almost like she got to the last Rogue and decided to “mail it in”, shall we say.

The Beautiful Stranger is a quick, diversionary read, but it falls a bit below this author’s other efforts. Read it to finish the Rogue series, but don’t expect to love it. Poor Arthur. He deserved better.

An Early Engagement by Barbara Metzger

Stop the presses.

I read a book and thoroughly enjoyed it.

What’s so unusual about that, you say? I’m an easy sell, you think. I like almost all of the books I read, you remember. Well, time to revise your preconceived notions about me.

This book was completely sans smut.

Shocked? I knew you would be.

This story is so engaging and well-written that I didn’t even mind the omission. There is interesting character development, a fair amount of intrigue and suspense, enough English history to supply a realistic background setting, and lots of sexual tension to make up for the lack of actual…well, the real thing.

Everett Stockton, Viscount Stokely is introduced to his betrothed at age six. The lady in question, Lady EmilyAnn Arcott, is barely six months old. This tidy arrangement is their fathers’ idea, a marriage destined to unite a duke’s only daughter and an earl’s first born son for the monetary benefit of both families.

But as they say, things happen and the alliance between the two families is all but forgotten as the youngsters, although fast and furious friends growing up, are separated by boarding school, military service and unfortunate family circumstance. It is only when Lady EmilyAnn finds herself in desperate straights does she seek help from her childhood hero. And Captain Lord Stokely, the gentleman and real-life hero that he is, comes valiantly to her rescue, taking pity on the poor disheveled ragamuffin, all of sixteen, standing before him.

The plot thickens; the ensuing marriage between these two is unconventional, to say the least. Sparrow (Everett’s nickname for EmilyAnn) is left to oversee the restoration of Smokey’s (EmilyAnn’s nickname for Everett) estate and coffers, using her own money, stubborn determination and a knack for finding good investments. The Captain, now a Major, is off fighting Bonaparte, his pride sorely bruised at having his inheritance maintained and his family managed by his hoydenish child-bride. But there are a few surprises in store for Smokey upon his return to England. And that’s when the fun really begins.

I cheered for the Lady and I lusted after the Lord (my typical pattern, I’m not ashamed to admit) and I turned page after page, not able to put the book down. Barbara Metzger’s writing is flawless and I enjoyed her style immensely. I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking for something joyous to read. Even without the sex.

Aren’t you proud?

Finding Grace by Sarah Pawley

I've shifted gears a bit and left behind Regency England for post World War 1 America, the setting of Sarah Pawley's debut novel.

Our story is of Grace Langdon, a sixteen year old girl living on her family's farm in rural Virginia. The only daughter out of six children, a girl wasn't worth much in those days. Grace is full of romantic ideas from her constant reading of novels, especially Jane Eyre and Pride and Prejudice, and insists she will only marry for love. She longs to get away and live a real life- not one where she is expected to marry and bear many children while disappearing into the background under her husband's thumb. The ladies of the community already talk behind her back because she is unmarried at sixteen; their opinion of her being she is almost an old maid. The women of this time in much of the country answered to their husbands, and had no control over their own destiny. Grace is determined not to be one of those women. She knows out there is another life for her, where she can be free of the day to day back-breaking labor she is forced to endure, and live her life as she pleases. But that is a long way off, or so she thinks.

Enter Charlie- an old childhood friend who has returned when his father lay dying. Charlie is charming and handsome, having just returned from the war, and Grace wonders if she might have found a man she could love, and who would love her as she is, and not as a wife who heels to her husband. She is learns the hard way he is not that kind of man, but one like most- insisting a wife do his bidding. Not surprisingly her father arranges for Grace to marry Charlie, to which is vehemently refuses. Life on the farm becomes horrible after her refusal, and before they can force her into a marriage against her will, she packs up her belongings and catches the train to Chicago, and her older brother and his wife. Her older brother Jack fell out with the family when he married the revolutionary Alice and rejected the old ways of his community, and time has not healed the breach.

Grace arrives in Chicago alone and meets handsome theater owner Henry Shaw and his drama queen star of the show/mistress Victoria (a divorced actress living with Henry...how scandalous!) at Union Station accientally. Grace asks for his help to find her brother, who just happens to live across the street from Henry. Grace is greeted with open arms by Jack and Alice, and here starts the transformation of Grace into a modern woman, in a very modern city. It's fun to learn how Grace adapts to the modern conveniences of life- refrigerator, gas stove, really anything that doesn't require coal burning constantly and is powered by gas! During this, Grace is drawn to Henry, despite his aloofness and rudeness towards her, and Henry is drawn to her youthful freshness and outlook on life. With an overprotective brother looking over her shoulder, and a sister in law who encourages her independence, Grace is changed from a quiet girl from the country into an almost confident lady of the city who is falling in love. She is growing up. Grace and Henry become closer as she goes to work for him after Victoria leaves for Hollywood; her jealously of Grace too much for her. A secret relationship starts, with Grace learning to trust in Henry, and he doing the same while trying not to order her around. It makes for some comical scenes between the two. Of course, all cannot stay lovely forever, and out of the blue tragedy strikes in the form of Charlie and his old fashioned state of mind towards women. Grace learns much about herself and what she can handle through all this, and follows her heart towards the path to happiness.

This novel was so lovely- I cried at the treatment Grace suffered from her parents, her hopeful love Charlie, and then her parents again! I simply adored Alice and Jack- for who could be more perfect than them for a brother and sister in law? I absolutely fell in love with Henry and his vulnerability underneath his proud exterior. The author describes the harshness of 1920's rural Virginia in vivid detail, and leaves nothing out when it comes to the lack of cars and the abundance of horses and buggies. Grace and Henry are written quite thoroughly and their emotions are portrayed beautifully. Chicago is captured perfectly as a modern city in the roaring 1920's, with prohibition going strong. I found nothing lacking in the plot, and all in all it makes for a wonderful read. Sarah Pawley's writing is very descriptive and flows beautifully; I had no problems at all feeling as if I was right next to Grace as she fed the chickens! Very gorgeous! Well worth picking up!