Redbrunja Reading Update

[redbrunja]

I would really love some recommendations from my flist for either romance novels or books with a romantic subplot that you think that I will enjoy. Because my luck with books (and specifically romances) has been decidedly mixed, lately.

In order:

I made it about ten pages into The Chocolate Thief and no. Things I am not interested in:

• rhapsodic descriptions of Paris and the heroine longing to be accepted there


• orgasmic descriptions of chocolate when I’m trying to lose weight


• an arrogant alpha male who acts like a dick the first time he meets the heroine

So that’s going back to the library.

Then I read What Angels Fear, which I actually really, really enjoyed. It's a Regency murder mystery with a main character who's recently back from the war, where he was a spy. As much as I enjoyed it, though, I don't think I'll continue with the series. First, there was a lot of sexual violence in this book, and I know the next one will open with another dead girl. Secondly, while I really enjoyed the romanceand it ended on a good note for the couple, I know they break up later, so I'm going to spare myself some pain and stop now.

Also, I was excited enough about That Touch Of Magic (Lucy March) to buy it instead of waiting for the library to finish processing it and while the entertainment value was high, I was very disappointedthat the romance was between the heroine and “the love of her life” who cheated on her when he went to college and is now suddenly back in town. Because nothing says true love like getting back with the cheating ex you never got over. I was rooting for the other guy who was going to be evil. I called this in the third chapter, and then I skipped ahead to the end of the book (which I never, ever do) so I wouldn't spend the whole novel hoping I was wrong and then being disappointed. (I was totally right.)

Comments

[ancarett]

Have you read Julia Quinn's Bridgerton Regencies? I like all of those.

I have a friend here on LJ who's published two Regencies in the past year - Ashlyn Macnamara. They're A Most Scandalous Proposal and A Most Devilish Rogue.

I don't know if you'd like Deborah Harkness's paranormal All Souls trilogy with a heavy dose of historical magic (third book's due out this summer). I adore them.

There's an interesting steampunk series which I'm quite enjoying - Bec McMaster's London Steampunk which opens with Kiss of Steel. The women on the covers bear no resemblance to the women characters in the book but when I got back that, I really liked her romances and her plotty world-building that sustains itself across multiple books without feeling cliff-hangery.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

Okay, I put pretty much every one of those either on hold from the library or on my amazon wishlist. Thanks so much!