Romance Book Reviews
Page Two of TwoThe Proposition by Judith Ivory
Avon, Dec., 1999.Paperback, 374 pages.
ISBN: 0380802600.
Ordering information:
Amazon.com.
In Victorian London, Lady Edwina
Henrietta Bollash teaches elocution to young
ladies who are in need of a bit of polishing. She
has had to make her way after her father, the Marquess
of Sissingly, died unexpectedly and her despicable cousin inherited that
title, all the money and the dukedom, to boot. Xavier, now
the Duke of Arles, promptly cast Edwina adrift without a penny;
all she now owns is her father's townhome
in London and her elocution business which
pays her modest bills. When the Lamont brothers
offer her a generous fee to turn London rat catcher Mick Tremore
into a gentleman in six weeks (in time to pass him off as an
aristocrat at
Xavier's annual ball for a wager), she
accepts. Mick takes to his language lessons with
astonishing speed, but it's his dazzling sensuality and
forward manner that have Edwina's heart aflutter.
But how can she entertain the idea of love with
a rat catcher -- even a devastatingly handsome, kind and
entertaining one?
The Proposition will sweep readers off their feet with its bold sensuality, heartfelt emotion and genuine good humor. Judith Ivory has taken the story of Pygmalion (from which came the film My Fair Lady) and given it a delightful twist. The writing is clear, clean and very sexy. With a very unusual heroine (she's six feet tall and not terribly pretty with great legs) and one of the most charismatic heroes to come along in quite awhile, this is one book you'll simply devour. Highly Recommended.
A Rogue's Proposal by Stephanie Laurens
Avon, Oct., 1999.Paperback, 406 pages.
ISBN: 0380805693.
Ordering information:
Amazon.com.
The Bar Cynster is the informal name given in the
family to the six, extremely handsome cousins.
The Bar Cynster members are known for their
way with the ladies and their strong aversion to
being tied down. But three members have already
succumbed to matrimony (See,
Devil's Bride,
A Rake's Vow and Scandal's Bride), and
Harry "Demon" Cynster is determined not to be
the next victim. So he leaves the whirl of parties
of London's ton, and heads off to his stables at
Newmarket. But there he finds Felicity Pargeter,
ward of his next door neighbor, masquerading as one
of his stable boys. Intrigued, he corners her and demands
an explanation. Felicity (or Flick as she is called) is
investigating a race-fixing syndicate which has ensnared
her ward's son. Demon offers to help, and the two join
forces. But Demon soon finds that, although Felicity is
young, she is far from passive, and that if he wants a wife
(which to his great distress he finds that he does), he'll have to
turn over his heart with no strings attached -- or the deal is off.
This is the fourth book in Stephanie Laurens' wildly popular Bar Cynster series. With the passion that is her trademark and a lively heroine, Laurens builds a story which is both sigh-out-loud romantic and quite entertaining. One can't help but smile as yet another handsome and powerful Cynster man throws away all his cynical ideas about love and walks down the aisle with the woman he adores. We can hardly wait to read about Gabriel and Lucifer's stories.
Return to the December 1999 issue of The IWJ.
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