Date with the Devil by Olivia Rupprecht

Date With the Devil by Olivia Rupprecht

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


1st Reread completed between June 30th and July 17th on Kindle Text-to-Speech.

I read this years ago in the print version from Loveswept, and I still have this copy. This was one of my favorites, and it's an excellent example of the stranded/marooned/survival romance theme.

Sterling and Deidre are stranded on a deserted island in the middle of the Bermuda Triangle.  Sterling saves Deidre's life by towing her on the shore and giving her mouth-to-mouth.  Sterling is a rough and ready ex-soldier who is experienced in survival and is also aspiring to be a ninja. In this book, ninja principles are a lofty goal for a person, kind of like the bushido principles/Way of the Samurai.  Sterling is very attracted to Deidre from the beginning, wages a constant battle between his lusty desires and the higher principles of his calling.  Deidre has been very sheltered, living in the shadow of her parent's unattainable aspirations for her, and hiding in books and working in a librarian.  Her experience on the island is the first time she's truly loved.  As to be expected, living in primal nature brings out the most basic and elemental natures in a person and also hones them into true survivors.  In the case of these two people, they find a powerful and intense love that will make an unbreakable bond between them, despite the secrets that Sterling keeps.

I really appreciated the tidbits on survival on an island.  Enough to feel realistic. And something that many books don't address but all women under a certain age have to think about every month.  The solution was pretty ingenious.

Let me say, if a woman doesn't like a man with, shall we say, bossy tendencies, Sterling would not be the man to be stranded with. However, this man knows his stuff, and he would definitely keep you alive and well. 

Rupprecht (who goes by Mallory Rush these days) definitely knows how to write sexual tension.  I mean, wow!  The buildup between this couple is explosive, and when they do the deed, it's a satisfying payoff.  She also deals with the emotional consequences of being stranded with another person, the bonds that form and the fact that it changes you. It's not like you can just go back to a normal life when you are rescued. You are changed too much. When Sterling's obligations come to light, Deidre has to face the pain of knowing that their life on the island can't continue exactly the way she wanted. But she has to believe in the true love between them and trust that a man like Sterling (his name tells you all you need to know) is honor bound to do the right thing, no matter how hard it is.

Although the Text-to-Speech is robotic sounding, it was still an enjoyable experience to listen to this book as I waited to fall asleep at night.  I could vividly picture what their life was like on the island, and the passage about the ghost ship was very eerie.

This book stands up to a reread. While there are a few dated aspects, overall, it's still a fantastic book, and definitely a keeper for me.



View all my reviews

Coming Home for Christmas by Carla Kelly

Coming Home for Christmas: A Christmas in Paradise\O Christmas Tree\No Crib for a Bed by Carla Kelly
My rating: 4.25 of 5 stars

Spending Christmas with three generations of the same family written by Carla Kelly was an enriching experience. Ms. Kelly explored the way that war affects families during wartimes. In the case of the Wilkie-Warton family, all three generations of the family have met during a war and married. I liked how Ms. Kelly took the very depressing concept of war and loss and used it as a backdrop to romances in development, and in a way that felt realistic and involved me emotionally. I especially appreciated how each story read differently, but was no less enthralling.

My thoughts on each story:

1812: A Christmas in Paradise: This story resonated personally with me because I lived in San Diego for six years, and it did feel a bit like being in paradise, although there were also some less desirable aspects about it. No, I wasn't shipwrecked there, a Scot in a strange land of perpetual warm weather, fish galore, and lots of Spanish/Mexican culture. But I think that I can identify with most of those things I listed. What I loved the most about this story was the earnest good-heartedness of the hero, Thomas. He is a Navy surgeon who genuinely cares about people. While human, that caring part of him motivated him to do the right thing and offer marriage to Laura Ortiz, who was truly in desperate straits. That marriage works out very well for them both, as they find true love. I admit one part made me cry like a baby. I'm sappy like that.

1855: O Christmas Tree : I don't have the pleasure of reading too many books set during the Crimean War, but this is one of them. That alone was one more advantage of this story. Added to this was the beautiful friends-to-lovers story between widowed Lilian, the daughter of Laura and Thomas from the first story, and an American Army Corps of Engineers officer, Trey Wharton. I loved how shy Trey was. He was constantly blushing, although he had a good sense of humor and a warm way about him. I wanted to give him a hug. I was glad that these two people found each other in a war-torn landscape where they saw too many bad things that weighed on their souls. I also like the unique way that they were able to bring and celebrate Christmas with the wounded soldiers and the Sisters who worked in the hospital. It had a bit of the "Gift of the Magi" by O Henry vibe to it. This one made me tear up as well. Yes, sap here!

1877: No Crib for a Bed: Ms. Kelly takes the reader and Captain Wilkie Wharton, Lilian's son to the Old West, where this Army surgeon sees the aftermath of the Indian Wars in a very personal way. He's asked to escort a regained Indian captive white woman back to her people in Iowa. Only Nora doesn't want to go, because she has to leave her children behind, since their father was Indian. His heart hurts for her, but he doesn't have a choice otherwise. Along with Wilkie is Frannie Coughlin, a cheerful teacher in Fort Laramie, who is also traveling back East. They find a companionship together that is problematic, considering that Wilkie has a fiancee' waiting for him back home. When Wilkie delivers a baby from a dying mother with Frannie's assistance, both realize there is no going back when that strong a bond forms between two people. Yes, again this one made me cry. I felt so bad for Nora. To think that they were forcibly separating her from her own children because they were half-Indian and she wasn't. I couldn't imagine the pain she was in. Also the newborn baby was so cute. Yes, my sap quotient goes up even more. The romance part was good too.

Overall Thoughts: Carla Kelly successfully writes a trio of books that are interconnected in an ingenious way, all around the theme of wartime, medicine and Christmas away from home. Each one touched me in different ways, and I just plain like and respect her characters. They are all grounded and realistic people in the best of ways. While I didn't finish this one before or during Christmas, but in fact, three days afterwards, I still love immersing myself in the Christmas spirit, and this book provides that feeling in spades, along with a great romance.

For that, I give it 4.25/5.0 stars.



View all my reviews

Rebellious Rake, Innocent Governess by Elizabeth Beacon

Rebellious Rake, Innocent Governess by Elizabeth Beacon

My rating: 3.75 of 5 stars


I enjoyed reading this book. I think the writing style probably wouldn't work for everyone, but it has a trad regency feel that I like in a regency romance.



Unfortunately, the title and blurb are a bit misleading. The hero, Ben, really isn't that much of a rake. He's illegitimate, and that has affected him so that he doesn't 'spread his seed' liberally. He has affairs, but he is discreet about it and careful to take precautions. Charlotte is a virgin, but she's not as young and naive as the title conveys. She's five and twenty, very intelligent, and tough-minded, and she holds her own.



I thought the chemistry between Ben and Charlotte was a big plus in this story. They do a lot of verbal sparring. Charlotte has been attracted to Ben since they first met, but she doesn't want to be. Ben feels the same way, much to her surprise. She had determined that she would stay a spinster and devote her life to educating young women. She had no desire to marry. And Ben isn't a marrying man anyway. The last thing she'd do is be any man's mistress. If you're like me and you hate the whole mistress angle, don't worry. Actually, Ben doesn't hold any dishonorable intentions seriously. He knows better. He actually turns out to be quite honorable. For many reasons, I just didn't see him as a rake, which is a good thing for me.



There is a bit of suspense, but it's not the major part of the storyline. However, there were things that occurred in the previous books that were discussed and alluded to that left me in the dark regarding the suspense angle. Not enough to frustrate me or spoil the read though. I'm not real big on suspense being too prominent in a romance book, so I was happy that the focus is on the sparring/chase/advance/retreat between Ben and Charlotte. There are some passionate kisses and a well-done love scene, and the author shows very clearly that they are both crazy about each other. I believe the author did a good job in keeping this story period. There was enough sexual tension to make this a lively romance, but the characters acted as people of their times in how they conducted themselves (very important for this reader).



I think that the narrative relies a bit too heavily on internal dialogue, and less on actual conversation and action, and that would be a negative for some readers. I would have liked more of both, but overall, I thought this was a good read. I enjoyed it, and I had a smile on my face as I finished the epilogue, which was very sweet.



I've give this book a 3.75/5.0 stars because I thought it was good entertainment, and I really liked both Ben and Elizabeth. And I am a sucker for a good spinster/bachelor sparring and fighting their feelings for each other romance. I'd recommend it with reservations as expressed above.



View all my reviews