Try, Try, and Try again.

Try (tried): A Dangerous Beauty.



Saw this one over on Sybil's blog and it looked interesting. It wasn't quite the success for me. I liked the hero, he was different. We saw him behaving in an eccentric way. And I really liked his wit, but I think we got short-changed with his characterization in the parts we were 'told' backstory in dialogue, etc. Same where we're 'told' the heroine was impetuous. She's only really impetuous once.

There were other inconsistencies (like a door being locked with a key, then someone coming into the room), or anachronisms in word choice (at one point the heroine tells the hero "I don't see a ring on this finger") and I felt like the book had been heavily edited/revised in places, but the parts didn't quite come back together as smoothly has they should. Also, I didn't quite "feel" the *heat* between the H/h. You know, that little dip you get in your belly, that little bubble of anticipation, when you're reading about some interaction them. I'll call this the Linda Howard Effect (LHE). lol. The LHE was not really achieved here, and I noticed every time it missed the mark.

I also really liked the author's voice, it was "off" a bit, but in a good way, it gave distinction to her voice. Voice is big with me, something in the phrasing, word choices, and sentence structure; the rhythm and pattern. In a way it's poetry. It's skill, and it draws me in, all by itself. So, I *really* like her voice. I honestly thought this was a first book, but it isn't, the author is an award winning writer. I did finish this book in one sitting though, probably due to seeing how the hero would develop and the author's voice, but in all honestly, I started skimming at some point. I once read Madeline Hunter’s The Romantic simple because of the hero, and that book is on my keeper shelf. This hero didn't work out that way; he didn't achieve the depths I was looking for. Quite simply, I didn't fall in love with him, and I wanted to.

Yanno (tm) I didn't mean to write a review on this one. I don't regret the time I spent reading it, I just regret that it didn't ultimately end up on my keeper shelf. One more thing, the title, “A Dangerous Beauty” is pretty evocative, but I don’t feel the tone of this book suited the title. The h/H’s looks didn’t really play a big part in the story, nor did either of them feel dangerous in general, or dangerous specifically to each other in terms of ‘peace of mind’, etc.

Try

Carla Cassidy's Are You Afraid?



Anne has suggested this author to me each time I've mentioned I was looking for a good Romantic-suspense. I decided to go with one book at first because I brought back some recent purchases to the store after realizing the author's voice wasn't working for me.



Try, again


Amie loves Dean Koontz. So she'll be happy to know I'm giving the loquacious Mr. Koontz another try with his latest release, The Husband.



I think I know what's happening with my reading lately, I'm gravitating to the rom-suspense, because it gives me more plot, and "different" (more flawed?) characters, language and situations than I find in the average romance, but without the "trap"pings of some paranormals (soul mates etc). On the other hand, I really, really, love and need that pure character driven romance. I want the magic of the emotional ride, and the excitement of the sexual tension, without being overcome by detailed scene after detailed scene of lovemaking used as a poor substitute for plot and character.

*sigh*