Book Review: Slightly Sinful by Mary Balogh

Synopsis: Slightly Sinful is the fifth novel in Mary Balogh's Bedwyn family series of regency romances. This is Alleyne's story. He's the youngest Bedwyn brother and he's just embarked on a career with the British embassy in Brussels. On a mission to deliver a letter from Wellington at the front lines of the battle of Waterloo, Alleyne is shot. He falls from his horse and lay unconscious and dying, stripped naked by pilferers, in the woods outside Brussels. It is there that orphaned lady's maid Rachel York finds him.

Rachel has her own set of problems: She, along with a group of kindly prostitutes she has been trying to help, has been swindled by a man posing as a charitable man of the cloth. The villain has cheated them of all of their savings and fled to England; the women want their money back (and some revenge) - but first they have to get hold of enough money to get them back to England. Since she has been denied access to her inheritance by her uncle, a man she has not seen since childhood, Rachel has no money or family of her own. The women decide (along with half the city's population) to loot bodies in the aftermath of the battle in order to gather enough money for passage to England. However, Rachel finds that she doesn't have the stomach (or conscience) for the job. When she comes across Alleyne's unconscious body in the woods, she brings him back to the brothel and nurses him back to health.

When Alleyne regains consciousness, he finds that he's died and gone to heaven: he's being nursed by four whores and one beautiful angel (our Rachel). The only trouble is, he can't remember who he is. A warm friendship forms between the ladies and their handsome patient, and they all end up concocting a scheme wherein Rachel and Alleyne pose as a married couple in order to deceive Rachel's uncle into giving them her inheritance. But pretending to be married is more difficult than they first realize: their feelings for one another grow and they find themselves longing to make the marriage a real one, only Alleyne still has no idea of who he really is or whether he is already married to someone else.

The action in this book overlaps that of Morgan's story in Slightly Tempted. All the time Morgan thinks he is dead, he is really just a few blocks away, convalescing in a house of ill repute. I really enjoyed this book. I liked Alleyne's character from the previous books - he was the handsome, fun-loving, jokesy Bedwyn. I have always thought the amnesia plot device is pretty cheesy and very soap opera-esque. However, I was able to take it in stride in this book - probably because Mary Balogh is such a good writer. I actually got caught up in it. It was hard to see Alleyne so unhappy in this book, struggling to figure out who he was and how to deal with his feelings for Rachel when he was really not at liberty to make a commitment to her.

I liked Rachel also. Probably what I liked most about her was the changes she went through learning to let go of her feelings of hurt and bitterness toward her uncle. She comes to love him in spite of herself. The secondary characters of this novel were pretty entertaining, although I thought the concept of four "hookers with a heart of gold" a bit of a stretch. Everything worked out a little too neatly with one of them being a master cook, one a master gardener, two of them passing off as gentle ladies, etc. However, romance novels are a kind of fantasy and it is still satisfying to see everything tied up in a neat little package at the end.

Another interesting thing about this book is that Alleyne pretty much falls in love with Rachel at first sight. I don't always buy into that kind of thing, but in this book I think it worked pretty well. At first, he falls in love with her as a sort of savior/angel and then they develop a true friendship over the weeks of his recovery. He finally comes to love her more fully as they spend time together as a "married couple."

My favorite parts of this book, though, were the scenes at the end when Alleyne regains his memory and returns home to Lindsey Hall. The romance in the story was nice, but I felt that the entire novel was really moving toward the final point of Alleyne's reunion with the Bedwyns. There was an overall feeling of anticipation throughout the entire novel, growing more intense toward the end, when he is finally reunited with his family. And, yet again, the best bit was when Wulfric sees him again for the first time and hugs him.

I gave this book 4 stars in my LibraryThing catalog.

Jane Austen series to air on Masterpiece Theater

In the coming weeks, PBS will be airing Masterpiece: The Complete Jane Austen. They will show film adaptations of ALL SIX of Jane Austen's novels (*drool) on a weekly basis beginning on Sunday, January 13th. According to my local PBS station's schedule, the first one to air will be Persuasion and the second one will be Northanger Abbey. I have never seen a film version of Northanger Abbey before, so I'm particularly excited about that one.

Book Review: Slightly Tempted - by Mary Balogh

Synopsis: Slightly Tempted is the fourth novel in the Bedwyn family series of regency romances by Mary Balogh. This novel tells the story of the youngest Bedwyn sibling, Morgan. Only 18 years old, she is already a bit jaded to the frivolities of ton life. When she is offered the chance to accompany a friend's family to Brussels on the eve of the renewal of war with France, she cannot pass it up. She is truly interested and concerned in the business of the brewing war. Meanwhile, the handsome Gervase Ashford (the newly minted Earl of Rosthorn) is mouldering away in Brussels. Having been exiled for 9 years from England by his father for crimes he didn't commit, Gervase is thrilled to run into Morgan, the very sister of the man he blames for much of his troubles. He plans to seek revenge upon Wulfric Bedwyn by seducing his sister and generating a scandal. He has only begun to succeed at his plans, flirting shamelessly with her on numerous occasions, etc., when the battle of Waterloo erupts.

While most young aristocratic women are content to stay at home safely behind closed doors, Morgan boldly ventures out to the city gates to help others treat and care for the wounded soldiers pouring into the city - all despite her own fears for her brother, Alleyne, who has been commissioned by the embassy to take an important missive to the front lines of battle. It is at the city gates where Gervase finds her tending the wounded and offers to go look for her brother. When Alleyne cannot be found, Gervase tries to comfort and aid Morgan, offering her friendship and support. The two become true friends over the next several days as Morgan continues to tend the wounded while holding out hope of her brother's return. Finally, news arrives that confirms that Alleyne must surely have died at the battle, and Morgan turns to her dear friend for comfort in a night of passion. She will not marry him though, so he compromises by escorting her back to England to break the news to her family. They find that their scandalous behavior in Brussels has been reported in London, and Gervase has unwittingly had his revenge against his enemy Wulfric after all. Only by then, he doesn't want revenge, he only wants Morgan. And when she learns the truth about his motives on first meeting her in Belgium, she does not believe that she can trust him again. In her anger, she vows to go through a mock-betrothal only to make him fall in love with her and then cruelly abandon him.

Like so many good books, it is really hard to do this story justice. I absolutely loved this book. I loved the two main characters, I loved the setting, and I loved the struggles the characters went through.

I just love it when the characters are as dynamic as these two. They both change over the course of the story. Morgan discovers some of the real world from which those around her have tried to shelter her all her life. She is awakened to many harsh, bitter realities. At the same time, she discovers a deep feeling of friendship with Gervase, something she has never had before. I also think Gervase is a great hero. He, too is jaded - but for different reasons. He has been terribly wronged in his past, and cannot see beyond his need for revenge. With gentle guidance from Morgan, Gervase learns to forgive and let go of his desire for revenge. And through teaching Gervase about forgiveness, Morgan herself learns to forgive.

Of course, the scenes with the other Bedwyns were great also. I got really caught up in Morgan's desperate hope for Alleyne to be found, even though I knew that he wouldn't. And then watching the family mourn the loss of their brother was really heartbreaking. Especially Wulfric. You get a few more glimpses of Wulf's backstory in this book - as well as a glimpse of his hidden vulnerability as he grieves for his brother. I am looking forward to reading his story in Slightly Dangerous.

Favorite parts: When Gervase keeps riding out of Brussels to look for Morgan's brother. She is the sister of his age-old enemy, and yet he devotes himself to doing whatever he can to serve her. It reminded me of Darcy's devotion to Elizabeth in Pride and Prejudice when he searches London for the evil Wickham and then fixes everything - all so that Elizabeth won't be hurt. It's a mark of how much Gervase really cared for Morgan.

I also really liked the part where Morgan shows Gervase the painting by the river and he understands that the painting is about how the trees and the water and everything else in the world are all connected. He asks if he can keep the painting and says: "I will hang it in my bedchamber so that I may see it every day. After you have broken my heart and left me, I will remember that we are always and ever connected." (I had to get out my tissues.)

This one was definitely a 5 star book for me.

Book Review: Slightly Scandalous - by Mary Balogh

Synopsis: Slightly Scandalous is the third book in the Bedwyn family series of regency romances by Mary Balogh. This is the story of Freyja, the eldest of the two Bedwyn sisters. It opens with headstrong, independent, and haughty (read: reckless, bitchy, and autocratic) Freyja pretty much fleeing to Bath to lick her wounds after having the guy she was in love with three years ago (a.k.a. Kit Butler - see A Summer to Remember) get married to somebody else and then additionally watching two of her older brothers get happily married one after the other while she remains unmarried and alone. Now her old flame's wife is about to give birth to their first child and it's just all too much for Freyja to take, so she heads off to the resort town of Bath to escape the hubbub back home. While there, she meets dashing former spy turned Marquess of Hallmere, Joshua Moore. She hates him on sight (which is pretty much how she reacts to most people) and even confronts him at a crowded gathering, accusing him of a transgression which he then publicly proves he did not in fact commit. Instead of eating humble pie, though, our heroine can't back down and they spend a few days sparring with one another. Poor Joshua has his own problems, with a kindly grandmother who would like nothing better than to see him wed, an evil aunt who tries to manipulate him into marrying her daughter, and an accusation of murder flying around. To deflect some of the matrimonial tension, he and Freyja decide to form a sort of mock betrothal and then they head off to Joshua's country estate to fend off the murder accusations.

I did not really like this book. I didn't absolutely hate it or anything, I just didn't like it. I think the main reason, really, is that I didn't like Freyja. At all. I have had a hard time liking her since we first met her in A Summer to Remember. I did try to like her. Truly I did. I even told myself when I started this book that I should not apply any kind of double-standard on this character - that I would not dislike traits in a female character that I would find acceptable and understandable in a male character. However, I think that if the roles had been reversed and Joshua behaved as Freyja does, I would have disliked him as well. Freyja is just so abrasive and mean.

The other thing that really bugged me was the way she ran around punching people in the face. I mean, I was ok with the first punch, when she thought she was defending another woman from an attacker. However, after that it just bothered me. I would not have accepted that kind of behavior in a male character. It is difficult to see why Joshua puts up with her at all, much less falls in love with her. And I really did like his character - he is charming, kind, caring, etc. It is hard not to admire these Balogh heroes who love their grandma's so much.

Otherwise, I thought the storyline was pretty entertaining, with the scheming aunt and the way Joshua comes to realize how much he loves the people and place where he grew up. I also enjoyed the further interaction with the rest of the Bedwyn family. I really like the other Bedwyns, especially Aidan and Wulfric. It's neat to see how the characters from the previous books are doing and what's happening in their lives even after their main romance story has been told.

This was only a 2 star book for me.

Book Review: Slightly Wicked - by Mary Balogh

Synopsis: Slightly Wicked is the second novel in Mary Balogh's Bedwyn family series of regency romances. It stars Rannulf Bedwyn, the 3rd Bedwyn brother. It starts out with Rannulf on his way to visit his grandmother who, having made him her heir, has found what she thinks may be a suitable bride for him. On the way there, he comes across an overturned post coach stranded by the side of the road. One of the passengers, exceptionally beautiful redhead Judith Law, accepts his offer of a ride into the next town to seek aid. Intent on a guiltless dalliance, he gives her a false name, not letting on that he is really the brother of the powerful Duke of Bewcastle. He assumes she is a stage actress, one willing to share her bed with the right gentleman, and she does not disabuse him of this belief. In reality, Judith is a parson's daughter who has been farmed out as a poor relation to live with her well-to-do aunt in the country. She has led a fairly uneventful, sheltered life and the chance to pose as a ballsy, flirtatious actress for an hour or so is too good to pass up. She flirts with Rannulf all the way into the next town and they spend a couple of nights of passion together, he believing her an accomplished actress and lover, she thinking him a charming, rakish gentleman. Neither suspects the other's true identity. Of course, they must go their separate ways and Judith slips away in the morning, leaving him only a brief note of farewell.

Both of them think the adventure is over for good, but neither can forget those two nights together. Of course, come to find out that the girl Rannulf's grandmother has in mind for him is none other than Judith's empty-headed cousin, the daughter of the aunt that she has been sent to live out the rest of her dreary days with. They are both shocked to meet again and discover one another's true identity (like we didn't see this coming), but now they must face the reality of their situations: Judith is a poor relation and treated like a nobody while Rannulf has promised his grandmother that he will seriously pay court to the young girl she has chosen for him. Meanwhile, the crabby old aunt, afraid that Judith's natural beauty will detract from her own daughter's attractions, forces Judith to dress unflatteringly and behave as no more than a servant. All the same, Rannulf can't keep his eyes off her and eventually determines to make her his.

And most of that happens in the first 100 pages or so. There's also a dastardly villain in the form of a lecherous cousin, a ne'er do well spendthrift brother, and the theft of some family jewels (for which Judith is blamed).

This book kind of dragged a bit for me. I think maybe it was because it is the first book by Balogh that I did not thoroughly enjoy every step of the way. Judith is an interesting character, with her natural acting talent and her family situation (although I did find her a bit of a victim), but I thought Rannulf was a little lackluster for a hero. He's a nice guy, but he doesn't have a lot of individuality - just your average, garden variety regency romance rake/gentleman. And the bad guy is really bad, almost too bad to be believable. But I did enjoy the bits with the other Bedwyns, particularly the parts with Wulfric but not so much the parts with Freyja. I just don't like her character. She's bitchy and snobby. I didn't like her in A Summer to Remember, either. Her story is the subject of the next novel in this series, Slightly Scandalous.

Best part: Probably when, after Judith is accused of the jewel theft and then runs off to London, Rannulf rides after her and takes her to his family to protect her. He never once believes that she is guilty and he does fight for her - far more than she fights for herself.

I give this one 3 stars.