Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Edenbrooke by Julianne Donaldson

Genre: Romance, YA
Published:  Mar. 2012 by Shadow Mountain,  240 pp.
Source:  ARC from publisher
Review:  4.5/5 stars

Brief Summary: (From goodreads.comMarianne Daventry will do anything to escape the boredom of Bath and the amorous attentions of an unwanted suitor. So when an invitation arrives from her twin sister, Cecily, to join her at a sprawling country estate, she jumps at the chance. Thinking she’ll be able to relax and enjoy her beloved English countryside while her sister snags the handsome heir of Edenbrooke, Marianne finds that even the best laid plans can go awry.


My Thoughts:  I have to admit that I read more than my share of romances as a teenager. Some were more than questionable in content and I'm ashamed that I ever read them. In search of cleaner fare, I discovered that there was this sub-genre of romance novels called Regency.  The stories were set in Regency England (early 19th century) and were inspired by Jane Austen's works dealing with the noble and rich, the genteel but poor, gentleman and ladies, rakes and spinsters, the season, the ton, Almack's, London and Bath, manners and propriety.  I loved Regency romances because they were usually clean, romantic, and I loved the world they transported me to.

I don't read Regencies much anymore with the exception of the Georgette Heyer novels I've discovered in the last few years so when I got the chance to review Edenbrooke, I jumped on it.  I loved it.  There are a few silly or cheesy parts and it's fairly predictable but overall I still enjoyed every minute of reading it.  The heroine is smart, witty, and completely unaware of her charms.  The hero is very swoon worthy (one of my favorite leading men I've encountered in recent months.)  My 12 year old daughter loved it too so maybe there's still hope that I can eventually introduce her to Jane Austen.  (Right now she rolls her eyes when I mention Pride and Prejudice.)

Recommendations:  I recommend this to anyone looking for a sweet, clean romance.  Don't expect great literature, but you can expect to be entertained.     


Ratings:  2.2.1  As the subtitle says, this is a "proper romance."  There is one part where a woman is threatened in a way that suggests a sexual assault but it's not explicit.


Thanks for reading!

10 comments:

Gerbera Daisy Diaries said...

I've seen this floating around -- looks cute!!!

Jenny said...

Ah, Regency romances, loved em.

Anonymous said...

This sounds like a book I would love. A clean entertaining romance is always better than good literature to me. :)

Kathryn
Clean Teen Fiction
Clean Adult Fiction

Vicki said...

I was hooked on Harlequin for years...years ago. But haven't read much romance since then.

I LOVE the cover!!

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Anonymous said...

This book belongs on any good book list!!! It's funny and just all around cute. It got me hooked on regency so I've been reading Jane Austen like crazy! If you read and liked this book try Sarah M. Eden her books are similar and my absolute favorites!

Jody said...

I loved this book! Great read!

Jody said...

I loved this book! Great read!

jade said...

Princess Gabrielle and her new husband, Prince Alec must learn to work together and trust each other in order to triumph in the approaching war. regency romance

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