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.com) Marianne 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!

Laurie Viera Rigler's Jane Austen Addicts

Genre: Jane Austen fan fiction
Published: Confessions--2007, 304 pp., Awakenings--2009, 289 pp.

Source: Library

Review: Confessions 2.5/5
Awakenings 3.5/5

I read Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict in 2009 but I never wrote a review for it. Then just recently I found Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict and remembered that the first one had a strange ending that I needed to have cleared up so I checked it out and read it. I hadn't enjoyed Confessions as much as I wanted to but I still wanted to read Awakenings and I'm glad I did. It was more enjoyable and helped me like the first one a little more, too.

In these novels the two Jane Austen addicts magically switch places. Jane Mansfield is a young woman living in England in the early 1800's and has read and become obsessed with Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility, the only two books that have been published at the time. Courtney Stone lives in modern day LA and is obsessed with all things Jane Austen. Confessions is Courtney's story of waking up in Regency England. Very fun concept but Courtney is such an obnoxious and annoying character that I found it hard to care what happened to her. Jane's story of waking up in modern day was much more enjoyable for me. I liked her and the funny situations she got into much better. Awakenings also answered some questions that were left at the end of the first book.

Ratings: Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict--2.1.1 It's been a long time since I read this but it seems like there was a little bit of sexual content maybe even enough to warrant a 3 rating.
Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict--2.1.4 I was afraid that there might be some sex in this one but it ended up being fairly mild. There is a smattering of profanity with one f-bomb.

The Year of Fog by Michelle Richmond

Category: Adult fiction

Published: 2007, 369 pgs.

Audiobook

Review: 3.5/5 stars

In the first chapter of The Year of Fog by Michelle Richmond we meet the narrator Abby Mason, a photographer who is engaged to a man who has a 6 year old daughter, Emma. While Abby and Emma are walking together on the beach the unthinkable happens, Emma disappears. Abby tells her story of guilt, heartbreak, longing, and searching that she endures.

I enjoyed this book. I thought it was insightful and interesting. However, at one point one of Emma's shoes is found and she describes it as a tiny size 3. Anyone who is very familiar with children would know that a "tiny size 3" fits a 1-year-old not a 6-year-old. When I read that I immediately knew that the author doesn't know children very well and didn't take the time to find out the shoe size of a young child. That put me off a little and I think it tainted my view of the book. I realized later that the book really wasn't about a child as much as it was about a woman who loves a child and that little mistake doesn't invalidate the rest of the book. The Year of Fog did make me really think about the lives of so many families that have missing children. The news follows them for a week or two and then we don't hear much about them unless more information becomes available. I can't imagine what a living hell it would be, but this book gives a pretty good description.

Rating: 3.1.5--I can't remember what's in this very well. It seems like there were a couple of sex scenes that were a bit descriptive but not too bad. I do remember that there were several f-words scattered here and there.