AUTHOR: Lydia Joyce
STARTED: December 23, 2009
FINISHED: December 24, 2009
PAGES: 320
GENRE: Romance
FIRST SENTENCE: Maggie shivered, wrapping the sooty shawl tighter around her thin shoulders as she hunched behind the brute hulk of Johnny.
SUMMARY: [From barnesandnoble.com] Desperate to escape the underworld's treacherous grasp, Maggie of King Street finds a patron in Charles Crossham, Lord Edgington, who must transform a street girl into a lady to win a high stakes wager. Charles has never met anyone like the fierce and ardent Maggie, and Maggie's defenses are useless against the seduction of the jaded lord.Their association quickly ignites into a consuming obsession. But both passion and the bet are threatened by a ruthless villain from Maggie's dark past, who has plans for her that imperil everything she's ever cared for-and her very life.
THOUGHTS: Classic. If you're in the mood to read a classic romance novel plot of "Lorded hero plucks penniless, charming, beautiful heroine from the streets," then this book will hit the spot. Joyce has a way of taking such a timeless romance and bringing out the actual nitty-gritty that would appear in reality. She also makes sure her characters have jump off the page chemistry.
Joyce's writing is visually stunning. I know exactly what she wants me to see, but she does not over-write. There is no purple prose or extensive description. Joyce writes just enough to clearly state her scene and characters, but not enough to leave me wishing the book was 100 pages shorter. And, thank goodness, Joyce writes about dirt - I mean actual soil-type dirt. So many romances set in this era forget that Regency era London was not a clean place (either in cleanliness or morality). Joyce does not shy away from writing about that and it tickles me pink.
Maggie and Charles work well together. Sure there are some sappy scenes and contrived moments, but it does not detract from the fact that these characters work together. You get the lust, but you also get why they would fall in love (a fact that is, sadly, missing from many romance novels). The reader is also able to see how the secondary characters play into the main romance. Said secondary characters are also well-written. They are more than set-pieces and plot devices. They have enough backstory to hold up their end of the story without so much that you just know there is a spin-off novel coming.
RATING: 8/10 [Terrific]
Comments