Milan set her domestic abuse-themed story in the early Victorian period. Though they may still want each other, they have some heavy stuff in their shared history. Of course the hero and heroine discover that time hasn’t exactly dulled their attraction or chemistry at all, which is fun. Wanting a home of her own after her brother comes home with a new wife, the heroine has accepted a local gentleman’s marriage proposal. The hero returns to the area after reluctantly parting with her when they were teenagers a decade ago. Jewel’s story is an angsty second chances story set during the regency. The anthology features three stories centered around the same country home – Doyle’s Grange – set in three different time periods.
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Carolyn Jewel’s story was my favorite, as the longing and regret was off the charts. The Milan story was the weakest, and I’d still call it an above average read. This was the rare anthology where all the stories were great. B+īy Carolyn Jewel, Courtney Milan and Sherry Thomas
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If it didn’t have that worthless epilogue and that unnecessary Grand Gesture, it’d have been a grade A book. There’s verbal sparring, hot makeouts, hotter sex, endearing vulnerable moments and a heartwrenching climax. She’s a grown woman with an adult’s understanding of sexuality. She’s sexually inexperienced, sure, but she’s no naive ingenue. He’s never arrogant or overbearing and she’s never overmatched or passive. The hero is commitment-averse, but so is the heroine.
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I said that “if they’re like HP’s with non-asshole heroes and grown-up heroines, I’ll be in heaven.” That basically describes The Petrov Proposal to a T. One day on Twitter, I was talking to Jane from DA about Harlequin’s new Kiss line, which debuts next year.