Devil in Winter by Lisa Kleypas

Title: Devil in Winter

Author: Lisa Kleypas

Date Read: January 28^th

Format: Physical Book - Mass Trade Paperback

Source: Borrowed from a friend

Challenges: 2012 Outdo Yourself


Easily the shyest Wallflower, Evangeline Jenner stands to become the wealthiest, once her inheritance comes due. Because she must first escape the clutches of her unscrupulous relatives, Evie has approached the rake Viscount St. Vincent with a most outrageous proposition: marriage!

Sebastian's reputation is so dangerous that thirty seconds alone with him will ruin any maiden's good name. Still, this bewitching chit appeared, unchaperoned, on his doorstep to offer her hand. Certainly an aristocrat with a fine eye for beauty could do far worse.

But Evie's proposal comes with a condition: no lovemaking after their wedding night. She will never become just another of the dashing libertine's callously discarded broken hearts -- which means Sebastian will simply have to work harder at his seductions...or perhaps surrender his own heart for the very first time in the name of true love.


A disclaimer first: Historical Romances are not my thing. I knew this when I started this book. But Jen's reviews made me wonder if I was missing on something good by not giving them a chance, and then the book bingo asked for a romance book, and Jen begged to help me choose one. I gave her carte blanche to pick a book for me (actually, it was three, but she only picked one historical romance).

And now to the review. Devil in Winter is the third in the series of the Wallflowers, and coming mid-way to the party, there were parts of the story that I was missing. But all in all, it stands well on its own. Even if you really don't know why Sebastian St. Vincent is such a bad catch (and such a rascal), in a few pages the author puts you up to speed, while you also get to know Evie, a shy young woman that takes a really bold step to escape the clutches of her family.

The action doesn't take long to happen, soon enough the not-actually-in-love-couple is eloping to Scotland (and finally I understood why everyone elopes to Scotland), and after the consummation of the marriage, they are back again on the road, to return to London. And why do I mention this? Because this long trip London-Scotland-London was the perfect excuse for these two to get to know each other (and myself to get to know them). And I enjoyed that, the initial dislike of one another (well, that was mostly on Evie's part), the realization that the other party was not as bad as they may seem, and the unlikely friendship between them (among other things).

Once in London the story gains more of a plot, losing a bit of its character-driven part. There is a father close to death, and a club in need to be run, as well as family to be dealt with. And Lord St. Vincent does come to the rescue, surprising me, on two accounts. First, because I wasn't expecting it of him, and second, because I hadn't realized I had such a thing as expectations where he was concerned.

But, I'm afraid to say, the plot part was what made me lose a bit of interest on this book – I felt it dragged the drama a bit too long for my liking. It is strange, I usually like ploty books. But I was content with the character-development, with seeing Evie and St. Vincent fall in love, and maybe the whole family trying to get their hands on the naïve girl's money was just too dull for me. To me, the strong points of this book are, without a doubt, Evie and Sebastian, and their growing friendship/love. But that is usually my type of romance, even on non-romance specific books.

So, did I like? Yes, even if there were things in it that bored me. Will I read the other books in the series? Probably not. But this was a light read, good for long train travels (or maybe not, if you are afraid people will read over your shoulder).

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Other Reviews:  Cuidado com o Dálmata

This Book on: LibraryThing | GoodReads | BookDepository UK | Book Depository US | Amazon UK| Amazon US| Wook

Enchantment by Pati Nagle

I received this book in ebook format from the Author, through LibraryThing Early Reviewers

Enchantment

Holly Parker’s life changes forever when she visits Enchantment Spring with her older sister Madison. They hike through the woods, and when they reach the spring, Holly’s disappointed. A concrete coffin full of water? She expected a pool surrounded by flowers, birds, dancing dragonflies.

But fine. They eat the lunch they packed, and lounge around in the sunshine a while. As they get ready to leave, Holly dabbles her fingers in the water.

And sees a face beneath the surface.

The joy of first love fills her, but Holly’s happiness turns to horror when she learns that the government plans to demolish Enchantment Spring. Her passion for Ohlan — the beautiful water spirit who inhabits the spring — is so strong that she’ll gladly risk her life, standing between the spring and the backhoes, to save him.


The description does tell what happens in this book – at least until the part I gave up on it.

And why did I give up, you would ask. For starters, I didn't really like Holly, the main character. Was she a bad girl? No, of course not. But she never left the page – she was just words, and never made me believe she was real. The pacing of the beginning had a lot to do with it – it doesn't take long for the face to appear in the spring – it must have been one or two pages, just slightly longer than in the description. But that would have been fine, if the main character wasn't suddenly head over heels over this face – before she even establishes he is real.

From then on it was hard to take anything seriously in this book. There was much of Holly's research that felt badly organized, and a tad bit too easy. And then the girl goes on jumping into conclusions that were 99% wishful thinking (just not to call it delusion) on her part, and 1% logic.

I got to the point where I asked myself “Do you care about the main character?” The answer was no. “Do you want to know if Ohlan is real or not?” Not really. “Do you want to know why he is weak?” Couldn't care less. “Do you want to read about Holly's first love?” Love? That's not love. “Do you care at all about what is going to happen next?” No, not really. So that's why I gave up on the book, even though I tried, for the sake of making a proper review. I just didn't care enough about any of it.


Rating: 1 out of 5 - Did not Finish


This Book on: LibraryThing | GoodReads | Amazon US (Kindle)

La hormiga que quiso ser astronauta by Félix J. Palma

La hormiga que quiso ser astronauta [The ant that wanted to be astronaut]
(Only available in Spanish)

The countdown begins. Put aside for a moment the heavy burden of that attachment to the reality that has been so hard to reach and remember when your first love was a siren, your best friend a Jedi Knight and it was snowing in Seville in the summer. When concerns were removed by chemistry-modified eels, and your lovers included a painter who was, literally, your soul mate, and an angel (well, a seraph) exiled from Heaven. When the pizza delivery boy conspired to write your unauthorized biography, and an old rigged recorder could be used to retrieve and make sense of the words spoken during a split. When Death walked the city with a list of victims that, if you were fast enough, you could alter. When ants aspired to reach the stars. Remember? Yes? Now, wake up!

La Hormiga que quiso ser Astronauta was Felix J. Palma's first novel (although not his first book), and I couldn't help but compare it to The Map of Time, which I loved. In a way, much of the things I loved on that book can be found on this one, even if in an earlier version. There is good writing, and twists and turns to the plot. Which means this will be an hard review to write without giving it all away.

And since it is not easy let's start with the basics: I liked this book. Did I love it? I'm still not sure.

What the synopsis promises, the book delivers. Yes, it is as surreal as it seems, to tell the truth, it is waaay more surreal than that at times. There are sirens and Jedi Knights, soul mates and angels (well, a seraph, to be exact). Death walks the streets and even rides the bus.

At first, this book didn't surprise me, and that is to say, it didn't overwhelm me like I was expecting. The writing was good, but I knew that it could be better (I should have reminded myself that this book was written 15 years ago, and that is enough time for an author to perfect the art). I was lost on what was happening, on the episodic fashion of this story. Because, more than a love story, this is a series of love stories.

But I got invested on the main character, on the things that happened to him, on his conquests and lovers. And I started to care about what was happening. Which brings me to the ending. Well, a bit before the ending.

This was the part that I least liked about this book, and the one that I'll probably remember the most. This is when I was almost screaming at the pages, saying "No, no, no, no, please don't go that way, please don't do that.", and this words weren't aimed at the character but at the author. This happened because what I wanted, what I expected to happen, was not what is right, what should happen. And what the author chose was the right thing and that broke my heart.

And that's when the ending came. It's not perfect, it was not what I wanted, but thinking about it, I wouldn't have it any other way. It fits the story just fine, with enough hope and possibilities for the reader to think that everything will be all right, not in the happily-ever-after way, but in the real life all-right-with-its-ups-and-downs way.

And to end this review, I'll leave you with one of my favourite quotes of this book, that is the best way to define it (without spoilers):

"And the thing is that there are women and women and men and men, and it is not enough to just shuffle and pick one card from each deck and believe that the result is a couple."

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

Jane Eyre

*this review is sure to have some spoilers*

Jane Eyre, is one of the classics that I’ve been meaning to read for ages, but it took a pretty cover to (finally) buy it, and a hangover to start reading it. (Basically I was too hungover to manage all the drama on The Cathedral of the Sea, and decided to pick something else to read. Since my options were very limited, Jane Eyre seemed like the lightest and easiest thing to read. Silly me.)

Jane Eyre is indeed the story of Jane, from her miserable childhood, through her slightly less miserable adolescence and to her adulthood. Orphan of both parents, she lives with her aunt and cousins, but it is a life without affection. When she is sent to a school far from home she believes that her conditions can only improve, but it isn't without trouble that she finishes her education and is ready to seek employment.

This story was not new to me, but I had only watched the TV series, and some time ago, so the details were a bit hazy. I knew there would be a happy ending, but then, there always is (I had quite forgotten everything else about the ending). I was actually expecting a lot more drama in the beginning (I think I got the order of some events wrong), so the more I read, the more I dreaded what was (I thought) sure to come.

There is a very strong Beauty and the Beast feel to it. Yes, I know both the love birds are as ugly as they come, making it Beast and the Beast, but to me it is about their personalities. Jane very nice and proper (even if a little blunt), Mr. Rochester quite the devil (and drama queen), teasing and insulting. I liked Mr. Rochester’s wild personality, even if sometimes it is a bit too flamboyant. Jane’s uptightness got to my nerves sometimes, but I liked her bluntness and honesty. But most of all, it was the bickering between these too: the intelligent semi-arguments were really fun to read.

My biggest problem with the classics (and I say problem is the very loosest of senses) is that I have to adapt to the values of the times when they were written. It is most likely that a modern day Jane would take the easier route, by running away WITH her beloved and not running away FROM him (I know I would, along with taking more conventional measures to deal with the problem in the attic). That made some parts in the book a bit harder to enjoy (or should I say, not to scream at the characters), but that choice was also in tune with the character's personality and way of being.

But to me, the strongest point of this book is how it is written. The use of the first person takes away the distance I could have felt due to Jane’s personality. And the descriptions are absolutely vivid. I was constantly lost on 19th century England, taking walks through the moors, sitting by the fireplace, studying people… Making the drama all the more, well, dramatic, because it felt like it was happening to me.

I really liked this book, even though it took me quite awhile to finish. It's very well written, and it's not only about romance, it portrays a society that is slightly different from ours - one that not so long ago was the norm. The down side was that there was a bit more drama that I felt was necessary, and all the religious babble, that started to really get on my nerves by the end of the book (courtesy of a late comer character). Still, it definitely deserves it's place among the classics.


Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Other Reviews: Page Turners

This book on: LibraryThing | Goodreads | Bookdepository UK | Bookdepository US | Amazon UK | Amazon US | Gam.co | Project Gutenberg