Loving Lord Ash by Sally MacKenzie

Loving Lord Ash (2014) (Kensington Books)
Sally MacKenzie
Grade: C
Genre: historical romance
Sex scenes: mild
Source: NetGalley
Duchess of Love: (1) Bedding Lord Ned, (2) Surprising Lord Jack, (3) Loving Lord Ash

Romance Reading Bingo Challenge 2014: A book with a 'class differences' relationship 

Estranged for the eight years of their marriage, nothing about Kit and Jess’s relationship has ever been normal. They had been childhood friends, but when circumstances force the future Duke of Greycliffe to marry the family groom’s daughter in order to save Jess’s reputation, their relationship has never been the same. As a result of society’s poisonous gossip, Kit thinks that Jess has slept with every male in the county; while Jess believes Kit to have had his fair share of discreet affairs. Kit has finally faced up to the reality that he needs an heir - which requires reuniting and reconciling with his wife who has every reason to hate him for abandoning her. To top it off, his mother is the infamous matchmaker, the Duchess of Love, who considers her eldest son’s unhappy marriage her one failure.

Passion by Lisa Valdez

Passion (2005)
Lisa Valdez
Grade: A-
Genre: historical erotica
Sex scenes: scorching
Source: own
Passion Quartet: (1) Passion

I don’t need to tell you that contemporary erotica is currently taking the publishing world by storm; who knows how long this will go on for, but I’m hoping that it will be a long time. In my books, anything that gets the romance genre more accepted and recognised amongst wider society is a good thing. Historical erotica isn’t nearly as big and I for one hadn’t ever set foot in this territory, mostly because I had no idea where to start. Passion is one of those books that I have meant to read for ages because I’ve heard so much about it; when I saw it on eBay, I leapt at the chance to own it despite knowing absolutely nothing about what it was about, or that it would be as hot as it is. It has its flaws, but boy am I glad that I bought it.

Too Tempting to Resist by Cara Elliott

Too Tempting to Resist (2012) (Grand Central Publishing)
Cara Elliott
Grade: B-
Genre: historical romance
Sex scenes: shy of hot

Source: NetGalley
Lords of Midnight: (1) Too Wicked to Wed; (2) Too Tempting to Resist

Widowed Lady Eliza Brentford is nearly at the end of her tether with her younger brother's wastrel antics. All Harry wants to do is spend and gamble away money they don't have, give his liver a cause for concern with his excessive drinking and accumulate as many notches on his bed post as possible. With the notorious Gryffin Dwight, Marquess of Haddan as an idol, it's no wonder that Eliza is worried for the future of their family home. With a few more commissions in her work as an illustrator, Eliza will have finally saved up enough money to buy a small place of her own that she so desires, but until then, she'll have to live with her brother's debauchery with no way of stopping him.

Key of Light by Nora Roberts

Key of Light (2003)
Nora Roberts
Grade: A
Genre: contemporary romance / supernatural / magic
Sex scenes: mild

Source: library
Key: (1) Key of Light

It has not been a good day for Malory Price and she is in danger of seeing her Malory Price Life Plan go down the drain after twenty years of careful planning. She’s had her dream job at The Gallery for seven years, but has almost got herself fired in a single day. Not only did she call her boss’s new wife a bimbo, but she then spilt a latte on said bimbo’s suit (genuinely by accident) and is now driving through a storm to the magnificent Warrior’s Peak after an ominous invitation to a party that no one else Malory knows has been invited to. What she finds is beyond her wildest dreams …

It quickly becomes apparent that Malory and two other women are the Peak’s only guests. Dana Steele is a librarian and single mother Zoe McCourt is a hairdresser; besides being more-or-less the same age, they have never met and have little in common. Or so they think. All are agreed that this ‘party’ is more than a tad creepy, but their hosts, the stunning Rowena and majestic Pitte have no bad intentions towards these three women ... on the contrary, Malory, Dana and Zoe could be their saviours …

The Perfect Neighbour by Nora Roberts

The Perfect Neighbour (1999)
Nora Roberts
Grade: C+
Genre: contemporary romance
Sex scenes: hotter than NR's regualar mild. See below
Source: eBay
The MacGregors: (11) The Perfect Neighbour

I really wanted to love this book. The MacGregors are one of my favourite NR series (I can never decide) and The Perfect Neighbour had Daniel MacGregor back in full force, still happily meddling away at nearly ninety years old. I'd wanted some light relief and a happy-ever-after to cheer myself up after the darkness of The Siren and while TPN did provide lots of both, I was left feeling uncomfortably unssatisfied.

As the youngest child of two artists, it's no suprise that Cybil Campbell has followed in the footsteps of her parents. Genvieve Grandeau-Campbell is well-known for her beautiful landscapes but Cybil has followed her father who writes the Macintosh political comic strips and has produced her own popular daily strip featuring the blonde Emily who can never manage to hold down a job.

Cybil is one of those heroines who you want as a best friend. She's kind, funny, upbeat and welcoming, unable to hold a grudge for very long. Her neighbours are forever in and out of her door and she always has time for people who want to talk. With a little nudge from her friend and downstairs neighbour Jody (the basis for Emily's friend in the strip whose name I can't remember), Cybil bakes a batch of cookies by means of introducing herself to her new, reclusive neighbour opposite her in 3B.