Book Review: "The Scoundrel's Honor" by Christi Caldwell

***** - Lady Penelope Tidemore is determined to cultivate a proper, scandal-free reputation and score an appropriate yet romantic husband in her first season. Caught in a compromising position with the scandalous Ryker Black, this regency romance is turned on it's head when it begins with an unlikely wedding.

This story begins when the curtain usually falls, and the stakes are higher. Penny and Ryker have to make this arrangement work, and though unlikely, they just may succeed if only they can come around to each other's way of thinking.

This romance is fast-paced, action packed, and full of likable characters. I didn't always feel the chemistry between the hero and heroine, but I found myself genuinely hoping that they could find love with one another. The setting of the Hell and Sin Club was intriguing in The Rogue's Wager and we see more of it here.

'The Scoundrel's Honor' is another refreshing change from the regency romance standard, highly enjoyable and a satisfying read.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for this review.

Book Review: "Because of Miss Bridgerton (Rokesbys #1)" by Julia Quinn

***** - The Bridgertons and the Rokesbys have lived on neighbouring estates for centuries. Their children, through proximity, have grown up together. Billie Bridgerton has always been best friends with Edward, Andrew and Mary Rokesby and assumed she'd marry one of the boys when the time came.

Billie is unlike any other English miss. She wears breeches around the estate, handles her father's management affairs, climbs trees and throws herself at any task with abandon. The eldest Rokesby, George, has always found Billie to be intolerable, and they have enjoyed a long history of sniping and baiting one another.

When Billie inconveniently finds herself in need of rescue one afternoon, she is dismayed when it's George who happens upon her and must provide aid. But so begins their story as they discover that there's more to each than meets the eye.

I adored both of the main characters in this book. Billie is an excellent heroine, strong but soft in places, very relatable. I was surprised that I liked George as much as I did, I tend to find in regency romances the hero of the story is very two dimensional. But his passion, propriety and morality were in perfect combination, and he was charmingly realistic.

This book has passion, it feels romantic, and the whole story is made sweeter by the fact that these two have a history. This isn't some spur of the moment fascination with one another. They know the other's faults before their love story even begins. Finding this sort of foundation in a regency romance is rare, and this story almost feels like it could have unfolded in any era.

I loved it, so 5 stars it is.

Book Review: "Snowed In" by Jenna Bayley-Burke

***** - This book is Hot. I was so excited to receive a free copy of this via Netgalley. I loved Compromising Positions by Jenna Bayley-Burke and so I jumped at the chance to read this book. I wasn't disappointed.

Marissa is the Maid of Honour at her best friend's wedding, and had agreed to share her room with a friend as a favour. When that so-called "friend" locks her out of her hotel room so that she can enjoy a hook-up with an old flame, Marissa decides to keep the peace and not call hotel security. Her one-time friend from school, Scott, has a cabin nearby and offers her use of his guest room.

Scott has been in love with Marissa from the moment he first saw her, but she had always been with his friend and team-mate, so he never had a shot with her. Now she's single, but only due to the fact that his friend had been cheating on her for years and dumped her at the altar. The betrayal Marissa felt was only made worse by the fact that Scott, who she'd counted as a friend, never told her the truth about her ex.

The two end up back at Scott's cabin, alone, and right at the beginning of a storm. Isolated for the night, they start to put their friendship back together, and as one night becomes several, it is impossible to deny their chemistry. But Scott has waited for years for this chance and refuses to let Marissa slip through his fingers, while Marissa refuses to dedicate her whole life to a man all over again.

Marissa and Scott have seriously hot chemistry, their flirty banter is delightful, and their history makes the story really interesting. I had so much fun reading this book, definitely makes my favourites list! I can even see myself reading it again.

Book Review: "Compromising Positions" by Jenna Bayley-Burke

**** - I devoured this book on a Sunday and I loved every second. Our h&H, Sophie and David, are thrust into each other's lives when they agree to teach a couples yoga class, focusing on complicated sex positions and touching. Sophie has had a crush on David for years, but he has been mostly unaware of her. He has a type, and a strict set of dating rules to keep things uncomplicated. Sophie proceeds to break every rule on his list.

Both leads have enough back story to make them interesting, and some seriously hot chemistry makes this a very fun read. I genuinely enjoyed the way their story unfolds, navigating their feelings and figuring out how to fit their lives together when they want completely different things.

My copy had some annoying formatting issues which is a real pet hate of mine, and you encounter it a lot in this genre. Fortunately, the story is engrossing enough that I could overlook it. This may have been due to the format, as I received a free copy from Netgalley in exchange for my review. 

Now to find more books by this author to add to my queue...

Book Review: "How to Date a Douchebag: The Studying Hours (How to Date a Douchebag #1)" by Sara Ney

***** - I won't beat around the bush here - I read a lot of romance novels. It started out as a bit of light reading in between fantasy epics, but they're now the bread and butter of my day. Romances tend to follow a formula, and when it's done well that is fine and dandy. Most of the time, the author does an adequate job and I am entertained. Occasionally, I struggle to want to read the book. This time, I loved it.

Our leading lady, Jameson "James" Clark, is a dedicated student but not your typical brainy heroine. She just wants to study and isn't charmed by the typical douchebag types we all know and loathe. Unfortunately, Sebastian "Oz" Osborne definitely fits that category, and he finds himself fascinated by the one woman he's ever encountered who hasn't thrown herself at his feet.

This sounds like the sort of eye-rolling cliche that we've all read a hundred thousand times, but these characters have some serious chemistry. They are also just interesting enough to not feel like the standard papier mâché leads we so often see. James and Oz are genuinely likable, well-developed characters - neither are sitting around waiting for a romance novel to come and move their lives along for them, but boy am I glad that it did.

Cute, fun, and surprisingly good - this is a gem and I am so glad that it's the start of a series.

Book Review: "Like A Queen" by Constance Hall

**** - I gave birth to my first child in March this year. On the whole I thoroughly enjoyed being pregnant and am genuinely looking forward to my next go at it (mad, I know.) I spent the months planning her arrival, reading everything I could, trawling through online support groups and trying to figure out my parenting style, while reminding myself to remain flexible. What I didn't enjoy during this time was my husband. While everyone around me was happy and excited, my husband was not really interested in my pregnancy and had no interest in learning about babies. He didn't want to pick up a single book and got squeamish with the details.

Now that bub is here, my husband works and I stay home with Little One, doing the majority of care-giving and the housework, whether husband is home or not. He works 40 hours a week, and I work 168 hours a week, on-call. At some point, I began to ask myself if it was normal for mothers to want to drop-kick their husbands the second they walk in the front door, or to fantasize about packing up and leaving him behind while me and the baby ride off into the sunset. My friends in my Mothers Group all advised that the same thing was happening in their homes and they felt the exact same way.

None of the baby books I had read mentioned this phenomenon. Why did nobody warn the mothers-to-be of the incredible strain that parenthood can put on your bond with your partner? While I am at it, there are several things that the books don't cover. The pressure of social media on parenting; the fact that you constantly vaguely smell of baby vomit; that emotion that you feel when it is 3am and the baby is still crying and you are overwhelmed with both love and a desperate rage. Shouldn't there be somebody out there warning us all? Perhaps a guardian angel who can pop in with a quick disclaimer before D-Day? Or at the very least, making us feel like we aren't so strange for being so not the perfect, benevolent mother and partner that we thought we'd be.

Constance Hall is that guardian angel. Her Facebook page is a hub for women to share their frustrations, to laugh at themselves and their experiences, and feel connected to other mothers (or, as she refers to us, Queens.) She shares her personal experiences of life with her husband and 4 children and has created a safe online space for lost women to find their proverbial crowns and see themselves as the brilliant creatures that they are. And the best part: she has written an entire book to help guide us through this beautiful and difficult time; from staring daggers at your husband while he sleeps and you rock a baby who you're pretty sure hates you, to finding your inner royalty and realising that there's no such thing as perfect (but whatever you're doing is close.)

Like A Queen is part memoir, part musing. It is not a how-to guide or a trouble-shooting manual for parenthood. It is a collection of stories and anecdotes that combine to give you a sense of who Constance Hall is as a person, the journey that she has been on to become her Queenly self, and an insight into how she views other women. She hides nothing about her faults and failures, writing with a brutal honesty which is endearing and reassuring. Through her words, she feels like a trusted and valued friend. The reader can empathise with her stories and observations, and in a world where we often feel so very judged, the experience is truly cathartic.

This book is a labour of love and in reading it, you enter the wonderful world of Constance Hall, where all women are Queens and can laugh, love and empathise with one another. It is a fast and easy read, light-hearted enough that the depth won't drag you down. I highly recommend this book for any Queen (expectant mothers, new mothers, mothers who have lost their crowns, mothers who are rocking it but want to join the growing fold) and have already offered to lend it out to my Mothers Group.

If you would like to buy a copy for yourself or gift it to a Queen in your life, you can pre-order at http://likeaqueen.com.au/ (shipping only to Australia & NZ only at this stage).