A Kiss To Remember by Teresa Medeiros
Publication Date: November 26, 2008
Publisher: Random House
Amazon Link: HERE
Received From: Purchased


Summary (from Amazon):
Laura Fairleigh needs a a husband. If she is to keep a roof over her siblings' heads, the prim rector's daughter must wed by her twenty-first birthday. When she finds a mysterious stranger with the face of an angel and the body of Adonis unconscious in the forest with no memory of his name or his past, she decides to claim him for her own. Little does she know that her fallen angel is really the devil in disguise.

Sterling Harlow, the notorious rakehell known as the "Devil of Devonbrooke," awakens to the enchanting kiss of a lovely young woman who informs him he is her long-lost betrothed. With her sun-kissed cheeks and smattering of freckles, she looks every inch the innocent, but her curves possess a woman's allure. When she assures him he is the perfect gentleman, he wonders if he's lost his wits as well as his memory. He would have sworn he was not a man to be satisfied with mere kisses—especially from lips as sweet and luscious as Laura's. As he attempts to uncover the truth before their wedding night, A Kiss To Remember ignites a passion neither of them will ever be able to forget...

Review:
Laura receives a letter from Sterling Harlow, the "Devil of Devonbrooke", who tells her that he's going to cast her and her sisters out of his home after his mother dies and will find someone for Laura to marry. Laura is worried that he will send her sisters to the workhouse, so when she finds a man on the side of the rode who lost his memory from a head injury, she decides to lie and tell him that he's her fiance, because if Laura gets married before her 21st birthday she will inherit the house and her sisters will be safe. The man she found on the side of the street, though, turns out to be Sterling, and he goes along with whatever Laura tells him for awhile but as they spend more time together he begins to care for her. If and when he gets his memory back, will he be able to forgive Laura's deception?

I recently picked up one of Teresa Medeiros's novels and fell in love with her stories and writing style, and now I seem to be purchasing every one of her books that I can find. A Kiss To Remember is a take on the popular memory loss storyline, but she does it in a way that makes the story unique and exciting to read. I loved Laura and Sterling together and enjoyed seeing them fall in love, and I also enjoyed seeing the consequences that Laura had to deal with from lying to Sterling.

I would recommend A Kiss To Remember to anyone looking for a well-written historical romance novel with a memory loss theme.

Rating:

As Rich As A Rogue by Jade Lee
Publication Date: August 2, 2016
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Amazon Link: HERE
Received From: Purchased


Summary (from Amazon):
Mari Powel's fiery Welsh temper is up. Peter Norwood, Lord Whitly, is back in town after six years romping around India making his fortune. Mari blames him for her social downfall and has spent all this time clawing her way back into the ton's good graces. How dare he show up on his first day back and publicly embroil her in a bet involving long-awaited apologies, illicit kisses, and Lady Illston's unruly parakeet? Mari is outraged, and is going to show him-and everyone else-what she's made of. Little does she know, the unrepentant Lord Whitly has been dreaming of her all this time. Now he'll do anything to win the wager-along with Mari's heart. 

Review:
Mari has never forgiven Lord Whitley for what he said about her six years ago, something that forever changed her reputation. Now he's back from India and making her life even more complicated after he forces her into a wager. The wager brings them closer, even though Mari wants to be as far away as possible from Lord Whitley, while Lord Whitley's exactly where he wants to be.

This is probably one of the most unbelievable historical romance novels that I've ever read, and not in a good way. The fact that Mari and Lord Whitly make a wager about teaching a bird new words and if Mari loses she must kiss Lord Whitly, which everyone says won't ruin her reputation, is not historically accurate and a little silly. But while it wasn't the most believable or one of my favorite novels, it definitely was unique and interesting.

I wouldn't recommend this to anyone looking for an accurate historical romance, but if you're looking for a fun and fast read, this is a good pick.

Rating:

A Kiss To Remember by Teresa Medeiros
Publication Date: November 26, 2008
Publisher: Random House
Amazon Link: HERE
Received From: Purchased

Summary (from Amazon):
Laura Fairleigh needs a a husband. If she is to keep a roof over her siblings' heads, the prim rector's daughter must wed by her twenty-first birthday. When she finds a mysterious stranger with the face of an angel and the body of Adonis unconscious in the forest with no memory of his name or his past, she decides to claim him for her own. Little does she know that her fallen angel is really the devil in disguise.

Sterling Harlow, the notorious rakehell known as the "Devil of Devonbrooke," awakens to the enchanting kiss of a lovely young woman who informs him he is her long-lost betrothed. With her sun-kissed cheeks and smattering of freckles, she looks every inch the innocent, but her curves possess a woman's allure. When she assures him he is the perfect gentleman, he wonders if he's lost his wits as well as his memory. He would have sworn he was not a man to be satisfied with mere kisses—especially from lips as sweet and luscious as Laura's. As he attempts to uncover the truth before their wedding night, A Kiss To Remember ignites a passion neither of them will ever be able to forget...

Review:
Laura receives a letter from Sterling Harlow, the "Devil of Devonbrooke", who tells her that he's going to cast her and her sisters out of his home after his mother dies and will find someone for Laura to marry. Laura is worried that he will send her sisters to the workhouse, so when she finds a man on the side of the rode who lost his memory from a head injury, she decides to lie and tell him that he's her fiance, because if Laura gets married before her 21st birthday she will inherit the house and her sisters will be safe. The man she found on the side of the street, though, turns out to be Sterling, and he goes along with whatever Laura tells him for awhile but as they spend more time together he begins to care for her. If and when he gets his memory back, will he be able to forgive Laura's deception?

I recently picked up one of Teresa Medeiros's novels and fell in love with her stories and writing style, and now I seem to be purchasing every one of her books that I can find. A Kiss To Remember is a take on the popular memory loss storyline, but she does it in a way that makes the story unique and exciting to read. I loved Laura and Sterling together and enjoyed seeing them fall in love, and I also enjoyed seeing the consequences that Laura had to deal with from lying to Sterling.

I would recommend A Kiss To Remember to anyone looking for a well-written historical romance novel with the memory loss theme.

All The Ways to Ruin a Rogue: The Debutante Files by Sophie Jordan
Publication Date: July 28, 2015
Publisher: Avon
Amazon Link: HERE
Received From: Purchased


Summary (from Amazon):
First friends, then enemies...

Lady Aurelia hasn't always hated Max, Viscount Camden, her brother's best friend. In fact, as a besotted girl, she thrived under his kind attention—sure that he was the most noble and handsome man in the land. Until her young heart discovered what manner of rogue he really was. Now, though she enjoys nothing more than getting on his last nerve, she can't deny Max drives her to distraction—even if she tries to pretend otherwise.

Now something more...

Max cannot recall a time when Aurelia did not vex him. If she was not his friend's sister, he would stay far away from the infuriating vixen. Unfortunately, they are always thrown together. At parties and family gatherings...she is always there. Mocking him, tossing punch in his face, driving him mad...until one night, she goes too far and he retaliates in the only way he can: with a kiss that changes everything.

Review:
I've always been a big fan of Sophie Jordan and her historical romance novels, so I was excited when I saw this new release. The novel starts out with Aurelia as a fifteen year old girl, madly in love with her brother's best friend, Max. That is until she discovers him sleeping with a kitchen maid. All her hopes and dreams crumble and she ends up expressing her anger in a way that humiliates Max. The novel picks back up seven years later, and because of that incident, they are no longer friends but instead rivals that aren't able to be in the same room with each other without fighting. The fighting, though, soon turns into something more when they can't keep their hands off of each other.

Aurelia's and Max's banter is mostly humorous, but at times it can be a little over the top and become too unrealistic to believe in certain circumstances. I also had trouble with one scene in the novel when Aurelia is at a gaming hell and places bets against men. I found this a somewhat disturbing and unrealistic scenario for a "lady" to be in during that time period. Overall, though, I found both characters interesting, and while they weren't completely likable, I still enjoyed the novel.

While I may not re-read this novel anytime soon, I would recommend it to anyone looking for a  historical romance novel featuring a love/hate relationship.

Rating:

ADULT BOOKS:



-My Favorite Mistake by Beth Kendrick (PB)
-Dangerous Alliance by Kyra Davis (PB)
-The Unidentified Redhead by Alice Clayton (PB)
-The Darkest Joy by Marata Eros (PB)
-Bone Crossed by Patricia Briggs (PB)
-Fix You by Beck Anderson (PB)
-The Master by Kresley Cole (PB)
-Beautiful Bombshell by Christina Lauren (PB)
-Beautiful Beginning by Christina Lauren (PB)
-Searching for Perfect by Jennifer Probst (PB)

YOUNG ADULT BOOKS:
 
-The Sigh of Haruhi Suzumiya by Nagaru Tanigawa (ARC)
-Trickster's Girl by Hilari Bell (ARC)
-Trafficked by Kim Purcell (ARC)
-Sacred Scars by Kathleen Duey (ARC)
-Hooked by Catherine Greenman (HC)
-Leaving Eden by Anne D. LeClaire (HC)
-Me Since You by Laura Wiess (PB)
-Torn by Erica O'Rourke (PB)
-What I Learned From Being A Cheerleader by Adrianne Ambrose (PB)
-The S-Word by Chelsea Pitcher (PB)
-Saving Jane by Hannah Harrington (PB)