4.5 stars. Just because :)I’ve had a bit of a run of “C” grade books recently, so I wanted my next read to be a bit of a pick-me-up. I haven’t read a huge number of Anne Stuart’s books, but I’ve enjoyed the ones I have read and I admit to having a rather large weakness for that whole starchy-spinster-meets-delicious-bad-boy thing she writes so well.The Honourable Miss Annelise Kempton is nearing thirty, overly tall, bespectacled and penniless. Her sisters are married with families of their own, and their father’s profligacy left Annelise without home or resources when he died in a riding accident. The daughter of a viscount can’t possibly work for a living, so instead, with the help of her godmother, Annelise has spent the last few years providing companionship or chaperonage to a variety of “friends” in return for bed and board.Her latest home is to be with Mr Josiah Chipple, a very wealthy merchant who wants to gain his daughter an entrée into society so that she can marry a titled gentleman. Hetty Chipple is seventeen, beautiful, stubborn, rude and dismissive of her new companion, and Annelise recognises quickly that she has quite the task on her hands if she is to ensure that Hetty behaves appropriately at all times. For Hetty has her eye on the most scandalous rake in society, Mr Christian Montcalm, a man who is in dire need of Hetty’s fortune, but will one day be a viscount.Knowing of Christian’s reputation, Annelise immediately warns Hetty off, but the girl is determined to have him, so instead Annelise decides to try to keep them from seeing very much of each other. It comes as no surprise when Christian finds himself fascinated by the stern Miss Kempton and promptly nicknames her “dragon”. It’s hardly the most flattering of endearments, yet coming from Christian it’s devoid of malice, gently mocking and ridiculously disarming.The two continue to cross swords at every opportunity; Christian deliberately provoking her, knowing perfectly well that their verbal sparring is a form of foreplay, and Annelise being incapable of resisting his barbs, no matter how infuriating she tells herself she finds him. Unlike many stories in which the hero has a terrible reputation, we actually get to see Christian live up to his. He can be cold and ruthless, and is certainly not above lies and deceit if it will get him what he wants; access to Hetty’s youthful attractions and her money, and to continue to explore his fascination with Miss Kempton on the side. It seems, however, that Christian has come up against an equally ruthless opponent in the form of Hetty’s father, who proves to be a villain in more ways than one.The main thrust of the story, though, is the relationship between Christian and his “dragon”, which is really well done. Ms Stuart writes Christian in such a way as to keep him on the right side of the line which has “hero” on one side and “arsehole” on the other. He’s an alpha-male, for sure, and he wants his own way; he’s unscrupulous and manipulative – but there’s something about him that makes him loveable at the same time, a sense of an underlying vulnerability that is breathtaking when glimpsed, such as the moment he tells Annelise:”Anyone who loved me died twenty years ago."Christian is simply delicious, a man trying desperately to prove he doesn’t need love because he doesn’t feel he deserves it, and who does have a strong sense of honour in spite of his attempts to prove otherwise.Annelise is a terrific heroine, a woman who has been betrayed by those who should have protected her, and who has to tread a very uncertain path, dependent upon others for her very existence. Her loneliness and the true pathos of her situation is brought home in a scene late on in the book in which she discovers that her favourite mare, sold off after her father’s death, is part of Christian’s stable. Rather a large co-incidence, it’s true, but it’s one of those moments that made me feel as though my heart had been ripped out and stomped on: Nothing mattered but that the one creature left on this earth who loved her unconditionally was suddenly there once more. In the face of insult, she retains her dignity, resigned to her spinsterhood and wanting nothing more than a cottage of her own and a few cats. Or so she tells herself. But sometimes the thought of a solitary life is too much to bear, and she can’t help but be just a bit smitten by the handsome scoundrel who sends her snapdragons and makes her want things she knows can’t be hers. Their exchanges are sharp, witty and laden with the kind of sexual tension that is guaranteed to be explosive should it ever be allowed full rein. And when it is… phew! The book may be almost ten years old and devoid of many of the words and terms found frequently in HR these days (no barnfowl, unfolding petals or f-bombs) but the seduction scene is so hot I thought I’d have to go and stand by the open fridge for a few minutes to cool off! And what makes it even better is that they still snipe at each other even as they’re ripping their clothes off ;-)He tugged at his loosely tied cravat, sending it sailing. He ripped at his own buttons, opening his shirt and reaching for his breeches, when he stopped. “One last warning, love. This is no fairy-tale business, no pretty dream. It’s real. It’s dark and messy and for you, painful. In the beginning, at least. You’ll end up hating me.”“Don’t worry about it, Christian,” she said. “I already hate you.”Seriously – what’s not to love?The Devil’s Waltz is a great read. The characterisation is excellent, it’s funny, incredibly sexy and the while the storyline may be formulaic, it’s a formula I enjoy. And nobody writes those redeemable-by-the-right-woman-bad-boys like Anne Stuart.
3.5 Stars to be specific.It seems like this author has quite a talent for writing dark, shady, unrepentant men. Christian definitely fits the bill. He is an actual fortune hunter. I don't think I've ever read about a fortune hunter hero who doesn't have a problem with that status. Christian would have preferred having money himself, obviously, but he had no problem marrying to get it. He was a master manipulator. He was able to look at someone and know how best to portray himself. He also has no problem with any number of other villainous deeds. You want blackmail? He's all over it. How about kidnapping? Well, he doesn't have a problem with that if it proves necessary either. He's unrepentant and makes no bones about the fact that he only cares about what's best for him. He has numerous enemies and very few friends. Annelise has fallen on hard times. She's wellborn, so she can't work, but her family can't afford to support her either. She lives by becoming a guest at someone's house that needs her help. She's not a servant, and she doesn't get paid for her work, but there's an unspoken obligation involved. The most recent house she's "visiting" has her instilling manners and good breeding (or at least trying to) in shipping heiress, Hetty. Right away she runs into Christian as he tries to lure Hetty down the bridal path. She's knows his true nature and refuses to let him have Hetty.While I have a weakness for Christian's character type, I have to like the heroine too, and I have to believe in their romance. I found myself wavering on that here. I really feel that there wasn't enough quality time spent on their relationship. It seemed like so much focus was cast on Christian and his shady deeds that there wasn't enough time to develop a believable romance. Also, the I-love-you came awfully fast from Annelise. I just didn't feel that it was believable with so little to work with. On the other hand, I didn't like the fact that Christian didn't admit to falling for her until the very last minute. I'd prefer a little middle ground for both of them.I was extremely irritated by Annelise's refusal to believe anything bad that was said about Josiah. When multiple different people imply the man is a lunatic, perhaps you should stop trying to tell them they're exaggerating. It made Annelise look extremely stupid. Also, I really didn't see a reason why Annelise wouldn't just leave. Honestly, she had no real attachment to the family, and she didn't even like them. I know it wouldn't have served the plot if she had left, but it really made no sense.I would have liked this story a lot more if a believable romance had been constructed. As it is, it just average.
What do You think about The Devil's Waltz (2006)?
I do like Ms Stuart's irredeamable heroes. There was a great baddy too- convincingly nasty and unexpected. Some laugh out loud moments and the happy ever after was difficult to see coming as the hero was a total s*it quite a few times. My only slight complaint was that the resolution of the baddy story line was a bit too quick. This was the second book I've read of this author (the other was Ruthless) and I have a slight concern that she might keep turning out the same characters with plot variations.
—MashJ
One of my favourite things in romance novels is when the hero has some kind of special nickname for the heroine. Not some sappy thing like "bees knees", but something witty. Some inside joke between the two of them, something sexy that he would say to her in a particular tone of voice reserved just for her. This book has it.The Honourable Miss Annalise Kempton has fallen upon hard times. She is unmarried, almost 30 and virtually penniless. Her pedigree does not allow her to work for a living and so she spends her life "visiting" one family after another. Her latest visit is to the Chipples where she will guide young Hetty through her first season and help her to find a suitable husband. Hetty, of course, is headstrong and spoiled and has caught the eye of Christian Montcalm, a scoundrel of the first water.On her first day Miss Annalise intercepts Hetty on her way to a secret assignation in the park with Christian Montcalm. She comes face to face with Christian and tells him in no uncertain terms what her duties are: "I'm someone who is going to make your designs on Miss Chipple impossible to carry out. So cast your lures elsewhere." Christian considers it a challenge and is intrigued by the woman his friend describes as "a dragon. And a bit long in the tooth. Not your type at all.""You may be sure we'll meet again, dragon." he said, and for some reason the term sounded more affectionate than insulting. " Ah, there it is. The nickname.And away we go.The story hooked me from the beginning. Christian calls her "dragon" through the entire book - who knew that word could be so romantic? He is fascinated by her in spite of himself , she is wildly attracted to him (again, in spite of HERself). Their verbal sparring is engaging - you cheer for Miss Annalise from beginning to end. The sexual tension between the two is palpable and when they finally get together it is beautifully done. Christian is a completely unscrupulous rake but you love him anyway. He redeems himself by the end as most heroes do and the epilogue is a perfect finale to the HEA.There are also the requisite villians, nefarious plots and a minor misunderstanding. Oh, and a fairly comic resolution to Hetty Chipple's search for a husband.A very entertaining story from start to end. I loved it!Original review written June 24/10.4.5 stars
—Tammy Walton Grant
I've had this book in the TBR pile for a long time. Although Anne Stuart is one of my favourite authors her latest historicals did not have the same ring for me that her earlier ones and so I haven't been as eager of picking them up. However I did get The Demon Count in the mail last week and that made go and look at my pile of books and decide to try this one.The story in itself is not that original. The ultimate wounded hero turned rake that ends up redeemed and the best of husbands thanks to the love of a good woman. I've read that before and, in fact, Stuart herself has written it before - for instance in (for me the much superior) To Love A Dark Lord. It's not that I didn't enjoy this one but it failed to mesmerize me and make me want to reread it immediately like the said TLADL.The plot is a familiar one, Christian Montcalm is half French but since his entire family was murdered during the Revolution he has denied his nationality and refuses to acknowledge his French origins. He was raised by his grandfather who disliked him and abused him since childhood and squandered all his fortune so has to leave him nothing. So Christian decides the best thing is to marry for money and Hetty Chipple, the daughter of a rich merchant seems to be the ideal candidate.But Chipple is not as innocent as he appears and besides him Montcalm also has to deal with Hetty's companion, the honourable Annelise Kempton, whose difficult financial straits led her to be of help with your ladies trying to find a tilted husband.When Montcalm succeeds in making Hetty elope with him, Annelise and Hetty's former love descend on his country house looking for them and trying to avoid the worst. Which they do of course, but Montcalm still doesn't acknowledge his feelings till Hetty's father arrives with murder on his mind. Mr. Chipple was a really nasty villain who not only profited from his bad deeds but he seemed to relish in doing them too.Now I had a problem with both Montcalm and Annelise. He wasn't has fascinating to me as I was told he should be and I didn't feel the duality, that usually exists in Stuart's bad boys, between good and evil. And she wasn't as interesting as I thought she should be for him to be attracted, she was too perfect in her gentlewoman's behaviour for him to know that she could be more than that. Regarding the secondary love story (Stuart usually has very good ones) I was also left a bit cold by it. Hetty is not that likeable, not even in the end, and I didn't get to know William enough to like him either. Other than that the story is well written, entertaining and much better than most that are published nowadays. I guess I really have to reread TLADL soon because I kept comparing them and that might not have been fair to The Devil's Waltz. I just hope that it is as good as I remember.Grade: 4/5
—Ana T.
