A Handful of Gold – Mary Balogh – 2/5 – While I can’t pick anything out of here that I specifically didn’t like, I think I just didn’t feel engaged with the characters. The Hero wasn’t particularly likeable at any point in the story in my opinion, and I think they “fell in love” rather quickly. The Season for Suitors – Nicola Cornick – 3/5 – I think this was part of a series or something because there were a lot of characters that clearly had backstories and I didn’t know anything about them. The story itself was good. I kind of liked Sebastian, who was clearly tortured and hurting the woman he loved because of it. His issues did get a bit old and frustrating though. A pretty good read.This Wicked Gift – Courtney Milan – 3/5 – I struggled to enjoy this one as much as others by this author. As always the characters are delightfully complex and fully flawed which makes them all the more fascinating. Nevertheless, I couldn’t bring myself to like them all that much. William’s actions were pretty reprehensible and it felt like Lavinia was constantly testing him. There was a dynamic between them that I’m not sure I liked. Nevertheless, the author pulled off the story brilliantly. I’m not sure how she did it, but she did. I still say Courtney Milan is a brilliant romance author with intriguing and fresh stories, this one just wasn’t my favorite. A Handful of Gold - Mary Balogh - Usually a dependable name for excellent romance; here - well, the romance is ok although she still delights with the perfect turn of phrase or observation such as when Julian notes that Blanche doesn't lapse into regionalism when not concentrating. I'd count this possibly a two-star effort. Also in the anthology 'Christmas Keepsakes'.The Season for Suitors - Nicola Cornick - I'd never read Nicola Cornick until this story. It was reasonably good though it seems as if Sebastian turns into a giddy schoolboy towards the end. Yes, I like that he finally feels and will let himself love, but simply too much giddiness. I'd give this story a solid three stars. Also in the anthology 'Christmas Keepsakes'.This Wicked Gift - Courtney Milan - This story alone makes the book a keeper. Wonderfully written about two normal people of the Regency time period - neither hero nor heroine are rich, dukes, lords, ladies, nobility or even gentry. They have no pretensions and so very little monetary wealth that the gifts they give are inversely proportional to what they have. Five stars easily, do I hear ten? Twenty?
What do You think about The Heart Of Christmas (2009)?
This Wicked Gift. Eu gostei porque é diferente da maioria dos romances históricos que li.
—bridez
Only read This Wicked Gift by Courtney Milan for now.
—alimanos
