Month: July 2017

Walking On My Grave by Carolyn Hart

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, MysteryLeave a comment

Walking on My Grave (A Death on Demand Mysteries)Barbara’s Rating: 3 of 5 stars    Maybe even 2.5 stars

Series: Death on Demand #26
Publication Date: May 2, 2017

I absolutely cannot believe I’m giving this one three stars. This is the final book in the series and I would have hoped for it to end with a bang rather than a whimper. I would have loved it if Annie and Max had decided to close everything down and sail around the world or maybe they find themselves expecting a child – just something – rather than this non-ending ending. Max has deteriorated to the point that I almost didn’t recognize him – he is such a wimpy, uninteresting fellow. Annie too has become a wimp and has lost her determination. So, I guess I have to say that, given the quality of this book, it is time for the series to end and it is a sad ending indeed for a much-loved series.

The book is a normal size, but a portion at the end is taken up with the content of the Chapbooks that are being written by Henny, Laurel, and Emma. I will definitely NOT miss those three because they are becoming very tiresome. At the beginning of the book, you also have a number of pages taken up with a ‘Cast of Characters’ and a ‘timetable’ that is totally unnecessary. So, you have the middle portion left for the actual story.

The mystery itself is okay, but you just don’t come to care about the characters. In previous books you would have come to really know and understand the characters – maybe there were just too many suspects. For some of the suspects, we probably had a total of 5 or 6 lines dealing with them – Curt Roundtree is a prime example of that. Also, the first murder didn’t even occur until something like 100-pages into the book. As I said, the mystery was an okay mystery, but I just never felt invested in any of the victims or suspects.

Frankly, I almost felt that this book was written by another author – not only a different author who hadn’t written any of the previous books but one who hadn’t read them either. I was really disappointed in the wrap-up for the series.

While The Duke Was Sleeping by Sophie Jordan

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, Regency Era (1811-1820)Leave a comment

While the Duke Was Sleeping (The Rogue Files, #1)Barbara’s rating: 3 of 5 stars     Really 3.5 Stars

Series: The Rogue Files #1
Publication Date: 10/25/2016

I normally enjoy Sophie Jordan’s books and I did enjoy this one, but it is totally unbelievable. It isn’t unbelievable because the heroine comes to prefer the illegitimate brother over the Duke. No, it is just the whole premise that the Duke’s staff and family are all willing to so easily believe that a haughty duke would become engaged to a poor shop girl.

Poppy Fairchurch works in a flower shop. She is poor and the guardian of her fifteen-year-old sister. She also fantasizes about the handsome duke who comes into their shop every week to order flowers for different ladies. She knows that a relationship is impossible, but the little fantasy brightens up her otherwise dull existence.

Struan MacKenzie is the illegitimate brother of the Duke and they are not at all friendly. Struan holds no grudge against the Duke and would be friends if the Duke would allow it. However, the Duke cannot accept that his father was unfaithful to his mother and feels that Struan is trying to take advantage of him and his family. ***** NOTE: I just love the name Struan and I don’t think I’ve ever seen it used in a book before.

The story begins with an altercation between the Duke and Struan and Poppy actually saving the Duke’s life by pushing him out of the way of a runaway coach. Poppy is hailed as a hero and is tasked with seeing that the Duke arrives home safely. Upon arrival at the Duke’s home, the housekeeper overhears Poppy whisper to herself that the Duke must survive because ‘they were to be wed’.

Struan doesn’t believe that his half-brother would ever, under any circumstances become engaged to a shop girl. So, he assumes she is his mistress and proceeds to treat her accordingly. Their relationship changes and grows as the story goes on and it is nice to see that love wins in the end.

I am looking forward to the next books in the series. The dowager duchess is featured in the next book, The Scandal Of It All, and I assume the third book will feature the Duke finally getting his HEA.