More Kleypas Titles

Worth Any Price: I liked every unexpected aspect of this story. A hero who flinches at physical contact. A heroine of both physical and emotional strength. A sexy, dangerous career as a Bow Street Runner that ends abruptly and involuntarily. An antagonistic relationship between this hero and another beloved hero from Kleypas' earlier work. And an emotionally honest telling of child molestation.

Every turn, every development defies the formula I expect in a historical romance. And I loved it. Kleypas delivers outstanding characterization and involves the reader emotionally from the start. In a word--a keeper. In fact, a DIK. Blurb.

Secrets of a Summer Night: My second best favorite from Kleypas. In this one, Kleypas gives readers the formulaic vulnerable heroine and a dashing hero to come to her rescue. Circumstances and character however stretch beyond reader expectations and, for me, put Kleypas in a class by herself.

Most memorable in this book is the laugh-out-loud exchanges between four women enjoying a friendship very real and rarely seen in historical romance. I would also say that the heroine carries the book. It is largely her story and the hero occupies the background space a good deal of the time. Of the hero, I liked his patience and genuine--altruistic--kindness. I never saw him as self-serving and his tender endearments were utterly natural (not ill-fitting, corny or presumptuous). This is another that I will re-read. Blurb.

Suddenly You: When Lori commented on Kleypas' tendency to feature characters and storylines outside historical London's ballrooms, I was intrigued. Suddenly You is a good example of this and I enjoyed it immensely. This heroine is an accomplished author and her hero a successful publisher. And instead of falling into marriage, they fall into bed and enjoy a full-out affair. The HEA ultimately dictates marriage, true; but the journey was engaging and entirely outside the bounds of propriety. An engaging read for me with but one complaint. I found the heroine's weight issues an annoying distraction. Not because Kleypas fails in any measure of characterization; but rather because I don't wish to identify with the heroine that much. Blurb.