Kiss Me, Annabel by Eloisa James
Jan. 19th, 2006 07:31 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jmc_bksI know the publishing world adores Eloisa James. What's not to love? An academic writing romance and thus legitimizing it? Golden. But I think I've read my last James novel. I tried her early releases, Guilty Pleasures and Potent Pleasures; one of them had huge, glaring historical inaccuracies, and neither of them grabbed me, plot wise. Later I tried Duchess in Love, which was kind of ~meh~ for me.
In one more attempt to see what the fuss was about, I picked up Kiss Me, Annabel at the library over the weekend. KMA wasn't bad, it just wasn't all that good. Annabel Essex is a debutante who wants to marry well, having been raised in genteel poverty by her horse-mad father. Her sister, Imogen, is a reckless widow who embroils Annabel in a scandal with Ewan Poly, Earl of Ardmore. Annabel is forced to marry Ewan, although he is everything she hoped to escape: poor, Scottish and horse-mad. A large chunk of the book is a road romance, as they travel to Ewan's home in Scotland and learn about each other. The chemistry between the two is nicely done, and the sexual tension is very well done. Ultimately, though, I wanted to shake Annabel, because she got what she had plotted and planned for (a rich husband who could take care of her) but then didn't want it or think she deserved it. The big misunderstanding was trumped up because she didn't listen to Ewan or talk to him.
KMA suffers from series-itis. Clearly this is a middle book in a series of some sort, because characters who are not part of the action are mentioned, and events that occurred in the past are referred to but not explained. There was a significant side story about Imogen and Mayne, a jaded rake who is a friend of the family, that was not concluded. Obviously they are going to get a book of their own...or maybe two books, because I'm not sure they are going to end up together.
Kiss Me, Annabel wasn't awful, nor was it the worst book I've read or attempted to read so far this year. It was just sort of average, undistinguishable from other Avon European historicals. If someone gives me a copy of another James novel, I might attempt to read it, but I've crossed her name off my list of authors that I'm willing to look for at the library or pick up if I see at the UBS.
In one more attempt to see what the fuss was about, I picked up Kiss Me, Annabel at the library over the weekend. KMA wasn't bad, it just wasn't all that good. Annabel Essex is a debutante who wants to marry well, having been raised in genteel poverty by her horse-mad father. Her sister, Imogen, is a reckless widow who embroils Annabel in a scandal with Ewan Poly, Earl of Ardmore. Annabel is forced to marry Ewan, although he is everything she hoped to escape: poor, Scottish and horse-mad. A large chunk of the book is a road romance, as they travel to Ewan's home in Scotland and learn about each other. The chemistry between the two is nicely done, and the sexual tension is very well done. Ultimately, though, I wanted to shake Annabel, because she got what she had plotted and planned for (a rich husband who could take care of her) but then didn't want it or think she deserved it. The big misunderstanding was trumped up because she didn't listen to Ewan or talk to him.
KMA suffers from series-itis. Clearly this is a middle book in a series of some sort, because characters who are not part of the action are mentioned, and events that occurred in the past are referred to but not explained. There was a significant side story about Imogen and Mayne, a jaded rake who is a friend of the family, that was not concluded. Obviously they are going to get a book of their own...or maybe two books, because I'm not sure they are going to end up together.
Kiss Me, Annabel wasn't awful, nor was it the worst book I've read or attempted to read so far this year. It was just sort of average, undistinguishable from other Avon European historicals. If someone gives me a copy of another James novel, I might attempt to read it, but I've crossed her name off my list of authors that I'm willing to look for at the library or pick up if I see at the UBS.
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Date: 2006-01-24 05:47 pm (UTC)blah
I have the first of this series but haven't read it yet but I did read KMA. And really out of all of the books I have read of hers, I liked it. Series!slut that I am, I want rafe's book, which is next. Horrid cover! But after that one I will prolly be out. I don't get omg love for EJ.
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Date: 2006-01-24 09:54 pm (UTC)