Always a Princess by Alice Gaines

TITLE: Always a Princess
AUTHOR: Alice Gaines
PUBLISHER: Carina
LENGTH: Novel (roughly 83k)
GENRE: Historical romance
COST: $5.39

When Philip Rosemont, Viscount Wesley, spots the princess at a ball, he knows immediately she’s a fake. The question is, why is she pretending to be an Eastern European noblewoman and how quickly can he get her to himself? He doesn’t expect to find her trying to pilfer their hostess’s jewels, especially since he’s just taken it for himself, but by the time she shows up at his home the following day with the intent of blackmailing him to keep his secret, he’s already decided they’d make a fabulous team, both in thievery and elsewhere…

I had a splendid experience with a book I read by this author last year, and this second effort proved just as entertaining.

The delight starts early and swiftly. We open at a ball, where Philip, the Viscount Wesley, has spotted a woman who is clearly an imposter, pretending to be a princess from a small Eastern European country none of the simpering men surrounding her have even heard of. Philip has, however, and much to the woman’s chagrin, he’s intimately familiar with it. He quickly discovers that she’s at the party for the same reason he is – to steal jewels from their hostess. Where his motivation is sheer boredom, Eve – the imposter princess – is doing it in retaliation after having lost her position as governess when her employer’s son had her take the fall for a cameo he stole from his mother. Eve’s rationale is that since she’s already been accused of thievery, she might as well do it. So far, her plan has worked well. But then she met a man who’d actually been to the country in question, and now everything is in disarray. In an attempt to keep control of the situation, she decides to blackmail him, to force him to pay her to keep his secret that he’s really the Orchid Thief. Philip laughs at the offer. His reputation is the last thing he worries about. But he’s got a counter offer in mind, one that poses them as partners rather than adversaries.

I was laughing at this wonderful farce almost from the start. Philip is roguish and intelligent, with just enough determined swagger to keep him edgy and the right balance of manners to keep him from going over the top. His dialogue, no matter who he’s addresses, comes fast and furious, leaving no room for skimming for fear of missing something he’s said. He typifies the farcical nature of the entire story, and honestly, what a breath of fresh air it was. There isn’t nearly enough farce in romantic fiction, probably because it’s hard to do well. This succeeds. Very, very well.

Is it the most original story? Well, no, but that doesn’t matter when the dialogue and hero sparkle as much as they do. The set-up, taken outside of the context of farce, would be hard to tolerate, because a reader would be left with abundant questions on how so much could get handwaved away (Eve’s acceptance into the ton as nobility before the Rosemonts vouch for her, for one). But farce demands a stretch of that acceptance, and as long as you’re prepared to go that far, it works anyway. The chemistry between the two leaps off the page, mostly as a result of Philip, and the sex when it comes is scorching.

The complaints I have are few. First of all, Eve isn’t quite as entertaining as Philip, but then again, he tends to get the best lines so it’s easy to get eclipsed by that. I did find her ultimate secret a tad banal considering the nature of the story, and it veered dangerously close to more dramatic historical romance as a result. It felt out of place in a story that was so outrageous already. There’s also a point just over halfway through when Philip lost his shine and turned into one of the simpering men who’d been fawning over Eve at the start. It’s just when he’s begun to realize the depths of his feelings for her, and his behavior becomes uncomfortable to witness. It doesn’t last, thank goodness. If it had, it might have been hard to finish.

But what a joy it is to find a book that has me laughing and smiling as much as this one did. While humor can be quite subjective, especially in written form, I think it’s safe to say that this author’s style of it definitely works for me.

Readability	9/10 – Far-fetched, but funny with witty banter you can’t take your eyes off
Hero	9/10 – Except for a brief period where he turned into one of the simpering fools from the beginning, delightfully roguish and witty
Heroine	7/10 – Not as consistent as the hero, and her secret is a little banal in light of the farcical nature of the story
Entertainment value	8/10 – Delightful and funny, as long as you accept it as farce
World building	7/10 – Stretches credibility, but then again, that tends to be one of the requirements in farce
TOTAL:	40/50

Miss Foster's Folly by Alice Gaines

TITLE: Miss Foster’s Folly
AUTHOR: Alice Gaines
PUBLISHER: Carina Press
LENGTH: Novel (roughly 88k)
GENRE: Historical erotic romance
COST: $5.39

Spinster Juliet Foster inherits the vast majority of her father’s fortune, leaving her one of the richest women in America. Determined to be independent and live life the way she wants to, she decides to take a tour of Europe and have a string of affairs. The only problem is, she needs to lose her virginity first or nobody will believe her as a woman of the world. She meets Englishman David Winslow and decides he is the one. The only problem is, he doesn’t want her as only a lover. He wants her as his wife. With each as stubborn as the other, only time will tell who will come out the victor…

I’ve purchased a number of Carina titles since it opened last June, and so far, they’ve been pretty evenly split between good and bad. The ones I’ve liked, I’ve really liked, though, so it’s definitely encouraging to stick with them.

This book falls into a really like category. It features the indomitable Miss Juliet Foster, who finds out that her jerk of a father has left the vast majority of his very large fortune to her, because She has a headstrong and unfeminine temperament and will never land a husband. But she clings to money with the tenacity of a barnacle. This way, I know she’ll never starve. Rather than sit around and fend off suitors, though, she wants to experience life to the fullest, and decides on a jaunt through Europe, taking on a string of lovers. The only drawback is, she’s still a virgin, and since she needs to pose as a widow to keep her identity safe, she needs to find a way to lose it. Her initial plan is to lose it on the ship, but then she meets David Winslow, the Marquis of Derrington, and the sparks that jump between them – as well as his reputation as a cad – makes him the ideal candidate. Even better, he’s English, and the way she sees it, the English aren’t nearly as provocative or well-trained in the sexual arts as the French or Italians. David will be a great training ground.

The only problem is, David isn’t currently looking for a lover. Convinced his beloved grandmother is about to die, he’s determined to marry and honor his grandmother’s wish. His grandmother has a very definite idea of the woman that should be, and after meeting Juliet, David is certain he’s found her. His marriage proposal is turned down, however, but both of them are all too aware of the attraction between them. Even when it looks like they’re leaving each other’s lives for good, fate rears its head, putting them into a stubborn circle as Juliet sets out to make David her first lover and David is vehement that she marry him, too.

I like so much about this story, it’s hard to know where to start. The characters would probably be a good place. Both David and Juliet are sharp-witted, smart, and sensual, traits that carry them far when other elements might falter. I loved the sparks they had from their very first meeting, and their constant one-upmanship had me grinning throughout the book. When they do ultimately consummate their attraction, it’s an explosion that doesn’t let up until nearly the end. They’re hot and passionate, convincing me over and over again just how right they are for each other.

It’s not just the two leads who come through as three-dimensional. More than a few secondary characters stand out in their own right, like Millie, Juliet’s best friend, and Blandings, a married friend of David’s. The secondary characters play significant roles, and rarely get lost in the protagonists’ shadows.

I also love the turnabout on the more traditional expectations. Juliet bucks what every other woman of her era wants (or is supposed to want), while David proves the more romantic of the pairing. This switch-up of roles gives the tale a fresh sparkle, engaging me so completely that it felt like a much shorter book than it is.

My complaints are few, and in at least one case, probably specific to me. I generally prefer blunt language when it comes to sex and anatomy, and though I know it’s more historically accurate to refer to things by different terms, it still catches me up. Words like “frig” and “pearl” disrupt my immersion because they sound so politely euphemistic, but I imagine regular readers of historicals might not necessarily have the same hang-ups.

My other hang-up is in regards to Juliet herself. While I adored her independence, at one point it really felt she was being dumb about what was going on around her and with David just for the sake of adding conflict. She ran away a third time, and it annoyed me to no end because I couldn’t help but think, “She’s smarter than that.” On the surface, the explanations kind of made sense, but I can’t say that I actually believed them emotionally.

This book was more than enough to get me excited about possibly finding a new author to devour. While her website hasn’t been updated in recent months, there’s enough backlist there for me to go wandering around in search of a story as fun and passionate as this was. Fingers crossed I find one.

Readability	8/10 – Lush and erotic, though I’ll admit I got caught occasionally on some of the historical terminology of things
Hero	8/10 – I thought he came a little too easy to his decision about marrying Juliet, but otherwise he was charming and wonderful
Heroine	8/10 – I adored her headstrong, independent ways, until the end when I thought she ran away one too many times
Entertainment value	8/10 – In spite of hang-ups, fell head over heels for the chemistry between the two
World building	9/10 – Crisp and utterly believable, no matter what continent she was on
TOTAL:	41/50