I love looking for sequels, prequels, retellings of the novels, since we have so little Jane Austen, and certainly plenty of questions about what the other characters were thinking, and what happened after. So, here are two for your consideration, both in a series by Sharon Lathan --

Mr and Mrs Fitzwilliam Darcy: Two Shall Become One

The Back Cover Blurb --
*Beginning on their wedding day, Pride and Prejudice's Darcy and Elizabeth are two people who are deeply in love with one another and are excited to begin their marriage.

Their courtship was tempestuous; misunderstandings and misgivings nearly tore them apart. But now that they've seen each other without prejudice, their trust, attraction, and delight in each other grows with every passing day. Both are inexperienced and innocent, sharing moments of shyness and boldness as they discover the kinds of intimacies that a newlywed couple shares.

As their love story unfolds, they reveal their innermost secrets and feelings, embracing each other in a marriage filled with romance, passion, humor and drama that will keep you spellbound.*

Loving Mr Darcy: Journeys Beyond Pemberley

The Back Cover Blurb --
*Six months into his marriage to Elizabeth Bennet, Darcy is still awestruck by his beautiful wife and their unparalleled love and passion. For Darcy, each day offers more opportunities to surprise and delight his beloved bride.

Elizabeth has quickly adapted to being the Mistress of Pemberley, charming everyone she meets and handling her duties with grace and poise. Just when it seems life can't get any better. Elizabeth gets the most wonderful news.

The lovers leave the serenity of Pemberley, traveling through the sumptuous landscape of Regency England, experiencing the lavish sights, sounds, and tastes around them. With each day come new discoveries as they become further entwined, body and soul, and a most sacred bond grows ever deeper.*

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I thought I would do a review for these two together, since it seemed easier, but also too, since they pretty much go together. First of all, if you are a Jane Austen purist, you probably are not going to like these. The biggest thing that took me a while to get used to is the one aspect about these that felt like I was reading any of the other Regency Historical Romances I read -- that Darcy and Lizzie have lots of sex. See, I've always figured when finishing a reread or rewatching of Pride and Prejudice, I always figure that they had great love lives with each other, but I never really went beyond that thought because while Austen was no prude in her books, the bedroom doors where closed. So reading the sex scenes with a hero and heroine named Darcy and Lizzie, took a bit of getting used to. Oh, and also, they seem to be written more as sequels to the 2005 movie version of Pride and Prejudice. Not my favorite version by any stretch of the imagination, I still was able to image the Darcy and Lizzie characters as my preferred choices, the 1995 BBC versions. :)

So, having gotten that out of the way. . . I really liked them. I liked seeing how their early days of marriage life went, how she got settled in the role of Mistress of Pemberley. . . we are introduced to new people; but of course, incredibly happy to see our other old friends, such as Georgiana, Colonel Fitzwilliam, Jane and Bingley, and in the second is where we see Lady Catherine and Anne.

I have to say, I liked the second one more; here, I look at it that we got down to regular life, and we see how the Darcys interact with it. Trying to explain what I mean - the first book was them getting married, being married, the honeymoon, and staying on the honeymoon. The second we things settle a bit; we see what is going on with the Bingleys, Lady Catherine's continuing reaction, definitely love seeing Anne De Bourgh'(who talks!), and Mary Bennet here too. . . just love what happens with them, but can't say why, since that would be giving away parts of the story. :) In this one, the honeymoon sure is continuing, but we also have the soon to be addition, well, addition to the family - Lizzie is pregnant, though, alas, we must wait for the next book to find out what happens there.

So, in short, I really liked these sequels, though they aren't at the top of my list; but, I definitely want to know more, so will be looking for the next one. If you're someone who likes any type of Austen paraliterature, or just Regency/historical fiction or romances, you'll want to add these to the collection.

Ah, well, so I kept forgetting to post my reads since the beginning of October. Kept meaning to do it, but well, simply kept forgetting. :) The usual changes to the site apply, icons all over the place since September, just not a whole lot as of late. So, anyway, on to the books (which isn't a *whole* lot since I went back to college in September, so anyway --

Laurens - Mastered By Love - Regency - 5
O'Reilly - Hot Under Pressure - Contemporary - 5
Laurens - The Untamed Bride - Regency - 5
Quinn - To Sir Phillip, With Love - Regency - reread - 5
Kendrich - The Playboy Sheikh's Virgin Stable Girl - Contemporary - 5
Walker - The Sicilian's Red Hot Revenge - Contemporary - 5
Bird - The Billionaire Next Door - Contemporary - 5+
Bradley - Devil in My Bed - Regency - 5
Graham - The Italian's Inexperienced Mistress - Contemporary - 4
Dawkins - More Letters From Pemberley - Regency - 5+
Stillings - Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evie - Contemporary - reread - 5+
Atkins - Wedding For One - Contemporary - 5
Atkins - Tattoo For Two - Contemporary - 5
Austen - Sense and Sensibility - Regency - reread - 5+
Grange - Colonel Brandon's Diary - Regency - 5+
Austen - Persuasion - Regency - reread - 5
Kleypas - Mine Till Midnight - Victorian - reread - 5+
Dimon - Your Mouth Drives Me Crazy - Contemporary - reread - 5+
Dimon - It's Hotter in Hawaii - Contemporary - reread - 5+
Dimon - Holding Out for a Hero - Contemporary - 5+
Kleypas - Seduce Me at Sunrise - Victorian - reread - 5+
Kleypas - Tempt Me at Twilight - Victorian - 5
Grange - Mr Darcy's Vampire - Regency - 5
Mallery - Hot on Her Heels - Contemporary - 5
D'Alessandro - Touch Me - Regency - 5
Lang - The Millionaire's Misbehaving Mistress - Contemporary - 5+
Lathan - Mr and Mrs Fitzwilliam Darcy - Regency - 5
Harris - Cavelli's Lost Heir - Contemporary - 5
Kendall - Take Me For a Ride - Contemporary - 5+

Until next time (with two longer reviews)! :)

Author Julie Kenner of the Demon Hunting Soccer Mom series is LIVE now here at: http://bittenbybooks.com/?p=11014, so go look! :)

Here's my next and second ever actual review. . . this time it's for Seduce Me by Robyn DeHart.

The back cover blurb, better than what I can attempt to do --

* The Men of Solomon's meet in secret, their very existence only a rumor among the best of Victorian society. They are treasure hunters, men of wealth and title, seekers of myths and legends. And no legend is as alluring as the tale of Pandora's Box. . .

Fielding Grey is a treasure seeker with a taste for danger and experienced women. His latest mission: wrest Pandora's fabled box from a notorious criminal mastermind. Not in the job description: save an innocent damsel in distress.

A bookish miss, Esme Worthington has favored dusty tomes over society balls, and thrilling tales over flirtations. But when two scoundrels break into her home, she is thrust into a real-life adventure. Pursued and suddenly possessing the forbidden box, Esme can't resist peeking inside. Under the spell of Pandora's seductive curse, she's soon offering herself to Fielding – body and soul. With her reluctant rescuer determined to resist her charms, can the two outwit an enemy who will stop at nothing to seize their precious prize? *

Okay, now me. . . I think fans of Amanda Quick's Regencies will like this one, it's just Victorian, not Regency. :) It's kind of on the similar vein with the romance and the action and what the hero/ines are looking for. I love Esme and that she's a bluestocking and even though a well-read and opinionated woman is not what men are looking for in the ton, she doesn't keep that from being herself. And of course, Fielding just loves her for that. :) Loved her Aunt Thea that she was staying with, and that she got her second chance. And there are a couple of cats. The Solomon group seems quite interesting -- hoping to see more of them, but I imagine we will in future books.

An issue or two though -- this one focuses on Pandora's Box. On one hand, I'm really glad that it was a real treasure instead of a made up one (sometimes made up places and such throw me off from the story, though not always), but the thing with Pandora's Box, I immediately thought back to Tomb Raider 2. But she, of course made the legend a bit different that after a while I got into that part. The other was with the the bracelets from the box, that was sort of The Mummy 2, but with a different twist too. So, all in all, it was pretty enjoyable, a nice romance with a bit of archeology and mystery, so can't wait for the next one! :)

Well, welcome to my first, real, honest to goodness review of a book. I nearly always only put a rating down next to what I read in a month, because, well, I'm lazy. :) But I had this book on my list to get because I liked the sound of it, and then I saw the chance of getting it, but I had to review it. So, I went for it, and now that I'm done reading it, here's the review.

Oh, and just as a warning, I will try to avoid any and all spoilers, but you just might want to be careful if I mess that one up. So, anyway, here goes nothing! :)

First of all, since the blurb is better than a summary that I might attempt, here is the back cover description for you...

**Ally Giordano is at the end of her rope. Her beloved grandmother actually believes that she's living in her favorite romance novel in Regency England and Ally doesn't have the heart to set her straight. But even worse, Granny Donny is now convinced that she's found the perfect "Duke" to rescue Ally from spinsterhood and she won't rest until this modern-day rogue escorts them both to her country retreat.

Commitment-phobic Sam Carson is attracted to naughty, not nice. But one stolen kiss from Ally and he's hell-bent on stripping away her good girl ways and teaching her the art of being bad. Love isn't in the stars for this rake -- he has no interest in being tamed by a woman, no matter how soft her skin is or sharp her wit. But as the country beckons, Sam can't resist the charms of Ally or her dotty Granny. Has this playboy met his match?**

Okie dokie, now it's my turn. :) I wanted this one when I saw it sort of combined the two types of Romances that I read -- Regency and Contemporary. And I wasn't disappointed - the two words I thought of were fun and cute. First off, I loved Granny Donny -- I liked her world of all things Regency, but sure hoped it really wasn't anything to do with a stroke or the like. Luckily it wasn't, but admitted, didn't see the ultimate reason coming. ;) Then there are Ally and Sam -- I like it when there is a playboy who ends up falling for the definitely not the playboy type, and that's what we have here. They have their issues from their pasts, especially Ally, which keeps her from fully trusting him or her with him, but love her Regency based solution. With them, overall, I just really liked following them on the path of getting together. And we have fun supporting characters, who will I don't know if they are supposed to have a future book together, separately, but I sure wouldn't mind seeing more of June and Mateo if at all possible. :)

So, in short, this is a really fun and more of a light-hearted read which will make you go "aww" at the end for. You certainly don't have to like Regency romances to like this one, but as someone who reads both, it combined the two in a great and fun way. Think I'll go check out other Diana Holquist books, since she was a new to me author! :)

Been forgetting about posting my July reads! :) And of course, as usual, check out the icon pages, always adding more all around. Added back my Guiding Light page after a lot of going through, and added Phillip Spaulding to the mix too. :)

Siegfried - Strange Matters - Science - 5
Alexander - The Virgin's Secret - Victorian - 5
Aylmer - Julia and the Master of Morancourt - Regency - 4
MacKenzie - The Naked Baron - Regency - 5
Banks - The Tycoon's Rebel Bride - Contemporary - 4
Radley - The Untamed Sheik - Contemporary - 5+
Maxwell - A Seduction at Christmas - Regency - 5
MacPherson - The Forever Summer - Contemporary - reread - 5+
Bond/Kelly/Wilde - Sand, Sun, Seduction - Contemporary - 5+
Neville - Never Resist Temptation - Regency - 5+
McCarthy - You Don't Know Jack - Contemporary - reread - 5
Mallory - For the Earl's Pleasure - Regency - 5
Cresswell/Craig/Collins - It's a Wonderful Christmas - Anthology - 5
Putney - Loving a Lost Lord - Regency - 5
Joy - High Energy - Contemporary - reread - 5+

Recently at the UK Historical authors blog, there was a post about Austen-Inspired books - those prequels, sequels and other tellings that are out there, that some love, and some hate. Well, I really liked my comment (mostly because it was half way coherent!), so I wanted to put it here too. So, here is me cutting and pasting --

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I keep starting this over because I think there are lots of things that I could go with, but I think one thing that those who aren't thrilled with those things inspired (in our case, JA) is even knowing they are not JA, they expect to pick up something JA, and they get disappointed and angry when it's nothing like it. And ignoring all of them because of some bad ones is ridiculous too, because like any genre of anything, there are good, there are bad and ones in between. Sure, one doesn't have to pick any up if you don't want to, but I do always believe in knowing what you're criticizing, and if it's only based on one or two or zero books read, it's not much of a serious argument.

Me, I love JA related books -- I know I am not picking up Jane's latest, and I'm fine with that. I don't care if the author is trying to sound like Jane or sound more today. . . I just like the ideas, I like knowing the possibility of what was going through Darcy's (or put your favorite here) mind since we didn't see that perspective. I like seeing the possiblities of what comes after the oh so familiar The End of the actual novels, and since I have no imagination, I'll pick up someone else's. I'm not going to like all of them that I read or pick up every one of them, not everything works for everyone.

My only suggestion would be, while I so very much love Darcy, I do look for other novel inspired ones too. So I guess I'm simply someone who instead of wishes they'd all disappear, I would love to see more, but also more of non-Darcy family ones too. But I love him too, so bring him on too. :)

Just a couple more links for you!

Go here for this visit and contest. . .



and here for this visit and contest. . .



and go here too --

Go here to visit Bitten by Books --



And go here for Gena Showalter's visit --
http://bittenbybooks.com/?p=8964

Go here -- http://mrdarcyvampyre.blogspot.com/2009/07/competition.html for a great contest to win Mr Darcy, Vampyre! :)

Ah, made it for July. Happy Independence Day! :) And yep, I gave the site a little bit of a new look. Thought it was time, and I found something that made me really happy! (main reason why I hadn't changed it for a long time) :) And of course, many a new icon around, just peek to your heart's content. . . and now what I read! :)

Jeffries - Let Sleeping Rogues Lie - Regency - reread - 5
Feather/Jeffries/London - Snowy Night with a Stranger - Regency - 5+
Thompson - My Nerdy Valentine - Contemporary - reread - 5+
Jeffries - Don't Bargain with the Devil - Regency - 5
Kendall - Take Me if You Can - Contemporary - Reread - 5
Kendall - Take Me Two Times - Contemporary - 5
D'Alessandro - Tempted at Midnight - Regency - 5+
Betts - Tangled Up in Love - Contemporary - 5
Benedict - Too Dangerous to Desire - Regency - 5
Ridgway - Dirty Sexy Knitting - Contemporary - 5
Mederios - Some Like it Wicked - Regency - reread - 5+
Mederios - Some Like it Wild - Regency - 5+
Leigh - A Weaver Wedding - Contemporary - 5
Quinn - What Happens in London - Regency - 5
Kaye - Too Hot to Handle - Contemporary - 5
Linden - A View to a Kiss - Regency - 5
Jeffries - Wed Him Before You Bed Him - Regency - 5+
Dimon - Your Mouth Drives Me Crazy - Contemporary - reread - 5+
Dimon - It's Hotter in Hawaii - Contemporary - 5+
Kelly - Mastering the Marquess - Regency - 5

Check out the chat and contest for Diana Rowland right over here -- http://bittenbybooks.com/?p=8139 ! :)

A great contest with Yasmine Galenorn can be found right here -- http://bittenbybooks.com/?p=8027. So go there to check it out! :)

Go here at Bitten By Books for an Online Release Party and Contest with Author Dakota Cassidy -- http://bittenbybooks.com/?p=7911

and here -- http://bittenbybooks.com/?p=7985 for a visit and contest with Anya Bast! :)