Sadly, three out of four of these weren't even in the 'so bad it's good' category. No, they were pretty much in a 'cure for insomnia' one. I survived by skimming. Barely. When even the sex scenes are boring, you know it's bad.
* Season for Surrender, Theresa Romain. I think Romain(e) lettuce would be more exciting than this book. Hero makes a bet he can have a prim spinster heroine spend two weeks at his mildly non-prim Christmas house party for two weeks. Sounds as *yawn* exciting as you can imagine. Why I got this book, heaven only knows. I don't even celebrate Christmas, so I have no excuse. Hero and heroine would probably have lovely marriage in real life but to read about them is to wish for the excitement of paint peeling. Nobody is compelling in the least, either in a funny or angsty way, there are no stakes of any consequences to anything and I've seen more romantic coffee commercials. The author even manages to find the only boring passages in Fanny Hill.
* Yours Until Dawn, Teresa Medeiros. This one should have been titled 'Yours Until Yawn' instead. Perhaps I should just avoid any romance novels written by anyone with any variant of Teresa as their first name. Hero is a blinded war hero, heroine his no-nonsense nurse with a secret. This premise sounds like it has my name stamped all over it (especially the secret part, which a lot of reviewers hated, but I guessed in the first ten pages and got excited about) but instead these are dreadfully boring people, there is no plot or any emotional truth, and the whole thing is utterly tedious with the maturity of a puddle. When you are a hurt/comfort junkie who is bored by a story about a blind hero and his plucky nurse, you know it's bad.
* A Royal Pain, Megan Mulry. Well, I can't blame the author for misleading me as the title perfectly describes the heroine, a supposedly plucky, irresistible, smart, caring (none of which are demonstrated in the least, but are to be taken on faith) young woman who hooks up with a grad student who turns out to be a royal Duke. I can't say I loved the hero, but even a rather dull but inoffensive man like him does not deserve to be saddled with a self-absorbed, cowardly flake with the maturity of a puddle in the Sahara desert. Skip! I will consider it my good deed for the week, if someone meant to read it but now skips it.
* Rules to Catch a Devilish Duke, Suzanne Enoch. At last! A romance novel I didn't hate! I actually rather loved this one. Sophia is an illegitimate daughter of a Duke who is neither a member of the upper classes nor fits comfortably in the lower. She finds employment with the Tantalus Club, a somewhat scandalous institution that employs women. But her father doesn't like notoriety and blackmails her into marriage with a zealous vicar - if she refuses, the club, which is a refuge for a lot of women, will get shut down. Sophia agrees, but allows herself a last indulgence - attendance at a lavish Christmas house party thrown by the Duke of Greaves (yes, another Christmas house party. One which doesn't make me want to eat my own hair). Adam whateverlastname, Duke of Greaves, invites Sophia in part to spice up the party, and in part because she is close friends with two of his friends (long story, read Taming the Impossible Rogue). Only they end up being stranded alone (well, with a bunch of servants) for a week at his estate and...well...things happen. This book is a lesson in how to write characters who are well-adjusted (well, largely) and nice people, who are nonetheless likeable and interesting. I rooted for Sophia and Adam like mad, and in general this book put me in an utter good mood. It's very low on angst (even by Enoch standards) but it's so darling, I didn't even mind.
* Season for Surrender, Theresa Romain. I think Romain(e) lettuce would be more exciting than this book. Hero makes a bet he can have a prim spinster heroine spend two weeks at his mildly non-prim Christmas house party for two weeks. Sounds as *yawn* exciting as you can imagine. Why I got this book, heaven only knows. I don't even celebrate Christmas, so I have no excuse. Hero and heroine would probably have lovely marriage in real life but to read about them is to wish for the excitement of paint peeling. Nobody is compelling in the least, either in a funny or angsty way, there are no stakes of any consequences to anything and I've seen more romantic coffee commercials. The author even manages to find the only boring passages in Fanny Hill.
* Yours Until Dawn, Teresa Medeiros. This one should have been titled 'Yours Until Yawn' instead. Perhaps I should just avoid any romance novels written by anyone with any variant of Teresa as their first name. Hero is a blinded war hero, heroine his no-nonsense nurse with a secret. This premise sounds like it has my name stamped all over it (especially the secret part, which a lot of reviewers hated, but I guessed in the first ten pages and got excited about) but instead these are dreadfully boring people, there is no plot or any emotional truth, and the whole thing is utterly tedious with the maturity of a puddle. When you are a hurt/comfort junkie who is bored by a story about a blind hero and his plucky nurse, you know it's bad.
* A Royal Pain, Megan Mulry. Well, I can't blame the author for misleading me as the title perfectly describes the heroine, a supposedly plucky, irresistible, smart, caring (none of which are demonstrated in the least, but are to be taken on faith) young woman who hooks up with a grad student who turns out to be a royal Duke. I can't say I loved the hero, but even a rather dull but inoffensive man like him does not deserve to be saddled with a self-absorbed, cowardly flake with the maturity of a puddle in the Sahara desert. Skip! I will consider it my good deed for the week, if someone meant to read it but now skips it.
* Rules to Catch a Devilish Duke, Suzanne Enoch. At last! A romance novel I didn't hate! I actually rather loved this one. Sophia is an illegitimate daughter of a Duke who is neither a member of the upper classes nor fits comfortably in the lower. She finds employment with the Tantalus Club, a somewhat scandalous institution that employs women. But her father doesn't like notoriety and blackmails her into marriage with a zealous vicar - if she refuses, the club, which is a refuge for a lot of women, will get shut down. Sophia agrees, but allows herself a last indulgence - attendance at a lavish Christmas house party thrown by the Duke of Greaves (yes, another Christmas house party. One which doesn't make me want to eat my own hair). Adam whateverlastname, Duke of Greaves, invites Sophia in part to spice up the party, and in part because she is close friends with two of his friends (long story, read Taming the Impossible Rogue). Only they end up being stranded alone (well, with a bunch of servants) for a week at his estate and...well...things happen. This book is a lesson in how to write characters who are well-adjusted (well, largely) and nice people, who are nonetheless likeable and interesting. I rooted for Sophia and Adam like mad, and in general this book put me in an utter good mood. It's very low on angst (even by Enoch standards) but it's so darling, I didn't even mind.