Customer Reviews

For the Earl's Pleasure

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I think this book is being judged on expectations more than merit. I was fortunate enough to know this book was a paranormal, which I generally avoid, but it was also by Anne Mallory, who I generally enjoy. I'd already purchased it, so rather than return it I decided to give it a try. This is not a five star read, there are elements of the plot which are rather heavy handed and melodramatic. Enough to knock it down to three stars if it wasn't for the relationship between the hero and heroine.

Using the paranormal aspect of the book as a stand in for the emotional upheavals of the early teen years, Anne Mallory places her hero and heroine at a pivotal moment in both their lives and then hands them the inability to deal with the adult roles thrust upon them. Trapped in the dynamic set in place then, they can neither stay away from each other nor trust again. When Rainewood appears to Abigail, she thinks he's dead. He thinks he's dreaming, and the sounds of her crying through the night only confuse him. Forced out of the roles they've been playing, they work through what drew them apart. The society in Regencyland often seems like a high school clique run amok, and that's taken to enjoyable extremes here. I think I would have liked this book much better if the criminal element were done away with - Rainewood could as easily have been trapped in a French prison or absent his memory in the countryside after a fall, but instead he's the victim of a plot conducted by rapists and thugs.

The center relationship was very strong to me. It's not a case of people being drawn together. For The Earl's Pleasure is more of a divorce book - a couple who have come to hate reach across the bitterness to remember why they were together in the first place, but with ghosts thrown into the mix. I think it could have been better, but it was certainly worth my time. I would pre-order her next book without hesitation.

I can not begin to tell everyone how much I enjoyed this book! I read the book to my husband and he enjoyed it as much as I did and agrees with me that it was a highly entertaining read. It is not only a historical romance but it has a bit of the paranormal in it as well, though the description on the back of the book leads you to believe it is just a normal historical romance. The confrontations between Abigail and Valerian are humorous and delightful. Once cherished friends, a scandalous secret tore them apart. Valerian delights in taunting Abigail through most of the book, feeling that she betrayed their friendship with what he sees as a lie. Abigail only wishes to find a husband and live a normal life but Valerian thwarts her efforts at every turn. Abigail has the ability to see ghosts and when Valerian, who has been missing for two days, appears at a ball walking right through people, she thinks he is dead. Valerian believes he is dreaming and refuses to believe that Abigail can actually see ghosts. There is a strong chemistry between the lead characters from the very beginning. You can feel the attraction between them even though their verbal confrontations say otherwise. The villain behind Valerian's disappearance is a mystery and I have to admit, I was surprised when he was revealed. Not often an author can get one over on me, lol and I love it when they do. A truly wonderful book for anyone who loves historical romance with a touch of the paranormal and little bit of humor combined.

This was an entertaining read. It's both a historical and paranormal romance.

Abigail sees ghosts. And when her old friend and nemesis, Valerian, goes missing, he starts to haunt Abigail in an effort to find out what happened to him. Their relationship is definitely contentious in the beginning! So contentious, I wasn't sure I could read a lot of their bickering before it would become annoying. But fortunately, it doesn't last long. Soon the relationship between the two becomes teasing and flirtatious as they discover more about each other and what really caused a rift between them. The storyline was definitely the main reason I read this book. It seemed like a very inventive premise. But at times I found the book way too predictable, and I ended up skimming chapters to get to the end of the book. That's the main reason I am only giving this book 3 stars. I've read other books by Anne Mallory and have really enjoyed them. I definitely will read more.

This book confirms my original supposition about this author's work: We were made for each other. She was made to write these entertaining books, and I was made to read them. :)

Before I get into my review, I would like to make one thing clear...

This is a paranormal historical romance.

There, that should help some readers out. For some reason, the publishers decided to shoot themselves, and the author, in the foot and not mention anywhere in the summary that this was a paranormal. They did this author a grave disservice, because nothing will piss a reader off faster than unfulfilled expectations. If you look at a lot of the negative reviews floating around the internet, you'll see that most of them revolve around the fact that they were expecting a straight historical and instead got something with paranormal. They didn't want it, and they weren't happy about it.

So, on to the story... I absolutely loved how this book opened up! By page three I already knew that I was going to adore Valerian and Abigail's relationship. Something happened in their past that made them what they are today. They're not friends, but they can't stay away from each other. The ton would be shocked to know that Valerian even knew Abigail existed, let alone that they spoke every single time they saw each other at an event.

Valerian has become the master of stalking Abigail and talking to her without anyone noticing. They constantly clash and throw verbal darts at each other whenever they encounter. Abigail cannot resist walking on her own at parties, knowing that he will come for her, and Valerian cannot resist coming to her and picking at her. Sounds like a fun relationship, eh? Abigail is finally beginning to tire of the game, which seems to directly influence Valerian's actions, finally revealing an association to the ton.

Something happens to Valerian which leads to big changes for Abigail. Men are suddenly popping back up hoping to court her, traits best left in the dark are brought to attention, and she finally gets the satisfaction of being believed.

The relationship and the tension between Abigail and Valerian are the best part of this book. At times the power disparity in their situations rankled, but the more I knew them, the less it did. While it was easy to see Valerian's power - he had the ton on his side. He always dangled the threat of revealing her and ruining her socially. Too bad for him he didn't understand that there were worse things she feared... But while his power was apparent, hers was more subtle. She had the absolute power to stop playing the game. He could only pick at her for as long as she would let him. The day she finally decided to stay with her crowd would have been the day she won.

He needed her to focus on him. He refused to admit to any fault on his part, but he desperately wanted to go back to the children they used to be. He couldn't stand that his confusion, and then his pride, had cut out the best thing in his life. For as much as he closed his life to her in the beginning, she closed her life to him even more. So he picked at her and provoked her constantly. Look at me. Talk to me. Think of me. Care for me... It was very sad for both of them.

Once again the author takes what I expect and twists it. I always cringe from the thought of the expected scene, but the author always changes things up so I'm left pleasantly surprised. I didn't see the identity of the ultimate villain coming. I thought I did a few times, but I could never settle on just one person. I saw plots wherever I looked, and while they did exist, they weren't what I expected.

There were a few instances of unanswered questions, and an event I really wanted to happen didn't occur. There was also a last minute social development that popped up that I felt was absolutely unnecessary, but I was very pleased with the story regardless. I cannot wait to try more of this author's work!


***SPOILERS***

Why was he different from all the other spirits? Did the sex between them really count? Why would that event the doctor threatened her with "cure" her? What happened to the ghosts at the end? Why did they become all blurry?

The event I really wanted to happen involved moving out of the shadows in the ton. I was pleased that his friends had noticed his obsession, but I wanted him to humble himself a bit in front of everyone. It seemed like social acceptance was a weapon between them, and I would have liked to see him "lose" and her "win" for once.

***END SPOILERS***

Seriously? "Baited breath"? The terrible writing was apparent even before that unfortunate error on page 3. I might be able to overlook these entry-level grammar and spelling errors in the presence of a good story. No such thing. Thin plot, unpleasant characters, basic fake-Regency setting (there must be a standard Regency-era manual somewhere). I couldn't finish it. I'm somewhat embarassed that I even attempted it.

Lord Valerian "Raine" Rainewood and Abigail Smart's relationship consisted of teasing that danced on the line of flirtatious and viciousness. Making it all the more complicated was that no one in society seemed to even realize they knew each other. But they had grown up together, flirting and lusting for one another, until scandal changed it all and Abigail is sent away.

Now, Abigail is in London, looking for a husband, with a mother who seems more apart from her than ever and a disapproving chaperone. Trying to find a husband is hard enough when you have a secret - like seeing ghosts. Having once been institutionalized, Abigail is desperate to ignore her "gift" and have a normal life.

Then Rainewood appears to her as a spirit, but not just any spirit - one that can touch her and communicate with her. Usually, the spirits she sees don't interact with her, so Raine and Abigail begin to realize that he is not dead, but is somewhere in between. Abigail wants to save him, but between her desire to keep her secrets and her growing desire to have the live Raine in her arms, it gets complicated and dangerous.

I loved Anne Mallory's The Bride Price, so I was looking forward to this one. But by the end of the book I was just glad to be done. The back cover copy didn't give any indication this was a ghost-related story, so that element was a surprise. I could have gotten over that, but I just ended up feeling like it was dragging on and while the gradual increasing of affection between Abby and Valerian was very good, the rest was not as enjoyable. I am sure the next book by Ms. Mallory will enchant me, but For The Earl's Pleasure didn't pleasure me at all.

Niki Lee

The paranormal aspect was unexpected but I still found this to be a historical romance. I liked the main characters and thought that the romance was convincing. It felt like there were a few lose ends left unclear or not thoroughly explained but all in in all, a good read.

I think this an OK book. The author wrote an interesting story with great twists and turns. However, it was a paranormal and not a historical romance. I thought it was just OK.

this book is worth the price - not the same old same old story line - not corny either - try it

The publisher's synopsis of this romance eliminates important facts, which has left Anne Mallory fans and other readers disappointed and confused, thus causing many mixed reviews of this well-written paranormal historical romance. The most scandalous secret of Abigail is that she has a special "gift" to communicate with ghosts. Danforth, Valerian's oldest brother and Earl of Rainewood, dies. His ghost visits Abigail while she is with Valerian, leaving Valerian confused and angry. Not only does Valerian not believe Abigail when she tells him she can talk to Danforth, he is crushed to realize that now being the new Earl he must forget Abigail because of her lower social status. Years later when Abigail's family comes into money, their social status changes, as well as their last name. Valerian has never stopped loving Abigail and seeing her at social functions is torturous. It is even worse for Abigail, as she deeply feels the hurt of his loss, loves him still, and feels Valerian will reveal not only her family's fraudulent social status but state she is mad and can see ghosts. In order to make her feel the same heartache he feels, Valerian tortures Abigail with his inappropriate remarks and prescence at Ton events, ruining many marriage prospects for Abigail. But when Valerian is viciously attacked, kidnapped and held near death, his spirit leaves his captured body and goes to Abigail for help. Now realizing that her "gift" is real, he pleads her help to work together in discovering who is holding him near death before he truly becomes a real ghost. As it is someone in society, it could be anyone Abigail meets at social events, and the danger and suspense builds as Valerian and Abigail rekindle their love. This story is unique, but stays true to the remarkable historical romance writing style of Ms. Mallory.