Customer Reviews

I Kissed an Earl (Pennyroyal Green Series)

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

You don't need to have read the other books in the Pennyroyal Green series to enjoy I Kissed An Earl, but I recommend that you do so because you'll appreciate Violet Redmond (our heroine) and her story a little more. She's a livewire, is our Violet! I wondered how Ms. Long was going to give Violet a hero to match her but she did it- so Bravo Julie Anne Long!

Without going too much into the plot, here is the gist of it:
Beautiful, rich, bored and adored Violet comes across some information she believes will lead her to her missing older brother, Lyon, who may or may not be the brutal pirate Le Chat. Beautiful, not-so-rich, hard-as-nails ship Captain Asher Flint lost a close friend at the hands of Le Chat, and Flint wants justice for this friend. Too, Flint will have everything he's ever dreamed of (an earldom!) if he can catch this Le Chat, who is sinking merchant vessels left and right. Violet stows away on Flint's ship in an attempt to find her brother. She is discovered. They make a deal to track down Le Chat together (though the sense of this, from Violet's stance, is a bit skewed since if Le Chat is her brother and they catch him, he would hang. So... there's that.) Emotional mayhem, deliciously drawn out lusting, thwarted desire and very funny banter ensue. (I'd like to say again that it really is very funny at times- I love a romance author who can make me laugh with her characters!).

These two definitely do not want to fall for each other, and they certainly (in the context of a romance novel, at any rate) take their time doing so. I liked that it took some time for their attraction and respect to grow. They each had some emotional maturing to go through and I enjoyed watching them grow and try to fight their feelings and ultimately become better and stronger for knowing one another. Sometimes in romances the hero is the only one who has to learn how to love, and the heroine practically has a halo because she is so good already. This isn't one of those; and I actually prefer stories where both characters learn from each other and make mistakes, like in this story.

Yes, Violet's rashness may rankle some readers (stowing away on a ship?? rushing out on deck during a vicious storm at sea??), and I already mentioned the questionable wisdom about assisting someone who is trying to arrest a beloved brother. But Violet makes up for it as she comes to better understand herself and the world around her and she is not a complete nitwit. She's an interesting character, and it is a relief to not be bored by her. Flint's an interesting character, too- his tough, unsentimental exterior masks a tender heart and a surprising sensitivity and perceptiveness (plus, he doesn't let Violet get away with anything!); and I just love a hero with a hero complex! Always rescuing friends from Turkish prisons and lovers from rogue waves and wounded puppies (ok, no wounded puppies were rescued- but I betcha he would have had there been some!) He just wants to be loved and he's never had a family and he's so handsome and he just wants Violet so much (mmm, yummy sexual chemistry between them)... you really root for the guy!

I thoroughly enjoyed Julie Anne Long's writing style. Truly she is gifted at scripting the kind of moments where you just sigh with the romance of it all! Very touching and poignant and her characters and stories are really lovely and entertaining. For some reason there were some editing issues with this book- syntactical errors, double possessive noun insertions, that kind of thing. Overlook these and take an afternoon to sit and devour this book. I heartily recommend I Kissed An Earl!

This book was a thorough delight. The writing is top-notch, the plot interesting and fun to read, the characters appealing and well-developed, and the romance grows just the way love is supposed to, slowly and oh-so-romantically. I've been having trouble lately finding romances that appeal to me, because, although I'm no prude, I'm not satisfied with the immediate lust and sex that many books have, where it's hard to see how that lust will ever develop into love. Not so with this book. There's not even an immediate attraction between H and H. So you watch them slowly grow to like and respect each other, admire and trust each other, and, yes, to lust after each other. The love is so easy to see and feel developing.

The plot is fun and may be my favorite Julie Anne Long book ever, even better than her first ones published by Warner. (Avon now publishes her books.) Hero Captain Flint of the ship "The Fortuna" is of dubious parentage, definitely not blue-blooded, but he has recently been granted the title Earl of Ardmay by King George IV, the fortune involved with this being contingent upon his capture of the pirate Le Chat of the ship "The Olivia", who has been wreaking havoc on English ships in the past year. Captain Flint's ship has put into port near London and when attending a ball, he meets heroine Violet Redmond. Through conversations and eavesdropping, Violet begins to suspect that the pirate Le Chat may very well be her brother Lyon, who disappeared over a year ago. (If you've been following the Pennyroyal Green series with the families Redmond and Eversea, this fact of his disappearance will be familiar to you.) So Violet stows away aboard Flint's ship when he sets sail to capture the pirate Le Chat. She, of course believing her brother cannot be a thieving and murdering pirate, wants to somehow prove his innocence.

From there the adventures ensue. It's a funny, exciting, romantic, sexy tale. Wait till you get to the Potato Incident. Who knew peeling potatoes could be so sexy? I'll say no more. Just read the book. I think it's great.

I have to disagree. I found this book extremely hard to read. I kept putting it down for a few days before picking up again. I couldn't like Violet no matter how many chances I gave her. The Earl was just the same. And the ending? What ending? It was just so very flat...just like the entire book.

I've read all of the books in this series and I've enjoyed all of them, too (with the exception perhaps of Chase's story, which I felt needed another round of editing and revision). Julie Anne Long is a great writer. Her prose is funny and smart as are her characters, and she crafts a nicely intricate plot.

This book is particularly strong because it has a clear, concise conflict: Both Flint and Violet want to find Lyon, Violet's brother who may or may not be a rogue pirate, but whereas Flint wants to capture Lyon, Violet wants to save him. Meanwhile, the two have an intense attraction that grows believably (the potato peeling scene is one of the best sexual tension scenes I've read all year) and rests on mutual respect and grudging affection. Both Flint and Violet are also frightened by love, which can be a cliche in romance novels, but here makes sense because Long takes pains to explain how the characters' past experiences with love (always indirect) have made them wary.

In past books Violet has seemed flighty and immature, but in this book she comes into her own. She's smart, clever, and looking for a purpose to her life beyond her popularity among the ton. Flint is a perfect match for her in that he treats her as an equal, despite their different upbringings. And it's clear that despite himself, he longs for a companion and family.

My only quibble with this book is that Long is sometimes inconsistent when it comes to POV (she occasionally switches in and out of a character's pov in a way that can be jarring; or she starts a section in a character's head but then abruptly makes offers an outside pov. Example: we're in Violet's pov and then all of a sudden, Long points out the expression on Violet's face, which Violet of course can't see.) and Flint's name (in several paragraphs she refers to him as both Asher and Flint. At a certain point, it made sense for him to just be referred to as Asher).

My biggest gripe? That the next book isn't about Lyon and Olivia. She sets their story up beautifully in this book (well, I'm assuming they'll have a shared story, but even if they don't, Long has made me very curious as to how they end up).

Overall this is a fun, involving romance with a lot of depth.

Grade: A-

I love smart, sexy characters with fast paced plots- and Julie Anne Long is a master at writing those romances. Violet and Asher are great characters -as the back cover proves true---he, the man who once lost everthing and the girl who has everything to lose are bound by a passion that could either end in betrayal...or become everything they ever dreamed.
If you haven't read Julie Anne's Like No Other Lover, stop read that one first then come back and enjoy I kissed An Earl even more.

This was a great story. I have been intriqued by Violet since the beginning of the series and have always wondered who she would end it with. Asher was perfect for her and a great character as well. He wasn't really likable at first but he grows on you, as do the side characters. What grew on my nerves was the HORRIBLE editing. I expect a few errors in all books, but this were ridiculous and at times, I almost threw the book down in frustration. Who are these people to release a book no one obviously edited first? I had to re-read several sentences to try to figure out what was supposed to be said or meant. There was misplaced words, misspelled words, punctuation missing, punctuation in the wrong place, the wrong character mentioned, etc. It was really bad; example 'He didn't even his drum his fingers.' That's only one example of several.
The story is great but the errors are bad. I don't recall the other three having them so I don't understand what happened here. So if you are someone who can overlook editing errors, this is a great story to read. If you are not, then, well, don't waste your time because it is frustrating.

The latest Pennyroyal offering by Julie Ann Long stars Violet Redmond introduced in previous Pennyroyal novels. I knew Violet from the earlier books as a flighty, headstrong, attention seeking, defiant girl; her personality did not change much from my earlier impressions except that she used the art of strategy fairly well against her male lead. This novel has incredibly humorous moments, I actually laughed out loud but it also has frustrating scenes which makes it a rather difficult book to score.

At first, Violet is a rather haughty girl who is described almost as being self involved. Everyone wants to be around her but honestly if we ever met I don't think I would like her much. The reader's first glimpse of her is how very important she feels her presence is at a ball.

While attending a ton event she overhears a name that a gypsy uttered when she had her fortune told. The same gypsy said she would take a long voyage. The name the gypsy whispered was Lavay, which belongs to the first mate of Captain Asher Flint, the newly minted Earl of Ardmay. Flint is a handsome man raised in America but born in Britain. He is on a quest at the behest of the king, to find the Pirate Le Chat and stop him from destroying ships. If he does this, Flint will receive a large sum of money which he needs to restore his estates.

From various clues, Violet surmises that Le Chat just might be her older brother Lyon and she is determined to stop Flint from bringing him to justice, in fact, she is convinced there must be a very good reason why Lyon is sinking ships. No one will listen to her theory though so she stows aboard Flint's ship hoping to find her brother. This is pretty much Violet's personiality; stubborn and brave. She also tries to manage everyone around her. Flint is furious with her and accurately surmises that she views men as either servants or pets which sums up how she tries to treat Flint for most of this book.

I genuinely admired Flint. He was a patient man when Violet could try anyone's patience, he was also a logical person and forced Violet to answer questions logically too. He has a score to settle with Le Chat and he is adamant about letting Violet know that he is not going to give up his quest for her.

The romantic tension is evident throughout the book but the romantic interludes are a long wait. I think at least 200 pages had gone by before these two ever share a kiss. I never doubted their feelings though.

Violet is a loyal sister and is protective toward Flint and these conflicting emotions are a struggle for Violet. She has been pampered and sheltered and spoiled and for the first time is uncertain as to how to control a situation. She uses her wits to get what she wants; her goal of besting Flint for his cabin aboard the ship was ingenious but at the same time she really had no bargaining power. Flint is the Captain of the ship after all and he is so fair and honorable he allows her to wager with him when he hold all the cards.

Violet seems genuinely surprised that Flint can ferret out the clues she receives from her brother's emissaries. It's almost as if she has never been around an intelligent man before.

I'm giving this novel three and a half stars. The hero was simply wonderful, fresh and exciting with an honorable nature. Violet was at times annoying but also funny and her scenes where she protects her male lead are very, very touching. I wish there had been more moments like that in the story.

I would've given this book four, even five stars if it wasn't for the poor editing. It had its fair share of typos and inaccuracies in the way titled characters were addressed. The writing, however, was excellent, the plot well paced, and the characters developed. If you can overlook the flaws, the book is worthwhile. I hope Ms. Long gets a new editor for Lyon's book!

I liked the book, good read, slow at times, but overall good. However, what I didn't like is that we hardly know what the earl is thinking. I think it needed some more of his perspective.

I have to confess that it took at least half the book before I started to warm to the story and to the main characters, Violet and Asher. I found Violet to be selfish and charmless, but as the story eventually unfolded, I warmed to the love story. I didn't enjoy this book as as much as the previous one Like No Other Lover (Pennyroyal Green Series) but I am really looking forward to the story of Olivia and Lyon.