Customer Reviews

Kiss Me Quick (Kiss Me Series, Book 1)

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

She spotted him across a crowded room.....and so the story goes. -- Lady Diana Westover, daughter of a duke, had lived a sheltered life with her reclusive father on a remote estate. While her upbringing was unusual, it did not lack warmth or love, and along with her father, she developed a love of books. It was also her greatest desire to one-day write a novel that could be published. It was towards that purpose that she studied the darkly handsome and suave Edmond Terrington, Viscount Adderley - as she needed a model for the villain in the novel she was writing and if the gossips were correct the Viscount purported to be a womanizer and rake of the first order would certainly fill the bill.

Edmond, feeling the hairs stand up on the back of his neck sensed he was being spied upon, only to turn and see across the room, the Lady Diana's brilliant and expressive eyes focused on him. From this auspicious beginning, it would be fate that would lead their paths to cross, again and again at which time the very outspoken and intelligent Lady Diana, would best Edmond in some absolutely outrageous conversations that were making him stand up and take notice of this most unusual young woman - a woman who neither swooned, nor simpered, and faced him head on. Each meeting became more and more enlightening and Edmond began to realize that here was a woman who was not swooning over his handsomeness but was seeing in him her very own kindred spirit.

This was my very first novel by this author and I LOVED it! It was such an unusual romance with a damsel who was not noted for her beauty, but very outspoken and extremely intelligent. I don't know when I've enjoyed a heroine more - so very forthright who said EXACTLY what was on her mind and when faced with a predicament that would have most young ladies running scared, she approached her love and demanded an explanation rather than accept the innuendos of people out to discredit him. This had to be one of the most intelligent regency romances I have read in a very long time. Bravo, Ms. Moore - I will be looking forward to reading more from you - hopefully Edmond's friend Brix's story!

This is my first Margaret Moore book, but it won't be my last. Diana, an forthright wannabe author, is a refreshing heroine. Edmond's reputation as a libertine and ne'er-do-well is mostly the work of a schoolmate with an ax to grind. In reality, he's a charming, intelligent, honorable man. Only Diana sees past the gossip and the facade to the real man. Their early verbal sparring is great fun, and their growing feelings for each other usually come across realistically. These two will be great friends as well as lovers.

Edmond's friends are interesting and are noticeably set up as future leading men...something I'll be investigating shortly. Only the villain of the piece is also a good secondary character. Diana's Aunt Euphenia had potential, but she needed more space to achieve it. The other aunt was stereotypical. The excerpts from Diana's novel in progress were a nice touch, but there is something a bit off kilter about Diana's test near the end.

Moore uses a great deal of exposition in this book, perhaps too much. I couldn't stay focused, but I'm not sure if that is the fault of the book or other "real life" factors, so I'm not taking points off for that. However, Moore's grammatical errors -- especially prevalent early in the book--irked this English major. Nevertheless, the book not only has interesting characters in an engaging romance, but also an insightful look into the process of writing. Most writers will identify with Diana's struggles and though processes.

I went into this book knowing exactly what to expect. I found the characters of Diana Westover, her two aunts to be pretty endearing. Lord Adderley, Edmond Terrington is a sensual, caring guy who can belt out one-liners (especially when in the vicinty of buddy Brix). Though the characters never really reached out and grabbed me they were entertaining and yes last half of the book was rushed and the ending left me feeling let down.

I've read several great and several not so great books by this author. Like many things in life, Ms. Moore's books tend to be hit or miss. I classify this one as a miss.

The backgrounds of both the heroine and hero were just too "out there" and formulaic to be enjoyable. The idea that the hero's zealot parents, to discourage vanity when they saw how "ridiculously good looking" he was going to be, told him instead he was ugly and didn't allow mirrors in the house? Come on! No better-the heroine, by herself after her fathers death, was more worried about writing a romantic Gothic novel than finding a future husband? When I got to the part where the hero, of course, is a avid fan of Gothics, even though his religious parents MADE him read Gothics growing up to "scare him", I just quit in disgust.

This author can and does write better than this. I will chalk this one up as a fluke and try another one of her books.

not recommended-no stars.

This book was at times witty but for me fell flat because the hero and heroine argue a lot and they also spend time apart which did not help further the romance.

Aspiring gothic writer Dianna is in Bath to do some research for her debut novel. She needs to find a dark, engaging man so she can have a clear idea what her villain should be like. She sees Lord Edmund Adderly who is incredibly handsome and according to her gossiping Aunts has a wicked reputation. Dianna instantly sets him in his place quickly with a few well spoken words. One thing that I did not like about Diana in the beginning of this story is that she believed gossip about others and based her opinion about people on hearsay. Edmund is intrigued by Dianna because she shows up in so many places, she even witnesses a tryst between him and his lady friend. Dianna is eavesdropping and watching Edmund many times but denies this when confronted by Edmund.

They constantly banter with little sincerity coming from Dianna. I was just not sure of Edmund; he both liked and distrusted Diana. Every once in a while they have a deep conversation but it would end rather quickly.

Dianna is pursued by another gentleman who is extremely jealous of Edmund and at first she allows this man to color her view. Fortunately Dianna comes to her senses about half way through the novel and really gets to know Edmund instead of listening to gossip.

The beginning of each chapter has a snippet of the novel Dianna is writing. What was confusing is the villain in her book, who is patterned after Edmund, this villain is arrogant, demanding and cruel and he never changes. It was almost as if Dianna still viewed Edmund in such an unfavorable light even after she discovered much of the gossip about him was nothing more that lies.

The sexual tension in this novel is just not there. These two spend some time apart which again cuts any romance down to nil. This book is the first in the series; I hope the later books will have more passion.

I read this some time ago, and I really liked it. It set the stage for the following book (which wasn't as good in my opinion) and for the other 3 books, which sadly, will probably never be written, unless Margaret Moore leaves Harlequin & goes back to Avon as her publisher.

The characters were mature, which is more than I can say for the characters in the sequel. Both books are worth the time, but be prepared to have a hankering for the 3 books that will probably never be written, especially Drury's story.

Kiss Me Quick is the story of Lady Diana Westover. She goes to Bath to stay with her two aunts and do "research" for a book she's writing. She finds the subject of her research in Lord Adderley. She is quite interested in him and he is quite intrigued by her. Lord Adderley has a scandalous reputation though and isn't really accepted in polite society. Therefore, Diana is expected to not associate with him and instead spend her time with Lord Fallston. Lords Adderley and Fallston are enemies though and this presents trouble for Lady Diana.

This book was charming. The characters were not the typical members of the ton one normally reads about. Lord Adderley was written to be sensitive not just powerful. Lady Diana has a mind of her own and she wasn't afraid to use it. The added characters of Diana's aunts and Adderley's friends made the book a very good read. They all proved entertaining and provided the book with some very good scenes.

I do agree with the previous reviewer that this book does fall somewhat flat towards the ending. This was not the ending I expected. This was the first Margaret Moore novel I've read so I don't have anything to compare the ending with than other authors endings. It just seemed to end abruptly. I was expecting more from the ending than was there. But with that aside this was an entertaining read, worth the time it took to read it.

I really enjoyed this book until page 316, then there seemed to be a huge disconnect. I thought the characters were coming along very nicely and then Lady Diana Westover, the heroine, makes a very odd request of our hero, Viscount Adderley. I won't disclose what that request was to prevent ruining this ending for others but I felt it was way out of character for Lady Diana. Adderly seemed to accept her request without raising ANY kind of fuss which also struck me out of character. This plot development really left me feeling cheated? Flat? Confused? Take your pick!

Otherwise this is an excellent book. Marvelous secondary characters found in Adderley's friends. (I'm sure these gentlemen will be the subjects of future M Moore books - I hope so anyway!). Worth your time and effort to read.

Lady Diana Westover is a most unusual young woman. The daughter of a duke, she has spent most of her life living quietly in Lincolnshire with her father. When he passes away, she heads to Bath to visit her aunts. While they seek to introduce her to eligible suitors, Diana searches for a different kind of man. She has a secret, you see. Diana has a passion for gothic novels and is in the process of writing one of her own. Unfortunately, her sheltered upbringing precluded her meeting the dark and dangerous types of men. Making up for lost time, Diana is using the pretense of moving around in Bath society to find inspiration for her villain. She finds her perfect Count Korlovsky when she spots the Viscount Adderley.

Having been blessed with a handsome face, Edmond Terrington, the Viscount Adderley, is no stranger to admiring looks from the ladies. However, there's something different about the intense looks he gets from Diana Westover. When he catches her several times eavesdropping on his conversations, Edmond decides to turn the tables and pursue her. Soon their little rendezvous turn into stolen kisses, but there's a problem with their growing romance. An old rival has long spread malicious lies about Edmond and it has tarnished his reputation. Now, Edmond will have to put his past to rest in order to win his lady.

While KISS ME QUICK has its share of enjoyable moments, it gave me an impression that the story is mired in contradictions and the protagonists are much too modern for their setting. It's hard to believe that a hero like Edmond Terrington would willingly stand by and allow himself to be slandered for years. That behavior just doesn't seem...well, Regency-like. As for Diana, as clever as she is to get into all sorts of adventures, her behavior comes across as erratic especially towards the end of the story. With such fatal flaws to be found in its lead characters, it was all the more difficult to warm to the story.

TheSchemer

In 1817 following the death of her father a duke, Diana Westover joins her two aunts in Bath. Her goal is to meet men, not to marry, but to use them as models in a novel she plans to write. At the Pump Room, Diana sees the perfect person to serve as her book's villain Count Korlovsky although her Aunt Calliope detests her choice in "suitors" Lord Adderley, Edmond Terrington. Instead her aunt believes mama's boy Crispin Fallston would be a better partner for Diana.

Edmond finds himself fascinated yet concerned over the way Diana seems to spy on him. Everywhere he goes she is there, staring as if she can look inside him. Even more bewildering to the notorious rake than this seemingly harmless stalking, is that he begins to feel he loves the outrageous chit. Although she knows not to become involved with Edmond, Diana reciprocates his feelings.

This is an entertaining Regency romance because of Diana, who serves as a refreshing lead protagonist and the extracts from her novel included within this book make for fun reading. Edmond is the stereotypical rake whose image needs PR as it fails to hold up to the reality quickly understood by the wannabe author. The support cast enables readers to understand the two stars and hopefully his friend Brix and perhaps his bane Fanny will star in the next tale in 1817 not when he turns fifty.

Harriet Klausner