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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Author to Watch - 4-1/2*, November 30, 2006
This review is from: Love in a Bottle (Mass Market Paperback)
Zoe Archer has come up with a perfectly beautiful recipe for romance pitting together a lady botanist struggling for scientific recognition in a mans world and a mountebank looking for a recipe for love in her latest English Historical novel of LOVE IN A BOTTLE.
Sophie Andrews was a lady with passion; a passion for crawling in the dirt amongst all manner of roots, and fungus. While crawling to get a better look at a rare mushroom she finds instead a shiny pair of books encased in muscular legs, impressive thighs -- all in all a very nice package topped off with a charming grin on his face. Feeling a comfortable amity with the handsome stranger Sophie would later be dismayed to discover he was a mountebank capable of swindling the unsuspecting town folk for which Sophie promptly called him out for being a fraud.
Setting out for home and never expecting to see Ian again, Sophie had her coach stop to pick up another specimen in the woods. Ian saved from her being kidnapped by hooligans by stopping her from rushing to the rescue of her uncle Alford after observing him being accosted by the notorious highwayman Dark Dan McGannon. Joining forces with Ian, Sophie and he were later able to rescue her uncle not realizing their partnership was destined to continue. Ian had almost convinced himself that love was nothing but a chemically balanced love potion he'd yet to discover, leaving him baffled by the thrill he found from Sophie's touch. He also couldn't deny the feelings his heart was telling him wouldn't be found in a bottle, but only in his dear little botanist's arms.
*** This was a lovely story with characters the reader will find to be charming. For the period, in a class distinctive atmosphere, the author pits two unlikely protagonists together with amazing depth. Ian, a handsome hero fashioned as a common peddler who could never be found acceptable for the daughter of a squire, even though said daughter, Sophie, was a bit unconventional herself. Ian was convinced he was incapable of falling in love hence his search for the perfect chemically induced herb that would miraculously allow him to fall in love. Until a passionate kiss from Ian, Sophie's only passion was found in her botany studies.
The author was able to strike a perfect balance in her characterizations of secondary characters giving good depth and perfect motivations of their actions for Sophie's mother Caroline, her indulgent Uncle Alford, and her groveling suitor Lord Charles Vickerton.
It was delightful to see the love grow between the two protagonists as they first developed a friendship, were able to open up while respecting each other's individuality before they actually discovered themselves in love. This was an endearing love story and it proves to romance readers that Ms. Archer is a new talent that bears careful consideration for future book buying.
Marilyn Rondeau, RIO - Reviewers International Organization
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
amusing Georgian romance, December 9, 2006
This review is from: Love in a Bottle (Mass Market Paperback)
In 1763 England, botanist Sophie Andrews meets handsome rogue Ian Blackpool, who sells love potions. Attracted to him before his revelation, Sophie calls him a con artist and accepts his challenge to try his formula. Still she has no time to waste ogling the handsome man or the "effect" of his so-called love potion. She sets off on her own as she feels she must save her uncle kidnapped by Dark Dan McGannon and his deadly cohorts.
To his chagrin Ian feels a need to keep Sophie safe so he joins her on her trek over her objections. As they trek together, he explains that love is a chemical reaction that can be bottled with his insistence his formula is the one elixir that can work. However Ian begins to wonder if he drank the potion as he keeps disproving his theory that love can be bottled one kiss at a time.
This is an amusing Georgian romance with some suspense enhancing the wonderful tale of two individuals debating whether love can be bottled. Sophie, to her mom's chagrin, is a unique female blueblood botanist while Ian is the classic impish hero (Think Han Solo), who cannot stop himself from having to help her. Zoe Archer hits Cupid's bull's-eye with this fun historical.
Harriet Klausner
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Can they find the mystery of love through Sophie's passion for botany?, January 19, 2007
This review is from: Love in a Bottle (Mass Market Paperback)
Sophie Andrews has no interest in womanly pursuits. Her passion lies in botany. Much to her mother's chagrin, Sophie is often covered in dirt and prefers her various specimens to the task of catching a husband. She accepts that she'll never marry or have children. As far as Sophie is concerned, she's "married" to her work even though she may never receive any recognition for her contributions because of the simple fact that she is a female.
Ian Blackpool makes his living as a mountebank. He peddles bottles of love potions throughout the rural areas of England. Ian spends a great deal of time scouring the countryside in search of the chemical secrets of love which he's convinced can be found in plants. When Ian meets Sophie he realizes that her work may help him find the answers he seeks.
Sophie has been traveling with her Uncle Alforth. While he's napping, she seizes the opportunity to venture off in search of new and exciting specimens to document. Her search proves fruitful when she comes across a fly agaric mushroom. In order to examine it closely, Sophie is forced to crawl because of its position under a fallen tree. She is so engrossed in the beauty of the mushroom and her own internal musings that she fails to note the pair of black boots right next to it, or the strikingly handsome man wearing them. After exchanging introductions, Ian and Sophie converse while she sketches the mushroom. She even allows him to look at her sketchbook, something which she rarely allows anybody to do. Eventually Sophie realizes that she's been out far too long and races back to join her uncle. Later that evening she has the misfortune of witnessing one of Ian's performance as he applies his trade for the villagers. Angry and hurt by Ian's deceit, Sophie prefers not to have anything to do with the despicable rogue
.
While returning to her home, Sophie realizes that she'd forgotten to take the mushroom with her as a sample and asks her uncle to stop so that she can retrieve it. Only once she gets there, she discovers that Ian's beat her to it and has the precious fungus which he offers to her along with his apologies. During the time that Sophie is away from the carriage her beloved uncle is kidnapped by highwaymen. Together, Ian and Sophie set off to rescue her uncle and discover they make a great team. They're both fighting a growing attraction to each other but to Sophie's parents he'd be considered completely unsuitable. What will happen when they join forces and begin to search for the answers to their questions about plants, people and love?
LOVE IN A BOTTLE is Zoe Archer's second published novel and displays this author's talent for bringing refreshingly new storylines to the historical genre. Sophie and Ian are a completely mismatched pair as far as social classes go but they don't let that stand in their way as they throw caution to the wind and collaborate on her botanical work without her family's knowledge. Several scenes in this book got my heart pounding in excitement and there were times I could have cried for her over the lack of acceptance she receives. This story is brilliantly written and full of fun characters and thrilling situations that will keep readers engrossed in the storyline. Beautifully done Ms. Archer! I'll anxiously await to see what you come up with next.
Chrissy Dionne (courtesy of Romance Junkies)
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