Customer Reviews

A Perfect Hero (Sterling Family)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Lady Juliana Sterling is scorned by love. A beautiful woman who is firmly on the shelf. She resolves to live her life alone, to never feel a child in her arms, and to spend the remainder of her days shielding her heart from that devestating emotion.

Viscount Dane Granville is posing as a highwayman called the Magpie while conducting an investigation for the Home Office. Robbing Lady Juliana's carriage was just part of the role. He didn't mean for Lady Juliana to get injured. Guilt and duty required that he take Lady Juliana to his hideout in the woods.

While ensconced in that quite hideaway a delicate struggle between captor and captive begin. Their attraction to each other is fierce. They both fight emotions they know are inappropriate...will they ever work it out?

I do recommend this novel for it's quick delivery and good writing style. The characters are easily likeable and the drama is good. Also it practically smoulders off the page. A great way to spend an afternoon.

Why not 5 stars...well it's preference really. I didn't need the highwayman to be a Viscount. He really didn't need to have higher purposes. He could have remained a criminal and somehow that would have made him more sexy. Also the type is so big it's about 5-8 words per line. It really could be a 100 page novella. Another great book to buy would be Samantha Saxon's The Lady Lies.

The Sterling family is now complete! Samantha James offers the final chapter in her Sterling Trilogy and although A PERFECT HERO is a pleasant enough read, somehow it doesn't satisfy! Sadly, Lady Julianna's tale slips away.

Julianna Sterling is getting on with her life. Four years earlier, on her wedding day, Lady Julianna was abandoned by her fiancé. Humiliated and embarrassed, Julianna promised herself she would never again allow a man to enter her heart. Unfortunately, such a defiant direction means Julianna Sterling will never know a man's touch or have a child of her own.

Dane, Viscount Granville, works undercover for the Crown. He is the notorious highwayman 'The Magpie' and he is very good at his job. He is always cool and collected - always - well until he is forced to take Julianna Sterling captive, forced to take her to his cottage in the woods. Then suddenly Viscount Granville is simply a man.

OK such a plot does sound promising! Such a plot lays the necessary groundwork for a great romantic adventure, so what caused the story to slip away? The primary evil was the heroine's demeanor. It shouts childlike! Although, Julianna Sterling's age is twenty-seven, she radiates ten, she behaves ten, and the reader thinks ten. Whereupon, identifying romance, with a lead female character assigned to childish behavior, is extraordinary hard. The second crime is the blatant lack of the stringent social rules of the Regency period. Whenever did it become acceptable for a strange man to carry a disheveled lady into her own house, past her servants, to her bedroom, undress her, spend the night, and have NOT one person raise an eyebrow? And when did it become socially A-OK for a virtual stranger to announce to a lady's brothers (one a Marquess) that he is going to marry their sister. Not ask, just state! The consequences? The lady's brothers swap a humorous glance! Unquestionably, a historical romance must follow the rules of the era; the story CANNOT be altered to garnish the author's perception.

Yes, this is the third and final book of the Sterling family trilogy and although it does have some major problems the story remains pleasant and the fairytale epilogue did bring a smile. And it is not necessary to read A PERFECT BRIDE featuring Sebastian Sterling, the Marquess of Thurston, or A PERFECT GROOM, the Justin Sterling story, to understand and follow the Sterling family history! That feature is always an added bonus.
Grade: B-

MaryGrace Meloche.

The third and final installment in the Sterling Family trilogy (A Perfect Bride & A Perfect Groom), A Perfect Hero was the strongest of the three books. We find not only resolution and closure for the Julianna Sterling (the heroine), but also for her brothers (the heros) from the previous books.

After being left at the altar, Julianna Sterling vows she will never marry without being in love, but most likely never. She wants a little excitement in her life and gets exactly that when one night her coach is accosted by the infamous highwayman, Magpie (Viscount Dane Granville--undercover). Julianna is injured in the heist and awakens to find herself in a cottage (in the middle of nowher) with only Magpie and a cat for company. Angry & resentful towards Dane initially, after a turn of events, Julianna finds herself opening up and being drawn to Dane. The two begin to fall in love, but are ripped apart when Julianna refuses to watch Dane (Magpie)--whom she knows has a secret--throw his life away. Julianna goes on with her life trying to put her experience with Dane behind her. That is...until she is "introduced" one evening to the Viscount Granville, Dane (Magpie).

The two are then thrown into a suspense-filled love affair as Dane tries to capture a villain and Julianna tries to hold it all together (a puzzle from her past, her feelings for Dane, and hoping Dane isn't harmed). In the end, it is Julianna's bravery and proactive attitude that secures she and Dane's future. Though a little different from your typical Regency romance, the romance between Julianna and Dane is an absolute delight!!!

Readers of the previous novels will be pleased to see Justin and Sebastian reappear, as the three siblings reveal secrets(to each other) regarding their past suffering at the hands of their abusive father. The three finally put their past to rest and renew their love and commitment to each other. This was not at all redundant and was a most-fitting end to the trilogy, as we were able to see how the abuse of their father and abandonment of their mother, impacted Julianna (for the first time).

Although the first book in this trilogy was my favorite, that doesn't knock this book out of the running for awesome read. I really enjoyed every bit of this book. I thought it was so cute and sweet( and okay a little sappy)the way he called her "kitten" throughout the book. It showed he had affection for her from the beginning of their relationship. Of course anyone who lets you SHOOT you and not be the slightest bit angry with you must have some affection for you. I can't think of one thing that bothered me about this book and i wouldn't hesitate to say so if there was. It was fast paced and kept my attention from start to finish. I'm a little sad to be done with the Sterling family, but i thought it was a wonderful end to the trilogy.

I'll admit the first third of this book did not totally engage me - I was annoyed at first the way Dane called her kitten - it just seemed out of character for either a highwayman or a lord. And Julianna just seemed not quite right for him at all - and when she shot him well that really seemed unexpected and unnecessary. However, as the book continued and they started to actually reveal some of themselves to each other the book started to come together quite well and by the time they actually take their lust beyond a few kisses I was very rapped up in this love story and then could not put it down. I loved how Dane totally took charge of the situation when they meet again in London and he is Lord Granville. Too many times you see similar situations drawn out because the man feels the need to keep secrets when he actually can trust the lady. Dane knew he could trust Julianna and the carriage scene was so hot and so intense - wow then the book really was really coming together! The plot of why Dane was posing as the Magpie and spying for the Crown was a little difficult to comprehend and actually not that important im my opinion. How it all came together in the end and how Dane truly showed his love for Julianna with Daphne was a touching addition. It was also great to see Sebastian and Justin again and all of them happy in their loving families. As the book concludes you feel the trilogy was indeed tied up in a happy every after knot and all three Sterling children are in love and happy in their futures.

Normally a huge fan of Ms. James, her latest effort just wasn't up to her usual standards. This is not to say that the read was not good, it was a nice read, but what kept it from being great was our heroine Julianna.

Left at the alter Julianna Sterling is making her way in life as best as she can. Her dreams of a happy marriage, with children running amok is over. She is on her way to Bath when her coach is waylaid by none other than "The Magpie." But, this highway man is much more than he seems, and Julianna may have just met her match.

Dane Granville is not only a Viscount, but he also works undercover for the crown. When his path crosses that of Julianna his life has just become that much more complicated. It sure doesn't help that this fiesty kitten doesn't know when to back down. Her kiss is too tempting to avoid, and they are both helpless to deny what they feel. Is there a chance for a happy ending with these two or will secrets stay in the way?

Dane and Julianna were interesting characters. This story had a lot of potential but was a let down when it came to our heroine. Childish is the best description to use when describing Julianna. You want to feel for her but in the end...it's almost a chore. Still, Ms. James has crafted an interesting hero, and the storyline although not new and fresh was done in a way that entertained. Ms. James is a true talent and I look forward to her next offering.

Official Reviewer for Romance Designs

This is the third novel in the author's trilogy about the Sterling siblings. The first two novels (A Perfect Bride and A Perfect Groom) were about Julianna's brothers- Sebastian and Justin.

In this novel, we again meet Juliana who is still suffering the effects of the relationship that ended badly before the beginning of the first novel. On the way to her country home, her carriage is stopped by the infamous bandit known as the Magpie who is really Dane Granville, a viscount. Her takes her to his hideaway cottage and they get to know each other and they fall in love.

Through the novel, we learn about Dane being a government agent who is doing the robberies because he is on a secret mission. I won't spoil this by giving any more info away.

This was a good novel. It was for the most part a satisfying end to the trilogy. Julianna was a great heroine. She did not sit around feeling sorry for herself adn she did not simper and wait for someone to come and rescue her. Also, due to her age and circumstances, she was alot more independent then we normally see in regency ladies. This was great and really helped advance their relationship and the story.

I gave this book 4 stars instead of 5 due to the tiresome storyline from the first two books being dragged into this one. (The mother abandoned the family and the father was cruel-that was all done to death in the first two and it did not need to be in this one). The resolution to that whole situation was very brief in the novel and all it did was bog down the story.

Also, the details regarding the mission and the villain were weak. The plot of this was thin and there were many discrepancies. This tended to make the mission parts of the novel a bit draggy. I kept waiting for more juice since the premise was a good one but then had to face reality that there was nothing there. The details and the writing about this was weak. It sould have been more solid with more details, maybe more characters involved or something. I can't say what exactly, but this part of the story was lacking.

Regardless, the romance between the two main characters was awesome. Their falling in love was believeable even with the circumstances. Also, the dailogue between them for the most past was snappy and comical. And the love scenes were HOT!!

I would definitely recommend this book.

After enjoying "A Perfect Bride" and being disappointed by "A Perfect Groom," I wasn't sure what to expect with the last of the trilogy. However, my expectations were exceeded. Great, fast moving plot with just the right amount of involvement from the other characters in the series, and a few surprises here and there. Julianna and Dane are well-written, extremely likeable characters and I loved how the story was woven around their relationship and not vice versa.

The one drawback was some annoying dialogue: "kitten" and "elusive hurt" ad nauseum, but if you can ignore it, you'll find this a great romantic novel and will want to keep it easily accessible on your bookshelf.

this is the last book in the trilogy of the sterling family. here we have Lady Julianna who was humiliated when her fiancee left her at the altar for another woman. broken hearted she has vowed never to love another or get married. Lady Julianna is now older, independent and has previously bought a house in bath. She is heading there in the dead of night when her coach is stopped by a highwayman. this highwayman is known as the Magpie or Dane. after an argument her coach is flipped and she is in an accident. Dane rescues her and there is where the romance begins. he is different from most of the men that Julianna has met and she is intrigued by him. Dane is likewise curious about the mysterious lady. they both deceive each other with not revealing their true names. this story was slower than the first two but i loved it. it was full of sweetness that i think Julianna needed. Dane is different from most of the men in romance novels. he isn't known as a rake, rogue or any sort of fool that needs to be tamed. Instead he seems like more of a noble man where problems like fidelity aren't the issue. it's more another sort of lifestyle that poses a dilemma in this novel. i would definitely recommend this book! it was just as good as the first two!!

I really liked Julianna's story. Dane was a funny hero, and they were so compatible. From the start I loved this story. It was hard to put down, and even though for a long time they were the only two people to exchange dialogue while they were in that cabin, James managed not to make it boring, or create a huge desire to read about other characters instead of just those two. Well done for the ending in this trilogy.