Customer Reviews

How to Tame a Modern Rogue

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

 

 

Author Diana Holquist is as entertaining as her books. According to her, she is a cat person, a horrible cook, hasn't owned a television since 1999, owns only two pairs of earrings and dress shoes, and has a philosophy degree from Columbia University . Other titles include: Hungry For More, Sexiest Man Alive, and Make Me A Match. She resides in upstate New York with her family.

Ally Giordano was raised by her grandmother after her parents abandoned her for more interesting prospects. Spending her whole life looking at strangers faces in the off chance they may be them, she has now decided to relocate from New York to California , accept a teaching position, and move on. Except, her beloved grandmother most recently thinks she is living in her favorite Regency romance novel, and her doctors aren't sure if she'll ever know reality again. Worse, Granny Donny is positive that she has found Ally a Duke to save her from spinsterhood and intends to have a great ball in the country to woo them together. Commitment-phobic Sam Carson is intrigued by Granny Donny but not at all interested in good girl, Ally. He likes his women naughty and disposable. That is, until he kisses her, and now he is determined to strip away her layers to see the real woman underneath. Can a playboy and a good girl hit it off and find love? Granny Donny sure thinks so.

If you want a feel good book to bring you out of your normal life, whether it be the kids, work, or anything else, this book is it. If chapter two doesn't have you rolling on the floor laughing so hard you're in tears, then there is something very, very wrong with you. As ridiculously funny as it is clever, you won't be able to put it down. The sweet moments were endearing, the dialog crafty, and the setting was catching. Lovers of historical romance will get a kick out of this and contemporary romance fans will find it delightful. I can truly appreciate a book where the secondary characters are as lovable as the main ones. You'll fall in love with Granny Donny, June, and Mateo. Guaranteed. From a medical standpoint though, I'm not so sure about the reason for Granny's delusion or the medical advice to heal her. Just a thought.

How to Tame a Modern Rogue, by Diana Holquist, is a wild, wacky, grand flee from reality.



Kelly Moran

Author and Reviewer

Granny Donny thinks she's living in her favorite romance novel - in Regency England. She wants to spend time at her home in the country outside of London - well, Long Island will have to do. AND she thinks Sam is the perfect suitor for her granddaughter Ally so he must accompany them to the country.

Ally has big trust issues so she refuses to consider a serious relationship with "rogue-ish" Sam. He has a wall around his true feelings - there's no way he will consider a committed relationship ever again. Ally and Sam agree to pretend for Granny Donny's sake. Let the fun begin!

I enjoyed reading this book. I found myself laughing out loud many times and caring about all of the characters. I loved the pace of the story and wasn't ready for it to end when I turned the last page. I'll be looking for more books by Diana Holquist.

My husband and I both read the book, and we
enjoyed it immensely! The plot was original and fun. The
heroine, out of love for her grandmother, goes along with
and becomes a player in the old woman's romantic delusions.
She is joined in this adventure by handsome Sam, whom she
sees as a rogue. (He slowly mends his ways, when it comes to her.)
The writing is wonderful, moving at a steady and quick pace,
and so funny. The sub-subjects of Regency times, beach houses
and balls, soccer, horses, letter writing, aging, mysterious
disappearances, gave depth and interest to the main,
exciting and romantic love story. We both recommend it!

Ally Giordano is ready to leave New York City and move to San Francisco where she has her dream job teaching English to the tenth-grade at one of the most progressive and successful high schools in the country. The only down side to this is leaving her eighty-four year old grandmother Donny. Ally has always relied on Granny Donny ever since she took Ally in when her parent's split when she was barely a teenager. But Granny Donny has been acting very strange lately. Granny has dementia and thinks she is living during the regency period in the 19th century. She wants Ally to find a duke and that is where playboy Sam Carson comes into the picture.

Sam is from England and has lived in American ever since he was disowned from his family after he married a woman who was less than ideal. His marriage was very short lived because his wife became sick and died. Sam never wants to get married again and when he meets the very stiff and proper Ally, he knows she is the least likely woman he would ever consider. He goes along with Granny Donny because he doesn't want to hurt the old lady and enjoys teasing her granddaughter. Ally thinks Sam is a womanizer and would have been perfect living in the regency period as a rake. Granny Donny wants to vacation at her summer home in Long Island and instead of using a car, she decides on a horse and carriage to take her there. Sam feels very protective of Ally and Donny and will join them for the ride even though Ally acts like she can't stand him.

By accident Sam picks up and reads The Dulcet Duke. This is the book Donny read which made her think she is living as a Lady of the ton. Sam is insulted because after reading this regency romance, he comes to the conclusion that Ally doesn't like him because he is so much like the rakish hero in the book. Sam will act like the Duke and treat Ally like the heroine Veronica. Ally at first finds it disturbing that Sam is play acting, but she can't help but get swept off her feet by Sam's undertones, which lead to some interested bed play between the two.

Soon Sam and Ally become close and Sam wants Ally to remain in his life and allow herself to love him. But Ally is afraid to love someone like Sam who she thinks goes through women like Kleenex. It is up to Sam to show Ally that he may be a cad in spirit but he is really her prince charming she has always been waiting for.

How To Tame a Modern Rogue is a light and fluffy romance that will bring forth the laughs. Sam is delightful and a wonderful man who is caring and sweet, but a bit of a rogue in the sense that he thinks he has so much to offer women. He gets flustered because he can't understand why Ally won't fall into his arms. He has to work hard at gaining her respect. Because Ally has been hurt in the past, mainly because of her parents, she is wary of allowing Sam into her life. He acts too smooth for her tastes but she changes her opinion when she sees how respectful he is towards her grandmother.

Diana Holoquist builds the attraction between Sam and Ally to the point you can't wait for them to act on it even if they are playing roles. The love scenes are spicy because Sam pretends to be a duke who has seduced Veronica. And because Ally has some reservations because of the person she is, allowing herself to have a bit of fun with Sam was pleasant to read.

Granny Donny is a hoot and her horse and carriage driver, Mateo has some great insight on what Sam and Ally are experiencing. The journey from Manhattan to Long Island makes for great reading. I found myself chuckling a few times.

How To Tame A Modern Rogue is perfect for Summer reading or a trip to the beach.

Katiebabs

Ally Giordano has no way of coping when her grandmother's mind goes into Regency mode suddenly. Her grandmother has decided that Sam Carson (a man she picked up in her horse and buggy, essentially) is a duke and just the duke (Duke Whatthehell) to marry her grand daughter. Luckily for Ally, Sam isn't as horrible as he thinks he is (or as she thinks he is). Between her damaged past and her grandmother's crazies this modern rogue is able to find his heart of gold. There is also some really fun side plots involving the buggy's horse and its driver. I enjoyed this book, it was different from most other romance novels I have read, a fun mix of irreverent and real. Well worth a few escapist moments.

Ally Giordano is ready to leave New York City and start a new life in San Francisco as a schoolteacher. That is, until her grandmother shows up in a carriage with some admittedly really attractive guy who's calling himself Duke Whatthehell (Seriously). Her Grandma thinks she's leaving in her favorite Regency romance novel, the Dulcet Duke and that same Duke is here to marry Ally. Ally can't leave now, she has to take care of her grandma and make sure she gets back to her normal self, in the present. But Granny Donny is determined to marry off Ally, and she also won't rest until the "Duke" accompanies them to the country. Actually, her beach house.

Sam Carson is the definition of commitment-phobe. But then meeting Ally changes things, he's strangely attracted to her. Strange because she's so not his type - she's a good girl who follows the rules, so unlike the women he normally goes for. But he's hell-bent on stripping her good girl tendencies and get the bad girl out. He's not interested in marriage or anything, and much to his chagrin, he can't resist Ally's charm or even Granny Donny's wackiness. So has this confirmed bachelor met his match in good-girl Ally?

How to Tame a Modern Rogue is refreshing, engaging contemporary romance. It's a delightfully funny book, Granny Donny seems like a whack job but she's so charming in her own little way. I can totally relate to Ally, she follows the rules and always tries to do the right thing. Even if that messes with her plans. It was great to read. Sam goes from slightly jerky, admittedly very sexy and charming to possibly having feelings for Ally. I loved the plot of the present time following what the Regency romance novel said. How to Tame a Modern Rogue is a witty, lighthearted romantic book, with lovable characters and a great plot.

***Summary***
Ally Giordano was all set and packed to start a new life in San Francisco but one mishap with her Granny Donny puts a damper halt to her planned future. Her grandmother has contracted dementia! What's even more amusing is that Granny Donny thinks she lives in the Regency era and that they are live characters from a historical novel. Granny Donny being the dowager is hell-bent to find her granddaughter, a Duke to marry. That role conveniently lands on the modern playboy Sam Carson.
Ally, being the respectful teacher and described as plain-Jane wants nothing to do with an attractive man like Sam, but still Sam proven to be irresistible to the reluctant Ally. And he's hell-bent to show her that being naughty is much better than being nice.
***Personal opinion***
Not to be mean, but Diana Holquist had definitely lost her touch. From the back cover synopsis, this book looked to be a very interesting read but I guess whenever one expects too much, the outcome always turns out to be disappointing. So the idea of the plot was Ally's grandmother experiencing dementia and thinking that she's actually living in the Regency era. Ally puts up with Sam just so she doesn't upset her sick grandmother. However, the occasional use of historical terms when exchanged between Ally and Sam were just too confusing. There was really no separating from the pretending-to-be and from the modern state of the plot. I mean come on, get real; what's up with calling a man who is clearly a womanizer a "rogue" or a "rake". We call them "players" or "playboy" in the modern days.
Other than that, this book really lacked depth in both for the plot and characters. Here we have Sam who bears a past that turned him into a man who is described to be a commitment-phobic. But sleeping with Ally once changes his whole life with no depth of explanation to his change of feelings. On the other hand, Ally vows to never fall for men like Sam cause she doesn't want to be like her mother who threw away her life for her father who was a complete "rogue" (the term used to describe her father's inappropriate behavior throughout the story), yet Ally keeps on wavering with "wanting" Sam in a sexual way, but not wanting to trust him enough to let him into her heart. For crying out loud, if you don't want the man, then just walk away. If you just want him as a sex-buddy then just shut-up and have a good time with him! The conflicting emotion of Ally was just too weak in this book. Everything was terse in this book, the way the author had set it up seems to be straight to the point, but definitely lacked the depth for a thorough explanation of things to make this a good read.
I have to say I was greatly disappointed with this novel. I seriously think the author could've done better. I've read her "Sexiest Man Alive" and I've totally fallen in love with that book. That was the only reason why I've been looking out for more of Diana Holquist's books. But this one shows to be a complete disappointment for me.
If you're really looking to read something about of a plain-Jane who could change the heart of an irresistible playboy, this is definitely NOT the book you want. Also, if you're one of the readers that hate a hasty ending, then don't bother with this one. The ending was definitely done in a quick wrap-up.
The only things I would give this book credit for is the short explanation of Sam's past, that was a little bit emotional, but just a little bit. Also there are some really funny quotes, but that's just some.