Customer Reviews

Unladylike Pursuits

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Emily Sinclair is now firmly "on the shelf." At age twenty-five, just having had the momentous birthday, she's now considered a spinster. And, quite frankly, she is very relieved. Since reaching such an advanced age having successfully avoided the trap of marriage to someone she doesn't love, Emily can now get down to the business of living her life. She longs to have a "grand adventure" and is sure that she will, now that she's safe from the matchmaking machinations of her stepmother. After all, even her stepmother has to admit that no one would want to marry a spinster - heiress or not.

Emily is quite surprised to find out that her father has a totally different plan in mind for her - one that does not involve the slightest bit of adventure. Instead, his plan will see her married in one month's time. Even worse that than is the fact that her groom has already been hand-picked by her interfering stepmother. Unless Emily can find a suitable replacement in 30 days, she will be wed to an evil, spendthrift, snake of a man.

Brandon Davenport, Viscount Ashwood, has so far successfully avoided the marriage-minded mammas who have been so intent on throwing their available daughters his way. However, the social scene is beginning to wear a little thin. Brand is sick of the pale, polite, ever-so-proper moneygrubbers. As a self-made man, despite the fact that he had no need for his own money being in line to inherit an earldom as he was, Brand finds the pretentious behaviors of proper society to be very off-putting. Much to his own father's dismay, Brand has decided to retain his bachelor status - without producing the requisite heir. That is, until he meets a red-haired termagant riding in the woods.

Thrown together in a secret partnership to rid their peaceful countryside of thieving marauders, Emily and Brand find that love is not the myth that they thought it to be.

Author Alyssa Goodnight has crafted a superbly imaginative tale in UNLADYLIKE PURSUITS. Not only is the story extremely well written, but it holds the reader's attention in the way that only a truly good story can. Once picking up UNLADYLIKE PURSUITS, I couldn't seem to put it down. Ms. Goodnight's novel has all the qualities of a first-rate historical romance: realistic and engaging characters; sweet and sexy romantic encounters; a fast-moving plot; an engaging historical setting and a feel-good ending. Rife with humor, tenderness and romantic subtleties, UNLADYLIKE PURSUITS gifts readers with that most coveted of reading experiences: escape from the daily grind into the welcome fantasy of a fairytale filled with love and adventure.

I highly recommend that historical romance lovers grab a copy of UNLADYLIKE PURSUITS. I know I'll be looking forward to reading the next book by this talented author.

Reviewed by Janean Nusz, author of DESTINY'S PROMISE and THE OGRE'S CURSE. (...)

I really enjoyed this first time novelist's writing. She has a great grasp of character and a real sense of fun. It was very involving and a fast-paced read. Lots of admiration for her strong-willed heroine who defies her upbringing and tosses all sense of decorum out the window to lead her adventurous lifesyle. I would recommend it to anyone interested in a delightful and involving story.

It was difficult finding time during the holiday season to read, but once started, I found I couldn't put the book down. The book was fun, exciting, full of intrigue, and had me totally captivated. The development of the characters was very well done, and the unexpected twists nearing the end of the book were suprisingly suspenseful! A must read! I look forward to more novels by this author.

Goodnight has managed to create thoroughly delightful characters and an engaging plot in her first novel. Emily is a true minx of a heroine, a tribute to the secret adventuress in us all. Brand is somewhat bland as a hero in that he doesn't have some obvious outstanding trait. On the other hand, he is, quite simply, thoroughly delicious--the sort of man you'd honestly love to settle down with. His good humor and kindness alone make him a gem of a man--and much more interesting than Colin.

Speaking of Colin, there are two romances here, and for a time, I liked Sophie better than Emily, but that didn't last long. One error on Goodnight's part is letting the secondary romance fall from the reader's attention for too long, losing its important connection to the main romance.

The secondary characters are well conceived as well, with only Emily's father showing a bit of inconsistency. The villain is surmised fairly early, but works very well and pulls much of the plot together, albeit often behind the scenes.

Goodnight's biggest problems are a poor understanding of English grammar and the lack of a good editor. Really, she makes some of the most atrocious grammatical and stylistic errors ("with he and Emily" and "elude" instead of "allude" and vice versa, to name only 3 of the many). Plus, the narrative portions can be overly long and could have benefitted from some judicious editing, preventing them from slowing the book's pace too much. In the first 1/3 or so of the book, long unbroken chapters make it difficult to find a convenient stopping place.

However, these are minor complaints compared to the excellent characters, witty dialogue, engrossing plot, and delicious romance. With more attention to editing, Goodnight may well prove to be one of those "automatic buy" authors.

I'm not a typical romance reader but I really loved this book. Unladylike Pursuits is full of humor, adventure, and romance. Alyssa Goodnight's brilliant character development and witty humor make this a really fun read. The character interaction and dialog had me laughing out load! The story is full of twists and unexpected surprises-not to mention a steamy yet tastefully written love scene. I've recommended this book to lots of friends and we all agree that Alyssa Goodnight is a truly gifted writer. Alyssa, please hurry up with your next book!

Goodnight does an EXCELLENT job of drawing us into the non-traditional search of Emily Sinclair for a husband. She entices the "wanton self" in all of us! She draws us into the excitement, the fear, the challenge and taunts us with a man who teases and appreciates, engages and wrestles with Emily in her pursuit! It is a page-turner....I couldn't put it down! I look forward to the next novel from this author!

I couldn't put this book down. The well-developed characters, the twisting plot, the rapid pacing, and the unexpected revelations kept me hooked. I highly recommend this book for anyone who likes fiction and loves a good read. I very much look forward to Ms. Goodnight's next novel.

If a book has an overwhelming amount of 5-stars, I usually dismiss the one or two negative reviews when buying it, but this time I should have paid more attention to them.

I will not rehash the plot, and will only say about the characters that the heroine acted more like a compulsive thirteen-year-old with total lack of judgment than a woman of twenty-five. This was a poorly connected story; the detailed explanations of what people were thinking and feeling-in case the reader was incapable to make her own conclusions-and the slow and convoluted way this tale developed were all lengthy and repetitious. I decided to skip pages to move things along on my own, only to find out that, no matter where I stopped to read, I seemed to be in the same place I'd left off.

I agree with one of the reviewers that some parts were witty and well-written, and I especially agree that Ms. Goodnight needs, without a doubt, a better editor.

I hope Ms. Goodnight does not do what I did and pay attention only to the 5-star reviews; this is just the beginning of her career and we welcome new writers and fresh ideas. I'll be looking for new titles under her name, as many will, too. Simplify, don't underestimate the readers' intelligence, learn to string events in a cohesive manner, live your characters and give them depth and consistency.

In the meantime, I'm rereading my Lisa Kleypas' and my Julia Quinn's.

I have been reading tons of romance lately, and I have to say that I have never fallen asleep while reading any of them, not even when I was reading until 4am. However, there has to be a first for everything and unfortunately Unladylike Pursuits was it.

The story itself was enjoyable, however, the writing was definitely not. There were some witty banter thrown about here and there between the characters, but most of the time the conversations seem a little disjointed and the inner thoughts of the characters were horribly dull, pointless and unnecessary. It got to the point where I decided to just skim over the characters' thoughts and continue reading when the story started up again. Again, the plot of the novel was interesting, and I did find myself wanting to know how the story will develop and end, so the novel is not an absolute failure.

The narration and thoughts needs to be more concise and less repetitive, and the character development for all the cast besides the main heroine needs to have more depth. If those things are improved upon, then this book would be more enjoyable to read.

I LOVED this book. It had all of the elements that I look for when I want a great book...romance, mystery, and adventure! Goodnight made the characters come alive through fantastic description and conversation. I particularly liked that this was not just a story about one heroine, but I learned about the friendship of two young women as well as their romances. The mystery was a great element! I was guessing up until the end. If you're looking for a read that combines mystery, romance, adventure, and great writing, I would recommend this in a heartbeat!!!