Rating: 
Summary: I've "Fallen" for this book!
Review: Celeste Bradley creates complex characters that you care about. I really like her heroine who is something of an ugly duckling. Both hero and heroine have families from you know where, but manage to overcome heredity. This book was a fast and fun read. I highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: A must-read!!
Review: Celeste Bradley's debut romance is one of the BEST romances I have read this summer! It's tender, funny and heartfelt. You can't go wrong with this one! I had heard the reviews about it had been positive but reserved judgement until I read it myself---it definitely deserves all the praise it is getting! Celeste Bradley is an author for your keeper shelf!
Rating:
Summary: You'll fall for it...
Review: Fallen is a brillant first book filled with laughs, heart tugs and tears. This is the beginning of a great career from a wonderful new talent. Do yourself a favor, grab this book and have a great reading experience.
Rating:
Summary: Cinderella Story
Review: I loved this book! Lately I've been having a problem getting through even my favorite authors books, but I read "Fallen" in one sitting. "Fallen" is the basic Cinderella story, with a kick butt heroine and a fully fleshed hero. Izzy Temple and Lord Eppingham, Julian Rowley, are caught in a compromising situation when he wakes her from what she thinks is an erotic dream with a kiss to die for. After she catches her breath and realizes that she isn't dreaming, Izzy picks up a candlestick, conks Julian over the head and screams down the house. She is ruined and Julian is saved from being disowned by Izzy's perception and giving personality. When Julian later goes to offer for Izzy, out of duty, her great spirit and fabulous sense of humor unexpectedly captivate Julian. Izzy is a truly likeable character and Julian a romantic hero. This is a fun, fast, summer read, from a fantastic new author
Rating:
Summary: Cinderella Story
Review: I loved this book! Lately I've been having a problem getting through even my favorite authors books, but I read "Fallen" in one sitting. It is the basic Cinderella story with a kick butt heroine and a fully fleshed hero. Izzy Temple and Lord Eppingham, Julian Rowley, are caught in a compromising situation, after he wakes her from what she thinks is an erotic dream, and after catching her breath she picks up a candle stick, conks him over the head and screams down the house. When they meet again, Izzy's spirit and humor unexpectedly captivate Julian. She is a truly likeable character. This is a fun, fast, summer read, from a fantastic new author.
Rating:
Summary: Cinderella Story
Review: I loved this book! Lately I've been having a problem getting through even my favorite authors books, but I read "Fallen" in one sitting. "Fallen" is the basic Cinderella story, with a kick butt heroine and a fully fleshed hero. Izzy Temple and Lord Eppingham, Julian Rowley, are caught in a compromising situation when he wakes her from what she thinks is an erotic dream with a kiss to die for. After she catches her breath and realizes that she isn't dreaming, Izzy picks up a candlestick, conks Julian over the head and screams down the house. She is ruined and Julian is saved from being disowned by Izzy's perception and giving personality. When Julian later goes to offer for Izzy, out of duty, her great spirit and fabulous sense of humor unexpectedly captivate Julian. Izzy is a truly likeable character and Julian a romantic hero. This is a fun, fast, summer read, from a fantastic new author
Rating:
Summary: Cinderella Story
Review: I loved this book! Lately I've been having a problem getting through even my favorite authors books, but I read "Fallen" in one sitting. It is the basic Cinderella story with a kick butt heroine and a fully fleshed hero. Izzy Temple and Lord Eppingham, Julian Rowley, are caught in a compromising situation, after he wakes her from what she thinks is an erotic dream, and after catching her breath she picks up a candle stick, conks him over the head and screams down the house. When they meet again, Izzy's spirit and humor unexpectedly captivate Julian. She is a truly likeable character. This is a fun, fast, summer read, from a fantastic new author.
Rating:
Summary: An amusingly delightful historical romance
Review: In 1831 England, Isadore "Izzy" Temple thought she was having an erotic dream until she heard her bed companion moan. She realizes that a drunken Eppingham Rowley is sharing her bed. When other members of the Ton catch them in bed, the innocent Izzy claims a lover's spat to ease the pressure off of the alcoholic sautéed Eppingham. She also knows she is ruined as far as the Ton is concerned because everyone now believes that she is a FALLEN woman of no virtue except for Eppie, who knows the truth. Regardless of her defense of him, Eppie does the right thing and marries Izzy. However, he soon finds his intoxicated turn into the wrong bed may have been the best thing that ever happened to him. Izzy brings light to his worried soul and soon he is besotted with love for her. FALLEN is an amusing historical romance that stars two wonderful characters and secondary players who add depths to the layers of misinterpretation of feelings and relationships. The story line is fun and filled with double meanings and tongue in cheek (not saying whose) retorts that add to the delectation. Celeste Bradley satirizes her sub-genre in a mirthful manner that should bring acclaim and a large contingency of readers to this debut author. Harriet Klausner
Rating: 
Summary: Such a sweet--and sometimes bittersweet--love story
Review: Izzy is a great heroine; very realistic in her wistfulness and charming in her easy acceptance of so many awkward situations and her lack of pretension. No wonder Julian finds her a breath of fresh air. And Julian? He buys a horse during their faux engagement just because...and then is disappointed just because she's already outside when he arrives with it (disappointed because he was so looking forward to the surprise). Then toward the end, he says, "Why don't you love me, Izzy?" If you had the same reaction to that question as I did, you'll love this book. There is a poignancy toward the end pulls at the heartstrings in a different way. Poor Julian, though it all works out for the best, of course. And the epilogue is one of the most interesting and "futuristic" I've ever read. Will there be a book about Matthew? I suppose my reason for 4 stars is that I felt there was still some unfinished business, especially regarding Julian's friend Eric; and the whole situation with his father remained a downer--realistic, but I would have preferred a more idealistic resolution.
Rating:
Summary: a fun read
Review: Izzy Temple is having a rather nice erotic dream when she discovers to her horror that there is actually a man in her bed, attempting to make love to her. Fighting for her virtue, she screams for help even as she conks her unknown assailant with a candlestick. And in the chaos that ensues, she realises that her attacker, Lord Eppingham, Julian Rowley, had drunkenly mistaken her room for another's (Lady Bottomly). Even as everyone is screaming denouncements at the semiconscious Rowley, Izzy only knows the need to protect him and Lady Bottomly. And so she claims that they (Izzy & Rowley) were having a lovers's quarrel, thus destroying her own reputation, unless of course Rowley proposes marriage to her. Rowley has no intention of being trapped into marrying a plain spinster with little expectations. However his father, who seems to dislike him completely, threatens to disinherit him unless he marries Izzy. But Izzy has no intention of marrying Rowley, preferring the life of an independent woman with a tarnished reputation to the confining one of a wife. However to help Rowley out, she agrees to a pretend betrothal. Rowley's plan however is to make this pretend engagement real in order to preserve his inheritance. Will Rowley succeed in persuading Izzy to tie her lot to his? Izzy, on the other hand has plans of her own, and dreams of starting a new life for herself far from her selfish relatives. But she is also dangerously close to completely losing her heart to Rowley. Will Izzy be able to be strong and end this sham engagement when the time comes? Will she even want to? "Fallen" by Celeste Bradley, is primarily a really excellent read. The basic plot device of this novel is the Cinderella one. Except that over here Cinderella is plain, intelligent and a lot more confrontational. Izzy Temple is a wonderful and capable heroine; I thoroughly enjoyed watching Izzy cross swords with all the nasty characters in this novel, and come out on top. I had only one reservation: there were too many subplots -- one subplot in particular deserved a book of its own (the subplot involving Izzy's unlikely friendship with Lady Bottomly, and Lady Bottomly's marital problems) and some subplots could have done with a little more exposition (the subplot involving Izzy's only semi decent relative, Millie, for example). So much occurs in this novel, and there are so many subplots -- there is the subplot involving Izzy's cruel relatives; the Lady Bottomly subplot; the subplot involving Rowley's angry father, and the impossible father-son relationship that they have; and of course there is the Izzy-Rowley subplot -- and all this makes for some rather exciting and compelling reading. For the most part, it all works and comes together rather well. It was only when I finished the novel that I realised that Lady Bottomly truly deserved a book of her own, and that a few of the subplots could have done with a bit more exposition. And it just seemed a shame to waste so much good material on the rather hurried manner in which all subplots and loose ends were tied up.
| 
