Rating: 
Summary: Romance at it's best...
Review: ...unpredicatable. There is no formula within sight in this book. JRE (Julia Ross) writes much like Dorothy Dunnet...Nigel very much reminded me of Lymond, but JRE puts much more focus on character development and the romance aspect of her story. This book requires you attention, some pages move very slowly because there is so much detail and things happening. It's not a book for someone wanting a quick bit of fluff to read. It is very emotional, complex, and interesting. The love scenes are fabulous, and also not something you would read in just any romance pulled off the shelf. Bottom line: I loved this book, and highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful, different...
Review: A riveting story about two unconventional people drawn together despite their fears and misgivings. Beautifully written, a wonderful love story, although she relies a bit heavily on literary quotes. NOT for you if you're expecting your typical overblown romance / bodice ripper with shallow, one-dimensional characters, melodramatic dialogue and a farce of a plot to tie the sex-scenes together. This one's a definite keeper!
Rating:
Summary: A masterpiece of romance, intrigue, and spiritual healing.
Review: A young girl whose innocence was robbed in a maharaja's harem, Frances escapes and returns to England, to find her aunt dead, and her only option to exist as some rich man's mistress. Spy extraordinare, Nigel carries within himself a bitter spirit of long lost love and betrayal. He doesn't want to love again, and Frances doesn't want to fall in love either, because of the hurt she would feel at the inevitable end of the relationship. Nevertheless, as their relationship progresses, they each discover that appearances are deceiving and neither is what they appear to be on the surface. ("Illusion" is an apt title for this story.) And they discover that enduring love can cleanse and heal their souls. This is a book that I will not forget soon.
Rating:
Summary: A masterpiece of romance, intrigue, and spiritual healing.
Review: A young girl whose innocence was robbed in a maharaja's harem, Frances escapes and returns to England, to find her aunt dead, and her only option to exist as some rich man's mistress. Spy extraordinare, Nigel carries within himself a bitter spirit of long lost love and betrayal. He doesn't want to love again, and Frances doesn't want to fall in love either, because of the hurt she would feel at the inevitable end of the relationship. Nevertheless, as their relationship progresses, they each discover that appearances are deceiving and neither is what they appear to be on the surface. ("Illusion" is an apt title for this story.) And they discover that enduring love can cleanse and heal their souls. This is a book that I will not forget soon.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing and at times annoying
Review: I had read wonderful reviews of this book, but was very disappointed. The hero was strong, but the heroine was a drip. She felt she was different from everyone else because of her experience and her Indian clothes and nose stud. HELLO! Take the stud out, I kept saying, and put some regular clothes on unless you want everyone to treat you like an oddity. The hero kept quoting poems and stuff at length, which I suppose was interesting the first 2 or 3 times, but after about the 20th time, I just started skipping around it.
Rating:
Summary: Not one of my favorites
Review: I was very dissappointed with this book. The heroine has no personality, and the hero's dialogue I found annoying. I was gritting my teeth with every "Good Lord" or "My God", and don't get me started with all his quotes. It was a struggle to finish.
Rating:
Summary: Romantic, erotic, intensely imaginative
Review: I've loved Jean Ross Ewing's Regencies, including the recent RITA winner Love's Reward. So it was no surprise to me to find that she has brought the same imagination and romanticism to a Regency historical. Being a fan of both sub-genres of romance, I particularly liked how she has smoothly maintained the period feel, while moving to a broader, more complex story, more sensuality and a very non-traditional heroine. A beautiful story, carefully researched and movingly told. I hope to read many more.
Rating:
Summary: Bewitching, Emotional, Complex, Beautifully Written!
Review: Jean Ross Ewing AKA Julia Ross just never disappoints. But be warned - her books are not light reading! Patience and attention are required, as the story unfolds with extreme subtlety. At times you may wonder (right along with Frances) what the heck is going on, but as layer upon layer of intrigue is revealed, things make sense eventually. Illusion is the perfect title for this story for nothing and no one are what they seem! Nigel Arundham, Marquess of Rivaulx - peer, spy, codebreaker, soldier and rake is definitely the star of the book. Everyone - male and female - seems to be in love with the darkly handsome and complex Nigel. And then there is Frances Woodard, raised in England but a on trip to India with her botanist father, tragedy struck and she wound up in a Zenana - a Maharaja's harem - trained to be a Ganika (courtesan). Her arrival back in England provokes much speculation and she is brought to Nigel's attention when she is offered the protection of Lord Donnington, whom Nigel believes is a traitor. He plans to use Frances' notoriety and a gambling debt owed to him by Donnington to gain access to Donnington's home in order to find the evidence he needs to arrest him. Things take a tragic turn and the ensuing "orgy" is a disaster when Nigel is poisoned and Donnington turns up dead. Frances is overwhelmed and alarmed by Nigel and all the upheaval he has brought into her life. It's like she's once again in the harem with plots and danger everywhere. She is not happy when Nigel claims her as his mistress (though it's in name only). She had hoped for a quiet life with a older, kindly protector who would allow her some freedom but it is not to be. As the action moves to Paris, we meet several other characters all with differing and multiple loyalties. Poor Frances cannot figure out what is happening or who to trust in this world of deep intrigue. But she thinks she glimpses moments of genuineness, kindness, true charm and humour in Nigel and she is helplessly drawn to him despite her fears. Nigel, on the otherhand, is fascinated by Frances. She may know all about the Kama Sutra and the mechanics of seduction, but exudes such purity and innocence that he is captivated. If they get out of Paris alive, will they trust each other enough to shed their outer layers and show their true selves? Is love possible for two people who've seen such ugliness? I will admit and agree with another reviewer that there were a bit too many "dear God"s and "good God"s and that Nigel's quoting of poetry, literature and song was a bit over the top - after a while, I just stopped reading his quotes. But there was so much more to enjoy, that I could overlook those minor irritants. As for Frances being a "drip" (as one reviewer complained), Ms Ross Ewing's heroines are usually a bit subdued - quiet, well-mannered English girls with a lot of inner strength. It is her heroes who usually shine - either brightly like Alden in The Seduction, or darkly like Nicholas in My Dark Prince and Nigel here. These books are not for everyone, but I certainly have enjoyed entering the bewitching worlds that Ms Ross Ewing creates. Highly recommended!
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful, different...
Review: This book deserves all your attention. This is a knock your socks off book that will blow you away. ILLUSION takes place in London and France at the time of the Battle of Waterloo. The characters are extraordinary. Frances Woodward is a trained courtesan in the arts of the Kama Sutra, and had escaped from India. She dresses in floating silks and carries an air of mystery about her. The brilliant spy, Nigel Arundham, Marquess of Rivaulx covets her and wins her as his mistress in a game of chance from a man he suspects is a traitor. Nigel is an exceptional man who is very talented in mathematics and breaks enemy codes to help the British. He is a man of secrets, dangerous, and extremely seductive. Frances is caught in a web of intrigue and desire as she is swept into deadly plots along with Nigel. There are some wonderful secondary characters that add spice to the plot. One in particular caught my attention the first time I met him in the story, and I am glad to say Ms. Ewing did not disappoint me, since he'll have his own story in her next book from Berkley, FLOWERS UNDER ICE. This is a superb love story that encompasses danger, mystery, intrigue, and a love that is unforgettable. Brava Ms. Ewing for being such a magnificent storyteller. Your shooting star illuminates the heavens. ILLUSION definately belongs on your "keeper" shelf.
Rating:
Summary: ILLUSION is extraordinary in every way, shape and form.
Review: This book deserves all your attention. This is a knock your socks off book that will blow you away. ILLUSION takes place in London and France at the time of the Battle of Waterloo. The characters are extraordinary. Frances Woodward is a trained courtesan in the arts of the Kama Sutra, and had escaped from India. She dresses in floating silks and carries an air of mystery about her. The brilliant spy, Nigel Arundham, Marquess of Rivaulx covets her and wins her as his mistress in a game of chance from a man he suspects is a traitor. Nigel is an exceptional man who is very talented in mathematics and breaks enemy codes to help the British. He is a man of secrets, dangerous, and extremely seductive. Frances is caught in a web of intrigue and desire as she is swept into deadly plots along with Nigel. There are some wonderful secondary characters that add spice to the plot. One in particular caught my attention the first time I met him in the story, and I am glad to say Ms. Ewing did not disappoint me, since he'll have his own story in her next book from Berkley, FLOWERS UNDER ICE. This is a superb love story that encompasses danger, mystery, intrigue, and a love that is unforgettable. Brava Ms. Ewing for being such a magnificent storyteller. Your shooting star illuminates the heavens. ILLUSION definately belongs on your "keeper" shelf.
|
