Irresistible

Rating:
Summary: I loved it!
Review: Although I haven't read "Scandalous," I enjoyed "Irresistible" tremendously. If there's a third book in the "trilogy" I haven't yet found it.

Although there was much more description than conversation, the plot was magnificent. Even so, there wasn't quite enough description regarding Claire's kidnapping, just a backward look. The story opens after she has already escaped her kidnappers, only to be captured again by others.

I'm not a reader who requires that fiction imitate life but rather prefer a GOOD STORY (which is why I adore the Madeleine Brent books), so Claire's adventures made for a great read.

Perhaps I should have given it five stars--I really wanted to assign it four-and-a-half--but, in any event, I would recommend this one to anyone who isn't just looking for a fast bit of fluff.

Rating:
Summary: Classic romance
Review: As an author, Karen Robards is like the nursery rhyme about the little girl who had a little curl, right in the middle of her forehead. When she is good, she is very, very good, and when she is bad, she is horrid.

IRRESISTIBLE is, indeed, very very good. This evaluation applies only to the novel's place within the genre of historical romances, however; one cannot judge romances by the same yardstick as is used for literature.

Still, IRRESISTIBLE is about as good as this category of writing can get. Robards tells an interesting story against the background of the Napoleonic Wars, and she creates a true feeling of the period. As always, her heroine is beautiful beyond words, her hero is to drool over, and her sex scenes are hot, hot, hot. In acknowledgment of modern values, there are no rape scenes, unlike the historical romances of decades past--and this change is a real improvement in the genre.

Any reader who enjoys historical romance will find IRRESISTIBLE to be... irresistible!

Rating:
Summary: When she is good...
Review: As an author, Karen Robards is like the nursery rhyme about the little girl who had a little curl, right in the middle of her forehead. When she is good, she is very, very good, and when she is bad, she is horrid.

IRRESISTIBLE is, indeed, very very good. This evaluation applies only to the novel's place within the genre of historical romances, however; one cannot judge romances by the same yardstick as is used for literature.

Still, IRRESISTIBLE is about as good as this category of writing can get. Robards tells an interesting story against the background of the Napoleonic Wars, and she creates a true feeling of the period. As always, her heroine is beautiful beyond words, her hero is to drool over, and her sex scenes are hot, hot, hot. In acknowledgment of modern values, there are no rape scenes, unlike the historical romances of decades past--and this change is a real improvement in the genre.

Any reader who enjoys historical romance will find IRRESISTIBLE to be... irresistible!

Rating:
Summary: Whoa ...
Review: Both too much and too little --
Too much: cliched characters -- the alpha male turned to mush by love; a heroine too annoyingly cute and too good to be believed; an excessively predictable, very thin plot; the use of every vailable adjective and adverb in the dictionary to describe the main characters and the big sex scene that went on forever and ever; the first scene lasting almost half the book until it got boring, a neverending "are too/am not" mistaken identity that could have been cleared up easily had the characters had brains.
Too little: plot, plot, plot -- there could have been a number of interesting ways to add substance to this piece of fluff; and though both characters had harsh pasts to overcome, they were drawn in a way too shallow to allow for any depth. It quickly became a tedious read and I skimmed most of it just to get it over with.

Rating:
Summary: I Don't Agree
Review: I felt this was an excellent book and I have ready many historical romances. This was one of her best in my opinion. I was very entertained by this book and I am looking forward to her next book in this series.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointed
Review: I read two - three books a week and have been trying to get past page 65 for over two weeks.

Rating:
Summary: An Excellent Historical Romance.
Review: I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and look forward to the next book on the last sister. I hope it will be out soon.

Rating:
Summary: Seems to have been written in 15 minutes
Review: I usually like Karen Robards's work, especially her historical romances. However, this one was very disappointing. Nearly half of the book was devoted to covering one day in the relationship of the hero and heroine. This was due mainly to an annoying amount of unnecessary detail and repetition which made the plot move at a snail's pace. I've noticed that Robards has a tendency to give readers insight into her characters' thoughts ad nauseam and all too often redundantly. She certainly gave in to this tendency in this novel. Oftentimes readers would be subjected to two pages worth of a character's thoughts on something that we'd already read about on previous pages.

Also, it seems that the heroine did most of the chasing in this novel, while the hero often stood back looking amused and sophisticated. Maybe it's just me, but the James Bond type hero is fine for spy movies, but he doesn't make my ideal hero for a romance novel. Sometimes a little vulnerability in a man (e.g., when he reveals just how much he's fallen for the hero or just how much control he's losing over his emotions) is most attractive.

All in all, this was a silly plot line and lackluster romance.

Rating:
Summary: exciting Regency romantic suspense
Review: In 1813, Claire Banning Lynes escapes from her abductors who are in deadly pursuit. They insist they just want a ransom, but Claire knows her feckless spouse does not have the money to pay a small sum as the glamorous heir to the Duke of Richmond David wastes his little income on hedonistic pursuits. So the determined and logical Claire concludes that fleeing from her kidnappers is her only chance to survive.

However, Lord Hugh Battancourt intercepts her flight to freedom. He thinks Claire is an evasive French spy that he, as an agent of His Majesty's Secret Service, has been after for quite a while. While Claire protests otherwise, Hugh goes from disbelieving cynic to a besotted lover. However, not only is she married but he still wonders if his heart is betraying his brain?

Regency romance readers will find Karen Robards second Banning sister tale an IRRESISTIBLE exciting romantic suspense starring two delightful lead protagonists sharing two things: love and distrust. The story line never eases up on the action yet the talent of Ms. Robards enables the audience to appreciate Claire and Hugh even in an adulterous relationship. Though the solution to their problem is too obviously facilitated, fans will relish this tale as much as the first installment (see SCANDALOUS) and look forward to the next sibling's novel.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: Robards morphs into Cartland
Review: Just a one word review would suffice - crap. Except for the one trademark steamy sex scene, this was a Barbara Cartland clone. Don't waste your time, or money, on this one.