The Pleasures Trilogy is not Eloisa James at her best. While they have a certain amount of charm, all three books suffer from that most dreaded of romance tropes: a misunderstanding between the couple that comes about because they are too dumb to talk to each other.
Also, these covers. Good Lord.
So, Potent Pleasures features Charlotte Daicheston. A friend convinces her to sneak out and go to a reputation ruining lower class dance, in disguise of course. Charlotte meets a masked stranger and proceeds to be so overcome by pleasure that she has sex with him. It ends abruptly when he realizes she’s a virgin. Her debaucher is Alex Foakes, the oldest of twins and an earl of some such. He and his brother, Patrick, are a bit wild, so they are sent abroad. Alex to the Continent; Patrick to India. Of course, Alex and Charlotte come thisclose to meeting in society before he leaves.
Years pass, Charlotte is now friends with Sophie York. She spends her days painting and her nights reluctantly attending balls. Then she gets Eloisa’s favorite Regency make over: empire waist dresses and short hair. And wouldn’t you know, Alex is back from his travels. Needless to say, Charlotte and Alex reconnect, sparks fly, and there is pleasure aplenty. Charlotte realizes Alex was the masked stranger, but he assumes that she has gotten him mixed up with Patrick. Charlotte does not do much to contradict his belief. Alex behaves like a complete ass, which does not stop him from sexing up Charlotte six ways from Sunday. They have a couple rough patches that could easily be resolved if they would just fracking communicate! Ultimately, it takes Patrick smacking Alex upside the head and Charlotte’s near death to right things.
Patrick and Sophie take center stage in Midnight Pleasures. Sophie makes the most of being single, collecting a slew of admirers. Thanks to her parents’ disastrous marriage, she determines to marry the dullest peer available. She is smart as a whip and has a knack for languages, which her awful mother tells her to conceal from the world. For his part, Patrick kissed her once and hasn’t stopped thinking of her since. He spent his time abroad working for the foreign office and is roped into a sensitive mission back at home.
Eloisa teases us and makes it seem like they are going to have a grand adventure in Turkey. Sadly, that is not to be. Patrick steals Sophie from her dull fiance and thanks to her mother’s bad advice they have nothing but misunderstanding after misunderstanding. Which of course means minimal sexy times. Boo. Again, open communication would have helped.
I couldn’t really get into this one, but even so, I found myself genuinely moved and teary eyed when tragedy befalls Patrick and Sophie. They work things out and are closer for it. There is also a sweet B plot with Sophie’s jilted fiance.
Book three brings a secondary character to the fore. Quill Dewland was injured in a riding accident. Although recovered, he is unable to ride horses or ladies without getting the worst migraine ever. So, his father arranges for his younger brother, Peter, to marry the daughter of a man that has leant him money over the years. Quill is immediately taken with clumsy plumb Gabby. Peter not so much. Gabby grew up in India with her eccentric father and is lacking in many of the refinements expected of English ladies.
Obviously, Quill swoops in and marries Gabby with the expected result: one awesome night followed by three days of hell. Quill refuses to talk about the issue resulting in a ~misunderstanding~ a-freaking-gain. Somehow, Gabby and Quill get roped into some foreign office affair having to do with a missing Indian prince to pass the time since they aren’t constantly pleasuring each other. Gabby finds the time to summon a doctor she knew in India to help her with Quill’s issue. She must resort to subterfuge to help him and nearly ends up dead for her trouble. Quill finally learns to communicate and all is well.
I like Eloisa James enough to give these books a 3 out of 5. They are fun and light for the most part with a few touching moments. They also drive home how important it is to talk to your partner. Plus, the pleasure parts are quite…hot.
Thank you, lobstie!
The Duke is Mine, by Eloisa James
This is the third in Eloisa James’ adapted fairy tale series (they aren’t connected in any way except the fairy tale thing), and it’s probably the weakest of the three. Which means that it’s a good romance novel, but not an EXCEPTIONAL OMG one.
The premise is that Olivia Lytton has been engaged since birth to the future Duke of Canterwick, which sounds like a great deal until you meet Rupert. Rupert’s not a bad guy (and cheers to Eloisa James for not making him a total villain), but he’s not the kind of dude you want to marry. There is a very awkward and very hilarious sex scene that lets you know just how dismal a prospect marrying Rupert would be, but Olivia is more or less resigned to her fate.
UNTIL! The Duke of Sconce shows up. And once you’re done making Duke of Sconce, Province of Wall, Earl of Candle jokes (… I’m still not done), then can we talk about what a sexy beast this man is? He’s got a skunk stripe, like the greatest romance novel hero OF ALL TIME, Eloisa James’ Duke of Villiers. He’s also really smart and broody, but I have to admit that I was so taken with the sexy Villiers hair that the rest didn’t really matter so much.
Since this is Eloisa James, you know that the writing is going to be funny and that there’s going to be some great secondary characters. The Duke Is Mine has one of my very favorite secondary characters ever: Lord Justin Fiebvre. He’s a foppish sixteen-year-old French cousin of the Duke. He has hair that’s constantly falling in his eyes. He writes poetry and sonnets. Packs of giggling girls seem to follow him wherever he goes. Are you catching on yet?
I obviously enjoyed this book, so why did I say it was the weakest in the series? The biggest issue is really that it gets to be a bit repetitive. Olivia has some body image issues, and thinks that she’s fat. I get it. The Duke loves her because of her sexy curves. I get it. The Duke fears he is not capable of loving and that Olivia would not be a good duchess. I GET IT. I GET IT. I GET IT. Romance novels, with their burning gazes and magical changey-color eyes, all have a bad tendency towards repetition, and I was a bit disappointed to see our girl EJ go there.
But, you know, it’s Eloisa James. You’ll like it.
Next up! LOTHAIRE LOTHAIRE LOTHAIRE LOTHAIRE LOTHAIRE LOTHAIRE LOTHAIRE
Winning the Wallflower by Eloisa James
I like a good novella. It serves as a little palate-cleanser between books. And if anybody is capable of writing a great story in a short amount of time it’s our girl Eloisa James.
Since it was a microscopic book, I’ll give a microscopic review. Here are the good things about Winning the Wallflower:
- Hero is convincingly sexy
- Heroine is funny
- They are attracted to each other but he has to “prove it,” which is one of my favorite romance novel conventions because you know the sex will be coming (lol I’m 11) soon.
- It’s a satisfying story even though it’s short and there’s a ton of bonus content
- Heroine’s best friend is the star of the next book, which will be out in TWO WEEKS OMG I CAN’T WAIT
Anyways, it’s a whopping 99 cents over on Amazon. Go get some.
katalysis asked Hello again! I was the one who asked about This Duchess of Mine, the fifth book in EJ's Duchess series. Now that I'm nearing the series' end, I do agree with you a little bit more about your assessment of Elijah. He is too pure, isn't he? Anyway, I enjoy your funny reviews terribly and I wondered if you could do a little comparison across the series...what you liked, what you didn't like, etc. Thank you!
Overall, I loved the series and I would be delighted to go through it. Let’s roll!
1. Desperate Duchesses (Roberta and Gryffyn) (Oh his name is actually Damon) This was either the first or second Eloisa James book that I ever read, and I loved it. Roberta’s father is the writer of hilariously bad poetry and Roberta herself is gutsy and fun. Damon is pretty damn sexy, too. Plus we’re introduced to a lot of the series regulars, most especially VILLIERS, who is one of my favorite romance novel characters ever.
2. The Affair Before Christmas (Poppy and Fletch) This one was definitely more sweet than steamy (ew I just said that, sorry, I feel like an ancient publisher now), since Poppy’s been under the thumb of her domineering mother and generally feels like shit about herself and everything else in her life and Fletch has to be slow and gentle so he doesn’t scare her off. But there’s a time and a place for slow and gentle, right? There’s a lot of interesting details about hairstyles in the Georgian era, and both Poppy and Fletch are super fashionable. I read this to get into the ~*~Christmas spirit~*~ last year and it did very nicely, although only the beginning and end really take place around Christmas.
3. Duchess by Night (Harriet/LORD STRANGE) Okay, let’s just get that out of the way: the hero’s name is Lord Justinian Strange. LORD JUSTINIAN STRANGE. Doesn’t that make you want to go read the book right now? No? Fuck you.
ANYWAYS. Harriet is a fantastic heroine, one of my favorites of the series, because she’s a bit older and wiser (especially compared to the naive Poppy) and the way she riffs with Lord Strange is most satisfying. Also, it’s a cross-dressing book (Lord Strange’s house is most scandalous and she has to sneak in) and Eloisa James turns it into the sexiest damn cross dress fest ever.
4. When the Duke Returns (Isadore/Simeon) Loved it! Reviewed it here.
5. This Duchess of Mine (Elijah/Jemma). UGH UGH UGH UGH UGH. I’ve been clear on my feelings about this book before. It was a huge disappointment, because Jemma was so interesting before and, like I said, she just loses her teeth when it comes to Golden Boy Elijah.
6. A Duke of Her Own (Eleanor/Villiers) (MOTHERFUCKING VILLIERS FUCK YEAH) This one was absolutely my favorite, because Villiers is the fucking shit. He’s been around the block and uses that knowledge (and his knowledge of 19th century contraceptives) to his (and our) advantage. Like Jemma, we’ve been following him the whole series, but here it pays off. It was so much fun and a fitting and wonderful end to the series.
katalysis asked Hi! I recently read your review of When the Duke Returns by Eloisa James, and you mentioned that you have read (and not quite liked) Jemma's story. If James' intention was to prolong the resolution to that story until hJemma's own book, she succeeded because I really wanted to read it. I was wondering what your thoughts are on the subject, and why you didn't like it. A review like the one I've read would be very, very interesting and appreciated. Thank you!
Hello! And thanks for reading!
It’s been such a long time since I read Jemma’s story, but I will do my best to give an idea of why it didn’t appeal to me. I think the simplest answer is that it was just not interesting. Is it because I’d been following Jemma and Elijah for several books and I felt like I knew how it was going to turn out anyways? Maybe. We also follow Villiers for the entire series and he remained fascinating and a bit ~*~mysterious~*~ and his book ended up being my favorite.
But I think the real problem is this: Elijah is, how can I put this delicately, so fucking boring I almost fell asleep every time he was onpage. I couldn’t get a sense of what he looks like. Even now I remember Villiers has the skunk hair (trust, it’s sexy). Lord Strange has dark hair and a hawkish nose. Fletch is dark and superhandsome. Griffyn has brown hair, blue eyes, and a mischevious smile. Simeon looks vaguely Italian and is ridic buff. Elijah is … golden? Has aristocratic planes on his face? Many romance novels use that descriptor and I have to be straight with you, I have no fucking idea what it means.
But honestly, it’s not how he looks, it’s that he’s just so … good. He made one mistake many years ago and he even made that mistake because he’s so kind and good-hearted and angelic and zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Excuse me, I must have nodded off. Give me a man with a sense of humor and a bit of mischief any day over some golden angel with aristocratic planes on his face and a sensuous mouth. And while Jemma provided a lot of that excitement, she completely loses her teeth when it comes to Elijah. Ugh.
Of course, this is all a taste issue, your mileage may vary.
One final thing: I can’t spoiler it, because it’s a huge plot point, but there is a total deus ex machina at the end and it left me going, “Really? Really? Fuck this book.”
However, if you’re sold on Jemma and Elijah, you should go ahead and read it. I’d love it if you’d review it for ME, actually.
beresbel asked Hey, so I was wondering: Got any stories that are kind of like Ever After? (The movie with Drew Berrymore, which, yes, I am currently watching.) I am just curious, because, damn. Could be a really great book. With, you know, more than kissing.
Ha, I love that movie, even though Drew Barrymore’s accent makes me want to punch a baby.
Anyways, Cinderella stories are plentiful in Romanceland, but my favorite is A Kiss At Midnight by Eloisa James (I typoed at first and said A Kill at Midnight, that sounds like a Bond movie, doesn’t it?).
I know, contain your shock. Me recommending Eloisa James. Stunning. But I love this book, and I even reviewed it for Smart Bitches, Trashy Books. Rest assured, they do more than kiss.The slipper fits very well, if you catch my drift. There is hot princely dick. They have sex with each other. If you know what I mean.
My other favorite Cinderella adaptation is a YA book, and is one of my favorite books OF ALL TIME: Ella Enchanted. There is nothing more than kissing in this book, but everybody in the world should read it because it’s so wonderful.
Readers, any more Cinderella stories?
Me on Smart Bitches, Trashy Books! →
Before you get too excited (TOO LATE FOR ME) I should say that I scored this gig by being the first to volunteer to review A Kiss At Midnight in the SBTB Reader Challenge.
BUT STILL!
When the Duke Returns, by Eloisa James
Yeah, there is no mention of a masked ball at any point in the book. Excellent cover choice.
Okay, so Isidore and Simeon were married by proxy when she was 12 and he was … older, and she expected him to show up and collect her when she turned 16, but Simeon was too busy off traversing the globe and learning the ~*~ways of the world~*~ to make it back. The book opens when Simeon has finally got his (sexy, sculpted) ass back to England to see Isidore. Isidore has never met Simeon and is ready for the worst, but basically nothing could prepare a British lady for Simeon.
Seriously, Simeon is one of my favorite heroes ever. He has some kind of crunchy Zen aspect that is absolutely hilarious. At one point, he matter-of-factly states that he heard music in an Indian bazaar so beautiful that he started to weep. He is a virgin (well, until he and Isadore start their no-holds-barred fucking), which is something that he mentions relatively often and with no shame. He has all kinds of little quirks - he runs around the estate for exercise, he wears trousers rather than breeches, eschews wigs, and is knowledgeable in the vague “Eastern Art of Defense.” There were roundhouse kicks to the face, as promised, and they were excellent.
Isidore was basically the hottest of the duchess clique, and in every other book in the series she is basically just a busty bombshell waiting for her husband. In this book, she is a busty bombshell who happens to be whip-smart and completely capable of running an estate. One thing I love about all of Eloisa’s duchesses is that they are confident, intelligent, and they have no problem taking charge of situation. Isidore can’t deliver multiple roundhouse kicks to the face like Simeon can, but she can hold her own against surly septic workers and even surlier village blacksmiths, and she can do it in panniers, heels, and a wig.
One thing that I really enjoyed about both Isidore and Simeon together was that though they were obviously intelligent people with a lot of life experience, they were both bedroom novices and the way they taught and learned from each other was completely heartwarming and adorable. And, you know, hot.
For once, I was actually as interested in the plot as I was in the sexxings. Simeon has returned from his travels to find that his ancestral estate is falling apart. His father was a epic cheapskate and little nuts, and refused to pay most of the bills. All of the furniture is wrecked, the gardens are overgrown, and the house is, quite literally, full of shit because of poorly-designed and totally-neglected plumbing. Simeon has to work his (sexy, sculpted) ass off to get everything back to normal. Another detail that I loved - Isidore doesn’t spend most of the book angsting about ~*~feelings~*~ and jumps into helping Simeon right the estate, EVEN BEFORE she decides she wants to stick with him. Props to Isidore.
Gripe: this is part of a series, and the secondary plot involves the most boring couple in it, the Duke and Duchess of Beaumont. I read as quickly as possible through these passages so I could get back to the good bits. In fact, having finished this book, I can now say that I loved every book in this series, EXCEPT the one about the Beaumonts, This Duchess of Mine.
Mischief: Managed
Thanks to everybody for your feedback yesterday, here’s what I ended up getting:
Magic Bites, by Kate Daniels: My friend Nancy read the first one and was so impressed that she got the next two in the series, and since she’s the one who led me to both Kresley Cole and Tempest Rising, I trust her judgment.
Tipping the Velvet, by Sarah Waters: We’ve discussed before that my experience in same-sex romance is pitiful, and this book looks fucking awesome.
When the Duke Returns, by Eloisa James: Like I said, I’m craving a James and this is the only one of the Desperate Duchesses series I haven’t read. Also, honestly, I was completely sold by this one-star review on Amazon:
Reading this book gave me the impression that Eloisa James had done extensive research on 18th century plumbing, and wanted to make the most out of that knowledge. Page after page is devoted to discussion of the disgusting, malodorous water closets. At one point our intrepid hero, the duke, is too repulsed to hit a man covered with poo and so he instead delivers him a roundhouse kick to the face. One of several roundhouse kicks to the face the duke uses to take down bad guys. I actually had to read that part aloud to my husband, so he too could partake in the ridiculousness. This is not a book I would recommend.
I’m afraid I have to disagree with you, aquatea, IF THAT IS IN FACT YOUR REAL NAME. There is nothing that says “must-read” like “extensive research on 18th century plumbing” and “several roundhouse kicks to the face.”
weena76 asked HELP. ME. I am being a brave little toaster and valiantly fighting my way through Eloisa James's "Desperate Duchesses" which I am finding to be a vast desert of NO SEXY TIMES. Yes, I finally hit the sexual motherload but not until 75 percent of the way through the book (damn you, Kindle percentage counter!) whereupon I was hit by a tidal wave of bodily juices. My question--should I continue reading all the books in the series (because I do suffer from series-itis) or should I cut to the chase and head straight for "A Duke of Her Own" which I believe someone on Romance Club highly recommended. I do love The James, but this book was like hiking through peanut butter to get to the juicy jelly inside, and it hurt me. What say you?
First of all, take a deep breath. You’re okay. We’re okay. The sex is coming.
Now, I have to admit that I adored the first book in the series, because I thought Roberta’s father was hilarious and I loooved the world that she was creating, but you’re right. In terms of sex, it is a bit of a desert until 3/4 the way through. THIS IS THE BANE OF HISTORICAL ROMANCE. If you did not enjoy the roller coaster before the loops, then it may be time to get off the ride.
I have read most of the Duchess series, and the only one I did not like was the one with Jemma and Elijah (they all have terrible names and I cannot distinguish them). I really loved the one about Harriett (that one I THINK is Duchess by Night and get this, the hero’s name is Lord Justinian Strange), but the last one is by far the best.
You really have to be able to ~*~appreciate~*~ Villiers for his book to be really good, but you can probably do that after one book. It worked for me!
HOW. EVER. If this was not sexy enough for you (and I’ve seen the kind of books you read … ), then A Duke of Her Own may be a bust either way.
