Review: THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING WICKED by Miranda Neville

Look, kids, another great cover from Miranda Neville! Joke. Just ignore it.

Although the Duke of Castleton and Caroline Townsend are of completely opposite dispositions--he, being proper and conventional; she, determined to live with no regard for society's rules--they both find themselves in similar financial straights due to the irresponsible behavior of other people. When Castleton sets out to court Caro's wealthy cousin, he finds himself attracted to the bohemian widow and is quickly drawn into her misadventures.

The Importance of Being Wicked has a lot of problems, but I ended up enjoying it anyway. Problem the first is some pretty dodgy history. If you're the type of person who's driven crazy by historical inaccuracies, just walk away right now. I already discussed the novel's questionable use of art here, but honestly that's the just the tip of the iceberg. Castleton is alternately addressed as "Your Grace" and "Duke" by the same people, sometimes within the same sentence (only social equals addressed dukes as "Duke," everyone else used "Your Grace;" it wasn't interchangeable); and the characters say things like, "Uhg," and "true blue" (which referred to one's political leanings, not the nature of one's character). Honestly I was a bit taken aback by the careless use of terms and disregard of historical context in this novel, considering that Miranda Neville's last two books were impressively researched--as far as I noticed, anyway--but fortunately I'm not one of those people who demand historical accuracy in order to enjoy a work of fiction. All right, I'll admit the whole Duke/Your Grace thing was a bit crazy-making, but not so much that I couldn't still enjoy the story.

Problem the second was the plot, if one can call it that. It was really thin and not enough to hold the book together. As a result The Importance of Being Wicked felt episodic, especially in the second half. There were a lot of threads going on in this story--the painting by Titian, financial hardship, the whole thing with Castleton's mother, Caro's pregnancy, etc.--that just sort of waved around in the wind and then ended without ever being tied together. The pacing of the story also slows way the heck down in the second half of the book; but then I'm of the once-they-get-married-let's-wrap-the-book-up school of thought.

Those problems aside, however, I really enjoyed The Importance of Being Wicked. I liked it a whole heck of a lot more than Confessions from an Arranged Marriage (post here), and I think the main reason was that I loved the two main characters. Was Caro a bit unbelievable as an eighteenth-century daughter of an earl? Yeah, but I still liked reading about her adventures and sympathized with her actions throughout the book. Castleton was also a fun character because he was so easily shocked by everything and, though he prided himself on being level-headed, spent an awful lot of time threatening to punch people in the face. He had me at the first K-O.



Also, I can forgive a lot in a romance novel as long as the hero and heroine have chemistry, and that was totally the case in The Importance of Being Wicked. I loved Castleton and Caro together and thought the way they fell in love was really delightful (I am, incidentally, a complete sucker for opposites attract romances, so that was basically a sure bet for me from the beginning). I also really appreciated the fact that neither Castleton nor Caro were ridiculously wealthy: usually in romance novels (I'm tempted to say ALL THE TIME WITHOUT ANY EXCEPTION, but I won't) the hero is rich. He can be ugly, he can be socially awkward, he can be a dishonest asshole, he can even smack the heroine around a bit or be not-a-peer, but he's ALWAYS rich. Not in this case! The fact that Castleton, who as a duke had huge financial responsibilities, was willing to marry Caro and take on her additional debt made The Importance of Being Wicked very unusual and added a sweetness and believability to their romance that I fell for completely.

Would I recommend The Importance of Being Wicked? Yes, although I can see where it might disappoint some people or just not be their cuppa. It's not a perfect book by any means, but I think if you're partial to romance there are enough things to like that outweigh the negatives. For the most part I had a great time reading it. Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy to review! And in the future please give Miranda Neville better covers.

Review: CONFESSIONS FROM AN ARRANGED MARRIAGE by Miranda Neville

<--I think this model has the same tan line I do! She needs to use sunscreen.

Minerva and Lord Blakeney are meant to be together. It's obvious because, in The Amorous Education of Celia Seaton (review here), they fought all the time. But they themselves do not know this--if they did, Confessions from an Arranged Marriage would be a very short book. Blake wants to spend his time drinking and hanging out with his mistress; Minerva wants to change the world through a politically powerful husband. Unfortunately, Blake accidentally ravishes her during a ball and then they have to get married. Whomp-whomp. Now they have to make the best of things, which shouldn't be too hard since they're both really good-looking.

After enjoying The Amorous Education of Celia Seaton, I had really high expectations for Confessions from an Arranged Marriage (it's not really an arranged marriage, by the way, it's a marriage of convenience, so a much more accurate title would be Confessions from a Convenient Marriage). Unfortunately, I never felt any chemistry between Blake and Minerva, which really limited my enjoyment of the book, even though it does have redeeming qualities.

With a hero named Blakeney, I would have been disappointed if Miranda Nevillle didn't reference The Scarlet Pimpernel in some way, and fortunately she does: Blake and Miranda don't really trust one another, go to Paris, and do a little spying (although that's not a major element in the plot of the book). Also like The Scarlet Pimpernel, Blake has a secret which results in him being a major asshole to his wife. The difference is, with Confessions from an Arranged Marriage, I knew what that secret was, and it did not help Blake's case. I never thought he was an idiot, even in The Amorous Education of Celia Seaton; but I did think he whined a lot, behaved selfishly, and was the exact opposite of hero material for most of the book--take, for instance, the rumors of him being a bully in school, which were a big concern for me. I found myself wishing I didn't know any of Blake's secrets so I'd have something to wonder about him; then at least he'd have the benefit of being a mysterious asshole.

I would have actually been okay with Blake and his anti-hero ways, though, if there had been chemistry between him and Minerva, but there wasn't. While they were on their honeymoon I found myself hoping Minerva's REAL true love would show up and sweep her off her feet. They'd reached the I'm-bored-with-you stage of their relationship and their relationship had just started!

To solve this problem and make Minerva and Blake get on with the sexytimes, Neville has to make her characters act inconsistently. There is clearly no other way this is going to happen. So intellectual Minerva, who seems like the last person to let her body rule her head, is suddenly a ball of hormones and just can't help herself around Blake because he's SO ATTRACTIVE. Keep in mind they've known each other since childhood and have never found one another the least attractive before now. Is this Stockholm Syndrome or what?

To be fair, there is a lot to recommend Confessions from an Arranged Marriage. It's not recycled or boring, and like The Amorous Education of Celia Seaton, it's based on solid historical research and is not fluffy or idiotic. It also doesn't take place entirely in London, which I loved, and the characters are well-drawn. Blake and Minerva finally start to form an emotional connection in the last quarter of the book. I think the beginning just put me off, as marriage of convenience stories aren't my thing to begin with (I'm always like, "Do you guys REALLY have to get married? Answer: no."), and not once did the characters quote poetry. Honestly, I found their affair kind of sordid and the when, how, and why of Minerva and Blake getting together was too convenient for me to forgive Blake for being a jerk.

Confessions from an Arranged Marriage is an okay book, and I know other people have really enjoyed it, but personally I wanted a bit more from it, both romance- and plot-wise.

Review: THE AMOROUS EDUCATION OF CELIA SEATON by Miranda Neville

Celia Seaton is a governess in a very awkward position. Basically, someone has kidnapped her and stolen all her possessions, including her clothes, and stranded her in the middle of nowhere (Yorkshire?). Why? How? I don't know! Coincidentally traveling through the area is Tarquin Compton, a dandy and leader of the fashionable ton, whom Celia loathes because he insulted her on several occasions, causing her to be rejected by her fiance and forcing her to find a job as a governess. The kidnappers knock him over the head and steal all his possessions, too, leaving him with a case of amnesia. When she discovers him, Celia decides to have a little payback and tells him his name is Terrence Fish, then leads him on a roundabout journey over the moors in search of food, clothing, and shelter. Celia and "Terrence" fall in love, but will Tarquin fall for her again once he regains his memories?

The Amorous Education of Celia Seaton is honestly one of the best historical romance novels I have read in a loooooong time, definitely since the beginning of the year. The main characters are both unique and believable; the plot (although admittedly bizarre) is pretty decent and holds the story together; the story is told in an interesting way; and most importantly, there is a TON of chemistry between Tarquin and Celia. I really wanted these two to get together.

Tarquin is a unique character who is obsessed with fashion and bit of a prig. The reasons why become clear as the story progresses; but when we first meet him, he's pretty unlikable. I did, however, love reading his journey through the book. I also liked how Miranda Neville had him retain a sense of his personality when he had amnesia while forgetting other things--as readers, it really gave us a sense of his essential personality and the fact that he WANTS to be a good person, which makes his more callous and thoughtless moments forgivable.

Celia is not quite as interesting a character as Tarquin, but she is genuinely smart, practical, and independent. It was fabulous to read a romance novel where the heroine was an actual character with a personality, and who didn't drop off to sleep all the time just so the hero could stare at her. Also, all the reasons she had for objecting to Tarquin and his amorous advances (heh) were perfectly valid and understandable, and not just an excuse used to drag out the book.

I LOVED the first half of The Amorous Education of Celia Seaton, where Tarquin and Celia are wandering over the moors; but then I also think I have a particular weakness for "journey" books. I'm not entirely sure, since there aren't a lot of journey books out there (not that I've read, anyway), but I can't remember ever disliking a book where the main characters travel together. Even if I didn't have a weakness for journey books, though, the chemistry between Tarquin and Celia would have drawn me into the story. They don't fall into InstaLust (someone should bottle and market that), and there's actually very little mention of physical attraction between the two; but they definitely share a meeting of the minds and their personalities compliment one another. Plus POETRY IS QUOTED! I love it when characters quote poetry. This scene was probably one of my favorites in the book:

Their gazes met as they held the crude tin vessel between them. Time stopped.

" 'Drink to me only with thine eyes, And I will pledge with mine,' " he said softly.

" 'Or leave a kiss but in the cup, And I'll not look for wine.' " She capped the quotation in a throaty whisper.

Sigh! So romantic!

That being said, the story of The Amorous Education of Celia Seaton slowed way the heck down in the middle. As in, "I think I'll stare blankly at my twitter feed instead of reading," kind of slow. Celia and Tarquin meet several characters who are obviously from previous Neville novels; and while I don't have a problem with reintroducing characters, since I haven't read the previous books and this section didn't seem to advance the plot forward at all, I really didn't care.

The Amorous Education of Celia Seaton picks up again after a while, though, and I think by the end the story redeems itself. Overall this book is very entertaining, romantic, well-written, and intelligent, so basically it ticks all my boxes of things I could ever possibly want in a romance. I will definitely be looking into reading more of Neville's work, and if you like historical romances you should check this book out.