A Lady's Guide to Improper Behavior (Adventurersâ€� Club, #2) in Alpha Heroes & Spitfire Heroines

Mar 12, 2010 Eastofoz rated it liked it

Shelves: historical-regency, 2010

DÃ©jÃ vu anyone ? Suzanne Enoch is an auto-buy for me but when Iâ€™ve already read the book the last thing I want to do it buy it again disguised as something new and thatâ€™s pretty much what sheâ€™s done with this story. Itâ€™s a recycled version of England's Perfect Hero only not as well-written and without the emotional punches you got via the hero. Now if you havenâ€™t read "Englandâ€™s Perfect Hero" then you may love this story because itâ€™s good for the most part. Though itâ€™s the second book in the Adv DÃ©jÃ vu anyone ? Suzanne Enoch is an auto-buy for me but when Iâ€™ve already read the book the last thing I want to do it buy it again disguised as something new and thatâ€™s pretty much what sheâ€™s done with this story. Itâ€™s a recycled version of England's Perfect Hero only not as well-written and without the emotional punches you got via the hero. Now if you havenâ€™t read "Englandâ€™s Perfect Hero" then you may love this story because itâ€™s good for the most part. Though itâ€™s the second book in the Adventurers Club series it really can be read as a standalone. Thereâ€™s a brief mention about the club and the Duke of Sommerset makes a few appearances but itâ€™s not like youâ€™re missing anything if you havenâ€™t read book 1.

The book centers around Tess and Tolly (the guyâ€™s nameâ€™s Bartholomew which is just as â€˜unsexyâ€� as Tolly if you ask me) who donâ€™t particularly like each other when they meet. Heâ€™s a boor with a closet full of secrets and sheâ€™s a social butterfly who takes it upon herself to act like the Miss Manners of her time. The only thing is that underneath her perfect exterior lies a wanna be â€œwantonâ€� â€“too bad Enoch skimped on the steam scenes to show that :-/ She can normally write some very good sex scenes but it was almost like she couldnâ€™t be bothered this time which was disappointing especially since the build-up to the steam was well-done. So the two meet off and on at various soirÃ©es and some good verbal sparring happens â€“reminded me of something along the lines of Loretta Chaseâ€™s Lord of Scoundrels but not as much quantity-wise, too bad too because thereâ€™s some stuff that you rarely see in a historical coming from the heroine. Tolly is suffering from a horrible leg wound that he got while on a mission of sorts for the East India Company. Towards the end the â€œbad guysâ€� have got it in for him and the romance turns its focus there for the last bit of the book which I never like in a romance novel because it detracts from the h/hâ€™s story and screams of filler. You can tell that the author ran out of things to say so she stuck in this overused, tired kind of ending. Predictable, unoriginal and boring. When I realized the direction that the book was going in I just wanted it to be finished so I could move on.

As for the writing style there is some great repartee between the two especially because the heroine remains strong and independent minded right to the end. Sheâ€™s got a sharp tongue for every barb he throws at her. I didnâ€™t particularly like the hero though. I never pictured him as a virile 28 year old but more so as an old geezer. He was missing something. He lacked that take control trait that Enochâ€™s heroes tend to have. Too many times he didnâ€™t come across as sexy or powerful but more like someone who wanted to hide away which was understandable but again, not my kind of guy. This isnâ€™t to say that he was weak but he wasnâ€™t alpha enough for me, almost too down trodden and the heroine had the upper hand or they were on equal footing all the time. I like when it goes up and down between the h/h because it heightens the sexual tension between the characters more. The ending was really good and put a big olâ€� smile on my face but that didnâ€™t make up for the problem areas in the book.

So if youâ€™ve read "Englandâ€™s Perfect Hero" you may feel gypped with this story â€“I did when all was said and done. If you havenâ€™t, itâ€™s worth a lowish 4 star read.

I'm going to be generous and say that every author is entitled the odd dud once in a while so I'm impatiently waiting for her next installment in The Adventurers Club series â€“better be that hot babe the Duke of Sommersetâ€™s story ;-)
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Feb 28, 2010 Melissa rated it it was amazing

Shelves: absolute-favorites, romance, historical, regency, favorite-heroines, favorite-hero, tortured-hero, hurt-hero, fictional-crush

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Excerpt:
The Rules:

A lady should always make polite conversation . . .

Theresa Weller understands the rules of decorum, and is appalled when Colonel Bartholomew James disrupts a perfectly civilized dinner. This rude, insensitive man is the complete opposite of everything a gentleman should beâ€”but with one searing kiss, Tess can think of no one else.

A lady should never lose her temper . . .

Aggravated beyond bearing by a man who speaks his mind, Tess wishes there was a guide to men like Bartholomew. ...more

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Sep 25, 2010 Keri rated it really liked it

Shelves: romance-historical, 2010s-read

SE is a NTM author and if this is what I can expect it won't be the last. Col. Bartholomew "Tolly" James is back from a nightmare in India. He now has a busted leg, a bad attitude, needs a shave and a haircut. But when the proper Theresa Weller catches sight of the tall man all she sees is gold eyes and shaggy russet hair that she has to sit on her hands to keep from running her hands through.

When these two meet the sparks immediately began to fly, but they are also as mismatched as they come. ...more

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