Noble Intentions and The Trouble With Harry

by Katie MacAlister

#1 and #3 in the Noble Trilogy.

(Noble Destiny reviewed earlier was #2.)

Back cover for Noble Intentions:

HEAD OVER HEELS IN LOVE

Noble Britton had suffered greatly at the hands of his first wife, and he refused to fall into the same trap again. This time he intended to marry a quiet, biddable woman who would not draw attention to herself or cause scandal. Gillian Leigh's honest manner and spontaneous laughter attracted him immediately. It mattered little that she was accident-prone; he could provide the structure necessary to guide her. But unconventional to the tips of her half-American toes--toes that one of them was constantly tripping over--his new bride turned the tables on him, wreaking havoc on his orderly life. And worse, demanding he surrender his heart. Perpetually one step behind his beguiling spouse, Noble suffered a banged up head, a black eye, and a broken nose before he realized Gillian had healed his soul and proved that their union was no heedless tumble, but the swoon of true love

My Thoughts:

I liked Gillian best of all the "Noble" women. I thought she was fresh and fun and forthright. (didn't originally plan that little alliteration, but just got lucky.) I thought Noble, was a great hero. A bit stodgy without having a stick up his.......well you know. And he was Hot! Then the way he loves Nick. Even though he didn't "have to". Some of the banter reminded me of some of my favorite romantic comedies. I especially like the scene where Nick is trying to get his father's attention. "Papa, Mama blah blah blah" (can't remember the exact dialogue as I've read 3 books since then) Noble is like, "Not Now Nick!" and back and forth it goes, until Noble finally realizes that Nick has spoken. For the first time since his very early childhood. (something like 5 years) Then it's a lightning bolt. Awesome! Emotional without being heavy. Fun without being frivolous.

Back Cover for The Trouble with Harry:

The third book in the loosely connected Noble series, The Trouble With Harry tells the tale of Frederica "Plum" Pelham, a woman with a past, and Harry, Marquis Ross--a man who has a few secrets of his own.Although Plum thinks Harry is the answer to all her problems, she quickly finds out that he's not quite as perfect as she thought...there's the matter of his five hellion children, his refusal to let her hide from prying eyes, and oh yes, the man from his past who's trying to kill them all. Not to mention the first husband she thought was dead...

My Thoughts:

It seemed too quick for me in the beginning. A little too..um...horny. (sounds so 16 years old. but that's the way it felt.) Anyway, I felt like there was too much of the standard, "I think he means this, but he really means that" (not my favorite plot devise). Anyway, things really got better when they moved to town. I think Thom is a gem and honestly I'd love a novella of her story with Nick (the son from Noble Intentions). Anyway, the climax was good, and the children grew on me, but were really not that endearing. Then the secrets (that I won't divulge her) were....ok.

Overall they were probably a 4 star and a 3.5 star reads for me.

The Corset Diaries

The Corset Diaries by Katie MacAlister

Title with a "D"--

pages 336

Rate 4.5 Stars

Back Cover:

No woman in her right mind would consent to wearing a corset for a month. Especially a "skinny-challenged" woman like Tessa. But dreams of being debt-free dance in her head at the offer of appearing in a reality TV show. "A Month in the Life of a Victorian Duke" is about real people pretending to live on an English estate, circa 1879. And Tessa's leading man-a real-life Duke-is so handsome she can barely breathe, with or without the corset...

My thoughts:

This book Cracked Me Up! And I love that! You can call me fluffy, but you can't call me stuffy! I laughed until I cried/snorted/almost peed my pants. Was it slapstick? Yup! There were moments of hilarity, and it was in many ways sophomoric. But sometimes, ya just need a good snort, and this kind won't get you 5-10 in jail! (Ha!) Sure some of the plot lines were farfetched, but so are some of the plots of some of my favorite romantic comedies. If you're in the mood for a light, fun read, try Katie MacAlister. If you're in the mood for heavy, angst-ridden drama...um this might not be for you. It was exactly what I wanted and needed. Yay! Me!

Ain't Myth Behaving

STAG PARTY
Dane Hearne -- also known as the Irish fertility god Cernunnos -- must choose a bride quickly. His long-time goddess has run off with a salsa dancer, and Dane must be married by Beltane, just a week away, or become a mortal -- and die. When he meets American travel writer Megan St. Clair, he knows he's found his soul mate. But while Dane is a sexy Irish hunk with his fair share of blarney, can he convince Megan to marry him in just one week?

NORSE TRULY
Alrik Sigurdsson is cursed to sail his Viking ship along the same stretch of Scandinavian coastline forever. So when lovely American Brynna Lund skids her car off the road into the ocean, he and his men are happy for the diversion of rescuing her. Then Alrik discovers that Brynna is the only woman who can break the curse. Is it any wonder that he's determined to keep her...forever?

I thought these were fun, frivolous stories. There is no real character development, and tension. These whimsical stories are perfect as a light poolside read. They were short and fun, and that's what they were intended to be. I didn't like these as much as Men in Kilts, but that's ok.