This is the second Sara Seale novel I’ve read (after The English Tutor). I was expecting much of the same again, and I got it. Seale is from the “vintage” Mills & Boon/Harlequin era, when heroines were frequently in their late teens and the heroes were usually much older, and everything is incredibly innocent. The […]
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That Hagen Girl by Edith Roberts
That Hagen Girl is a curious read. I managed to source a copy (they are rare and it was expensive) because I had seen the movie a couple of times and it bewildered me. That Hagen Girl (1947) stars Shirley Temple and Ronald Reagan, along with a supporting cast of other well-known stars. But it’s […]
Read MoreNew website for 2018
This website has now been moved (from Wix to WordPress) and has had something of an overhaul. It should now be much easier to update and add content. I’m also publishing new blogs in parallel over at Wattpad, for people who prefer to follow updates there. The drawback is that it can’t contain links. And […]
Read More6 reader reactions to raunchy lines
It’s always fascinating what sentences readers respond to – and often it’s really surprising. I love getting any kind of reaction, and tracking what people find sexy or funny really helps me when writing future stories. 1. He came and knelt down by her. Murmured in her ear. “Like you wanted me to fuck you.” […]
Read MoreVintage sexy: try Violet Winspear
If anyone feels like some classic, sexy vintage romance, try Violet Winspear who wrote 70 romance novels in the 1960s, 70s and 80s. You’ll find plenty of power play, age-gap, virginal heroines, coerced marriage and Alpha male themes, with heroes who are, in the author’s own words: “…lean and hard muscled and mocking and sardonic and tough and tigerish and […]
Read MoreSo you want more Mr Darcy?
The 1995 BBC adaptation of Pride & Prejudice, starring Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth, is pretty much the definitive production of Jane Austen’s beloved novel. But if you’ve watched it a gazillion times and need more Darcy, then there are several other versions as well as adaptations you can try. 5 Top Recommended: Pride & […]
Read MoreStudent-teacher romance: the lure of forbidden fruit
Relationships between students and teachers, whether at high school or with university professors, is a hugely popular genre. There are perhaps three main reasons why: It’s forbidden. There’s the secrecy, the sneaking around, the illicit liaisons, the rule-breaking. That makes for an exiting, drama-filled plot and a thrilling read. There’s an age/power gap. This is […]
Read MoreHis Lady Mistress by Elizabeth Rolls
Absolutely wonderful book that deserves a higher average rating. I’ve read it four or five times now and can never put it down and always find myself weeping. We have a heroine, Verity, who is given pretty much the most miserable background ever. Despite this and her young years she is spirited and brave and […]
Read MoreLove’s Charade by Jane Feather
Hugely enjoyable historic romance with a rich plot, exciting adventure and a sexy age-gap marriage. Love’s Charade by Jane Feather is a must-read for historic romance fans. As well as enjoying the love story, I learnt a lot about the French Revolution and enjoyed the detail of the setting. Seventeen-year-old Danielle de St Varennes is […]
Read MoreReckless Angel by Jane Feather
A wonderful, well-researched historic romance with an age-gap frisson. Reckless Angel deserves a far better blurb than the vague, generically florid one here. It’s a surprisingly interesting and moving book set in a very eventful historical era (English Civil War/Roundheads vs Cavaliers). Fifteen-year-old Henrietta “Harry” Drummond is rescued by 29- year-old widower Sir Daniel Drummond. […]
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