Review: A mix
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 05 18, 2013
Book 1:  Royal Seduction.  Rolfe, a Balkan Prince, has traveled to Louisiana on the heels of his murdered brother's mistress, Angeline' s cousin Claire. Mistaking Angeline for Claire, he kidnaps her and proceeds to take revenge for Claire's role in the murder. Realization of his mistake does not change his course of action, however.  He keeps Angeline with him as he searches for Claire, whom Angeline protects with her silence.As with other books I have read by Blake, the happenings seem authentic to the time period, when women had a different value than men and the wilderness was filled with outlaws.  Blake does a superb job of developing characters, storylines and suspense.  She almost held off the conclusion too long on this one, though.  I was about to give up on the HEA, creating happy endings in my mind,  resorting to ending "B", when it finally came.  Whew!!Book 2: Royal Passion.  This is my least favorite of the books I have read by Jennifer Blake. Set in France, it picks up the story begun in book one thirty years earlier.  Andre' s daughter, Mara, and his mother, Helene, travel to France following the death of Mara' s fiance'.  To free her grandmother from gambling debt incurred there, Mara is forced into seducing Angeline and Rolfe' s son, Prince  Roderick.  France is in the midst of political unrest, and Mara realizes too late Roderick is being set up as scapegoat for an assassination attempt on the King of France.  The book contains all the detail with little of the character development that brings about the emotional hook experienced in her other books.  I could have easily skipped this one.  I would give book one four stars and book two, two stars, for an average of three stars.