Review: Was one of 2013′s revelations...a charming and captivating historical romance...one of my favourite reads of this year!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 09 19, 2013
I decided to read Seducing Charlotte because the blurb reminded me a lot of the story of North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell (where Richard Armitage played the hero Mr. Thornton in the TV adaptation), and although the story and its tone was quite different (Seducing Charlotte was much lighter, less gloomy) I enjoyed it a lot!Seducing Charlotte was Diana Quincy's debut novel (and the first in her Accidental Peers series) and it blew me away! The writing flew smoothly, the story was captivating, the characters were loveable and their romance had me devouring the pages!I enjoyed that Charlotte was an ordinary heroine: she was no stunning beauty"He'd always assumed a lack of eligible suitors accounted for her spinster status. In the glittering atmosphere of the Ton, he'd mistaken her clean simplicity for plainness, but others had not made the same error. This evening, she shined, appearing to be in her element as she commanded attention and interest. Charlotte Livingston was a diamond who could easily be mistaken for plain glass if one didn't look carefully enough to appreciate all of her brilliant facets."but she was intelligent, charming and kind. She was a woman I could easily see myself befriending in real life. It was refreshing that she had valid and thought-provoking, complex thoughts and opinions and she wasn't afraid of voicing them. She was a very modern, independent and smart woman not only the hero but I could respect as well."The person I perceived you to be is the smartest and most humane woman I have had the pleasure of becoming acquainted with, a woman who speaks her mind, who is full of visions for the future that fire my blood and take my breath away. A woman who satisfies every hunger in me, who answers questions in my very soul I did not even know I had." [...] "Not a weak or fearful woman who refuses to reach for what she wants. Not a liar. Not a woman who cowers in front of any man, much less a servant."As for the hero, Cam was a worthy hero in every sense of the word. He was honourable, warmhearted and sexy, I was swooning for him even though I didn't have the visual bliss of seeing Richard Armitage play him ;-) lol He was wonderfully intense and many of his lines made it hard for me to swallow, like this one:"She swallowed hard, a useless attempt to ease the strangled feeling in her throat. "What will you do now?""You know what I must do." Regret glinted his eyes. "It would be wrong of me to allow more people to die when it is within my power to put a halt to the violence." He reached for the door and hesitated, turning to lock gazes with her. The fine creases around his sunlit green eyes seemed to have deepened overnight."But also know this.There will never be another woman for me. I have already taken you to wife in every way that matters. When you leave me, there will be no other. You are the wife of my heart."Can you say 'aww'? *dreamy sighs*I LOVED reading Charlotte and Cam's interactions, their dialogues (=mostly disputes) were meaningful, intelligent yet teasing and bantering at the same time. To see their romance develop through their heated discussions was one of my favourite things in this novel."Their fiery intellectual connection, coupled with an astounding physical attraction, left him feeling keenly aware of what had been missing in his life."Verdict: Don't let the somewhat dry blurb scare you off, Seducing Charlotte is an engaging, exciting and passionate romance you'll devour in no time. Diana Quincy's writing style and storytelling were captivating, the characters were delightful, I loved that the heroine was such a sharp, outspoken woman and I had a serious crush on the sexy and warmhearted hero. In short, Seducing Charlotte was a delight, I discovered a new favourite author and I can't wait to read more stories by Diana Quincy!!Plot: 8/10Characters: 10/10Writing 9/10Ending: 8/10Cover: 10/10