A History Nut's Romantic State of Mind

I think I have just set a new record: finishing a full-length romance novel in less than 2 hours.

I confess that I did not really read the second half of the book. I did however, read the first half. I liked the first 30% well enough that I downloaded another book from Brenda Joyce. I now regret the premature decision. I did, however, managed to flip through to the last page. My skimming allowed me to see that nothing happened. At least, nothing that could have changed my opinion about the book happened.

I have absolutely no problems with the plotlines. I do not mind that Rex is a one-legged recluse, or that Blanche is a disturbed heroine. I do not mind that Blanche walked in when Rex was having sex with his housemaid, which seems to bother a lot people. I could work with a lot of ridiculous, unusual plots, if the couple manages to catch my attention.

Naturally, my 1 star rating speaks for itself. I was bored out of my skull waiting for something to happen. And I do not mean sex. You do not have to throw in sex to attract readers' attention. But anything, anything that tells me that they want to be together, the crushing fears of not being enough and the daring hopes of believing that you just might be. All the emotions that make a budding relationship beautiful. I just did not feel the pull. Something very important is missing in this story. It has all the standard things: a hot hero, a beautiful heroine, desires, kisses, and finally sex scenes. But I just cannot bring myself to care about them, which is a shame because I really like Rex as a hero. But Rex and Blanche together could not catch my attention. I just want to get it over with. It is a book that features characters with severe traumas, both of them. But I just do not feel their struggles. They are just puppets on the stage reading a script. That is how they are like in this book. Rex and Blanche are just 2 puppets. And I get tired of watching puppets reciting lines Ms. Joyce has assigned them.

I think I am too upset right now to write a meaningful review. I get annoyed just thinking about it. Maybe I will come back to the review at a later time when my frustration with the book has ebbed. Right now, I just wish I did not bother with this book.