Helpful Score: 3
This was an excellent book. The characters were extremely well developed; you really understood their motivations, particularly Daphne the heroine.
Some have criticized this book because they felt that Anthony, the hero, was just using Daphne for her skills as an antiquarian. I completely disagree with that. Anthony's growing affection and respect for Daphne is evident throughout the book. When Anthony bargains with Daphne for more of her time, there is a playfulness to the exchanges that is delightful and that says this is not about business.
I thought this book was charming and the romantic tension was palpable. This was my first book by Laura Lee Guhrke, but I will definitely pick up the sequel, The Marriage Bed.
Some have criticized this book because they felt that Anthony, the hero, was just using Daphne for her skills as an antiquarian. I completely disagree with that. Anthony's growing affection and respect for Daphne is evident throughout the book. When Anthony bargains with Daphne for more of her time, there is a playfulness to the exchanges that is delightful and that says this is not about business.
I thought this book was charming and the romantic tension was palpable. This was my first book by Laura Lee Guhrke, but I will definitely pick up the sequel, The Marriage Bed.
Helpful Score: 2
This is the 2nd book I've read from this author and so far I am enjoying them. At this time am looking forward to receiving His Every Kiss and The Marriage Bed to complete the Seduction's series. The heroins are strong, and liberated (no shrinking violets), as well as the Heroes, for that time period that is.
Helpful Score: 2
(4.5 stars) GUILTY PLEASURES was an absolutely delightful read, just like all the other times I've read it. Having reread AND THEN HE KISSED HER recently - one of my all-time favorite historical romances - I noticed much more, this time around, the similarities between the two books. They both feature often-overlooked heroines, who are always very much in control of themselves and their desires, and who work in unusual female employment under male bosses who have heretofore ignored them when it comes to anything other than business (and even then, the heroines have kind of just been ... there, seen more as diligent worker bees than actual human beings).
One of the things that Guhrke does so well in both these books is that she doesn't have an "ugly duckling" heroine who is dressed in pretty clothes, gets a haircut, and turns into a beautiful swan, at whose feet the hero then falls. In this aspect, both women remain throughout the book the women they essentially were at the beginning, but how the men view them changes. The heroes are "awakened" - basically jolted into realizing that what they assumed was wrong and that they had dismissed/overlooked them when they shouldn't have.
Of course, through Daphne's relationship with Anthony and Emma's relationship with Harry, both women also have their own set of changes. They idealized/worshiped and generalized/stereotyped (respectively) their bosses, and through their respective relationships they begin to actually see the man beneath the facade, very human and having both virtues and vices. As Anthony and Harry's views change, Daphne and Emma also gain more confidence and learn to demand from others their due.
RECOMMENDATIONS
(1) AND THEN HE KISSED HER (Girl-Bachelor Series, Book 1) by Laura Lee Guhrke - 5 stars
(2) DREAMING OF YOU (Gamblers of Craven's, Book 2) by Lisa Kleypas - 5 stars
(3) ONE KISS FROM YOU (Switching Places, Book 2) by Christina Dodd - 5 stars
(4) BOUND BY YOUR TOUCH by Meredith Duran - 5 stars
(5) LOVE IN THE AFTERNOON (The Hathaways, Book 5) by Lisa Kleypas - 5 stars
(6) THE PROPOSITION by Judith Ivory - 5 stars
(7) ROMANCING MISTER BRIDGERTON (Bridgerton Series, Book 4) by Julia Quinn - 5 stars
(8) SEVEN SECRETS OF SEDUCTION by Anne Mallory - 4.5 stars
(9) NINE RULES TO BREAK WHEN ROMANCING A RAKE (?, Book 1) by Sarah Maclean - 4.5 stars
One of the things that Guhrke does so well in both these books is that she doesn't have an "ugly duckling" heroine who is dressed in pretty clothes, gets a haircut, and turns into a beautiful swan, at whose feet the hero then falls. In this aspect, both women remain throughout the book the women they essentially were at the beginning, but how the men view them changes. The heroes are "awakened" - basically jolted into realizing that what they assumed was wrong and that they had dismissed/overlooked them when they shouldn't have.
Of course, through Daphne's relationship with Anthony and Emma's relationship with Harry, both women also have their own set of changes. They idealized/worshiped and generalized/stereotyped (respectively) their bosses, and through their respective relationships they begin to actually see the man beneath the facade, very human and having both virtues and vices. As Anthony and Harry's views change, Daphne and Emma also gain more confidence and learn to demand from others their due.
RECOMMENDATIONS
(1) AND THEN HE KISSED HER (Girl-Bachelor Series, Book 1) by Laura Lee Guhrke - 5 stars
(2) DREAMING OF YOU (Gamblers of Craven's, Book 2) by Lisa Kleypas - 5 stars
(3) ONE KISS FROM YOU (Switching Places, Book 2) by Christina Dodd - 5 stars
(4) BOUND BY YOUR TOUCH by Meredith Duran - 5 stars
(5) LOVE IN THE AFTERNOON (The Hathaways, Book 5) by Lisa Kleypas - 5 stars
(6) THE PROPOSITION by Judith Ivory - 5 stars
(7) ROMANCING MISTER BRIDGERTON (Bridgerton Series, Book 4) by Julia Quinn - 5 stars
(8) SEVEN SECRETS OF SEDUCTION by Anne Mallory - 4.5 stars
(9) NINE RULES TO BREAK WHEN ROMANCING A RAKE (?, Book 1) by Sarah Maclean - 4.5 stars
Helpful Score: 1
Great easy read (read in a day) wonderful plot loved it!!!
Helpful Score: 1
A delightful, wonderfully written story!
