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Annabelle Greene

Auteur van The Vicar and the Rake

4 Werken 82 Leden 14 Besprekingen

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Werken van Annabelle Greene

The Vicar and the Rake (2020) 36 exemplaren
The Soldier and the Spy (2021) 21 exemplaren
The Servant and the Gentleman (2022) 17 exemplaren
A Winter's Earl (2021) 8 exemplaren

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female
Woonplaatsen
Italy

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A Winter's Earl by Annabelle Greene is quite a ride! Featuring one of the most profound character arcs I've read in a while (from completely unlikeable almost to the point of 'I can't keep reading this' to 'oh okay actually he might be improving as a human being' around the literal 40-50% to 'genuine sympathetic character I'm glad I'm reading this'), a completely redundant baby who gets less genuine attention than Branson the spaniel, some really awesome lyrical writing and place-setting / description, and some great characterisation and dialogue. This is the nice, gothic-Christmas-adjacent moody m/m romance your heart is looking for, provided you like an awful lot of melodrama (and gosh, I really do).

I'll get the ugly stuff out of the way first. I couldn't stand Sherborne as a love interest until around 44% into the book where he started to become a human being. He starts out profoundly unlikeable, not just because of his past, but because of his mindset. In the present, he's melodramatic, unsympathetic to others, selfish, hot-headed and immature. He thinks a legitimate response to jealousy is to cause someone else physical harm, and at one point observes that he's not inspired to be a gracious host if his guest doesn't like him, which indicates he doesn't actually understand what 'gracious host' really means (i.e. it's not conditional on your guests coddling you with kid gloves).

After this, there's a sharp turnabout in the quality of his dialogue with others, and in the ways he starts thinking, and I think it's honestly worth waiting out if you find him as unlikeable as I did. It's really quite a skill, to turn him around so profoundly.

The baby is an insignificant part of the plot, and 'Parsley' is unmemorable and a clear plot device. I was surprised she wasn't even mentioned when summoning Richard back to Sherborne, because the blurb indicates this is the reason Richard returns (it's not, he returns because he's imagined something very different).

Now for all the good stuff.

Beth is a great character. She's complex, lovely, interesting, has some great lines of dialogue, flawed while still maintaining integrity and enlivens every single scene she's in. From the moment she comes into the story, the whole book comes alive whether she's in the scene or not.

The descriptions in this book are so great, I really felt the sense of Sherborne's castle, the wintry setting, all of it really created a rich and immersive experience which showed attention to detail and a lot of love for place that isn't belaboured.

Greene's prose is lyrical and beautiful, with many quotable lines of dialogue, without being purple or heavy-handed, which can be an issue in some Regency and Victorian-style romances. It's effortless and a pleasure to read (though maybe she's a little *too* good at crafting an unlikeable character, lol). Seriously though, the writing style is wonderful, and I found myself not stalling at all because of pacing or feeling disconnected or anything like that.

Every character feels individual and distinct and well-crafted and gets their own 'pattern' of dialogue that suits them. From Richard's shorter sentences, to Sherborne's more evasive way of speaking, to Paulina's 'I have no idea what she's thinking 99% of the time,' to Beth's loquacious compassion, to Arturo's earnest, sincere and straightforward mannerisms. This feels like a proper cast, and not 8 versions of the same character, and as weird a thing as that is to compliment, it's a great strength and shows a lot of love for character-driven stories which I really appreciate.

The evolution of the chemistry between Richard and Sherborne was a pleasure to read, and I thought really logical, it mapped and mirrored the evolution of their connection to one another in a way that felt seamless and gave every scene of lovemaking a real reason to be there (not that there needs to be a reason, but these had one, every time).

All in all this review copy was a pleasurable and enjoyable and solid read that I nearly abandoned because of Sherborne's initial characterisation (hence the one star ding, plus the emphasis on a baby plot device that felt forced). Pushing through that, however, revealed what turned out to be a well-knitted adventure with some great, meaty characterisation and arcs, some excellent twists and reveals, and a lovely happy ending to boot. I think anyone looking for a moody Christmas romance with a HEA and a lot of beautiful dialogue will not be at all disappointed with this one!
… (meer)
 
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PiaRavenari | 2 andere besprekingen | Aug 4, 2023 |
My library had this on audiobook and I hadn't read anything by this author before, so I decided to give it a try. It was okay. Nothing terrible or too aggravating, but it seemed to be missing a little something. It didn't inspire me to seek out the rest of this series, but I would consider reading something else by this author in the future.
 
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JorgeousJotts | 5 andere besprekingen | Jul 21, 2023 |
This is becoming a favourite series. I really enjoyed Benjamin and August's story and it didn't suffer from sequel syndrome. They're both such likeable characters in a world of likeable characters. Captain Benjamin Frakes has a huge gap in his personality - all gruff and scowles but just wants to be cherished - while August is another loveable rake with a heart of gold. Greene has a great writing style that kept me engaged throughout the entire story. I think I might have liked this one even more than the first book because the angst/trauma wasn't so extreme (Edward's childhood) so it was more relatable and more of a slow burn instead of just sad.
My first niggle is the cover image isn't anywhere close to the character descriptions and August wasn't actually a spy and Benjamin is retired so... just don't let the cover and title influence you.
My second is that while the sex scenes are otherwise well written and well timed, it is dramatically inaccurate. If you're going to put emphasis on August's virginity, maybe make his first penetrative sex a little more realistic. A few saliva-covered finger pokes does not an enjoyable time make for even the experienced, much less someone who seemingly hasn't ever touched themselves there. It took me a bit out of the story with my giant cringe and wince.
… (meer)
 
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brittaniethekid | 2 andere besprekingen | Jul 7, 2022 |
I didn't enjoy this quite as much as Greene' Society of Beasts series but this does take place in the same world - Sherborne Clarke mentions "a society" that he's become a member of in London for "men like us."
I think the child aspect is what ultimately turned me off. I don't like reading mm involving children, especially in historical context and when it's the major plot point. This book is ultimately a story of redemption with a HEA but is a little bloated with characters and sub-plots that its short length didn't need and couldn't contain.… (meer)
 
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brittaniethekid | 2 andere besprekingen | Jul 7, 2022 |

Statistieken

Werken
4
Leden
82
Populariteit
#220,761
Waardering
3.8
Besprekingen
14
ISBNs
8

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