The Leopard Prince by Elizabeth Hoyt
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Book Reviews of The Leopard Prince
Book Review: Good story, but ...
Summary: 3 Stars
This was my first book of Ms. Hoyt's. Perhaps I'm spoiled having become a fan or Lisa Kleypas' historical romances. The Leopard Prince was a very good story. My only suggestion is it would have been interesting to continue to read about the relationship once Harry and Georgina were marrried and the adjustments they would have to make to make the marriage work. I don't care for stories that end at the point of marriage and leaves the reader wondering if they really will make it since the characters are usually so diverse in many ways.Book Review: lacking that spark
Summary: 3 Stars
A good story, but there never seemed to be that initial spark between the two characters that leads to great chemistry and a "can't put the book down" love story. The murder mystery plot seems a little labored.
Book Review: Get real! (or at least "likely" or "possible")
Summary: 2 Stars
I bought this book because I wanted to find a new author (maybe not this new!). There is real potential there, don't get me wrong but a little more contact with what passes for reality in period fiction would be nice.
We are expected to believe that this 19th century heroine is experiencing the opposite of past-life regression (future life progression?). She is pure 21st century at its most impure. The story line is merely an excuse to thread one sex scene with another. The other characters also have 21st century sensibilities and broad mindedness.
Then there is this ongoing fairy tale (thus the title of the book) which could have just as well have been skipped w/o altering the story line in any way (just the title). This is like those 1940's musicals where people suddenly burst into song except here she bursts into fairy-tale-telling at the most inappropriate moments (and the hero eats it up, no less!)
Frankly, a few pages into the book and I already knew the middle, before the middle, I knew the end. No surprises or subtlety here. The bad characters were very bad, the good characters were very good or soon would be, there were no intermediate major characters, there are no unimportant issues, but very important issues (who is your father? who is your brother?)are just addressed as if you could say "Oh, well..." and go your merry way.
I am willing (and eager) to suspend reality somewhat in order to enter a fictional world. Why else would I be reading historical romances and escapist literature? But I have to be able to believe the characters could exist as fully-formed people, consistent to themselves, the experiences that formed them, and to the social framework in which they live.
You can't take 21st century characters, dress them in period costume, mount them on a horse and then manipulate them to behave in whatever manner best suits the ending. These are characters with little depth who never really become people. They never react or behave the way "real" people would have back then (and probably not now, either).
Something or someone has to be belieable at some point or the story just won't work.
Book Review: Am I the only one who notices these things???
Summary: 2 Stars
Okay, yet again I have to wonder if I am the only one who notices some of these things....
First, I need to say that I'm not going to recap the whole story. That's been done, ad finitum. I am, however, going to address some of the reasons that this book is, at best, a 2 star.
So, where on earth does Ms. Hoyt come up with her descriptions of genitalia? Really! The descriptions were horrible! If I saw a man with the coloration and shaping that Harry had, I would tell him to call a doctor! As for Lady Georgina's "weeping opening", I am left to wonder at how her genitalia has emotions! This is almost as bad as the crying vulva from Madeline Hunter's book, "The Sinner".
I agree with the other reviewer that this might just as well have been set in current times, less the sheep killings, of course. As most people, at least where I live, don't have a lot of sheep grazing around. Other than the sheep stuff, the mindset of the characters is not really appropriate to the time frame.
I don't know what book the rest of the reviewers were reading, but these sex scenes just weren't all that hot. They were a bit dirty, which is okay with me, but they didn't engender any feelings of "wow" in me. And the whole genitalia thing was a total turn-off.
I'm ticked with Lady George for her immature and absurd behavior through several parts of this book. I'm kinda wondering about the ending but I can't say anything about it without spoilers, and people tend to get a bit upset when I include those. ;)
Now that I've explained what I DIDN'T like, I'll tell you what I did... um... there weren't a lot of typos. Harry seemed like a decent enough fellow. I liked Will.
There you go. If you choose to read this, do so with a foreknowledge that you might get grossed out at the times you're supposed to be the most turned on, and you might find yourself scratching your head going "huh?" a lot. I leave the decision up to you, the reader.