October 03, 2017 NR

Which ones are you looking forward to or are planning to buy?

I plan to buy the Rick Riordan book for my daughter. She will probably read in about 2 hours. She is a reader like me. but she likes Fantasy books. She loves World of Warcraft books and she is going to start the Shanarra chronicles soon.

For me I am not really excited about any of the list.

I preordered and since read Kerrigan Byrne's latest in her Victorian Rebels series (The Scot Beds His Wife). It was good, but probably my least favorite in the series so far. Parts of it started to drag a bit, but the ending was good (not just HEA, but also the plot picked up a bit). There was a bit of dopey-ness as there often is in her books (for example a baby is not considered a bastard if the parents were married during its conception). As usual there was some violence, hot sex scenes and over-use of profanity (which doesn't bother me but seems silly in a HR).

It depends on what you mean by cheating.  If you are asking if the H cheats on the h (or vice versa) then, no, there's none of that in the Victorian Rebels series.  In this latest book, there is reference to a grievance between the H and his brother (who was the H two books prior) that took place before the time frame of this series.  The H in this book was in love with a woman who was forced by her family to marry the H's brother.  They had an affair, which ended badly (trying not to be too spoilery).  It caused a riff in the brothers' relationship, but it is mentioned only briefly in the two books.  The hero is a known philanderer, and does tell his wife that he will probably fool around on her, but then falls so madly in love with her that he can't be unfaithful to her.  From the time he meets her, he doesn't have relations with any other woman- even when the H and h still hate each other.  She worries that he will be unfaithful, but he doesn't stray from her at all.  If you can suspend disbelief, then no problemo.

In the first book of the series, the heroine is engaged to another man in the beginning, but the hero is a long lost love with whom she is reunited early in the book.  It has a lot in common with Lisa Kleypas' Bow Street Runners (books 2 and 3).  If you would object to her breaking off her engagement to be with the H, then skip it.

I've often wondered exactly what people mean when they say "no cheating."  If the villain of the story is married but fools around, is that cheating?  (obviously its cheating but would you mind if the bad guy cheats?) If the hero has a mistress but he only visits her once after meeting the heroine and breaks it off before pursuing the h, is that cheating?  If the h's evil husband is killed in a fire, but then a few years later -after she's hooked up with the H- it turns out he's still alive, is that cheating?

I realize it is a personal thing and depends on the reader and her reasons for wanting to avoid certain books, but I've sincerely wanted to know for some time.

That is good to know A lot of readers have said that cheating is a book-ruiner for them, so I'll keep that in mind when I read and try to mention it in any book I review or recommend.

I would say no cheating then in any of the five books in the series.  The fourth does have the characters coming together and separating a couple times, but no other sexual relationships mentioned.  I'd warn more about rape, violence, sexual content and profanity (for those who would be offended) than cheating with this series.

kc my husband says the same thing. I have more books in my Mt. TBR than I will ever be able to read in one lifetime yet I still get more.