All For You by Lynn Kurland

All For You
(de Piaget Family Series, Book #17)

by Lynn Kurland

Genre: Contemporary Romance | Time-Travel

FALLING THROUGH TIME IS DANGEROUS… Peaches Alexander is thrilled to receive an unexpected invitation to a weekend party given by the handsome, eligible Duke of Kenneworth. The only problem: Stephen de Piaget, a stuffy medieval studies scholar who seems determined to get in the way. Peaches has absolutely no desire to get involved with Stephen, until a quirk of Fate sends her hurtling through time…

UNLESS THERE’S SOMEONE TO CATCH YOU. Stephen de Piaget has been leading a double life: respectable professor by day, knight-in-training during holidays and summer terms. When Peaches goes missing, Stephen knows he’s the only one that can rescue her from medieval peril. Little do they know that the greatest danger they’ll face won’t be the business end of a sword, but their own unruly hearts….

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One Magic Moment by Lynn Kurland

One Magic Moment
(de Piaget Family Series, Book #16)
by Lynn Kurland

Genre: Paranormal Romance | Time-Travel | Historic

There’s no time like the present . . .
if you’re running away from the past.

Tess Alexander has it all: family within reach, work she loves, and the chance to live in a perfectly restored medieval castle. But then a trip to the village brings her face-to-face with the new owner of the local garage, who looks a great deal like the man who married her sister . . . eight hundred years in the past. She’s determined to remain objective about magic and destiny, yet she can’t help but wonder about the mysterious, sword-wielding mechanic . . .

As far as John de Piaget is concerned, he has no past; it’s safer that way. The last thing he needs is the nosy medieval studies scholar from the nearby castle dredging up ancient history—his ancient history. But from the moment he lays eyes on Tess, John can’t help but wonder how he ever took a decent breath without her . . . or how he’s going to protect her from the treachery that threatens both their futures.

Eight years after stepping through one of his brother's "secret" portals, John continues to keep as much of his life hidden as possible . . . even when he starts falling for a 'future' girl, Tess. There is an instant attraction between the two so strong that they easily admit their time together is a mistake and as both continue to fight those romantic sparks with rude manners and crude actions, they eventually slip into a daily routine of contacting each other more and more. Yet, when one too many death threats to Tess's life becomes too much for John's stubborn manliness, both find themselves flung back into the past and a home/family John hasn't know for many years. Can time really be the divide that separates two people truly meant for each other or will some unfortunate accident take Tess away forever?

Mystery, romance, close famly ties, time-travel, etc . . . lots going on in this new book in Kurland's de Piaget Series and even though the author is a little (ok, a lot!) light on the heavy petting/ deep panting/aka sex scenes that really spice up a story, she created a captivating, yet chaste, tale that kept me entertained throughout. I easily got sucked into One Magic Moment (and it even kept humming that darn Ben E. King & the Drifters song for DAYS!) since the overall plot mainly focused on Tess & John with little side-character interaction. It was nice to see both little by little drop some of their guards around each other and slowly (they don't even kiss on the lips until page 282!!!) fall in love.

It was also a very emotional read, since John (and even Tess) had some great reunions with their family as well as some tearful good-byes. The companionship between the brothers was endearing to read about and their interactions were brilliantly funny. The mystery side of the story was kind of all over the place and came abruptly to a conclusion near the end that it really interfered with my reading enjoyment for the last couple of chapters, but overall it's a fun tale that jumbles the future with the past in more ways than one. It's fascinating to read about the characters adjustment to both time periods, thus it's a great summer book for true romance and historical fun.

Likes: The older brother Nicholas really stood out as a great side character that I was almost sad when his part was finished in the book.

Dislikes: Some words become redundantly annoying, ie. Tess worrying about "forever" and John's constant mentioning of having to "woo" Tess properly . . . it seemed like ever page had them either thinking or mentioning one of the other. Move on!!

Rating:

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Stardust of Yesterday by Lynn Kurland

Stardust of Yesterday
by Lynn Kurland

Genre: Paranormal Romance / Time-Travel / Fantasy

Genevieve Buchanan inherited a castle – and a ghost to go along with it. But Kendrick de Piaget was no typical ghost. He was a handsome and infuriatingly arrogant thirteenth-century knight. At first he wanted to frighten Genevieve, though she was more charmed than scared by his ghostly tricks. But when his thoughts turned to wooing her instead, Genevieve had to face her greatest fear: falling in love.

Genevieve is content with her San Fransisco lifestyle: great job/reputation, lovely friends/home ... but everything changes when a lawyer comes to town to offer her an unknown inheritance. One would think being offered a castle and a beyond-full bank account as a blessing, but when Genevieve's long-term clients begin walking away and her employees unexpectedly begin to quit - she's finds this new home as a bittersweet surprise and her only escape. Trying to be ecstatic with her new change of life and continue her restoration work abroad, Genevieve is soon caught off guard that her new historical residence comes with a not-so-friendly ghost and that he doesn't want her in the castle at all. Yet, when Genevieve begins to bravely confront her ghostly roommate, Kendrick de Piaget, her feelings begin to change in more ways than she expected and soon her 'knightly' dreams become shockingly realistic.

There were times when I highly enjoyed this book and others when it really really slowed down for me. The protagonists did not really have much depth to them and there was hardly any real character development throughout, but the romance was a nice twist than other similar historical tales. It's an easy/cute ghost read, with a little suspense thrown in - but the overall plot was lacking finesse and didn't really build up enough for the story to finish well - thus the ending was pretty predictable and came more abruptly than I would have liked.

Overall, this is a fun beach read - nothing to heavy or complicated to enjoy while chilling in the sun! :) Romance is there, but nothing too steamy to distract from the story.

Likes: All Kendrick's ghostly friends really add to the tale since their great side-characters.

Dislikes: Genevieve has a very split personality: sometimes perky / sometimes lost or easily distracted - thus, I felt, she was all over the place.

Rating:

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The More I See You by Lynn Kurland

The More I See You

(De Piaget Book #8)
by Lynn Kurland

Genre: Historical Romance | Time Travel

A wish upon a star transports the luckless-in-love Jessica Blakely back in time to the thirteenth century, but her desire for a fair and gallant knight yields the fearsome Richard de Galtres. Though wary of Jessica’s mysterious ways, Richard protectively harbors her in his castle by the sea. Though her stubborn will nearly drives him mad, the very sight of her puts a smile on a face that has known too few. And when Jessica’s tender desire pierces the armor around his heart, Richard fears he may never be able to recover – or resist…

Jessica eagerly accepts a month long trip to England (on a university faculty sabbatical) with her blind date, Mr. Stafford III, in hopes of having a "vacation from her life" and "a chance to get some perspective on the Big Picture" (pg 10) Except shortly into her trip, she makes a wish for "a man who would love her as much as he loved himself" (pg 19) and instead of finding herself among manicured bushes in an English garden, she emerges from a fog in the year 1260 at Burwyck-on-the-Sea. Adjusting to a Medieval lifestyle is harder then she expected; especially when she has to deal with Richard de Galtres's stubbornness, preconceptions of women duties (i.e. sewing & cooking...something Jessica knows nothing of), and the lack of music. If this is to become Jessica's new world/life, how will she survive (especially with out chocolate)?

I'm a sucker for time-travel tales, especially when they involve a little historical romance as well. So, after reading Lynn Kurland's One Enchanted Evening, I opted for more and, I have to say, I highly enjoyed The More I See You quite a bit. It wasn't as kooky and ridiculous as some time-travel stories can easily become and I enjoyed that Jessica didn't really make it a secret of her time slip. Richards harshness was easy to find displeasing, but you could also easily see him falling for Jessica throughout the book - which was adorable. Happily, the ending wasn't abrupt . . . since you could feel the story winding up quickly, you'll be glad to read more chapters after the fact to tie everything together nicely. Something I love!

The reader gets a lot of one on one time with Jessica & Richard for the first half of the book, with a few of Richard's comical guards thrown in here or there. Yet, my favorite interactions were when Jessica was forced to mingle with other Medieval women in the second part of the story and finds a kindred spirit. Sadly, I felt the good-byes at the end were bit rushed though and would have been much harder to accept personally, but the characters do do a great emotional roller-coaster and I even found some other characters (ex. Kendrick & Abby) that I want to continue reading up on in the future. Can't wait!

Likes: At least there was more "parallel action" in this book compared to the last one I read, One Enchanted Evening. Nothing too graphic, but enough to satisfy my romantic side.

Dislikes: They made such a big deal of Richard's past treatment as a child in the first half, but it kind of fizzled away in the second half. I would have liked the fact to have been pursued a little more to get a deeper understanding of his character.

Rating:

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One Enchanted Evening by Lynn Kurland

One Enchanted Evening
(De Piaget Book #6)
by Lynn Kurland

Genre: Historical Romance | Time-Travel | Fairy Tale | Fantasy

Montgomery de Piaget attracts responsibilities like blossoms lure bees. Where other knights have bonny brides, laughing children, and noble quests, he has the task of rebuilding the most dilapidated castle in all of England. A bit of magic might aid him—if only he still believed in that sort of thing.

When Pippa Alexander is invited to England to provide costumes for an upscale party, she jumps at the chance to showcase her own line of fairy-tale inspired designs. Not even her older sister’s decision to act as Fairy Queen crushes Pippa’s hope that this time, she’ll wind up wearing the glass slippers. Not that she believes in fairy tales, or magic that whispers along the hallways of an honest-to-goodness medieval castle…

But the castle is full of more than cobwebs, and danger lurks in unexpected places. And only time will tell if Montgomery and Pippa can overcome both to find their own happily every after . . .

Persephone Josephine Alexander comes from a very present-day "granola" family. Nicknamed Pippa and determined to dominate the world through her fairy-tale fashion; she loses not only her apartment, but also her collection of rare fabrics and expensive sewing machines due to a fire at the beginning of our tale. Her bad karma changes when she gets the opportunity to display her whimsical costumes and show off her portfolio at her sister's newly opened castle in England. One thing leads to another and suddenly Pippa, along with her psychotic older sister Cindi, find themselves within Sedgwick Castle in the year 1241. Besides being her sister's servant, dismissing fairy beliefs and missing hot showers after falling into the castle's cess pool (twice!), Pippa's discovered she has growing feelings for the Lord of the castle, Montgomery de Piaget. He seems to know more about her "time" situation then he lets on, but he's also the only one who helps Pippa adapt to her new home. When their worlds suddenly flip, both characters question which is best: following their hearts or following their dreams?

This was a cute read. Sadly, I'm not sure if it was the story itself or outside entities disrupting my reading process, but I found One Enchanted Evening lagged a bit. It went on a lot more into certain areas that I had no interest in going and that fact had me reading the book a lot longer than normal since I just could not seem to keep up with it for long periods of time. The quirkiness of the sisters and parents was odd to me when it was to be comical and I felt Pippa adjusted too quickly to her time-travel problem than would seem normal, but overall, it's a fun (and clean) historical read to keep by the bed at night.

Likes: I enjoyed flashing back and forth through time within the same places and seeing the changes over the years, be it structure wise within the castles or noticing who within the de Piaget family we'd run into next.

Dislikes: I kept hoping for some hot-steamy scenes to pop up and get me really engrossed into the story, but no . . . only some kissing and nothing more. I think I need a little bit more "romantic involvement" between the characters to keep my stories spicy and interesting.

Rating:

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