The Devil Earl
On Monday, I read The Devil Earl by Deborah Simmons. I was intrigued by the premise: Prudence Lancaster writes gothic novels and becomes inspired by the tall, dark, and handsome hero, Ravenscar, who is known as the Devil Earl. When his brother disappears, many people suspect that Ravenscar had something to do with his disappearance. Prudence doesn't believe this, and she embarks on a mission to save his reputation.
I enjoyed the first half of the book very much. This is the second of Simmons's books I read--the first was The Vicar's Daughter, which I would rate 4 out of 5. Simmons has a knack for bringing her characters to life, and I found that to be the case with The Devil Earl. About halfway through, however, the story loses steam. I was far more interested in the book when it focused on Prudence and Ravenscar and less interested when the mystery of his brother took center stage. In the end, I'd give The Devil Earl 3 out of 5.
Alyssa
Labels: 3.0 reviews, historical reviews, q-s reviews
posted by Alyssa @ 11:10 PM
3 Comments:
I had a similar experience with this one. I really enjoyed most of it, but it would have been much better if Simmons had just chopped the final 50 or so pages.
It sounds like we have similar responses in a number of cases. I have a number of other Deborah Simmons books; are there any you would recommend?
:)
Alyssa
Alyssa, I've read quite a few good ones of hers. The one I've liked best is The Last Rogue, which has a hero who's a bit of a dandy. Her medievals are also really good, they start with Taming the Wolf, but my favourite was the second one in the series, The de Burgh Bride.
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