Genre / Themes: Romance / Theatre actors / British

Author's links: Website / Twitter / Goodreads
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My rating: 4 Stars

Review 

This is the third book in the In Focus series and I have to say that it's been a hit or miss for me so far. I thought the first book was Ok, loved the second and have mixed feelings about this one again.

Starting with the good. I generally like how Ms Erickson creates her young characters - confused, sometimes lacking confidence and experience, just normal young people figuring their lives out. They make mistakes, they do impulsive and often stupid things but ultimately it's a learning curve and they get the HEA/HFN that is just the right one for them. 

Reading the blurb for this for I was excited to meet Quinn and R. J. but even though I enjoyed some elements in their story in the end it failed to grab me and win me over.

Though I generally liked both main characters I also had a lot of issues with them and their story. The setting didn't quite work for me. A reality show coupled with a spring break on cruise read too much like stereotypical NA which I don't particularly like. It make things distant for me and I couldn't really connect with the characters in the way  I wanted to.

While I like and appreciate the intricacies of both characters (J. R. being bi, yet inexperienced with guys), Quinn in all his adorable gingerness, I still felt their romance rushed and unrealistic. I very much liked how Ms Erickson's presented the issue of bi-erasure and the process of exploring being bi which I have to admit unfortunately is not very common in contemporary mm romance, still there was something lacking for me. The characters felt superficial to me and I wished their issues were explored in more depth. 

I think this story was the case of good intentions (and positive messages) which somehow failed to deliver to their fullest potential. At least, that's is how I read it. If you have read and enjoyed the previous books in the series, you might want to give this one a try and it could turn out to work much better for you. 

Purchase links: Amazon US / Amazon UK / B&N / iTunes

This is the second book in the Paris Hearts series which feature women chefs. Similar to the first book here our heroine also falls for a military-type guy but unlike previous books by Ms Florand, here things between them were both more suspenseful and more hilarious. 

I really like Ms Florand's writing, it's always sensual, very emotional, focused a lot on the inner world of the characters and their difficulties in communicating/expressing their innermost desires and fears. This story was no exception and while Violette was more or less a typical Florand heroine (she reminded me of her heroes, actually - feisty and determined, focused on her profession, yet fragile and uncertain her personal life), Chase was totally different from her chef heroes. There is light-heartedness (at least on the outside) to him, a sense of easy-going and good humour which was a nice change from her more angsty, introverted heroes before. He has issues of his own, finding a place for personal life, settling down after years in the military and still doing undercover work was not easy for him but it was something he desperately wanted. 

Vi was fabulous, I had so much fun reading her. We rarely see a strong independent heroine who still remains such after she falls in love. The chemistry between Vi and Chase was strong but neither of them was good at being with someone, at sharing happiness and sorrow. Being part of a couple was not their usual place but they had strong feelings for each other and tried their best to make things work. And the did, in the end, after more than the usual turmoil.

There is a strong suspense element in their story, partly because of Chase's profession, partly as a reflection of the current events in the real world - the overwhelming sense of uncertainly and lack of safety. 

I felt the pace a bit uneven - at times the characters spent too much time talking/discussing things rather than acting them out and then there was a fast action-packed sequence but overall this is just a minor quibble.

I loved the easy banter between Vi and Chase, the sense of fun and good times despite the dangers in the outside world. I felt very strongly present in this story the message the French people send to the world after the terrorist attacks in Paris - we are not giving up on life, love, good times because of you. We are not afraid. And I very much liked how this was incorporated in the story.

In short, Chase Me is different than your usual Laura Florand romance but it is also the same - intense, beautifully written with well-developed unique characters and passionate romance. And of course, there is all the love for cooking and eating and entertaining. A recommended read!

A Gentleman's Position is the final book in an amazing queer historical series, Society of Gentlemen. It brings a hard won and well deserved happiness to Lord Richard (the protector and father figure of the Richardians) with his trusted valet, David Cyprian. It's a passionate tale of love, lust, class and obligation but above all for me it is a story of determining one's identity, of growing and changing, becoming a better person for yourself and for the people you love and care about.

This series made convinced that Ms Charles is a true master of the historical romance. Her stories are vivid and detailed, carrying a strong sense of the Regency athmopshere in all its complexity - political and social unrest which further add to the difficulties the characters have to surmount on their way to happiness.

Lord Richard had a lot of learning to do and some atonement for his past mistakes and boy, did he keep on making mistakes even when he had the best intentions. I found his journey fascinating and oh, so real. Taking a hard look of who you are and finding out that you are not in fact the person you thought you were and you don't to want to be that person any more takes a lot of courage and is not easy to deal with. His mistakes, though painful to his friends and loved ones, were avoidable, they were part of his growth and untimatelt he managed to rise above them and be the man he wanted to be. 

David Cyprian, on the other had, was just as amazing as we came to expect him to be from his appearance in the previous books. He seemed so in control, so sure of himself and tiny glimpses of slef-doubt and insecurity made him feel human and easier to relate to. He was not perfect, noone really is, but we saw how much effort and thought he put into being the best he could be. 

The romance appeared totally impossible, both were stuck in their respective positions and there was no way to make things between them work on a personal level, yet their love for each other proved stronger than prejudice and fear and stifling norms and the petty morality of the times.

I really, really like the depth and sympathy with which Ms Charles explores issues of identity and the clash of the political with the personal. We saw it in the previous books, most noticeably in A Seditious Affair, and it was also present here. The problems Richard and David and rest of the their group face were real, life-threatening and Ms Charles never cheapened them or made their solution trivial or too easy. It didn't work like that at the time, and the the historical accuracy of her stories made them stand out.

A strong place in this story was taken by the issues of consent and abuse of power, what marriage/relationship in Regency England could/should be.

I also very much loved and appreciated the supporting characters in this story - Richard's brother and his wife, David's mother and her husband. Ms Charles creates a truly diverse world representative of the times and this makes the characters and their roamnce feel even more real.

Speaking of the series as a whole, I think Ms Charles has done a remarkable job with them. The stories are interwoven, complex and engaging. Her writing is superb and her attention to detail makes all the difference when reading a historical romance. The characters in the series are deliciously imperfect, real people of different walks of life, facing harsh choices and decisions and really struggling to find happiness and love at a time when this could easily mean the death sentence for two men in love with each other.

I haven't read much historical romances and even less queer ones, but this is definitely the best I have read and can't recommend it enough.

My reviews of the previous books in the series:
A Fashionable Indulgence - 5 Stars
A Seditious Affair - 5 Stars