A Little Bit Wicked

Full Review here: http://www.icewarmth.com/2011/06/book-review-little-bit-wicked-by.html ( )

A Little Bit Wicked is book 1 in Victoria Alexander's "Last Man Standing" series. These 4 guys make a little bet about who will be the last one to get married, although it isn't REALLY a big deal--they're just 4 friends and whoever wins only gets 4 shillings and a bottle of cognac, or some such.

Anyway, so this book is about Gideon Pearsall, Viscount Warton, who we find out in the prologue has been married before and is QUITE cynical about love and marriage and all that--he has ZERO intention of EVER falling in love again, though he knows he'll have to get married and beget an heir and all that... but he's just cynical.

So, then there's Judith, Lady Chester, who is a widow (of Lucian, Baron Chester, so she's a Baroness)... and basically Judith and Gideon met eyes across the room at a party and felt a spark. So, since Judith is a widow, and widows can do whatever they want, they strike up a little arrangement. They become lovers (without the love)... and each end up falling for the other.

But both of them have CRAP that happened to them in their pasts that they aren't having such an easy time letting go of... I thought I really understood what was going on with each of them--and I think you kinda DO get his side of the story fairly early on, but her side... you only know about half of it until about 50 pages from the end. So I was like, "Ummm... get over it already, Judith!" But then I got to the explanation of what was REALLY going on in her head.... HOLY COW...

I cried. I haven't cried during a book in a while. Not since Eclipse, I think. Holy cow, Eclipse... but this book was just so good. Very cathartic at the end. It was quite surprising for a romance novel!

So, my first Victoria Alexander book was really good! I'd give this book 4 1/2 stars if I could! :) ( )

I finally read a historical romance...and surprisingly enough, saw a lot of similarities to my own plot! Now if only I could find the success that Victoria Alexander's achieved...I was hesitant to start this book - I'm not a big Shakespeare fan, mostly due to the language, and wasn't sure if I'd have the same problem with this genre. Luckily, the language wasn't that archaic, and was actually very easy to read.Strong characters (including a fairly feminist heroine), some aristocratic conniving, and enough physical description (but not too much) made for a very enjoyable read. The emphasis was on the emotional past and growth of the characters; there wasn't a murder to move the plot, but there was flashbacks to a less than gentle history of past marriages, so I guess there was a mild criminal element to the story.I would probably read another in this genre - at least in this setting of old England. I don't know it I'm ready for the plethora of Scottish historicals yet, but I enjoyed this book much more than I anticipated.As an aside: I heard Victoria Alexander speak at RWA last year; she was the keynote speaker. She is an funny, down to earth woman who had us all in stitches as she described her experience becoming a popular romance novelist. If you ever get the chance to hear her speak, take it! ( )

Another good book by Victoria Alexander. Not quite as funny as some, a little more subdued. But good characters and an interesting plot. Made me cry at the end (always a good sign). Nice book. ( )

I loved this book. Julia and Gideon are both both people you would want to know, honest, loyal, and in Julia's case, a bit damaged. Her past makes her sympathetic and the emotional nature of the story makes this one a real page turner. ( )