Wait Until Midnight (2004)

This is the last of the romance books that I agreed to read for a friend's blog activity, and, in my opinion the best of the five. I quite enjoyed this one!

Right from the start, we're thrown into the middle of a scene of a crime, with a murdered woman and a mysterious man searching her house. An exciting beginning which only continued throughout the story...

I loved the characters in this story, and found them all to be believable and real. Adam Hardesty is the kind of man that women swoon over. Tall, dark and handsome, rich, but secretive and determined, we don't really know anything about him -- except that which he allows us to find out. But the more we learn about him, the more we likie.

Caroline Fordyce is a sensational serial novelist living with her aunt and her aunt's companion, independently supporting herself through her writing. When she is drawn into the investigation of the murder by having been with the victim, a noted psychic medium, the previous evening as part of a seance, things really begin to get serious. Caroline is a wonderful character. She's spirited and independent and resourceful and honest, and what's best about this character is that she embodies these traits, we're not just told of them, as with other romance novels I've read this month. She shows her initiative and her intelligence, so it is believable when others see these features.

I was pleasantly surprised by the mystery as well. I was a bit concerned that this would be a paranormal romance when I discovered that it was about mediums and psychic abilities, but it is a straightforward historical romance set in Victorian England. At times, it did feel a little bit modern in the speech, and on the other hand the term "psychical" was used quite a lot, but it's easy to overlook those small details and just enjoy the story and let the twists and turns and unpredictable shifts go where they will. I didn't guess the killer, and that is always a plus!

The romance here was much more understated than the other novels I've read this month. The sex scenes were believable and fun, but they were not the main focus of the story. And miracle of miracles, this book contains a realistic deflowering! Hallelujah! No "Broken Hymen, Hear Me Roar!" here, Caroline reacts with honest pain and confusion and tries to undo the decision to proceed, at least until the pain goes away... but then she makes him go slowly... Piston-like ramming forbidden.

I think Dangerous Tides almost ruined romance for me forever... but this book redeemed the genre. Hopefully the other Amanda Quick novel I have is as good. ;) ( )

This is one of those books that isn't terribly stretching on an intellectual plane and you have a pretty fair idea of what's going to happen almost as soon as the main protagonists are introduced. But, you know what, it's still just a good fun read.
It's a murder mystery mixed with romance, which is rather fun. The main protagonosts are Adam, who was born on the poor side of town, but is now an accepted member of the social elite and Caroline, who writes serialised sensational novels for a newspaper as Mrs Fordyce, but has, in fact, invented the late Mr Fordyce in order to cover a scandal in her past.
The murder is of a spirit medium and is muddled up with an attempt to blackmail Adam and his family with their past. So there's lots of tosh & poppycock about psychic abilities and the spirit world. It's all a bit shady and underhand and there are some pretty dodgy characters populating the mystery side of the story.
the romantic side of the story is not terribly intrusive (certainly some of her other, purer romances run at a higher temperature than this one does) and they sort of move the story on.
It's a fun trip, fairly quick read in which you know the ending will be a happy one, you're just not entirely sure of the route that they're going to take to arrive at the happy ending. That's part of the feeling of security, you know any tension will be resolved eventually. So it's a slightly guilty, candyfloss four stars. ( )

Gentle Reader,

It could have been a scene from one of my novels. As a rule, respectable ladies do not accept calls from Mysterious Gentlemen on business of the most grave importance--but I confess that I was possessed of a lively curiosity. The past three years had been so determinedly dull, I hoped Mr. Adam Hardesty would offer a tiny respite from it. Indeed, upon first glance, Mr. Hardesty had such a formidable, thrilling presence, he quickly became the model for the villain in the sensation novel I was currently writing.

Imagine my shock and distress then, when Mr. Hardesty accused me of being party to a plot of murder, blackmail, and general villainy! I knew nothing of such occurrences, and pro-claimed my innocence. Unfortunately, Mr. Hardesty left unconvinced, and I had an uneasy feeling over what his search would uncover. You see, Gentle Reader, though I live a most uneventful life now, my past contained a Great Scandal that would be ruinous if resurrected. To protect my secrets from Mr. Hardesty's investigation, I concluded that I would need to conduct an inquiry of my own, and if that meant sharing my findings with Mr. Hardesty, so be it. And my course of action had nothing whatsoever to do with the illicit, passionate feelings that he aroused in me--feelings that propriety would definitely frown upon...

Yours most sincerely,
Caroline Fordyce ( )

Sensation novelist “Mrs.” Caroline Fordyce becomes entangled with Adam Hardesty, who is investigating the murder of a medium just hours after Caroline attended a séance at her home. Both have secrets to hide but are quickly drawn to each other. Nothing stands in their way except a few of the raving lunatics that people Quick’s works. Entertaining enough, but not one of her bests, either in terms of plotting or heat. ( )

The lead female is a writer of serialized "sensational" novels. If this was a sensational, it would be The Mysterious Murders of the Mediums. ( )