[December 2016] I recently had a birthday, and my kind relatives treated me to Amazon gift cards. Naturally, I rushed to the Amazon Kindle store to buy as many books as I could with their largesse. Since I’m rereading Georgette Heyer at the moment, I thought it would be an interesting contrast to try something more recent for comparison. My tastes just now running to traditional rather than bodice-ripper, I searched particularly for that style, although it was difficult to find them – they tend to be well-buried amongst all those covers with flowing skirts and off-the-shoulder numbers. But here’s what I came up with, in three categories (prices in £ alongside):
1) Older books (pre-2001):
- The Nomad Harp: Laura Matthews 2.67 1980 4*
- The Mysterious Heir: Edith Layton 3.85 1984 4*
- Brighton Road: Susan Carroll 2.20 1988 5*
- The Rake: Mary Jo Putney 4.02 1989 4*
- Cousin Cecilia: Joan Smith 2.99 1990 4*
- Lord of Scoundrels: Loretta Chase 3.99 1995 4*
- Reforming Lord Ragsdale: Carla Kelly 2.49 1995 4*
- One Night For Love: Mary Balogh 4.99 1999 5*
- A Summer To Remember: Mary Balogh 5.99 2002 5*
- The Viscount Who Loved Me: Julia Quinn 3.33 2000 [Abandoned; I can’t read a Regency where the heroine talks about being in a snit (first recorded use: 1939)]
2) More recent (2001-2012):
- The Silent Governess: Julie Klassen 3.69 2010 3*
- The Kiss Of A Stranger: Sarah M Eden 1.09 2011 [Not read yet]
- Edenbrooke: Julianne Donaldson 8.59 2012 4*
3) The latest thing – the three bestsellers in the US on the day I looked:
- The Duke’s Everburning Passion: Charlotte Stone 0.99 [Not read; the author has been banned from Amazon]
- You’re The Rogue That I Want: Samantha Holt 3.27 3*
- Gaining the Gentleman: Eleanor Meyers 0.99 DNF [The author has been banned from Amazon]
My reviews are my own very opinionated opinion, but it’s clear that my tastes align better with older Regencies than with more recent books.