Review: It Happened One Night Anthology.

It Happened One Night . . . and nothing was ever the same again!

Once upon a time, four superstar storytellers—New York Times bestselling authors Stephanie Laurens and Mary Balogh, along with Jacquie D’Alessandro and Candice Hern—came up with a delicious idea. What if they each wrote a story about a proper young lady stranded at a remote inn away from society’s constraints? What would happen? And how long would it take for her to give in to desire?

In these four amazing tales, four heroines will come face-to-face with the men who got away . . . only to discover that, instead of anger, there is still a passionate connection that cannot be denied. And while each of their lives is quite different, and their pasts utterly unique, they will all make a common discovery—that one night can change everything . . . forever.

This is the book that I featured on a Book Watch a couple of weeks ago and it’s finally out and I’m finally going to review it. It’s a pretty nifty little book idea too. You see, four different authors, one storyline and what happens when you set them free. Will they write the same story or will they all have completely stories?

This is that book. The joy of anthologies is that they’re filled with short stories that are quick but fulfilling. I’ve got to be in the mood to read them but if I like the authors, I will definitely try them out.

I’m so glad that I tried this one out because I really enjoyed it.

The Fall of Rogue Gerrard by Stephanie Laurens.

Hero: Robert “Rogue” Gerrard
Heroine: Lydia Makepeace
Grade: 4.5 out of 5

Robert Gerrard is London’s most notorious rake. But he once did everything in his power to protect Lydia Makepeace, igniting a yearning that persists to the day they are trapped alone at an inn. Fueled by desire, Lydia is determined to finally have Robert for her own and delight in The Fall of Rogue Gerrard.

I thought this book was pretty good. It was short but I didn’t feel that it was at all rushed and though I enjoyed the hero (slutty hero tramp that I am) the heroine didn’t do much for me. I thought her whole retrieving of the letter thing was kinda lame but it worked to bring her and Ro back together again so I can’t complain all that much. I enjoyed the scenes between Ro and Lydia and that first time together on the lounge in the guy’s office was pretty wicked. I was rootin’ them on. All in all, this was a cute story.

Spellbound by Mary Balogh

Hero: Richard Kemp
Heroine: Nora Ryder
Grade: 4.25 out of 5

Bound for London. Nora Ryder might have died in the terrible stagecoach accident were it not for the man who risked his life to save her. He is Richard Kemp, Lord Bourne, her husband–and she had no idea his ardor could still hold her.

What a cute little story this was. Nora and Richard have some history together and they meet up 10 years later when he crashes into the stagecoach that she was supposed to be on. It’s a cute story seeing them meet up again after all these years and then watching them fall in love all over again, fiercely and sweetly all in one day. I really enjoyed getting to know these two characters and I really enjoyed their happy ending, too cute.

Only You by Jacquie D’Alessandro

Hero: Ethan Baxter
Heroine: Cassandra Heywood
Grade: 4.75 out of 5

Cassandra Heywood and Ethan Baxter were once cherished childhood friends. Now, after ten long years apart, Ethan is determined to win Cassandra for his own. But Cassandra has her own ideas.

I’ve never read any books by Jacquie D’Alessandro but I know that Izzy is a fan of hers and now I know why. I’m going to try more JD books because I really enjoyed this book. It was a straight up historical romance with much to cover in a short space and yet I loved the heck out of this short story. It was my favorite book of all of the stories and I really enjoyed the interactions between Ethan and Cassie. Right from the first “Will he be at the inn?” I was excited and anxious to get to the parts where Ethan and Cassie would be together and it was such a cute, fast and very fun read. I loved that they were honest with each other and you could totally tell that they really did indeed love each other.

I really recommend this read, very good!

From This Moment On by Candice Hern

Hero: Samuel Pellow
Heroine: Wilhemina Grant
Grade: 4 out of 5

He left her to defend His Majesty’s honor. But Captain Sam Pellow never stopped fantasizing about Wilhelmina, Duchess of Hertford–and nothing she has said or done will keep him from her bed.

This was the last of the stories in this book and I enjoyed it. I thought it was cute to see Sam and Willie meet again after all these years, after living colorful lives and to see them reconnect was great. I thought Ms. Hern did a wonderful job of painting a story that was easy to follow and my only gripe was that I wish Sam would have wanted to stay with Willie because he finally had a chance to make things right after all these years, instead he stayed behind because his wheel broke. It would have been nice to see Sam throw caution to the wind and fight to be with Willie again and I know that he did this at the end but I was already peeved that he didn’t do it in the beginning that it kind of lost it’s thunder. As a whole though, it was a good story. A story that got better as the pages were turned. It was really slow to start for me at first but once it picked up, I was able to stay in the story and enjoy it.

As an entire book, this was an enjoyable read. A quick, fun and easy weekend read. I enjoyed the concept of this book, I enjoyed seeing everyone’s take on the same storyline and I thought it was well done.

This book is available from Avon. You can buy it here or here in e-format.

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