HOW TO TAME A MODERN ROGUE

Author: Diana Holquist ISBN: 9780446197052 8/2009 CONTEMPORARY Publisher: GRAND CENTRAL

Commitment-phobic Sam Carson has only dated model-gorgeous women. But one stolen kiss from a plain-Jane schoolteacher and he's hell-bent on stripping away her floral dresses and teaching her the art of being bad. If only her good-girl ways didn't make him want to be a better man... Ally Giordano is at the end of her rope. Her beloved grandmother actually believes that she's living in her favorite romance novel in Regency England and Ally doesn't have the heart to set her straight. But now Granny Donny's last wish is for a retreat to the country and Ally can't refuse her...until she demands that Sam accompany them. And though his smiles turn her knees into jelly, Ally knows better than to trust a playboy...and she definitely knows better than to try to change one. Or does she

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

Commitment-phobic Sam Carson has only dated model-gorgeous women. But one stolen kiss from a plain-Jane schoolteacher, and he's hell-bent on stripping away her floral dresses and teaching her the art of being bad. If only her good-girl ways didn't make him want to be a better man...

Ally Giordano is at the end of her rope. Her beloved grandmother actually believes that she's living in her favorite romance novel in Regency England, and Ally doesn't have the heart to set her straight. But now Granny Donny's last wish is for a retreat to the country and Ally can't refuse her...until she demands that Sam accompany them. And though his smiles turn her knees into jelly, Ally knows better than to trust a playboy...and she definitely knows better than to try to change one. Or does she?

What I like most about Diana Holquist’s books is her ability to craft a contemporary romance using non-contemporary elements. Her One True Love series was based on the premise that a trio of sisters had magical powers. Fantastical? Yes, but the books read as straight contemporary romances. Here, the setup is based on the fact that Ally’s grandmother believes she (and everyone around her) are characters out of her favorite Regency-era romance novel. While I found it a little hard to suspend my own disbelief at times, I appreciated the novelty of the plot device. I also liked that Ally was willing to do anything to humor her grandmother’s delusions. While I didn’t mind that the grandmother believed she was living in Regency England, and Ally and everyone around her catered to that belief, I did wish that a better, more plausible reason had been given for the onset of this delusion. It seemed as though Holquist made Granny mad until it was no longer necessary for her to be crazy, at which time she woke up and wasn’t crazy anymore. That being said, however, I really enjoyed the dynamic between Sam and Ally and I liked that they had a lot of the same issues holding them back. I thought they complimented each other nicely and I was rooting for them all the way.

Authors that can write good, believable contemporaries are far and few between, but I’m happy to report that Diana Holquist is among the few.

Jilian Vallade