I can’t remember why I bought Heather Cullman’s For All Eternity. I’m sure I read a review somewhere, but I can’t remember where. However I heard about the book, it’s been languishing on the TBR shelves for a while, so I decided to give it a try.

Sophie Barrington had fallen from the glittering heaven of the haut ton to the hell of servitude. Once a diamond of the first water about to marry the most eligible bachelor of the Season, she had been ruined by one foolish, innocent escapade. And since her guardian had squandered her fortune and run off to America, she was worse than ruined. She was penniless. Now, it was pure desperation that drove her to accept a position as a maid at a country estate . . .

But it was fate that made it the home of the Marquess of Beresford. Here a man’s awesome power and sensuality would make her tremble. Here this domineering lord would unmask the deep emotions beneath the foolish manners that had made her fashion’s darling. And he—who had been a woman’s fool once and swore never to be again—would find he could have his revent. Or he could embrace a lady who swept away his pride to open the doors of all-consuming love . . .

If I had to pick one word to describe For All Eternity, that word would be sweet. Not in an inspirational novel kind of way, but amiable and good natured. The story is charming, the characters agreeable, the heroine naïve and sweet. In fact, seeing Sophie grow from a spoiled 17-year-old into a mature (yet still sweet) young woman is one of the books strengths. Nicholas, the hero of this story, is certainly Sophie’s match. He’s noble and devoted. Think of a male word for sweet. (Let’s go with obliging.)

Despite the book’s pleasantness, the relationship between Nicholas and Sophie progresses a bit too quickly. One minute they despise each other—the next, admiration and interest have blossomed. A slower process would have made this more believable. Also coming in on the not-quite-believable side is the response of the families to the match.

For All Eternity is enjoyable enough: 3 out of 5, a rating that is nice if not sweet.

I need help.

I won’t be able to make it to the conference this year, but I cancelled my room too late. They say I will have to pay for the entire stay if the room isn’t rebooked. My reservation is at the Woodley Park Guest House on 2647 Woodley Road. It’s right next to the conference hotel.

It’s a single room with a shared bath for $140 a night, plus 14.5% DC room tax. My reservation is from July 14 through July 21 (I was planning to stay and do a little sightseeing). If anyone wants the room even for part of that time, PLEASE let me know. It’s a great deal for someone, and it would really help me out.

Thanks! You can also e-mail me at romancebooklvr @ gmail.com (delete the spaces).

Feel free to forward this to other groups and/or blogs.

Amongst the hundreds of my TBR books are books I’ve been saving because I don’t want to have read all the books by (fill in the blank) author. Since I’ve been in a reading slump, I decided to pick up one of these books—Identity: Unknown by Suzanne Brockmann.

What He Remembered
His clothing size

What He Didn’t Remember
Everything else.

Navy SEAL Mitchell Shaw woke up one morning with no clue as to who he was. And the items hidden in his possession were no help—an address, along with a .22 caliber side arm. The address led him to the Lazy 8 Ranch—and its beautiful manager, Becca Keyes, who made him believe he might have a future. Even if he wasn’t sure about his past.

The gun was another story altogether . . .

I’ve saved a few of Brockmann’s Team Ten series so I could enjoy them later. It was the perfect choice to help me out of my slump. I love a good amnesia story, and this was one was very good. The reason for Mitch’s amnesia was believable, and his feeling of disorientation was well depicted.

Mitch is one of the more aloof men in this series. Losing his memory makes him reach out to someone in a way he wouldn’t have done otherwise.

Identity: Unknown offers a nice romance, a compact story, and the right balance of suspense: 4 out of 5. Just the kind of book I needed.

. . . at Romancing the Blog today. You can read my column here.