I just finished reading Eloisa James' latest. Oops, second-to-latest at this stage, I realize, as the sequel has come out a few weeks ago. This is evidence that my TBR pile is, as usual, way too big.
The treatment of the courtship of Roberta and the Earl (oh, dear, I have forgotten his name already! my fault--not the author's) is a bit superficial compared to other romances, but this is a compromise I'm willing to live with. As a reader, I get the bonus of being able to watch the relationship between Jemma, the Duke of Beaumont (and Jemma's husband) and the Duke of Villiers (the rival for her affections) unfold. I love that their story is told through the lens of a seried of chess games. In the process, Queen Eloisa has made me her devoted pawn. Here's hoping that love triangle can be sustained through the remaining books.
I need to think a bit further on how she puts the story arcs together. Her focus is more on relationships than a mystery plot, like my idea, but I'm wondering if I need to think the interconnectness of my books. I have been shooting for something more along the lines of what Brockway did in her last historical series, but I think James is really onto something here--something that is going to interest readers a lot more than a who-dunnit.
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