Unclaimed

(3.5 stars, rounding up.) Didn't like this as much as I expected to, though I did still enjoy it. If “male virgin seduced by courtesan-in-disguise” is a common romance trope, it's one I haven't encountered before, and I did enjoy it. The plot got a little repetitive in the first half and I had a hard time keeping interest, but the author did a good job conveying the chemistry between the two leads. The book picked up for me in the second half, and I think it's because that's when other characters finally showed up - I'm not a huge fan of “let's have everyone from book one in a series show up in book two” or anything, but both the leads were really isolated in this book (for Plot Reasons, of course). I understand why they were but it did make for somewhat monotonous reading, since they were both in their own heads a lot. By the end, though, I really did enjoy this book, I just wish the trip to get there had been a little better paced.

(Review originally posted at Fictionally Inclined.)I first heard about this book when it was the pick for the Sizzling Book Club at Smart Bitches, Trashy Books. I made a note that I wanted to read it because I was interested in the premise (and, of course, the lovely cover). However, I did not get around to it until a few months later. I decided to read the series in order, starting with [b:Unveiled 8663392 Unveiled (Turner, #1) Courtney Milan http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1289749528s/8663392.jpg 13534887], which I already reviewed here. I enjoyed Unveiled, but I found to my slight dismay that the most interesting character was only a lowly brother of the hero, and, as a grown male virgin, would probably never have a book of his own. Then, lo and behold, I looked at the summary for Unclaimed again...and proceeded to do such a flail!dance as you have never seen before. Let me reiterate this. Sir Mark Turner is a fully grown man. And a virgin. By choice. I have never read a historical romance (or of any subgenre, actually) where this was the case. I was immediately fascinated by Mark and his choices, his reasoning, and the public's reaction to him and his book. Having never read a book where a courtesan (or former courtesan) was the heroine, I was also wondering how it would be handled. Milan did a fantastic job with them both. I felt the book lost a little of its magic for the last quarter or so, but it was still thoroughly enjoyable.One of my favorite things in this book was the emphasis on honesty, particularly in regards to Mark. It made for some tremendous interactions, particularly in the beginning of the book when Mark and Jessica were getting to know each other.❝It's what I like best about you – your willingness to insult me to my face.❞Oh! And another of my favorite things. Upon inspection of the cover, you will find a large, not-particularly-aesthetically-pleasing ring on the hero's finger. I noticed this when I first picked up the book, thought it a bit odd, but did not dwell on it. But get this: the ring actually exists! In the book! Far from the famous use of the flawless cover!hero to represent the horribly scarred story!hero, the cover for this book actually matches the story. I may be unreasonably excited about this, but I really think it warrants mention. I enjoyed Milan's writing style. She had fantastic inner narration for both Jessica and Mark, and their dialogue was sharp, honest, witty, and fraught with sexual tension. Unclaimed had some particularly great quotes, from hilarious to insightful to emotionally moving.❝No man with a moustache like that should ever try to look innocent.❞❝Oh, the subtlety of a randy teenager.❞❝I can't stop worrying just because someone assures me it's unnecessary.❞❝“You've always been your own knight,” he said, “riding to your rescue. I'm just the man who came along and saw how brightly your armor shown.”❞recovers from swooningCourtney Milan is quickly becoming one of my auto-buy (or at least auto-put-on-hold-at-the-library...I am a broke college student, after all) authors. Her writing is stellar, her characters truly original, and I like supporting her.