The Perfect Lover

Rating:
Summary: lots of sexual scenes + murder in the library...
Review: "The Perfect Lover" turned out to be a rather interesting read -- once I had skimmed through all those pages that dealt with the ... antics of Simon and Portia, that is. Nothing against [explicit] scenes, but there is a limit to how many such scenes I want to plod through, and when these scenes didn't really advance the plot in any way (in my opinion) and actually begin to detract from my reading pleasure -- well then what's the point of having them? And a further word of warning: if you're a mystery buff, don't expect too much from the mystery subplot. While the murder of the flighty, malicious and naive young Kitty Glossup takes place in the middle of the book, discovering who the murderer is, esp since the murderer seems to have set his/her sights on Portia, still takes back-seat to the sexual situations between Portia and Simon.

On the whole, there weren't too many things that niggled about this novel. But one thing that really puzzled was how Simon and Portia were able to disappear for hours on end and no one remark on it. (And how it is that no one notices their crumpled clothing or mussed hair also beggared belief. Ms Laurens doesn't really go into this either. Perhaps that why Simon is the 'perfect lover' in that he's able to do all those things to Portia and for her to still remain in relatively neat and pristine condition?). Portia is even able to spend several nights in Simon's bed without any servant remarking on this, and any gossip making the rounds. If anyone's looking for the perfect country house to have a tryst, Glossup Hall is definitely the place to consider! (And am I the only one to think that Portia's and Simon's sneaking around to [make love] while a murderer is stalking her odd?

The other thing that niggled was Portia's incredibly modern attitude about having an illegitimate child. About halfway through the book, while she's pondering whether or not to surrender her virginity to Simon, she suddenly decides that the whole concept about an unmarried woman being a virgin was an outdated thing and that having a child out of wedlock would not be a problem because she came from a loving and supportive family that would not turn their backs on her. And anyway who cares what Society thinks? Not she! The fact that the unfortunate child would face taunts and some ostracism at school and later on in life never even crosses the silly twit's mind. To clarify: there's nothing wrong about Portia's attitude if this were a modern day romance novel, but in 1830? No matter how forward thinking, no sensitive woman would have wanted to burden any child with the stigma of illegitimacy.

On the whole, though, except for these two issues, I rather enjoyed "The Perfect Lover." Stephanie Laurens did a rather good job of melding together the murder at a country house subplot with that of a sensual ... romp. I also liked the little character sketches she provided in the first chapter of all the guests at the house party, as well as how she managed to imbue the novel with an atmosphere of impending doom and disaster. Also nicely done was how Ms Laurens explored the whole issue of marriage, what it entails and means, by juxtaposing the unhappily married Kitty Glossup's antics with Portia's serious ruminations. I even enjoyed the pairing of Simon and Portia and rather wished that Ms Laurens had spent more time exploring their friendship and blossoming love instead of concentrating on bedroom gymnastics. I also rather wished that she had spent a little more time dwelling on how and why Kitty had ended the way she had, and in fleshing out a couple more characters, like Winifred Archer (Kitty's elder sister), (more esp) Drusilla Calvin, a mousy and frumpy spinster who seems to have little or no interest in any of the eligible men at the house party, and the Bow Street investigator, Stokes.

Given that I don't generally expect much from a Cynster novel, "The Perfect Lover" was a pleasant surprise. However, I do think that this is a novel that fans of the Cynsters will enjoy more fully, as I was definitely left with the feeling that while this was a pleasant enough read, the novel could have been so much more if certain aspects, characters and the murder subplot had been more developed.

Rating:
Summary: a fairly good read
Review: After reading On a Wild Night & On a Wicked Dawn, i was afraid that Stephanie Laurens had got so tired of her own Cynster series that she would just throw in anything with Cynster in it for us to read,no matter how stupid and plotless. Thankfully, The Perfect Lover turned out to be a fairly decent read.
Though not as interesting and gripping as some previous Cynster books like Devil's Bride, The Perfect Lover is still able to hold my attention. The romance is sufficiently developed with likeable hero n heroine. The mystery is satisfying, or at least better than the slow-paced, dragging mysteries in some Cynster books,e.g A Rogue's Proposal.
I must say that i'm so very bored with that part about how a Cynster man is so overprotective, arrogant, domineering, afraid to love and the heroine is always some independent, willful female who will at first refuse to marry him. Oh please, after writing about 6 Cynster men with that same old traits, couldn't Laurens think of something more original? Those who are well aquainted with this series may find this story repetitous. New readers would probably enjoy it.
Nonetheless, this is a satisfactory final entry to the Bar Cynster series.

Rating:
Summary: Cynster Saga...
Review: All Cynster Stories are worth reading.They keep you glued to your chair and the excitement never ends as one turns each page.Definitely one of Stephanie Lauren's best.

Rating:
Summary: Same story, different names...
Review: As a fan of Stephanie Laurens and the Cynster family, I was happily anticipating this book. What a dissapointment! Simon and Portia's romance is, essentially, the same story that Laurens told in her last Cynster novel, ON A WICKED DAWN, except in a different setting, with a different cast of characters. I'm not sure why this last Cynster novel was published by William Morrow instead of Avon as the others were, but the switch in publishers didn't help. The editing of this hardback novel is terrible -- there are typos throughout and no one seems to have alerted the author to the fact that she repeats the same verbs over and over again to the point that they were distracting to me. I finally started to count how many times someone "hauled in a breath" or how many times Simon "prowled" behind Portia, but finally couldn't stand it any more. I can live with mediocre editing (maybe) if I pay a paperback price, but I expect more when I'm shelling out the money for a hardcover.

Stephanie Laurens is a very talented author and all I can think is that she must have either rushed the writing of this novel or just run out of steam with this last Cynster male. It's too bad really, since she had the opportunity to write a new kind of Cynster in Simon, a man who came of age during the end of the Regency period, and on the eve of the Victorian period.

I will read her new (coming in 2003) Bastion Club novel in hopes that, by leaving the Cynsters behind, she recaptures her old spark.

Rating:
Summary: The Perfect Lover
Review: As usual I am always pleased with Stephanie Laurens. I have the entire set of the Cynster novels and like the others this one is wonderful also. I read it in less than 2 days. It was so good I couldn't put it down. I will never part with any of the books and find myself reading them over and over again.

Rating:
Summary: Slow for Laurens
Review: Being a big fan of Stephanie Laurens, I was really looking forward to reading this book. However, this is one of her less-than-readable books. Although well-written, the dialogue is completely lacking, and the never-ending, intellectual musings of the lead characters drags out a tale with no discernable plot. Overall, it just is not a very lively story, and if you are willing to skim over large parts where the characters are thinking way too much to get to the pretty decent sex parts, then you may enjoy this addition to the Cynster series.

Rating:
Summary: I wish I were Portia!
Review: For a number of years now Ms. Laurens has kept us enthralled and entertained with the stories of the Cynsters. Simon Cynster is no exception. I loved this book. It is very sad to think it's probably the last Cynster book. Of course the Bastion Club series looks really good, something about the Cynster family has kept us begging for the next installment. I would like to see Ms. Laurens write a book about the first Cynster, the original warrior and his ladylove. The story of Simon and Portia is simply the best of all the Cynster books. Being a Cynster, Simon had no problems recognizing Portia is his mate. Of course, convincing Portia that they are "Perfect Lover" is another thing. Read this book.

Rating:
Summary: The worst book I've read in a long time
Review: Generally, I am a fan of romance novels. I like the fact that 99.9% of the time there is a happy ending where the main characters live happily ever after. However, I like the space between the first page and the happily ever after to have some conflict, character development, and plot. This book contains none of these. As far as I can tell, the "story" is a excuse for the Author, whom I've read and enjoyed many times before, to illustrate how many different sexual acts she can describe in flowery detail. If you buy historical romances for the sex scenes buy this book. If not, don't bother.

Rating:
Summary: A personal favorite
Review: I am really surprised at the low rating this book has received. I have read most of SL's books and this is one of the few I have kept. Not that her others are bad, they are all really good stories, but this one hooked me right from the start and I only put it down when I had to (I even read it in the tub, and I've never done that before!). I liked the fact that Simon and Portia didn't dance around their attraction to one another. Rather, they chose to give into it in a controlled manner to see if a relationship between two strong-willed people would be possible. None of this "you compromised me so we have to get married" nonsense that shows up in so many historical novels. Rather, Portia chooses how much intimacy they will have, and honestly admits that marriage is not a guaranteed outcome. I envied her for having a handsome, intelligent man willing to satisfy her curiosity at her pace. That they fall in love despite their assumptions that they wouldn't may be predictable (romance novels do have happy endings), but the way this confusing turn of events affects the couple and makes them learn more about themselves is fascinating. And those other reviews that make the book sound like a nonstop sexathon are ridiculous. They don't make love until halfway through the story, which is pretty late for many romance novels, and while there are several very steamy love scenes that follow, they all serve to clarify or deepen some aspect of the relationship. SL writes these moments as erotic and tender, not just the "position of the day". I'm very glad I trusted my history with this author more than the lopsided reviews here, or I might have missed out on of the best stories I have ever read.

Rating:
Summary: Here's to the Cynsters
Review: I enjoyed reading about Simon and how he's grown into a true Cynster. But I was a little disappointed in that none of the other Cynsters were really in the book. I always like hearing about them. But I will definitely keep buying her books and I'm looking forward to the Bastion Club series.