Title: Coliseum Square
Series: N/A
Author: Lynn Lorenz
Genre: Historical Romance
Length: Novella
Publisher: Amber Allure (July 21st, 2013)
Heat Level: Explicit
Heart Rating: ♥♥♥2.5 Hearts
Reviewer: Thommie
Blurb: When Mark Madison accepts a position as tutor in New Orleans, he does so to run away from his past. Yet he never once believed the house on Coliseum Square would actually hold the key to his future.
Royal DuCote, the wealthy owner of the house and father to a son named Luc, is dark, sexy, and haunted. Ever since the death of his wife and Luc’s mother, nothing has been the same. Luc refuses to speak or let Royal near him, and putting Luc in school is out of the question, so he hires a tutor for his son. But when he meets Mark Madison, he’s instantly attracted to the younger man.
As tensions build between Mark and Royal, Luc’s affliction becomes a mystery Mark wants to solve. But will what Mark discovers destroy all that is left of the DuCote family?
Product Link: http://www.amberquill.com/AmberAllure/ColiseumSquare.html
Review: I am known to love the 19th century historicals. There is something about that time that awakens the romantic in me. The speech itself feels too romantic and alluring for me to stay away.
In this novella, that feeling along with the foreboding of being a homosexual and the desperation it all brought, was right there as it began. It easily draw you into the book, when Mark runs from his past life in fear, constantly thinking that impending death or jail awaits him in every corner. The paranoia when one knows he’s an outlaw and could easily lose everything is quite obvious from Mark’s thoughts and actions.
But, then Mark makes a new life, under a new name as a tutor for Royal DuCote’s son in New Orleans. The romance should start bright and shiny, but that wasn’t the case. While the book starts with Mark making up his mind to forever hide his sexuality out of fear, it quickly turns into love-at-first-sight and a reckless behavior from both Master and employer. The romantic speech I so loved was lacking during their dialogues and even more so during their intercourse. The relationship between Mark and his charge was a fast built up that didn’t come to terms with the boy’s disposition, creating quite the oxymoron feel about it. The time space as well was so fast, that any meaningful action/reaction lost its credibility. What could have been a great read was in fact a lukewarm one that disappointed me in its execution.
If you don’t mind the details and the lack of authenticity about this book, I think it’s a nice read. The pair quite hot and sexy and the end inspire an “awww” out of you with its HEA. But, if you are that era lover like me then it’ll probably disappoint the heck out of, too.