Happy Thursday, Sue’s Book Report, ENJOY!
by sue on Nov.12, 2009, under Book Chat
Nine Rules to Break When Romancing A Rake
by, Sarah MacLean
HERO: Gabriel St John, The Marquess of Ralston
HEROINE: Lady Calpurnia Hartwell
STORYLINE: The story begins with the heroine, Callie, outside of the ballroom seeking fresh air in the labyrinth, thinking over her first season & what a disaster it has been. Our hero, Ralston, hears Callie approach & quickly curtails her path. They exchange in polite conversation before he slips away. Callie is intrigued by Ralston & quietly follows him only to find him engaged with another woman.
Eight years go by & Callie is thought of Ralston often. One may say she is pining for him. Once night after dinner her family is discussing her sisters betrothal ball & Callie starts to feel a little overwhelmed. Callie slips out of the room seeking her older brother to commiserate with. Callie expresses her frustration as having now been labeled as a spinster while not even having experienced anything! Callie then decides, it is time she experiences life & comes up with a list of rules for her to break:
1-KISS SOMEONE, PASSIONATELY
2-SMOKE CHEROOT & DRINK SCOTCH
3-RIDE ASTRIDE
4-FENCE
5-ATTEND A DUEL
6-FIRE A PISTOL
7-GAMBLE
8-DANCE EVERY DANCE AT A BALL
9-BE CONSIDERED BEAUTIFUL, JUST ONCE
After a few glasses of sherry & conversation with her brother, Callie sneaks out of the house & hires a hack to transport her to Ralston’s home where she intends on breaking a few rules. Callie realizes she may have imbibed a bit much & begins to second guess her decision as the butler escorts her to Ralston’s room — the butler assumes the Marquess has called for a lightskirt so he takes Callie post haste to Ralston’s chambers. There we find our hero playing the pinaforte, absorbed in his music. Ralston hears the butler approaching & assumes he has brought his mistress whom he’s been trying to break off with & explains to Nastasia that he is no longer interested, soon to find out it is not she but another woman, & so the story begins.
Up to this point, as a reader, I’ve enjoyed the authors voice & writing style, however, one key question sticks in my mind . . . why does the heroine wait 8 years for Ralston? As a modern woman, I’ll admit, I may have pined at one time, but not for 8 years! Good God! 3 months maybe & then have moved on. I realize in the 1800’s a woman is probably more apt to pine for a longer period of time, but to relate this story to today’s reader, isn’t 8 years a bit much?
Now, that was my first reaction - - - then I think, there is more to this story, right? I’m sure the author explains this obsession of Callie’s for the Marquess & it will be explained later on in the book, right?
So, now satisfied with this reasoning, I read on . . . .
Ralston recruits Callie to help him introduce his sister into society. Callie agrees to the arrangement, I mean, why not? This will bring her closer to Ralston & ultimately the opportunity she was waiting for (& let’s face it, the author needed a ploy to bring Callie & Ralston together & this works just as good as any — & basically, I love it!).
As the story continues, there is one point in the book where Callie is beginning to see, after many outings with Ralston & Juliana, that he is much different than she dreamed . . . this flesh & blood man has faults & attributes that she had not envisioned. Now that Callie knows more about Ralston, she is not sure what to think, however, the desire is there & that is what makes this debut a MUST BUY!
I have to share this funny line; don’t you always look for that one, memorable line? Callie had attempted to slap Ralston at the theater. Now at home with her maid discussing the evening, Anne comments to Callie, “I’m not sure, particularly considering the fact that you attempted to strike him in a public theater.” Callie says, “Exactly! There’s nothing cowardly about that!” Anne says, “Nothing ladylike about it either.” LOL – Love it!
About 60% thru the book, Callie has broken 2 rules & now has 7 more to go, so, she decides to fence at the local men’s club dressed as a man. Ironically, she is paired up with Ralston! Ralston soon discovers his fencing partner is not a man but Callie, as well as, finds her list of rules. Ralston worries that she will ruin her reputation which in turn will not help Juliana’s entrance into society one bit, so what can a rake do? Ralston offers to accompany Callie to execute her rule breaking escapades.
Hopefully, I’ve intrigued you while not giving away too much of the story. Mark your calendar’s for March 30th 2010 & pick up your copy of Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake at your local Borders store or preorder it now!
The ending is awesome. . not only will you find out how breaking the rules brings Ralston & Callie together, but, you’ll find out about his twin brother Nick; what happens to Juliana; & why in the world would somebody pine for someone 8 years 
This is a MUST READ! Until tomorrow, Happy Romance!
QUESTION OF THE DAY: Have you ever pined after a man? For how long? What was the outcome? Don’t worry, I’ll share my secrets too!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Sarah MacLean, grew up in Rhode Island, where she spent much of her free time bemoaning the fact that she was more than a century too late for own Season. Her unabashed addiction to historical fiction helped to earn her a degree in European History from Smith College before she moved to New York City to pursue a career in publishing. After receiving a Masters in Education from Harvard University, Sarah returned to New York, where she lives with her husband, their dog, and a ridiculously large collection of romance novels.
Related posts:
- You VOTE, what was your favorite book for 2009? I hope you all are having a marvelous time with family & friends & sipping hot cocoa in front of the fire reminiscing about all those wonderful books you’ve read through out this past year. I started to make a list of all the books I’ve enjoyed & thought...
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Diana Peterfreund Blog | On Pining
November 12th, 2009 on 9:24 am[...] Grimshaw, the romance buyer at Borders, has an interesting discussion up on her blog today, in conjunction with her review of Sarah MacLean’s upcoming adult historical romance [...]
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November 14th, 2009 on 2:47 pm
Yes I can say I pined after a man back in the day. We did go out a few times but that as far as it went. Let me tell you I pined after him for several years too.
November 13th, 2009 on 8:09 pm
Oh yes, a career piner here. I’m happily married now but was a real drama queen back in the day …
I LOVE the list of rules to break — way to lose one’s self-consciousness and start living! Can’t wait for the book to come out in March.
November 13th, 2009 on 1:40 pm
I pined throughout high school for the older brother of a guy I was friends with. On my 16th birthday, he went out of his way to tell me happy birthday and how good I smelled. He flirted, just a little, every few months. We kissed a couple of times. In other words, always just enough to keep me interested but nothing that was ever really a clear sign that we were seeing each other. Unfortunately, he was always dating a couple of girls at a time and my heart was constantly broken because I’d see a picture of him with someone else or I’d see another girl’s car in his driveway. Then I left for the Air Force and moved on and so did he. We exchanged a few letters and phone calls and I saw him over my first Christmas back home, but still nothing ever really happened.
Fast forward about 10 years. I had come back to my hometown for good and I ran into him when I stopped for gas — managing the convenience store and wearing polyester-knit pants, an extra 50lbs, and the same hairstyle he’d had in high school. Bear in mind that I was married with kids at this point, so I wasn’t harboring any lingering “pine” for this guy, but believe me, seeing him looking a bit like “Bob” from “That 70s Show” sure cured me of it if I had. (I’m sorry — I know that sounds horrible, but if you knew how many times I cried over him as a gawky, insecure teen…)
November 12th, 2009 on 6:12 pm
I’ve actually never pined…kinda sad about that. Everyone should have at least one good pining story right?.
wow March….long wait. *fingers crossed* I’ll remember
November 12th, 2009 on 5:27 pm
That is SUCH a long time from now!!! You better remind us then! I adore the unrequited love story. I can’t wait for Nora Roberts next Bride book for that one.
I loved a guy from 7th - 12th grade. My Dad HIRED him to work at his company so he could be loser to me. HOW EMBARRASSING! We ended up good friends. We kissed once and it was over for me.
I think I liked being in love, more than actually loving him, you know? It kept me safe. 
I’m married, five years, have two kids, and I was all dressed up after going to a baby shower (makeup and everything!) and took the kids to Target to run through the toy aisle. Who did I happen to see? AWESOME. I loved the fact I looked hot. Oh yes, I did
November 12th, 2009 on 5:15 pm
I pined for one of my best guy friends back in high school, but after a while I realized he wouldn’t see me anything but like a little sister (damn my height!)
November 12th, 2009 on 3:55 pm
Oh yes. For three years. (snickers) From grade 6-9 and I always got little hints here and there that my affections were not so unrequited but it just never happened. (sighs)
I still wonder about that boy every now and then and yes, I’ve tried to google him. (winks)
November 12th, 2009 on 2:56 pm
High school. I pined for a coronet player in the band for two months. He finally asked me to a school dance. He barely talked, would only slow dance (because then he only had to sway from side to side not actually keep rhythm or anything), and turned out to be a horrible kisser. After that I decided he was a nice guy but my pining was CURED!
(Yes I used the dreaded “F” word on him, as in: “I like you but I think we should just be FRIENDS.”)
November 12th, 2009 on 2:32 pm
I was pinned when I was younger (late teens)and my temper had got the best of me. One of those moments when a misunderstanding turned into an arguement. He felt they only way to get his point across was to pin me down. If I remember well, then one thing lead to another then another and another… You get the message, right? Lol
November 12th, 2009 on 1:48 pm
Pining/crushing–it’s all the same to me. And he was in eighth, I was in seventh and he was shorter than me by a good six inches (but then everyone one was at that time). Used to walk home by his house and dream. He never even knew I was alive. But hey…they were some pretty good dreams!
November 12th, 2009 on 1:43 pm
So, I remember pining for a guy in 7th grade, he was in 12th & I followed him home from school one day, only to decide after 2 miles of walking that after I got home I didn’t like him anymore.
I’m not sure what happened — I think the walk did me in.
November 12th, 2009 on 1:46 pm
Nah, Sue, I think you’re just smarter than the rest of us hopeless romantics.
I blogged about this: http://dianapeterfreund.com/blog
November 12th, 2009 on 12:15 pm
This book is definitely going on my radar.
November 12th, 2009 on 11:52 am
Pine? Maybe. Crush? Definitely! Are they different feelings or just different terminology for different times?
Pining seems more like a lonely wanting while crushing seems a lot more giggly fun. If you know me, I tend to crush.
I read an early version of this book too and loved how unrequited love became reciprocated. The fencing scene was my best part, btw!
November 12th, 2009 on 10:26 am
Unrequited love… I never tire of this storyline !
Sounds like a really great book. Is it march yet ??
November 12th, 2009 on 10:08 am
Oh I totally pined for one boy all through highschool. Even when dating someone else, he was always there in my mind! Now, I can look back and laugh since he was totally not all my teenage heart gave him credit for!
November 12th, 2009 on 9:59 am
I pined - for exactly 7 years. I didn’t wait around, of course. I dated etc. but none of them worked out because none of them measured up to this man.
And then one Saturday night my brother-in-law’s brother was sober driving for a party we were all going to and we stayed up most the night talking, and the pining was over.
We’ve been together 18 years now!
There’ll always be a soft spot in my heart for Mr. Pine though. He was and is a fine person.
November 12th, 2009 on 9:00 am
Pining comes naturally for a drama queen!
But what did they do before they could listen to sad songs on the radio and sing along?
November 12th, 2009 on 8:58 am
It’s been a while since I had to do any pining, but back in the day, I could pine with the best of them. Actually talking to a guy? Yeah, no. But I had pining down to a fine art. Looking back on it, I wonder how many of those boys I could have had dates with if I’d been honest and brave enough to ask them out.
That’s why I like to read the books with the pining. I think it was so much more pointed in the old days, too, where you couldn’t really speak, even if you wanted to. Like Calpurnia here. That’s why I love PERSUASION, by Jane Austen, too. Talk about pining for years!
November 12th, 2009 on 9:54 am
Hey there! That is what is so fun about this book because Callie does approach Ralston first — just like we should have done way back one.
I’ve decided I like to watch others pine — it was not so much fine at the time for me.
Fortunately, no more pining for me either — unless it is for a Mercedes or something of that nature …
Can you pine for inanimate objects?
November 12th, 2009 on 8:57 am
Yes I pined many years ago. Alas, it didn’t work out as expected or wanted.
Pining can certainly play havoc within.
I am definitely looking forward to reading this.
Carol L.
November 12th, 2009 on 8:36 am
Pining is an interesting phenomena — as PJ mentioned we can pine for people that aren’t real too; or, we can pine for objects like a new diamond ring
Interesting concept this pining thing . . .
November 12th, 2009 on 8:32 am
I’ve pined for years, so I totally relate! I’m so glad I only have to pine for this book until spring!
November 12th, 2009 on 2:20 am
Have I ever pined for a man? Ummm, are we talking in real life…lol! I have real and not real…so sad. But like always, it was never mutual or played out…ho-hum. Such is life.