Rangoon in Bodice Ripper Readers Anonymous

May 30, 2011 Wendy, Lady Evelyn Quince rated it liked it

Shelves: own, kidnapped-hostage-captive, hero-is-not-christopher-columbus, trope-sold-or-forced-into-slavery, reviewed, hero-other-woman-sex, historical-fiction, cheating, romance, trope-revenge

Christine Monson was best known for her infamous, shocking bodice-ripper Stormfire, which is legendary for the protagonists' extremely abusive revenge-based romance. Her second book Rangoon significantly turns down the crazy factor, but still retains the sensitive writing that made Stormfire so haunting and memorable.

It's the late 19th century. Boston-bred Lysistrata travels all the way across the world with her father, a doctor, to Burma to start a new life. Nursing, a broken heart from an ill ...more

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Aug 15, 2011 Sarah Mac rated it liked it

Shelves: read-regifted, cover-me-red, zzz-2013, zzz-departed-vintage, zz-publisher-avon, reviewed, cover-lust-fail, om-or-villain-superior-to-hero

3.5 stars. The writing is beautiful & deserves 4+, but I didn't care for the hero or the heroine -- so I didn't round up.

The plot is complicated & heavily involved with Victorian-era political & trade issues in Burma. I can't offer thoughts on the accuracy because I'm totally unfamiliar with Burmese history, but it rings true to what I know about British colonial relations with India during that period.

Character-wise, Lysistrata & Ram don't compare to Kit & Sean of Stormfire. I absolutely love 3.5 stars. The writing is beautiful & deserves 4+, but I didn't care for the hero or the heroine -- so I didn't round up.

The plot is complicated & heavily involved with Victorian-era political & trade issues in Burma. I can't offer thoughts on the accuracy because I'm totally unfamiliar with Burmese history, but it rings true to what I know about British colonial relations with India during that period.

Character-wise, Lysistrata & Ram don't compare to Kit & Sean of Stormfire. I absolutely loved Kit's white-knuckled, stoic pride; even when Sean drags her through the gutter & treats her like shit, she's determined not to show how much it hurts. But Lysistrata didn't have that same determination -- she was more concerned with mouthing off & flouncing around to prove she was desirable. It's true she had a traumatic personal experience to muddle her reactions to men in general, but even then she was highly inconsistent. I never got a feeling of what she wanted, or even why she was driven to get...whatever it was.

Likewise, Ram was something of a cipher. Action scenes excepted, he spent a lot of time moping over his heritage (half-caste British/Indian). True, his parents were royally fucked up; their backstory could have provided an awesome prequel novel. But compared to the engrossing, violent, & bizarre antics of that previous generation, Ram struck me as anti-climactic with a tendency toward petulant emoz. Compared with Sean's brutal-but-fascinating antics, he just wasn't that compelling. He spent a lot of time wandering around Burmese waterways, thinking how hard his life was & how much he wanted Lysistrata's magical hoo-ha to heal his wounds. Like the heroine, I had no idea of his ultimate goal; key plot points hinge on his confusing conclusion re: Lysistrata's motivation, & we didn't see him do much of anything to maintain his palace, his wealth, or his badass reputation in legal/illegal trade -- it was just there.

That said, the middle section where Lysistrata & Ram lived at the palace was very good -- it had a semi-gothic tinge that reminded me of the dynamic between Sean & Kit during the calmer periods of her captivity, & the vaguely menacing characters that surrounded them were really intriguing. (Also, there was a harem. And the moat was filled with crocodiles. Fabulous. :D) But the bits in 'metropolitan' Burma didn't have the same level of taut tension. There were too many confusing plots & counterplots re: the Chinese trade route, & the overload of witty banter felt out of place in an otherwise serious story. (Lysistrata & Ram also refused to have an honest conversation, like, ever. It annoys me when a simple 20-minute dialogue could clear the way for a HEA, yet the author prolongs stubbornness beyond legit dramatic purposes.)

So, anyway...the total product of Rangoon didn't get under my skin like Stormfire. But if you're a Monson fan & expect a certain level of technical quality, don't worry -- you'll find it in this book. The visuals were stunning & the secondary characters were painted with deft strokes of individuality. ...more

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Mar 02, 2011 Slavena rated it it was amazing

Shelves: best-romance-books, pregnant-heroine, read-in-2011, steamy-historical-romance, fast-read, hearthbreaking, not-available-to-buy, no-kindle, favorite-heroine, sensual

Lysistrata travels with her father who is a doctor to take position at the Queen’s Rangoon hospital. She is very intelligent but rather plain looking girl. She tries to help her dad at the hospital but is refused by the head doctor saying that it is no place for women. She befriends a lady that decides to transform her by dressing her up in new clothes and presenting her to the English Rangoon society. On the first social event she attends she stumbles on Ram while he is having tête-à-tête with ...more

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