Just Like Heaven (Smythe-Smith, #1) in Fans of Eloisa James & Julia Quinn

Jun 14, 2012 Caz rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: contemporary-romance, audiobook, mount-tbr-2013, fluff

The perfect piece of audio-fluff for when - as I am - you're laid up in bed with a stinking cold and can't read a book because it makes your eyes ache!

It's classic JQ - light-hearted, with plenty of witty dialogue; and it contains one of my favourite tropes, the "friends-to-lovers" one.

Lady Honoria has known Marcus Holroyd since she was a child. He's her big brother's best friend, the only child of an only child who has been given the best of everything in life - except familial life and affecti The perfect piece of audio-fluff for when - as I am - you're laid up in bed with a stinking cold and can't read a book because it makes your eyes ache!

It's classic JQ - light-hearted, with plenty of witty dialogue; and it contains one of my favourite tropes, the "friends-to-lovers" one.

Lady Honoria has known Marcus Holroyd since she was a child. He's her big brother's best friend, the only child of an only child who has been given the best of everything in life - except familial life and affection. It's a miracle he hasn't grown up a complete head-case, but he's a genuinely nice guy; shy, somewhat reclusive and possessing a dry wit which he generally keeps hidden.

Honoria is the youngest of her siblings by well over ten years, and as her sisters are all married and her brother Daniel (we get his story in A Night Like This) had to leave the country, she is terribly lonely and desperate to find a husband so that she can have a home of her own. Most of all, she hates the silence. Having grown up in a large, bustling household, there is now just her and her mother, who has become very withdrawn since Daniel's departure.

When Marcus becomes desperately ill, Honaria insists on going to him; and threatens to go alone when her mother demurs. Fortunately, her mother relents and the pair head off to Marcus' Cambridgeshire estate where they discover him to be in far more danger than they had believed. Seeing her son's best friend in such dire straits seems to give Honoria's mother the kick up the backside she needed to pull her out of her listlessness and together, she and Honaria work tirelessly to save Marcus' life.

There are some truly tender scenes - between mother and daughter and Marcus and Honaria - in that part of the book. Although they more or less grew up together, the couple have not been especially close in recent years - although unbeknownst to Honaria, before Daniel left, he asked Marcus to keep an eye on her and "stop her marrying an idiot". As he recovers, the two draw closer and begin to realise the true nature of their feelings for each other.

There's a bump along the road to true love when Honaria discovers that Marcus had chased off a number of her suitors the previous year and gets huffy about it - but really, it's a mole-hill (see what I did there?) rather than a mountain and doesn't take long to sort out.

Both protagonists are attractive characters. Marcus isn't a rake or man with a dark secret in his past, he's just a truly decent man who doesn't like to be the centre of attention (although when push comes to shove, he'll do it if he has to) and who wants to be loved and have a family of his own around him.

Honoria is no silly debutante. She's kind and funny and fiercely loyal to her family and its traditions. She's one of the few people to truly 'see' Marcus for what he is underneath the rather starchy exterior he presents to the world; and even though she worries that his attentions to her have been a result of his promise to her brother, she is sensible enough to realise she's wrong and that he does truly care for her.

If I have a criticism, it's that the sex scene was really not necessary. I have no objection to sex in romance novels, but it felt like it had been shoe-horned in here for the sake of it.

Rosalyn Landor did her usual superb job with the narration. There are five or six different female characters featured throughout the novel, and in some scenes, they all appear - but each voice is clearly delineated so there is never any doubt as to who is speaking. The narrative passages are well-paced and invested with the lightness of tone and humour that is prevalent throughout the story.

Just what the doctor ordered! ...more

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Jul 03, 2011 Melissa rated it really liked it

Shelves: audible-book, own-kindle, 2021-reads, 2013-reads, whispersync

2021 Audio Update ... It's been awhile since I've read this series, and it was nice to reminded how much I love Julia Quinn's historical romances. I love that this is the story of two very good friends who end up seeing that they are actually in love with each other. I loved that this is not a story where the two leads fall madly in love with each other immediately. They take some time to realize that what they are feeling is love. I love that this book does not focus on the physical connection 2021 Audio Update ... It's been awhile since I've read this series, and it was nice to reminded how much I love Julia Quinn's historical romances. I love that this is the story of two very good friends who end up seeing that they are actually in love with each other. I loved that this is not a story where the two leads fall madly in love with each other immediately. They take some time to realize that what they are feeling is love. I love that this book does not focus on the physical connection as much as the emotional connection between the hero and heroine. I love that they are kind to each other throughout, with no weird blip to pull them apart. Their biggest issue is that they have known each other for so long that it takes a bit of time to see each other as more than close friends, almost family. The audio version only enhances the story with the great Rosalyn Landor giving voice to these characters. I adore her narration of historical romances! I love the Smythe-Smith family with their horrible musicales that still manage to be attended by everyone each year. I'm glad I was able to hear this story and remember just how much I loved it when I first read it so many years ago. I think I'll grab the next books in the series so that I can listen to them as well.

Sometimes I forget just how much I love the writing of Julia Quinn. The Bridgertons series is my absolute favorite historical romance series, one that I re-read from time to time whenever I am in the mood for a fun, witty, romantic period romance. I don't know why I waited so long to begin this break-off series centering on the family of (non)musicians who have hosted the atrocious Smythe-Smith musicales so wonderfully found throughout the Bridgerton books. I am so glad to have read this book at this time. It was a like a glass of fresh water for me, something perfect for a lazy autumnn weekend to keep me swooning and chuckling and sighing with the wonderful characters and dialogue found throughout this book.

I think I'll make this a brief review. This is a story so similar to the other Julia Quinn books I have read, but it does not seem like a tired premise. It feels fresh and sweet, and I loved it.

The things I liked:

Marcus. Quiet, somewhat brooding, but a wonderful friend to Honoria for most of her life. He is an eligible bachelor who never really seems like an eligible bachelor for any part of the book. He shies away from society, and, whether he realizes it yet or not, he only really has eyes for Honoria. A great hero for this story.

Honoria. Yes, she is a terrible musician. But she embraces her lack of skill. She revels in the tradition she is thrown into, and she brings joy to so many of the pages in which she appears. Her care for Marcus as he is at death's door was beautiful.

Friends win in the end. I LOVE romances where good friends end up together at the end. These two aren't just together because they find each other attractive. They are together because they love being around each other. The conversations are sweet and funny and real. Loved that!

Julia Quinn's wit. I LOVE the way Julia Quinn writes her romances. As a reader I can feel the joy she has as she writes. It really does show on the page. Whether her books are my absolute favorites or just ones that I moderately enjoyed, I always love reading them. This one is one of my favorites, making it all the more wonderful to read.

Some amazing romantic scenes when Honoria and Marcus first realize that they love each other. That has to be a bit jarring -- realizing that you are in love with the person you have thought of as a sibling for so much of your life. These scenes are just beautiful and heartwarming and swoon worthy. Loved them!

If you are a Julia Quinn fan, you should love this (not so) new series. If you haven't read any Quinn books, start with the Bridgerton series and then start this one. There are great characters that cross over into this story (Colin -- love him!, and Mrs. Danbury, to name a few). A highly enjoyable historical romance. Four stars! ...more

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Jul 17, 2011 Judi Lacanlale rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Ms. Quinn is back on her game! Back to the Bridgerton characters we know and love. Lady
D, Gregory & Colin Bridgerton & even the Featherington's are back! How ingenious and refreshing to do a Smythe-Smythe story & have it as a prequel to Colin's book! The lovable musically challenged family who throws their infamous annual family musicale that only the brave or deaf attends to. Can I just say how utterly in love I am to Marcus. For one who is naturally staid & shy he turned out to be most express ...more

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Mar 11, 2012 Aly is so frigging bored rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: historical

It had a slow start and I was kind of 'meh' about it. But then the story picked up and the characters were adorable. ...more

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Jul 30, 2011 Maryam rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: read-since-january-11, summer-reading

it was AMAZINNGGG!!!TERRIFIC!!! i LOVED it from page 1...ok well not one more like 3ish 5 ish i was grinning ear to ear and some parts i was LITRERALLy,L-O-L-ing. Julia Quinn is superb!! and of course to top everything Ms.Butterworth and the mad baron was mentioned,and when it was i was so happy! lol it just cracks me up! only thing i didnt like about this was they spent almost alll of the book dealing with the fever. But that part was cute too,him being all shirtless and all :) would recommend ...more

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Sep 04, 2011 Antica rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: regency, julia-quinn, romance, side-characters-i-loved, heroines-i-love, heros-i-love, fiction, 19th-century, england, historical-fiction

I've heard a lot of things about this book, mostly about how Julia Quinn brought back her charms and unforgetable style in her books. As much as I adore Julia Quinn for the books that she has brought out, I have to say that her pervious novel "10 Things I Love about you" I didnt like it that much; which is sad because I love Sebastian when he was a secondary charecter in "What happens in London" so I wanted to see him as the main lead in his own book and he wasn't up to pare as he was as a secon I've heard a lot of things about this book, mostly about how Julia Quinn brought back her charms and unforgetable style in her books. As much as I adore Julia Quinn for the books that she has brought out, I have to say that her pervious novel "10 Things I Love about you" I didnt like it that much; which is sad because I love Sebastian when he was a secondary charecter in "What happens in London" so I wanted to see him as the main lead in his own book and he wasn't up to pare as he was as a secondary charecter which disappointed me slightly.

So when I heard that this book has that charm that the pervious book did not (and wasn't as forgetable) I was excited to read this book .

And it did not disappoint

I absolutly adore this book in so many ways

The charecters are as charming as how charecters made from Julia Quinn's mind should be. Marcus is one of the few that would say fits the role as a perfect Beta Hero. He was quite, independant guy who you wouldnt see do outragous things that we see heros in Historical Romances sometimes; I mean even in the love scene he was maintained to be the beta hero and did not suddenly shift to the dominating Alpha hero which some of the beta heros tend to do in some books that I have read.

Honoria is a delightful female heroine; who seemed to me to be very realistic in some of her ideals which is to put family first before her own wants. Some might think that that is a bad thing but I find it to be great that she loves her family so much she would go through humiliation than break her mothers heart and hopes.

The story was typical at the beginning; childhood friends who are destined to fall in love. However the Majority of this book's plot, I found was pretty good as the majority of it was having Honoria tend to a very sick Marcus who has fallen ill of a fever. While I saw reviews that were negative from that aspect of the book I found that it works. The interaction between the two characters throughout the whole book had sparks despite its simplistic events and I can imagine two people falling in love the way that those two have.

I LOVE Daniel; he was so funny as a child and as an adult; I was actually disappointed when there wasn't an action reunion scene between him and his mother which I would have loved to have read in this book. I am also hoping for his own book, one that perhaps will show where he has been all those years outside England; I just hope that his book doesn't make me have the same reaction as Sebastian's

Rating: 5/5 ...more

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Aug 10, 2011 Michelle rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: romance-historical

Actually 4.5 stars, I loved it and thought it had all of what I think are Quinn standards of endearing characters, great romance and laugh out loud situations. Honoria and Marcus are made for each other and the moment they realize that was a fantastic book moment!

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