Love Letters

Puck and Regina first meet at at a masked ball. Regina was convinced - agaist her better judgment - to attend by her cousin, Miranda, who says that a night away from chaperones and more suitable company will be just the thing. Regina and Miranda become separated at the ball, and while searching for her cousin Regina bumps into Puck, who is the most handsome man she has ever seen. Puck is intrigued by this young beauty, and sets out to seduce her thinking she is a lady at the night. After all, what would a respectable, proper virgin be doing at an event like this? Regina soon sets him straight, but asks for his to help to search for her cousin so that the two girls can go home and forget the night even happened. Disaster strikes, and Regina and Puck soon discover signs of a struggle and that Miranda has vanished into the night.

Regina convinces Puck to help her find her cousin, and as the two skulk about the London streets and alleys following Miranda's trail, the attraction only grows and notorious bad boy Puck realizes that he might have finally found a place to belong.

A Midsummer Night's Sin is one of those middle of the road books that is neither terrible nor particularly great. I love a good regency romance every now and then, and I picked this off Netgalley because I was attracted to the bad boy aspect of the story. Puck was not nearly as "bad" as the synopsis made him out to be. He may have done what he wanted and had oodles of money, but he really was just a big ol' softie. He was handsome yes, but his dialogue was also a little ridiculous and flowery at times. And Regina.. oh dear heavens. She was quite the character. She couldn't decide if she wanted to be strong and capable or if she wanted to spend all of her time crying in a corner, feeling sorry for herself. She wanted Puck to include her in every aspect of the search, but when he did and the sight was a little gruesome, she almost swooned and wanted Puck to take her away and help her forget it all. I found her character and personality to be a bit weak, and if I were to meet her in real life I wouldn't be able to stand being in her company for more than five minutes. Regina and I did not get along.

The whole story seemed a little too easy. Regina managed to convince Puck to help her because if he didn't then she would go out and do it on her own. So he puts his own goals and life on hold to help out a woman who is virtually a stranger, and then falls in love with her in only a matter of days. It all seemed a little too put together. If you know what I mean. I've already mentioned that sometimes Puck's language was a bit ridiculous, and that thread ran throughout the whole novel. Regina or Puck (or any other character, really) would say something and it just seemed off. It was supposed to be funny, but just missed the mark.

My Summary: Truthfully, I've read better historical romances in my day. Ones where the bad boy is actually bad, and a consistent heroine who can actually fight her own battles, not just pretend she can. All in all, this book was pretty forgettable. The only bright spots in the book were when Puck's brother Jack were in the scene. Now there's a man who might actually deserve the bad boy title. I liked Jack better than Puck, and I'm interested enough to continue on and read his story. Bring on the tortured man with a past!

My Rating: C-