An Affair Before Christmas | 
 enlarge | Author: Eloisa James
Publisher: Avon
Category: Book
List Price: $7.99
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Rating:  41 reviews
Media: Mass Market Paperback
Pages: 400
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 6.7 x 4.2 x 1.1
ISBN: 0061245542
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN: 9780061245541
Publication Date: November 2007
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Product Description
Magic under the mistletoe . . . One spectacular Christmas, Lady Perdita Selby, known to her friends and family as Poppy, met the man she thought she would love forever. The devilishly attractive Duke of Fletcher was the perfect match for the innocent, breathtakingly beautiful young Englishwoman, and theirs was the most romantic wedding she had ever seen. Four years later, Poppy and the duke have become the toast of the ton . . . but behind closed doors the spark of their love affair has burned out. Unwilling to lose the woman he still lusts after, the duke is determined to win back his beguiling bride's delectable affections . . . and surpass the heady days of first love with a truly sinful seduction.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 36 more reviews...
What Happened? September 10, 2008
M. Patel (NJ, USA)
I was sooo disappointed in this book. I had the check the cover twice to see if this was the same Eloisa James....What happened to the great writer. I didn't care for the characters at all, more annoying than anything else....
 Eloisa James outdoes herself this time! July 25, 2008
SarangHae (Boston)
Many have already posted the general gist of the plotline so I am going to reiterate what happened and who did what and get to my impressions of the book.
I hadn't felt such an array of emotions- wistfulness, sadness, laughter, annoyance (hate Poppy's mother), excitement, wryness, tenderness, romance, and ecstatic bloodthirstiness- all in one book in such a long time. The dialogue is witty. The characters are wonderfully depicted and lovable. The novel is more focused on love and understanding rather than all-out passion-(though the passion is there). It's a novel that I melted rather than hopped into. The pace is like a gentle but steady snowfall ( as opposed to heavy snowstorm)-which complemented the Christmas theme at the end. I have always been wary of Christmas-themed novels because they seemed so contrived-either with good old-fashioned Christmas traditions so heavily emphasized or with the spirit of love and family too heavily represented. The Christmas tone in AABC is just right for me. And as a history major, the tidbits of interesting history trivia that are so naturally weaved into the story also impressed me.
I know a lot of people are irked by how EJ structures her novels around an ensemble of characters rather putting the focus mainly on the hero/heroine and have certain characters' stories span several books. To me, her novels are to tv dramas/miniseries/soap-operas as other authors' novels are to movies. They are equally enjoyable but in a different way. I hope more people will give her new series a try. It really does reach a new level of writing-each line sparkling with wit and vivid characters.
 Its not as bad as they say July 14, 2008
avid historical romance reader (Caribbean)
I agree with the some of the reviewers questioning of Poppy's personality and her allowing her mother to walk all over her but I love that by the end of the book her character developed to one of much more strength. The writer highlights one of the common features of relationsips: miscommincation often leads to misunderstanding which spells the end of a relationship. It was interesting to read how Poppy and Fletch resolved this issue.
Also, I didn't find it hard to follow the other stories. I will say that some of the other characters were a bit more interesting than the heroine and hero. However, that only whets my appetitie to read the other books in the series. I can't wait!
On the whole I found the book to be an enjoyable read but think that you should assess it for yourself.
3 Affairs June 29, 2008
Leslie M. Noyes (Vermont)
Eloisa James' skill as a novelist grows with each new book she publishes.
The two novels in her latest series, the "Desperate Duchess" and "An Affair Before Christmas," are not typical romances. They are intricately plotted, witty, well-written and subtle--the author is as capable of writing between the lines as on them. Ms. James has always been a skilled writer, talent that sets her apart from the all too many writers of the genre. I particularly appreciate that her characters never deviate from character. I have abandoned countless romances mid-read because the characters suddenly begin doing things they just wouldn't do (based on their personalities as established by their creator). All the more wonderful then, that in the two novels in this series, the characters are complex, tightly wound and stay that way even as they experience change. This is the key--their experiences change them, rather than change taking place at the whim of the author or an all too obvious plot device.
Lucky for us, Ms. James talents include masterful plotting with interesting twists and turns, and witty, often biting repartee. Combined with her ability to create great characters, it all adds up to an enjoyable and greatly satisfying read.
"The Affair Before Christmas" charts the shifting relationships of the Duke and Duchess of Beaumont (introduced in "Desperate Duchess"), and the Duke and Duchess of Fletcher, as well as further developing the character of the Duke of Villiers, a jaded and dissolute man-of-the-world also introduced to us in the preceding novel. While you don't need to read "Desperate Duchess," before "The Affair Before Christmas," doing so adds to one's knowledge of the characters and their history.
This second novel opens as the first one closes, beginning with the same scene, but viewed from a slightly different perspective. Both sets of spouses are estranged and Villiers has been wounded in a duel caused by his own foolishness. Since several overviews of the plot already exist in the reviews here, I won't add another. However, I do want to address criticism from other readers who felt "An Affair--" to be overly complex and jumpy. I disagree, having enjoyed the three interweaving story lines and the suspense created as scenes shift from one couple to the next.
As is true of its predecessor, this novel has a compelling darkness. All of these people have suffered terrible hurts and betrayals--or done emotional damage to themselves. All have hardened their hearts against more hurt. The question that keeps the pages turning so swiftly is how (and whether) Poppy, Fletcher, Jemma, Elijah and Villiers will find the courage to be honest about their hearts' desires, thus opening themselves up to the possibility of more hurt but also to redemption and true happiness.
This is a great read. I rank the author with only a handful of other romance writers capable of this quality of dark, nuanced story telling, including Loretta Chase, Judith Ivory, Pam Rosenthal, and with her last two novels, Laura Kinsale. I for one hope to have the pleasure of reading more novels in this series. Three cheers for Eloisa James.
An Affair Before Christmas April 19, 2008
JOS
I too am surprised by the negative reviews. Many people seem to find the multiple plot lines objectionable, but I find them a delight. The wide variety of characters, all of them reasonably witty, combine into a lovely frothy farce. And the fact that the group story is spread over multiple books means the secondary characters have a chance to develop.
In this book, Poppy isn't spineless, she's simply young and ignorant. That ignorance is far more realistic than the instant eroticism of so many young heroines in historical romance. And Fletch's way of dealing with his demonic mother-in-law is perfect.
It's a stand-alone in that you need not have read the first book, Desperate Duchesses, to make sense of this one, but you are left hanging about the fate of the secondary characters. I don't find that a problem -- I can't wait to find out what happens to Charlotte -- but others may.
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