laurenjodi's review
4.0
All About Love
4 Stars
Lucifer Cynster, the last unmarried member of the Bar Cynster, believes he can escape his fate by leaving London. Little does he know that his destiny awaits in the small village of Colyton in the countryside of Devon where he literally stumbles over a body. Soon Lucifer finds himself embroiled in a murder investigation while wooing the willful and independent, Phyllida Talent, a woman even more averse to marriage than Lucifer.
One of the best in the series thus far.
Phyllida's spirit and Lucifer's protectiveness make for highly entertaining reading as these two unlikely lovers push each other's buttons at every opportunity. Phyllida is cool, calm and collected and her aversion to marriage is quite understandable given the poor choice of suitors in her vicinity.
Lucifer is a totally swoonworthy hero and his attempts at wooing the reluctant Phyllida lead to some very amusing scenes.
The Agatha Christie type mystery is an added bonus as Lucifer and Phyllida question the various villagers and uncover the secrets of a small town. The climax and resolution are exciting and all the loose ends are tied up neatly.
The final epilogue is wonderful and gives the reader a sense of coming full circle :0)
4 Stars
Lucifer Cynster, the last unmarried member of the Bar Cynster, believes he can escape his fate by leaving London. Little does he know that his destiny awaits in the small village of Colyton in the countryside of Devon where he literally stumbles over a body. Soon Lucifer finds himself embroiled in a murder investigation while wooing the willful and independent, Phyllida Talent, a woman even more averse to marriage than Lucifer.
One of the best in the series thus far.
Phyllida's spirit and Lucifer's protectiveness make for highly entertaining reading as these two unlikely lovers push each other's buttons at every opportunity. Phyllida is cool, calm and collected and her aversion to marriage is quite understandable given the poor choice of suitors in her vicinity.
Lucifer is a totally swoonworthy hero and his attempts at wooing the reluctant Phyllida lead to some very amusing scenes.
The Agatha Christie type mystery is an added bonus as Lucifer and Phyllida question the various villagers and uncover the secrets of a small town. The climax and resolution are exciting and all the loose ends are tied up neatly.
The final epilogue is wonderful and gives the reader a sense of coming full circle :0)
intensej's review against another edition
3.0
Lucifer Cynster is the last unwed man of the Bar Cynster group. He goes to visit his friend Horatio's house and discovers that his friend has been murdered. He has to work with Phyllida Tallent to find the murderer and bring justice to Horatio. It felt more like a cozy mystery novel than a romance book. The pacing was slow. I wasn't interested in Phyllida as a character.
brittanyt's review against another edition
4.0
Lucifer is the last of the Bar Cynster that hasn’t fallen to matrimony, so he flees. He heads to Devon to visit an old mentor. When he arrives he discovers his mentor has been murdered. He teams up with a capable woman, Phyllida, to solve the crime.
I love the Cynster series and always expect to love a Cynster book. This book met my expectations! I love that Lucifer is running from love and falls for the woman who has also managed to avoid matrimony. He does not dare ask her to marry him until he is sure he won’t have to convince her to do so. Phyllida is a great heroine, because she knows exactly what she wants. The men in her life have always been subpar, so when she meets Lucifer she is thrown, because he is the first man who has been able to “manage” her. (She has successfully managed everyone in her life!) As a result of this, their love story does not follow the standard path of other romance novels. I love this series and I am so glad someone recommended it to me!
I love the Cynster series and always expect to love a Cynster book. This book met my expectations! I love that Lucifer is running from love and falls for the woman who has also managed to avoid matrimony. He does not dare ask her to marry him until he is sure he won’t have to convince her to do so. Phyllida is a great heroine, because she knows exactly what she wants. The men in her life have always been subpar, so when she meets Lucifer she is thrown, because he is the first man who has been able to “manage” her. (She has successfully managed everyone in her life!) As a result of this, their love story does not follow the standard path of other romance novels. I love this series and I am so glad someone recommended it to me!
katleap's review against another edition
4.0
4 stars
I liked the romance but what I really wanted to know was the answer to the mystery. I liked it. Lucifer and Phyllida were sweet.
I liked the romance but what I really wanted to know was the answer to the mystery. I liked it. Lucifer and Phyllida were sweet.
manutironi's review against another edition
4.0
Yes! Read it! I actually didn’t guess who the “villain” was in this one! Lucifer is quite a character as well, this one was one of my favorite books in the series.
helenephoebe's review against another edition
4.0
Review - They are well written and the characters are generally well-rounded and unusual in some way. I loved Phyllida and the idea of Lucifer acting as a landlord as opposed to the man-about-town impression we are given. What quite annoys me about the Cynster series is that none of them really take place within the tonnish society which means that many of the bounds of society aren't really in existence. It would have been interesting to see how a Cynster fared wooing a bride within society's bounds. That said, what Stephanie Laurens's books all have in common is that they mix really well the Mills & Boons style romance with the humour of a chic flick. This last book about the Bar Cynster doesn't disappoint.
Genre? - Romance / Erotica / Drama / Historical
Characters? - Lucifer Cynster / Phyllida Tallent / Jonas Tallent / Gabriel Cynster / Devil Cynster / Honoria Cynster / Vane Cynster / Scandal Cynster
Setting? - Colyton (England)
Series? - Cynster #6
Recommend? - Yes
Rating - 17/20
Genre? - Romance / Erotica / Drama / Historical
Characters? - Lucifer Cynster / Phyllida Tallent / Jonas Tallent / Gabriel Cynster / Devil Cynster / Honoria Cynster / Vane Cynster / Scandal Cynster
Setting? - Colyton (England)
Series? - Cynster #6
Recommend? - Yes
Rating - 17/20
kate_agata's review against another edition
3.0
This book had a mix of romance and a murder mystery, which I enjoyed. However, I didn't find the romance to be particularly compelling or well-developed. These are people in their twenties, and they decide that they have found the love of their life after 9 days...
The mystery aspect of the story kept me engaged, but the romance felt lacking. In the end, I would say that "All About Love" was all right, not great but not terrible either.
The mystery aspect of the story kept me engaged, but the romance felt lacking. In the end, I would say that "All About Love" was all right, not great but not terrible either.
whiskeyinthejar's review against another edition
2.0
I read this for the "Headless" Woman square for Romance Bingo and my Series Headway selection.
This was pretty slow moving, its mostly a cozy mystery until 60% and out of nowhere we get something like this,
Then the story becomes a mystery with some pretty steamy sex scenes, quite the wake up call those scenes were, lol. Its well written but I found myself a bit bored, story just wasn't to my taste. The epilogue was sweet as we get reminiscing and looking to the future generation scenes from Honoria's (heroine from first in the series) point of view. It was a nice way to close out the Bar Cynsters and usher in the new, who look to be an honorary member and the girls of the Cynster pack to carry on the series.
This was pretty slow moving, its mostly a cozy mystery until 60% and out of nowhere we get something like this,
Then the story becomes a mystery with some pretty steamy sex scenes, quite the wake up call those scenes were, lol. Its well written but I found myself a bit bored, story just wasn't to my taste. The epilogue was sweet as we get reminiscing and looking to the future generation scenes from Honoria's (heroine from first in the series) point of view. It was a nice way to close out the Bar Cynsters and usher in the new, who look to be an honorary member and the girls of the Cynster pack to carry on the series.
plottrysts's review against another edition
3.0
We're back to the basics with the final book of the Bar Cynster (those are the 6 hottest rakish cousins rampaging through the ton in case you were wondering). The last of these hotties, Lucifer Cynster, just happens to visit his old friend and mentor on the day said friend and mentor is heinously MURDERED. In what might be the most batshit of all first chapters, Lucifer discovers a dead body, gets accidentally whacked over the head with a medieval halberd by someone who is NOT the murderer, and then experiences the most transcendent cheek caress of his life before falling into the deep, deep darkness of his thoughts. When he wakes up, he's in jail, being rescued by Phyllida (she of the sweet virgin angel cheek caress).
By the time you reach the end of the book, you've read about:
*Several near-death experiences including strangulation, incineration, and poker-coshing;
*Getting hot and heavy in the shrubbery;
*Getting undressed with the assistance of your dude's cavalry saber (we're talking about the real sword here);
*Catching a murderer;
*Getting married!
And if you've read all of the previous Bar Cynster entries, you get a sweet li'l epilogue tying up all of our couples with a cute red bow.
5-Word Summaries:
Laine: Corpse Adjacent Caress and Millinery
Meg: Marriage? Nah. Oh, hi, Phyllida…
www.linktr.ee/plottrysts
By the time you reach the end of the book, you've read about:
*Several near-death experiences including strangulation, incineration, and poker-coshing;
*Getting hot and heavy in the shrubbery;
*Getting undressed with the assistance of your dude's cavalry saber (we're talking about the real sword here);
*Catching a murderer;
*Getting married!
And if you've read all of the previous Bar Cynster entries, you get a sweet li'l epilogue tying up all of our couples with a cute red bow.
5-Word Summaries:
Laine: Corpse Adjacent Caress and Millinery
Meg: Marriage? Nah. Oh, hi, Phyllida…
www.linktr.ee/plottrysts
ksanders013's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75