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A review by mellowhale
All About Love by Stephanie Laurens
4.0
The last of the Bar Cynster meets his fate in a sleepy Devon town when he discovers an old friend and mentor murdered and sets out to solve the mystery with the help of the daughter of the local magistrate. Lucifer and Phyllida find themselves in each other's presence very often as they work together, especially once the murderer sets his sights on Phyllida next.
Stephanie Laurens certainly loves a good mystery. This time I got a distinct Murder She Wrote vibe from the plot. It was really good, but it did drag towards the end of the novel. Each novel tends to feature a reappearance of other Cynster characters, and this one brought Demon and Felicity to Colyton, which did not thrill me. But the epilogue was a really sweet wrap up of the first 6 books in the series. But hold on to your hats, because there are NINE more books in the series, the next three center on Chillingworth and the twins. I am a little sad Chillingworth wasn't the partner for one of the twins, but I'm looking forward to all their stories. The last of the books center one Cynster and the siblings or close friends of the wives of the Bar Cynster. Should be interesting. There are also spinoff series that include more Cynsters, I will cover them eventually.
Ok, let's talk Lucifer. I really enjoyed him. He felt more grounded than most of the Bar Cynster, like a more realistic character. His Big Thing is that he collects valuable items, particularly jewelry. The way Laurens has written him is simpler than other characters, but I rather enjoyed that. He still has his own personality that separates him from the rest of the Bar Cynster, but it did feel like he was a much better version of Demon at times. His proposal to Phyllida is really sweet, honestly, I really loved that.
If Lucifer is a better version of Demon, Phyllida is exactly what Felicity was supposed to be, in my opinion. I LOVE Phyllida. You could argue that she's a Mary Sue character, but why is that a criticism? There can be very good Mary Sue characters, and Phyllida is one. She realizes that the men who are interested in her are only interested in her for their own benefit, not because they actually like/love her, so she has eschewed the idea of marriage completely. And her father supports her completely, which is so refreshing. She may be the daughter of the magistrate, but she's really the mayor of the entire town. She runs EVERYTHING. She even runs a SMUGGLING RING. She's badass and I love her.
Ok, sexy talk time. The build up to the first sex scene is so hot. The first kiss is great, there's an interlude against a hedge that is incredible. Mostly because Phyllida literally asked Lucifer to show her more, which is great. I respect a woman who can voice what she wants. The first sex scene starts off SO STRONG. There is a literal sword involved, and it is HOT. Laurens is a bit lighter on the details in that first scene than I would have liked, but it's better than some other scenes she has written. It's the second encounter that had me fanning myself while reading. It was different from any other scene she has written, and was very heavy in details, so I was quite happy. After that, the sex scenes are really more a mention than described in detail.
Phyllida is truly the star of this book, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I give it 4/5 whales.
Stephanie Laurens certainly loves a good mystery. This time I got a distinct Murder She Wrote vibe from the plot. It was really good, but it did drag towards the end of the novel. Each novel tends to feature a reappearance of other Cynster characters, and this one brought Demon and Felicity to Colyton, which did not thrill me. But the epilogue was a really sweet wrap up of the first 6 books in the series. But hold on to your hats, because there are NINE more books in the series, the next three center on Chillingworth and the twins. I am a little sad Chillingworth wasn't the partner for one of the twins, but I'm looking forward to all their stories. The last of the books center one Cynster and the siblings or close friends of the wives of the Bar Cynster. Should be interesting. There are also spinoff series that include more Cynsters, I will cover them eventually.
Ok, let's talk Lucifer. I really enjoyed him. He felt more grounded than most of the Bar Cynster, like a more realistic character. His Big Thing is that he collects valuable items, particularly jewelry. The way Laurens has written him is simpler than other characters, but I rather enjoyed that. He still has his own personality that separates him from the rest of the Bar Cynster, but it did feel like he was a much better version of Demon at times. His proposal to Phyllida is really sweet, honestly, I really loved that.
If Lucifer is a better version of Demon, Phyllida is exactly what Felicity was supposed to be, in my opinion. I LOVE Phyllida. You could argue that she's a Mary Sue character, but why is that a criticism? There can be very good Mary Sue characters, and Phyllida is one. She realizes that the men who are interested in her are only interested in her for their own benefit, not because they actually like/love her, so she has eschewed the idea of marriage completely. And her father supports her completely, which is so refreshing. She may be the daughter of the magistrate, but she's really the mayor of the entire town. She runs EVERYTHING. She even runs a SMUGGLING RING. She's badass and I love her.
Ok, sexy talk time. The build up to the first sex scene is so hot. The first kiss is great, there's an interlude against a hedge that is incredible. Mostly because Phyllida literally asked Lucifer to show her more, which is great. I respect a woman who can voice what she wants. The first sex scene starts off SO STRONG. There is a literal sword involved, and it is HOT. Laurens is a bit lighter on the details in that first scene than I would have liked, but it's better than some other scenes she has written. It's the second encounter that had me fanning myself while reading. It was different from any other scene she has written, and was very heavy in details, so I was quite happy. After that, the sex scenes are really more a mention than described in detail.
Phyllida is truly the star of this book, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I give it 4/5 whales.