Book Review: It Happened One Midnight by Julie Anne Long

It Happened One Midnight

By Julie Anne Long

Release Date: June 25, 2013

Source: Edelweiss

Summary: More than one beautiful woman’s hopes have been dashed on the rocky shoals of Jonathan Redmond’s heart. With his riveting good looks and Redmond wealth and power, the world is his oyster—until an ultimatum from his father and a chilling gypsy prophesy send him hurtling headlong toward a fate he’ll do anything to avoid: matrimony.

Intoxicating, elusive Thomasina de Ballesteros has the bloods of London at her feet. But none of them knows the real Tommy—the one with a shocking pedigree, a few too many secrets, and a healthy scorn for rakes like Jonathan.

She is everything Jonathan never wanted. But on one fateful midnight, he’s drawn into Tommy's world of risk, danger…and a desire he’d never dreamed possible. And suddenly he’s re-thinking everything...including the possibility that succumbing to prophesy might just mean surrendering to love.

Review: I haven't read any of Julie Anne Long's books before, but one look at the covers of her novels and I knew I had to pick one up. When I had the opportunity to review her newest book, the eighth book in the Pennyroyal Green series, I jumped at the opportunity. Who wouldn't want to read a book with that amazing, enchanting cover?

Jonathan Redmond is used to living the luxurious life with his good looks and family money. But when his father threatens him to get married to a respectable woman or else he'll cut him off, Jonathan has to find a solution, and fast. And Thomasina de Ballesteros is definitely NOT that solution. Witty and intoxitating, Tommy keeps Jonathan on his toes from the moment he meets her in the dead of night, spying on a Duke. Jonathan knows Tommy has secrets, and he can't help but be drawn in to her dangerous world. Soon he finds himself falling for her, but could a wild, passionate girl like Tommy ever fall for a guy like Jonathan? And even so, could Jonathan ever win the approval of his father with a girl like Tommy? 

One look at the cover, and I thought I was in for a steamy romance between Tommy and Jonathan. I think that's why I was so disappointed when I was over 100 hundred pages into the novel and they hadn't even shared a first kiss. Tommy and Jonathan's relationship was much more tender and slow-going than what i would have liked. With two people who were portrayed to be such passionate, emotional beings, they sure didn't know how to share their passion with someone else. 

The story was really interesting with the whole child labor in factories that Tommy was trying to stop. But that seemed to be really the only thing the novel focused on. That, and Jonathan trying to get into the printing business and prove his father wrong. For a novel to focus solely on those two aspects, though, made things move very slowly and I wasn't all too interested. I wanted a book that would keep my on the edge of my seat, eyes glued to the page as passion erupted from the main characters. Instead, I got an okay relationship where the plot was focused more on the problems of society, not the characters themselves. 

When I finished this one, I was sort of happy it was all over. Not a lot really happened and the story moved so slowly that I just wanted to move onto something else. I wish there was more fire in the romance and that the romance was more central to the beginning of the plot. Their relationship was cute in the fact that they gradually learned to trust and fall for each other, but I didn't want cute. If you're going to have that cover and claim to be a historical romance, I want a relationship and passion that I won't be able to tear myself away from. Oh well, I guess this one just wasn't for me. I'm not sure how this one compares to her other books, but hopefully I get the chance to pick up a different Julie Anne Long novel and find some real romance there.