When it comes to writing romance Canadians don't take a backseat to anyone. This time I review the latest work of one of the most prolific Canadian writers of romantic fiction, Margaret Moore. She has come out with what appears to be the beginning of a new series.

The Duke's Desire
By Margaret Moore (Harlequin - September 2000, $5.99)
Margaret Moore has been a steady producer of quality series for Harlequin for a decade. It appears her long-running Warrior series_ about medieval Welshmen_ has come to an end and this regency novel is a set up for a brand new series about the Bromney brothers.
In this book we are introduced to Galen Bromney, a scoundrel and the perfect candidate for an anonymous young woman's final fling before settling down to life with a fatherly new husband.
Unfortunately the girl in question, Verity Davis-Jones, got more than she bargained for from her relationship with Galen, a beloved daughter. Now widowed, Verity fears her daughter will be branded illegitimate if Galen discovers her.
Galen was devastated to discover that he was the one who had been loved and left. After his fling with Verity, he absconded to Italy to mend his ways for a decade. He has only now returned to claim his ducal inheritance upon his father's death.
Seeing Verity and realising he has a daughter, Galen expresses his anger, hurt and passion. She will not believe it is possible for them to be together without sacrificing their daughter's future.
This novel is in true Moore style _ sweet, poignant and funny. A series about the remaining Bromney brothers is sure to follow form.

The Husband List
By Victoria Alexander (Avon - August 2000, $7.99)
This is a quirky Regency-era historical. 
From a list of potential husbands drawn up by her friends partly in jest, Lady Gillian Marley, chooses the penniless reformed rake Richard Shelton, the Earl of Shelbrooke.
Lady Gillian, the daughter of a wealthy duke, offers Shelton the perfect solution to his money woes. If she is married by her thirtieth birthday she is eligible for a considerable inheritance. They need only marry for convenience in order to share the wealth.
Perfect solutions of course do not account for pride or the heart's involvement. Victoria Alexander masterfully handles the series of disguises and misunderstandings with bright dialogue laced with heavy sarcasm. This is frothy fun.

When Darkness Falls
By Shannon Drake (Zebra - October 2000, $8.99)
Heather Graham is a prolific writer who has written many types of stories from contemporary bestsellers to category romances for a number of different publishers. Shannon Drake is one of Heather Graham's pseudonyms that crosses the romantic fiction sub-genre.
As Shannon Drake she wrote sweeping historical romance for Avon and now Zebra but has recently turned to writing vampire romance as well. 
A follow-up to her popular Under A Blood Red Moon, which was released last Halloween, this year's story focuses on Lucien DeVeau, a Scottish chieftain from the first millennium who is now king of the Vampyr world.
Jade MacGregor is taking a crypt tour in Edinburgh on Halloween night and witnesses a bizarre attack on her fellow tourists. She awakens surrounded by beheaded bodies and a few half-mad survivors and an obsession with a missing stranger she met that night.
Now, a year later, the other survivors are starting to turn up dead and beheaded. And the stranger, Lucien DeVeau, is back. 
Lucien witnessed the violent attacks of the villainous vampire Sophia DeBrus and her cohort and he will fight to keep the mortals safe from the bloodsuckers. But Sophia has found a talisman to increase her power and her hatred of Jade is intense.
It turns out that Jade is the reincarnation of Lucien's soul mate from a thousand years earlier.
Perfect for Anne Rice fans who just can't get enough twisted darkness in New Orleans. 

Janine Taylor is a Halifax writer. She can be reached at romanticleads@canada.com or http://ajaninet.tripod.com 

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Copyright © 2000 Janine Taylor