Review: Seducing the Heiress by Olivia Drake

I picked up a newer release, Seducing the Heiress by Olivia Drake, simply because I was in the mood for an historical romance. I was delighted to discover while peeking at the copyright page that Olivia Drake was actually a pseudonym for a well known and respected author: Barbara Dawson Smith. I certainly learned my lesson there, though.

I'm having trouble articulating just why I was so disappointed with this novel. Part of it is definitely the writing. Take, for instance, this scene:

"He bent his dark head to her privates."

Maybe it's just me, but that particular phrase doesn't strike me as very romantic. Or sensuous. Or erotic. I can't think of any woman I know ever using the word "privates". In fact, it comes across as un-romantic as the "c" word.