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 Miss Serena Barton demands justice. She demands it by standing outside the home of the Duke of Clermont in London through all the vagaries of English weather, attracting the attention of Hugo Marshall. As the duke’s secretary, Hugo plans to restore his riches and thus earn his own, fulfilling his ambition to make it in the world. But Serena’s plight attracts his attention and he quickly grows fond of this fierce, determined, protective woman.
Courtney Milan has fast become one of my very favourite romance authors. Her books are consistently beautifully written, with characters that truly tug at the heart and add in just that emotional intensity that sometimes lacks in other romances. This novella starts off another series of hers, and while it’s not as amazing as Unlocked was, it’s still a really wonderful read and a fantastic way to spend an hour or two. Also, it still only costs 99 cents, so it’s impossible to resist.
It is in part because this novella sets up a new series that it lacks a little bit. This is a bit more clearly a background story, and while Hugo and Serena are both wonderful characters as usual, there isn’t quite the same self-contained feel, particularly because of how the ending actually introduces the characters which will continue on the series. But this was still delightful; in particular, I loved the way the hero and heroine flirted with each other through little notes, as they started to get to know each other in their rather peculiar circumstances.
Even though this was a novella, and necessarily short, I again didn’t feel the story was particularly rushed, but rather enjoyed the way it played out. Serena was a wonderful woman who did clearly have a few things to learn, but whose determination was admirable to behold, and who deserved a better lot in life than she starts out with. Hugo’s own justification for his behaviour made perfect sense. I still felt like I got to know these two characters, although the rest of them remain as necessary shadows, and to get behind their happy ending.
The Governess Affair is another great novella for romance readers and I for once can’t wait for the rest of this series to come out!
 Anne Wynter is a governess, eking out a living for herself after a somewhat disastrous separation from her family at a tender age. Daniel Smythe-Smith is a gentleman, recently returned from exile after one of his own badly planned younger mishaps sent him to the continent for 3 years. When Daniel spots Anne playing with his cousins at the annual Smythe-Smith musicale, he can’t take his eyes off her; who is this mysterious woman who draws him in so easily? As he seeks her out, Anne tries to hide the minefields of her own past, even as she finds herself falling hopelessly in love with a man clearly above her station.
Julia Quinn’s books are regularly delightful and fun reads, but I’ve felt recently that she’s been losing a bit of her touch – focusing more on the sweet, less on the actual emotional perils that make romance novels such compelling reads. To my surprise, A Night Like This still retained her sweet hallmarks, but added on a layer that felt like a refreshing blast from the past as far as her writing goes.
I think the main thrust behind this was the past of both of the characters. Daniel’s past is immediately apparent; he accidentally shot his friend Hugh, the son of the Marquess of Ramsgate, in a duel, and was driven from the country for three years while the fledgling lord’s father sought revenge. He only has returned to England because Hugh came to visit him and assure him in person that his father would no longer kill Daniel if he stepped foot on his native soil. Anne’s past, on the other hand, is revealed much more slowly, and is far more heart-breaking, adding a touch of emotional tension to an otherwise sweet and romantic read. It wasn’t the actual subplot that I liked, as romance novel mystery subplots tend to be silly or useless obstacles; it was the addition of depth to each of the characters.
I liked the scenes where we witnessed Anne as governess to the younger Smythe-Smith girls and their individual personalities, too; they add a further touch of humour to the book and help a reader understand just why Daniel and Anne fall in love with one another. Again, Quinn’s novels are very sweet and sparkly on the interactions, but tend to be lacking in the emotional intensity department, and while this is an improvement on the last one, I still don’t think she’s quite returned to the early Bridgerton days.
As a pleasurable way to pass an afternoon (or a transatlantic flight, which is where I read this), A Night Like This is a great choice, and definitely a sign that Julia Quinn is making strides towards regaining her golden touch. Not quite there yet, but a lot of fun, and recommended for romance readers.
And as a final note, this is a truly delightful cover, a refreshing change from the usual half-undressed couple!
All external book links are affiliate links. I received this book for free for review.
 In One Night in London, we learned that the three de Lacey brothers may lose their inheritance due to their father’s prior marriage – they could all be illegitimate. Gerard de Lacey, the youngest of the brothers, may be something of a war hero, but is in serious trouble if he does get disinherited, as he will have very little left for himself in the world. Determined to find the blackmailer, he heads to Bath, where the clues lead, but his path is interrupted by a young widow who proposes to him on the spot. Lady Katherine Howe is not beautiful, but she is wealthy, and she’s desperate to escape her mother and her impending marriage to a second man that repulses her.
Ah, the marriage of convenience. It’s a trope that appears in quite a lot of historical romance and, of course, because this is a romance novel, the characters do fall in love eventually. That said, a trope done well is still an enjoyable read, and I certainly found Blame it on Bath to be precisely that. Almost as fun as One Night in London, and actually happening in parallel, Gerard and Katherine – affectionately nicknamed Kate early on – are a couple that beg to fall in love from their very first, awkward meeting.
In this particular book, Kate blossoms from a girl hidden beneath her mother into a woman in her own right. Clothed in plain, simple, dark dresses throughout her life, so that her mother faces no competition, Kate’s marriage to Gerard allows her to shed that weight and figure out who she really is. She may not be one of the gorgeous heroines which feature on the pages of most novels, but as he falls in love with her, Gerard sees her personality shine through her face and realize that she is, in fact, beautiful to him; it’s very heart-warming to read.
I liked the setting, too; Bath is easy to visualize now that I’ve been there, and the city is very similar to the way it would have been in the book. It was a nice change from London, where most romances of this type take place.
Still, I didn’t enjoy this book quite as much as the first in the series; the couple fail to communicate at certain parts of the book, which never ceases to annoy me. It just creates problems – it certainly made the heroine have a moment of backsliding that frustrated me a lot.
So Blame it on Bath is not a flawless romance, but it was certainly worth reading, and I’ll happily pick up the third and final installment when it releases.
I received this book for free for review.
 Minerva Highwood is determined that Colin, Lord Payne, not marry her sister. She’s firmly convinced that her sister deserves a love match, and she knows Payne won’t be that for her. In an effort to deter him, she suggests that they head to Scotland, where she will present at a geology conference and, potentially, win £500 to pay him off. However much he doesn’t really want to go, he ends up with her on a madcap journey to the conference, and the bespectacled bluestocking and handsome womanizer discover they have quite a lot more to attract them than they ever would have suspected.
I’ve enjoyed all of Tessa Dare’s romances and A Week to be Wicked was another pleasant read. I actually missed one of the books in the Spindle Cove series because I’m behind on reviews, although I have it on my Kindle, but I read the novella, Once Upon a Winter’s Eve, and I really enjoyed it so was eager to read more. When I ended up in a very stressful place over the last few weeks, I knew exactly what book to go for, and I was completely correct in my assessment.
In particular, I just loved Minerva’s character; I know it’s a bit of a stereotype to have a geeky, glasses-wearing woman attract the hottest guy in town, but as a geeky, glasses-wearing woman, I just can’t resist this kind of storyline, especially when the heroine is written well. Minerva definitely is and I loved spending time with her and her nerdy ways. The slow unveiling of her realization that Payne is actually attracted to her, after uncertainty and pain in the beginning, is very well done, particularly when he starts using her name.
I also thought that this book was structured delightfully – the core of the story is about Minerva and Colin on the run trying to get to Scotland, a trunk with a plaster cast of a dinosaur foot between them. The hilarious ways in which they spin their story and the people they deal with along the way make for enjoyable reading, and I loved how the awkward circumstances continued bringing them together over and over again. And while the book does have the classic tortured hero / unappreciated heroine combination, it is done so well that it doesn’t feel like a stereotype.
Tessa Dare definitely has my attention and I’m very much looking forward to reading more of her books in the future. Recommended!
All external book links are affiliate links. I received this book for free for review.
 Michael, the Marquess of Bourne, lost his ancestral lands at an ill-fated card game when he was just 21. Ten years later, he sees an opportunity to regain them – by marrying his childhood friend, Lady Penelope Marbury. Penelope has accepted her place on the spinster’s shelf; after the Duke of Leighton broke their engagement, her name has carried the faint whiff of scandal, until now, when her father endows her with Michael’s former ancestral homes. Bourne quickly sweeps her off her feet and weds her, but somehow it’s just not the marriage she expected it to be. But as Bourne grows to know her, he begins to realize that she deserves something better than a marriage of convenience – nothing less than her whole heart will do.
Sarah MacLean stole my heart (and everyone else’s) with Nine Rules to Break when Romancing a Rake and she hasn’t lost her touch. A Rogue by Any Other Name is an exceptionally sweet, well-written romance that will tug at your heartstrings and have you rooting for this star couple from the minute you start reading. Yes, it does make use of the stereotype of the harsh hero who just has to come around for the heroine – but in this case, we know that Bourne used to be a good guy.
The letters interspersed between the chapters of the book are so sweet and heartbreaking, from when Michael left Penelope the first time for school and the second time when he lost his lands. They’re a brilliant way of getting us close to the couple without actually shoving their past in our faces; we know what happened, but it makes that older relationship so much more real, and their present-day relationship that much more poignant.
I also loved that MacLean chose to write about Leighton’s jilted fiancee from Eleven Scandals - giving fans a perfect opening to the series, but at the same time giving us an opposite perspective. You see, in Eleven Scandals, I was 100% behind Leighton’s romance with Julia, which was fantastic. Now we’ve seen that life hasn’t been so fantastic for Penelope, but at least she has her happy ending. And it is a very, very good one.
Well worth the read for historical romance fans, Sarah MacLean’s latest is as wonderful as all her books are turning out to be.
I received this book for free from Netgalley. All external book links are affiliate links.
 I named Courtney Milan as one of my top discoveries of 2011 and books like this one are exactly why she ended up on that list.
Smite Turner isn’t a normal hero. Traumatised by his mentally ill mother throughout his childhood, in a time when treatment was more harmful than helpful, he’s grown into a conscientious magistrate fixated on justice who nevertheless sets people apart from him. He knows that they’re unlikely to understand just how he ticks, and as such he’d simply rather be alone – or with his dog. Miranda Darling, in contrast, does just about everything for someone else – under the protection of a figure of the underworld in which she lives, she puts on numerous fake identities to mislead the law. Until she encounters Smite, who never forgets a face, and somehow can’t get hers out of his head.
I feel as though every Courtney Milan book I read is better than the last, and Unraveled was no exception. Treading dangerous waters with a mentally damaged hero, a heroine turned into a mistress, and seedy crime, Milan never puts a foot – or a word – down wrong. Instead, she has created a fantastic, heart-wrenching love story that I simply couldn’t put down. (She even manages to stick a perfectly happy gay couple in there, who helped raise Miranda and gave her a ton of happy memories.)
What I loved most about this book, I think, was that Miranda didn’t “cure” Smite. He is still damaged by his past, and he’s always going to be uncomfortable with certain aspects of intimacy and behavior. That doesn’t change. What does change is that she loves him for who he is, and she understands which of his gestures mean “I love you” when he can’t say the words. In real life, we all know that if we go into a relationship looking to change someone, we’re virtually guaranteed to fail. Why should the world of romance novels be any different? That is why her characters are so appealing, so human, so easily able to sneak their way in and tug at your heartstrings.
At the end of the book, Milan explains the historical context behind the book and her inspiration for setting it in Bristol and amongst those who walk a careful line between breaking the law and staying alive. I loved this – so often romance novels in particular are simply modern day characters dressed up in fancy old-fashioned outfits who go to balls, and while I accept them for that and still enjoy them, I can’t help but love an author who goes out and tells me that she was inspired by actual history.
Just writing about this book has made me wish I could go and read it all over again. It’s such an addicting, romantic read, with characters so appealing that you genuinely won’t want to leave them until you’ve finished. Highly recommended for any romance readers.
I purchased this book. All book links are affiliate links.
 Annabel simply cannot wait to marry her fiance, even though she doesn’t really love him. Why? Because he’s an earl and he can finally confer upon her family the respectability she knows they deserve. Growing up in a Mississippi backwater and learning that love doesn’t lead to anything other than heartbreak has taught her that status and contentment matter above all else. But that’s not enough for Annabel’s family, none of whom likes her fiance, and in act of desperation, her uncle pays Christian du Quesne, the duke of Scarborough, to persuade her to call off the wedding.
Christian can’t turn down an offer like that, not with his estate in ruins and his refusal to marry an heiress himself. He needs the cash to start investing and making money back. So he agrees, but finds himself longing for more than the money once he meets Annabel and realizes that she really belongs with someone better than Rumsford – himself.
I can’t believe I only discovered Laura Lee Guhrke with this series. How could such an awesome author have been writing books for longer than I’ve been reading romance without me noticing? It doesn’t matter anyway; I’ve discovered her now, and I’m quickly learning that I am going to simply inhale anything she writes. As with the first two in this trilogy of books about being abandoned (or doing the abandoning) at the altar, I just loved the emotional journey of this book and I’m thrilled I had a chance to read it.
On a shallow note, just look how gorgeous that cover is. I’m so pleased that yellow seems to have taken over historical romance covers temporarily, as it’s my favorite color and it suits them well.
Anyway, this book ticked all the right boxes for a wonderful romance. Annabel is a heroine who has been hurt before, suffering from a man who took serious advantage of her and then left her to fend for herself. With a little sister to look after, Annabel’s mission ever since has been to ensure that nothing like that ever happens again. A fortunate endowment from her long-absent and now-dead father means that she can buy her way into the nobility, and so she settles for a man who will provide her with the firm position in society that all poor girls dream of.
Enter Christian, a man who is hell-bent against marrying after the disaster that happened to his first wife. He falls head over heels with Annabel almost at first glimpse; he’s then fixed on helping her avoid her no-good fiance at all costs. But Rumsford, the fiance, isn’t really a villain, just a fairly typical aristocrat with a bit on the side; he’s a foil to get Christian and Annabel together. Once he does so, the book simply sparkles, and had me riveted to the Kindle’s screen as these two come together with, in the end, everything they have.
Trouble at the Wedding is a wonderful, emotional, sometimes funny book that will win the heart of any romance reader. Highly recommended.
All external links are affiliate links. I received this book for free for review from the publisher through Netgalley.
 Carrying on with her series inspired by fairy tales, The Duke Is Mine puts a twist on the tale of the Princess and the Pea with this historical romance. Tarquin, the Duke of Sconce, is seeking the perfect bride – or at least his mother is on his behalf. Miss Olivia Lytton – not even a lady – is hardly the perfect choice, particularly as she’s been betrothed to another duke since her birth. While Olivia’s sister Georgiana fits the bill, Tarquin can’t take his eyes from curvy, funny Olivia – but how can they surmount her betrothal and his mother’s expectations in order to be together?
I liked the concept behind this book a lot, but it was one of those where too many obstacles fell away from the couple’s feet almost effortlessly so they could be together. In fact, I think it may be the first romance by Eloisa James I’ve had problems with, because I ordinarily love her books.
Let me explain; it’s not that I didn’t have a good time with this book. In fact, I flat out loved the first two thirds. It’s impossible not to feel for Olivia, a girl who describes herself as fat and loud and who tries to suck in her stomach so she doesn’t offend anyone, simply because she doesn’t fit the willow-thin, mouth-shut society-dictated stereotype. To make things worse, she’s not particularly fond of her future husband, but she considers herself resigned to her fate. In Tarquin’s eyes, she is curvy, hilarious, and immediately attractive. She’s a breath of fresh air amidst a crowd of stick-thin debutantes, one of the only romance heroines I’ve read about who does actually have a healthy amount on her bones and is decidedly not a wallflower.
After the couple do fall in love and all secrets are revealed, though, I really started to get frustrated with it. I felt as though all the romantic layers had fallen away so the couple could be together with an incredibly contrived situation to remove any problems. Obviously, many romance novels do this, but good ones shouldn’t make it so obvious. It’s the case of a perfectly good romance spoiled by the addition of a subplot that does incorporate the fairy tale but otherwise seems far, far too convenient. I wanted the couple to face what they’d done and come out stronger, not just escape without anyone ever actually realizing what had happened.
Anyway, if that’s what you go in expecting, I know you’ll enjoy this book; and for what it’s worth, it may have been my mood that made this so irritating to me at the time. But for a book that started out so well, I ended up disappointed. I’d recommend the other two fairy tale books instead, or at least to start, before you venture into reading The Duke Is Mine. Eloisa James really is a fantastic author, and it would be a shame to miss out on the rest of her work.
All book links to external sites are affiliate links. I received this book for free for review from Netgalley.
 I’m atrocious at keeping up with reviews these days, so I thought more mini reviews could only be a good idea! For this purpose, I am completely skipping plot summaries and just sharing with you my own thoughts on the books below. Some of the reason I blog is to keep books straight in my mind later on, after all, so I wanted to share at least a few thoughts.
The Name of the Star, Maureen Johnson
I had no idea that this was about Jack the Ripper, which led to an eerie night as I discovered that while reading in bed! This is my first read by Maureen Johnson and I definitely enjoyed it, though; I loved the edge of creepiness the whole book had, the boarding school rivalries, the London atmosphere, and the engaging plot. Really looking forward to more of these.
A Moveable Feast, Ernest Hemingway
This book deserves way more than it’s going to get in these few sentences, but suffice it to say that I found it an insightful glimpse into Hemingway’s early life as a writer. Excellent paired with The Paris Wife, which is why I read it in the first place. Anyone struggling with Hemingway will be pleasantly surprised by how easy this is to read, as well.
 Storm Front, Jim Butcher
Ah, urban fantasy. I perpetually love it and find myself going back to it, so I’m always finding new series to read. This was my latest choice, and the first installment was enough to keep me reading. Harry Dresden is your average urban fantasy main character, always kicking butt and getting severely injured for good. If you like the genre, give this a go.
Fool Moon, Jim Butcher
In the same vein as the last, but just that extra touch deeper with the backstory from the first book. Things get more exciting and more dangerous, a villainous character reveals another side, and Harry gets himself nearly killed. All good. I have books 3 and 4 of this series and will probably be reading them very soon – hopefully at least for one of those I’ll manage a full review.
 Ten Ways to Be Adored When Landing a Lord, Sarah MacLean
I myself adored MacLean’s first book in this series, Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake, so it was kind of inevitable that I’d be disappointed by this one. I actually liked both main characters, but the spark struggled to appear and I couldn’t really get into their relationship. I am definitely going to continue reading MacLean, though, as I already have her next book lined up on my TBR shelf!
 Lady Vivienne Bancroft and her husband Miles have been estranged ever since he embarrassed her and left her alone while he went off with a prostitute after a party. She fled to New York to be with her adopted family, while he continued to languish in London. The series is set around Vivienne and her three siblings, each of whom is sent to a different part of the world to take over one aspect of their father’s business after his death. Vivienne is left with part of his business to develop in South Africa – not exactly the safest place for a woman alone at this point in history. Miles meanwhile has been in despair without his wife, and vows to go to South Africa to prepare the way for her and persuade her to give him half of the million dollars her father has promised her. Once together, though, they both realize that perhaps they should be working together as a team instead of standing at cross ends.
This was a book that I had trouble buying into at the start, but wound up feeling won over by the end. Primarily, I had a lot of trouble liking Miles, or believing that Vivienne would ever really fall for him again. Vivienne very obviously thinks of him as a frustrating wastrel, and the fact that he at first attempts to win her over because he wants the payout from her success at her father’s business meant I didn’t like him on my own, either.
But what I discovered as I went along is that while Miles tried to appear like he didn’t care and only wanted the money, he actually did care for Vivienne. He’d missed her. And he hid it from her, and to some extent from himself, mainly because he felt guilty. He’s a classic example of a person who needs genuine work to keep him out of trouble; once he’s given an actual purpose, he transforms. It’s not Vivienne who does it; she already tried. It’s simply the concept of a life outside the ordinary interactions of Victorian London.
I also liked the fact that, as the book developed, Vivienne and Miles became a team. It wasn’t that one of them could rescue the other. They both had their strengths and they learned to use them together rather than against one another as they had previously. Working towards a common goal instead of cross-purposes draws them together and helps them see how their relationship could be different. This focus was an excellent choice for me; instead of an indolent life with a multitude of servants and a lack of real effort, the characters realize that they can do and be more in the world. It was an inspiring turn and added something more to the book beyond the romance.
Not that there was anything at all wrong with the romance, which I enjoyed. But it was nice to have two powerful facets to the book, and Flawless is certainly one I would recommend to others who appreciate a good historical romance set outside the tired world of the ton.
All external links are affiliate links and I received this book for free for review from the author.
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