The Charm School
The Charm School by Susan Wiggs is $1.99 right now. This historical was originally published in 1999, and is about an awkward, shy young woman who sneaks aboard a ship bound for Rio (as you do). When the crew notice the attraction between her and the captain, they begin tutoring her in the the finer arts of being a confident young lady (yes way). This book has a much-loved Ugly Duckling storyline, and a 3.9-star average on GR.
An awkward misfit in an accomplished Boston family, Isadora Peabody yearns to escape her social isolation and sneaks aboard the Silver Swan, bound for Rio, leaving it all behind.
Ryan Calhoun, too, had a good family name. But he’d purposely walked away from everything it afforded him. Driven by his quest to right an old wrong, the fiery, temperamental sea captain barely registers the meek young woman who comes aboard his ship.
To the Swan’s motley crew, the tides of attraction clearly flow between the two. Teaching her the charms of a lady, they hope to build the confidence she needs to attract not only their lonely captain’s attention, but his heart, as well. For everyone knows the greatest charms are not those of the formal lady, but rather the possibilities of a new world built on love.
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Princess Charming by Nicole Jordan is $1.99 right now at some but not all vendors (alas!). This historical is the first in a series about a scandalous family, and in this Cinderella-styled story, the heroine is trying to recover a horse she loves after it was gambled away by her stepmother. This book has a 3.6-star average.
Thanks to the mischievous meddling of his matchmaking sister, Ashton Wilde meets a damsel in distress during the midnight magic of a lavish ball. But Maura Collyer isn’t looking for a prince—or an intimate pairing with any member of the scandalous noble Wilde family.
Intrigued by Maura’s beauty and daring, Ash is determined to aid in the rescue of her beloved stallion, gambled away by her wicked stepmother to an evil viscount. As their adventure becomes rife with peril and passion, Ash suspects he’s found his heart’s desire.
Even though her dearest friend may be her self-proclaimed fairy godmother, Maura is mortified at being pushed into a romance with a notorious rake such as Ash. Dashing and charming, he comes to Maura’s rescue just in time to help her steal back her precious horse. As they flee across the countryside, she can’t resist his sweet seduction. But is her prince playing a role in a fairy tale to test an improbable theory, or is the love awakening in her heart proof of her own happily ever after?
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The Summer Queen by Elizabeth Chadwick is $2.51 at Amazon and Google right now. This is historical fiction with a 4+ star average about Eleanor of Aquitane. Back in September, Kate mentioned in a comment to our Whatcha Reading? post that it was “compulsively readable” — “[e]specially if you’re a giant Eleanor of Aquitaine nerd, like me”
Eleanor of Aquitaine, the legendary 12th century queen of France and later of England, is one of the most powerful and irrepressible women in medieval history, and her story of romance, scandal and political intrigue has fascinated readers for centuries.
Young Eleanor (or Alienor as she was known) has everything to look forward to as the heiress to the wealthy Aquitaine. But when her beloved father William X suddenly dies, childhood is over. Sent to Paris and forced to marry Prince Louis VII of France, she barely adjusts before another death catapults them to King and Queen. At the age of just 13, Eleanor must leave everything behind and learn to navigate the complex and vivacious French court. Faced with great scandals, trials, fraught relationships, and forbidden love at every turn, Eleanor finally sees what her future could hold if she could just seize the moment.
The first in this highly anticipated trilogy, The Summer Queen follows Eleanor through the Second Crusade to the end of her marriage to Louis VII. The author’s meticulous research (including delving into the Akashic records) portrays the Middle Ages and Eleanor with depth and vivid imagery unparalleled in historical fiction that will keep readers riveted and wanting more.
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Salty Snacks by Cynthia Nims is $1.99 digitally. I will confess that in the realm of temptations, while I do have an eager appetite for sweet things, I love salty things slightly more than I should. This cookbook features recipes for crackers and chips, plus appetizers that are on the saltier side, too. It has a 3.5-star average, and while some readers found it very useful, others cautioned that if you already make your own crackers, these recipes are pretty basic won’t add much to your recipe collection.
This collection of 75 recipes for savory puffs, chips, crackers, breads, nuts, veggies and meats puts a fresh, crunchy spin on homemade snacks.
Are you ready to take your love of salty snacks to the next level?This collection of seventy-five recipes for veggie chips, cheese straws, toasted nuts, pita chips, herb crackers, savory cookies, and snack mixes puts a fresh, crunchy spin on homemade nibbles.
So broaden your horizons beyond microwave popcorn and bagged chips to include inventive snacks like Roasted Chickpeas with Sumac, Coconut Crisps with Basil and Chiles, Salami Chips with Grainy Mustard Dip, Stilton and Walnut Pinwheels, and more.So broaden your horizons beyond microwave popcorn and bagged chips to include inventive snacks like Roasted Chickpeas with Sumac, Coconut Crisps with Basil and Chiles, Salami Chips with Grainy Mustard Dip, Stilton and Walnut Pinwheels, and more.
Indeed, with all the excess sodium and hidden preservatives in prepackaged foods, it’s smart as well as delicious to make your own savory bites from scratch. Nutritious offerings like Parsnip and Carrot Chips, gluten-free recipes like Cumin Lentil Crackers, and the option to customize the amount of added salt (or alternative spices and sprinklings) will appeal to snackers of every stripe. Perfect for cocktail parties, after-school snack time, or anytime you need a nosh, this collection’s easy techniques and exotic flavors are sure to delight anyone with a “salty tooth.”
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Haven’t read Princess Charming, but I did read the second book in the series. I remember liking it well enough, but none of the details stuck with me.
I loved, Loved, LOVED The Charm School. It really struck a chord with me. Only in that I have 3 siblings who are extroverts to the max while I am the epitome of an introvert to the max.
I remember reading Charm School and being like: wait, you can do that in a romance novel? Where the hell have you been all my life?
A lot of the older romances, and don’t get me wrong, I still love them, but there’s some seriously reprehensible social agenda going on. This was such a relief when it came out, I even can’t explain how much I love it.
“One Holiday Ever After” (an m/m anthology) by Tere Michaels and two others and Tere Michaels’ m/m contemporary gateway classic “Faith and Fidelity” are on sale on Amazon for $1 each.
$1.99 is too much for The Charm School. Free would be right, and then I’d still regret the time I spent reading it. Check the tickey-boxes: one young woman with an absurd amount of book larnin’ (including how to sail a ship, although she’s never actually done that before), wearing spectacles she doesn’t need, horrible fashion sense, and an interior whingey personality . . . and simply by the hero throwing her spectacles overboard, hacking off her hair (which acquires highlights, transforming her appearance), shedding a few pounds by working at unlikely shipboard activities she becomes irresistible to the Man, who introduces her to the old-timey practice of smoking hemp and screwing. But of course she loves it. Bah. Ick. Stupid story.