A Virtuous Ruby
A Virtuous Ruby by Piper Huguley is $3.50 at Amazon and Google:Play! And it’s a shame that it’s not price-matched elsewhere! This is an American historical and readers say that Huguley captures the setting really well, as well as the emotions of her characters. There are some Inspirational aspects to the book, so keep that in mind. A Virtuous Ruby has a 4.1-star rating on Goodreads, and if you want to hear more about Huguley, check out her podcast interview!
An unexpected love in a small, Southern town.
Migrations of the Heart, Book 1
After fifteen months of hiding from the shame of bearing an illegitimate child, two words drive Ruby Bledsoe to face the good citizens of Winslow, Georgia. Never again. She vows to speak out against injustice. For her sisters. For her parents. For her infant son, Solomon.
When she comes to help an injured mill worker, she bristles when a tall, handsome man claiming to be a doctor brushes her aside. Despite his arrogance, Ruby senses he’s someone like her, whose light skin doesn’t quite hide who he is.
Up north, Dr. Adam Morson easily kept his mixed race a secret. Now that he’s in Georgia, summoned by his white father, he can feel restrictions closing in around him.
Something powerful draws him to the beauty whose activist spirit is as fiery as her name. And soon, Adam wants nothing more than to take Ruby and her child far from Georgia’s toxic prejudice. But Ruby must choose between seeking her own happiness and staying to fight for the soul of her hometown.
Warning: Contains a doctor learning there’s more to healing his patients than stitching a wound, and more to a woman than knowing her place—and it’s not in the shadows with her head down. Sorry, Buckeye fans, this hero’s a Wolverine—but we won’t hold that against him.
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RECOMMENDED: These Old Shades by Georgette Heyer is $1.99! This is a Regency romance and I have such a soft spot for this book. It was my first Heyer and I loved the “heroine disguised as a boy/man” trope. LOVE IT. There’s also an age difference between the hero and heroine, if that’s your bag. Would anyone else recommended These Old Shades for first time Heyer readers?
Justin Alastair, Duke of Avon, is called ‘Satanas’ by enemy and friend alike. In the aristocratic circles of London and Louis XV’s he has a reputation as a debauched rake.
Late one evening, the Duke stumbles across Leon, a red headed urchin fleeing a certain beating at his brother’s hands. On a whim, Avon buys the boy and makes him his page. But it soon becomes clear that Leon is not what he seems…
When the grubby Leon turns out to be the enchanting Leonie, the Duke is not prepared for the breathtaking transformation or the tender emotions she awakens in him, or the unconditional love she has for the man who saved her.
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Reforming a Rake by Suzanne Enoch is 99c! This historical romance features a governess heroine who works for the hero. Some readers found the heroine a little frustrating and the sex scenes too short. However, many loved the hero and his blend of charm and humor. It has a 3.9-star rating on Goodreads.
From bestselling author Suzanne Enoch—a governess is tempted by the forbidden passion of a seductive earl in this blistering romance in the With This Ring series
A governess must never be alone with a man (her reputation mustn’t have even a hint of scandal). She never questions her employer’s commands (even when he’s tempting her to forsake respectability for desire?). She must never, ever fall in love with someone above her station (especially a rake—no matter how devastating his kisses may be) . . .
If it weren’t for that unfortunate incident at her last position, Alexandra Gallant wouldn’t now be forced into the employ of Lucien Balfour. The sinfully attractive earl hired her to teach his young cousin, but his seductive whispers and toe-curling kisses suggest he has something far less respectable in mind . . . And that will never happen. For although Lucien seems determined to teach her about pleasure, she has a few lessons to teach him about love!
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The American Heiress by Daisy Goodwin is $2.99! !This historical fiction focuses on the life of an American heiress after she marries an Englishman, and how she adjusts to British society. I really like this cover, by the way. Reviewers have both praised and lamented the campy, soap opera-esque qualities of the story, so enjoyment may depend on a reader’s level of tolerable melodrama. If anyone’s read this, care to weigh in?
Beautiful, vivacious Cora Cash, the wealthiest debutante in America, is spirited away from the glamour and comfort of her Park Avenue mansion and suddenly finds herself Duchess of Wareham, mistress of Lulworth Castle, married to Ivo, the most eligible bachelor in England. As Cora is soon to discover, nothing in this strange new world is quite as it seems. Her handsome new husband is withdrawn and secretive; the English social scene is stuffed with pitfalls and traps; and there are increasingly dangerous forces at work, people who wish she’d never met Ivo in the first place.
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IIRC….in the Enoch book the hero locks the governess in the cellar for weeks so she can’t leave him.
To be honest, if These Old Shades was my first Heyer, I probably never would have read another. There were some amusing bits, but I really did not like this book. (Though to be fair, I am not a big fan of the heroine-disguised-as-a-boy trope, so that was part of it.) In fact, I have yet to read another Heyer after These Old Shades, but I’ll get around to it eventually. I remember enjoying Cotillion.
I loved These Old Shades, would recommend it.
I wasn’t a fan of These Old Shades. Early in the book, Leonie acts so childishly that I wanted to call CPS on the duke.
I love These Old Shades. Love it. So much that even though I think I might have bought it directly from Sourcebooks when they had it on sale, since I’m not sure, I just bought it again.
Maybe it’s just me, but I thought perhaps Annique in Bourne’s The Spymaster’s Lady was inspired by Leonie.
I love These Old Shades, but don’t know if it’s the best starting point.
You hardly ever see a big age difference in mainstream romance anymore, whereas I feel like up through the 80s it was more common than not (have never considered this previously – may not be true). Modern readers may be put off by that, but for my money, it’s the underlying blood will tell Tom Buchanan-esque genetic theory that is most chilling.
But I still love it and think everyone should read it and enjoy it! It just might be easier to do properly prepared.
Please…These Old Shades is NOT a Regency! It takes place in the mid-1700s. That makes it a Georgian Romance. And a mighty fine one at that. This was my first Heyer and I gobbled it up. But it left me with a preference for her Georgian era stories over those that were set in the real Regency era.
I adore These Old Shades. It was the first Regency (well, Georgian really), that I ever read and I then spent most of my teenage years reading every other Regency I could get my hands on hoping to replicate it. Back then (in the late 1970’s) if you were reading reading romance, basically, your choices were sweet Regencies a la Heyer, Harlequins featuring desert sheiks and Greek shipping magnates, Barbara Cartland, Danielle Steele, or bodice rippers like Sweet Savage Love. I read them all, got burned out on the genre in the 1980’s, and didn’t go back to romance until I got my first Kindle in 2009. When the ebook version of These Old Shades was released, I bought it for nostalgia’s sake, but then fell in love with it all over again.
I’ll chime in on The American Heiress. The cover caught my eye when I was book-shopping. The story is a bit melodramatic, but I enjoyed the glimpse into both British and American high society and Cora as the fish out of water.
What does IIRC mean?
I love These Old Shades and if you enjoy Devil’s Cub (the sequel) is even better.
These Old Shades is a sentimental favorite but the sequel, Devil’s Cub is one of Heyer’s absolute best. The Cub is the son of the duke and Leonie and a complete reprobrate until he meets the heroine, a classic Heyer creation (such phlegm!). The book begins with an elopement (for purposes other than marraige) that turns into a shooting and ends with another elopement… and the heroine is responsible for all of the above. Some of my favorite Heyer comedy scenes and cameos from the principals of These Old Shades. Ohmigod time for a reread…
I wasn’t paying attention while reading, and I honestly thought the title of the Suzanne Enoch book was “Ramming a Rake”. I either need more sleep or a stronger glasses prescription.
@Emily, IIRC means “If I recall correctly”, and I’m now concerned that someone gets locked in a cellar.
Emily —
IIRC = if I recall correctly
I LOVE Heyer but “These Old Shades” was not my favorite or even a good starting point. Her comedy of manners and secondary character development plays better in her other books. The Talisman Ring comes to mind with humor and mild poking at romance tropes. The Devil’s Cub covers the autocratic hero who is undone by the strong heroine. Frederica is great as well and the heroine doesn’t seem so childish as Leonie. I think that was what bugged me so much about These Old Shades. What am I saying? There are dozens of great ones! But the others will probably inspire you to keep reading her stories a little better than this one would.
Thank you for clarifying! 😀
Oh no! I was excited to see a new governess/heroine book on sale but then I read the comments. 🙁
Any good recs with a governess/heroine? 🙂
@Coralie: I love governess/heroine tropes too. One of my favorites is This Rake is Mine by Elizabeth Boyle. The heroine is really a teacher escorting some students, but Miranda Maberley is very governessly.
I think Christina Dodd has a whole series about governesses, but I can’t remember much about them….it’s been years since I read the series.
As far as the Enoch book, I believe he turns the cellar into a gorgeous suite, but she’s still locked-up.
The thing about These Old Shades is that Heyer wrote it in 1926. She was what 22/23 yrs old? It is an amazing story. Devils Cub is good too, but it’s Babs, Leonie and Avon’s granddaughter in An Infamous Army who has the best story. It’s connected to Regency Buck, another great one. I love so many of Heyer’s book, but some like Cotillion, April Sprig and A Convenient Marriage were DNFs for me.
These Old Shades is Heyer at her comedic best.
I read These Old Shades as my first Heyer when I was a freshman in college. Loved it. Wanted to find my own Avon. I still re-read occasionally and am willing to spend the $2 to have it on my kindle.
@ mel burns what is this heresy?! If I had to pick a favorite (which I can’t) it would probably be Cotillion!
These Old Shades and Devil’s Cub are the two that forever remain distinct in my memory, all the way back to when I first read them in high school. The others–I confuse titles with stories and can’t keep them straight.
But the one with Freddie? I loved Freddie.
Level Up by Cathy Yardley is currently free on Amazon in Canada.
It’s free on American Amazon as well. Score!
“Level Up” is also free on Smashwords if you want it with no DRM.
@kkw: I’ve tried to read it several times and I’ll probably try to again. 🙂
It’s so funny because there are quite a few authors/books that are beloved or raved about that I couldn’t even finish.
There may be some neurons misfiring in my brain…..
Don’t forget Kobo has a price match guarantee now, if you’re interested in A Virtuous Ruby!
@Mel Burns: Honestly, there is nothing wrong with you if Heyer doesn’t suit you. I myself have tried several of her most famous and am repelled by the snobbery on every page. I’m bourgeous to the core and not embarrassed about it; if Heyer sneeringly calls me a “Cit” I shrug and read something else.
I grabbed the Georgette Heyer book for my kindle to read while I’m under the weather from an injury. I must say that I had forgotten how delightful she can be. It was the perfect cozy read for when I’m not up to action/adventure or steamy passions. I do so love a languid, witty duke!
As a follow-up to my own comment earlier, I bought A Virtuous Ruby from Kobo and submitted the price match request. They have already credited my account in the amount of the difference, plus 10% of the Amazon price. Success!
Drat ! Barnes & Noble isn’t price matching the Heyer book. Curse you B&N!!!
I really liked “The American Heiress.” I definitely do not want to read about anyone getting locked in a cellar no matter how nice it is …
I put the Enoch book on my ‘dnf’ shelf today, after buying it via the BookBub sale announcement. I hated the hero (not even an alphole, straight to asshole), the heroine was spineless, and I didn’t even get to the cellar scene.
Interested in the American Heiress though, so I may give it a try.
@LisaJo885: I saw that the book was on Overdrive through the LAPL so I’m thinking I’ll skim through it to refresh my memory. I was surprised to see there are 6 holds on a very old/bad book. It must be the curiosity of the Bitchery!