This guest review is from Danielle Fritz. Danielle is a former librarian who has a special affection for children’s lit and books about the funeral industry. She first cut her criticism teeth as a fanfic writer. A resident of the upper midwest, she’s learned to love beer and tater tot casserole and tolerate long winters. Most nights will find her cuddled up with her pups and wearing out her wrists with yet another crochet project. … Continue reading Earls Trip by Jenny Holiday →
OMG you guys, The Perfect Crimes of Marian Hayes is just one big basket of adorable and I never wanted it to end. This cozy historical romance follows the exploits of Marian, wife, or possibly (well, probably) widow to the Duke of Clare, and Rob, the highwayman who tries to blackmail her. This book is a sequel to The Queer Principles of Kit Webb and although I had no trouble following the story, I very … Continue reading The Perfect Crimes of Marian Hayes by Cat Sebastian →
Miss Lattimore’s Letter is a light, refreshing summer breeze of a book. While not much surprising happens, this Regency romance is consistently entertaining given it’s wry, well-intentioned, and down-to-earth protagonist. It’s eminently enjoyable, and, given its lack of serious conflict, also eminently forgettable. This book has a predictable plot with minimal angst and conflict, and the lovely, if simply sketched, characters give it a sense of reality. Sophie is gifted with common sense and a … Continue reading Miss Lattimore’s Letter by Suzanne Allain →
Content warning: Kidnapping, rape, violence against women. All off-screen, but you do see the results of it. Also, the heroine’s past contains, essentially, forced seduction by someone to whom she went for help. Earl’s Well that Ends Well is a romance with a fair bit of adventure and melodrama – it reminds me a little of some of Heyer’s early works in both good and frustrating ways. I liked the fact that both Arthur and … Continue reading Earl’s Well That Ends Well by Jane Ashford →
Who’s That Earl is a light, fun, Regency romance that felt like snuggling down under a warm blanket. It is gleefully tropey. Jane Quayle, cast out by her family, makes her living writing wickedly erotic novels under a pseudonym. As if one pseudonym wasn’t enough, she also pretends to be her own secretary under a second pseudonym. She does all of this in a neglected Scottish castle in the company of two neurotic dogs and … Continue reading Who’s That Earl by Susanna Craig →
Romancelandia is awash in dukes behaving badly, and the hero in Never Kiss a Duke by Megan Frampton, Sebastian de Silva, was a wonderful departure from that trope. Sebastian handles conflict with maturity and faces adversity with a sense of positivity. It was such a relief to see a duke wearing his grownup breeches for once. Even with a hero I adored, the conflict fizzled at the end and I struggled with the heroine, affecting … Continue reading Never Kiss a Duke by Megan Frampton →
This book was like a warm hug. The characters were people I would love to know in real life, the relationships (romantic and otherwise) were tender, and gentle emotional healing was a major theme. In other words, my crops are watered, my skin is clear, my checkbook is balanced, etc., etc., etc. Let us start with our protagonists, Verity and Ash, who felt very real and immediate. Verity is clever, ambitious, and practical, and these … Continue reading A Duke in Disguise by Cat Sebastian →
How to Forget a Duke is a delightfully tropey Regency featuring a hero who goes from loveable curmudgeon to joyfully in love. It was a lovely departure from some of the truly awful heroes I’ve been encountering lately. So how tropey is it, you ask? We’ve got enemies-to-lovers, forced proximity, matchmaking, and–hell yeah–amnesia. All of it works, and honestly, this romance is just so fun that it made my day. Jacinda Bourne and her sisters … Continue reading How to Forget a Duke by Vivienne Lorret →
For those following Sarah MacLean’s Scandal and Scoundrel series, The Day of the Duchess is finally Seraphina and Malcolm, Duke of Haven’s, story. Malcolm was the one who got knocked ass-over-teakettle into a fish pond in The Rogue Not Taken and launched the whole series with his soggy duke-pants. Now, you don’t need to read the other books to read this one, but I do think the series works really well in order. That said, … Continue reading The Day of the Duchess by Sarah MacLean →
Happy Hump Day! I don’t know about you, but this week feels like it’s crawling by. But hopefully these links will help you kill some time! Sarah is over at the Withings blog to talk about her relationship with fitness and romance: While Wendell works out to improve health and mood, she points out that in the female-centric world of romance, in which characters of all shapes and sizes explore and enjoy love and sex, … Continue reading Links: Outlander, Mythology, Bingo, & More! →
