3.5 stars Emilia “Mia” Carrington’s father created a scandal by openly romancing the Duchess of Pindar, while her husband was locked up in an insane asylum. Her father’s affair brought Mia frequently into the company of the Duchess’ son, Evander Septimus Brody, who young Mia developed a crush on. One fateful afternoon, having overheard Evander and some of his school friends ridiculing a foolish love poem Mia had written, she furiously declared that she would rather marry any man in the world before she chose […]
The housekeeper and the prince
3.5 stars Miss Elise Fountain used to be a teacher at the school for wayward girls in Pennyroyal Green, but was fired after she spoke inappropriately to one of the patrons. Now she’s managed to get a recommendation from the powerful Redmond family and is desperate to secure a position as housekeeper to the formidable Lord Philippe Lavay, an exiled Bourbon prince recovering from a near-fatal robbery in the village. He gives her a two week trial, expecting she will be gone before one has […]
What makes a ‘perfect soldier’, and how does that translate into a ‘marriageable man’?
I don’t know how popular author Grace Burrowes is – I’ve heard her name a few times on book sites, but I don’t get the impression that she’s a well-known, go-to regency author, and – if The Soldier is anything to go by – that’s a damned shame. Because what struck me about this book, which deals with a lot of heavy things (most notably a soldier with very definite PTSD symptoms and both a heroine and a young girl who are trying to pick […]
A historical romance with melodrama
3.5 stars Sir Richard Kenworthy has less than a month to find a bride, and secure her hand in marriage. She can’t really be an heiress or a diamond of the first water, because it’s really quite imperative that she accept his proposal, no matter what. When he spots Miss Iris Smythe-Smith suffering behind her cello at her family’s infamous annual musicale, he is intrigued. Very blond and pale-skinned, she should be unremarkable, but she’s clearly good at playing her instrument, which can’t be said […]