Month: October 2017

Christmas Revels IV – Anthology

On By BarbaraIn Anthology, Barb's Reviews, Regency Era (1811-1820)Leave a comment

Christmas Revels IV: Four Regency NovellasChristmas Revels IV: Four Regency Novellas

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: Christmas Revels #4
Publication Date: 10/30/17

What a wonderful anthology – Four sweet, clean, happy stories with lovely HEA’s. If you want steam, you won’t find it in these stories, but they are very sweet and romantic. I was only familiar with one of the authors, but they were all great, so I’ll be looking for more of their books!

The Sergeant’s Christmas Bride by Anna D. Allen
While the scenario is highly improbable, it was a delightful story. I just loved Jacob. He is one of the sweetest and most caring heroes I’ve read in a long time. Sergeant Jacob Burrows has just returned from fighting in America. He’s tired to the bone and just wants to sleep before he continues on to his destination. He has just bedded down when he’s rudely awakened by someone holding a gun on him. Imagine his surprise when he finds out that the person with the gun is a woman and he’s at his destination.

Elizabeth FitzWalter needs a husband – quickly. She’s a Viscountess in her own right since the death of her very much-loved brother. It is amazing who and what comes out of the woodwork when a female inherits wealth and a title – she needs to avoid all of that. I like her very much. She is brave, intelligent, self-sufficient and loving. What a pair Elizabeth and Jacob make.

Home For Christmas by Hannah Meredith
Charity Fletcher lived her whole life squirreled away at her father’s country estate. She was totally neglected by him. She was lonely, but she didn’t actually realize that. Then, her father, a Baron, dies without leaving her anything at all and she is at the mercy of her cousin, Horace, who inherited. So, imagine her surprise and delight when she receives a bequest of a cottage by the sea and five-thousand pounds from someone she’s never heard of. She packs her belongings and she and her servant, Lucy Dibble, head to their new home. What they find is a shock. The cottage is much larger than Charity expected and is in a sad state of disrepair.

Colonel Lord Gilbert Narron has returned from the wars where he was wounded. His leg pains him horribly and he just needs a place where he can be alone and recuperate. So, he rents a seaside cottage and he and his servant, Sergeant Holly, set out. Finally, after many grueling days of traveling, he finally arrives at the cottage. As he enters the cottage he catches a glimpse of an intruder who is trying to cudgel him. He reacts automatically and punches the culprit. Yes, you guessed it – his attacker was a woman.

It takes Charity several days to recover enough to get out of bed – and by then, Gil has taken over the house, the repairs, hiring servants, etc. He even hired a companion to live with them and told everyone he was her cousin.

It is lovely to watch these two forge a truce and come to work together to solve a mystery. Then, of course, it is also lovely to see them grow to love each other.

I thought the Epilogue was the absolute best part of the book. I love the brothers bantering and seeing their lives several years down the road.

A Memorable Christmas Season by Kate Parker (one of my favorite authors)
I enjoyed this story of second chances, but I really wish it had been longer because a couple of things left me hanging. For instance – Susanna Dunley, Dowager Countess of Roekirk is supposed to be a very sympathetic character and she really is given all she’s been through. However, she had a chance at real love and turned it down. What left me hanging was that the story says she was ‘forced’ for marry Roekirk, however, there was no mention of how or why other than Will had nothing to offer. Say what! So, I liked the hero much more than I liked the heroine.

This story includes murder, a spymaster, blackmail and a traitor – Oh! My!

Will Marsden, newly minted Earl of Keyminster, came from nothing to have the King bestow an earldom on him for services rendered to the crown. Thirty years ago he was totally in love with Susanna only to have her turn him down and marry the Earl of Roekirk. Will was devastated and immediately chose to leave England as a spy and later a diplomat. He was totally surprised when he received an invitation to a Christmas Ball at the new Earl of Roekirk’s home.

When he arrives, it is to be drawn into hiding a body and possibly covering up a murder. Is Susanna a murderer? Will he protect her? Who is the dead man and why was he in Susanna’s home? Will Susanna and Will renew their love and finally get their HEA? You’ll just have to read the story to find out.

A Perfectly Unforgettable Christmas by Louisa Cornell
This was actually my favorite of the four stories!

Wounded in body and spirit during a drunken, midnight carriage race, Lucien Rollinsby, Viscount Debenwood wanted nothing but peace and quiet and to be left alone. Imagine his dismay when he awakens (at three in the afternoon) to the clanging of the gate next door – constantly back and forth accompanied by several loud thumps- and also the screeches of a querulous banshee.

Lady Caroline Chastleton McAlasdair, daughter of a Duke, is dismayed to see that the small, quiet, off-the-beaten-path home that she had asked her brother to find for her stay in London was actually in the middle of Mayfair. She wanted to be obscure so that she could be sure that her father would not learn of her stay in London. He is a selfish, hateful, uncaring, mean-spirited man and she wants nothing to do with him, after all, he forced her into an unwanted marriage when she was only fifteen.

Both Caroline and Lucien have some very deep and dark secrets. They can share those secrets and either ruin their budding relationship or find forgiveness and love. They have much to overcome and it is a lovely thing to watch them grow.

I loved all of the supporting characters in this story, but I particularly liked Lily, Caroline’s daughter. She is a real little hoyden and is delightful. Then, there is the long-suffering Redford, Lucien’s butler. The banter between Lucien and Redford is absolutely priceless

“I requested and received this e-book at no cost to me and volunteered to read it; my review is my honest opinion and given without any influence by the author or publisher.”

Christmas in Kilts by Various Authors

On By TracyIn Anthology, Christmas, Novella, Regency Era (1811-1820), Scottish/Highlander, Tracy's ReviewsLeave a comment

Christmas in KiltsChristmas in Kilts by Bronwen Evans
Tracy’s rating: 4 of 5 stars

Release Date: October 31, 2017

A very good anthology – all the novellas have a nice Christmas type theme and I enjoyed all the stories, some more than others.

A Highlander’s Hope by Terri Brisbin – 3 stars – Iain is a widower and finally ready to remarry after losing his beloved wife 5 years ago. The woman he has his heart set on is Robena, he knows their joining will not be easy and will cause talk, because Robena is a prostitute. He met her years ago when visiting Rob and Anice, they became lovers and friends. He knows she is the woman for him, despite their age difference and her unsavory past. Now all he has to do is convince her. Robena has not had an easy life and she knows her place, she loves Iain, but refuses his offer for several reasons, primarily because she is barren and so far beneath him in station. Can these two get a Christmas miracle?

A Highlander’s Christmas Wager by Lecia Cornwall – 4 stars – Caught in a snowstorm, Meggie and her grandmother take refuge at the last castle in Scotland that Meggie wants to see. Home of Magnus, the man she believed she loved and loved her, until he married another. Magnus is elated to welcome Meggie into his home, he has been widowed for months and Meggie is just what he needs. Along with Meggie, Magnus has two other guests staying due to the storm, his brother in law Charlie (whom he hopes to match with his sister) and a neighboring laird, Hugh (who is there at his clan’s urging to marry Magnus’ sister). When the three men spy Meggie, they make a wager as to who can claim her kiss first. This is a sweet story with two HEA’s and an appearance by the fearsome McLeod!!

A Scot for Christmas by Bronwen Evans – 4 stars – Dougray is a widower who has grieved for his late wife for 6 long years but is finally letting go of her memory to fulfill a promise to his father to help a neighboring clan. Dougray will marry Fiona, the laird’s daughter to help the clan financially, as he will not accept help in any other way. Emma has loved Dougray for years and was heartbroken when he married, resigned to a spinster’s life, she tags along with her brother to Dougray’s house party with a firm purpose – to taste the passion her spinster life will not allow. Dougray is shocked to see Emma, she has grown into quite the beauty in their years apart and he is unwillingly attracted to her. So when she asks him to be her lover, he knows he should refuse, but his desire outweighs his common sense. Terrified to love again, he was not prepared for Emma and after an incredible night together, he tells her that is the end. Not ready to let him go, Emma goes to confront him, but overhears him talking to his cousin about marrying Fiona. Heartbroken, she runs away before hearing him declare his desire to marry Emma instead. This novella was by far the steamiest of the five and boasts 3 HEA’s!

Leftover Mistletoe by Lavinia Kent – 4 ½ stars – Emma is having a bad day, her maid has run off with her luggage and left this pampered and sheltered Miss alone to fend for herself on the mail coach. Her only traveling companion is a scruffy looking drunk who is snoring. James Barran is not have a good day either, his horse was stolen forcing him to ride in the coach and slowing him down. Time is of the essence because he has a wedding to stop! But when the coach stops, Barran realizes something is amiss, the horses and the driver are long gone and he finds a note from his best friend Robert, telling him to take shelter in the cabin and he will rescue him, once he has wedded and bedded Barran’s sister. Emma twisted her ankle exiting the coach and is bewildered as to why this is happening. She doesn’t want to go with Barran to the cabin, but what choice does she have? When they reach the cabin and he learns who she is, Barran knows what must be done, and he tells Emma they will have to marry. The rest of the story is them getting to know each other and some amusing mishaps (thanks to Emma). By the end of the story, I really believed that they would be happy together.

Sweet Home Highlands by May McGoldrick – 5 stars – this was my favorite novella in the book, it is the story of Gregory Pennington and Freya Sutherland. Freya is guardian to her niece Ella, but since her grandfather’s death, Ella’s grandmother has been questioning whether Freya is capable of caring for her. She has demanded Freya attend her and prove her worthiness. To prove her stability, Freya has agreed to marry her father’s heir, thus proving Ella a home and a financially stable future. She is not happy about the marriage, but the cost it worth it if it means Ella will stay with her. Her discontent grows once she meets their escort, Penn. These two have an instant chemistry, they sizzle! But Penn is not sure how he feels and has plans, plans that do not include a wife and child. And Freya has made a promise and she must marry. With a little help from Ella, these two finally get a HEA.
I thought this was a really good collection and would be happy to recommend it.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that was provided to me by NetGalley and the publisher*