Month: November 2019

Weathering Captain Storm by Jane Charles

On By TracyIn Georgian Era (1714-1837), Novella, Regency Era (1811-1820), Tracy's ReviewsLeave a comment

Weathering Captain StormWeathering Captain Storm by Jane Charles
Tracy’s rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Series: Spirited Storms, #2

Release Date: June 16, 2016

Nathaniel Storm first met Isabella Valentine after being injured on campaign. He was instantly smitten with her but kept his distance because he believed she was married, but by the time he learned she was the sister to Dr. Valentine and not his wife, he was sent away. In the meantime, Nate befriended another woman, Mary Soares, she was married to Major Soares, a man who treated her poorly, Nate would defend her and spend time with her, and ultimately was sent away after an altercation with the Major. He worried for Mary, but his biggest regret was not trying to court Isabella.

Isabella was just as smitten with Nate as he was with her, but she was sure he was in love with Mary. She kept her feeling to herself and was more than a little heartbroken when he was reassigned. She never expected to see him again, but a year later when Napoleon escapes Elba and the fighting begins again, they are reunited in Brussels.

This time Nate is not going to let the chance to woo Isabella pass him by and after they finally clear up the misunderstanding about Mary and their feelings, it seems like the HEA Nate imagined could come true. The night of the Duchess of Richmond’s ball, Nate confesses his feelings, kisses her and asks her to wait for him. She returns his kiss and sends him off believing she will be waiting when the fighting is done.

But Isabella has not intention of waiting for Nate, she does love him, but she has a secret that she is sure will cost her his love, so when the fighting is done, she tells him to leave her alone and refuses to talk to him. Nate is hurt and confused by her sudden change of heart and thinks it is the grief of losing her younger brother in battle. He plans to give her some time to mourn and then try to talk to her again – but she disappears.

It will be two long years before they meet again and this time Nate will not quietly accept her rejection, he had tried to stop loving her and move on, but he can’t, especially once he learned that Isabella is not who she says she is. For her part, Isabella has never stopped loving Nate, but is sure her secret will make him hate her, so she at first avoids him and then refuses to see him. It doesn’t seem like they will ever be together, but the timely intervention of her brother, may give them a second chance at happiness.

This was a well written novella, with wonderful characters and quite a bit of heartache. I loved Nate and my heart just broke for him when Isabella rejects him. But as far as Isabella is concerned, I didn’t feel like her reasoning for rejecting him made any sense and her continued refusal to see him in London dragged on way too long. Overall, I thought this was a sweet story, I was delighted for Mary, and I especially liked seeing characters from other novellas/series living their HEAs. This novella is part of a series, but it can easily be read as a standalone title with no problems.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eBook that was provide to me.*

The Beast of Beswick by Amalie Howard

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

The Beast of BeswickBarbara’s rating: 2.5/3 of 5 stars

Series: Standalone
Publication Date: 11/26/19
Number of Pages: 384

Well, I’m not sure how to write this review. I liked the basic story and the writing was good, but it just was not a Regency story. Nothing in it was period correct – and I think I really do mean nothing – not even the basic stuff. All of it was anachronistic. It is also a very, very modern tale with modern language, modern ideas, modern – well everything. I’m not sure I understand why an author would choose to write a period story and then ignore the research to get it right. So, I guess my bottom line is – the basic story is nice and if you don’t mind all of the inaccuracies, then you will enjoy the read.

I also think that the author went way over-the-top with making the heroine a strong, intelligent woman. She was actually a superwoman. She had every skill known to man (or woman). I assume that is why she was always arguing with the hero – in order to showcase all of her skills and talents. She is an expert on the exact type of porcelain the hero needs to have cataloged, she is an expert horse trainer, she swims like a fish, she isn’t fond of ‘feminine’ things like embroidery, she (and everybody else) cusses like a sailor, she can write, etc. She has absolutely every talent/skill/attribute that we, in today’s world, would consider being a strong independent woman. I think it would have been better to pick one or two attributes and focus on those instead of using the shotgun effect. It would have been really easy to dislike her – and, in the real world, I probably would have disliked her.

I really liked Thane. He was horribly, horribly injured in the Napoleonic wars and came home a very angry, very reclusive man. The description of his injuries and what caused them drew me out of the story. I just can’t picture it. I picture this man in the center of a large circle of men with bayonets and they are all poking him with the bayonets. Had they been sword slashes or something I could picture it – but not bayonets. Anyway – I digress. Thane is horribly disfigured and even before that he had an unhappy life – his father was cold and disapproving and, evidently, his older brother was as well. By the time Astrid appeared on his door, he had managed to drive most of his friends away and most of his servants as well. So, he was lonely and angry.

I loved his Aunt Mable – she was priceless. Totally anachronistic, but priceless. She was bright and funny – and very risqué. She, along with the valet and butler, add a bit of lightheartedness to the story.

There were some plot points that just didn’t make sense to me – for instance – he just, out of the blue, decides to give Astrid some land and buildings to open a school. Why? She’d never mentioned any desire to open a school – and that is the only mention of it. It was just left hanging.

Even given the above, I did enjoy the actual story itself. I liked Thane and enjoyed seeing him learn that he could have love and a family in his life. I even liked Astrid because, even though she was annoying, she was still vulnerable, and that humanized her a bit.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.