Month: May 2022

The Welsh Lord’s Convenient Bride by Lissa Morgan

On By TracyIn Medieval (1066-1540), Middle Ages / Medieval (476-1454), Tracy's ReviewsLeave a comment

The Welsh Lord's Convenient BrideThe Welsh Lord’s Convenient Bride by Lissa Morgan

Tracy’s rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Series: N/A

Release Date: May 24, 2022

Rhun ab Owain has been living abroad for years after a falling out with his father, but now he has learned his father is dead and he must return home to Castell y Lleuad in Wales to take his place as the lord and marry his enemy’s daughter. He will honor his father’s wishes, but he will never accept Eleanor de Vraille as his wife.

Eleanor is no more thrilled with the marriage than Rhun is, she is leaving the only home she has ever known to become the mistress of an ancient castle in a country where she is a stranger and doesn’t even speak the language. But she has no options and accepts her new life with dignity and tries her best to make her marriage work, too bad her husband refuses to make her his wife in truth and avoids her at every turn. But when Rhun is called by her father to fight against the Welsh uprising and he refuses and is branded a traitor, Eleanor surprises everyone by standing by him. Can they find love despite their forced union?

This was an interesting, slow-burn romance story by a new to me author, the writing was good, but the pace was not as smooth as I had hoped. The book starts out slow and doesn’t really pick up until nearly the end. The author drops a lot of things on the reader at the start without much information, answers do come, but for most of the book, I was left wondering why he hated her family, why he limped, why she thought she was deformed, etc. The book has a classic enemies-to-lovers trope, as well as lots of secrets, betrayal, shame, guilt, mild love scenes, wonderful secondary characters, a slow-burn romance, and finally a HEA complete with an epilogue. I did like the book, but I wish the pace was a bit faster and that the author had provided a glossary of Welsh terms/phrases that she used. But I also appreciated setting the book in Wales and thought Rhun and Eleanor were likable characters who deserved their HEA. This was my first book by this author and despite the hiccups in this story, I liked the story and will be looking out for her future work!

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher. All opinions in this review are my own.*

Dukes Do It Better by Bethany Bennett

On By TracyIn Georgian Era (1714-1837), Part of a Series, Tracy's ReviewsLeave a comment

Dukes Do It Better (Misfits of Mayfair, #3)Dukes Do It Better by Bethany Bennett

Tracy’s rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: Misfits of Mayfair, #3

Release Date: May 24, 2022

Captain Malachi “Mal” Harlow, and now the Duke of Trenton is livid, if it wasn’t bad enough that his late father interfered with his Naval career, now his mother has apparently blackmailed the Admiralty to force him back to London. When his attempts to regain his command once again fall on deaf ears, he decides to take a stroll in the park and it appears as if fate has decided to smile on him by reuniting him with the lovely widow he shared a night of passion with months ago and whom he hasn’t been able to forget.

Lady Emma Hardwick, the widow of “Adam” Hardwick and sister to the Marquess of Eastly and most importantly mother to Alton, has come to London to visit her brother and his family. She isn’t interested in remarrying and has no desire to spend more time than necessary in town, but when she reconnects with Mal and learns he will be in town for the next few weeks, she decides to give in to her family and stay for the season, and as a bonus, she and Mal agree to embark on an affair while they are both in town.

For a time, things are going exactly as planned and they discover their mutual connections, which only enhance their relationship, causing them to not only enjoy their time together and maybe even has them falling in love. But each of them is dealing with things that they are not willing to share with the other and while their attraction and admiration for each other comes easily, trust does not. Will they be able to work together to uncover the forces working against them or will a perceived betrayal keep them apart?

This was a well-written, fast-paced story, but it is also a very busy book, with A LOT of things going on and multiple storylines seemingly intersecting willy-nilly, but, if you have been following the series from the beginning, you will eventually come to appreciate all the random goings, as everything (and I do mean everything) comes around full circle. And if you believe in “fated love”, then Mal and Emma are perfect examples of that phenomenon! The book is filled with secrets, lies, steamy love scenes, baby goats, a tattooed piratical hero, a biscuit baking heroine, great secondary characters, treasure, misunderstandings, more steamy love scenes, a desperate former lover, a sweet secondary romance, and a HEA complete with an epilogue. I did enjoy the book, but if like me you cringe when formal address is butchered, prepare to cringe a lot – other than that, the book is a fun, fast read that really ties all the books together nicely. This is the third book in the series and I would strongly recommend reading the books in order to completely understand and enjoy this book.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher. All opinions in this review are my own.*

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