Month: December 2022

How to Win a Wallflower by Samara Parish

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

How to Win a Wallflower (Rebels with a Cause, #3)How to Win a Wallflower by Samara Parish

Tracy’s rating: 3.5/4 of 5 stars

Series: Rebels with a Cause, #3

Release Date: December 13, 2022

After living and working in America for years, John Barnesworth is back in England, but not by choice. His older brother Walter, who was unmarried, has died, making John the new Viscount Harrow. John has no desire to stay in England, he plans to quickly set the estate to rights and return to Boston, but that was before he learned his brother has bankrupted the estate, leaving a mountain of debt and the pièce de résistance – he signed a betrothal contract for the “Viscount Harrow” to marry Lady Luella, harpy of the first order. And if all this wasn’t bad enough – he finds himself attracted to his best friend, Edward the Duke of Wildeford’s little sister, Lady Charlotte Stirling, AND being warned off by the aforementioned duke. John has no idea how he is going to fix this mess, but one thing he knows for sure, there is no way he is going to marry Lady Luella.

Lady Charlotte has turned down at least twenty proposals over the last four years, not because she doesn’t want to marry, but because she hasn’t found the right man, which might be because he was living in America. Charlotte had had a secret tender for John for many years and was a bit heartbroken when he left England. But now he is back and even though her brother is telling her that John is not right for her and that she won’t be happy with the shy inventor, she can’t stop wanting him. When she learns that he may have to marry her nemesis, Lady Luella to save the estate, she hatches a plan that will enable him to pay off the debts without having to marry, unless he wants to (hint, hint) and it will also enable her to save her other brother, William out of a bind. She shares her idea with John, who is resistant at first, but then agrees to give it a try, and even though they are complete opposites; she is a social butterfly and he is happiest alone, they have a chemistry that cannot be denied and together they make an unbeatable team. But just when it seems like all their problems are about to be solved and HEA is within their reach, everything starts to fall apart and their love will be put to the test.

This was an interesting read that uses some tried and true tropes like opposites attract and forbidden love. John and Charlotte are very relatable and easy to like, making it almost impossible not to root for them in their quest for HEA. The book has a lot going on; secrets, lies, drug/alcohol addictions, characters with self-esteem issues, questionable choices, warm love scenes, nail-biting moments, surprises, shocks, and a comedy of errors leading to a HEA. It was a good read, but frankly, it seemed a bit too much at times, especially at the end when it really started to unravel – seriously, it was over the top. But, despite the ending, I did enjoy the story and would definitely recommend it. This is the third book in the series, but you could easily read it as a standalone title.

*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.*

Devil’s Delight by M.C. Beaton

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, Contemporary, Mystery, Part of a SeriesLeave a comment

Devil’s Delight (Agatha Raisin, #33)Barbara’s rating: 4 of 5 Stars
Series: Agatha Raisin #33
Publication Date: 10/27/22
Period: Contemporary – Cotswolds
Number of Pages: 256

I’m not sure what adjectives to use to describe Agatha Raisin. She is obsessed with how she looks – hair, makeup, fashion. She definitely has anger management issues. Also, if she were a man, I would describe her as a womanizer – what is the female equivalent of that? She cannot maintain a close ongoing relationship with any man, yet she never quite lets go of them either. I really disliked her in the earlier books and wasn’t going to read any more in the series – but – things change. M.C. Beaton passed away and someone else is now writing the books, so I wondered if I would like her any better. While I didn’t come to like her in this book, she did seem a tad more vulnerable – softer – so she was more tolerable. I enjoyed the mysteries in the book – I think there were three of them and each of them was well presented – but you sort of knew who the culprits were before the case was solved. However, it was nice to see how Agatha and her team solved them – and proved them with evidence.

The first mystery involved thefts at a plant. The thefts were getting bigger and bigger and there seemed to be no clues. Cameras weren’t picking up anyone at the plant when they weren’t supposed to be. What use could anyone have for those particular items? Is it an inside job? How could anyone remove those bulky items without being noticed? Simon Black, a twenty-something with strange looks was assigned to solve the case – can he do it?

The second mystery is to be solved by Patrick Mulligan, a retired police officer. Patrick needs to discover how drugs are getting into a very prestigious girl’s boarding school. How can he solve a drug problem at a school with all female students and almost no male staff? He’ll need someone inside the school. Who can he recruit? Certainly not a sixteen-year-old girl.

The primary mystery begins with a naked young man running down the road as fast as he can go. Yep – a good start, right? The young man, Edward Carstairs, is a member of the Mircrester Naturist Society (nudists), and he has just found a dead body. He manages to stop Agatha and Toni’s car and convince them to help him, but when they arrive at the monolithic stone known as the Lone Warrior, there is no body to be found. Agatha believes the tale the young man tells – but with no body and no signs of any crime, the police can’t/won’t help. Agatha is determined to find out what happened to the body and who murdered whoever it was. That determination drags Agatha and Toni into many strange goings on within the Naturist Society and outside of it. You’ll know who is guilty early on, but you won’t be sure – and you’ll wonder how Agatha will ever manage to prove it. When danger comes to both Agatha and Toni – and more murders are unveiled – it becomes a twisted tale indeed.

Nestled within the investigations are the tales of Agatha’s romantic life. She struggles with relationships with former lovers and husbands – and even brings a couple of new men into her wake. Will she ever make a mature decision about any of these men? Honestly, she reminds me of a fourteen-year-old girl with crush after crush, but no staying power.

In spite of my feelings about Agatha, I gave this book a 4-star rating because the mystery is excellent. Should you require a deep, meaningful romance in your mysteries, you won’t find this book or this series to your liking – but if shallow romance and bed play is good for you, you’ll like both the series and the book.

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

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