Month: June 2023

Lady in the Grove by Jane Charles

On By TracyIn Georgian Era (1714-1837), Historical Paranormal/Fantasy, Paranormal / Fantasy, Part of a Series, Regency Era (1811-1820), Tracy's ReviewsLeave a comment

Lady in the Grove (Magic & Mayhem #6)Lady in the Grove by Jane Charles

Tracy’s rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: Magic & Mystery, #1 / Magic & Mayhem, #6

Release Date: May 16, 2023

Orion Drakos, the second son of the Earl and Countess of Wharton, has returned to Nightshade Manor in Bocka Morrow to attend the wedding of his cousin Damon Norcott and Cordelia Vail. After the ceremony as he is speaking to Damon when he notices movement at the edge of the grove and sees Damon’s niece Nephele coming out of the wood and asks her what she was doing when she approaches them. Nephele tells him she was speaking to the lady in the grove – intrigued Orion convinces her to show him where she saw the lady and is astounded to learn that the grove extends passed the boxwoods, which he always believed was the edge of the grove. She shows him an opening in the hedge and they enter a clearing with a folly and he sees her, the most beautiful woman he has ever seen. She is upset by his presence and asks him to leave, when he doesn’t, she does. Orion can’t forget about her and even dreams of her. Determined to get answers, he returns day after day until he finds out that she is Nina Jourdain, the sister of Cassian, the French emigrant that was taken in by his aunt and uncle when he survived a shipwreck that killed his family. But in truth, Cassian saved Nina and begged the Dryads of the grove to save her life, they do but the price is high, Nina will live, but she can never leave the grove.

Orion falls hard for her, but Nina can’t let herself fall for him in return, she has led a quiet life and knows from experience that she cannot leave the grove, so how could she ever consider falling in love or having a family? But Orion isn’t about to give up, he doesn’t care if she can’t leave, he will stay! They seem to be at an impasse and she is firm in her refusal to marry him or even believe he loves her. But her choices are limited and none will give them a true HEA unless they can find a way for her to survive outside the grove, a feat that seems impossible even for a family of witches, or is it?

This was such a great story and I love returning to Bocka Morrow and the witches of Nightshade Manor as well as all the magical beings that reside there, kudos to Jane Charles (and many other authors) who has created this world and kept it going! In this story, I especially loved Orion’s determination to be with Nina and the addition of dryads (tree nymphs) and nereids (water nymphs). I did think the story dragged a bit in the middle, but the ending more than makes up for that! And I wish there had been a bit of heat in the love scenes and that the epilogue had more of their HEA. Overall this was a delightful read and I cannot wait for Pierce’s story!

*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.*

The Beast and the Bookseller by Eva Devon

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

The Beast and the BooksellerThe Beast and the Bookseller by Eva Devon

Tracy’s rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: Standalone Title

Release Date: June 5, 2023

Miss Elizabeth Sharpe is the only child of the owner of Sharpe and Son, a bookshop that opened in 1665 and that has been passed from father to son ever since. It has also boasted the patronage of the Dukes of Montrose for just as long. But now it appears that that connection may be coming to an end, as the Duke, a man who is known by all as a recluse, is coming to the shop in person to meet with Elizabeth’s father. This cannot be good and to make matters worse her father is not fit company for the duke, nor has he been for some time. Her father has taken the loss of Elizabeth’s mother and any hope for a son very hard, losing himself in drink and leaving the bookshop in Elizabeth’s hands. Elizabeth hopes that her father will see how capable she is and leave the shop to her, but if she cannot convince the duke to continue to give them his business, there will be no bookshop to inherit. Elizabeth is shocked to learn that the duke has not been receiving his weekly orders as she believed her father was performing that duty, the duke has demanded that Elizabeth perform the task herself or he will take his business elsewhere!

Garrett Edward Matthew Maximilian, the Duke of Montrose is annoyed that he had to interrupt his busy day to leave his home – something he rarely does – to visit his erstwhile bookseller. When Mr. Sharpe is nowhere to be found leaving his daughter to clean up the mess he made, Garrett is surprised by Elizabeth and instead of taking his business to another shop as he planned, he demands that Elizabeth take over the task of delivering his books from now on if she proves herself, he will continue to patronize the shop. Not only does she succeed in the task, but she also excels, and soon the two form an unlikely friendship. Garrett has a lot going on in his life, he is on the brink of avenging his mother, but the task takes him to a dark place and Elizabeth becomes a light in his life, keeping him sane and even happy. But when a well-meaning outing goes awry, their lives will change forever, but will their forever be happy??

This was a delightful Beauty and the Beast retelling with a dash of Pride and Prejudice thrown in for good measure. I loved Elizabeth and Garrett together, they have both known pain, yet they have reacted very differently to it. The story steadily unfolds and the reader is sucked into a tale filled with loss, books, new discoveries, changes, steamyish love scenes, great secondary characters, pain, and finally a very sweet declaration scene promising HEA. I was disappointed that there was no epilogue, because I really felt it was needed, considering the major changes they would both be dealing with, but overall it was an emotionally gripping story that was an enjoyable read.

*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.*