Month: August 2023

While You Were Spying by Shana Galen

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, Part of a Series, Re-Release / Updated Edition, Regency Era (1811-1820)Leave a comment

While You Were Spying (Regency Spies, #0.5)

Barbara’s rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
Series: Regency Spies
Period: Regency
Number of Pages: 358

Can two individuals who have been deeply hurt by love find the strength to remove their walls and allow love to happen again? You bet they can when Shana Galen is in the writer’s chair. This book is one of Galen’s earlier releases, but it has been dressed up with an enticing new cover. It has a lovely romance along with smuggling, traitors, spies, murder, and, did I say lovely romance?

Ethan Caxton, the Marquess of Winterbourne, will never fall in love with any woman. He tried that once, and she ripped his heart out and stomped on it. He’ll never give another woman a chance to do that to him again because he’d never survive it. He’ll just spend his time working for the Foreign Office and ferreting out traitors and French spies. French spies are what brought him to Hampshire, and he is determined to catch both the smugglers and their leader. That leader just has to be a man of power and influence, most likely an aristocrat. Ethan has been watching the Skerrit farm for days because he’s sure the arms are being stored there – somewhere, somehow. So, he’s beside himself when he catches a young woman trying to rescue an abused horse from Skerrit. He has to get her out of there, but she won’t budge without the horse. Grrrrr.

Miss Francesca Dashing had been betrothed once and that was quite enough for her thank you very much. She’d just continue to live with her parents in the country and save all the sick and injured animals she could find. Her father always acquiesces and lets her add one more animal to their collection at home. At least he did until she brought home a horse she’d just rescued. That, it seemed, was a step too far. But, what was she to do? If that pesky Marquess had just gone on about his business and left her alone, she would have managed just fine. Wasn’t humiliating her in London enough for him?

Ethan has gone on about his business of catching smugglers – and trying to forget that fetching Miss who only wanted to save a horse. But when he learns Francesca has been viciously attacked – not long after a vicious murder occurred – he’s convinced both crimes are related to the smugglers. Ethan will just have to find a way to protect Francesca and guard against any damage to his heart.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and hope you will as well. There is a nasty villain, an entertaining valet, an irate father, a mother who espouses all things Italian, and two deeply wounded people who put on a good front for the rest of the world to see. It was lovely to watch as each of them assaulted the walls built by the other. Will they succeed in tearing down the walls? You’ll just need to read the book to see.

View all my reviews

The Highlander’s Kilted Bride by Vanessa Kelly

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

The Highlander's Kilted Bride (Clan Kendrick #6)The Highlander’s Kilted Bride by Vanessa Kelly

Tracy’s rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: Clan Kendrick, #6

Release Date: August 22, 2023

Charlotte Stewart was never a typical girl, at eleven she could out-ride, out-shoot, and out-hunt most boys, she wore a kilt and was called Charlie by most people. She never really cared about being a “proper girl” or thought about boys as anything more than playmates, until she met thirteen-year-old Kade Kendrick. It was a meeting that is forever etched in her memory and the day she fell in love with Kade and the violin. Now years later they meet again and to her complete mortification, he doesn’t even remember who she is. But that is about to change and if she is willing to risk her heart and can get rid of the suitor her parents are set on, Charlie’s life will never be the same.

Kade Kendrick was a sickly child and found solace in music, as he grew stronger, he outgrew his childhood ailments and became a world-renowned musician. But eventually, the shine wore off his fame and he dabbled in spying for the crown, but that did not work out and almost cost him his life. So he is back home to recuperate and finds himself roped into attending a wedding, where apparently his sister-in-law Ainsely has promised he will perform! He is intrigued by Charlie from the start and can’t believe he didn’t remember their first meeting right away. But when a family heirloom goes missing, he will have his chance to renew his friendship with her and maybe even convince her that when a Kendrick finds his true love, it is forever.

This was a fun read with a mystery woven into the romance. Kade and Charlie are very well-matched and have a wonderful chemistry. Charlie did suffer from a bit of insecurity and Kade seemed to fall in love a bit too fast, but I did love them together and enjoyed their banter. The story has a lot of secondary characters, a decent mystery, unwanted suitors, Angus being Angus, curses, accidents, phantom fiddlers, stolen heirlooms, stolen kisses, insecurities, and finally a HEA including an epilogue. I enjoyed this story and thought it was a nice ending to the series, but I was hoping for a glimpse into everyone’s HEAs in the epilogue and didn’t really get that, but overall this was a very good read and I would happily recommend it. I think it could be read as a standalone title, but I would suggest reading the series in order for the best reader experience.

*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.*