Month: February 2025

Never Gamble Your Heart by Lindsay Lovise

On By TracyIn Part of a Series, Top Pick - Highly Recommended, Tracy's Reviews, Victorian Era (1837-1901)1 Comment

Never Gamble Your Heart (Secret Society of Governess Spies, #2)Never Gamble Your Heart by Lindsay Lovise

Tracy’s Rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: The Secret Society of Governess Spies, #2

Release Date: February 4, 2025

After four failed seasons and the death of her father, Francis “Frankie” Turner, became a governess to help support her family. But when her younger sister goes missing, Frankie is desperate to find her and makes a deal with “The Dove” the mysterious owner of Perdita’s Governess Agency. She will help the Dove solve the mystery of several young women who have large dowries and have been labeled as “troublemakers” due to their outspokenness, who have been forced into marriage by being compromised by noblemen in need of funds. The Dove is sure there is a connection between the grooms, whom she calls the “Dowry Thieves” and Jasper Jones, the rakish owner of Rockford’s Gaming Den. Frankie will be placed in his household as a governess to his orphaned niece, Cecila. Frankie is a brilliant mathematician, but not the best spy and when she is caught by Jasper inspecting his ledgers, she knows he is not part of the Dowry Thieves and convinces him to help her find them by pretending to give her a huge dowry to lure the group into trying to compromise her. It seems like the perfect plan, until they fall in love and become targets for the masterminds of the Dowry Thieves.

Jasper Jones is the son of a fishmonger and grew up on the docks, but he learned early that he had a talent for gambling and used that talent to build a fortune and become the owner of the incredibly successful Rockford’s Gaming Den. When his brother dies unexpectedly, Jasper becomes the guardian of his 15-year-old niece, and he begins to question his current lifestyle. When he meets Frankie, he is intrigued and attracted to the unusual young woman, which means she needs to leave. But when Perdita’s tells him they can’t send a replacement for at least two weeks, he resigns himself to her presence in his home and tries to avoid her. But when he catches her in his study with his ledger, the truth of her placement in his home becomes clear and he is pulled into her scheme to bring down the Dowry Thieves, and when the men of the ton finally see what he has seen since he met her, he experiences jealousy for the first time in his life and decides that she will be his! And when she gets too close the truth and attempts are made on her life, he needs to help her find the mastermind of the Dowry Thieves before she is silenced for good.

This was another wonderful addition to the series, with wonderful characters and another intriguing mystery to solve! I loved Frankie and Jasper; they both believe they are not worthy of love, and each have their own insecurities. This story is filled with witty banter, wonderful characters, an incorrigible scheming teenager, a brilliant heroine, a cinnamon roll hero with a rakish reputation, steamyish love scenes, murder, truly evil villains, reunions, a beautiful declaration scene and finally a HEA with an epilogue that sets up the next book very nicely. I loved this story, and I am happy to recommend it to anyone who likes a bit of mystery woven into their romance. This is the second book in the series, but it can easily be read as a standalone title.

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

The Accidental Countess by Jess Michaels

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

The Accidental Countess (About An Earl #3)The Accidental Countess by Jess Michaels

My Rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Series: About An Earl, #3

Release Date: February 4, 2025

Clarissa Lockhart was raised to be a perfect lady, but after 3 three seasons she is still unwed, and her parents are growing impatient. They arrange a house party hoping to find a husband for her who will elevate them socially and support them financially. Clarissa is resigned, she knows it is her duty to honor her parents and to marry well, love is not something she expects or even desires, as strong emotions are not ladylike. In an effort to please her parents, Clarissa has always acted as expected and is a slave to proper etiquette, so when her rakish cousin George, Viscount Lockhart arrives at the house party with an uninvited guest in tow, she is annoyed, but much too polite to say anything to George’s friend and fellow rake, Roderick Stratford, the Earl of Kirkwood. She goes out of her way to avoid him, but he is not content to have her ignore him, which leads to them being caught in a compromising situation by her parents and they are forced to wed. Clarissa begins to fall for her husband but still holds tightly to her perfect comportment and still bends to her parents’ wishes. Can she let go of her rigid control and believe that she is worthy of love, or will she hold tight to old habits and forfeit the love of a lifetime?

Roderick Stratford, the Earl of Kirkwood, is a rake, but unlike other rakes, he actually believes in true love and is sure that one day he will find the love of his life. He thinks that when he meets the right woman it will be like a bolt of lightning, and he will know immediately that she is “the one”. So far, he hasn’t made that connection and when he is caught with Clarrisa, he believes that he has lost his chance at true love but plans to make the best of this forced union. The more time they spend together, the more he wants to make her happy and tries to help her relax a bit and see her own worth. He likes her and can’t deny his attraction to Clarissa or their compatibility in bed, but will that be enough or will he too learn to change the thinking of a lifetime and find love?

This was a delightful read with very likable characters and fresh plotlines. I liked Clarissa and Roderick, they each have ideals that they have nurtured all their lives and will each have to come to the realization those ideals may not be as absolute as they believed and that given a chance, love will find a way. Overall, this was a good read, with wonderful characters, cameos from previous characters, steamyish love scenes, a truly sigh worthy hero and a sweet heroine, great secondary characters, a forced marriage and finally a happy ending complete with an epilogue. This is the third book in the series, but it could easily be read as a standalone title without any problems. If you are looking for a steamyish historical romance with a storyline that is anything but run of the mill – look no further, you’ve found it!

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