Author: Barbara

Avid reader/reviewer of historical romance and historical mysteries.

Rotten To The Core by T.E. Kinsey

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, George V - 1910- 1936, Historical Mystery, Part of a SeriesLeave a comment

Rotten To The Core (Lady Hardcastle Mystery #8)Barbara’s rating: 4.5 of 5 Stars
Series: Lady Hardcastle Mysteries #8
Publication Date: 6/7/22
Period: 1911 – Littleton Cotterell, UK
Number of Pages: 333

This delightfully entertaining, witty, and well-written series just keeps getting better and better! This latest installment brings us a mysterious ‘secret’ society that does good works (or do they?); victims who are likable, but certainly have secrets; past murders to solve; and some pretty nasty villains, Our usual cast of funny and entertaining characters are out in full force as is our intrepid former spies turned investigators – Lady Hardcastle and her lady’s maid, Flo. If you are looking for a refreshingly entertaining read, this is the one for you!

With the unseasonably hot weather bringing on an early apple harvest, the villagers are tickled to have an early cider festival. Everyone is busily planning events and all of them are centered around apples and cider – from food on the square to the secretive rituals of the Weryers. Those Weryers are an ancient group with darker roots than the current participants utilize. They do good works, support charities, and generally help the areas. But, maybe those dark roots haven’t completely disappeared – because one of them is found murdered in his apple orchard. Then in a matter of days, two more Weryers are also found murdered.

Who in the world could have it in for the Weryers who do nothing except help residents of the area? Could it be another Weryer who wants to move up within the organization? Could it be the stranger who is visiting the village? Does it have anything at all to do with a murder that happened twenty years ago?

As always, the constabulary turns to Lady Hardcastle and Flo to help solve the case. Will they solve the case or become victims themselves? This villain doesn’t care how many bodies there are as long as he doesn’t get caught, so a couple of amateur sleuths wouldn’t bother him in the least.

I can highly recommend this book and this series. I love the lively banter between Lady Hardcastle and Flo as well as all of the antics they get up to. When you add the locals into the mix, you have a wonderfully entertaining read. I’m already counting the days until the next release!

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The Honor of an Heir by Linda Rae Sande

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, Part of a Series, Victorian Era (1837-1901)Leave a comment

The Honor of an Heir (The Heirs of the Aristocracy Book 7)Barbara’s rating: 4.5 of 5 Stars
Series: The Heirs of the Aristocracy #7
Publication Date: 6/17/22
Period: Victorian London – 1839
Number of Pages: 330

Oh! You can’t help but love this witty, entertaining romance featuring more twins than you can count. Oh! Oh! 😊 This author’s stories are always fun to read because the stories are entertaining and the characters are so very likable. While we always get two romances in each book, this one is special because the two romances are between two sets of identical twins. WOOT! Oh! Did I also mention there is a ghost? Yep, and you’ll love him.

Andrew Comber and his twin brother Anthony are in trouble – big trouble. They are the heir and spare to the Aimsley earldom – and they’ve just been expelled from Cambridge. They have never, ever, taken advantage of being identical before – and this one time when they did, they were caught. Though the professor understood, the dean did not. Now, home in disgrace, they have heard their father’s punishment and it is a harsh one. Their allowances have been stopped immediately and they must both wed this season.

Dahlia and Diana Fitzwilliam are the identical twin daughters of the Earl of Norwich and much to their parents’ chagrin, they have decided they will not marry. It isn’t that they have anything against marriage or men, their objection is to the duties of the marriage bed. Oh!

When Andrew and Anthony decide that Dahlia and Diana are the women for them, they set out with determination – and the help of the girl’s dead father – to woo and wed the ladies. While there aren’t a lot of pitfalls along the way, the advice and candid ‘chats’ with the ghost could certainly go awry.

You’ll love the cameo appearances – mostly in name only – by the characters from previous books. While the Comber and Fitzwilliam families are a bit unconventional in their discussions, you’ll find them delightfully refreshing – and a whole lot of fun.

I can definitely recommend this book and I hope you’ll enjoy reading it as much as I did. The only reason I didn’t give it 5 stars outright is the nonchalant way the girls accepted learning that the man they thought was their father was actually their uncle. Also, I thought the boys accepted their fate a bit too easily. No push back – no exploring other options before bowing to their father’s wishes.

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

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