Author: Barbara

Avid reader/reviewer of historical romance and historical mysteries.

Rogue For Hire by Sasha Cottman

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, Georgian Era (1714-1837), Novella, Regency Era (1811-1820)Leave a comment
Book cover for Rogue for Hire (Rogues of the Road Book 1) by Sasha Cottman
  • Series: Rogues of the Road #1
  • Publication Date: 2/1/21
  • Number of Pages: Novella

Lord Harry Steele is the fourth son of the Duke of Redditch.  Harry is definitely a free-wheeling, young man who follows none of the social norms.  He’s flamboyant, outrageous, as well as kicked out of the family home and cut off without a farthing to support himself.  In the year since his father kicked him out, he has started his own business.  Now, instead of always causing scandals, he is managing scandals for others.  There was no way he could have kept his sanity and gone into a job as a soldier, clergyman, etc. as his father wanted.  Along with managing scandals, he and his friends, known as Rogues of the Road, have started a coaching enterprise – which works really well as a cover for their more questionable enterprises.

Alice North is an heiress, the daughter of a man who was very big in trade.  He could buy any member of the ton several times over and still have pocket change.  In other words, he was very rich.  Her father’s wealth is the reason she has to seek out someone to manage a potentially scandalous situation in her family.  Her younger sister, Patience, is besotted with a man Alice is sure is a fortune hunter.  He’s slick, ingratiating, and sly.  That is how Alice finds herself employing Lord Harry Steele to extricate them from the clutches of Cuthbert Saint.

Harry and Alice are immediately attracted to each other, but she is … well, she knows his reputation.  Harry does the most outrageous things (even by today’s standards) and he leads her into some really low-life places.  Yet, she finds them titillating rather than offensive. 

It seems that I have a love/hate relationship with books written by this author.  I love the idea of the stories and they are well plotted.  They are also filled with anachronisms and period incorrectness (is that a word?).  Basically, it is a very contemporary story that just happens to have a carriage and a chemise thrown in.  In this novella, I couldn’t even begin to guess the correct period in which the story is set.  Somewhere a date would have been a welcome addition.  The heroine wore dresses that buttoned down the front and the hero wore trousers with a button placket rather than a fall-front.  So, definitely later than Regency.  However, the hero is starting up a new coaching line – which doesn’t seem to be a very good business decision with train travel on the way not too long after the Regency period.  Anyway, things like this may not bother you in the least, but they make me crazy.  If this doesn’t bother you, you’ll probably love the story. I might have the periods all muddled up, but I would like to know which period I’m reading.

I found myself remarkably ambivalent about both Harry and Alice.  I didn’t really love them, but I didn’t hate them either.  I think I just never came to care about them as people or as a couple.  My favorite character was actually Patience, and I would have loved more page time with her.

My bottom-line is – I mostly enjoyed the read, but I would not read it again.  The other friends in Harry’s Rogues of the Road sound much more interesting than Harry and I’ll look forward to seeing how things go for them.

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

Mrs. Jeffries Demands Justice by Emily Brightwell

On By BarbaraIn OtherLeave a comment

Mrs. Jeffries Demands Justice (Mrs. Jeffries #39)Barbara’s rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: Mrs. Jeffries #39
Publication: 1/26/21
Number of Pages: 304

Thirty-Nine books into the series and I’m still loving it. The characters are as fresh and delightful today as they were in the first book. There is always a serious mystery to solve, but it is done with wit and charm galore. I always look forward to each new book because of its warmth, it’s family feel – all of the characters have the utmost respect and care for each other despite the differences in their stations in life. Each book is a delightful addition to the series, but you can also read each book as a standalone should you wish to do so – but you would be missing the character and relationship growth that has occurred in the previous books.

Inspector Nigel Nivens is in serious trouble – very serious trouble. If you’ve read the previous books, you know what a despicable piece of work he is. Now, there has been a heinous murder, and all of the evidence points to Nivens being the perpetrator. Nivens detests Inspector Witherspoon, yet now, not only his career but his life is in Witherspoon’s hands. LOVE IT!

Inspector Witherspoon is called into the Chief’s office and told that he has a new case. The case isn’t out of his station, but Witherspoon is being assigned nonetheless. There has been a murder in the East End and all of the evidence points to Nigel Nivens being the murderer. The overhead folks at Scotland Yard wouldn’t mind throwing the book at Nivens and getting rid of him, but they know they have to give the investigation every appearance of fairness. That is why they assign the case to Witherspoon – the most respected Inspector on the force.

Witherspoon doesn’t like Nivens, but he doesn’t believe he is capable of murder. However, the evidence is pretty clear. In Witherspoon’s view, the only way to conduct the investigation is to be unbiased and to start fresh and look at ALL of the clues, not just the obvious ones. As he investigates, he learns that there are many, many, many people who have reasons to want the victim dead.

I love that Inspector Witherspoon has an ‘unknown to him’ support team consisting of his housekeeper, maid, cook, coachman, and several interested friends who are helping him behind the scenes. I love how they quietly feed him the clues they have found without him even being aware that they’ve done it. That ‘support team’ has absolutely no love for Nivens because of the way he’s treated Witherspoon in the past, but they also don’t believe he’s guilty. They’ll help their inspector solve the crime no matter which way it goes.

I loved this book and enjoyed reading every word of it. I love the characters and the whole ‘family’ feel it has. I hope you’ll read this book, and this series, and that you’ll love it as much as I do. I even like that this book has departed from its norm and leaves a bit of a cliff-hanger for the end. I feel a set-up for a future story there 🙂

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