American Historical – Page 7 – Flippin' Pages Book Reviews

Sleeping with the Enemy by Jackie Barbosa

Tracy’s rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: Lords of Lancashire, #4

Release Date: Septemeber 15, 2020

The last thing American widow Laura Farnsworth expects to find in the shrubs on the side of the is a new love, but that is exactly what she finds! Laura and her son Daniel are traveling back to their farm when she spots a man in red in the brush, they stop to help and think he is dead – but shockingly he is alive, and though he is weak and clearly English, she takes him home with her and hopes he survives.

It is days before Lt. Col. Geoffrey Langston (brother to Viscount Langston) and currently stationed in Fort York wakes in shock to learn the battle is over and he was found on the American side of the battlefield! Geoffrey cannot remember what happened to him and isn’t even sure if he was in the battle – his last memory is the day before the battle. He plans to turn himself over to the Americans as a POW, but promises to help Laura with the apple harvest as a thank you for helping him recover. But soon two things happen that will change everything – first he learns that a traitor tipped off the Americans and he is not sure how that pertains to him, but it would seem that he was caught out by the traitor and almost killed, so returning to Fort York would be dangerous without his memory and surrendering to the Americans will mean the traitor goes free. The second thing is he and Laura fall in love and marry. He is sure that by now the army has deemed him missing and presumed dead and wonders if that might just be for the best.

When word reaches his family in England, they refuse to believe he is dead and a close friend to the family (his sister’s brother-in-law) Thomas and his wife Sabine travel to Canada and then New York to search for him. They find him, but unwittingly lead the army right to him and he is arrested for treason. He will be taken back to England to stand trial – but Laura isn’t about to lose another husband and insists on going with him. Can they clear his name and have a HEA or will the traitor finally succeed in killing him?

I really enjoyed this book, it is well written, face paced and definitely not your run-of-the-mill Historical Romance. The book has so much going on and none of it will happen in London ballrooms, it is set primarily in northern New York and London. The book is filled with intrigue, treason, betrayal, a hero with amnesia, cameos from the other Langston siblings and their families, steamy love scenes, twists and turns, surprises and finally a wonderful ending complete with an epilogue. This is the fourth book in the series, but it is easily read as a standalone title. I am happy to recommend this book and hope you love it as much as I did!

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that was provided to me by NetGalley and the publisher.*

The Devil of Downtown by Joanna Shupe

Tracy’s rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: Uptown Girls, #3

Release Date: June 30, 2020

Justine Greene is the youngest of the Greene sisters and compared to her vivacious sisters, she appears to be a little dull – but as they say – looks can be deceiving! Unlike her sisters in both looks and temperament, Justine spends her days helping the poor and forgotten of NYC. She also helps out with her brother-in-law Frank Tripp’s legal aid society – tracking down missing husbands. It is on such a case that she meets Jack Mulligan – the city’s biggest crime lord. After weeks of looking for Robert Gorcey who left his wife and five children without a word, she learns that he works for Jack and hopes to gain his help in getting Mr. Gorcey to take care of his responsibilities! Jack agrees, but wants a favor in exchange and won’t lift a finger to help unless she agrees.

Jack Mulligan was born with nothing and fought his way to the top, he is powerful and feared, but Justine Greene doesn’t appear to be impressed – which intrigues him. She grudgingly agrees to grant him a favor in the future and leaves. Jack shouldn’t give her another thought, he has problems of his own in the shape of an up-and-coming crime boss, Trevor O’Shaughnessy, a man that is testing the boundaries with Jack. But he can’t seem to get the little “do-gooder” out of his mind and has her followed. Days later he catches up with her to cash in his favor, he marvels at how much she does in the city and listens to her complain about not being able to get her police friend to help with a matter of a unfair factory owner. Jack buys her lunch and tells her that for his favor he wants to escort her to Frank’s fundraising gala – there is a man he wants to talk to that refuses to see him – Julius Hatcher – Justine agrees and demands an outrageous donation to boot – Jack agrees.

When her family learns of her interactions with Jack, they all warn her off – Mamie and Florence are sure he will hurt her and ruin her reputation, Frank and Clay are concerned for her safety – but they all underestimate Justine – she is stronger and braver than they could ever imagine and she refuses to stop seeing Jack. For his part, Jack is caught in Justine’s spell – he wants her, but more than just sexually, he likes her and enjoys her company – she is a light in his dark world and even as he knows he should let her go, he can’t seem to send her away. But when Jack gives Justine her greatest desire, she finally admits that she is changing into someone she doesn’t like and she walks away from him. Can he win her back?

This was a well written, fast paced, amazing read with very likable characters, red-hot love scenes, unexpected twists, wonderful secondary characters including cameos from Mamie, Frank, Florence, Clay and Julius Hatcher! I just loved this story, it was a wild ride from the first page until the last and is definitely my favorite in the series. This is the third book in the series and while it can be read as a stand-alone, do yourself a favor and read the books in order!

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that was provided to me by the publisher.*

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