Category: Georgian Era (1714-1837)

The Georgian era is a period in British history 1714 to 1830. The kings were all named George: George I, George II, George III and George IV. The sub-period of the Regency is defined by the Regency of George IV as Prince of Wales during the illness of his father George III. The definition of the Georgian era is often extended to include the short reign of William IV, which ended with his death in 1837.
Preceded by: Restoration
Including: Regency era
Followed by: Victorian era

The Duke’s Meddlesome Matchmaker by Emily E K Murdoch

On By TracyIn Contemporary in Period Dress, Georgian Era (1714-1837), New To Me Author, Part of a Series, Regency Era (1811-1820), Tracy's ReviewsLeave a comment

The Duke's Meddlesome Matchmaker (The Unconventional Oliver Sisters, #1)The Duke’s Meddlesome Matchmaker by Emily E.K. Murdoch

Tracy’s Rating: 2.5 of 5 stars

Series: The Unconventional Oliver Sisters #1

Release Date: January 27, 2026

After the death of her father, the Oliver sisters, Aphrodite “Ditty”, Thalia and Calliope, moved to London with their heartbroken mother. Ditty soon realized that they were left penniless and that their mother was too caught up in her grief to form any sort of plan, so Ditty did what she does best – plan! She started a business designing and planning the perfect marriage proposal, despite not being a fan of love matches or romantic love in general. Business is good and she has an exceptional success rate, but when she refuses a commission, the spurned client makes a lot of noise and she accepts a job outside of London to let things calm down.

She travels to the small village of Brexley, which apparently is “The Home of Romance” to meet her new client Mr. Charles Paisley. But it isn’t Charles who picks her up from the Coaching house – it is his older brother Henry, the town doctor and newly minted Duke of Glanyrafon. After a bit of miscommunication and more than a little rudeness on Henry’s part, Ditty is relieved to realize that he is not her client. She tries to ignore her attraction to him and gets to work planning the perfect proposal for Charles and his (hopefully) soon to be fiancée. As she settles into town, Henry tries to make amends for his terrible behavior when they first met and slowly the two form a friendship. Henry inherited the title only to learn that it was penniless, but he had already opened a retirement home for the elderly residents of Brexley. He has been quietly struggling to keep the home afloat until Ditty offers to help him. Henry has been burned by love, and it has made him a bit jaded, but with Ditty he realizes that he gave his heart to the wrong woman. He would love to woo Ditty, but he has nothing to offer her other than his heart.

After reading the blurb, I was very excited to jump right into this book as it sounded amazing. I started reading and almost immediately realized that the title of the book is deceiving – Ditty is not a matchmaker, she plans proposals – which seems a bit unbelievable, especially for the Regency era. The further I got into the story, the more disillusioned I became – the story is fine, but the idea of three sisters with mythological names making their own way seemed very familiar and as I read it became clear that this book is a contemporary in period dress – there is nothing even remotely historical about this book other than the characters wear period clothing, ride in carriages and have no electricity, they do not observe the properties of the era, or even basic etiquette. Overall, I guess I am just too picky, if you don’t get hung up on historical etiquette, primogeniture, or correct formal address, you will probably enjoy this story. For me, it was a miss, I didn’t hate it and I liked the author’s writing style, but I wouldn’t read it again and I don’t think I will be reading any future installments of this series.

*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. *

How to Get Away with Scandal by Caroline Linden

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

How to Get Away with Scandal (Scandalous #5)How to Get Away with Scandal by Caroline Linden

Tracy’s Rating: 3 of 5 stars

Series: Scandalous #5

Release Date: January 12, 2026

After two disastrous, unwanted marriages, Evangeline, Countess of Courtenay, is now widowed and has decided that marriage is not for her. Unfortunately, after the death of her last husband, she was left with a tarnished reputation and hasn’t helped matters by skirting scandal more than once. Despite that, she is content with her life and at 42, she thinks her life is pretty much settled, but that was before she met handsome and much younger Swiss explorer Sir Richard Campion and spent a wonderful night with him, before sneaking out in the morning. She thinks that is the end of it and that her night with him will just be a lovely memory, yet four years later they meet again when he moves in next door to her.

When Sir Richard Campion met Evangeline, he was captivated by her and wanted her more than any woman he ever met. They spend one amazing night together, and he is ready to stay in London rather than leave on a planned expedition. However, the choice to stay is taken away when he wakes up the next morning and she is gone and no one will tell him where to find her. He leaves on what should be a year-long journey and, thanks to the war, doesn’t return for four years. But as luck would have it, he meets her again and they pick up where they left off. But some things haven’t changed like he wants forever and she is determined to spend forever as a widow.

I was really excited for a new book in this series, especially with characters we met years ago in the first book. Sadly, I just didn’t enjoy this story as much as I have the other books in the series. Evangeline and Richard are wonderful, complex characters and I was delighted to read about an older couple. I just found myself bored, Evangeline’s refusal to consider marriage got old, especially after they had been together for so many years and the story just dragged until the “third act” breakup scene and then Richard’s change of heart. Overall, this was a sweet, second-chance at love romance with a mature couple and a happy ending, and while it wasn’t the story I was hoping for, it was a nice read, nonetheless.

*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. *