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 Lady Makes Her Mark by Susanna Craig

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

The Lady Makes Her Mark (Goode's Guide to Misconduct #3)The Lady Makes Her Mark by Susanna Craig

Tracy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: Goode’s Guide to Misconduct, #3

Release Date: May 27, 2025

When Constantina Cooper, the artist for “Mrs. Goode’s Magazine for Misses”, receives an anonymous letter demanding her attendance of a staff meeting in an unknown hand, she is sure that she has been found out and knows it is time to move on. She goes to the meeting on the off chance that Lady Stalbridge, the magazine’s editor, has hired a new secretary. But that hope is crushed almost immediately when Lady Stalbridge arrives just as bewildered as everyone else. Certain that she is the reason for the odd letters, she bolts and plans to leave London, that plan is also crushed when she collides with a carriage and is knocked unconscious. When she wakes, she is the home of the Earl of Ryland – a man she regularly features in her “What Miss C. Saw” aka “the Unfashionable Plates” cartoons for the magazine. The earl knows who she is and is in the process of leaving London, so she feigns amnesia to enlist his help. But she never expected to fall in love with him or his family, but as a penniless nobody, she has nothing to offer him except the possibility of danger thanks to her family. A possibility that soon becomes reality and may separate them forever.

Alistair Haythorne, the Earl of Ryland is broke and has rented out his London townhouse, so he is in the process of packing up to retire to his country estate with his sisters when a commotion outside draws his attention. He immediately recognizes Constantina and summons help for her. He knows her connection to the magazine and contacts Lady Stalbridge, who informs him that she believes Constantina might be in danger – thus triggering Alistair’s protective instincts. He offers to take her with him and to protect her until she regains her memory. He has always been attracted to her and intrigued by her, but he doesn’t have the luxury of indulging his own desires. His father left the estate in debt and with seven sisters to provide for, he will have to marry for money, which makes his feelings for Constantina inconvenient. An inconvenience that becomes almost unbearable when he asks his aunt to find him a rich bride and she hires Constantina to paint his portrait. Forced to spend time with her, his feelings deepen and soon he doesn’t know how he can live without her. But when her life is in danger, he knows there is no way he can let her walk away.

This installment of Goode’s Guide to Misconduct is a well-written, nicely paced story with very likable characters and a bit of intrigue. This book has a lot going on but manages to stay on track remains primarily a romance with some mystery to keep things interesting. The book held my interest with an artistic heroine with a mysterious background, an impoverished hero with a heart of gold, wonderful secondary characters, a road trip, faked amnesia, lurking danger, warm love scenes, shocking revelations and finally a seemingly impossible HEA. I enjoyed this story and would happily recommend it to my fellow HR readers. This is the 3rd book in the series, but it could easily be read as a standalone title with no problems.

*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. *

Curse of the Ravenscrofft Brides by Nola Saint James

On By TracyIn Check Content Warning/Triggers, Georgian Era (1714-1837), Historical Paranormal/Fantasy, New To Me Author, Part of a Series, Regency Era (1811-1820), Tracy's ReviewsLeave a comment

Curse of the Ravenscrofft Brides: A Regency Romantasy (The Ravenscrofft Chronicles Book 1)Curse of the Ravenscrofft Brides: A Regency Romantasy by Nola Saint James

Tracy’s Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Series: The Ravenscrofft Chronicles, #1

Release Date: March 26, 2025

Wyatt Sinclair, Viscount Ravenscrofft, has a secret, his family was given a special gift by the Ravenal Roma Clan when the first viscount fell in love and married one of their clan. The gift gave them and their descendants the ability to shape-shift into a Raven. Wyatt loves his shifting ability but his is determined that the gift will end with him, as he believes that the gift comes with a curse – the death of the Ravenscrofft brides. Since the first viscount, each bride has died not long after the birth of an heir, and Wyatt refuses to marry and subject an innocent woman to a death sentence. But his convictions are tested with the discovery of a boy who is clearly related to him and when he meets Sophia, he begins to hope that the curse is not real.

After the death of her mother, Sophia Nightingale Braithwaite becomes increasingly uncomfortable with her step-father, The Earl of Easton Grey. On a rare afternoon alone, she is returning home from a walk in the forest, where she had the incredible experience of seeing what she believed to be a raven turn into a man, she is eager to get home and ponder what she saw. But her life changes in an instant when she is accosted by her step-father and learns that he raped Rebecca, her governess and has fired her after it becomes clear she is pregnant with his child. The earl makes it clear that without Rebecca he will turn his attentions to Sophia. With Rebecca’s help, they subdue the earl and escape the estate – hoping to find shelter in London with Rebecca’s aunt. But things don’t go as planned and they end up in the employ of Wyatt Sinclair, Viscount Ravenscrofft. Sophia is shocked to realize the viscount is the man she saw transform in the woods, but instinctively she trusts him and agrees to act as governess to his young brother. The more time she spends with Wyatt, the more she likes him and begins to fall in love with him. Secrets are shared but evil is still waiting in the wings and may keep our lovers from finding their HEA if they can’t learn to trust their hearts.

This was my first time reading this author and I liked this story, but I am not sure I would call it Romantasy – it is more Historical Romance with a supernatural twist. I liked Sophia and Wyatt, they are both likable characters with good hearts and heartache in their pasts, which made it easy to root for their happily ever after. This story has a lot going on and I felt that it was a bit predictable and at times it meandered a bit and lost the plot. But in the end, most of the story threads were tied up, the villain has been dealt with and our happy couple plans to marry. Overall, this was a good read with wonderful characters, warm love scenes, a truly nasty villain, secrets, heartache, surprising revelations, life-changing decisions and finally the promise of HEA. I would recommend it to HR readers who enjoy a bit of the paranormal in their stories.

*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. *