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 Heiress’s Daughter by Anne Gracie

On By TracyIn Georgian Era (1714-1837), Part of a Series, Regency Era (1811-1820), Tracy's Reviews3 Comments

The Heiress's Daughter (The Brides of Bellaire Gardens #3)The Heiress’s Daughter by Anne Gracie

Tracy’s rating: 3/3.5 of 5 stars

Series: The Brides of Bellaire Gardens, #3

Release Date: May 21, 2024

With her sister Izzy on her honeymoon, heiress Clarissa Studley is going to have to face the season with just her marriage-minded chaperone for support. Clarissa’s father was an awful man who was unforgivably cruel to both Clarissa and her mother, having affair after affair and belittling them both to point that Clarissa is sure that no man would ever want more than her fortune. So, when her brother-in-law, Leo’s best friend Lord Randall “Race” begins to show an interest in her, she is sure he is only pretending to like her as a favor to Leo, after all he is gorgeous and a known rake, why would he want a plump, plain country girl like her? Besides, she has bigger things to consider, like the possibility of another sister! But Race doesn’t seem to be giving up and now she has another suitor who is also showing serious intentions. Too bad he doesn’t make her heart beat faster like Race does, but if life with her father taught her anything it is that you can never trust a rake.

Horatio “Race”, Lord Randall may have a reputation as a rake, but it is exaggerated and worked to his advantage before he wanted find a wife. But now it seems that his legendary charm is failing him, because the first and only woman he has ever wanted to marry is doing her utmost to avoid him! He will have to find a way to prove to her that his love is real or risk losing her to the wrong man!

This was a very sweet story but was not as cohesive as I have come to expect from Ms. Gracie. Race and Clarissa are wonderful characters and I wanted to love their journey to HEA, but sadly, the story just seemed to drag and began to feel repetitious. It also had elements that just seemed as if they were added to act as a filler. This book has a very slow-burn romance, feelings of inadequacy, sneaky suitors, surprise relatives, very low-steam love scenes, wonderful secondary characters, and finally a well-earned HEA. I liked this book, but it felt like it would have been better as a novella, as Clarissa’s self-doubts and insecurities just went on way too long and stalled the progress of the story. Overall, it was not a bad book, but not the story I was hoping for. I would recommend it for readers who have been following the series or readers who prefer a lower steam romance. This is the third book in the series, but it could easily be read as a standalone title.

3 maybe 3.5 stars

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher. All opinions in this review are my own. *

The Prince’s Bride by Charis Michaels

On By TracyIn Georgian Era (1714-1837), Part of a Series, Top Pick - Highly Recommended, Tracy's ReviewsLeave a comment

The Prince's Bride (Hidden Royals, #2)The Prince’s Bride by Charis Michaels

Tracy’s Rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Series: Hidden Royals, #2

Release Date: May 21, 2024

Years ago, when they were just infants, Lady Marianne “Ryan” Daventry & Prince Gabriel d’Orleans were betrothed by their parents and they grew up understanding their obligation. But then the revolution swept through France and Gabriel and his sisters were smuggled out of France, hidden away and the betrothal forgotten. Ryan never really thought of her betrothed and while she had fond memories of Gabriel, she has been much too busy taking care of Winscombe, her family’s estate on the Channel Island of Guernsey to wonder about him. But that was before his cousin Maurice shows up claiming Gabriel is dead and that he is the new Prince and demands that Ryan honor the betrothal by marrying him and turning over control of the estate to him. The only way to thwart him is to find her true betrothed and bring him back to confront Maurice. But she has not seen or heard from Gabriel in 9 years and her only clue to his location is a letter he sent her before he disappeared for good. That is how Ryan ended up being held up by a highwayman in the Savernake Forest and saved by a strange man, who may or may not be her long-lost fiancé and who flat out refuses to help her.

Prince Gabriel d’Orleans has been living in seclusion as Gabriel Rien in the Savernake Forest for the last 9 years and has gained a reputation as an exceptional horse trainer. He avoids contact with others, including his sister Elise, who has tried without success to reunite with him, so when he hears a woman screaming, his first instinct is to ignore her, but he can’t and to his complete shock the woman he rescues is his betrothed. He refuses to help her, but he can’t seem to let her go and slowly he ventures out of his sanctuary. Going as far as to reunite with his sister and her family and asking them to help Ryan. And even as he falls in love with her, he is still adamant that he cannot be the man she needs him to be. So why is it so hard to let her walk away?

I loved this story, Ryan and Gabriel are such wonderful characters and truly have a beautiful connection. I loved watching them battle their demons and heal as they began to fall in love. The story is filled with emotion, personal doubts, a greedy relative, warm love scenes, adorable nieces, a hypochondriacal nanny, a match-making former rake, an almost grown-up Bartholomew, a stunning confrontation and a very sweet ending. This was such a great story, and I would happily recommend this story to my fellow HR readers. This is the second book in the series and while it could be standalone, I would highly recommend reading the books in order.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher. All opinions in this review are my own. *