Category: Historical Rom-Com

Hot Earl Summer by Erica Ridley

On By TracyIn Georgian Era (1714-1837), Historical Rom-Com, Part of a Series, Regency Era (1811-1820), Tracy's Reviews2 Comments

Hot Earl Summer (The Wild Wynchesters, #5)Hot Earl Summer by Erica Ridley

Tracy’s Rating: 2.5/3 of 5 stars

Series: The Wild Wynchesters, #5

Release Date: August 6, 2024

With the popularity (or maybe infamy) of the Wynchester family at an all-time high, the siblings have more cases than they can handle as a team. So, when they get a case to find a missing will and claim the castle from the Earl of Densmore (that may or may not have been lost to the Wynchester’s archenemy, Viscount Reddington), it is determined that Elizabeth, (the sword-wielding, pain-ridden Wynchester) will have to take this case on her own. She leaves for Castle Harbrook, intent on confronting her client’s nephew, the Earl of Densmore and demanding the deed to the castle to be given to his aunt as his mother wanted, so she can open an orphanage that they had planned for years. But instead of the earl, she finds the earl’s very handsome cousin, Stephen Lenox. After being refused entry, Elizabeth goes “Beth the Berserker” on the front door. When she finally gets in, she finds the castle filled with boobytraps and odd inventions, all thanks to Stephen, but he has no idea where the earl is and has been trying to keep Reddington from claiming the castle. With a only the late countess’s letters to provide vague clues to the will’s hiding place, Elizabeth sets out to solve this mystery and maybe even enjoy a tryst with Stephen.

Stephen Lenox, heir presumptive to his cousin the Earl of Densmore, is a reclusive inventor, who normally wouldn’t leave his estate, but felt obliged to help his cousin, one the few people to ever stick up for him. His cousin asked him to stay at the castle for a “few days” and make Reddington think that Stephen was him, but his cousin has been missing for weeks. In the time Densmore has been missing, Stephen has improved the earldom and reinforced the security of the castle. Until Elizabeth arrived, Stephen felt like a prisoner, but now leaving is the last thing on his mind, but it is clear that while Elizabeth is attracted to Stephen and would be open to an affair, it would seem that her plans for the future do not include him. But the more time he spends with her, the more he wants forever.

I thought I was going to like this book a lot more than I did. It was just too much – too wacky, too modern, too annoying, too wordy, too slow moving and too over-the-top. Additionally, I found Elizabeth hard to like, she is just too vicious and blood-thirsty to be truly likable, her aversion to children was also off-putting and she came across as very self-centered. I did find the fact that she battled chronic pain to be a fascinating plot point but sadly it seemed to get lost in the bizarreness of the story. I liked Stephen, but he too was a bit much. This entire series is just not my cuppa – it is silly, slap-stick humor, mixed with 21st century morals and ideals, thrown into a 19th century setting with no fear of consequence. I know there are a lot of readers who don’t mind that in historical romance, and those readers might well enjoy this book series, but I am not in that group.

*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. *

Ne’er Duke Well by Alexandra Vasti – Review

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, Historical Rom-Com, Part of a Series, Regency Era (1811-1820)2 Comments

Ne'er Duke WellBarbara’s rating: 3.3 out of 5
Series: I wish I knew, but it is part of a series
Publication Date: 7/23/24
Period: Regency – London
Number of Pages: 352

This author delivered a good first full-length novel with likable characters and plenty of her signature steam and wit. Some scenes had me laughing out loud and others made me smile because, overall, it was a happy book. I think Peter and Selina had the chemistry going, but I would have liked to see how we got there. I rather felt as if I’d been dropped into the romance in the middle of the second act – rather than seeing it unfurl as it grew. Our hero, Peter, was NOT an alpha male, but 😊I think maybe our heroine was an alpha female. Peter did, however, have his swoon-worthy moments. 😊 I liked all the characters, but I thought Peter’s half-sister was a bit over-the-top. I am glad to have read this book even though I did get a tad bored at times and found it draggy in spots.

Our story follows Peter Kent, born and raised in New Orleans to a third (or more) son of the Duke of Stanhope. Peter never expected nor wanted to inherit a title, much less that of Duke, but he couldn’t turn down the opportunity to present anti-slavery legislation in the House of Lords. Upon arriving in England three years ago, he discovered he had illegitimate half-siblings, a boy and a girl. He now has two goals – end slavery as best he can and gain guardianship of his half-siblings.

Selina Ravenscroft is a very modern woman – and a very managing one. She is a ‘fixer’ who fixes everything for everybody – whether they want it fixed or not. She is a brilliant ray of sunshine who sees the best in every situation and wants to make it right. So, when she learns Peter wants to gain guardianship of his half-siblings, she takes right over fixing it for him. Her solution? Peter needs to marry a very respectable English lady who hasn’t had a hint of scandal in her family for the last hundred years. Selina also has a secret – and it is the reason she cannot be the lady who marries Peter. Selina owns a lending library – but – that lending library makes some very scandalous literature available to the ladies of the ton – married and unmarried. She wants those ladies to learn what they need to do to keep from being taken advantage of by unscrupulous men – and contraception – and well, the mechanics of how it all works.

I really liked the three ladies Selina chooses for Peter and while they weren’t right for him, I know we’ll be seeing them in future books in the series. I am looking forward to those books and the next features Selina’s best friend, Lydia Hope-Wallace.

So, overall, this was a nice, witty, steamy book, that I am glad to have read, but wouldn’t read a second time because I thought the bland and boring times outweighed those flashes of brilliant wit and steam.

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

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