Category: Novella

The Gift of the Marquess by Darcy Burke

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, Christmas, Novella1 Comment

The Gift of the Marquess (Love is All Around #2)Barbara’s rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: Love Is All Around #2
Publication Date: 10/15/19
Number of Pages: 134

It was truly a fortuitous day for us readers when this author realized her oeuvre didn’t contain any Christmas stories. She immediately set about remedying that with the Love Is All Around trilogy. The trilogy features the Stafford siblings and is set around the St. Stephens day festival and Hartwell House (a home for impoverished women). While the stories all occur at around the same time, none of them provide enough information on the other stories to provide any spoilers. The first book, The Red Hot Earl, featured the youngest sister, Bianca, but we were also introduced to the older brother, Calder (whom we’ve all loved to hate) and our heroine for this book, Poppy. The trilogy wrap-up will be Calder’s story in Joy To The Duke and I can hardly wait to see what turned him into such a sour curmudgeon!

We met Poppy in the last book and learned that something was wrong, but we never learned what it was. Now we know. Poppy and her husband, Gabriel, Marquess of Darlington, have been married for almost three years and Poppy has slowly come to the realization that there will be no children. It isn’t from lack of trying – she and Gabriel are a love match, but still, no children. She’s gotten more and more melancholy and she can’t bear to go to Hartwell House to see the children that are housed there. It just hurts too much. In her sadness, she’s even begun to withdraw from Gabriel.

Gabriel Kirkwood loves his wife to distraction and her current melancholy hurts him, especially since all he wants is her happiness. He doesn’t know how to help her, but he does know that he is happy that there have been no children. Not that he doesn’t want children – he does – he is just absolutely and totally terrified of losing Poppy and the child in childbirth. He lost his mother and his older sister to childbirth and Poppy lost her mother in childbirth. He cannot lose Poppy as well.

These two are so wonderfully and sweetly in love. It was a pure delight to see how they expressed their love and helped each other overcome their issues. The epilogue is wonderful and you’ll read the last word with a full heart and a warm-all-over feeling. If you want a truly uplifting and loving Christmas read, this one is for you.

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

Seduction on a Snowy Night by Madeline Hunter, Sabrina Jeffries & Mary Jo Putney

On By TracyIn Author Collaboration Series, Christmas, Georgian Era (1714-1837), Novella, Regency Era (1811-1820), Tracy's Reviews2 Comments

Seduction on a Snowy NightSeduction on a Snowy Night by Madeline Hunter
Tracy’s rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: Duke Dynasty / Redeemed Rogues

Release Date: September 24, 2019

This is a delightful anthology with a Christmas theme and if you follow these authors you will recognize many of the characters from previous books!!

A Christmas Abduction by Madeline Hunter – 4.5 stars – Adam Prescott, Baron Thornhill is on his way to celebrate Christmas with his cousin Nigel, the Marquess of Haverdale and if all goes according to plan, he may be announcing his betrothal to a wealthy debutante. But all does not go according to plan and when Adam tries to help a young woman he thinks is being assaulted, he finds himself abducted at gunpoint. Caroline “Caro” Dunham is trying to keep what is left of her family and their legacy together, so when she learns that her younger sister Amelia has been compromised and pregnant at the hands of well-known rake, she does what any older sister would do, she abducted the scoundrel and will make him marry her! This was a cute story that was paced nicely, has a little bit of steam and a HEA

A Perfect Match by Sabrina Jeffries – 5 stars – Cassandra “Cass” Isles has been tricked before by fortune hunters and is extremely distrustful of the men on the marriage mart, so much so that she lets everyone believe she is a poor relation. She has also made it her mission to protect her cousin Kitty, who is sweet and kind, but not quite as savvy as Cass. Currently she is attending a ball and is trying to put off one of Kitty’s suitors, Capt. Lionel Malet, Cass is sure he is a fortune hunter and will do her best to keep Kitty away from him. While searching for Kitty, she stumbles upon Col. Lord Heywood Wilde, son of the late Duke of Armitage and younger brother to the new duke – he is also a close friend of Kitty’s brother Douglas. Heywood says he must speak with Kitty on an urgent matter and asks Cass to locate her for him. Heywood is attracted to Cass, but the woman he wants to marry is Kitty – the heiress. This was an excellent story with a lot of depth for a novella. It was also the steamiest of the three offerings. If you have been reading the “Duke Dynasty” series, you will recognize most of the characters and enjoy catching up!

One Wicked Winter Night by Mary Jo Putney – 4 stars – Lady Diana Lawrence is the black sheep of her family, she left England 7 years ago after a doomed love affair and spent years traveling, finally ending up in India. But a letter from her niece Rory has Diana returning to England, she believes that at 30, she is a spinster and the man she loved is probably long ago married with children and she is in no danger of meeting up with him. Anthony Raines, the Duke of Castleton is bullied by his sisters to attend the Masked ball at Vance’s townhouse and is mesmerized by the woman who performed an Indian dance – he approaches her and they share a dance and a kiss, which causes both of them a bit of shock when they realize who it is they are kissing! Anthony wants answers as to why she left him after he proposed and she just wants to forget and carry on with her life. When she tells him to leave her alone and never call again, Anthony is forced to resort to abduction to get the woman he loves to talk to him. This was a great second chance romance, but it did feel a little rushed, had very mild love scenes and the issue keeping them apart was resolved way to easily, but the ending was wonderful.

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