Category: Regency Era (1811-1820)

The Regency in Great Britain was a period when King George III was deemed unfit to rule and his son ruled as his proxy as Prince Regent. On the death of George III in 1820, the Prince Regent became George IV. The term Regency can refer to various stretches of time; some are longer than the decade of the formal Regency which lasted from 1811–1820.
Preceded by: Georgian era
Followed by: Victorian era
Monarch: George III, George IV, William IV

The Earls Trip by Jenny Holiday

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

Earls TripEarls Trip by Jenny Holiday

Tracy’s rating: 2.5 of 5 stars

Series: Earls Trip, #1

Release Date: April 23, 2024

Archibald “Archie” Fielding-Burton, the Earl of Harcourt, along with his two best friends Simon Courteney, the Earl of Marsden and Edward “Effie” Astley, Viscount Featherfinch (heir to the Earl of Stonely) spend two weeks together each September on a “Earls Trip”, but this year’s trip is sidetracked when Archie receives a letter from his country neighbor, Sir Albert Morgan begging him to save his daughters, Clemintine and Olive. They find the girls quickly, but things will not go as planned when they arrive at castle in Cumbria.

Clemintine Morgan had a temporary lapse in judgement when she gets engaged to Vegan activist Theodore Bull, but almost as soon as she realizes her mistake, Theo has moved on to her sister Olive and the two elope with Clemintine hot on their trail. Thankfully Archie and his friends find them before Olive and Theo do anything irrevocable, but Archie ends up shot, thanks to Clemintine. With the elopement thwarted and Theo sent on his way, the girls go with Archie and his friends to Cumbria. Clemintine and Olive have a lot of healing to do and Clemintine decides that she is better off not wed, but after her “experience” with Theo she wants to know true passion before she sets herself on the shelf and has decided that her childhood friend Archie is just the man to help her with that. What could possibly go wrong – after all, what happens on the Earls Trip stays on the Earls Trip, right?

I have never read this author before and was really looking forward to the book, but maybe I should have paid better attention to the blurb – especially this line : “Regency-era series with a delightfully modern feel” – which should have been a red flag that this was going to be a contemporary romance in period dress. Sigh…I wanted to love it, but I didn’t. It was OK, Archie and his friends were wonderful, but Clemintine was over the top – and I don’t like a romance where one person has to change to satisfy the other. In this book Clemintine is a strict vegetarian – maybe even vegan – which hey – good for you – but she refuses to be in the same room with anyone eating meat AND Archie is an avid hunter and carnivore, but to please her, he gives it up. I just don’t like that, love is compromise, so what did she give up or change for him? Oh – that’s right, nothing, UGH! The story was cute and I might try the next book, but overall, this book was a miss for me.

*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.*

Make Mine A Marquess by Tina Gabrielle

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

Make Mine a Marquess (Daring Ladies #3)Make Mine a Marquess by Tina Gabrielle

Tracy’s rating: 3 of 5 stars

Series: Daring Ladies #3

Release Date: April 23, 2024

After nearly dying in a shipwreck five years ago, Robert Kirkian, the Marquess of Landon is finally back in England and ready to wreak his vengeance on the man he believes orchestrated the fire that should have killed Robert, his could and heir, William, Baron Willard. He returns to his country estate to find his cousin hosting a house party to celebrate his recent betrothal. Robert knows William is in debt and his betrothed is rich and promises to bring a huge dowry to the marriage, but even with the promise of that fortune, it is clear that Willard has been stealing from Landon’s estate and neglecting the tenants and property. Seething, Robert vows to ruin his cousin by finding proof of his treachery and by seducing his fiancée and keeping him from getting her dowry. At least that was the plan before he met Phoebe Dawson.

Miss Phoebe Dawson trusted love once and was left with a broken heart, now she wants nothing to do with love. When Baron Willard proposed it was the perfect solution, she would wed without the danger of falling in love and her parents would benefit from having a titled daughter. Phoebe isn’t thrilled with the betrothal, but it makes her parents happy and will enable her to have a bit more freedom to pursue her charitable endeavors at the home for unwed mothers. She is resigned to her marriage, but when she meets Robert, she begins to have feelings that she thought were long dead. She falls fast and hard for him, but with the truth of his intentions becomes known, she is heartbroken once more. Will Robert see the error of his ways or will his desire for vengeance cost him his chance at happiness.

I liked the idea of this book and loved that Robert had mixed heritage that he fully embraced, but the vengeance plot was a bit over the top. Without spoilers it is hard to explain where the story fell apart for me but suffice it to say it did. I wanted to love the book, but for me it ended up being just an OK read. This is the third book in the series, but the books can all be read as stand alone titles as there is no interconnecting plot.

*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.*