Category: Top Pick – Highly Recommended

You Had Me at Heist by Christina Britton

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

You Had Me at Heist (Wimpole Street Widows Society #2)You Had Me at Heist by Christina Britton

Tracy’s Rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Series: Wimpole Street Widows Society #2

Release Date: June 16, 2026

Mere days after the death of her beloved mother, Iris Rumford’s childhood home was burned to the ground to hide the theft of her mother’s life work. Iris was devastated and offered sanctuary by her godmother, Sylvia Lutton, Lady Vastkern, for the next five years, Iris tries to put her loss behind her and assist the Wimpole Street Widows Society with her botany knowledge and other skills. But when she learns that the Earl of Durand is claiming that her mother’s life’s work is his own and goes a step further to say that she stole his work! Outrage consumes her, and the widows all agree, the man needs to be stopped! But that is easier said than done, first they need to find the stolen papers and that won’t be easy since the earl has hired Oliver Beckett, a former Bow Street Runner to keep his estate secure. And to complicate things even more, Oliver Beckett is the most intriguing man Iris has ever met, and she is falling hard for him!

Oliver Beckett stood by his convictions a year ago and it cost him his livelihood and his family’s security. After almost a year without employment, Lord Durand was the first person to offer him a position and while he doesn’t like or trust the man, he can’t afford to let his personal feeling interfere with his job again. So, when he comes across Iris Rumford spying on Lord Durand’s greenhouses in the predawn hours, he is immediately suspicious and also a bit enamored by her. The more he gets to know her, the more he wants to help her, but doing the right thing in the past has hurt his family and he can’t let that happen again. Will he risk everything for love, or will he play it safe and lose the love of his life to keep his job?

I loved this installment; it is well-written and nicely paced and Iris and Oliver are a wonderful couple who are just perfect for each other. The story has a lot of emotion, a heroine with a compulsive disorder, a hero who would burn the world for her, great secondary characters, a nasty villain, some spice, a lot of love, found family and finally, a very satisfying ending complete with an epilogue. This is the second book in the series, but this book could easily be read as a standalone title with no problems. Overall, I really enjoyed this story and would enthusiastically recommend it to my fellow historical romance readers!

*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. *

 

Game of Rogues by Julie Anne Long

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

Game of Rogues: A Novel (The Palace of Rogues, 9)Game of Rogues: A Novel by Julie Anne Long

Tracy’s Rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: The Palace of Rogues, #9

Release Date: June 2, 2026

Miss Guinevere “Ginny” Woodville is the very protective elder sister of Hogarth Woodville, Viscount Woodville and the newly minted Earl of Highgrove, so when he returns from a trip to London and confesses that he has lost everything – including his sisters’ doweries, Ginny is quick to jump in and make things right. Ginny promised her dying mother that she would make sure her siblings all married well, but that will not happen without doweries, so, Ginny travels to London and checks into the Grand Palace on the Thames and then goes to meet with Gabriel Marchand, the owner of Lucifer’s Fall – the “gentlemen’s club” that Hogarth lost his fortune. The man is completely infuriating and absolutely, breathtakingly gorgeous, she leaves their meeting without any resolution, unless she wanted to consider his illicit proposition – which she didn’t – and feeling desperate, but at least she is pretty sure she knows who Hogarth lost the bulk of his fortune to and hopes that that man will be more willing to negotiate. She thinks she has seen the last of Gabriel and is shocked when she learns he is also staying at the Palace – she tries to ignore him, but he always seems to be one step ahead of her, and as much as she wants to hate that – she doesn’t. She falls hard for him, but knows that she could never be with him and keep her promise to her mother, or can she?

Gabriel Marchand is a self-made man, orphaned into the poverty of St. Giles and has clawed his way to the top. As the owner of a very exclusive and successful gentleman’s club, he should have everything he wants, but meeting Ginny has him rethinking what he really wants. He is drawn to Ginny and against his better judgement begins to help her and in turn, she helps him. He knows he loves her and he knows she is not for him, but the heart wants what it wants, and he sets in motion a plan that may enable them to have their HEA. But his Ginny has made promises and honor might not let her follow her heart.

I love this series; I swear every new installment is better than the last – I can’t even remember the last series I read that could say that about. This story was absolutely my favorite to date – and that is saying a lot – because I have LOVED every book. Gabriel is everything you could want in a hero, he is charming, smart, self-made, has known loss and pain, and loves without conditions (he has earned a spot on my very exclusive favorite heroes of all-time list) and Ginny is his perfect match – their banter and jibes were some of the best I have ever read and I can’t wait to re-read this book! The book has wonderful characters, steamyish love scenes, lots of laugh out loud moments, grief, promises, a bit of angst, a little heartbreak, and finally a sigh-worthy ending complete with an epilogue. This is the ninth book in the series, and it could easily be read as a standalone with no problem, but I recommend reading the entire series because it is so good!

*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. *