Category: Victorian Era (1837-1901)

In the history of the United Kingdom, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria’s reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardian period, and its later half overlaps with the first part of the Belle Époque era of continental Europe.
Preceded by: Regency era
Followed by: Edwardian era
Monarch: Victoria

Daring and the Duke by Sarah MacLean

On By TracyIn Top Pick - Highly Recommended, Tracy's Reviews, Victorian Era (1837-1901)1 Comment
Daring and the Duke (The Bareknuckle Bastards, #3)

Daring and the Duke by Sarah MacLean

Tracy’s rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: Bareknuckle Bastards, #3

Release Date: June 30, 2020


I have read the entire series and at the end of the previous books I had closure for the characters, but so many questions… Finally, I have answers and OMG, Ms. MacLean has done what I would have bet was impossible – turned the villain into the best hero of the series (maybe even the best hero she has written)!!

Thirty-five years ago the Duke of Marwick set a plan in motion, when a baby girl was born to the Duchess of Marwick, but not of his blood, he christen her Robert Matthew Carrick, Earl Sumner and heir to the Duke of Marwick. Years later, he then gathered up his bastard sons – all born on the same day as the girl and hid them all away at his estate – trying to set them against each other, to decide which will be his heir. The girl was nothing, her mother died and she lived at the Duke’s mercy, but to his sons, she was everything, Whit and Devon aka Devil, loved her like a sister, but to Ewan, she was the other half of his soul, she was his Grace. Love blossomed and plans were made, they would outwit the Duke and be happy – but one night of betrayal changed everything, Ewan became the heir and Grace, Whit and Devil fled to London. They became the Bareknuckle Bastards and over the next twenty years, they fought their way to the top and ruled the “Garden”, but they were never free of Marwick and when Ewan inherited and was told Grace was dead, he made it his mission to destroy the men he entrusted her to…

After an explosion on the docks, Ewan wakes and instantly knows that Whit and Devil lied to him, his Grace is not dead, she is now the queen of the Garden and known to one and all as Dahlia – the owner of the club and pleasure house at 72 Shelton Street. But his joy at learning she is alive is cut short when she fights him and tells him to leave and never come for her again. A wish he seems to grant, but a year later his name is on everyone’s lips, Mad Marwick is back and he is no longer mad, he has changed and is looking for a wife. Grace shouldn’t care, she should be happy that he has honored her wishes and stopped chasing her, but she can’t, she justifies seeing him as a chance to remind him of vows he made about not marrying and letting the line die with him – but his kisses are intoxicating and she tells herself it will just be this one time… Ewan is playing a deep game, for him there is only one woman who will be his wife – Grace and she has commanded him to stay away from her, so he will need to be get her to come to him and succeeds – but when she walks away, he just can’t let her go and is willing to do whatever it takes to gain her forgiveness and win her love.

What an amazing story, I never wanted it to end and even now that it is done, I want more! More Ewan and Grace, more Devil and Felicity and more Whit and Hattie!! This was a well written, incredibly emotional story that answered all my questions, blew my mind and made me fall in love with Ewan – a feat I would have deemed impossible at the end of the last book. This book has it all, betrayal, a bit of humor (thanks to Devil and Whit), heartbreak, steamy love scenes, surprising revelations, a love that is inspiring, some of the most romantic declarations I have ever read (seriously – they gave me goosebumps and made me teary!) and finally a very hard won HEA and a sweet epilogue. This was definitely my favorite in the series and while you could read this as a stand-alone, I would highly recommend reading this series in order for the best understanding and most reader enjoyment.

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



The Devil of Downtown by Joanna Shupe

On By TracyIn America's Gilded Age (1870-1900), American Historical, Top Pick - Highly Recommended, Tracy's Reviews, Victorian Era (1837-1901)Leave a comment

The Devil of Downtown (Uptown Girls, #3)The Devil of Downtown by Joanna Shupe

Tracy’s rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: Uptown Girls, #3

Release Date: June 30, 2020

Justine Greene is the youngest of the Greene sisters and compared to her vivacious sisters, she appears to be a little dull – but as they say – looks can be deceiving! Unlike her sisters in both looks and temperament, Justine spends her days helping the poor and forgotten of NYC. She also helps out with her brother-in-law Frank Tripp’s legal aid society – tracking down missing husbands. It is on such a case that she meets Jack Mulligan – the city’s biggest crime lord. After weeks of looking for Robert Gorcey who left his wife and five children without a word, she learns that he works for Jack and hopes to gain his help in getting Mr. Gorcey to take care of his responsibilities! Jack agrees, but wants a favor in exchange and won’t lift a finger to help unless she agrees.

Jack Mulligan was born with nothing and fought his way to the top, he is powerful and feared, but Justine Greene doesn’t appear to be impressed – which intrigues him. She grudgingly agrees to grant him a favor in the future and leaves. Jack shouldn’t give her another thought, he has problems of his own in the shape of an up-and-coming crime boss, Trevor O’Shaughnessy, a man that is testing the boundaries with Jack. But he can’t seem to get the little “do-gooder” out of his mind and has her followed. Days later he catches up with her to cash in his favor, he marvels at how much she does in the city and listens to her complain about not being able to get her police friend to help with a matter of a unfair factory owner. Jack buys her lunch and tells her that for his favor he wants to escort her to Frank’s fundraising gala – there is a man he wants to talk to that refuses to see him – Julius Hatcher – Justine agrees and demands an outrageous donation to boot – Jack agrees.

When her family learns of her interactions with Jack, they all warn her off – Mamie and Florence are sure he will hurt her and ruin her reputation, Frank and Clay are concerned for her safety – but they all underestimate Justine – she is stronger and braver than they could ever imagine and she refuses to stop seeing Jack. For his part, Jack is caught in Justine’s spell – he wants her, but more than just sexually, he likes her and enjoys her company – she is a light in his dark world and even as he knows he should let her go, he can’t seem to send her away. But when Jack gives Justine her greatest desire, she finally admits that she is changing into someone she doesn’t like and she walks away from him. Can he win her back?

This was a well written, fast paced, amazing read with very likable characters, red-hot love scenes, unexpected twists, wonderful secondary characters including cameos from Mamie, Frank, Florence, Clay and Julius Hatcher! I just loved this story, it was a wild ride from the first page until the last and is definitely my favorite in the series. This is the third book in the series and while it can be read as a stand-alone, do yourself a favor and read the books in order!

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