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

The Stranger I Wed by Harper St. George – Release Day Blitz

On By TracyIn America's Gilded Age (1870-1900), Book Publicity, Part of a Series, Release Day Blitz, Tracy's Reviews, Victorian Era (1837-1901)Leave a comment

The Stranger I Wed (The Doves of New York, #1)The Stranger I Wed by Harper St. George

Tracy’s rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: The Doves of New York, #1

Release Date: April 23, 2024

When Cora Dove, the eldest of Charles Hathaway’s three illegitimate daughters, receives a letter from her father’s mother, filled with regrets and a promise of inheritance for her and her sisters, she is overjoyed and ventures to the home of her father. But her father changes the terms, making the money his mother promised to the girls a dowry that is contingent on his approval of their grooms and forbids them to marry anyone in the Northeast who might socialize with his legitimate family. But Cora will not be deterred, she sets her sites on England and the peerage and with the help of Camille, the Duchess of Hereford, she hopes to find the perfect match. She has no dreams of finding Prince Charming and living happily ever after, she just hopes she can find a man that is willing to agree to her terms of a paper marriage that will be dissolved in a few years without revealing any of her secrets.

Leopold Brendon, the Earl of Devonworth, needs a rich bride, thanks to his younger brother’s obscene gambling debts. Enter Cora Dove, the American heiress seems to be the answers to all his problems, and after a bit of negotiating, they agree on terms, she will live with him for two years and if they are not able to divorce, she will agree to bear his heir before separating. He has been in love before and has no desire to repeat the experience, so Cora is perfect for him. But once they begin to spend time together, it is clear that they are perfect for each other and could be a powerful political couple and well as passionate lovers. But they both have secrets and once they begin to come out, danger, betrayal, and heartache is sure to follow. Will they find a way to HEA or was their love doomed from the start?

As with all Harper St. George’s books, this story was well written and filled with likable characters. Cora and Leo are wonderful characters, both intent on keeping their marriage strictly in name only, each with their own reasons, but their attraction is strong and soon feelings are involved. My only qualm is that the story moved slow – I would not go as far as to say it dragged, but I did start feeling impatient with the progression of the romance. The story is a slow-burn, low heat romance with secrets, lies, previous betrayal, great secondary characters, interesting historical events, cameos from previous characters, lots of emotion, wonderful chemistry, a bit of danger and finally a well-deserved HEA. This book is the start of a new series and has ties to the previous series. I enjoyed this book and am looking forward to Eliza’s story.

*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.*

Death and Glory by Will Thomas

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, Historical Mystery, Part of a Series, Scottish/Highlander, Victorian Era (1837-1901)Leave a comment

Death and Glory (Barker & Llewelyn, #15)

Barbara’s rating: 4.5 out of 5 Stars
Series: Barker & Llewelyn #15
Publication Date: 4/23/24
Period: Victorian London – April, 1894
Number of Pages: 304

Thomas Llewelyn has worked with Cyrus Barker for ten years, and it has been a wonderful reading journey. Thomas has gone from a melancholy, down-on-his-luck, contemplating suicide young man to a confident, skilled enquiry agent with a wife. Thomas shows those skills in this book and even gets some excellent personal news.

It seems the south is rising again – in London. No, not the south of England, but the Southern United States. A delegation of Southern expatriates appears at the offices of Barker and Llewellyn on a lovely spring morning. They wish to hire Barker to arrange a meeting with the new Prime Minister, the Earl of Rosebery. Barker and Thomas immediately suspect their motives but feel they should play along until they discover what the Prime Minister and his government want to do about them.

What these Southern gentlemen want astounds the government and can create a huge political scandal/crisis. Whichever way the government decides, the fallout will happen. The civil war in the US has been over for thirty years, yet these people want the delivery of a warship promised to them just as the war was ending. Barker and Thomas think they want more and quickly infiltrate the group to see what they can learn. A Barker and Llewellyn case is always more complicated and convoluted than they first appear – and this one was no exception.

This excellently-written, well-plotted, fast-paced novel was action-packed and filled with interesting characters and enlightening obscure historical facts. Another thing I always enjoy is the Author’s Notes – Yes, I always read the Author’s Notes. This author’s notes are always educational and fun to read. I love Thomas’s wit as he gives us his first-person account of each case and we always learn more about him in each new entry in the series. Barker, of course, always leaves us wanting to know more. We’ve learned a lot about his history, and in this novel, he seemed more ‘human’, but still he is larger than life.

I recommend this book, this series, and this author. I hope you will love the book as much as I did. Happy reading!

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

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