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 Lady He Lost by Faye Delacour

On By TracyIn Debut Novel, Part of a Series, Tracy's Reviews, Victorian Era (1837-1901)Leave a comment

The Lady He Lost (The Lucky Ladies of London, #1)The Lady He Lost by Faye Delacour

Tracy’s rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Series: The Lucky Ladies of London, #1

Release Date: April 2, 2024

Upon the death of her parents, Jane Bishop and her brother Edmund were taken in by her widowed uncle Bertie and his young daughter Cecily. One summer while visiting with another uncle, Jane met Eleazar “Eli” Willams and fell in love, but at only sixteen, she kept her feelings to herself. A couple of years later, Eli broke her heart when he proposed to her cousin Cecily and then again when he was lost at sea and presumed dead. Jane decided that love was not for her and set out to find a way to support herself without a husband and along with her dearest friend Della, form a Lady’s Only Gambling Club. The hope is that they make enough money to support themselves independently yet ensuring that no one is gambling so much they ruin themselves. It seems like she finally has her life on track when the impossible happens – Eli returns for the dead, with secrets and seems intent on rekindling their friendship. There is no way Jane can risk her heart again, and hardens her resolve to ignore him, but when Eli offers to help her make her dream of a gambling club come true, everything changes. But will all her dreams come true, or will Eli’s secrets break her heart all over again?

Eli made a huge mistake when he followed Jane’s cousin Cecily into the garden and it cost him his freedom, as he was honor-bound to offer for her when they were discovered kissing by her father. Their engagement was announced, and Eli joined the navy to earn a living. Three years later, he is a Lieutenant in Her Majesty’s Navy when his ship is destroyed, and he is lost at sea and presumed dead. In reality, he was saved and taken prisoner by pirates, and it took almost a year and a half to escape. He returned to England to find he had been declared dead, his savings given to his younger brother, his fiancée married to another and Jane hostile. He tries to make amends with Jane, but without disclosing the entire truth, which could put him and others in danger, she refuses to soften. But all that changes with a rain-soaked kiss, giving him hope that he will finally be with the woman he has always loved. But when has the path to HEA ever been easy?

This was a new to me author and I thought it was a good debut effort. I liked the writing style, but I did find it a bit wordy and the first two-thirds of the book dragged for me. However, the final third of the book was paced nicely and wrapped everything up quite neatly. I wasn’t a big fan of Jane until about halfway through the book when she finally fell off her high horse and pulled the stick out of her – well, you know. I loved Eli and found the majority of the secondary characters to be completely delightful – I am seriously hoping for Della’s story – she is a piece of work that is sure to lead some hapless man on a merry chase. Overall, the book was good, it was original, the idea fresh, and the story was filled with wonderful characters, secrets, betrayal, heartache, some laugh out loud moments, warm love scenes, big plans, disappointment, hope and a satisfying ending but sadly no epilogue, although, the last chapter does set them on the road to HEA, so it’s all good. This is billed as the first book in a new series, and I am definitely looking forward to the next book.

*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.*

Revenge in the Rogue’s Hideaway by Deb Marlowe

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

Revenge in the Rogue's Hideaway (The Kier and Levett Mystery Series Book 4)

Barbara’s rating: 5 out of 5 Stars
Series: The Kier and Levett Mysteries #4
Publication Date: 4/3/24
Period: Victorian London
Number of Pages: 254

Yet another outstanding entry into this author’s cozy mystery series, The Kier and Levett Mysteries. It has the perfect balance of mystery and romance and will keep you glued to your chair throughout. If you read the last book, you will know there was a shocking revelation about Niall’s parentage. Well, there is a shocking revelation in this book as well, but I won’t tell you what it is – you’ll just have to read it to see.

Josie Lowe, who helped save Niall’s bacon when he was captured by those nasty League men weeks ago, now needs saving. Josie’s riveting voice has been pulling patrons into the Rogues Hideaway for a while now and when she sings, the audience is rapt. They love her, and her wealthy patron, Mr. Frederick Cole, attends every performance. However, things change swiftly when, directly after her performance, Mr. Cole dies of poisoning and Josie is arrested for his murder.

With his ruthless business practices, Mr. Cole had no shortage of enemies, but would they be willing to kill? One of them must have because it surely wasn’t Josie. Could it be the wife who isn’t grieving at all? Perhaps it was the business partners whom he had made insanely rich, but who wanted more/different things? Could it be his illegitimate son who owns the Rogues Hideaway? With his acerbic personality, it could be anyone in London!

Kara and Niall have their work cut out for them when it comes to solving the mystery – but what of their romance? Well, Kara is ready to go forward, but Niall is still dragging his feet. Not that he doesn’t love Kara and wants to marry her – NO – it is that after the revelations about his parentage, he is afraid there may be reprisals against him and he doesn’t want anyone coming after Kara. So, no wedding in this book and I’m beginning to think there is a ‘no wedding’ theme here. 😊 I’m sure they’ll marry – I’m just not sure when. Do you realize Kara will become Kara Kier when they marry? Try saying that name quickly several times without putting a smile on your face. 😊 It sort of sounds medicinal, doesn’t it? 🙂

I would love it if this became a long-running series, but that is up to the author and the publisher. I do wish they would get on with the wedding though as I would love to see them work on cases as a married couple and see how the dynamics of that relationship will work. I’d also like to see some stories where Niall’s past isn’t an issue woven throughout. However – none of that keeps me from absolutely loving the series. The writing is excellent, the mystery is engrossing and will keep you guessing, and we get to know the characters better and better with each new entry. I can hardly wait for the next book in the series – Carnage From The Cursed Crown. Oh! Doesn’t that sound exciting?

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