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

To Bargain with a Rogue by Lana Williams

On By TracyIn Author Collaboration Series, Book Publicity, Part of a Series, Tracy's Reviews, Victorian Era (1837-1901)Leave a comment

To Bargain with a Rogue (Wicked Widows' League, #3)To Bargain with a Rogue by Lana Williams

Tracy’s rating: 4/4.5 of 5 stars

Series: Wicked Widows’ League, #3 (Author Collaboration Series)

Release Date: March 28, 2023

Alicia Radcliff, the widowed Countess of Hawthorne is finally finished with her year of mourning and is ready to reenter society. She has decided that she deserves to enjoy the freedom being a young widow affords her, namely taking a lover to find out what she was missing all years she was married. But she needs to take care, because she has no desire to marry again nor does she want to shame her young son, nor does she want to fall in love. She is sure she will be able to avoid that trap, but that was before her son was in danger and she met him.

Matthew Aston, the new Earl of Slayton, never expected to inherit, in fact, he never planned on returning to England. But with the unexpected death of both his father and his older brother, Matthew had no choice but to return and take care of his younger sister Clarissa and the estate. He had no idea that the estate was in such dire straights or that his father and brother had wracked up such high debts. Even with the money that Matthew made while in the Caribbean, he realizes that he will have to marry an heiress and fast if he has any hope of saving the estate and giving Clarissa a season. He is delighted when he meets Alicia, she is everything he has ever wanted in a wife, she is kind, lovely, and rich. But she makes it clear that she will not marry again, but she isn’t averse to an affair and is willing to help launch Clarissa into society. Their affair is sizzling, but Matthew knows he has to marry to protect his sister and ends things, but soon wonders if he gave up too soon, can he convince Alicia that his heart is hers for the taking or will he have to settle for a loveless marriage?

This was a delightful, well-written short novel with very likable characters. The book has a little of everything, interfering relatives, spying servants, a once-bitten, twice-shy heroine, a hero thrown into an impossible situation, a creepy villain, a bit of angst, steamyish love scenes, a bit of heartache, and finally a very satisfying ending that leads to HEA. I did feel like there were some loose ends that didn’t get addressed, but overall they were minor and didn’t really impact the story. This book is part of a loosely connected author collaboration series and it does feature secondary characters from one of the author’s previous series, but the book can easily be read as a standalone title. I enjoyed this story and would be happy to recommend it and am looking forward to more stories in this series!

*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.*

Hotel of Secrets by Diana Biller

On By BarbaraIn America's Gilded Age (1870-1900), Barb's Reviews, Historical Mystery, Standalone Title, Victorian Era (1837-1901)Leave a comment

Hotel of Secrets

Barbara’s rating: 4.5 of 5 Stars
Series: Standalone
Publication Date: 3/28/22
Period: Gilded age/Victorian – Vienna
Number of Pages: 416

This was a wonderfully crafted melding of two people who are so very different, yet so very much the same. As I began reading, I kept thinking “How will these two get together?” – then – OMGoodness, I couldn’t picture either of them without the other. It is a beautifully written romance and mystery rolled into one. I loved each of the characters in the book – except the villain, of course – and would love to see Maria’s brother and Hanna both featured in future books – together or separately.

Maria Wallner comes from a line of very intelligent and independent women who don’t marry. Yet, they each find ‘the man’, the love of their life who will father a daughter to continue the line. The ladies own the Hotel Wallner, once the premier hotel in Vienna. They hosted the most creative, lavish, fairytale, balls of the Vienna season, but, as Maria’s mother was not a very attentive steward, the hotel has fallen into disrepair. The hotel is now Maria’s responsibility and she fully intends to restore it to its former glory – even if she has to scrub and repair every inch of it herself. She’s been making progress, but ‘accidents’ keep happening that cause damage to the hotel – and almost to Maria. She’s been fortunate enough to be saved each time her life was in danger – will her luck hold out?

Eli Whittaker, an agent of the US Treasury Department, has been sent to Vienna to track down whoever has stolen and sold some US codes. All he wants to do is to track down the traitor and bring them to justice so he can go home and get back to his other cases. However, he has difficulty concentrating on his case because he keeps having to save a beautiful young woman who manages the hotel in which he is staying. Is she part of his case? She will certainly remain a suspect until he can prove otherwise. Still, she is beautiful – and intelligent – and resourceful . . .

While I liked Maria, I loved Eli. He was such a different kind of character that he caught and held my interest from the beginning. He is not your normal ‘romantic hero’, but he is exactly the right hero for Maria and I would have loved to see a bit of an epilogue that takes place five or so years later. I would love to see them with children – boys and girls – and I’d love to see the elegant hotel fully restored and at the height of fashion.

This was a delightful read and I can recommend it. Should you choose to read it, I hope you will love it as much as I did.

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

View all my reviews