A Most Worthy Husband by Faye Delacour

On By TracyIn Contemporary in Period Dress, Part of a Series, Tracy's Reviews, Victorian Era (1837-1901), Women's FictionLeave a comment

A Most Worthy Husband (The Lucky Ladies of London, #3)A Most Worthy Husband by Faye Delacour

Tracy’s Rating: 2.5/3 of 5 stars

Series: The Lucky Ladies of London

Release Date: December 16, 2025

Having no desire to marry and endure the unhappiness that her parents have, Miss Hannah Williams has thwarted any man that was even remotely interested in her for four seasons, she is sure if she can make it through this season, her mother will finally give up, and Hannah can live her life as a spinster. But when it becomes clear that her mother is not going to give up – Hannah takes matters into her own hands and bribes her brother’s friend Silas Corbyn to kiss her and “ruin” her – knowing full well he was not an acceptable match in her mother’s eyes, which means she will be sent back to the country in disgrace. Too bad she underestimated her mother!

Silas Corbyn is not having a good year, it started out good and things were going so well, he was due for a long-awaited promotion, but that hope is shattered when he punched his commanding officer and is dishonorably discharged from the Navy. He tries to return home, but his father wants nothing to do with him. So, he takes the little money he has and goes to London. His friend Eli Williams takes pity on him and convinces his wife to let Silas work as a dealer in her gaming salon. This is the second chance he has been hoping for, and things are once again going well – until he finds Eli’s sister Hannah hiding in a small office at the salon. She offers him a small fortune to kiss her in front of her mother, he agrees, but never expected that kiss would change his life! He knows he is not of Hannah’s class and would never be considered a suitor, but that doesn’t stop her from offering him more money to pretend to be in love with her – he refuses. He loses his job over the incident and has trouble finding work, so when his cousin and brother arrive with a business opportunity, he reconsiders Hannah’s offer, after all it’s not like they would ever actually marry!

After the disappointment of the previous book, I had high hopes for this installment. I actually liked the author’s writing style in the first book, but I have a problem with the characters and the plot in this book. It seems like the character’s personalities change from book to book – I liked Hannah in the previous books, but in this book, she came across as very self-absorbed, immature and at times TSTL. Silas was much more likable, and I was horrified that the author made him grovel to Hannah – when he had done nothing wrong. Overall, this book had great promise, but it dragged from almost the first page until the last chapter, when miraculously everything comes together and they both love each other (eye roll) and then it is over – I have no idea how or why they fell in love and honestly by the end, I didn’t even care. This is the third book in the series, but it could be read as a standalone book without a problem – for me, this book was a miss, but the author has a lot of potential and is worth checking out.

*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. *

Highlander’s Holly and Ivy by Margaret Izard

On By TracyIn Check Content Warning/Triggers, Christmas, Georgian Era (1714-1837), New To Me Author, Paranormal / Fantasy, Part of a Series, Scottish/Highlander, Tracy's ReviewsLeave a comment

Highlander's Holly and IvyHighlander’s Holly and Ivy by Margaret Izard

Tracy’s Rating: 3/3.5 of 5 stars

Series: Stones of Iona, Holiday Novella

Release Date: December 1, 2025

Iris Erskine, daughter to James Erskine, the English Lord Advocate of Scotland, loves Scotland and wants to immerse herself in the culture of her adopted country, but understandably, the Scots are not fond of the English, so with the help of her maid Laurel, Iris takes on the persona of a mute maid named Ivy. She joins her friend at a gathering of the Gaels – a group of Scots that gather to keep their culture alive, despite the laws imposed on them by the English. When she meets their leader, Alex MacDougall, she is immediately smitten, and the feeling is mutual. They grow closer, but she never finds a way to tell him who she really is and when he learns the truth, his trust and possibly his love is lost. Will she be able to convince Alex that she never intended to deceive him or has her innocent deception cost her the love of a lifetime?

Alex MacDougall is the Lord Justice Cleark to Scotland and serves as a intermediary between the Scots and the Lord Advocate of Scotland – Englishman James Erskine, whom he has come to respect, despite the fact he is English. Alex’s family has a questionable allegiance to Scotland, thanks to his father’s refusal to fight at Culloden, so he has made it his mission to help Scotland adapt to English rule, but he doesn’t want to forsake his culture. He joined the Gaels, to keep their traditions alive, never expecting to find love. Alex thought he had found love once before and lost her and a Stone of Iona that the fae tasked his family to protect to an evil fae, leaving him determined to never love again. But when he meets Ivy, he wonders if love is possible for him and if he might be able to reclaim the love stone he lost all those years ago. But when the Gaels are found out and he realizes Ivy is not who she says she is, he believes she betrayed him. But when the truth comes out will it be too late to save her and reclaim the love he thought he would never find?

I have mixed feelings about this book, I liked the connection between Alex and Ivy/Iris, but I was expecting a lot more Fae activity, especially based on the prologue, and ultimately it ended up feeling like that element was just an afterthought. I did enjoy the setting of post-Culloden Scotland and the struggle the Scots had to keep their culture alive while abiding by the laws that seemed determined to eradicate their traditions. But I felt that Iris’ deception dragged on for way too long and found it hard to believe that Alex didn’t figure it out, especially since he kissed both Iris and “Ivy”. Overall, it was an OK read that I am glad I read and I wonder if I would have enjoyed it more if I had read the previous books in this series. Having said that, I didn’t feel lost even though I hadn’t read the other books, so I feel confident that this book could be read as a standalone title. It is important to note that I would caution sensitive readers to check out the content warnings before reading this book as there are some violent and graphic on-page assaults that may be upsetting to some 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. *