A Knight to Call Her Home by Margaux Thorne

On By TracyIn Medieval (1066-1540), Middle Ages / Medieval (476-1454), Part of a Series, Top Pick - Highly Recommended, Tracy's ReviewsLeave a comment

A Knight To Call Her Home (Peace-Weavers Book 1)A Knight To Call Her Home by Margaux Thorne

Tracy’s rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Series: Peace-Weavers, #1

Release Date: November 2021

Hoping to appease the new king, Saxon heiress, Emma of Wakefield travels to London to pay homage to William. She hopes to pay a tithe and return home, but the Conqueror has other plans for her and her estate. Namely, Norman warrior, Hugh Fitzsimmons who has loyally served William and was surprised when the king gifted him with an estate and a bride – but he is less than thrilled when his bride not only runs away but shoots him with an arrow and leaves him for dead when he catches up with her!

Hugh finally finds Emma and after saving her from a fate worse than death, he wins her acceptance of their marriage. But it is clear when someone poisons Emma at their wedding feast that everyone is not happy with this Norman-Saxon match. Hoping the worse is behind them, they return to Wakefield and they make an honest attempt to work together. It seems like HEA is a foregone conclusion, but will a stunning betrayal reveal that their feelings were just an illusion?

This debut novel was a delightful surprise for this reviewer and I believe this new author will be making a name for herself in the HR genre! The book is well-written, nicely paced, and has very likable and relatable characters. The story employs the classic enemy-to-lovers trope and is filled with steamyish love scenes, wonderful characters, a great supporting cast of secondary characters, a lot of emotion, a gruff hero with a heart of gold, betrayal, heartache, and finally a sigh-worthy ending. I will note that if you are a historical purist, this book might not be for you as there is a lot of modern verbiage, but if you are just looking for a fun read with steamyish love scenes, some laugh out loud moments, and a HEA – read this book! This is the first book in the series and I am happy to recommend the title and will definitely be reading 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.*

The Rigid Duke by Darcy Burke

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, Part of a Series, Regency Era (1811-1820)Leave a comment

The Rigid Duke (Matchmaking Chronicles #1)

Barbara’s rating: 4 of 5 Stars
Series: Matchmaking Chronicles
Publication Date: 3/8/22
Period: Regency
Number of Pages: 156

This short book was a nice introduction to a new series and I’m looking forward to the next books in the series. While the book was short, it told a complete story and didn’t make you feel as if you’d missed something. The characters were all interesting and I’ll be interested to see which of them, if any, continue to be featured in future books.

Mrs. Juno Langton has made quite a successful life for herself since being widowed. As a highly sought-after refinement tutor, she can pick and choose her clients. Her current student is Lady Marina – who is totally disinterested in the marriage mart and lessons from Juno. Juno is very happy to learn they’ve been invited to a house party where Lady Marina will have the opportunity to be matched with a duke. Now, if Marina’s disinterest doesn’t discourage him, Juno will have another successful debutante launch to her credit.

Alexander Brett, Duke of Warrington, is definitely rigid in all things. He’s dour, curmudgeonly, taciturn, and … well – you’d have a hard time finding anyone more rigid and less inclined to find himself in a crowd of any kind – especially a house party. Yet, that is exactly where he is.

Will there be a match between Lady Marina and the Duke? Well, there are certainly no sparks flying, but many marriages are based on less. But, there is Lady Marina’s companion. She ignites all sorts of feelings just by being in the same room with him. A duke absolutely cannot marry a lady’s paid companion – or can he?

I hope you’ll give this book a read. The characters are interesting and the story is well-told, so I’m sure you can’t help but love it.

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

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