The Knight’s Maiden in Disguise by Ella Matthews #BlogTour

On By TracyIn Blog Tour, Medieval (1066-1540), Middle Ages / Medieval (476-1454), Tracy's ReviewsLeave a comment

The Knights Maiden in Disguise

The Knight - KMID UK cover

The Knight’s Maiden in Disguise

Risking her life
To save a knight!

Disguising herself as her late twin brother keeps Avva Carpenter, and her family, safe. Until Sir William Devereux arrives in her town. As the castle’s stable master, Avva can’t avoid the knight—or the desire he instantly stirs in her. He’s everything she never knew a nobleman could be: honest, kind, brave. When danger surrounds them, the only way to help William is to reveal her true identity, but can she trust him enough?

Purchase Links:

UK – US

The Knight Ella_Matthews_photo
Author Bio:

Ella Matthews lives and works in beautiful South Wales. When not thinking about handsome heroes she can be found walking along the coast with her husband and their two children (probably still thinking about heroes but at least pretending to be interested in everyone else).

Social Media Links:

Twitter ~ Website ~ Facebook

Tracy’s Review:

The Knight's Maiden in DisguiseThe Knight’s Maiden in Disguise by Ella Matthews

Tracy’s rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: The King’s Knights, #1

Release Date:  September 28, 2021

Sir William Devereux is on a mission for the King’s Knights, an elite group that serves King Edward III, the king himself has sent William to prepare Baron Caerden in South Wales for a visit from the king. William hopes that if this mission is successful the king will reward him with a rich bride. His father is a baron, but William feels that his parents are too blinded by their love of one another to manage the barony properly, he worries that his sisters will suffer and wants a rich wife to ensure they are properly dowered and that the estate is not left destitute when William inherits. William views his parent’s love as a liability and vows to never succumb to such nonsense. He and his squire James, are almost at the Baron’s keep when they notice that the village is too quiet and that there are no women about, curious, he then notices that there seems to be no one guarding the keep. Worried, he sends James to warn the King’s Knights that something is amiss and then sets out on his own to find out what is going on. He enters the stables and is immediately blown away by his immediate and intense attraction to the stable master, who at first glance is the most beautiful woman he has ever seen, he soon realizes his mistake and is bewildered by his attraction to the man. He is overwhelmed by it and has to force himself to leave the stables and concentrate on his mission. A mission that is getting more difficult by the moment when he learns the Baron is not in residence.

For the last year, Avva Carpenter has been disguised as her deceased twin brother Aven, something that is necessary for a young woman living in Caerden. If she could, Avva would leave and start a new life elsewhere, but she won’t abandon her younger brothers, who are apprenticing for the blacksmith, she hopes that they will soon be settled and she can move on. Avva’s reaction to William was every bit as visceral and immediate as his was to her, but she can’t risk her disguise and vows to avoid the handsome knight. But that will be easier said than done since William seeks her out, again and again, to help him figure out what the Baron is up to.

It didn’t take long for William to figure out that Avva is a woman and an ally. Together they uncover a plot against the king and set out to thwart it. But when William is injured, Avva’s involvement may just end up getting her killed. Can William save her and still complete his mission? And if he does, will he still want to marry an heiress or will he do what he has vowed never to do and marry for love?

This was a well-written, fast-paced read with wonderful characters and enough intrigue to keep you flipping pages. The story is not overly complex, but it is well-plotted and perfectly executed, it is filled with forbidden desire, warmish love scenes, secrets, a truly wicked villain, great secondary characters, action, and finally a HEA that didn’t seem possible. I enjoyed this book and would happily recommend it!

*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.*

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The Matchmaker’s Lonely Heart by Nancy Campbell Allen

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, Victorian Era (1837-1901)Leave a comment

The Matchmaker's Lonely HeartBarbara’s Rating: 5 of 5 Stars
Series: No Series Listed
Publication Date: 9/7/21
Period: Victorian London
Number of Pages: 336

Wowzers! This is my first read by this author, but it will definitely NOT be my last. The writing is excellent, the plot is tightly woven and cohesive, the characters are exceptional, and there is excitement galore. There are several characters in this book that I would love to see in future books, but there is no mention that this book is part of a series – bummer.

Detective Michael Baker is part of Scotland Yard’s newly organized Criminal Investigation Division. Michael is a no-nonsense man who has vowed he will never marry. Not Ever. He’s seen what grief does to those left behind when a law officer dies in the line of duty and he would never inflict that pain on anyone he loved. His father died in the line of duty as did his best friend and brother-in-law. No, he’ll never leave those he loves to cope with the grief and life after he is gone.

Michael is called to the banks of the Thames because a dead body has been found. A beautiful young woman whose life ended much too soon. Michael finally learns she is the wife of solicitor Mr. Harold Radcliff and undertakes the sad task of having the newly bereaved husband identify the body. Something just doesn’t seem right about Radcliff’s reactions. He does all of the correct things – but they just don’t ring true for Michael. Then, when Radcliff refuses to allow an autopsy – Michael is really interested in having one done. When Radcliff thwarts Michael’s wishes and whisks the body away to her family plot, Michael knows he’ll have to find other means to figure out what happened to Marie Radcliff.

Amelie (that is AHmelie) Hampton and her two cousins, Charlotte and Evangeline are all working toward becoming ‘women of independent means’ by living in their aunt’s ‘boarding’ house and working at her newspaper, the Marriage Gazette. Amelie is neither smooth nor polished, but she is a hopeless romantic who firmly believes in finding her knight in shining armor. She performs a bit of matchmaking through her work at the Marriage Gazette – probably much more than her aunt Sally knows. She’s coordinated a potential match and is anxious to see how it is going. She’s met the lady but has no idea who the man actually is, so she hides outside the tea shop where her two matches are to meet – just so she can assure all is going well. But … Oh! No! … the man who shows up is Mr. Harold Radcliff, a man for whom Amelie has a bit of a tendre.

While following Radcliff, Michael sees a young woman spying on Radcliff and another young woman. Hmm – Could this be an accomplice of Radcliff? Michael determines to follow her and confront her. After scaring her nearly to death and getting her story, Michael enlists her aid. Oh! She’ll aid him alright. She’ll prove to Scotland Yard Radcliff is totally innocent.

I loved watching Michael and Amelie – first working at cross-purposes, and then united. Their own feelings for each other developed slowly and the realization came even slower. But, goodness, when that realization did happen.

I definitely recommend this book and I hope you’ll enjoy it as much as I did. It is exciting and the resolution of the mystery will have your heart in your throat. I would really love to see future books with Charlotte, Evangeline, Aunt Sally, Detective Winston, director Ellis – and even Michael’s widowed sister, Clarissa.

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

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