Barbara’s rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: The Merry Misfits of Bath #4
Publication Date: 4/14/20
Number of Pages: 185

This was a really exciting addition to the series – it was fast-paced, well-written, and so very romantic. I will admit that parts of it were a bit darker than I normally care for, but it was still a delightful read and a change of pace for me. We also had lovely visits with the H/h from the first three books.

Four years ago, Lizbeth Davenport lost her entire family within just a few weeks of each other. Now, alone and without employment, she accepts a fateful offer that will lead to the demise of all her hopes and dreams. In the middle of the night, she’s kidnapped – taken from her bed and sold to a London brothel.

Marcus Mallory is a member of parliament who has spent years working on getting a bill passed that would crack down on the kidnapping of women and children for nefarious purposes. The bill gets passed in the House of Lords, but is always defeated in the Commons. He’s frustrated, but still working to get the votes he needs. When his friend Nick (Nicholas Smith from Lady Pamela and the Gambler) arrives and asks for his assistance in rescuing a friend who was kidnapped and sold to a brothel, Marcus leaps at the chance to help.

After her rescue, Lizbeth is filled with anger and vows revenge on those who kidnapped her. She has every intention of doing it alone, but Marcus insists on helping her. As they spend time together, they grow closer, but still … Can a man who has declared to all who’ll listen that he’ll not marry and a woman who is terrified of a man’s touch actually find their HEA?

I absolutely loved Marcus, he wasn’t judgmental and seemed to have all of the patience in the world with Lizbeth. When there are villains everywhere – more kidnappings – and police who seem to do nothing, the reader begins to wonder if/when/how Lizbeth will have her revenge.

I thoroughly enjoyed this read and I hope you will as well. The only thing I wasn’t happy about was that one of the main villains went basically unpunished. Given the damage this person did, how many lives were ruined over a long period of time, I would have really preferred a severe punishment. If the police couldn’t manage it – the person could have fallen off a cliff, or down a quarry, or over the side of a boat, or out of a moving coach, or run in front of a bullet – whatever – just something more than what happened.

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

Barbara’s rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: Merry Misfits of Bath #2
Publication Date: 12/17/2019

This is a romance that is intriguing from beginning to end. If you don’t absolutely fall in love with Carter Westbrook, you can’t possibly have a romantic bone in your body. Charlotte (Lottie) Danvers is just as admirable as Carter – meaning we have two very likable, very relatable, very charming people who are working toward their HEA. Carter is calm, steady, patient, and absolutely determined when it comes to something he wants – and he wants Lottie. Lottie is beautiful, smart, educated, graceful, sweet, caring, dedicated to her friends, and seems to become a klutz whenever Carter is around.

Charlotte was raised first by a lovely caring couple in the countryside of England and then at a boarding school outside Paris. Her mother wanted her to live outside London and not have to breathe the nasty air – and then, of course, she needed an education. Even when she’d finished her schooling, at her mother’s encouragement, she stayed on to teach at the school. During all of that, she and her mother managed to be very close. Her mother visited her regularly when she was in the countryside and twice a month when she was in France.

Charlotte decided to leave her position at the school and surprise her mother in London. However, when she arrived, unannounced, at her mother’s home in London, Charlotte is the one who got quite a surprise. Her whole world shattered when she learned the truth about her mother’s life. Charlotte left for Bath the very next day, changed her name to Lottie, and has remained there, estranged from her mother, for a year.

Lottie has shunned any social involvement during the year she’s been back in England because she is afraid someone will recognize her since she looks so much like her mother. She would love to go to assemblies, parties, etc. but she just can’t risk the exposure. She has to make an exception to that when one of her best friends is getting married in London. So, she dons a disguise (spectacles) and prays no one will make the connection between her and her mother. Sadly, she meets a man – the kind of man she could have loved if her circumstances were different.

Carter is attending his best friend’s wedding and is intrigued by the best friend of the bride. She is lovely, graceful and very standoffish. He is confident he can win her over – he’s never had a problem with ladies before. This one seems much more resistant than anyone else has ever been – but, he’s a patient man – he’ll win her over.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and I hope you will as well. It was lovely to see these two lovely, deserving people find their HEA.

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