Tag: Lana Williams

Romancing the Rogue by Lana Williams

On By TracyIn Regency Era (1811-1820), Tracy's ReviewsLeave a comment

Romancing the Rogue (Regency Rendezvous Book 9)Romancing the Rogue by Lana Williams
Tracy’s rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Release Date: 07/28/17

It is no secret that Lana Williams is one of my favorite authors. I loved her Medieval series, the Victorian/Paranormal Secrets trilogy and most recently her Victorian Seven Curses series and now she has taken the plunge into the Regency era!
Regency era romance is one of my favorite subgenres in the world of Historical Romance and while I am not overly picky, most authors stumble when they delve into this era – so as much as I love Lana’s work, I was leery. I am happy to say with the exception of a couple minor things and one title flub – she nailed it!

This is the story of Richard Walker, the Earl of Aberland and Caroline Gold, eldest daughter of Sir Reginald Gold. Caroline’s father made his fortune in shipping and he was awarded a Knighthood twenty years ago for his service to the crown. Sadly, her father has recently begun to show signs of dementia and combined with some bad investments, the family is on the brink of ruin. She feels guilty that unlike her sisters, she has no talents that would enable her to contribute to the family’s coffers. So in an effort to save her family, Caroline has been trying to encourage the Duke of Wakefield to propose. With his wealth and connections, Caroline is sure that he is the answer to her all her problems.

After sharing a dance with the duke, she is sure he will propose, but when their conversation is interrupted and he walks away, Caroline makes an impulsive decision to follow him.
Richard is on a mission, he is an agent for the crown and lost his partner and best friend just over a year ago – betrayed by a woman whom he trusted. He is determined to find the traitor that killed his friend and his former lover. He has narrowed his suspects down to 3 members of the ton and has returned to England to deliver justice. The ton know him as a penniless rogue, which works for his purposes. He sees Caroline follow Wakefield out to the gardens and as Wakefield is one of his targets, he follows them. When Wakefield abruptly leaves, Richard confronts Caroline about her conversation – at this point he is not sure if she is innocent or if she is in cahoots with Wakefield. Unfortunately, when she tries to leave, he grabs for her arm and they end up in a compromising position, which is witnessed by not only her mother, but the hostess.
Caroline is horrified and tries to explain her way out of the inevitable – Richard must propose to save her reputation – but marrying him will ruin her family. She is also concerned with him finding out about her father’s condition. They reluctantly agree to a betrothal – but neither actually plans to marry the other.
As Caroline and Richard get to know each other, they both wonder if perhaps there could be something more between them. But the each have secrets and a villain is determined to destroy them both.
The book is well written, flows nicely, the secondary characters are wonderful, it has secrets, some action, a bit of intrigue and a dash of angst. While this book is not a steamy read, there are a few passionate kisses and stolen moments.

I would be happy to recommend this book because I really enjoyed the story and sincerely hope that Ms. Williams has plans to write stories for Caroline’s sister and Richard’s brother!

*I was provided a copy of this book by the author and am voluntarily leaving a review*

Her Majesty’s Scoundrel’s – Various Authors

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

Her Majesty's ScoundrelsHer Majesty’s Scoundrels by Christy Carlyle
Tracy’s rating: 4 of 5 stars

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that was provided to me by the author*

A very good collection of Victorian Era novellas.

To Lure a Lost Duke – Christy Carlyle – 5 stars: This was my favorite in the collection, it was also the longest of the five and the steamiest. This is the story of Octavia aka Tavia and Killian Graves, the Duke of Strathmoor. Octavia is an investigator hired by the Queen to track down Killian and bring him back to London. Killian was a soilder and never expected to inherit, he doesn’t feel worthy and couple that with an accusation of murder – he has decided to walk away from his life. Tavia finds Killian and worms her way into his life. After a confrontation with the murdered man’s brother, Killian agrees to return to London, where he hope Tavia will agree to marry him. But upon his return he is promptly arrested for the murder and believes the woman he loves betrayed him. Can Tavia clear his name and convince Killian that she was not party to his arrest? Great story!

Cast In Scandal – Laura Landon – 4 stars: This is the story of Edward, Duke of Townsend and Alyssa, Countess of Lindleigh. Edward has been tasked with finding a missing agent of the crown and finding out the truth of Lord Lindleigh’s death. Alyssa has lived under a cloud of suspicion for the past year – the ton believes that she killed her husband. Alyssa would be more than happy to live the rest of her life out of society – but for the sake of her daughter, she has re-entered society and is trying to put the scandal behind her – without much success. Edward is drawn to Alyssa and after a rocky start, they form a friendship. Edward manages to find the missing link between the missing agent and the death of Alyssa’s husband – but will he be able to save the woman he loves? I liked this story – both Alyssa and Edward are older and have been in love before and been hurt by those loves.

The Viscount’s Secret – Anthea Lawson – 3 stars: Anthony, Viscount Percival is a spy, he has honed an image of a frivolous flirt to glean secrets. Irenna is the niece of Anthony’s latest target – but somehow she sees past his disguise. Anthony is intrigued by Irenna and hopes that she can be the one woman that can love the real Anthony. But the path to their HEA will be difficult, Irenna has been hurt before and war is brewing. I felt like this novella was a little too short and therefore it made the love story feel rushed and unbelievable.

A Spy to Call My Own – Rebecca Paul – 3 1/2 stars: This story started out so good, but it wrapped up too quickly. Vera is a suffragette and attending college when she learns that her brother has died. Desperate for answers, she travels to Africa to find her brother’s partner, Owen. Owen is an agent for the home office – he fell in love with Vera years ago – but his duty has made walk away from her. When she shows up with a map that she found hidden in her brother’s belongings – he wants nothing more than to ship her back to England where she will be safe. Vera is having none of that and manages to save herself and Owen from certain death when the villain tries to take the treasure that cost her brother his life. This was well written and interesting – but it wraps up way too fast and felt incomplete.

Tempting the Scoundrel – Lana Williams – 4 1/2 stars: Elliott, Earl of Aberland is a spy, he has cultivated the image of a rake and a wastrel to explain his many absences from society. Sophia Markham is his grandmother’s new companion and far to lovely and clever for Elliott’s peace of mind. Elliott tries to send Sophia away – because he knows it will be impossible to maintain his cover with this woman, but his grandmother adores her and he doesn’t have the heart to hurt her. They grow close and Sophia is sure that Elliott is not the scoundrel he wants the world to believe. However when she spies on him and is caught – he makes it clear that he is not interested in her and that he is exactly what his reputation implies. But when danger threatens and Sophia is dragged into an assassination attempt on the Queen – Elliott will move heaven and earth to save the woman he loves. Great addition to the Seven Curses series with cameos from the previous characters.

I really enjoyed this collection and would be happy to recommend it.