Mimi Matthews – Page 3 – Flippin' Pages Book Reviews

Return to Satterthwaite Court by Mimi Matthews

Series: Somerset Stories, #3

Release Date: April 11, 2023

After almost a decade in Her Majesty’s Navy, Charles Heywood is disenchanted and resigns his commission, he plans to find an estate and settle down into the life of a country gentleman, but first, he needs to reconcile with his family – he didn’t leave under the best of terms and that weighs heavily on him. So after a quick stop in London to purchase some Christmas gifts, he will return to Heywood House in Somersetshire and try to mend his fences, then find his own estate and then maybe, he will think about marriage. But fate has other plans for Charles and thanks to a mangy mutt, Charles crosses paths with one of the most lovely women he has ever seen. But Charles doesn’t have time for ladies, no matter how lovely, and after a brief exchange, Charles is off, with the dog, not the lady.

Lady Katherine Beresford has just met the only man in London that has interested her, too bad she doesn’t know his name or situation. Kate is in town for the season and to find a husband, her family has a bit of scandal attached to their name, and they are hoping that if Kate marries well, it will help ease the gossip that still surrounds them, but she wants a love like her parents have and so far men have only been interested in her looks or her fortune. The man she met today didn’t seem interested in either, making him almost irresistible to Kate. A little digging provides her with his name and direction, he lives near her parent’s estate, which as luck would have it, she is traveling to for Christmas in a few days. Once home, she writes to him and then finagles her youngest brother to escort her to his family estate. The reception she receives was not what she expected and she learns that a threatening letter was sent and Charles thought she sent it! Undaunted, Kate makes it her business to help Charles figure out who sent the letter and what it means. Because despite Charles’ frosty demeanor, Kate hasn’t given up on finding her HEA with him! Now she just needs to help him solve his mystery and convince him that she is the perfect woman for him! Too bad she forgot that the course of true love never did run smooth.

This was a delightful read, it was well written and flowed nicely with wonderful characters and an interesting plot. I hadn’t read the previous books in the series, which were their parent’s love stories, but since the author did such a great job explaining their backstories, I had no problem understanding the connections in this book. I was hoping for a bit of steam, but this book is kisses only and didn’t need the smexy stuff to give the reader romance between Kate and Charles. The book has revenge, lots of dogs, wonderful secondary characters, a possible secondary romance, mystery, a heroine who knows what she wants and isn’t afraid to “chase him until he catches her”, a hero who thinks he knows what he wants until she shows him he is wrong, gunshots, surprising discoveries, disappointments, kisses and finally a HEA complete with an epilogue. I did feel like the ending was a bit rushed and a little anti-climatic, but it was still good and I would happily recommend this title. This is the third book in the series, but it could easily be read as a standalone title.

*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 Matrimonial Advertisement by Mimi Matthews

Barbara’s rating: 3.75 of 5 stars

Series: Parish Orphans of Devon #1
Publication Date: 9/4/18

This first book in the Parish Orphans of Devon series is my first one by Mimi Matthews. The book is intelligently written and the characters are interesting.

Ex-army captain Justin Thornhill is tall, dark, handsome, and he takes care of those for whom he cares. He also has things in his past that, while they are not a secret, he’d just as soon everybody would forget them. He’s finally reached his goal of purchasing Greyfriar’s Abbey on the remote North Devon coast. He is a self-made man of modest means and his steward thinks he needs a wife. To that end, the steward placed an ad in the London papers advertising for a bride. The ad was very brief and to the point – a retired army officer needs a wife who is a spinster or widow near his own age, sensible, compassionate and capable of managing a remote country property. At first, Justin threatened to fire the steward, but then warmed to the idea since it was, after all, only a business arrangement with no love or affection expected.

Lady Helena Reynolds is in dire straits and must, absolutely must, escape London permanently because her uncle will stop at nothing to gain control of her fortune. When her cousin sees a Matrimonial Advertisement in the paper, Helena thinks it might be her way out. If she marries, then her uncle cannot usurp her fortune, nor would he have control of her. She’d rather trust a stranger than her uncle. She manages to escape to North Devon and to marry Justin Thornhill.

I had a really, really, really hard time liking Helena. Yes, I understand that her predicament was of the very worst kind and I really felt sorry for that. However, all of her actions up until about the 80% mark were very selfish. She married Justin without telling him what her situation was – and that was a situation that could have cost Justin to be injured, etc. She never thought of the implications to anyone other than herself. By the time I was at around the 80% mark, she had had an epiphany and realized she loved Justin.

Justin was a real hero and I liked him very much throughout the book. He had things he preferred not to tell, but if Helena asked, he answered – unlike her. Then at about the 80% mark of the book, he gets altruistic and I just wanted to kick his rear.

This was a very nice story, very clean, but it was also just a bit slow-paced to me and I found myself skimming a bit in spots.

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“I requested and received this e-book at no cost to me and volunteered to read it; my review is my honest opinion and given without any influence by the author or publisher.”

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