Tag: Nola Saint James

Love at Midnight by Nola Saint James

On By TracyIn Christmas, Georgian Era (1714-1837), Non-Traditional Romance, Paranormal / Fantasy, Romantasy, Standalone Title, Tracy's Reviews, Young AdultLeave a comment

Love at Midnight: A Regency Christmas RomantasyLove at Midnight: A Regency Christmas Romantasy by Nola Saint James

Tracy’s Rating: 3 of 5 stars

Series: Standalone

Release Date: October 16, 2025

When Miss Grace Cooper, daughter of the late Viscount & Viscountess Shelbourne and heiress learns that her estate trustees are planning to marry her off sight unseen to a man of their choosing in just a few months, she knows that she will have to take matters into her own hands if she wants to marry her true love. The real problem is she doesn’t know who her true love is! Her housekeeper has been like a surrogate mother to her and vows to help her find her true love and suggests she meet with Mommia Ravenal, a Roma lady with the gift of sight, perhaps she can point Grace in the direction of her true love. Mommia does give her good news, her true love is near, but Grace will have to find him on her own.

Harold Picton AKA Hal Ravenal is the Earl of Langafel, however, he was not raised to be the earl. His parents eloped as their families didn’t approve of their love, sadly both his parents died shortly after his birth, and he was raised by a childless couple in the village. When he turned 18 his foster parents told him of his family – his father was heir to the Earl of Langafel and his mother was a member of the Roma Ravenal clan. He tracks down his mother’s clan and learns he has a gift with horses. He is happy to be reunited with his mother’s family and is content to build a life with them, but when Mommia, the matriarch of the clan demands he attend her, he knows this life is about to change. He learns that his paternal grandfather has died and he is now the earl. Being the earl means leaving the clan, but Mommia tells him that he won’t be alone, his true love is near and when he finds her, she will be the helpmate he needs to take up his title. Now he just needs to find her…

This was not your typical romance story, but it was an interesting story with very likable characters, not all of whom are human. The main characters don’t meet right away and there are a lot of things going on aside from Grace and Hal trying to find their true loves. Interwoven in the love story is a Norwegian legend about animals speaking to humans on Christmas eve as well as the Ravenal paranormal gifts. I liked this story, but it meandered all over the place, personally, I would have preferred the focus of the story to be the romance and have more of a connection between Grace and Hal, rather than relying on the love at first sight / true love trope. Overall, it was a unique read and if you are looking for something a bit different, you might want to give this book a try.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher/author. All opinions in this review are my own. *

Curse of the Ravenscrofft Brides by Nola Saint James

On By TracyIn Check Content Warning/Triggers, Georgian Era (1714-1837), Historical Paranormal/Fantasy, New To Me Author, Part of a Series, Regency Era (1811-1820), Tracy's ReviewsLeave a comment

Curse of the Ravenscrofft Brides: A Regency Romantasy (The Ravenscrofft Chronicles Book 1)Curse of the Ravenscrofft Brides: A Regency Romantasy by Nola Saint James

Tracy’s Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Series: The Ravenscrofft Chronicles, #1

Release Date: March 26, 2025

Wyatt Sinclair, Viscount Ravenscrofft, has a secret, his family was given a special gift by the Ravenal Roma Clan when the first viscount fell in love and married one of their clan. The gift gave them and their descendants the ability to shape-shift into a Raven. Wyatt loves his shifting ability but his is determined that the gift will end with him, as he believes that the gift comes with a curse – the death of the Ravenscrofft brides. Since the first viscount, each bride has died not long after the birth of an heir, and Wyatt refuses to marry and subject an innocent woman to a death sentence. But his convictions are tested with the discovery of a boy who is clearly related to him and when he meets Sophia, he begins to hope that the curse is not real.

After the death of her mother, Sophia Nightingale Braithwaite becomes increasingly uncomfortable with her step-father, The Earl of Easton Grey. On a rare afternoon alone, she is returning home from a walk in the forest, where she had the incredible experience of seeing what she believed to be a raven turn into a man, she is eager to get home and ponder what she saw. But her life changes in an instant when she is accosted by her step-father and learns that he raped Rebecca, her governess and has fired her after it becomes clear she is pregnant with his child. The earl makes it clear that without Rebecca he will turn his attentions to Sophia. With Rebecca’s help, they subdue the earl and escape the estate – hoping to find shelter in London with Rebecca’s aunt. But things don’t go as planned and they end up in the employ of Wyatt Sinclair, Viscount Ravenscrofft. Sophia is shocked to realize the viscount is the man she saw transform in the woods, but instinctively she trusts him and agrees to act as governess to his young brother. The more time she spends with Wyatt, the more she likes him and begins to fall in love with him. Secrets are shared but evil is still waiting in the wings and may keep our lovers from finding their HEA if they can’t learn to trust their hearts.

This was my first time reading this author and I liked this story, but I am not sure I would call it Romantasy – it is more Historical Romance with a supernatural twist. I liked Sophia and Wyatt, they are both likable characters with good hearts and heartache in their pasts, which made it easy to root for their happily ever after. This story has a lot going on and I felt that it was a bit predictable and at times it meandered a bit and lost the plot. But in the end, most of the story threads were tied up, the villain has been dealt with and our happy couple plans to marry. Overall, this was a good read with wonderful characters, warm love scenes, a truly nasty villain, secrets, heartache, surprising revelations, life-changing decisions and finally the promise of HEA. I would recommend it to HR readers who enjoy a bit of the paranormal in their stories.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher/author. All opinions in this review are my own. *