Barbara’s rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: The Hadfields #1
Publication Date: 10/20/20
Number of Pages: 187

This was a lovely first book in a new series – a trilogy I believe. We learned of the organization to which our hero and heroine belong in the previous series, Agents of the Home Office. Most, if not all of the characters from those books appear in this book and it was lovely to have a nice visit with them. You can certainly read this as a stand-alone book, but to truly understand the organization, its origins, its structure, and its purpose, then reading the previous series – especially Mysteries Of Lady Theo – is something you’ll want to do. I specifically mention Lady Theo’s book because that is where our current hero is introduced. The books in both series are good, but the first series was more exciting because they had villains, mysteries, spies, etc. This book and I assume the next, Tempting a Gentleman, are romances without the wild chases, villains, etc. It was an excellent read and I was delighted to meet both the hero and heroine.

Landon Neale, Earl of Hadfield, had never expected to inherit a title, but he’s now been the Earl of Hadfield for two years. He inherited a crumbling, penniless estate and has worked at rebuilding it. One thing he needs to do is provide an heir because he may not have a lot of years on this earth. His father, his cousin, his uncle (the former Earl), all died from a lung condition – and Landon has that same lung condition. He’s looked over his mother’s list of ladies from the ton, and he doesn’t want any of them. The ONLY woman he’s ever wanted – and still wants – is Bronwyn Cadby. Bronwyn was his secretary when he was a barrister, and her intelligence, quick understanding of a case and challenging arguments always held his interest. He knew back then – six years ago – that she was the one for him, but he never acted upon it. Now – well – now it is time.

Bronwyn is a much-respected member of The Network – an organization that acts solely in support of PORFs (Protectors of the Royal Family). Bronwyn was assigned to keep an eye on Landon several years ago because The Network thought he’d surely end up becoming the earl and a PORF. She’d cared about Landon since the first day she met him and by the time he inherited his title, she was totally in love with him. She made every effort to keep that well hidden because they were from very different backgrounds – he would be an earl and she was the daughter of a shopkeeper.

Landon has rehearsed his proposal, he has all of his arguments lined up, and he’s ready to act. Then, when he sees her, every coherent thought goes right out of his head. He was a brilliant barrister and now he can’t even speak much less make a case for himself. He bungles it royally, but she does agree to think about it and will let him know her answer the following day.

Landon loves Bronwyn – and Bronwyn loves Landon – you’d think it would be cut and dried, wouldn’t you. Well, it isn’t. Landon is totally committed, but Bronwyn feels unworthy. She doesn’t see the same beauty and abilities in herself as everyone else sees in her. She loves Landon and doesn’t want to reflect poorly on him. It was lovely to watch Landon and others bring Bronwyn to see where she is of value to him – that he truly does love her, and that she will be an asset rather than a liability.

I enjoyed this read and am looking forward to the next book in the series. That said, this book – like the previous series – is filled with anomalies. I hope those are all fixed prior to the release of the book. An example – she refers to Bronwyn’s friend, Emma, as Ms. Lennox. Ms. Is a modern construct – dating to about 1900 and not something you’d see in Regency England. Anyway, it was a fun read and I enjoyed it.

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

Barbara’s rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: Agents of the Home Office #4
Publication Date: 8/20/20

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, but I’m bummed that it is the last book in the series. Of course, there is a new series on the way and it is related to this one. So, I’ll be excited to see how that goes, but we have to wait until next year for it. The author tried to wrap up the loose ends with this book, but I was still left with some questions – or maybe I just didn’t like the author’s solutions – who knows?

Let me say that it is better if you read the entire series – in order. The story builds, the characters are filled out and the villain is for the entire series. You CAN start with a book other than the first one, but you won’t get the full understanding of what a PORF is, the organization behind it, the people in the organization, etc. There are a lot of characters in each book – and more than one storyline – so it is probably easier to keep up with all of that if you already understand what is going on in the background. All of that said – I think I could have picked up this book as the first one in the series and I still would have enjoyed it.

If you read the earlier books, you know that somewhere in each book (usually toward the end), one of the agents would take off for the continent against the orders of the Home Office and/or the Foreign Office. Those agents were all captured in Spain and held for over a year until Lady Grace Oldridge made a deal with the devil to free them. That deal will cost Grace her happiness, her freedom, and her future, but it will save the one and only man she’s ever (or will ever) love. The deal? She must marry the son of the villain of the series.

Matthew Stanford, Marquess of Harrington, is the man Lady Grace sacrificed her future for – but he doesn’t know what she did. He only knows that the woman that he’s loved his entire life is now betrothed to the son of his worst enemy. How could she just give up on them like that? Granted, he shouldn’t have taken off as he did – and gotten himself captured – but, for her to just stop loving him and betroth herself to another is unforgivable. He spent the better part of a year being tortured and his body is now scarred and he’s bent on revenge against the series villain who is responsible for Matthew’s capture. Maybe he doesn’t really have room in his life for Grace anyway…

Matthew finds that he cannot avoid Grace and as they have to work together to solve some other issues, he realizes she’s not willingly or happily betrothed – and then he learns why she’s betrothed. As they work together with the other agents to finally bring the villain to an end, they also work toward their own HEA.

I really liked these two characters and I loved that they got their HEA. I loved the story as well, it was well-written, well-paced and all of the supporting characters were wonderful. I particularly loved Grace’s father who was suffering from Alzheimer’s. I loved how he and Grace dealt with each other. The book had a little bit of everything – mystery, vile villain, secrets, and a little bit of steam – what isn’t to love. Don’t expect any historical correctness in the book, but it is still a fun read.

I have to wonder if we’ll ever learn any more about Mr. Jones and Lord Ellingsworth. They just up and left for America yet Ellingsworth is now the head of one of the PORF families – so what happens there? Then Jones – I thought he was a little cold to leave as he did and when he did – he’d just met his sister after all. So, I’m hoping in the next series, The Hadfields, we will be offered some more insights because that series is also about the PORF group.

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