Tag: Sofie Darling

COVER REVEAL: Her Midnight Sin by Sofie Darling

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, Cover Reveal, Other2 Comments

her midnight sin #1c final 1800x2700✭ ✭ HER MIDNIGHT SIN by Sofie Darling ✭ ✭
✭ Coming April 17, 2019

✭ Add to Goodreads: https://bit.ly/2ANQHMZ
✭ Pre-Order: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07MWFP7TX

✭ ✭ ✭ About the Book ✭ ✭ ✭

Like a vengeful Norse god, Captain John Nylander has come from the sea to steal the only home that Callie has ever known. And that might not be all he’s after.

Can a Viking…

Orphaned as a child, Nylander has never known a real home. Now he is ready to leave the dangers of his past behind and put down the roots he has always longed for. The only thing standing in his way is a lanky aristocratic lady who is more at home on the farm than in the ballroom. And she has secrets…

And a Viscountess…

Callie, the Dowager Viscountess St. Alban, has poured all her energy into making Wyldcombe Grange her home. Managing an estate is not what she dreamed of, but her late husband’s rejection made it clear that love and a family would never be hers. Now she may lose even that to the sinfully handsome Captain. But Nylander is making her dream again…

Turn passion into love?

Nylander inspires a recklessness in Callie that she can’t control. Soon she finds herself conspiring with pirates and contemplating midnight trysts with the very Viking who has turned her life upside down. For Nylander, being with Callie embodies everything he’s always wanted—home. As midnight strikes, will all their secret, sinful dreams come true?

EXCERPT

Captain Nylander.

His voice was deep enough to shake the foundations of this mansion loose. Certainly deep enough to rattle Callie, her breath shallow and her mouth dry. She rose to a stand by slow increments and stood so silent and so still that she imagined she might be forgotten. Then the captain’s gaze met hers over St. Alban’s shoulder, and all hope was lost. His eyes narrowed in question, and she lifted a single, imperious eyebrow in response. The Grange knew that eyebrow well, and she sensed it was her best defense against this man in this moment.

Before her stood the man who would never be her friend. He was her rival . . . her enemy. Soft gaslight caught the golden strands of his unfashionably long, slightly unkempt hair and the glint of clear blue sky in his eye. For all his modern English attire, the man could have been a Viking, a Norse god even, from the tales of yore come to life. All he lacked was a shield in one hand and a hammer in the other.

Callie’s breath had no choice but to catch in her chest. Her enemy was imposing, yes, but did he also have to be so blasted, devastatingly . . . god-like?

AUTHOR INFO

sofie darling headshotSofie Darling is an award-winning author of historical romance. Her debut novel, THREE LESSONS IN SEDUCTION, won the Writers’ League of Texas’ Manuscript Contest in the Romance Category in 2016.

She spent much of her twenties raising two boys and reading every book she could get her hands on. Once she realized she simply had to write the books she loved, she finished her English degree and embarked on her writing career. Mr. Darling and the boys gave her their wholehearted blessing.

When she’s not writing heroes who make her swoon, she runs a marathon in a different state every year, visits crumbling medieval castles whenever she gets a chance, and enjoys a slightly codependent relationship with her beagle, Bosco.

Connect with Sofie:
Sofie’s Website
Sofie’s Facebook
Sofie’s Twitter
Sofie’s Goodreads

Three Lessons in Seduction by Sofie Darling

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, Georgian Era (1714-1837), Regency Era (1811-1820)5 Comments

Three Lessons in Seduction (A Shadows and Silk Novel)Three Lessons in Seduction by Sofie Darling

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: A Shadows and Silk Novel #1
Publication Date: 9/27/17

WOW! I can hardly believe this is the author’s first novel. I’ve seen many novels by very experienced writers who haven’t done nearly as well as Ms. Darling has with her first. It is excellently written and the characters are fully developed, likable, and they make you want to get to know them better. I’m already looking forward to the next book in the series.

The book is set in 1824 Paris, so what is not to love. The wars are over, but there is still a chance that civil war could happen because France’s king is at death’s door. Should the monarch expire and his successor is assassinated, chaos could reign supreme in France and then spread to the rest of the continent and even destabilize England. While the main story is set in 1824 Paris, there are flashbacks to England and the initial meeting, marriage and separation of Nick and Mariana. While I’m not a big fan of flashbacks, these were well done and didn’t bother me.

Lady Mariana Montfort Asquith has lived separately from her husband for over ten years. He lives in Paris and only comes home to see his children three or four times a year and Mariana has little, if any, contact with him in all that time. She’s spent those ten years hardening her heart and trying not to love him because he betrayed her and ripped her heart from her chest. Now, she has a letter saying that he is either missing or deceased in Paris as part of his service to the Crown. Service to the Crown? He haphazardly worked for some minor government agency there didn’t he? Whatever it is, she has to know, so she’ll go to Paris and either find him alive or bring his body home to be buried in England.

Lord Nicholas Asquith was raised by parents that were at war with each other. Their battles, at home and in public, were legendary. They had married for love, but Nick’s father was a philanderer. Nick had always felt that he was to blame for all of the governesses who came and quickly left, but later he learned why that was so. That made Nick very distrustful of love because it would blow up on you and cause you no end of pain. No, Nick would have a society marriage where there were no emotions involved. Then, he met Lady Mariana Montfort and he was lost – he loved her more and more each day and then when the twins were born his heart swelled with even more love. Then, panic set in – he knew that it was only a matter of time before the love would blow up and his work for the Home Office put his family in danger. So – what could he do to keep them safe? Yep – I didn’t like his answer either.

When Mariana arrives in Paris, Nick wonders what is going on, but he knows that he MUST keep her at arm’s length because he can’t control himself around her. He’s created a popinjay persona that he always uses around her because he knows she hates it and will stay away from him. Then, he realizes that someone is using Mariana to get to him. He needs to know who that is and to flush them out because they are most likely the person who is plotting an assassination to destabilize France. Nick can’t get Mariana to leave, so he has no choice other than to involve her in foiling the plot and unmasking the master-mind. That way, he can keep an eye on her and keep her safe. As they work together, they each discover that the love isn’t gone – but – they still have to guard themselves because they know they can’t have a life together.

I had a very hard time getting to like Nick – well – maybe that isn’t accurate. I liked him right away – but I didn’t, in the least, like what he did. He chose – very deliberately – to leave the wife and children he loved – and he deliberately hurt her very, very deeply in doing so. We come to know his reasons for that, but like most of those kinds of reasons, they are pretty flimsy and could have been resolved with some good conversations and loving support.

What didn’t I like about the book? Well – I absolutely, completely and totally hated that the villain in the story got absolutely no punishment. None. Nada. Zip. This person hurt his own family deeply – especially his two nieces and their husbands, he plotted an assassination, he used an injured man unmercifully and he was going to destabilize a country and maybe even a continent. Yes – he does all of that and he gets no punishment. No – and that dissatisfaction caused me to reduce the star-ratings for the book.

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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.”