Posted on by Maureen

A Seditious Affair by KJ Charles

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A Seditious Affair is the second book in KJ Charles’ A Society of Gentlemen series of Regency-era m/m historical romance novels. I am going to end up reading this series in reverse order due to the timing of when I received the digital holds from the library network.

Dominic Frey has some slightly unconventional needs, and he has a weekly appointment with a like-minded individual. These interludes provide him with an escape from his job and his friends, and while he doesn’t have much in common with his Wednesday partner, there is one thing that they share.

Silas Mason is a seditionist, and he loathes everything about the government, but he enjoys spending Wednesdays with his Tory. Over the course of the year, they have established a rapport and share wine and books with each other. They both look forward to Wednesdays, but neither of them ever thinks about meeting up outside of that standing appointment. Read more

Posted on by Maureen

A Gentleman’s Position by KJ Charles

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A Gentleman’s Position is the third book in KJ Charles’ Society of Gentlemen Regency-era series. I have been reading a lot of m/m historical romance lately, and having exhausted all of my Cat Sebastian books, I have moved on to KJ Charles. I placed a hold for a digital copy of all three of the books in this series, and I ended up receiving this one first.

It’s a little odd coming into a book at the end of the series, but I was able to pick up on the relationships fairly easily. This book concerns Lord Richard Vane and his valet, David Cyprian. They are both enmeshed in some sort of forbidden lust situation where neither one of them wants to violate the relationship between gentleman and valet.

David is an excellent valet. He keeps everything in order for Lord Richard, and he also solves problems that are beyond the purview of a typical valet; that is, he is not above bribery and manipulation to achieve his goals. David senses the tension that he shares with Richard, but he won’t be the one to make the first move. Read more

Posted on by Maureen

The Tuscan Child by Rhys Bowen

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The Tuscan Child was written by Rhys Bowen. This is her second standalone novel, but she is a prolific author of several series of historical mystery novels. I am a big fan of her Royal Spyness and Molly Murphy books, so I was very excited about the opportunity to read this book.

This novel functions with a dual timeline- half of the story takes place during WWII: Hugo Langley, an English pilot, crashes in the hills of Tuscany. Thirty years later, his daughter Joanna finds a letter among Hugo’s personal papers following his sudden death. She reads something so compelling that she returns to Tuscany to discover the truth about what happened all those years ago. Read more

Posted on by Maureen

A Duke in the Night by Kelly Bowen

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A Duke in the Night was written by Kelly Bowen. This is the first book in her new Regency-era The Devils of Dover series. I was very excited about the opportunity to read this book because I’ve heard a lot of buzz about Bowen in my book group.

Clara first encountered August during an incident in which he was dared to ask her to dance at a ball. Ten years later, they meet again when August’s sister enrolls at Clara’s school for young ladies.

August arrives at the school with a flimsy excuse as to why he needs to be there. Clara has moved on with her life, and she is very happy with the way her life has tuned out, but his return stirs up old memories, and she doesn’t know if she can trust him. She is skeptical about his reasons for remaining at the school, as well as his attempts to spend time with her.

August does have an ulterior motive, but as he spends time there, not only does he begin to see Clara in a new light, but he also sees that his sister is no longer a little girl who needs to be protected. There were some allusions to his backstory; I don’t want to give too much away, so I’ll just say that he didn’t inherit his title in the conventional way. I found myself wanting to know more about his earlier years; they certainly shaped his current personality, but I want to know everything!

The story is bolstered by some really great secondary characters. I especially enjoyed the two elderly sisters who share the manor house with the school. I hope that I am just as spry when I am that age! I should also add that the villain of the piece was fairly easy to spot, but he had some really great mustache-twirling moments!

I would absolutely recommend A Duke in the Night. Clara and August have such good chemistry. They are also both fascinating in their own rights- their personalities are both very different than the usual archetypes found in the genre. Some might find the conventions to be too modern for the era, but I loved Clara’s commitment to instilling a sense of independence and self-affirmation in her students. And August’s reaction to these unconventional ways was just as fun! I am looking forward to catching up on Bowen’s earlier books, as well as looking forward to the next book in the series!

 

 

 

I received a digital copy of this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Posted on by Maureen

The Lawrence Browne Affair by Cat Sebastian

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The Lawrence Browne Affair is the second book in Cat Sebastian’s Regency-era Turner series of historical romance novels. I actually purchased this book right after it came out almost a year ago, but I didn’t get around to reading it until last week. I love Sebastian’s books, and wanted to savor this one, and then unfortunately, I was so intent on savoring it, that I forgot about it! I’ve been on a m/m kick lately, and so I was very excited to pick up this little undiscovered treasure.

Lawrence Browne, the Earl of Radnor, believes that he is mad. He is content to live in his dilapidated manor house by the sea, subsisting on ham sandwiches and apples, and conducting experiments. This gentleman scientist’s life is turned upside down by the arrival of his new secretary. He didn’t hire a secretary, and does not know what to do with this handsome man who seems intent on helping him.

Georgie Turner travels to Cornwall to take on the secretary position for several reasons. He has double-crossed the wrong person and needs to leave town quickly. So it is rather fortuitous that Georgie’s brother’s partner mentions the small favor of checking up on the Earl of Radnor. Read more

Posted on by Maureen

The Hunter by Kerrigan Byrne

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The Hunter is the second book in Kerrigan Byrne’s Victorian Rebels series of historical romance novels. I’ve read a few of the books in this series, thanks to ARCs from Netgalley, but I recently read the first book in the series, The Highwayman. I absolutely loved it, and jumped right into The Hunter.

Christopher Argent works mostly for Dorian Blackwell, the protagonist of The Highwayman. Christopher earns his living as a killer for hire, and he has very few qualms about this vocation. But when he is tasked with killing Millie La Cour, he finds he cannot go through with the job. This is a first for him, and he feels unhinged by this loss of focus.

Millie doesn’t know what to make of this handsome stranger who keeps showing up at the most inopportune times. She knows he is a dangerous man, but she can’t control her attraction to him. Read more

Posted on by Maureen · 1 Comment

Romancing the Throne by Nadine Jolie Courtney

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Romancing the Throne is a young adult novel written by Nadine Jolie Courtney. I had seen some buzz about this book, and it seemed like a YA version of The Royal We, which is one of my favorite books. I finally snagged a copy from the library, and recently finished reading it.

Charlotte is a student at the posh Sussex Park School, and she has found herself in an elite circle of friends, one of whom is Prince Edward, the heir to the English throne. There is an instant connection, and Charlotte is just thrilled to be dating the handsome young prince.

But conflict arises when Charlotte’s older sister Libby transfers to Sussex Park. Charlotte introduces Libby to everyone in her circle, and is utterly horrified when Libby and Edward start spending time together. Everything seems like a huge mess, but apparently, the worst is yet to come. Can Charlotte salvage everything she holds dear before it is completely destroyed? Read more

Posted on by Maureen

It Takes Two to Tumble by Cat Sebastian

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It Takes Two to Tumble is the first book in Cat Sebastian’s Regency-era Seducing the Sedgwicks series of historical romance novels. Cat Sebastian has quickly become one of my favorite authors; her titles tend to feature two male protagonists, which is different from what I usually read.

Ben is a fairly simple country vicar. He is sweet and he is gentle, and although it is not necessarily one of his parish duties, he devotes some of his time to a trio of children who live at a local manor house. Their mother passed away several years ago, and their father is often away at sea. The children have had the run of the house for years, and take delight in scaring away the tutors and governesses charged with their care.

And then Captain Dacre- Phillip- returns home. He is used to the strict discipline of a ship, and he and doesn’t know what to make of the chaos in his home. And he doesn’t know what to think of the maddeningly chipper vicar who knows his children better than he does. Read more

Posted on by Maureen

Flowers from the Storm by Laura Kinsale

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Flowers from the Storm is a Regency-era romance novel written by Laura Kinsale. This book was mentioned in one of my book groups, so I was very excited when it popped up as part of an Audible sale.

The Duke of Jervaulx (pronounced Che-vaux with a soft c) is a dissolute rake, but he is also a brilliant mathematician. It is through this surprising hobby that he encounters Maddy Timms (real name Archimedia), who is the daughter of the Quaker gentleman he is collaborating with.

Maddy has a relatively low opinion of Christian, but she is still saddened when she hears that he has died in a duel. Needless to say, she is shocked beyond belief when she encounters Christian when visiting her uncle’s sanitarium. He has not died, but he has suffered a catastrophic event that has robbed him of the ability to speak. Christian has been reduced to an almost feral state, but Maddy has a calming effect on him. It is far from proper, but Maddy takes on much of the responsibility of caring for Christian, and slowly but surely, he begins to recover. But what future could there possibly be for a dissolute duke and a Quaker girl? Read more

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Splendid by Julia Quinn

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Splendid is a romance novel written by Julia Quinn. Not only is it the first book in her Regency-era Splendid/Blydon trilogy, but this is also Quinn’s first published book. I’ve had a paperback copy of this book for years, but I picked up the Audible edition because I was looking for something to listen to.

Emma Dunster is an American girl who travels to London to take part in the London Season alongside her cousins, the Blydons. She is not looking to snag a title for herself; her primary concern is going back to Boston to help her father run his shipping business.

Alex might be the Duke of Ashbourne, but he has no plans to marry. But as soon as he sees a beautiful redheaded American, he is intrigued. At first, Emma is not very impressed with this arrogant duke, but slowly, he begins to charm her. Read more