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

I have read a couple of the historical romances in Valerie Bowman’s Playful Brides series, so I was very excited about the opportunity to read The Legendary Lord.

This is Christian’s story. Fans of the series will remember Lord Berkeley from the secondary role he has played in earlier books. Christian is the genial sort of man who has always been relegated to a friendship rather than the romantic lead. He has grown weary of his high social circle, and decides to spend some time by himself in his hunting lodge in Scotland.

Sarah Highgate, a popular debutante, also feels stifled by London society and her insufferable fiance, so she runs away. She inadvertently ends up at Christian’s lodge, and they wind up stuck in the house together after a snowstorm- alone together.

Nothing happens during their time in the lodge, and Christian goes to great lengths to make sure that Sarah’s reputation is preserved. His wonderful friends (the heroines from the previous books) provide an “alibi” for Sarah and she is able to return to London with an acceptable explanation for her absence. Read more

A couple of months ago, I received the opportunity to read an advanced copy of Valerie Bowman’s The Untamed Earl. I have been reading historical romance novels for many years, but that was my first experience with Bowman’s books. I enjoyed The Untamed Earl, and was excited when I remembered that I had a couple of her other books on my Kindle. I tend to collect books when they are on sale, and come back to read them later.

I decided to start with The Unexpected Duchess, the first entry in the “Playful Brides” series. I had mentioned in my review of The Untamed Earl that there were some scenes with the hero’s sister and her friends, and that I would have had a better appreciation for their friendship if I had read the previous books in the series. So what better place to start than the beginning?

Lady Lucy Upton is a very loyal friend. Her friend Cass declares that she does not want to marry war-hero-turned-duke Derek Hunt, but she is too shy to tell him herself. Lucy takes it upon herself to speak for her dear friend Cass, and tell the new aristocrat that Cass is just not interested. She tries an indirect approach: speaking for Cass in a scene reminiscent of Cyrano de Bergerac, and she tries a more direct approach too. Read more

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

I have enjoyed reading historical romance novels for about fifteen years, especially those set in the Regency era of English history. I hadn’t read any of Valerie Bowman’s other novels before receiving the opportunity to read The Untamed Earl, but I am always looking for new authors/series.

The Untamed Earl is the 5^th book in Bowman’s “Playful Brides” series. The story concerns Alexandra Hobbs, who fell in love with the Owen Monroe when she was fifteen years old. Several years later, she learns that her father has arranged for Owen to marry- Lavinia- Alexander’s awful older sister. Read more

I have always loved Julia Quinn’s books. She is, without a doubt, my favorite historical romance author. I used to eagerly await her newest book every year, starting when I was in college. My family grew quicker than I anticipated (twins will do that to you), and there was a period of time when I didn’t have as much time for personal reading. As a result, I missed out on some of Julia Quinn’s books. I have been enjoying rediscovering old favorites, as well as introducing myself to some of the books I have missed out on.

I honestly can’t remember if I read Just Like Heaven when it originally came out in 2011.  At that point,  I had two 1 year olds and a 3 year old- I don’t remember much of anything! I have a paperback copy, but I purchased the Audible edition when it was on sale. I’ve been listening to it when I go on walks around the neighborhood. It took me a month to get through; we’ve had some unseasonably warm days, but we’ve also had a couple of snowstorms.

Just Like Heaven is the first book in the Smythe-Smith quartet. Fans of Julia Quinn might recognize the Smythe-Smiths as the family who hosts annual musicales featuring infamously dreadful girls doing great injustice to classical music. The makeup of the performers has changed over the last twenty years, as members get married and resign their place on stage in favor of a younger sister or cousin. Read more