One evening, when Lady Emma Avery, popularly known in the ton as “London’s Least Likely to Misbehave” is getting drunk with her two best friends (who are also wallflowers who will be meeting their intended husbands in later books). While she isn’t noticed by most of polite society, Emma does have a young man whom she dreams of a future with, but after three years, he’s still not shown any signs of proposing to her. Her friends joke about how she might get more attention […]
A historical romance with letter writing
Henry Middlebrook was a promising young artist before he went off to war. Now, after the Napoleonic wars, he’s completely lost the use of his right arm. He can no longer paint, and feels cast adrift, without purpose. His sister-in-law is determined for him to make a promising match, hoping that the love of a good woman will help him become someone closer to the cheerful, carefree man he was before the war. She introduces him to Lady Caroline Stratton, possibly the most sought after […]
A heroine no one but Jane Austen herself could love
So does anyone actually need me to recap the plot ofEmma, a nearly two hundred year old classic which has been adapted any number of times, currently as a successful YouTube webseries in Emma Approved? To be fair, I’m not sure even half of my actual real life friends have read this book, so I’ll be nice to you. Emma Woodhouse is twenty-one, the youngest daughter of a prosperous country gentleman and her governess, Miss Taylor, who more or less raised her from she was very little, has […]
A historical romance with a Gothic romance novelist hero
4.5 stars Sebastian Grey is handsome, charming and welcome everywhere in polite society because he is the sole male heir of his uncle, the Earl of Newbury, and if said uncle dies before he’s able to father more male offspring, Sebastian will be the new earl. Of course, Lord Newbury hates his nephew and is doing all he can to find a nice, fertile young woman to bear him more children to prevent just this from happening. So Sebastian could be the best catch a […]
A historical romance with a possibly murderous neighbour
4,5 stars When her friends tell Olivia Bevelstoke that her new neighbour is rumoured to have murdered his fiancee, she doesn’t believe it for a second. But she can’t help but be curious, and as is office window is clearly visible from her bedroom, she starts to spy on him from behind her curtains. She’s convinced he can’t see her, and becomes more and more puzzled at the things she observes. Sir Harry Valentine works for the war office, but not with anything exciting like […]
A historical romance with a lot of stealing and scheming
3.5 stars Philip Astonley, youngest son of the Viscount Felkoner, also known as the Falcon to a select few (which is surprising to me as it’s not exactly a secret identity very different from his family name), is hired by the wealthy and powerful Marquess of Hedgrave to steal a sandalwood statue and bring it from India to England. He can barely believe his luck when he discovers that the statue is given as a gift to Miss Amanda Davencourt as a farewell gift from […]