Category: Editor’s Picks

Emma of 83rd Street: A Novel, by Audrey Bellezza and Emily Harding — A Review

From the desk of Sophia Rose:  

Jane Austen’s Emma takes Manhattan in a friends-to-lovers, heroine finding herself, effervescent debut romance.

BOOK DESCRIPTION

In this witty and romantic debut novel, Jane Austen’s Emma meets the misadventures of Manhattan’s modern dating scene as two lifelong friends discover that, in the search for love, you sometimes don’t have to look any further than your own backyard. Continue reading “Emma of 83rd Street: A Novel, by Audrey Bellezza and Emily Harding — A Review” →

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To Swoon and to Spar: The Regency Vows (Book 4), by Martha Waters — A Review

From the desk of Char Jones: 

The Regency Vows series, “sure to delight Bridgerton fans,” returns with this story about a viscount and his feisty new wife, who hopes to chase her husband from their home—only to find his company is not as onerous as she once thought.                        

BOOK DESCRIPTION

Viscount Penvale has been working for years to buy back his ancestral home, Trethwick Abbey, from his estranged uncle. And so he’s thrilled when his uncle announces that he is ready to sell but with one major caveat—Penvale must marry his uncle’s ward, Jane Spencer. Continue reading “To Swoon and to Spar: The Regency Vows (Book 4), by Martha Waters — A Review” →

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The Last Heir to the Blackwood Library: A Novel, by Hester Fox — A Review

From the desk of Eleanor Clark:

In post-World War I England, a young woman inherits a mysterious house with an even more mysterious library.

BOOK DESCRIPTION

With the stroke of a pen, twenty-three-year-old Ivy Radcliffe becomes Lady Hayworth, owner of a sprawling estate on the Yorkshire moors. Ivy has never heard of Blackwood Abbey, or of the ancient bloodline from which she’s descended. With nothing to keep her in London since losing her brother in the Great War, she warily makes her way to her new home. The abbey is foreboding, the servants reserved and suspicious. But there is a treasure waiting Continue reading “The Last Heir to the Blackwood Library: A Novel, by Hester Fox — A Review” →

3

The Late Mrs. Willoughby: A Mr. Darcy & Miss Tilney Mystery (Book 2), by Claudia Gray — A Review

From the desk of Char Jones: 

The suspenseful sequel to The Murder of Mr. Wickham, which sees Jonathan Darcy and Juliet Tilney reunited and with another mystery to solve: the dreadful poisoning of the scoundrel Willoughby’s new wife.

BOOK DESCRIPTION

Catherine and Henry Tilney of Northanger Abbey are not entirely pleased to be sending their eligible young daughter Juliet out into the world again: the last house party she attended, at the home of the Knightleys, involved a murder—which Juliet helped solve. Particularly concerning is that she intends to visit her new friend Marianne Continue reading “The Late Mrs. Willoughby: A Mr. Darcy & Miss Tilney Mystery (Book 2), by Claudia Gray — A Review” →

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An American Beauty: A Novel of the Gilded Age, by Shana Abé — A Review

From the desk of Jayda Justus:

The true tale of a woman who fought her way to the top in the Gilded Age.

BOOK DESCRIPTION

In post-war Richmond, Virginia, times are tough and food is scarce. Arabella Yarrington is a scrappy young woman forced to work in a den of gamblers to put food on the table for her widowed mother and siblings. Her beauty attracts the attention of a wealthy railroad magnate from New York, Collis P. Huntington. He is captivated by Continue reading “An American Beauty: A Novel of the Gilded Age, by Shana Abé — A Review” →

2

A Heart Worth Stealing (Proper Romance Regency), by Joanna Barker — A Review

From the desk of Katie Jackson:

A determined heiress hires a charming thief-taker to aid in her search for her beloved late father’s watch, only to become embroiled in an increasingly dangerous mystery in A Heart Worth Stealing, the latest Proper Romance® from Shadow Mountain Publishing.

BOOK DESCRIPTION

Little Sowerby, England, 1802

Miss Genevieve Wilde―a magistrate’s daughter and independent heiress―is determined to meet life’s challenges all on her own, just as her late father had taught her. So when her father’s pocket watch is stolen, she will do Continue reading “A Heart Worth Stealing (Proper Romance Regency), by Joanna Barker — A Review” →

3

Who Cries for the Lost: A Sebastian St. Cyr Mystery (Book 18), by C. S. Harris — A Review

From the desk of Sophia Rose:

Napoleon is meeting his Waterloo. Meanwhile in London, a British spy with a roving eye is being fished out of the Thames. Sebastian’s friends are implicated in his death… and the deaths to follow. 

BOOK DESCRIPTION

June 1815. The people of London wait, breathlessly, for news as Napoleon and the forces united against him hurtle toward their final reckoning at Waterloo. Among them is Sebastian St. Cyr, Viscount Devlin, frustrated to find himself sidelined while recovering from a dangerous wound he recently received in Paris. When the mutilated Continue reading “Who Cries for the Lost: A Sebastian St. Cyr Mystery (Book 18), by C. S. Harris — A Review” →

7

Return to Satterthwaite Court: Somerset Stories (Book 3), by Mimi Matthews — A Review

From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress:

A reckless Victorian heiress sets her sights on a dashing ex-naval lieutenant, determined to win his heart as the two of them embark on a quest to solve a decades-old mystery in USA Today bestselling author Mimi Matthews’s sequel to her critically acclaimed novels The Work of Art and Gentleman Jim.

BOOK DESCRIPTION

Lieutenant Charles Heywood has had his fill of adventure. Battle-weary and disillusioned, he returns to England, Continue reading “Return to Satterthwaite Court: Somerset Stories (Book 3), by Mimi Matthews — A Review” →

5

Two Wars and a Wedding: A Novel, by Lauren Willig — A Review

From the desk of Jayda B. Justus:  

A sweeping historical fiction novel about love and loss in the midst of war.

BOOK DESCRIPTION

 It’s September of 1896 in Athens, Greece, and American Betsy Hayes is a strong-willed, young aspiring archaeologist who is there to take part in excavations uncovering the day-to-day life of the ancient world. However, she runs into roadblocks set by the men in charge who don’t believe a woman should be at the dusty archaeological sites. Only one man believes in her dream, and they soon form a special bond. When a conflict between Greece and Continue reading “Two Wars and a Wedding: A Novel, by Lauren Willig — A Review” →

5

The Secret Service of Tea and Treason: Dangerous Damsels (Book 3), by India Holton — A Review

From the desk of Char Jones:

Two rival spies must brave pirates, witches, and fake matrimony to save the Queen.

BOOK DESCRIPTION

Known as Agent A, Alice is the top operative within the Agency of Undercover Note Takers (A.U.N.T.), a secret government intelligence group that is fortunately better at espionage than at naming itself. From managing deceptive witches to bored aristocratic ladies, nothing is beyond Alice’s capabilities. She has a steely composure and Continue reading “The Secret Service of Tea and Treason: Dangerous Damsels (Book 3), by India Holton — A Review” →

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The Best New Historical Novels for Spring 2023

From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: 

After a bleak and snowy winter season at Blue Willow Cottage, I am all anticipation of warmer weather and the fabulous new historical fiction books releasing in March, April, and May.  

I pawed through many new releases to narrow my list down, so if you are in the mood for engaging, intriguing, and swoon worthy novels, then read on.

Here is my list of 5 STAR recommendations for Spring 2023. Continue reading “The Best New Historical Novels for Spring 2023” →

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An Improbable Season: Unexpected Seasons (Book 1), by Rosalyn Eves — A Review  

From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress:

During the Regency-era, two sisters and a cousin do their first London Season searching for husbands, or their own agency, by stretching the boundaries of society, and their own expectations.

BOOK DESCRIPTION

When Thalia, Kalliope, and Charis set off to Regency London for their first Season, they know exactly what they want. Thalia means to make her mark among the intelligentsia and publish her poetry. Her sister, Kalli, aims to take Continue reading “An Improbable Season: Unexpected Seasons (Book 1), by Rosalyn Eves — A Review  “ →

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