Historical Romance

B+
His Runaway Marchioness Returns

Marguerite Kaye consistently produces well-written, well-researched historical romances featuring characters and situations that are often quite different to those found in most other books in the genre. She’s as likely to write about non-aristocratic characters as otherwise, and although His Runa ...

B
A Spinster's Guide to Danger and Dukes

A Spinster’s Guide to Danger and Dukes is a quick-paced romp with a lot of love-hate banter. It’s got some logic problems that keep it from becoming an A-grader, but it’s still a lot of fun. Miss Poppy Delamare is on the lam from a terrible engagement arranged by her stepfather. Under the a ...

C
Infamous

If you’ve read – or even just heard about - Reputation, you'll probably know whether or not Lex Croucher’s latest, Regency-ish New Adult historical will please your older teen. Infamous contains all of the drug abuse, sexual assault, racism, abuse, on-page makeouts leading to off-page sex, and ...

C+
Kit McBride Gets A Wife

I picked up writer Amy Barry’s latest romantic western on a whim. I’ve never read anything by this Australian author before (nor her akas Tess LeSue and Amy T. Matthew) but the cover and title were cute, and the mail order bride premise appealed. The book opens with: Well, spit. How was June ...

D+
Sea of Ruin

Why did I opt to read a pirate ménage à trois romance? I blame Alexis Hall. His review of Sea of Ruin, which may be found here, is so engagingly hilarious I had to check out the book for myself. That's five hours of my life I'll never get back. Sigh. As a rule, I am all for the suspension of di ...

B
A Brush With Death

First in Elizabeth Blake’s Hands of Fate series, A Brush with Death has a most unusual premise in that its romantic hero is Death himself, who is in love with Isabel Vanderton, a wealthy heiress in failing health. Isabel is suffering from a disease that occasionally renders her unable to us ...

A-
The Portrait of a Duchess

It’s pretty much impossible for me to not love Scarlett Peckham. Her original plots and strong characters are my catnip, my raison d'être as a romance reader. Thus, The Portrait of a Duchess pleased me to no end. There are a few hinky spots here, but it’s still a great read. Cornelia Ludgate ...

A-
The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen

I’ve yet to meet a book by K.J. Charles that I haven’t at the very least liked – or more usually, loved - and her latest title, The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen is no exception. The story is set in and around Romney Marsh in Kent – a fairly desolate part of the country even today and on ...

C
The Counterfeit Scoundrel

Lorraine Heath’s The Counterfeit Scoundrel is the first in her new The Chessmen: Masters of Seduction series centering around three heroes “who play to win at any cost.” Marguerite Townsend – Daisy - is a private investigator hired to prove David Blackwood – aka Bishop - is having an affai ...

A
Freedom to Love

When writing historical characters who would have faced discrimination and worse in reality, be it based on race, gender, sexuality, gender identity, religion, or other categories, authors have options. Some create a fantasy world like Bridgerton’s, where real-world prejudices are checked at the f ...