Review: Snowy Night with a Stranger by Jane Feather, Sabrina Jeffries, and Julia London

Ah, the joys of Christmas! Spending meaningful time and making memories with the ones that mean the most to you. But not everyone gets this picture-perfect Christmas. In “Snowy Night with a Stranger,” all three historical stories are written about individuals who end up spending Christmas somewhere they never expected to be. But thanks to the magic of romance, our ‘strandees’ find their perfect love in unexpected places. I can only imagine what wonderful stories these characters would have to tell their grandkids!

Review: The Dangerous Duke by Christine Wells

During the late regency period in England, there were fears of a ‘British Revolution’. Remember that not so long before this time the ‘colonies’ had successfully achieved their independence and established a democracy, throwing off the bonds of a monarchy. France had their ‘Glorious Revolution’ and did away with their monarchs via ‘Madame Guillotine’. In any event, the regency period encompassed more than the blissful excesses of ‘Prinny’ and the ton, but it’s very rare to read anything about this in a regency romance novel.

“The Dangerous Duke” by Christine Wells opens with the plight of a vicar imprisoned under suspicion of sedition because he refuses to name the rebels accused of burning a peer’s home. The fire killed four members of the aristocracy and is assumed to be a prelude to revolutionary activities. I personally found this fascinating (history geek alert!), but the author quickly moves on to more salacious events involving the theft of a scandalous diary, a headstrong widow, and a hardboiled Home Office investigator who has become a Duke.

Review: Double the Enchantment by Kathryne Kennedy

This is my second read by Kathryne Kennedy. “Double Enchantment” is her second book about an England where magic is commonplace in the upper class. In fact, magic is the determinant to belong to the upper class. The stronger your magic, the higher your status. Except for shapeshifters, for some reason their magic is considered too wild and they are looked down upon by the rest of high society. Kennedy’s series is set in regency times so the books are a strange mix of historical paranormal that just seems a bit off for me.

Review: Seduction of a Proper Gentleman by Victoria Alexander

Tart and spicy with a heavy seasoning of humor. When I read the blurb on the back cover of “Seduction of a Proper Gentleman” by Victoria Alexander, I was a bit disappointed. All I could think of was…oh, amnesia as a plot device. But I actually found this story very intriguing and different. This is the final book in her ‘Last Man Standing’ series about four Regency gentlemen who make a wager as to who will be the last one to wed. And, as often happens in fiction, the winner is the only one who wasn’t anti-marriage to begin with!

Review: The Lost Duke of Wyndham by Julia Quinn

Goody, goody, goody. Julie Quinn is an author who hooked me from the first book of hers that I read. It was “Minx” and I picked it up at a used bookstore, read it that night, and went back the next day to get the rest of her available books. I should state here that I go to used bookstores to find new authors. Once I do, I spend my hard-earned dollars to pay for their hard work. I figure that’s only fair plus I want their publishers to know which authors to keep! But enough about that. Quinn’s ‘Bridgerton’ series was one I enjoyed, although I did think that some of the books weren’t up to her usual standard. So when I saw “The Lost Duke of Wyndham,” I pretty much (shamelessly) begged Quentin to let me review it. And being a pest paid off! Quinn’s latest is everything I enjoy in a Regency romance.

Review: Lady of Quality by Georgette Heyer

Truth to tell, I’m a little discomfited to be writing a review of Georgette Heyer’s “Lady of Quality”. Heyer was, after all, the progenitor of the Regency Romance genre. What can I possibly say that hasn’t been said, and likely better, by much more facile and famous reviewers than myself? But, Quentin the taskmistress has set me to this undertaking so onward I shall go!

Did I enjoy reading this book? Indeed I did. Heyer’s style of writing draws the reader into her regency world and immerses us into this different time with wholly different standards of behavior, station, and living. Our heroine, Annis, is revealed to us as very much the deviation from the norm. But, there are no speeches or ruminations about ‘proper’ behavior and instead, we learn what makes Annis so different from others of her time and station by her actions and the ensuing reactions of others to her actions in various situations. Heyer doesn’t preach and prosy about what made those times so different from ours. She allows us to learn for ourselves throughout the progress of her story. And being me, I always enjoy authors who don’t try to bash me over the head with data like I’m an idiot!