I received this book for free from Netgalley in order to prepare an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Funny and Yet Deep Emotional Undertones

FINAL DECISION:  A man must take the risk to get what he wants and a woman who must upset expectations and disappoint others.  THE LEGENDARY LORD starts with two people who are obviously meant for one another but have to fight their own natures to be together.  Funny at moments but emotional as the two are seemingly destined to be apart. I loved the characters and the resolution.  A winner!

THE STORY:  Christian Forester, Viscount Berkeley, has many women friends but no woman to call his own.  Every woman he might be interested in becomes his dear friend instead.  Retreating to his hunting lodge in Scotland, Christian doesn’t know how to proceed.  When he arrives, he is held at sword point by a beautiful young woman who turns out to be Sarah Highgate, a woman who has run from her arranged engagement to a marquess.  Now Sarah is beginning to have regrets for her flight because she realizes that she will disappoint her parents and be ruined.  Christian realizes that he can be a friend and help Sarah avoid scandal and return to London.  In exchange, Sarah offers to give Christian advice on how to change his image and become a Legendary Lord — the gentleman of the season — in order to find a wife.  The problem becomes that Christian soon realizes that the woman he really wants is the one that he truly can only be a friend to — Sarah.

OPINION:  A hero who convinces the heroine to return to an arranged marriage and then regrets it.  A heroine who wants to find love but is convinced to settle for the approval of her parents.  These two are seriously mixed up.  That is what makes them interesting because they are both struggling against convention and expectations.

Christian is a man who has made a habit of saving women and becoming friends with them.  Unconcerned about town life, Christian is only serviceable in dress and he is more friendly than flirty.  When he meets Sarah, she offers to help remake his image — and she does.  As with image, however, Christian remains who he truly is.  As Sarah discovers, there are reasons that Christian remains single that has nothing to do with his clothes or image.  I loved Christian because he is kind and supportive and he treats women well.  I like that he has women friends (characters from the prior books in the series that he has helped) and he treats them as equals.  They treat him as a beloved brother who they needle and care for.

Sarah was more difficult for me to immediately like because she starts out in such a great spot — having taken a chance to run from her arranged marriage, but then experiences regret such that she is willing to return to her fiance to satisfy her parents (who I heartily disliked!)  The question I had to ask was what other choices did Sarah really have.  Sarah’s opinions don’t matter to her parents because society accepted that.  To reject her parents’ choice would mean that not only would Sarah lose the love of those she cared about but her physical and financial security as well.  It’s not easy being a rebel without support.

The story of Christian and Sarah is ultimately about commitment — about putting yourself out for those you love — about taking huge chances.  These two people who mostly play it safe, but there can be nothing safe in love — especially when you have to risk scandal to be together.

Christian and Sarah have different types of risks and challenges in their relationship.  As much as Christian says he wants to marry, he is afraid of emotionally risking himself. As much as Sarah says she wants love, she is afraid of the approbation of her parents and society.   Both claim to want to love, but neither wants to take the first scary step.

Balancing the mild angst in this book is humor from the heroines of the prior books in the series.  As they scheme to push Sarah and Christian in the right direction, I laughed at their meddling ways and urged them on when it appeared that Sarah and Christian might miss their chance to be together.

I find it immensely satisfying to read about characters that I like and who I can identify with.  Neither of these characters wants to be in the limelight.  I can imagine them leading a happy and quiet life together after the pages of this book end and living happily ever after.

WORTH MENTIONING:  Keep an eye out for a romance that is certainly on the horizon with Sarah’s brother.

CONNECTED BOOKS:  THE LEGENDARY LORD is the sixth book in the Playful Brides series.  While there are appearances by continuing characters of the series, this book gives you everything you need to know and thus is a complete standalone as well.

STAR RATING:  I give this book 4.5 stars.

I received this book for free from Netgalley in order to prepare an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

“Being fifteen years of age an a bit plump and unconventional when one’s elder siter was eighteen years of age and willowy a ethereal — if waspish — was decidedly unpleasant.”

FINAL DECISION:  My favorite of the series, THE UNTAMED EARL benefits from a sweet romance between two people who are overlooked, underestimated and unappreciated by others but find something special in one another.

THE STORY: At fifteen, Lady Alexandra Hobbs feel in love with a “knight in shining armor” who saved her brother and his friend. The object of her affections is Lord Owen Monroe, a rake who leads a life of drink, gambling and women.  Three years later, Alex discovers that her father, the duke, has chosen Owen to marry Alex’s older sister who happens to be a genuine shrew.  Owen has to marry because his father will cut off his allowance if he does not convince the duke’s eldest daughter to accept his match.  Alex wants to sabotage Owen’s courtship so she offers to groom him into the man Alex’s sister will want to marry while intending exactly the opposite.

OPINION: I loved the couple in this book.  Two people who are overlooked, misunderstood and underappreciated by their families find something special in one another.  Alex has always been placed second to her older sister.  What she wants doesn’t matter in the face of her older sister’s wants.  Alex makes a break when she becomes determined to sabotage the engagement of her sister to the man that Alex has wanted since she was fifteen.  Through the story and the romance, Alex discovers that she matters and what she wants matters.  Owen has also been misunderstood by his father.  Because his father does not think much of him, Owen has tried to live up to his poor reputation.  In his heart, however, Owen is a good man which Alex recognizes quickly and thus sets her heart toward this “hero” rake.  When Owen agrees to marry Alex’s sister, he does so because his father threatens to cut off his allowance, but also because it gives him an opportunity to finally satisfy his father.  The need for parental acceptance is strong with Owen even as he denies that desire.  For Owen, his journey is being his own man without the desire to satisfy or thwart his father.

In a plot that at times is funny, at times frustrating and at times horrifying, I loved how Alex and Owen find acceptance, strength and purpose in their relationship.

WORTH MENTIONING: The story has a passing feeling of being inspired by Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew even though there are not really strong parallels. The shrewish older sister that must be married first, mixed up romances and some comedy gives this a Shrewish feel without being derivative.

CONNECTED BOOKS:  THE UNTAMED EARL is the fifth book in the Playful Brides series. It can be read as a standalone although other characters from the series appear.

STAR RATING: I give this book 4.5 stars.

Light and Fluffy Comedy of Errors Historical Romance

“A twig in her eye and a mouthful of foliage were the unfortunate by-products of having her head lodged in a hedgerow.”

FINAL DECISION: A light romance with numerous misunderstandings and confusions, THE UNEXPECTED DUCHESS does it genre well. Readers looking for realism and serious story should look elsewhere, but those enjoying a sweet, fun romance with comedy and humor will enjoy this book.

THE STORY: Lady Lucy Upton is known to have a “rapier for a tongue”. She is determined to help her shy best friend Cassandra rebuff the courtship of Derek Hunt, Duke of Claringdon. Soon Lucy and Derek are deeply engaged in battling one another which ends up overshadowing the Duke’s courtship even as he is determined to marry Cassandra since he made a promise to do so. But what is Lucy to do when she realizes that she is falling for the Duke even as her best friend is now considering allowing the Duke to court her after all?

OPINION: A mapcap romance with humor and light drama, this book gives the readers a smile. There are many misunderstandings, mix-ups and mismatched couples along the way to the happy ending. The book itself refers to Much Ado About Nothing and like many of Shakespeare’s comedies there are farcical elements. There are also allusions to Cyrano in reverse where Lucy tells Cass what to say to discourage the Duke while she hides in a bush.

These light historicals are not my favorites, but I really enjoyed the characters who — despite their sometimes illogical behavior — are likeable and funny. By the end of the book, I really wanted to see how the romances between the other two couples in the book will turn out in future books in the series.

WORTH MENTIONING: This book sets up the couples for the next couple of books in the series.

CONNECTED BOOKS: THE UNEXPECTED DUCHESS is the first book in the Playful Brides series.

STAR RATING: I give this book 4 stars.

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