Rules for Ruin Review

I think this is Mimi Matthews' best book yet! I loved how she carefully crafted Effie and Gabriel's characters. They had a bumpy road to love, but it was so worth it! There were so many favorite scenes I could never name them all. Effie was a strong woman on a mission looking into her past so she can build a future. Gabriel is a man with a past who might not get the future he envisions for himself. But when Effie comes along, he gets something better! They both have to learn to trust and I love how the author shows their vulnerabilities and insecurities. And every scene with Franc stole the show! I love that little dog. The epilogue was sigh-worthy and I can't wait to read more in this series.

Get your copy HERE (I hope you got it when it was on sale!)

Here is the back copy:

No one betrays the Academy. But now Euphemia must decide: break the rules for her enemy, or let the rules break her heart.

On the outskirts of London sits a seemingly innocuous institution with a secretive aim—train young women to distract, disrupt, and discredit the patriarchy. Outraged by a powerful lord’s systematic attack on women’s rights in Parliament, the Academy summons its brightest—and most bitter—pupil to infiltrate the odious man’s inner circle. A deal is struck: bring down the viscount, and Miss Euphemia Flite will finally earn her freedom.

But betting shop owner Gabriel Royce has other plans. The viscount is the perfect pawn to insulate Gabriel’s underworld empire from government interference. He’s not about to let some crinoline-clad miss destroy his carefully constructed enterprise—no matter how captivating he finds her threats.

From the rookeries of St. Giles to the ballrooms of Mayfair, Euphemia and Gabriel engage in a battle of wits and wills that’s complicated by a blossoming desire. Soon Euphemia realizes it’s not the broken promises to her Academy sisters she should fear. . . . It’s the danger to her heart.

Free Regency Today!

Josi Kilpack is one of my favorite authors and her regency romance, The Valet's Secret, is free today! You won't want to miss this one!

Get your free copy HERE  

Here's the back copy:

As a once happily married woman, Rebecca Parker had a good life, but now widowed, working for a living, and her only child grown, she feels invisible, tired, and lonely. That is until the day a valet speeding by on a horse nearly runs her off the road. Mr. Malcolm Henry is apologetic, gentle, and handsome. She’s instantly drawn to him, which is why, rather than stopping him from kissing her, she kisses him back, reigniting a nearly forgotten passion. But love at first sight only happens in fairy tales—never to an ordinary woman like her.

She sees Mr. Henry again and feels the possibilities growing until, while working in the kitchens during a dinner party, she sees the valet she kissed sitting at the right hand of the baroness. Mr. Henry is not the earl’s valet; he is the heir to the earldom—-Kenneth Winterton.

Heartbroken, angry, and betrayed, Rebecca does not trust Lord Winterton and refuses to accept his apology. But when Lord Winterton proves he is as kind and gentle as “Mr. Henry” was, she finds herself willing to give him a second chance. But will he take a chance on her? He needs a wife to help him in his place in society, and nothing about Rebecca’s life does that ...except how he feels when she is with him.

Trust, love, loneliness, and passion collide in this story about a man who will risk it all to fight for the woman he loves and a woman who does not believe in fairy tales—until she finds herself living in one.

Monday Morning Book Report

I had a busy weekend, but managed to read Mimi Matthew's new book, The Governess and the Rogue. It was SO good I almost read it in one sitting!

I really love her writing style and how the characters just jump off the page. Jack finally finding his person and having to work for her regard was fun to read and to see how he's grown since the last book. Bea is so world-weary after her life's circumstances have given her so many trials to bear, but her heart is still open. I loved Bea and Jack's journey to love. This one can be read as a standalone, but it's the last book in her second generation Somerset stories and I loved seeing couples from previous books. And it was such a sweet ending! I loved it.

What did you read over the weekend?

What's in a Name?

So in my book, Pocket Full of Posies, the hero's name is Bart. He was named after Blessed Bartholomew of Cervere by his grandmother, which is explained in the book. When I wrote the first book in the series, All Fall Down, Bart was a supporting character and I didn't know he would eventually get his own book one day and I was thinking maybe I should have chosen a different name. 

Would the name Bart put you off reading a book? Does a character's name really matter to you?

Free Historical Romance Today!

This one looks so good! An American heiress and a British spy? Yes, please! 

Here is the back copy:

An American heiress and a British intelligence spy share an unexpected kiss that will change their lives—and their hearts.

When heiress Gwen Barton aids an injured gentleman in an opera box in London, she shares a kiss with the stranger that upends her quiet world. More determined than ever to be herself, in spite of the limp she's sustained since childhood, she will marry for love and not a title. She also resolves to learn the identity of the man she helped—and kissed. Surely he can't be the irritating Avery Winfield. But as circumstances continue to throw Avery and Gwen together, she begins to wonder if there is more to this man than she first thought.

You can get your copy HERE

Monday Morning Book Report!

Monday morning book report.  What did you read over the weekend?

Well, I started a new-to-me author over the weekend and I gave it about 100 pages, but I couldn't connect to the hero. He was so surly and angry to everyone around him, and though the readers are told from the beginning he has a reason for being so awful, we aren't told what it is until about 75 pages in. And even after we find out what his reason is, (someone close to him died and he feels responsible), he's still very unlikable and doesn't even show the tiniest hint that he's going to change the way he treats the heroine or anyone else he comes in contact with. 

So, I gave up. 

I used to be the kind of person that needed to finish a book no matter what, but I have so many books on my TBR list now, if I can't connect to the story after giving it a good try, I don't finish. 

What about you? Are you the kind of person that finishes a book no matter what?

What Shows Do You Rewatch?

So, I have a confession to make. I hope you won't judge me.

 
*deep breath*

Well, I've been binge-watching Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman. I loved that show back in the day and when I saw it was on Prime I decided to rewatch it. I'm just about to the wedding episode. It's interesting to me that many of the episodes deal with issues that we're still dealing with as a society today. And then there's Michaela and Sully. They've got great chemistry and the push/pull of opposites attract! What about you? Is there a show you used to watch years ago that you've rewatched?