Seduction on a Snowy Night by Mary Jo Putney, Madeline Hunter & Sabrina Jeffries book review

Going into this book, I had high expectations. Three rock star romance authors coming together to write a Christmas themed romance novel? Yes, please! This book doesn’t disappoint. Readers will get three happily ever afters...what more could a reader want for the holidays?

In the first story, A Christmas Abduction by Madeline Hunter, Caroline is trying to unravel the mystery that her sister, Amelia’s pregnancy came about. Amelia is keeping secrets and the new Baron Thronhill bears the brunt of Caroline’s scorn. She is conflicted when she finds herself falling for him. Caroline has fallen from high society, so there is a bit of a class issue going on. Our hero finds redemption, we have a fierce heroine to get to know, a little bit of mystery and a happy ending. A perfect winter getaway.

In our next story, A Perfect Match by Sabrina Jeffries, our heroine is secretly rich. She keeps it a secret because she does not want to end up married for the wrong reasons. She is very close with her cousin Kitty, who has many qualities but faces a reading disability that was probably not known in Regency England. So, that was a bit of an unusual, but powerful twist that leads to a happy ending in this story. Just like in the first story, there is a bit of abduction going on here which makes the story that much more exciting.

Finally, we get to Mary Jo Putney’s story, One Wicked Winter Night. Personally, wickedness is a tempting seduction...so it starts off right by just the title 😍 Lady Diana Lawrence is pretty much on the shelf. She has spent the majority of her life traveling the world and has found life to be richer without the strict societal expectations of the upper class. She has spent a lot of time living in India but realizes that it might be time to head home to England because “home” is still a pretty powerful force. Lady Diana ends up at a masquerade ball with the Duke of Castleton and the flame that burned between them has still not been extinguished. Diana is not really interested in being shackled to a man, so the Duke decides to kidnap her cat. There are some laugh out loud parts in the dialogue that make this story totally worth reading.

I loved all three stories and I think it’s perfect for winter reading. If you are looking to buy Christmas presents for your favorite romance readers, this is a great choice! I hope you love it as much as I did.

The Write Escape by Charish Reid

The first thing that caught my eye with this book was the great cover and the clever title. The Write Escape - for a literary editor and a literature professor. So perfect! This is the first book I have read by Charish Reid, so I am glad the title caught my eye. I also love Ireland, so it was hard to resist. Antonia Harper just had her heart broken and she needs to escape her life for a while. She decides that Ireland will be a quiet and peaceful place where she can get some writing done and maybe ponder the direction of her life.

Enter Aiden Byrnes, our hot and sexy professor. He also has some things to get in order in his life. There is some post-relationship stuff he needs to work past in his professional life. His mentor and colleague gave him the advice to get out of town for a while. What better place than the small village of Tully Cross. Aiden and Antonia meet, chemistry is there, sparks fly, hot sex ensues. This book is the perfect escape for a weekend.
The conflict occurs in that Antonia lives in Chicago and Aiden lives in Ireland. Once they leave vacation mode, the decisions are tough. I think the author did a great job with diversity in this story. Aiden is white and Antonia is black and there was a discussion of real-life problems but the story didn’t dwell on it. I think that interracial couples are becoming more common in the romance genre and they are reflecting our society in a more real way. Overall, this book has the right amount of romance, great setting and characters and the HEA that I want in my books.

Wrapped Up in You by Jill Shalvis book review

Helloooooooo hot and sexy sheriff. Feel free to go all alpha and use those handcuffs. *fans self*. I love the characters and the setting of this Jill Shalvis series. I want to move to Cow Hollow - just for a little bit. Wrapped up in You is Ivy and Kel’s story. Shalvis keeps it interesting by always giving us a unique glimpse into the lives of each couple, but catches us up on some of the previous characters. It could be read as a stand-alone, but I really love the world-building and enjoy reading things in order. I love that Ivy rebuilt her life and was successful at it. That is a definite challenge that all of us could face one day. As we build empathy towards her, Kel is also working to break down the emotional walls she has put up around herself.
The antagonist in this story is Ivy’s brother and the trouble he brings with him. While he does work towards redemption, he sure doesn’t make life easy for Ivy. As a reader, I was mad at him!!! Ivy needed a clean break to get on with her life and stoke the flames with Kel. As always, I have not read a Shalvis book I didn’t like. I think I am quite biased, but her books are always at the top of my librarian recommendation list. I work on creating more die-hard fans. So, if you have not read a book from this series, it’s time to put it on your TBR pile.

Brazen and the Beast by Sarah MacLean

I could not wait to get my hands on this book!!! I loved the first one. And who doesn’t love the series title Bareknuckle Bastards. You just know it’s going to be juicy. This book did not disappoint! I am a fan of reading books in series order, but this is one of those that could be a stand-alone for those readers who insist they do not like to read series books. Henrietta Sedley is our protagonist and she decides it is going to be the Year of Hattie. It starts by her decree that she will lose her virginity. She has waited long enough and she is ready to get on with her life. She hatches a preposterous plan and tries hard to make it work. Unfortunately, she may have set her sights on the wrong man. The man she may have kidnapped is nicknamed Beast (ummmm….hello….not the guy to mess with). The plan may sound foolish, but Beast thinks that Hattie just might have some information he needs. Cue the fireworks - AND they are totally attracted to each other. One might say that they are both quirky for regency times, but this just adds some fun to the overall story.

The characters in this book are all unusual and you will fall in love with all of them. I would say that Whit (aka Beast) was really hard to get to like. Just like Hattie, the reader has to get to know him before he lets his defenses down and you can start to see the appeal of a silent but strong and determined alpha male.

 I love this world that the author has created. It sets itself apart by being on the fringes of polite society. A lot of the scenes take place in the dark underground of Covent Garden and the characters tend to go against what society expects them to do. You will love this series.

One Night to Remember by Erica Ridley book review

I’ve been a fan of Erica Ridley’s romance books and this one is a definite must-read! It’s a little different than your expected regency historical romance. The main character, Felicity, is a female who masquerades as a male to race curricles and she has also become an expert mechanic. Because her family is titled, no one can find out about her hobby because that is not what a lady does. Obviously, Lady Felicity is a bit eccentric, which makes the story that much more enjoyable.

Giles Langford is our other protagonist. He is a master mechanic, who has the best smithy in town. He is well known for winning all the races and for apprenticing orphans - not to mention he is quite handsome. Felicity meets Giles after her brother, the Duke, asks him to come over to look at his carriage. As they meet in the stables, sparks fly. Then tension in the story comes from whether or not the class divisions can be overcome to create their version of happily ever after. Expect the unexpected in this story. I had a lot of fun reading it and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys Regency historical romances.

Slacker Alert!