Season for Scandal by Theresa Romain

Season for Scandal by Theresa Romain.

It is the third book in the Holiday Pleasures Series.

Jane Tindall is about to win enough money to give her some independence before a card cheat takes the winning hand. Now Jane must pay up. Unfortunately, Jane has been playing a part of wealthy Lady Xavier (Jane's cousin's wife) and doesn't have the money to make good on the bet.

Fortunately (or unfortunately), Edmund Ware the Baron Kirkpatrick steps in to help. He claims that Jane is his betrothed and that he will pay her gambling debt.

If Jane denies this, she will be ruined. She has no option but to allow the lie to stand.  Jane and Edmund realize that they must actually go through with the wedding so that Jane's reputation is not in ruins.

Edmund knows he needs to get married for an heir and Jane has been in love with Edmund for years. They both see it as something that must be done.  Unfortunately, they view their marriage in completely different ways.

Edmund has always thought of Jane as a friend and continues to behave the way that he did before he was married. Edmund is kind to everyone and spends most of his time going from one person to the next making them happy. Unfortunately, this doesn't make his wife happy.  Jane decides to leave Edmund as her marriage is not turing out how she wanted it to.  She is turned away by the ton because they can't believe anyone would leave their beloved Kirkpatrick.

Jane soon learns why Edmund acts the way he does and they work together to solve his problem.

I just could not get into this book. Normally I can't wait to find time to finish a novel, but with this one I just didn't feel drawn to keep reading. It did finally pick up about halfway through it and I did enjoy the second half.  This was the first book that I have read by this author and I just don't know if I will read anymore.  I might read the first two books in the series just to read up on some of the characters that are in this one...


This book comes out on Oct. 1, 2013. You can get it at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Thanks go to NetGalley and Zebra for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.




The Desires of a Countess by Jess Petersen

The Desires of a Countess by Jess Petersen.

This is book 3 in the Jordans series.  The heroine is the sister of Audrey from The Secrets of a Lady and Noah from The Temptation of a Gentleman.

Ginny Blanchard is finally able to live a more independent life after her abusive husband has passed away. Unfortunately, her late husband's cousin has come to over see the estate and her son's fortune.

Simon Webber is just doing his family duty by checking up on his late cousin's son and wife. When he arrives, Ginny shows him her displeasure and does everything in her power to get him to leave including making him stay in a cottage that has a massive hole in it.

Simon is unwilling to forget the attraction between the two of them at their first meeting and decides to fix up his new home and get to know the widow a little better.

As much as Ginny is attracted to Simon, she has her reasons for not wanting to get involved with him. After her husband's death, Ginny vowed never to get involved with another man. All she needs is her son. She is also hiding a secret that would make any man run away from her.

I really enjoyed this novel. If you've read the other two books in the series, Ginny is mentioned several times. She is always referred to as the sister that was made to marry and that she had an unhappy marriage. Because of this, she was estranged from her family. It was nice to see a family reunion and that Ginny was finally able to marry for love.  There was also a small secondary love story, which I love as you kinda get 2 for the price of 1!


You can get this book at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords.



The Temptation of a Gentleman by Jenna Petersen

The Temptation of a Gentleman by Jenna Petersen.

This is book two of the Jordans series. The hero is the brother of the heroine in The Secrets of a Lady.

Noah Jordan, Marquis of Woodbury, has retired from the life of a spy. But when he is asked by his former superior to investigate the death of a neighbor back home, he sets out one last time to investigate.

Marion Hawthorn's father has taken her along on his business trip to Mr. Lucas' estate. She can't imagine why he has done this as she doesn't normally have anything to do with her father.

Noah and Marion run into each other while Noah is out on a ride. There is an instant attraction and a quick friendship develops. When Noah finds out that Marion is staying at the Lucas estate, where his investigation is centered, he asks for her help.

Marion is surprised to see that her father and Mr. Lucas don't appear to like the friendship that developed between her and the Marquis.  She soon learns that her father has made plans for Marion to marry Mr. Lucas.  Marion is appalled by the idea and asks for help from Noah. He is reported to be a renown Rake and Marion wants him to ruin her so that Mr. Lucas will change his mind about the marriage.

As they work together to get evidence against Mr. Lucas and to get Marion away from him, the two of them fight their attraction to each other. Will Noah catch a killer and will Marion get out of marrying Mr. Lucas?

I enjoyed reading this novel. After meeting Noah in The Secrets of a Lady, it was nice to see him get his happily ever after. I will say that I didn't enjoy this book as much as the first in the series, but it was still a good read.


You can get this book at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords.





The Secrets of a Lady by Jenna Petersen

The Secrets of a Lady by Jenna Petersen.

This is the first book of the Jordans series.

The story opens with Audrey Jordan getting drunk because the man she loves, Griffin Berenger, is getting married to someone else.  Shortly after the I dos, Audrey finds Griffin in his study and kisses him. Unfortunately, Griffin's new wife catches them and vows vengeance against Audrey.

Audrey tries to go on with her life, but Griffin's wife makes her life miserable during the season and Audrey decides to join her brother as a spy for the Crown.

Several years later, Audrey and her brother are on a case and ask Griffin if they can use his townhouse to get closer to a suspect that is plotting to kill the Prince Regent.

Unknown to Audrey, Griffin has been thinking about that kiss since the day that it happened and while they are living with him can think of nothing but doing it again!   Audrey has tried to get on with her life, but living with Griffin has brought back all her old feelings for him.

Unfortunately, Audrey's undercover work has her being courted by the creepy neighbor who is behind the plot to kill the Prince Regent. Griffin has a hard time keeping his jealously from showing and that might just blow the undercover work that Audrey is doing!

Fortunately, between being courted by another man and trying to find evidence to convict him Audrey and Griffin find a way to reconnect themselves.

I really liked this book because of the added element of the spying. I've read several books where the male lead is a spy, but very few where the heroine is the one doing the spying.  So along with the historical romance of the story you get an spy novel too.


You can get the novel at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Smashwords.




What the Duke Desires by Sabrina Jeffries

This is the first book in The Duke's Men series. The novel, 'Twas the Night After Christmas, links this series to The Hellions of Halstead Hall series.

Maximilian Cole, the Duke of Lyons, has received a mysterious note from Tristan Bonnaud claiming that his long thought dead brother might be alive.  When Bonnaud fails to meet him at the appointed time, Max seeks out the man's half brother Dominick Manton.

Upon storming into the residence of Manton, he mets Lisette who he mistakenly thinks is Manton's mistress. Lisette Bonnaud is actually Manton's half sister and sister to the missing Tristan Bonnaud.

Lisette knows that her brother, Tristan, would never set foot back in England because he would be arrested for theft if he did. She talks Max into letting her accompany him to France to find Tristan and the truth about Max's brother.

They travel to France as husband and wife making it virtually impossible not to spend time together. Max doesn't trust Lisette as he thinks that she might be in cahoots with her brother to bring some impostor home as his long missing brother. Lisette is just as mistrusting of Max, wanting to make sure her brother is safe.

Their road to love is a struggle as Max has vowed to never marry for love and Lisette's fear of being like her mother, the mistress of a nobleman.

Montana Bride by Joan Johnston

Montana Bride by Joan Johnston.

This is book 3 in the Mail Order Bride series.

Hetty Wentworth has suddenly become the single parent to two children, Grace and Griffin, when their "mother" dies. She has nowhere to go and the children need someone to take care of them so she takes the place of Karl Norwood's mail order bride.

Karl knows something is not right when his bride arrives and is much younger than she is suppose to be. The children she arrives with look nothing like her and are much older than the little children he thought he would be meeting.

Hetty is suppose to be a widow and doesn't know how Karl will react when he finds out that she is still a virgin, so even though Karl is very attracted to Hetty, he agrees to wait to consummate the marriage until the newlyweds know each other better.

Karl knows that his wife is hiding things from him and is just waiting to find out what they are. Hetty is nervous about Karl finding out the truth and fears that he will kick her and the children out of his home when he finds out the truth.

Hetty is beginning to make a family of the foursome when the truth finally comes out. Will the family remain intact when all is revealed?

OK, it's been awhile since I have read a book by Joan Johnston. Most of her recent books are modern and I don't read those.  It took me a long time to get into this book. It just didn't seem to be up to the quality of her previous books that I had read.  It was probably not until about half way through the book that I became engaged enough to want to read it to the end. Having said that, I will be getting copies of book 1 and 2 in the series to read.


You can pre-order this book at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Bantam Dell for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.



Tempting The Devil by Samantha Kane

Tempting the Devil by Samantha Kane.

This is book two in a series. The first book is The Devil's Thief.

While taking a leisurely stroll in the garden at a London Party, Roger Templeton comes across a woman whom he thinks needs his help extricating herself from an improper situation. He soon finds himself in the arms of the beautiful woman who for some reason seems familiar to him.

He soon learns that the woman in his arms is none other than his childhood friend, Harriet "Harry" Mercer. Harry is trying her best to get compromised by Roger while Roger's patience is wearing thin trying to do the honorable thing.

I loved the secondary characters in this story and can't wait to read their books.


You can find this book at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Thanks go out to NetGalley and Random House for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review.