The Scoundrel’s Daughter by Anne Gracie (2021)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 1 of the Brides of Bellaire Gardens series. This one is a double romance, so don’t get confused when you get to read four different points of view. Alice is a widowed countess finally free of her horrible husband but it turns out that horrible husband had written scathing letters about her to his mistress and a blackmailer has gotten a hold of the letters. The blackmailer is forcing Alice to sponsor his daughter Lucy into society and find her a titled husband or else he’ll release the deeply embarrassing letters. Stuck together, Alice and Lucy need to learn to get along and muddle their way through society. It’s a slow build of trust between these two ladies, but soon they form a true connection. Alice’s nephew Gerald somehow gets involved and Alice asks him to help introduce Lucy to his friends, except he’s irritated that Lucy doesn’t pay him any attention and only introduces her to men who are annoying or unsuitable. Clearly, some resentment and jealousy on his part, though he’s not doing a great job of making a good impression on Lucy. Gerald has an older army friend James who’s newly returned to England and regaining custody of his three daughters; he hadn’t planned on marrying again but is instantly smitten with Alice on meeting her. He’s embarking on a very careful courtship of Alice, even though she’s not interested and pretty skittish when it comes to men. It seems that Alice and James’ relationship takes up most of this book, with him being patient and kind as she works out her demons from her previous marriage, with Gerald and Lucy’s cantankerous relationship taking place in the background. Overall, this was an entertaining story and I liked seeing these four band together.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

The Rake’s Daughter by Anne Gracie (2022)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 2 of the Brides of Bellaire Gardens series. New earl Leo is back from his year long travels to find himself saddled as the guardian of a young lady, Clarissa, who is kicked out of her home and needs to find a husband quickly. And then he finds that his ward has come with an illegitimate half-sister, Isobel, who refuses to leave her side. The two sisters are adamant that they stay together, despite Isobel’s potential to ruin any of Clarissa’s prospects. Leo is annoyed and tries very hard to stick to the proper course of action, but he’s basically rendered stupid everytime he looks at Isobel. It’s all fiery sparks between these two and I liked seeing Leo slowly start to learn more about and appreciate Isobel. With the sisters in residence at Leo’s eccentric aunt’s house, it’s a very amusing read.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

The Heiress’s Daughter by Anne Gracie (2024)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 3 of the Brides of Bellaire Garden series. Wealthy heiress Clarissa is stuck tackling society on her own while her sister is on her honeymoon with her new husband, who is also Clarissa’s guardian, Leo. While they’re away, Leo asks his best friend Race to take Clarissa out riding every so often, knowing that she enjoys it and has no one else competent to do so. Clarissa thinks that Race is just spending time with her as an obligation to his friend, not knowing that he is truly courting her in earnest. We get to see these two spend more time together, and Clarissa showing an actual backbone and personality. It was fun to see Race having to bend over backwards to convince Clarissa of his true intentions.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

The Secret Daughter by Anne Gracie (2024)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 4 of the Brides of Bellaire Gardens series. Zoe is the illegitimate daughter of a baron who is traveling through France and being tutored in ladylike pursuits before her return to London where she will debut as the distant cousin of her more established sisters. She ends up having to flee a house party and ends up traveling alone to her late grandparents’ manor, which was looted during the Terror. Along the way, she meets a handsome scoundrel going by the name of Reynard. They end up spending a week together and fall in love, until Zoe discovers something terrible about Reynard and runs off. But that’s not the end of the story because we all end up back in London with Zoe’s family and Reynard actually has ties to the English aristocracy. This one was a calming quiet slow-burn type of romance with basically no external conflict. I enjoyed it a lot and liked seeing everything work out for all the couples in this series.

Ebook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

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Seducing the Duchess by Sara Bennett (2024)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 1 of the Disgraceful Duchesses series. Widowed duchess Catherine gets stuck at an inn during a snowstorm and decides to take advantage of the situation by having a temporary affair with Sebastian. He is a viscount who is on his way home to visit his estranged father after being banished 10 years ago. He has a scandalous reputation as a rake, which will come in handy to provide comfort and satisfaction for Catherine. She had a horrible marriage and is finally out of mourning for her husband, but there are stipulations in his will that keep her bound to their country estate. Although this is a very quick affair for Catherine and Sebastian, they fall pretty quickly into a more emotional relationship.

Advance ebook provided by Dragonblade Publishing via NetGalley.

Tempting the Duchess by Sara Bennett (2024)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 2 of the Disgraceful Duchesses series. Widowed duchess Ellis is running away from her late husband’s cruel cousin and takes refuge in a cottage in the woods. There, she finds artist and lord Owen, who is willing to take in and protect the stranger. Ellis does not disclose who she truly is for fear of being turned over to the cousin, but she’s happy to serve as a model for Owen’s work while she’s there. Owen specializes in erotic drawings for a salacious publication and tries his very best to be professional with his model, though he’s very tempted by Ellis’ beauty and charm. It’s a fairly quick and steamy novella here that’s an easy read.

Advance ebook provided by Dragonblade Publishing via NetGalley.

Dalliance with the Duchess by Sara Bennett (2024)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 3 of the Disgraceful Duchesses series. Widowed duchess Sophia is trying to move on from her husband’s cruel influence and his crony friends, but an investigator Nicholas asks for her help in finding out if his old friend is in trouble. She goes back to visiting with and gaming with her late husband’s friends to see if the young man is in danger. As she reports back to Nicholas about the friend, she recalls a time when she had a masked intimate encounter with Nicholas at the pleasure gardens. She believes that he didn’t know who she was and never discussed it, but of course he knew exactly who she was and they renew their dalliance in the present. This book was short and steamy with a tiny bit of mystery and intrigue, especially when we find out that Nicholas has been searching for his sister who has been missing for the past decade. A quick read that was entertaining.

Advance ebook provided by Dragonblade Books via NetGalley.

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The Secret Daughter by Anne Gracie (2024)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 4 of the Brides of Bellaire Gardens series. Zoe is the illegitimate daughter of a baron who is traveling through France and being tutored in ladylike pursuits before her return to London where she will debut as the distant cousin of her more established sisters. She ends up having to flee a house party and ends up traveling alone to her late grandparents’ manor, which was looted during the Terror. Along the way, she meets a handsome scoundrel going by the name of Reynard. They end up spending a week together and fall in love, until Zoe discovers something terrible about Reynard and runs off. But that’s not the end of the story because we all end up back in London with Zoe’s family and Reynard actually has ties to the English aristocracy. This one was a calming quiet slow-burn type of romance with basically no external conflict. I enjoyed it a lot and liked seeing everything work out for all the couples in this series.

Ebook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

An Island Princess Starts a Scandal by Adriana Herrera (2023)

Historical romance. Victorian-era Paris. Book 2 of the Las Leonas series. Manuela is trying to have one last scandalous Summer before she has to marry a man for money. And she’s trying her best to find debauchery in Paris. When a meeting with a stuffy widowed duchess turns out to be a meeting with a woman she met at a club the previous evening, Manuela turns the tables and coerces Cora to show her a good time in Paris in exchange for the opportunity to buy some land she owns in South America. Cora is actually pretty emotionally repressed after a scandalous incident with a former flame forced her to flee London and rebuild her reputation. We get to see the grumpy Cora melt under the sunshine Manuela’s persuasions. Loved seeing the interaction between these two and them getting to know each other. Standout side character is Cora’s super supportive stepson.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

Lord Ravenscroft Is Not a Gentleman by Barbara Russell (2025)

Historical romance. Victorian-era England. Book 6 of the Victorian Outcasts series. We get another tragic set-up in this series when Edith and Perry meet at a garden, then their ship crashes into the Thames, they both nearly die, and then grow closer during their recovery. Edith used to be a bookish gal with aims of becoming a doctor, and Perry used to be a fun-loving younger brother of an earl with no ambition whatsoever. We catch up to them five years later when Perry returns to London after an extended recovery period at fancy hospitals and doctors in Switzerland and find out that Edith has lied to Perry all these years in her letters and making him believe she went to medical school and is now a doctor. But she is now totally aimless and getting into all sorts of scandals, much to the dismay of her family. Perry is somehow now the earl because his older brother gave up the title and married an actress. And so he’s the noble one trying to save her from her latest scrape of posing nearly nude for a painting. I enjoyed reading all the drama and twists and how these two people are so connected to each other, despite their new circumstances.

Advance ebook provided by Oliver Heber Books via BookSprout.

Earl Crush by Alexandra Vasti (2025)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 2 of the Belvoir’s Library series. We get to mix a little bit of road trip with a little bit of fake identity and throw in a bit of fake marriage in this romp! The social awkward and painfully shy Lydia has shown up at an earl’s castle in Scotland to propose a marriage of convenience after three years of secret correspondence with the man. Except Arthur the earl is not who she had been writing to, it was his younger brother pretending to be the earl. And then the brother might be in some sort of scheme with a rifle part and Arthur needs Lydia’s help to track him down. It was so fun reading these two work together to solve the case and Arthur was just so impressed by Lydia’s cleverness. All the best kind of chaos, yearning, and steam.

Advance ebook provided by St. Martin’s Press via NetGalley. Advance audiobook provided by Dreamscape Media via NetGalley and Libro.fm.

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It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey (2021)

Contemporary romance. Book 1 of the Bellinger Sisters series. Party girl Piper is banished from her glamorous life in LA by her stepfather to go to a small fishing village in Washington state. She has no idea what she’s doing and makes a poor first impression on grumpy widowed fisherman, Brendan. Except that he’s distractedly attracted to her and wants to help her survive her stay. There’s so much banter and flirting and humor here, along with dealing with grief (Brendan) and finding purpose in life (Piper). I enjoyed seeing them interact and get to know each other. Brendan was delightfully supportive of all of Piper’s efforts and her caring personality. And if you didn’t know, Tessa Bailey is a very smutty author.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

Hook, Line, and Sinker by Tessa Bailey (2022)

Contemporary romance. Book 2 of the Bellinger Sisters series. Fox is not a commitment kind of guy, but he starts a text-based friendship with Hannah after she leaves his small fishing town. And then when she’s back in town on location for a movie she’s working on, she’s also staying in his guest room. But everyone in Fox’s life has basically warned him away from Hannah and reinforcing that he’s not boyfriend material. Poor Fox has had it rough. But what he feels for Hannah is real and deep and lasting, aside from his own insecurity. Luckily, once Hannah realizes that she has feelings for Fox, she’s quick to believe the best in him and defend his honor. Loved it!

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

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Unfortunately Yours by Tessa Bailey (2023)

Contemporary romance. Book 2 of the Vine Mess series. Natalie and August have been at odds upon first meeting, most likely because he said something boneheaded to thwart a potential one night stand. Now, a couple months later, August has run out of money trying to make his late best friend’s vineyard dreams come true. As he’s about to leave town, Natalie comes to him with a proposition. She needs access to her trust fund and her father has put an archaic clause that requires that she be married. She proposes a marriage of convenience to August so she can get the money she needs to start her own investment company and August will look like an upstanding stable guy to get a small business loan for his vineyard. Of course, the underlying burning attraction between them leads to all sorts of angry flirting and seductive games. August is basically your bumbling golden retriever, but when he goes into Navy SEAL mode, it’s all sorts of appealing for Natalie (and the reader). Emotional, funny, flirty, and steamy.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby. Print book provided by HarperCollins via TikTokShop.

A Duke in Shining Armor by Loretta Chase (2017)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 1 of the Difficult Dukes series. This book was so fun and reminded me how much I love road trip romances in a historical setting. Ripley is a groomsman at his best friend’s wedding and charged with making sure the wedding happens. The problem is that Olympia has run away from her own wedding and Ripley gives chase. He’s doing his best to convince her to go back, and then stall her so the groom can catch up, and preserve her reputation. But Olympia is all sorts of frantic and not interested in going back to her fiance. Along the way, Olympia and Ripley get to know each other, and Ripley has switched his efforts to just trying not to betray his best friend. There’s chaos and adventure and I loved seeing these two people fall in love.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

A Tempest of Desire by Lorraine Heath (2024)

Historical romance. Victorian-era England. Book 5 of the Scandalous Gentlemen of St. James series. Viscount Langdon has isolated himself on an island after a train accident leaves him with nightmares. And then one night, the storm washes up Marlowe, the most beautiful and desirable courtesan in London. He rescues her and learns that she was flying her hot air balloon solo and got caught in a storm. These two have been lusting after each other since first sight, but Marlowe is under the protection of another lord and is very loyal. Langdon also does not want to encroach on someone else’s territory, so he has tried very hard to stay away from Marlowe. But now, they’re stuck together and getting to know each other’s thoughts and personalities, making their connection all the stronger. This book is full of seductive flirting and yearning and longing. Another great book by Lorraine Heath.

Advance ebook provided by Avon Books via NetGalley.

A Caribbean Heiress in Paris by Adriana Herrera (2022)

Historical romance. Victorian-era France and Scotland. Book 1 of the Las Leonas series. Luz Alana is the daughter and heiress to a rum distillery and trying to expand her business during the World’s Fair in Paris. She exchanges barbs with Evan, a whiskey distiller, who is sharing her space at the exposition. Luz has prioritized her responsibilities to her younger sister and her rum business, and has little to no time for frivolity, despite Evan’s handsomeness. Evan is the heir apparent to a cruel and horrible duke and is working on seeking revenge and the proper ownership of the deed to his own whiskey distillery. When they both realize that their inheritances are tied up in marriage stipulations, they enter into a marriage of convenience (with benefits). This book was steamy and emotional, and we all love Evan’s support of Luz’ business endeavors. Excellent read.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

When the Lord Adored Me by Lydia Lloyd (2024)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Part of the Rake Chronicles series. Lady Petunia is off on an adventure through Europe with her mother after rejecting her best friend Lord Edgar’s proposal. And when she’s busy with another man, she realizes she made a horrible mistake and would rather be with Edgar. As soon as she gets home, she goes to belated accept his proposal, but he’s spent the past year trying to get over her and realize that they’re total opposites and might not be able to build a marriage together. Somehow, they end up in a 12 days of Christmas bargain at Edgar’s brother’s townhouse that’s used for liaisons. We’re in for a steamy treat for most of the book, but still with amazing emotional connection and depth. Loved this quick and dirty read.

Ebook provided by Lydia Lloyd.

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The Gentleman Was Right by Britt Belle (2024)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 2 of the Greydon series. Younger brother to an earl, Edward is feeling pretty purposeless after his brother comes back to the family estate. He’s happy to have the chance to do something useful, so he goes to investigate increased expenditures at his brother’s seaside cottage. When he gets there, Violet and her sister have been pretending to be family cousins and staying there to avoid her fiance. The ever-helpful Edward quickly offers marriage as a solution and gets soundly rejected. It’s clear that Edward is smitten and hopes that true affection and love with develop, but Violet is exceedingly wary after the betrayal from her fiance. We eventually end up with a fairly straightforward marriage of convenience plot with Edward trying his best to win Violet over and Violet doing her best to avoid engaging any feelings. Predictable but enjoyable read.

Advance ebook provided by Britt Belle.

A Caribbean Heiress in Paris by Adriana Herrera (2022)

Historical romance. Victorian-era France and Scotland. Book 1 of the Las Leonas series. Luz Alana is the daughter and heiress to a rum distillery and trying to expand her business during the World’s Fair in Paris. She exchanges barbs with Evan, a whiskey distiller, who is sharing her space at the exposition. Luz has prioritized her responsibilities to her younger sister and her rum business, and has little to no time for frivolity, despite Evan’s handsomeness. Evan is the heir apparent to a cruel and horrible duke and is working on seeking revenge and the proper ownership of the deed to his own whiskey distillery. When they both realize that their inheritances are tied up in marriage stipulations, they enter into a marriage of convenience (with benefits). This book was steamy and emotional, and we all love Evan’s support of Luz’ business endeavors. Excellent read.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

My Inconvenient Duke by Loretta Chase (2025)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 3 of the Difficult Dukes series. We start with Alice being terrified that her idiot brother will be killed sometime soon, so she sets off to find a husband this season, to make sure she’s never at the mercy of her cruel cousin. Her brother’s best friend, the Duke of Blackwood, is all sorts of distressed at the thought of Alice marrying anyone else, even though he has no claim to her. He clearly is nursing a long time affection for her, despite having chosen a lifetime of debauchery with his friends instead of the upstanding life he could have had with her. And when Blackwood hears that Alice’s terrible cousin is in town, he tries his best to protect her. We end up with a wild goose chase in the middle of the book that have Blackwood and Alice in a compromising circumstance and needing to marry. While this seems like the beginning of a happily ever after for them, they get pulled in different directions due to their competing responsibilities. As a standalone read, this book was fine. As a follow-up after the first two books, it fell a little flat because all the hints from the first two books suggest that these two are officially estranged. We learn more about this so-called estrangement in this book and do eventually end up with a happily ever after, but it was much less dramatic than I expected.

Advance ebook provided by Avon Books via NetGalley.

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Cruel Winter with You by Ali Hazelwood (2024)

Contemporary romance. Part of the Under the Mistletoe Collection. Quick novella. Jamie and Marc have known each other for Marc’s entire life since he’s Jamie’s best friend’s younger brother. And Marc has been in love with Jamie for ever, but they never did get together. Until he goes for it and then she rejects him, and now a few months later, they’re stuck together in a snowstorm. Feelings get discussed and resolved and things get steamy in pretty short order. Fun lil quick read.

Advance ebook provided by Amazon Publishing via NetGalley. Advance audiobook provided by Brilliance Publishing via NetGalley.

Merry Ever After by Tessa Bailey (2024)

Contemporary romance. Part of the Under the Mistletoe Collection. Another super short steamy novella. Single mom and thrift shop employee Evie has charmed the pants off gruff and burly farmer Luke. Literally, he can’t find pants that fit at the thrift store. But he goes there just to see Evie anyway. She’s wary of men, but he’s an absolute girthy sweetheart. Quick and steamy read.

Advance ebook provided by Amazon Publishing via NetGalley. Advance audiobook provided by Brilliance Publishing via NetGalley.

All by My Elf by Olivia Dade (2024)

Contemporary romance. Part of the Under the Mistletoe Collection. Co-workers at the their day job and co-workers on their holiday gig, Nina and William have been friendly and not-quite-flirting for months. They’re on the road in their side gig and get caught in terrible snowstorm traffic and end up cuddling for warmth. And then more than cuddling for more than just warmth. Quick, steamy read.

Advance ebook provided by Amazon Publishing via NetGalley. Advance audiobook provided by Brilliance Publishing via NetGalley.

Merriment and Mayhem by Alexandria Bellefleur (2024)

Contemporary romance. Part of the Under the Mistletoe Collection. Quick novella. Super quick little romance here with Everleigh who is spending Christmas at her late grandmother’s house and fireman Griffin who consistently comes to her rescue. Her stay in town is only temporary and the fireman is all sorts of charming, so she tries her best to resist at first. But that only lasts for so long.

Advance ebook provided by Amazon Publishing via NetGalley. Advance audiobook provided by Brilliance Publishing via NetGalley.

Only Santas in the Building by Alexis Daria (2024)

Contemporary romance. Part of the Under the Mistletoe Collection. Quick novella. The upstairs neighbor Theo is all sorts of cute and charming and Evie tries her best not to make a fool of herself in front of him. But he also has a massive crush on Evie, so it all works out in the end anyway.

Advance ebook provided by Amazon Publishing via NetGalley. Advance audiobook provided by Brilliance Publishing via NetGalley.

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Affiliate links may be used within this post. If you make a purchase, I receive a small commission at no extra charge to you.