Winner - - The Love Simulation

 

The winner of a print copy of

The Love Simulation by Etta Easton is:

Laurie Gommermann

Congratulations!

Please send your full name and mailing address to:

theromancedish (at) gmail (dot) com

Review - - A Wallflower's Guide to Viscounts and Vice

A Wallflower's Guide to Viscounts and Vice

by Manda Collins

Publisher: Forever

Release Date: April 22, 2025

Reviewed by PJ

 

A wallflower by choice, wealthy Lucy Penhallow would rather sit out the dancing all season than listen to false flattery from the fortune hunters who pursue her. But when she and her best friend’s brother witness a crime in progress, they’ll need to put every skill Lucy’s learned from reading detective stories to the test in their hunt for a missing woman. And if Viscount Gilford happens to be handsome as sin and clever to boot? Well, that's no hardship for her.

Viscount Gilford needs a wife to save him from financial ruin, and there’s only one heiress who’s off limits. So when he and Lucy find themselves inextricably linked in the tabloids, it’s a disaster. As their investigation progresses, their once unwelcome alliance becomes something more—a love match neither will give up. But there’s a killer watching their romance from the wings who’s only too happy to keep these meddlesome sleuths together . . . in the afterlife.

PJ's Thoughts:

If you enjoy a well-crafted mystery with your historical romance, do I have a book for you. This first book in Manda Collins' new Victorian series has all the twists, turns, banter, and heart-tugging romance I could want. 

She's a spinster by choice - opinionated, well-read (she leads a women only book club), and with plans that do not include a husband. Oh, and also an heiress. He's a viscount forced to wed for money and not happy about it. Newly returned from the Continent, he's horrified to discover the only woman who appeals is his sister's best friend. That's not going to happen! And yet, these two just can't seem to stay away from one another, thrown together time and again by events that unfold throughout the book along with those pesky feelings that keep getting stronger rather than going away.  

Collins does a superb job of weaving together the mystery and romance elements of this book. Everything unfolds organically and realistically as Lucy and Gilford team up to hunt down the villains and rescue Lucy's kidnapped friend. Working together, the two slowly begin to peel away their social layers and get to know one another on a new level. Their banter sparkles. The chemistry is undeniable. I adored Lucy and came to appreciate Gilford for the way he eventually adored her as well. I couldn't help but root for them the entire way. 

The mystery, once again, is one that kept me on my toes. Collins has a knack for that. There were more than a few points along the way where I was certain I knew the identity of the culprit only to have another viable suspect pop up around the next corner. She kept me guessing to the very end. I love when an author accomplishes that!

While A Wallflower's Guide to Viscounts and Vice launches a new series, readers should be aware that characters from Collins' last series are liberally sprinkled throughout. It shouldn't detract from your enjoyment of this new book but it may very well cause you to want to learn more about the heroes and heroines from the Ladies Most Scandalous series. The four books in that series are: A Ladies Guide to Mischief and Mayhem (Kate and Andrew), An Heiress's Guide to Deception and Desire (Caro and Val), A Spinster's Guide to Danger and Dukes (Poppy and Joshua), and A Governess's Guide to Passion and Peril (Jane and Adrian).  

If you enjoy twisty mystery, romance, lively banter, supportive friendship groups (male and female), family dynamics, and a heart-tugging HEA set in Victorian England, check out A Wallflower's Guide to Viscounts and Vice by Manda Collins. I thoroughly enjoyed it. 

Winner - - A Wedding in the Lowcountry

 

The randomly chosen winner

of a print copy of

A Wedding in the Lowcountry is:

Patricia B

Congratulations!

Please send your full name and mailing address to:

theromancedish (at) gmail (dot) com

Review & Giveaway - - The Love Simulation

The Love Simulation

by Etta Easton

Publisher: Berkley

Release Date: March 4, 2025

Reviewed by PJ

 

A passionate vice principal and a guarded science teacher compete for a grand prize, only to realize their budding relationship might be the real jackpot.

Brianna Rogers has been told a time (or six) she needs to stop jumping into things head first. But when the principal rescinds his approval for a library upgrade, deciding to spend the money on a football field instead, she sees red. Literally. Brianna throws her hat in the ring and joins a team of teachers who will spend their summer in a Mars simulation. As the sister of an astronaut, this should be easy, right? What she didn’t count on was the last-minute addition to the team—Roman Major: science teacher, son of the principal, and too handsome for his own good.

Roman and Brianna have been hot and cold all year, and living in close quarters intensifies their animosity and attraction. Brianna is sure he’s been sent by his father to sabotage them, foiling their chance at prize money that will cover all of the school’s actual needs. But each day, Roman proves himself to be a dedicated teammate—and Brianna finds herself falling harder and harder. While it’s clear the feeling is mutual, she can’t shake the sense that he’s hiding something. As the simulation nears its end, Brianna realizes she may have to make an impossible choice, between the school she’s dedicated herself to, and the man who has won his way into her heart.

PJ's Thoughts:

Taking forced proximity in a fresh new direction. As a huge fan of the movie, The Martian, I found myself immediately drawn to this new Etta Easton novel set primarily during a six-week Mars simulation. In the movie, Matt Damon's character is alone on the Red Planet but I couldn't help but imagine the dynamics of that journey if his entire crew had been with him. Transfer that into a six-week simulation on Earth with four teachers and a vice-principal, including two who are secretly crushing on but not fully trusting one another and I couldn't wait to dive in.

I enjoyed Easton's debut, The Kiss Countdown but I liked this new book even more. The set-up is relatable. The setting is immersive. I found myself laughing, cringing, and on the edge of my seat multiple times as the simulator created tasks, events, and obstacles that had me forgetting these characters were in a covered stadium in the middle of Texas and not stranded on Mars. 

The characters, both primary and secondary, are well developed and vibrantly depicted. The story is told solely from Brianna's point of view, something I'm not typically fond of in romance, but in this case it works. It was fascinating to watch the ebb and flow of the group dynamics through Brianna's lens. Even more, not knowing Roman's internal thoughts forced me to view his words and actions through Brianna's lens and my own. Because of that, I was even more emotionally invested in Brianna and her feelings, suspicions, hopes, and fears. I also found myself experiencing the same push and pull she felt as Roman's character was slowly revealed. We both fell for Roman without fully knowing where his loyalties lay, a shaky proposition for a woman with so much on the line. 

The Love Simulation is a slow-burn, adversaries-to-lovers journey bubbling over with humor, family dynamics, nerdy science rep, adventure, swoony romance, self-discovery, friendship, and one well-earned happily ever after. It has my enthusiastic recommendation. 

Characters from The Kiss Countdown (read my review) are present in this book (Vincent, hero of TKC is Brianna's brother) but you do not have to read the books in order. 

Have you read The Kiss Countdown?

Would you participate in this type of simulation?

What about the real thing? Any wanna-be astronauts in the house? 

One randomly chosen person who posts a comment before 11:00 PM, April 20 will receive a print copy of The Love Simulation. 

*U.S. only

*Must be 18

Review Reprise - - The Garden of Lost Secrets

The Garden of Lost Secrets

by Kelly Bowen

Publisher: Forever

Original Release Date: May 16, 2023

Mass Market Paperback: April 15, 2025

Reviewed by PJ

1940 - Stasia always found comfort in the idyllic French countryside where she spent her childhood summers, roaming the gardens of an old chateau and finding inspiration for fairy tales full of bravery and adventure. But these days are much darker, and with Nazis storming across Europe, she soon finds herself one of the most hunted agents of the Resistance. The only safe haven she can think of is Chateau de Montissaire. But she’s about to discover that it just may be the center of her biggest mission yet.
 
Present day - When Isabelle purchases a crumbling chateau in Rouen, it’s not just a renovation project—it’s a chance to reconnect with her sister, Emilie, the only family she has left. What she uncovers instead is an intriguing mystery… As the siblings piece together the incredible truth behind the books written by their great-grandmother Stasia, they discover an exciting story of courage in the face of treachery and an explosive secret that will change everything they believed about their family.

PJ's Thoughts:

Kelly Bowen has written another compelling, dual-timeline, WWII/Present Day novel that sucked me in and refused to let go. In the present day, we get dreams realized, complicated family dynamics, a possible romantic connection, and an unexpected - no, shocking - revelation about a beloved great-grandmother. I enjoyed Isabelle's journey but the heart of this book takes place some eighty years earlier, in the days leading up to WWII and those that followed during and after the Nazi invasions across Europe. 

Nobody lives through a war and emerges unscathed. Childhood friends, and later sweethearts, Stasia and Nicholas certainly don't. What befalls them over the course of four years, both individually and as a couple, is immense. It can't help but change them, sending each on different paths of growth and evolution. Bowen conveys these changes in organic, breath-stealing, deeply emotional ways as the world they've known implodes around them. The changes are particularly immense within Stasia as the scenes in the Netherlands show in gut-wrenching ways. 

Friendship - and it's impact on each of these characters - is a key facet of this book. The bonds between Stasia and Nicholas, Stasia and her school friend Margot, and Nicholas and fellow seaman Oscar are strong and enduring whether they are together or not. Their trust, admiration, respect, and affection, forged in the fires of combat, and in the perilous streets of Nazi-occupied Amsterdam, have an incalculable impact upon the lives - and actions - of each of them. I was with them every step of their journeys, feeling their fear, devastation, anger, and determination. These characters were developed to the point where I was almost certain that if I had researched their names in historical documents I would have found evidence of their daring, patriotic exploits...and of their enduring love.

Bowen's books are well researched and authentic to time and place. Reading this novel was like watching the triumphs - and horrors - of WWII come to life across my mind. There are scenes that broke my heart and left me sobbing. Others that still haunted me weeks after reading them. Ultimately, I was left with admiration and respect for those ordinary (but in reality, extraordinary) citizens who, without being asked, put their lives on the line daily while helping to save the world from the evil of the Nazi empire, expecting nothing in return. Those like Stasia who, after the war, built new lives, not forgetting, but never divulging, their roles in winning the war for freedom.  

I highly recommend The Garden of Lost Secrets. 

 

Review & Giveaway - - A Wedding in the Lowcountry

A Wedding in the Lowcountry

by Preslaysa Williams

Publisher: Avon

Release Date: February 18, 2025

Reviewed by PJ

 

When Avila's mother passes away, Avila must return to Charleston to get her mother's house ready to put on the market. Returning home means that she'll have to face relationships that were best left behind. Her feelings are complicated, to say the least. 

Things get even more complicated when she runs into her childhood friend, Terence, who is now a professor at the local college. Years ago, when Terence left Charleston to attend Hampton University, Avila felt abandoned, but it’s clear that their connection hasn’t faded… and may even be something more than the friendship they once shared.

As Terence supports Avila in the wake of her mother’s passing, they have to deal with the feelings that they have for one another. Avila is wary of trusting others - she’s used to taking care of herself and her daughter alone - but could Terence hold the key to opening her heart?

PJ's Thoughts:

Just like William's first two books, this third novel sets a leisurely pace, much like the city in which it's set. A character-driven story, it centers on reunited childhood friends, Terence and Avila and Avila's twelve-year-old daughter Ebony. 

I enjoyed the characters of Ebony and Terence and connected with them fairly quickly. I tried to connect with Avila but, wow, did she make it tough. She is one complicated woman with a whole host of issues to work through. Those issues add emotional depth to the story and to her character growth, which is the most significant of the main characters, but they sure didn't make it easy to root for her during the process. 

Anyone who has ever been around a pre-teen girl should appreciate the character of Ebony. Williams checks all the boxes in her crafting of a hormonal girl and her single, stage mama. 

I like a friends-to-lovers trope and Terence is a very good friend to Avila, but I was a little put off by how strongly - and quickly - Terence pushes things forward romantically between them. Given that these two haven't seen one another in more than ten years, it felt a bit too "insta-love" for me. He does eventually slow down and I ultimately felt good about their relationship but it's one of the stumbling blocks that kept this book from being rated higher. Please keep in mind that these are my thoughts. Other readers may have a totally different reading experience. 

My small issues aside, I did enjoy the overall story as well as the growth of the characters though I did not enjoy it as much as the author's first two books. 

Have you read Preslaysa Williams?

Have you ever visited Charleston?

Do you enjoy a slow-burn romance?

One randomly chosen person posting a comment before 11:00 PM, April 16 will receive a print copy of A Wedding in the Lowcountry. 

*U.S. only

*Must be 18

Review - - Spilling the Tea

Spilling the Tea

by Brenda Jackson

Publisher: Canary Street Press

Release Date: April 1, 2025

Reviewed by PJ

Ninetysomething Mama Laverne is determined to find all of her great-grandchildren their perfect match before going home to glory. So far, her success rate is 100 percent—and she intends to keep it that way.

After sustaining injuries in Iraq, Chancellor Madaris was told he’d never walk again. Chance credits his great-grandmother Mama Laverne with giving him the will to heal and prove the doctors wrong. He has a healthy respect for her meddling ways and knows he’ll eventually end up next on her matchmaking list.

When Zoey Pritchard was eight, she survived a car accident that took the lives of her mother and father, and was sent to live with her great-aunt who refused to speak about her parents. Zoey has no memory from before the crash, but she’s been having the same dream over and over…

Searching for answers, Zoey travels to Houston, where she uncovers a scandal involving her parents and the wealthy and powerful Madaris family. Her trail leads her straight to Chance’s door. The dislike and intense attraction are instant and simultaneous. But to help Zoey restore her memory, he grudgingly introduces her to his great-grandmother…

Was it chance, or Mama Laverne’s plan, that threw this pair together?

PJ's Thoughts:

Brenda Jackson has written 150 books, hitting both the New York Times and USA Today Bestseller lists in the process. Spilling the Tea, in my opinion, is one of her best and one of my all-time Jackson favorites. 

Jackson has a way of luring readers into her stories with intriguing characters, relatable circumstances, and emotional engagement. In this book, she offers up two couples for the price of one. I connected with Zoey and Chance almost immediately but I was equally connected to the earlier couple whose ill-fated romance set off scandalous shock waves that rocked two families, a scandal unknown to all present-day characters with the exception of Mama Laverne and one of her sons. 

Jackson seamlessly interweaves the two stories together using flashbacks of the past with unfolding events of the present and the unlikely twists that bond the two together. The end result is an emotional dual-timeline story with strong family dynamics, heart-wrenching emotion, sensual romance, closely-held secrets, and another Madaris HEA. 

Fans of Jackson's Madaris family will no doubt enjoy the many cameos in this book by beloved characters (now the older generations) from earlier books while those readers new to this universe should have no issues jumping in here. Spilling the Tea stands beautifully on its own. 

Review - - The Geographer's Map to Romance

The Geographer's Map to Romance

by India Holton

Love’s Academic Book 2

Publisher: Berkley

Release Date: April 8, 2025

Reviewed by Nancy

 

Professor Elodie Tarrant is an expert in magic disasters. Nothing fazes her—except her own personal disaster, that is: Professor Gabriel Tarrant, the grumpy, unfriendly man she married for convenience a year ago, whom she secretly loves.

Gabriel is also an expert in magic disasters. And nothing fazes him either—except the walking, talking tornado that is his wife. They’ve been estranged since shortly after their wedding day, but that hasn’t stopped him from stoically pining for her.

When magic erupts in a small Welsh village, threatening catastrophe for the rest of Britain, Elodie and Gabriel are accidentally both assigned to the case. With the fate of the country in their hands, they must come together as a team in the face of perilous conditions like explosions, domesticated goats, and only one bed. But this is easier said than done. After all, there's no navigational guide for the geography of the heart.

Nancy’s Thoughts:

The Geographer’s Map to Romance mixes a marriage of convenience, a second

chance at love, and a grumpy-sunshine pairing with a dose of humor, including a

sendup of the academic world. The result is a delightful book. It’s set in a Victorian

England where geography (earth science) includes dealing with magic, which is a force

of the land. Instead of ley lines, we have fey lines and magic forces measured by

thaumometers.

Elodie and Gabriel Tarrant are obviously still attracted to each other, possibly even

obsessed with each other, but neither thinks the other reciprocates their feelings. As a

result they spend a lot of time trying to dodge each other and to convince themselves

they don’t feel what they plainly do. Elodie is imaginative and poetic and sees the joy in

everything. Gabriel is serious, careful, and determined to remain grounded. He’s so

stern with his students that they’ve nicknamed him Professor Tyrant.

The pair and their assistants, along with a cost-conscious fellow from the Home Office,

arrive in Wales to discover that wild magic is levitating animals, starting fires, and

transforming people and objects into plants, animals and birds. The situation escalates

as they investigate, and the combination of danger and proximity brings their feelings for

each other to the fore. For example:

He took a step closer to her. She tossed back a loose strand of hair and stared him

down (or, more accurately, up, since he was some four inches taller). The air between

them crackled with a magic considerably more potent than that which was exploding

pebbles on the road beyond.

But they both carry on trying to ignore their emotions until the situation reaches a point

where that’s impossible.

One of the things I most enjoyed about the book is Holton’s wry narrative voice. I also

enjoyed her use of internal language, sometimes with strike-throughs, to show the

feelings Elodie and Gabriel are trying to suppress. In Chapter One, they meet at the

train station, having both been dispatched to deal with the magical emergency, each

unaware the other is involved until they meet at the train station. Elodie responds this

way:

Approaching him was the hardest thing she’d done in a long while, and this was coming

from a woman with a doctorate that had required extensive knowledge of trigonometry.

She hated the coldhearted, unforgiving man. Absolutely, completely loved—wait, no,

loathed him. Arriving at his side on the platform, she offered a terse yet completely

polite greeting.

But Gabriel went on staring at the block in his hand, such a calm, somber beauty to his

face that it made Elodie’s throat ache. Ache like I’ve just swallowed poison, she

amended furiously.

That wry internal narrative also supplies humor. When a tourist drawn to the magical

mayhem in Wales blathers about the excitement of magic, Gabriel has this reaction:

Bloody hell. The fellow was either an incoherent lunatic or a humanities student.

(Gabriel did not always find it easy to spot the difference.)

Then there’s this:

“What about free will?” Elodie argued, setting her hands on her hips.

“What about it?” Gabriel asked, as if free will was something he, as a university

professor, simply could not countenance.

(In the interests of full disclosure, I’ll note that I have a degree in history, grew up in a

college town, and am married to an academic. The wry references to academia are not

mean-spirited or unkind and fit the characters’ personalities.)

The supporting characters include a professor who’s supposed to deal with magical

disasters but has a knack for causing them, as when he took his class to see what he

thought were singing stalactites but were really razor-sharp, spinning stalactites. Yet

he’s likeable because he’s always willing to pitch in and do his part.

The silliness of the tourists who’ve come to see the magical disaster is so like the

onlookers who rush to see disasters today that it works extremely well in context. The

cowardice of the man from the Home Office contrasts nicely with Elodie and Gabriel’s

determination. And the villagers’ desire to capitalize on this opportunity is not only

understandable, though it’s inconvenient for Elodie and Gabriel, but often humorous.

The romantic arc progresses in a believable and satisfying way, with the magical

disaster woven through it instead of occurring parallel to it.

The worldbuilding is original, cohesive, and well explained.

By this point, readers may be wondering why, if I liked so much about this book, I gave it

4 stars instead of five. It’s because there’s one part of it that bothered me a lot. The

romantic conflict, the marital problem that sent Elodie and Gabriel in opposite directions

a year before the story starts, is based on a misunderstanding of a comment—a true

comment—that five minutes of conversation could have resolved. Yet neither pursued it.

Near the end of the book, we see Elodie developing insight into Gabriel’s personality

that leads her to look differently at that misunderstanding. He’s gaining similar

understanding of her. Those bits are written very well, with the story leading up to them

nicely. In order for me to buy that misunderstanding as the book’s main romantic

conflict, though, I needed their internal reactions in the moment the breach occurred (a

moment the story includes as a flashback) to know why they didn’t pursue that

conversation, and they aren’t there.

The relationship conflict is central to a romance, and when one doesn’t work for me, it

has to affect the way I rate the book. A lot depends on how much I enjoyed it otherwise.

Would I keep reading the book if I hadn’t committed to review it? How much did I enjoy

it apart from my issue with the conflict? In this case, I would have kept reading and

enjoyed the overall story immensely. So it gets four stars, and I highly recommend.

~Nancy

Review - - What They Don't Know

What They Don't Know

by Susan Sands

Moonshine - Book 3

Publisher: Tule

Release Date: April 8, 2025

Reviewed by PJ

 

When the past comes to call…

Following the death of her mother and the breakup with her cheating fiancé, clinical therapist, Bree Hawthorne, has built a new life for herself and her pup, Tiny, in the mountains of Moonshine, Georgia. Her practice is thriving, and occasionally, she consults with law enforcement, calling on her insights into human behavior to profile and catch criminals. She finally feels happy, and then the body of a former patient is discovered.

Georgia Bureau of Investigation’s agent, Mitch Calloway, is investigating the death of a woman who disappeared two years ago. When he meets Bree, Mitch inadvertently offends the blonde bombshell therapist. Though a skilled investigator, his social skills are beyond rusty, but Bree can forgive much if pie is involved.

Through her experience with cults and unfortunate family ties, Bree is dragged into the investigation, and soon she and the handsome, though seriously awkward GBI officer go undercover as man and wife at a suspicious nature retreat where several women have gone missing. For Bree, it’s a chance for closure on her unconventional past—if she and Mitch can survive the investigation.

PJ's Thoughts:

Susan Sands takes readers back to the small town of Moonshine, Georgia for another chaste romance brimming with emotion. This time, it's clinical therapist, Bree Hawthorne in the spotlight. Bree has been instrumental in offering both therapy and friendship to other characters in this series but now she's the one in the crosshairs of a murder investigation and the handsome agent leading the charge. 

I enjoy Sands' stories, her well-developed characters and the communities with which she surrounds them. In this book, that community includes characters from the first two books of the series. Fans of the series should enjoy catching up with them while readers new to the series should have no trouble reading this book first. 

The romance in this book unfolds alongside the suspense but in a gradual, more gentle fashion. Mitch's neurodivergence contributes to that. I found Sands' handling of his character respectful, caring, and realistic for someone on the Spectrum. Bree is also an intriguing character with hidden layers that slowly reveal themselves as she and Mitch dig deeper into the murder mystery that brings them together. I liked and admired them both and rooted hard for their happy ending.

Other books by Sands have had elements of mystery/suspense but it's stronger in this book and more central to the core of the story. I was drawn into the suspense facet of the book almost immediately and held captive as the author skillfully dropped clues even as she ramped up the tension, including a number of twists along the way. Some I figured out quickly while others were a complete surprise. I love when that happens. 

If you enjoy small-town romance with a healthy dollop of mystery/suspense, intriguing well-developed characters, a strong sense of community, and happy endings, I recommend adding What They Don't Know by Susan Sands to your reading list. I'm glad I did.

Winners - - April Coming Attractions

 

The randomly chosen winners from

April Coming Attractions are:

Laura L

and

Penney Wilfort

Congratulations!

Please send your full name and mailing address to:

theromancedish (at) gmail (dot) com

Review - - A Wager at Midnight

A Wager at Midnight

by Vanessa Riley

Betting Against the Duke - Book 2

Publisher: Zebra

Release Date: March 25, 2025

Reviewed by PJ

  

Scarlett Wilcox is willing to live out her life as a spinster if it means being able to continue her medical research to help a friend in need. After all, few husbands would tolerate her dressing as a man to attend lectures at the Royal Academy of Science. If the Duke of Torrance finds her such a specimen, she'll agree to a marriage in name only, much to the dismay of her elder sister, the Viscountess.

When she's unmasked at a lecture on ophthalmology, Scarlett prepares to be disgraced, but she's saved by Trinidadian-born physician Stephen Carew who claims her as a cousin. Dedicated to caring for his community, Stephen has no wish to marry a frivolous and privileged lady, no matter how many fall for his disarming accent and seductive charm. But Scarlett proves the opposite of any he’s ever met before. Yet the pressure to marry blinds them both to the chemistry growing between them, pitting their brilliant minds against their reluctant hearts—as the Duke and Viscountess await with bated breath to see who will win . . . A WAGER AT MIDNIGHT.

PJ's Thoughts:

I'm enjoying this new trilogy from Vanessa Riley that showcases diverse characters of color in Regency London. Riley's books are always rich in historical detail while also featuring well-developed characters who bring the time and place to life on the page. 

While the battle between the Duke and Katherine continues to play out in the background of this second book, it's time for third sister, Scarlett to take center stage. I'm always up for a woman of science in historical romance who has the courage to defy the norm in pursuit of education. Scarlett is one such character and I was with her every step of her journey. She has a true calling, as well as an honorable heart, and a willingness to do whatever it takes in her quest to help others.

It took me a while to settle into Stephen as the right man for Scarlett. There's plenty of simmering chemistry in their squabbles and banter but he's as reluctant to accept her non-traditional brilliance as he is the fact that the young girl he first met is now a grown woman. He's a planner, some might say a slow plodder, with a burning need for acceptance from his community. But he grows as the story unfolds and by the end, I was rooting him on in his quest for Scarlett's heart. 

Riley's books are not fast-paced. They evolve gradually, taking readers on a journey with occasional side trips, as one might experience in real life, with secondary characters - and storylines - only adding to the rich texture of the whole. While Scarlett and Stephen are the featured couple in A Wager at Midnight, I found myself drawn over and over to the Duke and the complications in his life that are at the core of this trilogy and his relationships with the Wilcox sisters. I am literally bouncing with eagerness to discover how his story will evolve when he and Katherine finally step into the romantic spotlight. A scene at the end of A Wager at Midnight leads me to believe it will not be an easy journey for either of them. 

While some books within a trilogy can be enjoyed as a standalone, I do not recommend that with this one. For maximum enjoyment and complete understanding of these characters and their relationships, I strongly encourage readers to begin with A Gamble at Sunset, followed by A Wager at Midnight. 

Winner - - Summer in the City

 

The randomly chosen winner 

of a print copy of

Summer in the City by Alex Aster is:

Rebecca Sutter

Congratulations!

Please send your full name and mailing address to:

theromancedish (at) gmail (dot) com