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A Gentleman's Guide to Once Upon a Time #1
His Impetuous Debutante
Lady Phoebe Johansen embarks upon her first season with two goals in mind; to remain unwed and scandal free in London. It isn't that she is against marriage and if her situation were different, she would welcome the opportunity for love and children. It is just not practical. Unfortunately, her older brother is smothering any chances she has of actually enjoying the season out of fear her impetuous nature will land her in predicaments more ruinous than the physical mishaps she had suffered at home. Taylor Qualls, the Earl of Sandlin, is forced once again to face his own obligations this season. He has a year and a half to find a suitable bride and produce the heir as dictated in his grandfather's will. Nobody needs to tell him that Lady Phoebe is the last woman on earth he should marry. After all, given his own track record with wives and Lady Phoebe's penchant for mishaps, she wouldn't survive a month as his bride.
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First published May 20, 2011
37 people are currently reading
267 people want to read
About the author
Jane Charles
176 books390 followersUSA Today bestselling author Jane Charles is a prolific writer of over fifty historical and contemporary romance novels. Her love of research and history lends authenticity to her Regency romances, and her experience directing theatre productions helps her craft beautiful, touching stories that tug at the heartstrings. Jane is an upbeat and positive author dedicated to giving her characters happy-ever-afters and leaving the readers satisfied at the end of an emotional journey. She is a lifelong Cubs fan, loves wine tastings, and lives in Central Illinois with her two huskies and husband. She is currently writing her next book while planning her dream trip to Europe.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
April 20, 2022
3.5 excellent love story but mystery could be solved in 5 min. Still it's an enjoyable ride!
January 3, 2020
Lady Phoebe Johansen sister to the Marquess Felding, is making her debut, her brother realises how impetuous she is & asks his five friends to keep an eye on her. Taylor Qualls, the Earl of Sandlin, is one of these friends.
Taylor needs to marry & produce an heir before his 30th birthday to be able to fully inherit, so he’s looking for a wife but is constantly rescuing Phoebe.
This is a good novel, I warmed to the main characters & enjoyed the story & look forward to reading the other friends’ stories. I enjoyed the mystery & suspense too
My only quibble is the names, far too modern for the regency period & too americanised. However it’s fiction so they weren’t too distracting
Taylor needs to marry & produce an heir before his 30th birthday to be able to fully inherit, so he’s looking for a wife but is constantly rescuing Phoebe.
This is a good novel, I warmed to the main characters & enjoyed the story & look forward to reading the other friends’ stories. I enjoyed the mystery & suspense too
My only quibble is the names, far too modern for the regency period & too americanised. However it’s fiction so they weren’t too distracting
October 22, 2020
Nice Read *3 1/2 stars*
Overall I enjoyed this book It is the first book in Ms. Charles' A GENTLEMAN'S GUIDE TO ONCE UPON A TIME, series. If I could I would give it 3 1/2 stars for mere fact that I enjoyed it so much. First of all, I really like Ms. Charles' writing style. The story that unfolds is engaging, intriguing, and very entertaining. I also liked the characters, who I thought were very well developed. This is true not only of the protagonists, Phoebe and Taylor, but also of secondary characters, especially Phoebe's brother, Noah, Marquess of Felding, who will get his own story in book 4 of the series.
Lady Phoebe is making her come-out. Because of her impetuous and trusting nature, her brother is concerned that she may inadvertently find herself in any number of precarious and/or compromising situations. To counteract this possibility, Noah enlists the aid of a number of his friends to keep an eye on his sister. Among the chosen few is Noah's best friend, Taylor Qualls, Earl of Sandlin. Over the course of the season, Taylor finds himself saving Phoebe from one potentially compromising situation after another. So much so, that it has become something of a joke in society. LOL Seriously though, some of the situations from which Taylor rescued Phoebe served to show that she was naïve, almost to the point of stupidity at times. Yet as naïve and clueless as Phoebe was at times, I really liked her.
From the very first time Taylor lays eyes on Phoebe, he is drawn to his friend's beautiful sister. Taylor needs a wife and heir before his thirtieth birthday, in order to fulfill the requirements of his grandfather's will. Phoebe is just the sort of lady Taylor would love to have as his wife, but he is aware that with his track record, there is no way that he can ask Noah to entrust his beloved sister into Taylor's care. That's because Taylor has already been married twice over and widowed both times. It is now an accepted fact in society that to marry the handsome earl is tantamount to a death sentence for the young lady involved.
Nonetheless, due to their numerous encounters with one another, a relationship develops between Phoebe and Taylor and they fall in love. Neither is aware of the other one's feelings; and despite his attachment Taylor is reluctant to broach the subject of a marriage between him and Phoebe to his friend. Nevertheless, eventually Taylor rescues Phoebe from one scrape too many and the two of them end up in a compromising situation, which results in a marriage between them.
The relationship between Taylor and Phoebe is a very sweet one. I loved the way Taylor fell in love with Phoebe so very early and the fact that, although he tried to fight against it, his reasons for doing so were very believable, at least to me they were. Intrigue is added to the story by way of an apparent murder plot against Phoebe, which calls in question the real cause of death of Taylor's other wives. There is even a minor paranormal aspect in the form of Taylor's late wife appearing to him in dreams to warm him of the danger to Phoebe.
As much as I liked this book; however, it does have a lot of problems, mostly due to lack of editing; or maybe I should say "proper" editing, as it seems to have been edited to some extent. There are numerous mistakes; missing words, incorrect word usage, incomplete sentences, and the list goes one. Luckily, once I got into the groove of the book, I was able to read around the mistakes, for the most part. I noticed the mistakes, but they didn't distract me too terribly from the story. One example of a weird incomplete sentence is "How often she had landed on that pretty bottom before she learned to hold on and keep her balance." I think that should have been a question, but question or statement, it's worded incorrectly, and makes absolutely no sense. Believe me, even when read within the context of the story, the sentence is confusing. I think at that point in the story, Taylor was wondering how many times Phoebe must have fallen off her horse before she learned to control one as well as she did.
In any event, the first glaring mistake met my eyes on the very first page of the book--that is never good! We are told that Lady Phoebe tightened her fingers on the arm of her "stepbrother", Noah, Marquess Felding. A few pages down, you discover that Noah and Phoebe actually share a father, although they do have different mothers. I'm sorry, but a parent in common does not a step-sibling make, but rather a half-sibling. I mean, come on Ms. Charles! Really?! There are also glaring mistakes which indicate that the author has trouble keeping the facts of her own story straight. For instance, on one page we are told that one of Taylor's wives died from an illness, while the other died from an accident. Later in the story, we learn that both deaths were a result of accidents. These are just a few examples of the numerous mistakes I encountered while reading this book.
That being said, I must say kudos to Ms. Charles for being spot on with her use of titles and forms of address! Too often authors mangle that particular area and it is one of my pet peeves! Furthermore, the story that unfolds is one that I enjoyed, despite the drawbacks. I definitely intend to read Noah's story at some point. So, bottom line, complaints aside, I liked this book and would recommend it as a worthwhile read. I would also recommend that Ms. Charles invest in an editor, or at least a good one, because it really is ashamed to see such a good story suffer from errors that are totally unnecessary. FYI, this is essentially a clean romance. There is a post-marital love scene, but no details of the actual act are provided. Happy reading!
Overall I enjoyed this book It is the first book in Ms. Charles' A GENTLEMAN'S GUIDE TO ONCE UPON A TIME, series. If I could I would give it 3 1/2 stars for mere fact that I enjoyed it so much. First of all, I really like Ms. Charles' writing style. The story that unfolds is engaging, intriguing, and very entertaining. I also liked the characters, who I thought were very well developed. This is true not only of the protagonists, Phoebe and Taylor, but also of secondary characters, especially Phoebe's brother, Noah, Marquess of Felding, who will get his own story in book 4 of the series.
Lady Phoebe is making her come-out. Because of her impetuous and trusting nature, her brother is concerned that she may inadvertently find herself in any number of precarious and/or compromising situations. To counteract this possibility, Noah enlists the aid of a number of his friends to keep an eye on his sister. Among the chosen few is Noah's best friend, Taylor Qualls, Earl of Sandlin. Over the course of the season, Taylor finds himself saving Phoebe from one potentially compromising situation after another. So much so, that it has become something of a joke in society. LOL Seriously though, some of the situations from which Taylor rescued Phoebe served to show that she was naïve, almost to the point of stupidity at times. Yet as naïve and clueless as Phoebe was at times, I really liked her.
From the very first time Taylor lays eyes on Phoebe, he is drawn to his friend's beautiful sister. Taylor needs a wife and heir before his thirtieth birthday, in order to fulfill the requirements of his grandfather's will. Phoebe is just the sort of lady Taylor would love to have as his wife, but he is aware that with his track record, there is no way that he can ask Noah to entrust his beloved sister into Taylor's care. That's because Taylor has already been married twice over and widowed both times. It is now an accepted fact in society that to marry the handsome earl is tantamount to a death sentence for the young lady involved.
Nonetheless, due to their numerous encounters with one another, a relationship develops between Phoebe and Taylor and they fall in love. Neither is aware of the other one's feelings; and despite his attachment Taylor is reluctant to broach the subject of a marriage between him and Phoebe to his friend. Nevertheless, eventually Taylor rescues Phoebe from one scrape too many and the two of them end up in a compromising situation, which results in a marriage between them.
The relationship between Taylor and Phoebe is a very sweet one. I loved the way Taylor fell in love with Phoebe so very early and the fact that, although he tried to fight against it, his reasons for doing so were very believable, at least to me they were. Intrigue is added to the story by way of an apparent murder plot against Phoebe, which calls in question the real cause of death of Taylor's other wives. There is even a minor paranormal aspect in the form of Taylor's late wife appearing to him in dreams to warm him of the danger to Phoebe.
As much as I liked this book; however, it does have a lot of problems, mostly due to lack of editing; or maybe I should say "proper" editing, as it seems to have been edited to some extent. There are numerous mistakes; missing words, incorrect word usage, incomplete sentences, and the list goes one. Luckily, once I got into the groove of the book, I was able to read around the mistakes, for the most part. I noticed the mistakes, but they didn't distract me too terribly from the story. One example of a weird incomplete sentence is "How often she had landed on that pretty bottom before she learned to hold on and keep her balance." I think that should have been a question, but question or statement, it's worded incorrectly, and makes absolutely no sense. Believe me, even when read within the context of the story, the sentence is confusing. I think at that point in the story, Taylor was wondering how many times Phoebe must have fallen off her horse before she learned to control one as well as she did.
In any event, the first glaring mistake met my eyes on the very first page of the book--that is never good! We are told that Lady Phoebe tightened her fingers on the arm of her "stepbrother", Noah, Marquess Felding. A few pages down, you discover that Noah and Phoebe actually share a father, although they do have different mothers. I'm sorry, but a parent in common does not a step-sibling make, but rather a half-sibling. I mean, come on Ms. Charles! Really?! There are also glaring mistakes which indicate that the author has trouble keeping the facts of her own story straight. For instance, on one page we are told that one of Taylor's wives died from an illness, while the other died from an accident. Later in the story, we learn that both deaths were a result of accidents. These are just a few examples of the numerous mistakes I encountered while reading this book.
That being said, I must say kudos to Ms. Charles for being spot on with her use of titles and forms of address! Too often authors mangle that particular area and it is one of my pet peeves! Furthermore, the story that unfolds is one that I enjoyed, despite the drawbacks. I definitely intend to read Noah's story at some point. So, bottom line, complaints aside, I liked this book and would recommend it as a worthwhile read. I would also recommend that Ms. Charles invest in an editor, or at least a good one, because it really is ashamed to see such a good story suffer from errors that are totally unnecessary. FYI, this is essentially a clean romance. There is a post-marital love scene, but no details of the actual act are provided. Happy reading!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 14, 2013
This book was an okay read. It did seem to feel long, but that could be just because it slowed down toward the end. A paranoid older brother is in charge of keeping his younger sister out of trouble since it's her first season. He enlists his group of friends to keep an eye on her at functions so she won't be caught in a compromising position. One of her brother friends, Taylor, save her from more than a few of her innocent mistakes before they got out of hand. The two of the start falling in love with each other but think the other person is not interested. In the end she end up marrying her brothers friend, Taylor. The story almost seems like it enters part two of the story now. Her new husband has had two wives that have died while pregnant. He also has a will that demands he marry and produce an heir before the age of 30. He's so close to his 30th birthday and the pressure is on. He always thought his previous wives deaths were suspicious but could never prove anything. Now with his new wife being put into several situations where she could have died he's certain someone is trying to kill her.
June 12, 2024
4.5 stars
This is a fun, entertaining, good read. Taylor and Pheobe are interesting, intriguing, relatable, complex, captivating, entertaining characters. I enjoyed their romance and the path it took to get to their HEA. These two are so much fun to spend time with. The secondary characters added to the fabric of the story and my enjoyment. The story is easy to read and get into. I’m looking forward to reading the other books in this series.
This is a fun, entertaining, good read. Taylor and Pheobe are interesting, intriguing, relatable, complex, captivating, entertaining characters. I enjoyed their romance and the path it took to get to their HEA. These two are so much fun to spend time with. The secondary characters added to the fabric of the story and my enjoyment. The story is easy to read and get into. I’m looking forward to reading the other books in this series.
January 3, 2025
Jan 2025
I liked the story and the plot. Pheobe was a likeable character Taylor was irritating the book was at times difficult to follow certain aspects could have been elaborated and some characters should have been brought in earlier to make more sense of the ending.
I liked the story and the plot. Pheobe was a likeable character Taylor was irritating the book was at times difficult to follow certain aspects could have been elaborated and some characters should have been brought in earlier to make more sense of the ending.
February 18, 2017
Overall, I really enjoyed it..
Wow! How many of hundreds of times has this book been written: ‘She’s the sister of your best friend so she’s off-limits.’ However, it was still a good story. I'm definitely moving on to the next book in the series.
Felding had 4 or 5 of his friends help him keep an eye on his sister, his sister that gets in one mess after another and has to be saved, and Taylor happens to always be there to rescue Phoebe. They fall in love by 50% but that’s also when the book changes to a mystery. Taylor had been married twice before and both of them died and suddenly Phoebe is having mishaps. It became exciting at the halfway mark. I tried to figure out who was doing it and I just couldn’t. I love those kinds of mysteries, when I don’t have a clue. Phoebe did have several TSTL moments, but that was only because she didn’t like abiding by rules, and only one TSTL moment was bad, and it was at the end of the book. And Taylor's plan to figure out who was trying to kill Phoebe caused so many problems between them. It was fantastic when it all came together.
There was some pretty explicit sex, NOT erotic, in this book but there was no swearing.
As to the narrator: Mostly pretty bad. His voices for the men were wonderful but the women’s voices sucked. They sounded way too manly, and if the book called for a laugh or whisper or anything, really, Tristan Hunt did none of those things. He has a great reading voice but he really needs improvement. If you don’t mind the female characters sounding like men then, yeah, he’s 5 star narrator.
Wow! How many of hundreds of times has this book been written: ‘She’s the sister of your best friend so she’s off-limits.’ However, it was still a good story. I'm definitely moving on to the next book in the series.
Felding had 4 or 5 of his friends help him keep an eye on his sister, his sister that gets in one mess after another and has to be saved, and Taylor happens to always be there to rescue Phoebe. They fall in love by 50% but that’s also when the book changes to a mystery. Taylor had been married twice before and both of them died and suddenly Phoebe is having mishaps. It became exciting at the halfway mark. I tried to figure out who was doing it and I just couldn’t. I love those kinds of mysteries, when I don’t have a clue. Phoebe did have several TSTL moments, but that was only because she didn’t like abiding by rules, and only one TSTL moment was bad, and it was at the end of the book. And Taylor's plan to figure out who was trying to kill Phoebe caused so many problems between them. It was fantastic when it all came together.
There was some pretty explicit sex, NOT erotic, in this book but there was no swearing.
As to the narrator: Mostly pretty bad. His voices for the men were wonderful but the women’s voices sucked. They sounded way too manly, and if the book called for a laugh or whisper or anything, really, Tristan Hunt did none of those things. He has a great reading voice but he really needs improvement. If you don’t mind the female characters sounding like men then, yeah, he’s 5 star narrator.
January 19, 2015
Historical English romance about a reckless young lady out in her first season that is being protected by her loving awesome big brother and his best friends when one of the friends falls in love and then accidentally compromises her and they are forced to marry.
Also a death threat mystery and Lord Taylor Qualls, the Earl of Sandlin has two murdered previous wives before he marries Lady Phoebe Johansen. So there is lots of silly made up scandals and very real death threats before Phoebe and Taylor can find their sweet HEA.
I liked the entourage of family, brothers and friends more then the main couple so I couldn't give more then two stars.
248 pages and kindle freebie
2 stars
Also a death threat mystery and Lord Taylor Qualls, the Earl of Sandlin has two murdered previous wives before he marries Lady Phoebe Johansen. So there is lots of silly made up scandals and very real death threats before Phoebe and Taylor can find their sweet HEA.
I liked the entourage of family, brothers and friends more then the main couple so I couldn't give more then two stars.
248 pages and kindle freebie
2 stars
July 24, 2015
I absolutely loved Phoebe from the start. She was so innocent, but at the same time not so innocent. I wanted to shake her and yell don't listen to them when she believed the rumor.
Taylor was just sweet and not the typical hero you read and I loved that. The whole mystery about his wives deaths and was different and I was thrown for a loop when Phoebe first got hurt because I believed like she did that it was nothing.
I loved the warnings in his dreams and the whole elaborate show they put on to protect her. Every single character felt real and I can't wait to read more.
Taylor was just sweet and not the typical hero you read and I loved that. The whole mystery about his wives deaths and was different and I was thrown for a loop when Phoebe first got hurt because I believed like she did that it was nothing.
I loved the warnings in his dreams and the whole elaborate show they put on to protect her. Every single character felt real and I can't wait to read more.
July 1, 2014
A fun story but way to explicit in the characters love life for me too really recommend to others. Phoebe is accident prone and just wants to survive her London season. One of her brother's friends always seems to be the one to save her when she finds herself in a questionable circumstance. There is a mystery to solve, a quirky leading lady & a great hero.
language: clean, heat level:medium-spicy
language: clean, heat level:medium-spicy
March 16, 2013
I gave this book four stars because it was surprisingly good. I just bought it on a whim, because I was got the second book in the series free. I liked the plot and characters. I was on the edge of my seat wanting to know who the villain was. Someone said it had to many sex scenes, but I found it just right.
January 11, 2013
This book would have been a four or five star rating if the typos were not there and it was not marred by the two unnecessary sex scenes. I liked the plot, though there were a few plot holes and loose ends that could have been fixed.
July 11, 2014
This book was an emotional roller coaster! It is filled with danger and mystery as well as love and misunderstanding. It made me wonder how far I would go to keep a secret and live with the consequences. There also unexpected allies that made this a lot more exciting.
June 8, 2015
Superb!
A slightly damaged hero, a stubbornly willful heroine, and a ton of intrigue makes for one hell of a story. I cannot find any fault in the story or the writing. Another great example of Jane's work!
A slightly damaged hero, a stubbornly willful heroine, and a ton of intrigue makes for one hell of a story. I cannot find any fault in the story or the writing. Another great example of Jane's work!
August 8, 2015
Listened to this one because of the narrator. Author needs to do a bit more research though, she uses the word pants when it should be trousers. In the UK pants are underpants, so none of the "British" characters would ever say pants. Otherwise I really liked the story.
July 3, 2014
someone keeps murdering his pregnant wives
October 2, 2016
I very much enjoyed the murder/mystery of this book! It had me sucked in wondering who the killer was! Very happy ending that brought a smile to my face. Good read.
March 21, 2013
OK. just OK. Got for cheap or free on Kindle, can't really remember.
August 23, 2017
Good
Like her writing will read more of her books when found at amazon at a good price soon as they are available.
Like her writing will read more of her books when found at amazon at a good price soon as they are available.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews