Midnight Scandals

Fitzhugh Trilogy #2.5

by Courtney Milan, Sherry Thomas, Carolyn Jewel

Welcome to Doyle's Grange, a charming house near the hills of Exmoor, where the garden is beautiful in every season, and the residents are respectable year-round.

Except when the clock strikes midnight...

One Starlit Night by Carolyn Jewel

Ten years away from Doyle's Grange isn't quite long enough for Viscount Northword to forget Portia Temple, or their passionate adolescent affair. Portia, however, is about to marry another man. Northword tells himself it is wrong to interfere in her life at this late hour, but interfere he cannot help, with his words, his body, and the truths of his heart.

What Happened at Midnight by Courtney Milan

Fleeing the consequences of her father's embezzlement, Mary Chartley takes a position as a lady's companion, only to find herself a virtual prisoner at Doyle's Grange, her employer's house. And then the nightmare truly begins: the man she loves, who also happens to be the man from whom her father stole, shows up at her door seeking recompense. And not merely in pound sterling...

A Dance in Moonlight by Sherry Thomas

After losing her childhood sweetheart to another woman, Isabelle Englewood is heartsick. But then something remarkable happens: Upon arriving at Doyle's Grange, her new home, she meets Ralston Fitzwilliam, who looks almost exactly like the man she cannot have. Come late at night, she tells him, so I can make love to you pretending that you are the one I love.

Little does she realize what she is about to unleash.

Genres: Romance, Historical Romance, Historical, Anthologies, Historical Fiction, Short Stories, Novella

ebook

First published August 28, 2012

About the author

Courtney Milan writes books about carriages, corsets, and smartwatches. Her books have received starred reviews in Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, and Booklist. She is a New York Times and a USA Today Bestseller.

Courtney pens a weekly newsletter about tea, books, and basically anything and everything else. Sign up for it here: https://bit.ly/CourtneysTea

Before she started writing romance, Courtney got a graduate degree in theoretical physical chemistry from UC Berkeley. After that, just to shake things up, she went to law school at the University of Michigan and graduated summa cum laude. Then she did a handful of clerkships. She was a law professor for a while. She now writes full-time.

Courtney is represented by Kristin Nelson of the Nelson Literary Agency.

Reviews

[Preeti ♥︎ Her Bookshelves · Rating 3 out of 5]

This anthology has an intersting premise in that all the three stories are based in and around a house - Doyle's Grange - but happen sequentially and in different times (from the regency to the victorian).

One Starlit Night by Carolyn Jewel
2.5*
I did not quite get this story. The h/H are childhood companions and have a 'history' but then things go terribly wrong when she's about sixteen and he eighteen. We get the details quite late but what mystified me is how did they ever remain 'friends' and kept up a civil correspondence for a decade? Throughout his marriage to another as well?
The H is too dim-witted and cold-fishy.
The h, too young and scared for me to blame her overmuch.
Also I didn't get how come her brother is the owner of the Grange but needs a 'Church living' and how an ambitious woman like her SIL married the h's brother? The SIL is a big distraction in the story with her sly and passive-aggressive manipulations. Her actions add to the angst but take the focus away from the h/H.

What Happened at Midnight by Courtney Milan
3.75*
The second story is more rememberable. I like the hate-love equation between the two.
These two are more middle class than gentry/nobility. The H, along with others, was the business partner of the h's father. The father goes missing after monetary losses but the other partners believe that the h knows where the money is. The story opens with the H walking in to protect the h from these men's insolent behavior towards her as they badger her for information. And we learn that the h/H have a romantic involvement but that seems to have gone awry with the loss of the money.
She's knows more than she lets on and the H realizes that later.
The h runs away to become companion to a lady residing at Doyle's Grange and a vengeful H tracks her down there. He's posing as an engineer working on a neighboring estate.
Here, the lady's husband turns out to be a weird, obsessed man who gives some seriously psycho vibes. The H, out for revenge and information turns out to be the h's knight protector.
The h/H of the previous book make a benevolent appearance as a middle aged and happy couple. (And she now owns the Grange. Wonder what happened to her brother and his family.)

CM is a hit and miss author for me. Her writing is compelling but her hs almost always end up in a sexually abusive or threatening situation - and I don't like such dark undertones.

A Dance in Moonlight by Sherry Thomas
Not read yet. Will read down the FitzHugh series

[Wollstonecrafthomegirl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Novella collections are hit and miss for me. Usually I like one of the stories but the others are only so-so and I am left wondering if buying the book was really worth it for the limited pay off.

This one, however, I highly recommend. Consistent, strong storytelling from three of my favourite historical romance writers. I've reviewed each of the stories separately as I've gone through the book. All great:

What Happened At Midnight - 5 stars - What Happened at MidnightWhat Happened at Midnight

One Starlit Night - Carolyn Jewel - 4 stars - One Starlit Night

A Dance In Moonlight - Sherry Thomas - 4 stars - A Dance in Moonlight

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

One Starlight Night by Carolyn Jewel

A wonderful romance about a love thought gone! Portia and Viscount Northwood shared a brief, passionate affair ten years ago and the ramifications are still being felt today. It caused deep heartache for Portia and Northwood and also her brother. But with Portia set to wed a dull man just to escape her maddening sister in law, Northwood can not let his feelings be disregarded any longer. A wonderfully rounded romance dealing with the difficulties of a second chance romance and great supporting characters (seriously, Portia's sister in law is going to be someone who want to smack!) with a good dose of steam! I could have used a mini epilogue though but thats just me...love my epilogues :) 4 1/2 stars

What Happened at Midnight by Courtney Milan

This was another wonderful romance about a love thought gone as well but in a totally different vein! Mary Chartley is forced to take a position as a lady's companion after her fathers death and subsequent revelations about his embezzlement. To make matters worse, her fiance, John, is one of the men he stole from. Devastated, she returns his ring and flees saying she has no idea where the money went. When John should suddenly show up at a neighboring estate of her new position, she is sure he is there to turn her in. But John sees how subdued Mary has become, he is determined to find out what happened once and for all. As they find scant time together, as Mary is being 'protected' by her employer and has no time for herself, they slowly find there way back to each other and a very satisfying conclusion to the embezzlement dilemma. Courtney Milan is one of my favorite authors and she has yet again crafted a romance that is beautiful and deep with an eye for detail that I enjoy. I may have learned a bit more about drainage systems than I would have liked but it sets the tone for the period very well. The home at which Mary works is the common theme amongst these novellas are connected and it is obvious the authors communicated well with each other because there are just enough details to tie them together. 4 1/2 stars

A Dance in Moonlight by Sherry Thomas

My review for this will come at a later date as I have not yet read Ravishing the Heiress and I know this novella features a secondary character from that book and I prefer to read books in order :)

For the two stories I did read, I would highly recommend this book! (And I have no doubt the third will be just as good.) Each author has managed to craft a complete, well written, highly enjoyable story with equal bits of romance, emotion, steam and with an attention to detail for the time period they are writing in. I hope to see these authors collaborate together again in the future!

[ᑭᑌᑎƳᗩ [Punya Reviews...] · Rating 3 out of 5]

My review contains spoilers and they're are mostly my thoughts as I went with the book...

Note: My review and rating is overall (3.5 stars) based on Carolyn Jewel’s “One Starlit Night” (3.5), Courtney Milan’s “What Happened at Midnight” (3.5) and “A Dance in Moonlight” by Sherry Thomas (3.5).

If you’ve read the little note on Courtney Milan’s website, you’d know that all three stories in this novella take place in Doyle’s Grange, Exmoor, time-frame spanning from 1813 to 1856 to 1896.

“One Starlit Night”, Carolyn Jewel

This a story about lovers reuniting. I actually loved this story in bits and places, there were emotional scenes that left me in tears. I understood why Crispin and Portia were separated, the reasons good but what I couldn’t understand how come in the last 10 yrs., Crispin took no initiative to really communicate with Portia, except for a few letters and calling her a ‘friend’.

Crispin is Portia’s brother, Magnus’s childhood friend. So he was hers, at first. Crispin’s estate borders on Doyle’s Grange, where now Portia resides with Magnus and his new wife, Eleanor. As I said, they shared a past. Crispin always knew he’d have Portia as a lover, since he never saw her as a sister, even in their childhood. It was one of those meant-to-be kind of relationships which I totally understood. But Portia’s background isn’t of the noble standing.

There were, of course, consequences of fooling around... a child, threats by Crispin’s snotty, autocratic father to Portia with something about Magnus’ future, she getting scared and aborting the child. Portia never told Crispin, he misunderstood, though he knew his father would never make Portia his DIL. Things fell apart, along with their relationship, even though they both were in love.

Life went on, at least for Crispin. He later got married at some point, though Portia never did. She never even had another lover. It didn’t feel like her life really ‘moved on’ in any sense. There were no communications except for in letters. His wife died too, about 2 yrs ago. Now, suddenly, he’s invited to Doyle’s Grange for Portia’s upcoming marriage. Here, Crispin finds that each glimpse of Portia and his old feelings rear its head. He wants to act on it too. He’s still in ‘lust’ with her it seems. Same can be said about Portia. She knew of his marriage etc., but seeing him again, after so many years… seems like nothing has changed between them.

And they end up having sex too in a few pages... just like that, which I didn’t like because there were still too many questions left unanswered at that point. Then, even though they had sex, it felt like Crispin has no intentions of working on the ‘feelings’ he’s/they’re having. I mean he’s a viscount for crying out loud and he could marry Portia if he wanted to, now that his father’s dead and he is a widower. He did exactly that in the end but not in a straight-forward way. I got frustrated at some point with all the talk-talk and not seeing enough actions. It felt like they were forever making excuses for their adolescent indiscretion, and not making enough efforts to do anything about their feelings. IMO, the story would’ve been wrapped up in around 3/4 chapters if there were less pages on Portia’s vain, shallow and self-centered SIL, Eleanor and if Portia and Crispin really talked to each-other about those years.

Then as CJ’s love of discussing hero’s previous sexual encounters begin to make appearances, I felt cranky. I mean, I understand before he got married. There was still the hurt, and maybe his father was still alive so Crispin couldn’t do anything. But WTF happened in the last 2 yrs since his wife’s death? If he’d always loved her (as he proclaims later on), why didn’t he take any step to find out if there’s anything left for them, instead of shagging those OWs? I didn’t like this. Big question but not good enough answer. I also felt sad for Crispin’s first wife. Seemed like she was a nice woman but never got what she deserved. Even Crispin knew it wasn’t well done, to marry someone just out of spite. Not that he was unhappy overall, but just not into her entirely.

It’s only when Portia and Crispin begin to talk is when I got into the story. Their past made me very sad. I felt for them, honestly, but the story overall left me unsatisfied. 3.5 stars.
************

“What Happened at Midnight”, Courtney Milan

Courtney Milan can write, I give you that but her stories don’t always work for me. I have NO idea why. In this story, I was plain bored for the most part. And I didn’t like the hero, John from the get go. Even though he turned around and became nice to the heroine, Mary, he didn’t inspire anything in me. Also, there were gaps in the story that were glaring, probably the novella syndrome. lol

Mary’s father was accused of embezzlement by his business partners and commits suicide. What happened here, as the story starts, is still confusing to me. Seems like Mary found him and did something cover things up, so that no one knows. They aren’t from a noble family, and even though Mary had the best tutoring of the comportment of a society lady from an expensive European school, soon it was proven that she can never be one. She was trying to steal away when one of her father’s partners catches her. They were ransacking the house to get her father’s account book and the money that were stolen. He was about to abuse her when John, the youngest partner happens by. By now Mary knows her engagement with John is a thing of the past and she’s correct. Even though he saves her from that man, later he makes sure to threat her. If she had lied about not knowing about her father’s actions, he’ll make her life hell.

Then I found out, he’s already been in love with her and their courtship was a dreamy thing. But where is the trust when she’s in this grave danger and he just bids her ‘good riddance’, literally? Wasn’t he supposed to give her the benefit of doubt and at least, help her? Well, whatever it is, he doesn’t do anything at all. Mary was also in love with John but she makes sure he doesn’t know it. I mean why would she after his threats? After this confrontation, she finally flees..........

18 months pass by and we don’t know how she *exactly* ends up in Doyle’s Grange as Lady Patsworth’s companion. The answer was never given. John is a farmer, a well-to-do one though. And he has innovative ideas about how to improve one’s farming. This led him to Exmoor, a farm of a man called Beauregard, to work on his drainage system. But John was also secretly searching for Mary. Seems like she send the account book later on, with pages missing in it. John is pretty sure she’s a fraud and a liar like her father and he won’t rest until he finds the money that’s supposed to be his nephew’s inheritance. Don’t ask me how he could invest his nephew’s inheritance like this because I have NO idea.

Anyway, he does find Mary in Doyle’s Grange, which sits close by Beauregard’s farm. But Patsworth or Sir Walter, an elderly man, it seems, zealously likes to guard his ‘possessions’, i.e. his wife and his wife’s companion. Lady Patsworth is somewhat a broken woman because of her husband’s oppressive and callous attitude. He doesn’t let her allowance, no meeting with her family or even anyone of this neighborhood. The guy was fugly in and out. I felt for Lady P. She was a virtual prisoner in the house, and so was Mary. She wasn’t given wages, which Sir Walter was ‘keeping’ for her. The guy did it all in the name of ‘keeping them safe’. Later it was revealed that he was paranoid about his wife cheating on him, just has he had done all their married life. Fugly SOB!

So, John is warned off the property as soon as he steps on it. But he has discovered Mary already and makes acquaintance with Lady P nonetheless. One day, while Mary was taking a much needed stroll, John happens upon her and begins about the matter of the money. That night, Mary does something desperate; to act as the ‘payment’, since the money was spend after her teaching in that school and so on. Mary knew that no matter what, her father loved her and she’s just being loyal to him. John doesn’t take Mary’s offering but he softens towards her. She reveals some of her times just after the trouble but John still doesn’t believe that her father was dead... Again, loads of confusing information in this part and I found my interest wavering. Later, Mary keeps meeting John at night, stealing away somehow, and start working to reinforce their friendship. But John still had an ulterior motive; to soften Mary up and bring out the truth by using her trust.

Can you blame me for not giving a sh*t about this man?

After a few days, Mary is feeling stronger with John’s friendship and finally decides to act on Sir Walter’s sleazy ways. Also, she wanted to help Lady P. They form a plan which involved Viscountess Northword, or our heroine of the first story, Portia, who is by now an elderly matron in her 60th years. There was also the matter of this ornament, which you can link with the first story. Oh, but I felt wistful. We also meet Crispin later as they work on their plan, which was to invite the Patsworths to dinner. Northword being the landlord, and a Viscount, a mere Sir such as Walter can’t ignore his invitation. It works, of course. Lady P is rescued by her brother. But the thing is that, we never get to know if she ever really was able to pay her husband back.

At night, that day, it was the cue for John and Portia to get back together and have sex... So, yes I was bored. But John forgets to tell her first that he was on to misusing her trust, though he has changed his mind ever since. And Portia seems like has another plan, for which she needs to be at London, alone, without John trailing her.

Yep he lets her go.

I’m glad it didn’t drag on and so glad for the nostalgic epilogue, that takes place 40 yrs later. I totally loved it. It gives us a glimpse of John and Mary’s life together so far. I always get teary eyed reading such stuff. Stories where time spans for a long time just makes me feel this way. It’s an odd feeling to see the young and vibrant couple I just read, getting old and frail, reminiscing about the past, returning to the place where a lot in their lives changed. Also the fact that the H and h of the first story have passed away by now. :( 3.5 stars.
************

“A Dance in Moonlight”, Sherry Thomas

The ending story of the novella which I also ended up enjoying much more than the other two. And it’s significant to me because I was more than ready to hate this story because of Isabelle. If you read my review of Ravishing the Heiress, you’ll have an idea just how much I hated that book, the story, Fitz the spineless hero and Isabelle, his long lost love came back to settle down with him. Millie, Fitz’s wife’s feelings can go down the drain! But... but if I start about that book, I’ll end up ranting again and there’d be no review for this novella, so let’s just hop on to that.

So the story picks up from where Ravishing the Heiress ends, also the previous novella by CM, because at the same time, John and Mary was passing by Doyle’s Grange. Doyle’s Grange was rented for the purpose of Fitz and Isabelle settling down together (cheating, yep... tsk tsk tsk!). Isabelle has been a widow for around 2 yrs, with two young children. Everything was set until the spineless moron decided that he wants to stay with his wife.

Isabelle just returned to Doyle’s Grange broken-hearted when Fitz turned her away because he’d fallen in love with Millie *snorts (after cheating on her for 8 yrs... la-di-da, my arse)*. She was about to move out when Ralston, who has noticed her for a while, decides to make an appearance. Now, Ralston might be a mere mister now, but he’s the heir of Duke of Perrin (and I think the Duke was mentioned in the trilogy once or twice). We were never introduced to Ralston though. He has never met Fitz in person, though heard of him plenty of times. Ralston is a cartographer; a sexy, handsome, a sweetpea cartographer if I might add. If you’ve read the blurb, you already know that he has an uncanny resemblance to Fitz, which is what drew him and Isabelle together. But Ralston, for me, was so much better a hero than Fitz. He was a genuinely good guy and kind to Isabelle, even knowing about the resemblance.

So, when he steps on the pathway, Isabelle mixes him up with Fitz (duh!), runs out and starts kissing hims senseless *eyeroll*. Ralston is both amused and aroused by this beautiful woman’s activities. He has surmised that she’s a young widow from her widow garb and though Ralston is interested in her, it’s not his habit to prey on young widows and wives. After Isabelle realizes that the man she’s been kissing so passionately isn’t Fitz (reddish hair, rather than coal black and green eyes instead of blue), she’s is shocked speechless... and then embarrassed.

After that, things start rushing. They struck up a friendship (and more) together faster than a rocket but as I said, I liked their interactions. There was an understanding between them that I thought was appealing. There were emotions and a few teary-eyed scenes when Ralston talks about his deceased wife, whom he had loved and lost at a very young age... All was well, until the part where they started sharing ‘naughty bits’ on their deceased spouses. One or two mentions would’ve been ok but it went on and on as Isabelle was very interested in the deceased Mrs. Fitzwilliam. But I hold no grudge, since none of them held any for each-other’s deceased spouses.

Isabelle, in this story, came off as a slightly different woman. I envisioned her a selfish, self-centered b*tch who just wanted to grab onto something to live a life of luxury after her husband died. I’m still mad that Fitz never really groveled to Millie, Millie is still a saint (ugh!) and that, Isabelle still had no real remorse over the fact that she was wrecking a home. But, she mulled over her actions later and understood that it would’ve been all wrong, especially now that she knows Ralston. As I read on her life story, some things became clear. She has had a good marriage but not the one she wanted. Then even Fitz, whom she thought a comfort after the sudden death of her husband (a fever that made her gravely ill as well), left her, leaving her alone. I think I felt where her vulnerability stemmed from. And now she’s not sure about the uncanny resemblance Ralston, the man she’s already falling for, has with Fitz and how to cope with it.

Then Ralston had to come face to face with Fitz. I was thinking there might be some secret plot of unwanted twins somewhere in the story but nah, nothing like that happened. I understood why he became so confused about his place in Isabelle’s life after meeting Fitz (he knew the whole sordid story). Is he just a replacement or someone much much more important? Everyone seemed to raise this question. I felt for the man, really. I also wished that Ralston had a full-length novel (with a better storyline) rather than that spineless creep, because he deserved one. Really loved this guy. 3.5 stars.

PS: Millie and Fitz were present here and I hated that... don’t get me started on them again *takes a deep breath*. I wish the story was totally focused instead on Ralston and Isabelle.

PPS: The Rowan tree that Portia planted was still standing strong in Doyle’s Grange, even though by the time of the last story, she had left this earth, along with Crispin. I keep thinking about it, just makes me sad.

Ignore me please. *sniffs*

[rameau · Rating 2 out of 5]

One Starlit Night by Carolyn Jewel
2 stars

Too big a story for a novella. I'm always hoping writers include the explanations within the text instead of adding flashbacks of footnotes or infodumbs. Jewel did that but, still, I'm not satisfied. Part of me wondered whether or not the story would have benefitted from a short glimpse to the seventeen year old Portia and Northword, instead of just reminding the reader that they were in love years and years before. I definitely think that although Northword had plenty of time to change his mind, the reader didn't. Despite the rushed sex scenes in beginning, I still viewed them as friends rather than lovers.

The sister-in-law was an infuriating meddler and she wasn't properly reprimanded nor thanked for her behaviour. I also have a vague recollection of logic gaps in the beginning.

What Happened at Midnight by Courtney Milan
3 stars

"If we waited until we were married, you'd own the right to use my body. Now I can say no."
...
"And I can say yes," she whispered."

That's the best description for all three novellas I could find within the stories. None of the heroine's adhere to the strict moral rules of the time or live up to the expectations the society has for young unmarried women, but each and everyone of them wants the choice and takes it.

As always with Milan's novellas, I thought the story should have been a full length novel instead. As interesting as their "adventure" was, I thought the forgiveness and re-embrasement of their love was rushed. At least Mary and John had to wait a while longer before the sex.

Also, I felt like this one could have used one more round of edits. There was a whiff of repetition, which remains repetition no matter how intentional it might have been. Those words could have been used to explain how Mary placed her dead father's body in her trunk and how was she able to move it to the window and out of it—before lowering it with the rope—and to wherever she took it after her escape.

A Dance in Moonlight by Sherry Thomas
2 stars (rounded up)

At first I thought Thomas managed to write the most appropriate story for a novella. It starts and focuses on one night when a chance encounter leads to flirting, talking, instant friendship, and love. But then Ralston and Isabella part and start writing letters. I didn't give up on the story utterly until the confrontation with Ralston's lookalike and Isabelle's childhood love. The confrontations were rushed and so were their resolutions. Once again the story proved to be too large for its length.

I liked Thomas' writing style well enough, but the disaster of the ending and the unfortunate sex scene descriptions have convinced me to give her books a wide berth. Unless someone I trust recommends me her books I won't be changing my mind.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

review posted on Demon Lover's Books & More

Review excludes the last story
I'm not reading the Sherry Thomas story...yet. But only because it looks to be part of a series, and from the reviews I've seen, I won't know what's going on. Once I've read the book before this, I'll come back to the ST story.

One Starlit Night by Carolyn Jewel-3 flames

The actual romance was beautiful and sweet, but I felt it ended a bit too abruptly. For a lovers reunited theme, I wanted more of them. I wanted more time dealing with their trauma, I wanted more of them together, and I wanted so much less page time for Eleanor.

Eleanor is Portia’s sister-in-law. Most of the changes she makes around the Grange are cosmetic, repainting a room, bringing in artwork from one room to a different room, digging up all the crocuses. Things of that nature. But what bothered me was how she got away with doing everything because no one wanted her feelings to be hurt.

I read another review where it put a different perspective on Eleanor (that she just wants bigger and better things for Portia-and she does, but it’s also for her husband Magnus), and I still just can’t get into her. I seem to be the only person who even mentions this, but I couldn’t stand her. I found her to be manipulative and over-bearing..

She wants Portia to have a Season in London. Portia has no desire to go to London, at all. She has a nice gentleman who will marry her, red hair, tarnished past and all. Yet Eleanor bats her baby blues and summons some tears and no one will tell her no. It’s very childish and manipulative.

As you can see, I haven’t spent much time on Portia and Crispin-that’s because way too many pages were dedicated to Eleanor.

I think it had the potential to be a 4 star story, even with Eleanor, but it was said every other paragraph that Eleanor gave that puppy look, and her eyes filled with tears. It drove me so crazy that I couldn’t enjoy the beautiful story.

What Happened at Midnight by Courtney Milan-4.5 flames

I really love how the 2 stories are tied together. From the slightest detail of a missing earring in Carolyn Jewel’s story, to the rowan tree still there, I love the concept of all 3 stories intertwining.

This story begins at the precise moment that Mary’s father’s business partners are ransacking her house looking for the money he embezzled. Mary is in the process of running away when one of the partners decides to beat the information out of her. Her fiancé John steps in, but he doesn’t stop her from leaving him. You see, he was one of her father’s business partners too.

Mary’s whole life changed from that moment on. She faces hardships that she should never have had to face. And she winds up in an unusual position. She is a lady’s companion, but the husband is over-protective of the two women.

When John ends up near the Grange 18 months later, everything is thrown into upheaval. And for the better.

I love Courtney Milan’s writing. The amount of emotion she is always able to evoke amazes me. The only thing I really didn’t like, is that once John admitted something to Mary, she was upset, but she took it in stride. Sometimes that works, sometimes it doesn’t. I wanted more from her. Her reaction was just too easy for my taste.

This was a wonderful story, though and I love who Mary became. I also love that John appreciated who she became. Milan writes such wonderful heroes.

Sherry Thomas-
I didn’t read this one, but I will. I just want to read the book before it first.

[Aneca · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up this anthology because I have been curious about Courtney Milan. I read a few reviews that made it sound interesting and I thought I would give it a go. I was quite surprised to see that the stories were very intense. I guess I'm not used to see this kind of emotions in short stories. Unfortunately I wasn't entirely convinced by them. It might be that I wasn't in the best mood for this as I have been more into light and sunny reads lately...

Carolyn Jewel's story about a couple who once had a relationship was well written but I felt the characters were cold and unfeeling; I couldn't feel any empathy with them and was never engaged in the story. From the very beginning all I could think about was that if they just talked to each other they would realise they were still in love. I never really felt the angst and sorrow that they were supposedly feeling and that prevented from enjoying it. Grade: 2/5

In Milan's story I did love that she gives us different characters with different, real life worries but I had some trouble buying the relationship between the hero and the heroine. I had some trouble believing that the heroine would skip off at night so easily and especially that she would just appear naked in front of the hero trying to make amends. I did like the premise very much, I especially liked the secondary story about marriage and how one's husband could control the wife so completely and when that stopped happening but I guess I need a longer story to have the action develop a bit slower in the bedroom department. Grade 3/5

In the Sherry Thomas story I didn't like that the hero resembled the heroine's former love so much. I kept waiting for it to be revealed that he was a long lost twin or cousin or something... I wanted to be interested in the story but that resemblance kept putting me off. I am now curious about the story of said former love which I think is told in Ravishing the Heiress. Grade 2/5

The three stories are connected by the fact that they all take place in the same house - Doyle's Grange - in different periods. I thought that was a nice touch.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Portia and Northwood- 3 stars
John and Mary- 4 stars
Isabelle and Fitzwilliam- 2 stars

Overall 3 stars for the anthology. Very cute how each story tied together.

Full review on Fiction Vixen Book Reviews

One Starlit Night by Carolyn Jewel

Viscount Northwood and Portia Temple were teenage lovers. Too swept away by passion and the blush of new love they never thought there would be consequences to face. Those consequences came in the form of a baby. But when Northwood told his father he was going to marry Portia, his father threatened to strip the livelihood from Portia’s brother. He didn’t make the threat to Northwood, only to Portia, so Northwood was never certain why Portia chose the path she did. Portia visited a local woman, ended her pregnancy and her relationship with Northwood all at the same time. Not understanding why, Northwood left Doyle’s Grange and married a perfectly lovely woman. Ten years later Northwood has returned to Doyle’s Grange as a widow and it is like no time has passed for him and Portia.

Portia’s brother has recently married a dreadful woman one who is the pure definition of passive-agressive. But not dreadful in a mean way, she is just disgustingly sweet and empty-headed. Portia cannot abide living with her anymore and has agreed to marry a man she does not love. She is ok with that though because she knows she will never have what she had with Northwood again. But now Northwood is back making her feel things she doesn’t want to and causing her to rethink her marriage.

I recently read Carolyn Jewel’s newest release Not Proper Enough and loved it. Unfortunately, this one didn’t work as well for me. The topic of abortion is a hard one to read and it scarred Portia. She wasn’t a happy character. It seemed she would forever pay for that decision. Northwood was just ok. I can understand why he left Portia but not necessarily understand why he married someone else so quickly. Once they met up again it was obvious they never should have left each other. I am not a fan of the big misunderstanding even if this was a doozy. Final grade- C

Favorite Quote:

“This is what we’re like.” The words rasped from his throat while she was still coming down from her climax, her head bowed to his shoulder. “You and I. It’s not like this with anyone else. Just us.”

What Happened at Midnight by Courtney Milan

Mary Chartley was forced to take a position as a lady’s companion after her father stole from his business partners then killed himself. One of his business partners happened to be her betrothed and the man she dreamed of having a family and a home with. She swore to everyone she didn’t know where the money was and to avoid telling them about her father’s suicide she disappeared from the area.

18 months later John hears news of a Mary Chartley and knows it has to her. He heads off to Doyle’s Grange where he finds Mary living under the hand of a tyrant. She is a companion to a woman whose husband had them both under his thumb. He does not allow them to see people, go anywhere or do anything. John and Mary start to meet in secret learning each other and sharing information.

In an extremely clever twist Northwood and Portia from the previous book in this anthology are brought in. In One Starlit Night by Carolyn Jewel Portia mentions losing an earring which is found by Mary and the lady she works for. They use the earring to form a connection to Portia which allows both the women to escape the tyranny of their current situation.

This novella was pretty good. I think I liked it so much because of the fun connection to the previous book. Doyle’s Grange is a constant and even the trees that were talk about in One Starlit Night are talked about in this book. John and Mary’s relationship develops at a sweet pace. He is slow with her even considering her father stole all his money. I suspected some sort of revenge plot for the money but that never came to pass.

Favorite Quote:

“Bloody temptation.” He pushed himself to his feet, and strode back to the bedchamber. “Stupid bloody cock,” he muttered, giving the offending organ a thump. It made no response. “No morals to speak of.” Still rock-hard. Still desperate. Reprimands, clearly, did no good.

A Dance in Moonlight by Sherry Thomas

Come late at night, she tells him, so I can make love to you pretending that you are the one I love.

Not exactly the quote you would expect to read when starting out a romance novel. I wondered where Ms. Thomas was going to go with this and how she would make me actually like the heroine that had this quote.

Isabelle has come to Doyle’s Grange to try to rekindle a lost love with Fitzhugh. As it turns out there is too much time and too many obstacles between Isabelle and Fitzhugh. Fitzhugh has married and has fallen in love with his bride leaving Isabelle with nothing. In a case of mistaken identity Isabelle kisses Fitzwilliam thinking he is Fitzhugh. The men look almost exactly alike except for different eye colors and slightlt different hair colors. When she finds out she is kissing the wrong man Isabelle is heartbroken and gives Fitzwilliam the above quote.

Fitzwilliam recognizes grief when he sees it and decides to come back to Isabelle. Instead of making love the two talk long into the night. They talk about both of their lost loves and old times. Fitzwilliam had been married for three months when his wife died so he is no stranger to grief. Isabelle has two children with her husband who as also recently died. Somehow the two form a connection based upon not having the one they love.

This book seemed like a case of “love the one your with” which wasn’t very satisfying for me. I didn’t feel like either of them wanted to be with the other but were holding out for someone else. They are apart for a time where they communicate through letters giving me the first sense they were actually learning each others wants and desires instead of just pining for what they couldn’t have. This wasn’t very satisfying for me either. Why did it take them not being together to feel like they were together, if that makes sense?

Towards the end of the book Fitzwilliam meets Fitzhugh and has a big freak out about how much he looks like the man. All along Isabelle’s family and even Isabelle had been telling him how similar he was so why the freak out? Did he think everyone was lying to him? He runs back to Isabelle to apologize but I didn’t see the need for him to act surprised to begin with. Final Grade- D



Overall Courtney Milan was the star of this anthology for me. Her novella had the best characters and a very engaging plot line. Each novella has a theme of lost loves and new beginnings. These books were also all tied together by Doyle’s Grange and it was very well done. I loved the progression of the tree planted in the first novella to it being full-grown in the last novella. You don’t normally see such a close tie in anthologies like that.

[Mandi · Rating 4 out of 5]

One Starlit Night by Carolyn Jewel

Viscount Northword or Crispin is back home after ten years. Much has changed, especially his relationship with his childhood friend and lover, Portia Temple. Years and years ago, they fell in love, but they had some dark days together, as often young people do, and had a bad break. Crispin went on to leave and marry someone else, while Portia has been stuck in her small town, living with her brother and his wife Eleanor. Eleanor wants great things for Portia – London, fancy gowns, and a husband that will further her husband’s career. Portia just wants out of her brother’s house, and has decided to marry a local man, even though it is not a love match. But now Crispin is back, and seeing him makes them both realize, the past can’t be forgotten.

This is a story of two people who loved each other so much, but had so much hurt between them for the past ten years that it is too scary and too hard to think of ever having that love again. They are now ten years older, and wiser and while they set out just to be acquaintances, the attraction between them can’t be ignored. Carolyn Jewel writes the best sexual tension and romance scenes. So sensual and always wicked. Portia is so unhappy in her life, that it takes a great deal of effort on Crispin’s part to show her how to be happy again. They have so much history together, some memories so good, some memories so devastating. But they slowly work through them, and Crispin finally convinces Portia to take another chance. Really well done romance. Rating: B+>/b>

What Happened at Midnight by Courtney Milan

Mary Chartley’s father embezzled money from his partnership and then took his life. And now his partners want to be paid. While some of the partners are threatening Mary harm, the youngest partner John Mason comes on the scene and demands at least a little respect for Mary. They met because of this partnership, and have been courting. But John really needs his investment back, needing the money to support his young nephew who lost his father. John is certain Mary must know what her father did with the money, but she refuses to speak. With nothing left to do, they part ways.

Eighteen months later, John by chance hears from someone that Mary is now a lady’s companion in Doyle’s Grange. He heads up there to confront her again about the missing money, but he finds a different Mary. This Mary is working for a man who is imprisoning his wife and Mary. She is not being paid, and is living in forced isolation. As he starts to learn the truth about the embezzlement, John and Mary start a new friendship, and a plan to escape the man she works for.

Courtney Milan writes a novella with such a different feel. John is an expert at drainage fields, and finds himself outside, tackling problems and finding solutions. Mary is in a prison of sorts, while she is not being physically abused, she is not getting a salary, and she can’t leave the house. The oppressiveness of their situation is really intense. And while John is protective of her, he is also not the alpha, growly type so it takes a little time for him to analyze everything.. He soon learns the truth about the missing money and that Mary is desperate for a friend. I like how their relationship is mended and trust slowly builds. This novella takes place years after Carolyn Jewel’s but set in the same world. We see the characters briefly from her novella here and the crossover.works nicely.

This one isn’t as sensual as Carolyn Jewel’s installment, but I found it romantic nonetheless. Rating: B

A Dance in Moonlight by Sherry Thomas

Taking place right where Ravishing the Heiress ends, Isabelle is heart broken over losing not only her husband in India, but then a second chance at love with Lord Fitzhugh. By chance she meets Fitzwilliam, who not only shares the name of ‘Fitz’ but looks exactly like him. So much so, Isabelle kisses him thinking it is the Fitz that just broke her heart. The new Fitz also lost his wife, so as the two of them start to talk, Isabelle realizes she has a lot in common with the new Fitz, even if he does remind her so much of the man she lost.

I didn’t like this contribution. I didn’t like that the new Fitz resembles the old Fitz so much. It just felt weird. This is a super short story, and not enough time is spent to give us a believable love story. This feels almost like an extended epilogue to Ravishing the Heiress with a quick love story thrown in, rather than Isabelle and Fitz’s story. Didn’t work very well for me. Rating: C-

[Limau Nipis · Rating 3 out of 5]

I haven't read novellas for ages, so this one was a quick decision for me to pick up and go.

It was when I started my second story that I noticed the place are the same - Doyle's Grange

One Starlit Night by Carolyn Jewel
Rating: 2/5

I find the love story between Viscount Northword and Portia Temple just fall flat. I know that this should be two peoples falling in love again with each other, but this one has a plot that is not well developed, thus a 2-star from me. Portia's character was quite interesting, but Northword seems stiff and wooden - I could not read his character really well.

What Happened at Midnight by Courtney Milan
Rating: 3.5/5

Oh my, this is why I Love Courtney Milan.

I love that the heroin, Mary Chartley, had her dark side, sad story, being left penniless and began a sorrowful life in another place.
I love that the hero, John, is a simple gentleman.

Both had to gain back trust from each other. I can feel John's pain after Mary's betrayal, and I can read Mary's trust on John.

For readers, this will show you the style of Courtney Milan's writing - in depth characters and sorrowful pages.

A Dance in Moonlight by Sherry Thomas
Rating: 3.5/5

Now, I miss Sherry Thomas' writings. After reading Ravishing the Heiress, I wondered what happened to Isabelle Englewood, after being left by her first love (Earl Fitzhugh, the hero of Ravishing the Heiress). I love that Isabelle had a happy ending, and a widower as herself, to boot.

She found happiness with Ralston Fitzwilliam, and this ties the wonderful ending of the Fitzhugh trilogy series.

[Jess the Romanceaholic · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a Quickie Review. For the full review, please visit The Romanceaholic.

Overall, this was a lovely anthology of interconnected historical romance from some of the most talented authors in the genre today. While there were facets of each story that didn’t quite appeal to me, the writing, and more importantly, the romance was exceptional across the entire anthology.

Recommended for fans of estranged lovers, letting go of past mistakes, and of allowing yourself to find happiness.

A very solid 4/5 Stars.

[Keri · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun sassy read by Courtney Milan. There is something about her writing that really appeals to me.

[Kitcatscratch · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am totally going with a 4 on this one. There are 3 short stories and any that are a little "weak" are only weak when compared to the others in this compilation. But the ones that are strong are hitting it out of the ballpark.

The first, is by Carolyn Jewel and I give it a total 5 stars. Am I biased? Maybe. I personally love Jewel's way of writing. I think you either dig stories where a lot of the time is spent in the characters' heads or you don't. Personally I love it. My favorite Jewel book is Scandal. I LOVE that book because as I read about how they feel, their fears, their thought processes, I could really understand their actions. So if you read Scandal and didn't care for it then you will not care for this one. This story, or novella really, jumps right into the middle of the story (so to speak). The H and h meet for the first time in 10 years though they have corresponded regularly. The H is best friends with the h's brother and all 3 grew up together. What you start to understand is not just class differences (she is barely genteel and he's an aristo) but changes that 10 years can wrought. Hmm. Probably should just say right now spoilers...
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You learn that they were each other's first loves, first everything. That they wanted to marry but something happened that split them apart. Naturally you think it's the H who did the "sayonara" but it was in fact the h. As the story progresses, I found I sympathized with both characters. I understood why each person did what they did and the hurt they inflicted on each other. But what I REALLY understood was how they try to reconnect after 10 years. I felt what the h felt when she sees him and how he's dressed rich and immaculate. How he now wore jeweled stick pins in his cravat. How he was so USED to money and being in charge. How he was no longer that boy but a man who had been married (and now widowed). Listening to descriptions of his beautiful London home, the social life that he led. And mostly, how that wasn't the h. She was so far removed from it all and yes, that is a huge chasm. The story explores whether or not what they felt for each other still remains true. It also explores whether they loved each other now as they are after 10 years of change and not just the remembrance of their love. In short, I absolutely loved the story. Reading about their doubts, fears, longings, and self reflection. 5 stars!

The 2nd was Courtney Milan. I really do enjoy her books but find sometimes the lens she writes through is wonderful for this day and age (very self empowering) but sometimes it becomes too modern. However, her writings are never less than enjoyable and what was particularly interesting was that she cleverly picked up on certain threads in Jewel's story (the action takes place in the same home but years later). In fact, you even get a snippet of seeing the h from the previous story. Which makes me wonder in general about books with compilations of short stories. Does the publisher go out and say "Hey would you like to throw in a short story for a book with other authors?" Or do they always say "Hey, here's the theme we're looking for? Care to contribute?" Because at first, reading Milan I thought "Did they throw out a challenge like: Write a story but include these things in it "Doyle's Grange, rowan tree, etc." Then they simply go with it? While I think that's interesting, I think this one was more of a relay race. One where Jewel wrote a story, Milan took it and ran with it. So it was also a fascinating read in that I wondered about the process of putting together this book. So in the end Milan gets a 4 star on this one.

The last was Sherry Thomas. It was my first Thomas though I do want to read her Lady Sherlock series which my friend swears is great. I just want to say that I do not think short stories are Ms. Thomas's thing. It seems like she needs more words and space to develop a story. So it came across like an abridged version of a bigger story. In fact, it seems there are a few others books that tie into this short story which surprised me. It didn't seem to warrant the effort. So basically, 3 stars on this. HOWEVER, I did then read The Luckiest Lady in London. Frankly, I find HR books to have some of the crappiest titles these days but whatev. Despite the title, that was a pretty good book. Very much in line with Carolyn Jewel's Scandal to be honest with a lot of character introspection and doubt. So if you liked Jewel's Scandal then I'd say go for the Luckiest Lady in London by Thomas. It shows that her talent really needs the breadth of a full length story.

So based on basic arithmetic, this anthology gets an average of 4. At the last, it's all worth a read.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

Welcome to Doyle’s Grange, a charming house near the hills of Exmoor, where the garden is beautiful in every season, and the residents are respectable year-round.
Except when the clock strikes midnight…
One Starlit Night by Carolyn Jewel
Ten years away from Doyle’s Grange isn’t quite long enough for Viscount Northword to forget Portia Temple, or their passionate adolescent affair. Portia, however, is about to marry another man. Northword tells himself it is wrong to interfere in her life at this late hour, but interfere he cannot help, with his words, his body, and the truths of his heart.
What Happened at Midnight by Courtney Milan
Fleeing the consequences of her father’s embezzlement, Mary Chartley takes a position as a lady’s companion, only to find herself a virtual prisoner at Doyle’s Grange, her employer’s house. And then the nightmare truly begins: the man she loves, who also happens to be the man from whom her father stole, shows up at her door seeking recompense. And not merely in pound sterling…
A Dance in Moonlight by Sherry Thomas
After losing her childhood sweetheart to another woman, Isabelle Englewood is heartsick. But then something remarkable happens: Upon arriving at Doyle’s Grange, her new home, she meets Ralston Fitzwilliam, who looks almost exactly like the man she cannot have. Come late at night, she tells him, so I can make love to you pretending that you are the one I love.
Little does she realize what she is about to unleash
I enjoyed these short stories. I also like how they were all loosely connected. It was a nice set of stories that did not take long to read.

[Christina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Popsugar 2018 Reading Challenge: A book with a time of day in the title

Cute if overall predictable. The stories got stronger over the three, with the first one definitely the weakest. I enjoyed the Heiress Effect prototype of the second book and that the third one had a pair of leads who were relatively mature and nobody had to be "awakened." It kept me occupied on a plane ride, although my seat mates may have wondered about all the times I rolled my eyes.

I still question romance novels that feature all the sex scenes from the male perspective. Aren't these books supposed to be written for women, like, women who are into dudes? So why are all the sex scenes from the dude's perspective?

I mean, I think I know the answer, but it's just depressing. Anyway, a quick read, will keep you occupied on a plane.

[wrkatreading · Rating 2 out of 5]

This review if only for one story in this anthology.

This rating is for A Dance In The Moonlight. I read Ravishing the Heiress and this tells of the character Isabelle from that book. She wasn’t evil she was just an cast aside woman who thought she could get her man back. She didn’t but got an HEA with a look alike. I didn’t buy the HEA.

[guiltless pleasures · Rating 4 out of 5]

I reviewed all the novellas in this anthology separately, but I wanted to add a note here that this was a really good anthology. The novellas were 3.5+ stars, and they were all tied to the same geographic place, which was a lovely conceit.

While I had issues with some of the plotting in Milan and Thomas’s stories, the writing in all three was brilliant.

[Maida · Rating 4 out of 5]

Average 4 stars. Courtney Milan's What Happened at Midnight is the best, followed by Sherry Thomas's A Dance in Moonlight, Carolyn Jewel's One Starlit Night is the weakest.

[SidneyKay · Rating 4 out of 5]

The art of villain metamorphosis

I was so excited when I saw that these three authors were doing an anthology together. Love love love most of their works. I am of course speaking of Carolyn Jewel, Courtney Milan, and Sherry Thomas. Since this is an anthology, there is always a chance that the stories will not be as good as a full length novel. I always find it interesting to see how authors I really consider to be powerhouses handle short stories. And, in this case I wasn't disappointed. Now, were there some moments of my not liking a particular part of the story. Of course there were! None of the stories were without a little bump in the road. However, for me this was an enjoyable read and I do recommend it, especially if you are looking for something quick to take the summer blues away.

The stories in Midnight Scandals are loosely connected by being in a place called Doyle's Grange, but at different time periods. It was a nice connection.

The first story is One Starlit Night, by Carolyn Jewel, and it takes place in 1815. Carolyn Jewel can write some of the hottest love scenes around and this little tome has some steam just rolling off of those pages. SSSSsss. This story is one of lost love/found love. A couple (Crispin and Portia), who were in love when they were young, find each other again. There is a lot of pain for them to overcome and they have a whole lot of trouble talking to each other. Usually when a couple don't talk to each other I get irritated, but in this case the wall they had to get through to communicate didn't irritate me. In fact, I could feel the pain they were having... it was depressing. Great job on the depressing! And, give a hardy welcome to a woman who could be nominated for the Mommie Dearest award, except she's not the mom, she's the sister-in-law. She steps on crocuses, for Pete's sake!!! I bet she pulls dogs' ears, too.
Time/Place: 1815 England
B+

The second tale is What Happened at Midnight, by Courtney Milan. Now we have a really creepy villain. In fact, I thought this guy almost stole the whole show - what an interesting second story-line! I hope Ms. Milan has plans to do a follow-up on Sir Walter Patsworth and his wife Lady Patsworth. There was some wonderful humdinger angst surrounding this couple and it deserves a book of its own. Very interesting stuff. But, hey, the story isn't about them, it's about Mary and John. By the way, these two are not aristocrats. They are, however, also lost/found lovers. This couple was able to talk - that is, when Mary could escape from her employer they could talk. Her employer is Sir Walter, the truly creepy villain. The center love story involves the slow growth of trust once it's lost. Not as hot as Jewel's work, but the disturbing Sir Walter makes up for that. I can't tell you too much about Walter and his wife, but I loved the way the newspaper/wife scenes were written. Truly shiver-worthy.
Time/Place: 1853 England
B

The third installment is Sherry Thomas' with Dance at Midnight. Remember the vile woman from Ravishing the Heiress? The one who wanted the married man, didn't seem to care about what her children thought about her living with a married man, showed up at train stations when not asked to? Remember loathsome Isabelle? Well, she has her own story. I really disliked her intensely in Ravishing the Heiress, but in this book she is completely different. There isn't anything that is recognizable between this woman and the knife-in-the-back woman from the novel. I liked this Isabelle; the author made her a totally sympathetic character. And, if I hadn't seen her in action in RtH, I would have been able to buy into her transformation in this story. The other thing I had a slight problem with was Fitz, our hero, being identical in looks to Fitzhugh, the husband from Ravishing the Heiress. Some of my ick factor kicked in, but my ick factor came on big time when the two lovers Fitz (Fitzwilliam, not Fitzhugh) and Isabelle started talking about the fun sex lives they had with their dearly departed spouses. I did enjoy their correspondence and discussion, but not necessarily the "I did this with my dead wife on the table" excerpts. (She wasn't dead when they had sex by the way - that would really be an ick moment.) I believe these exchanges of past sex lives were supposed to be titillating, and Isabelle seemed to be aroused but I had an EEEWWWWW moment or two.
Time/Place: 1890's England
B-

Overall, Midnight Scandals is a good book with just a few bumps. You really can't go too wrong with Courtney Milan, Sherry Thomas and Carolyn Jewel.

KaysBlog

[Francesca the Fierce (Under the Covers Book Blog) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This review was posted at Under the Covers

I bought this book because a. the cover is gorgeous and b. I love Courtney Milan. Overall, I thought the premise of how this anthology was set up was very clever and interesting. See, all the short stories in this anthology revolve around one particular house. Different people and different times, but always around Doyle's Grange. I really liked that. But I can't say the same for all the stories in this anthology and they are better analyzed individually.

One Starlit Night by Carolyn Jewel - 4 stars

Amazing! Just amazing! I have found another author I want to read everything she's ever written. This story was sweet and romantic and hot. The writing was beautiful. I felt like I wanted to keep making status updates on my Goodreads progress because there were so many beautiful quotes. Viscount Northword used to live next door to Doyle's Grange and was very good friends with Portia and her brother all through childhood and adolescence. Then he fell in love with Portia and although we don't know what happened at the beginning or the whys, they do not end up married. He goes on to marry someone else and move away. Years later Portia is now to be married to another man and the Viscount returns. And all their feelings for each other come right back. Their love trascended time and I could feel it from the very first page. They didn't fight it, they didn't abide by propriety of the times. They got kinky in the stables. And they got a second chance at happiness. Loved, loved, loved!

This time they were old enough to know there was nothing new in the world and that they did not invent passion, they created it between them, and it was that which was new and rare.

What Happened at Midnight by Courtney Milan - 4 stars

Courtney Milan did not disappoint either. Being that she was the reason I wanted to read this, her story was good. Even though now it's my second favorite of this anthology. Mary is hiding out after the death of her father and the charges of embezzlement against him. John is looking for her for two reasons. He hasn't stopped loving her, after all they were to be married. But also, he's the one responsible for finding her, and hopefully the money, that was stolen from his nephew. He finds her, maybe by accident, at Doyle's Grange where she had taken a position as a lady's companion. John is a bit rough around the edges when you would expect someone with his money to be a bit more refined but that worked really well for me. He knows he wants Mary but he still respects her, even though he really doesn't deny his attraction even when he thought she was a part of the theft. A bit less hot than the previous read but still a lot of sexual tension and sparks between these two.

A Dance in Moonlight by Sherry Thomas - 3 stars

I didn't get it. I couldn't connect with the character or the story all that much. I didn't have a problem with the writing for the story itself was nothing that got me crazy. Isabelle's husband died and she comes to Doyle's Grange in the hopes that she could finally be with the man she loved before, Fitzhugh. But Fitzhugh is married and doesn't want an affair. Except that one day a man knocks on her door and looks SO MUCH like Fitzhugh she thought he had come back and changed his mind. Except it wasn't him. Fitzwilliam was also staying nearby and had seen the beautiful woman before and was enthralled. He even continues to be attracted after she jumped his bones because he looked like her ex-lover. I guess I really never bought the fact that Isabelle loved Fitzwilliam instead of using him as a substitute for Fizhugh, and I couldn't understand how he could get over that. I haven't read the series that this short story goes along with, but I don't think it relates that much to the Fitzhugh's that you couldn't read this first. But I do have to say that, even though I have Sherry Thomas' series on my TBR and I'll get to those eventually, it's not going to the top of the list.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, I'm going with 4 stars for the anthology as a whole. Reviews of each novella are in reverse order.

Reviewing each novella as I go!

A Dance in Moonlight by Sherry Thomas

A solid 4 stars

So this was the reason I wanted the novella so badly. After reading Ravishing the Heiress, I just HAD to know what happened to Isabelle and was thrilled to discover I would. Buuuuuut then I read the premise. And I was half-concerned about it and half-convinced Sherry Thomas would be able to pull it off (because she's overcome similar doubts in the past for me). Said premise is that Isabelle's love interest in this novella very closely resembles Fitz, her lost love. Yeah, put like that, it makes me pretty uncomfortable.

But in practice?

VERY WELL DONE. They would've never happened if he hadn't looked like Fitz, but that very quickly becomes an obstacle rather than the cause of their attraction and affection.

The love story happens very quickly, but I believed it. And, wow, Sherry Thomas is so good at the side characters. Now I want to know Isabelle's sister's love story!

What Happened at Midnight by Courtney Milan

4 stars

But, um, forget the novella, I want to talk about the excerpt for Milan's next book! SO INTO IT.

I haven't read Milan because . . . I guess I felt like she'd be someone I admired rather than FELT, if that makes sense. I don't know. I guess I haven't seen enough talk of her in "my circles," though I certainly knew her name. But this was great. She did a great job of showing forward thinking women without making them seem unrealistic for the time.

So do I read the next novella now or hunt down more Milan to read?

One Starlit Night by Carolyn Jewel

3.5 stars.

I liked this. It's my first introduction to the author and I would read more. Most of the problems I had were probably due to the novella's length, like, I believed they were in love (which is great, since I don't always in reunion stories), but how did they fall in love 10 years ago? Would've loved to hear about that. Also would've loved more of the brother's reaction. Or maybe more of the brother in general, especially scenes between him and Portia.

And the sister in law! What an awful, realistic, well done character. Not sure I've seen a character like this before, but I certainly have in real life. That person who is just SO WELL-MEANING that how can you go against them?

[Sometime · Rating 3 out of 5]

One Starlit Night

I hated this first story. I didn't realize it was a second chance love story. I have terrible luck with those. Almost everything about this made me angry. 10 wasted years, H leaves h behind in the country to gather dust while he lives it up in London and even married eventually. He never once comes back to her but they exchange letters because they are such good "friends". There were a lot of complicated reasons for their separation. H is 17 and h is 15 when they conceive a baby. His father, the viscount, threatened the h to ruin her brother and make sure they are all ruined. She visits a woman to get an abortion and a heartbroken H leaves and doesn't return for 10 years. I couldn't get over the poor h forgotten in the country while he is living it up. He doesn't see the "love of his life" for 10 years. She was 15 you idiot!

The H takes many lovers and married a very nice woman who he wronged because he never loved her. His internal dialogue keeps repeating how proud he is of the fact that he is a much better lover than he was at 17 with all his experience. Like the h will want to THANK him. "Oh Crispin, I'm so grateful to all the OW in your life for helping you practice the sexual arts! Now you come to my bed with so much experience, I am speechless at your prowess!" Gag!

This is why I just can't tolerate most second chance romance. 1 star.

What Happened at Midnight

This one, by Courtney Milan was the reason I read this book. I like her stuff. I did like this story. It was also second chance but there was no mention of other partners during their separation. I'd give this book 3 stars.

Didn't read the last one.

[Maura · Rating 4 out of 5]

One Starlit Night – Carolyn Jewel – 3/5 – This is a good story, but its like a raw, gaping wound. The characters spend most of their time in so much pain its unbearable. The angst is so overloaded and the way the author writes the story you can feel the pain, but you don’t know all that’s causing it (as she introduces more and more details about their history). This story made me sad more than anything and for that I couldn’t give it higher stars…I like happy romance.

What Happened at Midnight – Courtney Milan – 4/5 – The angst here is much more manageable. The characters aren’t as exciting as Courtney Milan typically makes them, but they are still pretty enjoyable. I love how she paces her stories so there isn’t any superfast falling in love and nothing feels rushed or like its plodding along. This was a good, solid story.

A Dance in Moonlight – Sherry Thomas – 4/5 – A very interesting story about a couple who come together in grief, build a friendship and fall in love. Some of their time together was quite poignant. I admit however that I got very confused about ages, as most of these people seemed much older than they supposedly were and I still don’t know how old the kids were… I also think that I liked that the heroine had loved so much before – first Fitz, then her husband, and then our Hero. I was a bit confused about the relationship between Fitz and the heroine, how that might have worked with him being married and all that and how everything seemed so very platonic between them.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

The entire anthology was above average and well-worth a read.

My least favorite story was the one by Carolyn Jewel. Say 3 stars. Eleanor completely distracted me from the story; it was like trying to look at a work of art with a clown dancing in your side view. Maybe some people can ignore tye overwhelming presence of the clown, but I could not. Had the novella been a novel, maybe there would have been enough to temper Eleanor for me. The writing was lovely, the angst and romance well done but Eleanor was just TOO well done.

3.5 for the Milan story. If I felt Jewel's story was to big for the pages, Milan's story was not as big as I expect out of her. The tyranny of expectations, I suppose.

Thomas's story was my favorite-5 stars. She did two wonderful things for me in this story: 1) She took a character (Isabelle) that I didn't like in a previous book and made me care for her. 2) She took a story that could have been overwhelmed with sadness and made it light and funny. The story still wasn't light-hearted, but it could've been oppressive and it wasn't. Just lovely.

The overall rating isn't an average of my rating of each story, rather it's my impression of the collection as a whole.

[Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really, really enjoyed the first two stories in this anthology and only wish they had been longer because I think there was a little more to them than could be explored in limited pages.

The third story, Isabelle's story from Sherry Thomas' Fitzhugh trilogy, was perfectly fine. My only problem is I wasn't especially interested in Isabelle's happy ending and it brought back all of my extremely negative feelings about Ravishing the Heiress (which is tied with Poppy Hathaway's book for my least favorite thing I have read this year). I also really wish Fitzwilliam in this story hadn't been basically a physical carbon copy of Fitz and ALSO had a name that close to his. That was more ham-handed for me than the thread of Doyle's Grange that tied all of the stories together.

I will try to come back and say more about the first two stories later. I would give both of them 4 stars and the third 2 stars, probably. 3 - 3.5 overall for the anthology.

Additionally, Courtney Milan needs to stop pushing the date of The Duchess War back. I would like to preorder it and that does not yet seem to be an option.

[Lady Wesley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This anthology has three stories set in the same country house over a span of ~70 years. I especially like that the heroine sets out a sapling rowan tree in the first story, and by the third it's become a spreading shade tree.

All three stories are top-notch, as would be expected from these authors. Sherry Thomas's story is a sequel to Ravishing the Heiress, and the heroine is the jilted mistress from that story. It sounds so intriguing that I'll have to go back and read the book.

[ReadKnitHoard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm just gonna copy & paste my comments:

One Starlit Night by Carolyn Jewel: I wanted to bitch-slap the SIL …and crack the h/h's heads together for pussyfooting around. (I seem to be feeling somewhat violent today…) 3.5 stars

What Happened at Midnight by Courtney Milan: The way she writes about oppressive circumstances is powerful. 4.5 stars

A Dance in Moonlight by Sherry Thomas: She sure knows how to put emotions through a wringer! 4.5 stars

[r. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found Carolyn Jewel's entry in this anthology rather boring, unfortunately, BUT Courtney Milan's was, as ever, well done. My favorite, however, was "A Dance in Moonlight" by Sherry Thomas, which was touching and completely wonderful. She was on my list of authors to check out and given that this short story was supplementary to her Fitzhugh trilogy, I'll have to move her to the top of the queue.

[Mskychick · Rating 4 out of 5]

One Starlit Night by Carolyn Jewel
2-3 stars. I spent much of the time enraged, so I can't rate this higher
Eleanor is a fucking manipulative bitch. Someone should wallop her to shut her the fuck up. Who lets a vapid bitch manipulate them like that?! She made me so pissed!!

What Happened at Midnight by Courtney Milan
4 stars

A Dance in Moonlight by Sherry Thomas
5 stars

[Ruth · Rating 3 out of 5]

All three stories are set at the same location, about thirty years apart.

All three stories were good. I think the first one was the weakest, just because she was trying to do too much in the pages allotted. My favorite was by Courtney Milan, because I love her ability to create emotionally complex characters and deal with serious issues, even in the middle of a love story.