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Gentlemen of Honor #1
The Spinster and The Earl
She was known as The Spinster of Brightwood Manor, and that suited Lady Beatrice O’Brien just fine.
She was happy being a spinster; happy running her father’s estates while amassing a fortune of her own; happy tending to the needs of her community; and most of all, she was happy not having a man around to tell her what to do.
But when Beatrice accidentally shoots her new neighbor, the Earl of Drennan, her life turns upside-down. Suddenly, this very arrogant gentleman, who also happens to be charming and attractive, makes himself at home at Brightwood Manor, and proceeds to court her!
Beatrice knows one thing for certain. Marriage will complicate her life. But falling in love? That’s an entirely different matter.
She was happy being a spinster; happy running her father’s estates while amassing a fortune of her own; happy tending to the needs of her community; and most of all, she was happy not having a man around to tell her what to do.
But when Beatrice accidentally shoots her new neighbor, the Earl of Drennan, her life turns upside-down. Suddenly, this very arrogant gentleman, who also happens to be charming and attractive, makes himself at home at Brightwood Manor, and proceeds to court her!
Beatrice knows one thing for certain. Marriage will complicate her life. But falling in love? That’s an entirely different matter.
238 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 8, 2013
692 people are currently reading
944 people want to read
About the author
Beverly Adam
11 books37 followersBeverly Adam writes engaging stories that feature feisty heroines and endearing heroes. She is the author of the Regency Historical romance series Gentlemen of Honor, and biographical novels Two Lovers: the love story of Carole Lombard and Russ Columbo and She Rode The Rails: the life of traveling railroad photographer Mary Jane Wyatt. She revisits history on a regular basis as a romance and biographical novelist. She holds degrees in Comparative Literature from the University of California Irvine and another in photojournalism from Pasadena City College.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 175 reviews
February 23, 2015
I don’t consider myself a demanding reader of Romance. All I need from a book is a good story and some basic research or writing techniques from the author. I don’t use the 1-star rating lightly but there was no way that I could rate The Spinster and the Earl any higher based upon those criteria. This book was such a complete mess that a friend recommended I write a review just to purge it from my system.
Irritating thing #1: Using “Your Grace” to address an Earl
I’m as American as apple pie and summer baseball and yet even I know that this term should only be used when addressing a Duke or Duchess. The hero of this book is an Earl, two steps down from a Duke on the peerage scale, and yet everyone insists on using “Your Grace” to start a conversation with the man. Making this mistake is a sin considering it took me all of about a minute to find a Wikipedia page that lays out precise ways to address members of the UK peerage. What made it worse was that I tried to ignore the “Your Grace” when it would pop up until about half-way through the story when the author herself seemed to stop using it. All of a sudden the hero reverts back to his former military rank, becoming Captain Hero. Couldn’t someone in the whole story remember the guy’s position and give him a “My Lord” at least once??
Irritating thing #2: Weak inclusion of paranormal elements
I have no problem with folding supernatural thing into a straight Historical story. Heck, if Stephanie Laurens can base her last six books on a magical necklace and get away with it, then why can’t some indie author? What bothered me about it in this story is the author’s lack of commitment to the theme. The heroine is Irish, so a belief in the Fey or magic isn’t too much of a stretch. When she finds a coin thought to hold a leprechaun’s curse I could believe that she’d want to get that token as far away from her as possible. But then the hero gets possession of it and I think we’re supposed to believe that what she saw as bad magic was actually good magic in the right person’s hands? Did the coin even matter? Why introduce it then? It is never really made clear if the magic was a real thing in the story or just Irish superstition, but the story got so dull at a point that I would have welcomed the appearance of a leprechaun or two.
Irritating thing #3: Random Head Hopping
There are many authors who can handle multiple point of view characters with no problem within the narrative. When done right I enjoy seeing the story unfold under different perspectives. But here, the head hopping was too random and made me think that the author had no idea what she was doing. In the middle of a scene between the hero and heroine we are suddenly hearing the thoughts of her lady’s maid about his valet. Huh? Then we get to listen in while the heroine’s father is discussing the finer points of whiskey brewing to a village kid in a discussion that has nothing to do with the greater plot. I can’t tell if the author was trying to use these secondary characters to build setting or just to bolster an already weak central story.
Irritating thing #4: The Hero and Heroine
I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that I think the author was trying to put her own spin on The Taming of the Shrew when she wrote this book. Lady Beatrice takes quite a few pages out of Katherina’s play book for being shrewish but she never quite pulls it off. She isn’t endearing for her independence and intelligence. She isn’t sympathetic for her lost seasons and being on the shelf without any kind of love. She isn’t even likeable for all her quirks. Granted, Lord Drennen is a pretty good Petruchio for being demanding, misogynistic and irritating in his own right. Why it doesn’t work in this book is that nowhere in the entire course of the story do I really want to see Beatrice succumb or see Drennen succeed. Quite frankly by the halfway point I didn’t like either of them and couldn’t have cared less if they loved or just walked away from each other. Let Beatrice remain the spinster and lord over her father’s household. Keep Drennen the penniless Lord arranged into a loveless marriage of convenience. Maybe those pesky leprechauns would finally show up and drop a pot of gold on their heads?
OK, having got all of that off my chest I feel better about having wasted hours of my life on this story. Thank God I didn’t waste my money on it (thank you Kindle Unlimited). Now to go find another story to cleanse my pallet…
Irritating thing #1: Using “Your Grace” to address an Earl
I’m as American as apple pie and summer baseball and yet even I know that this term should only be used when addressing a Duke or Duchess. The hero of this book is an Earl, two steps down from a Duke on the peerage scale, and yet everyone insists on using “Your Grace” to start a conversation with the man. Making this mistake is a sin considering it took me all of about a minute to find a Wikipedia page that lays out precise ways to address members of the UK peerage. What made it worse was that I tried to ignore the “Your Grace” when it would pop up until about half-way through the story when the author herself seemed to stop using it. All of a sudden the hero reverts back to his former military rank, becoming Captain Hero. Couldn’t someone in the whole story remember the guy’s position and give him a “My Lord” at least once??
Irritating thing #2: Weak inclusion of paranormal elements
I have no problem with folding supernatural thing into a straight Historical story. Heck, if Stephanie Laurens can base her last six books on a magical necklace and get away with it, then why can’t some indie author? What bothered me about it in this story is the author’s lack of commitment to the theme. The heroine is Irish, so a belief in the Fey or magic isn’t too much of a stretch. When she finds a coin thought to hold a leprechaun’s curse I could believe that she’d want to get that token as far away from her as possible. But then the hero gets possession of it and I think we’re supposed to believe that what she saw as bad magic was actually good magic in the right person’s hands? Did the coin even matter? Why introduce it then? It is never really made clear if the magic was a real thing in the story or just Irish superstition, but the story got so dull at a point that I would have welcomed the appearance of a leprechaun or two.
Irritating thing #3: Random Head Hopping
There are many authors who can handle multiple point of view characters with no problem within the narrative. When done right I enjoy seeing the story unfold under different perspectives. But here, the head hopping was too random and made me think that the author had no idea what she was doing. In the middle of a scene between the hero and heroine we are suddenly hearing the thoughts of her lady’s maid about his valet. Huh? Then we get to listen in while the heroine’s father is discussing the finer points of whiskey brewing to a village kid in a discussion that has nothing to do with the greater plot. I can’t tell if the author was trying to use these secondary characters to build setting or just to bolster an already weak central story.
Irritating thing #4: The Hero and Heroine
I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that I think the author was trying to put her own spin on The Taming of the Shrew when she wrote this book. Lady Beatrice takes quite a few pages out of Katherina’s play book for being shrewish but she never quite pulls it off. She isn’t endearing for her independence and intelligence. She isn’t sympathetic for her lost seasons and being on the shelf without any kind of love. She isn’t even likeable for all her quirks. Granted, Lord Drennen is a pretty good Petruchio for being demanding, misogynistic and irritating in his own right. Why it doesn’t work in this book is that nowhere in the entire course of the story do I really want to see Beatrice succumb or see Drennen succeed. Quite frankly by the halfway point I didn’t like either of them and couldn’t have cared less if they loved or just walked away from each other. Let Beatrice remain the spinster and lord over her father’s household. Keep Drennen the penniless Lord arranged into a loveless marriage of convenience. Maybe those pesky leprechauns would finally show up and drop a pot of gold on their heads?
OK, having got all of that off my chest I feel better about having wasted hours of my life on this story. Thank God I didn’t waste my money on it (thank you Kindle Unlimited). Now to go find another story to cleanse my pallet…
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 6, 2015
I read a lot of romance books. I read 3-5 books or more a week. I forced myself to finish this. The plot and characters were good, but that is where it ended. Throughout the book the earl was referred to as "your grace". At one point the hero's name was wrong. The telling jumped from person to person so much I was confused.
January 18, 2020
Unique story and Setting
The first thing that I noticed about this story was the writing style. It was almost old-fashioned. I enjoy that very much.
In the beginning, I really liked the heroine. She was very independent and headstrong. As the story progresses, I continued to find out just how smart she was. On the other hand, she had a sense of duty. Both her father and her aunt had quite a bit of influence. She was willing to do things she didn't want to, such as help host a house party, if she believed that she should.
The hero was obviously an attractive man, both physically appealing and mentally compelling. I appreciate that this was the only heiress in the area and he needed to win her for marriage to have enough money for his estate. However, I was disappointed that his reasons were so practical.
***spoiler***What I did not like about the story is the fact that they chose to become lovers without considering the possibility of marriage on her side. I also did not appreciate that he refused to admit any deeper feelings for her. I did not appreciate that their hesitation and unwillingness to connect with their true desires led to delay. It required kidnapping and potential torture to change their minds. All of a sudden she was willing to marry him even if he did not love her, and he was willing to admit he loved her.
Overall, it was okay, a bit slow and boring at times. I have no plans to immediately read more by the author. On the other hand, at some point in the future I would give another book a try.
The first thing that I noticed about this story was the writing style. It was almost old-fashioned. I enjoy that very much.
In the beginning, I really liked the heroine. She was very independent and headstrong. As the story progresses, I continued to find out just how smart she was. On the other hand, she had a sense of duty. Both her father and her aunt had quite a bit of influence. She was willing to do things she didn't want to, such as help host a house party, if she believed that she should.
The hero was obviously an attractive man, both physically appealing and mentally compelling. I appreciate that this was the only heiress in the area and he needed to win her for marriage to have enough money for his estate. However, I was disappointed that his reasons were so practical.
***spoiler***What I did not like about the story is the fact that they chose to become lovers without considering the possibility of marriage on her side. I also did not appreciate that he refused to admit any deeper feelings for her. I did not appreciate that their hesitation and unwillingness to connect with their true desires led to delay. It required kidnapping and potential torture to change their minds. All of a sudden she was willing to marry him even if he did not love her, and he was willing to admit he loved her.
Overall, it was okay, a bit slow and boring at times. I have no plans to immediately read more by the author. On the other hand, at some point in the future I would give another book a try.
March 22, 2015
I really don't know how to describe this book. I almost quit reading it so many times...but I am no quitter. It was pretty predictable, but very frustrating. Some times it made since and some times it didn't. It would seem like days were supposed to have passed, only to have the next sentence say something had happened yesterday. I also couldn't decide if I even liked anyone in the book, maybe the aunt. She was funny. I don't think I would waste my time on this one, unless you have a lot of time to waste.
January 5, 2016
When I get a light reading i don't expect to find something too deep or meaningful. What I want is to have fun, a enjoyable reading.
This book has a good setting and a interessant plot (otherwise wouldnt have even got it on Amazon, right?) but it lacks a good pace and, well, continuity.
(and what was the point of that magical coin?!)
The book is utterly, deeply, BORING. Seriously, I almost didnt finish it and in some moments I made some fast reading in order to finish the damm thing.
I think the good idea is there but, sorry to say, was poorly executed.
A shame. Well, at least it was free.
This book has a good setting and a interessant plot (otherwise wouldnt have even got it on Amazon, right?) but it lacks a good pace and, well, continuity.
(and what was the point of that magical coin?!)
The book is utterly, deeply, BORING. Seriously, I almost didnt finish it and in some moments I made some fast reading in order to finish the damm thing.
I think the good idea is there but, sorry to say, was poorly executed.
A shame. Well, at least it was free.
November 24, 2016
Charming yet overdone
I smiled a few times during this charming romp. However, the brogue became too much to read.
I was confused about the history as well. There are face patches and shoe buckles and the guillotine is mentioned. Then Boney and Wellington are mentioned. It sounds regency but then sounds Georgian.
Liberal use and misuse of commas were irritating.
Sexual content
I smiled a few times during this charming romp. However, the brogue became too much to read.
I was confused about the history as well. There are face patches and shoe buckles and the guillotine is mentioned. Then Boney and Wellington are mentioned. It sounds regency but then sounds Georgian.
Liberal use and misuse of commas were irritating.
Sexual content
August 22, 2016
Couldn't finish it after so many mistakes in regards of historical romance background. You don't call an Earl as "Your Grace", you cannot be at two diff. places at the same time, so many confusing scenes, names, ...not sure about these ppl that rated this book so high. Good plot, terrible execution. The only good part is it's free.
August 16, 2022
An Irish Tale. This is the first book I have read by this author. It is one of my Kobo + books. Genre: Historical Romance-tropes: Around the World, All is fair in Love and War, Spinster, Regency.
H : Earl of Drennan , Captain James ? an English Earl inheriting Irish title.
h : Lady Beatrice Kathryn O’Brien aka Spinster of Brightwood Manor an heiress 24 years old.
An old Irish Tale
An old Earl gives Beatrice (also the village midwife) a gold coin. It is a fairy coin. One of bad luck. She gives it to different tradesmen in the village but it always comes back to her. She stuffs it into the bed of the new Earl of Drennan whom she caused to fall accidentally shooting at him and injured his leg. She hopes it never comes back to her.
I liked this review https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
H : Earl of Drennan , Captain James ? an English Earl inheriting Irish title.
h : Lady Beatrice Kathryn O’Brien aka Spinster of Brightwood Manor an heiress 24 years old.
An old Irish Tale
An old Earl gives Beatrice (also the village midwife) a gold coin. It is a fairy coin. One of bad luck. She gives it to different tradesmen in the village but it always comes back to her. She stuffs it into the bed of the new Earl of Drennan whom she caused to fall accidentally shooting at him and injured his leg. She hopes it never comes back to her.
I liked this review https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
March 29, 2015
Weak, uninteresting
Random notes on a poorly written story:
1) Some humorous editing lapses. Apparently our hero's horse rides him as this was written three times: "Ever since I got nearly shot out from under my mount...,' his 'splintered' leg as opposed to his 'splinted' leg...,
2) The author has some issues maintaining continuity. For example, our heroine sits down to her midday meal only to have her hero in the same scene join her at the table wearing a smoking jacket with the comment, “It would appear that I’m just in time to join you for supper, my lady.” He also hopes that his supper isn't burnt 'this evening.' So, are we having lunch or supper?
3) Secondary characters seem to have no real purpose in the story.
4) The pacing of the story is slow and the plot uninteresting.
Random notes on a poorly written story:
1) Some humorous editing lapses. Apparently our hero's horse rides him as this was written three times: "Ever since I got nearly shot out from under my mount...,' his 'splintered' leg as opposed to his 'splinted' leg...,
2) The author has some issues maintaining continuity. For example, our heroine sits down to her midday meal only to have her hero in the same scene join her at the table wearing a smoking jacket with the comment, “It would appear that I’m just in time to join you for supper, my lady.” He also hopes that his supper isn't burnt 'this evening.' So, are we having lunch or supper?
3) Secondary characters seem to have no real purpose in the story.
4) The pacing of the story is slow and the plot uninteresting.
February 10, 2017
I was bored and this book didn't work out for me.
I wasn't fan of the writing, I can understand the attempt to let us try an Irish sort of brogue for atmosphere but being english my second language I'm sure I missed some things.
The main characters weren't people I ended caring about. I wasn't particularly joyous they got their HEA and some of their attitudes instead of looking funny or feisty only looked silly and pointless to me. The meddling secondary characters also didn't appeal to me...
This is more a 1.5 actually because the idea and one or two elements in the narrative seemed good enough. But the execution just didn't match the possibilities.
I won't read the other books in the series.
I wasn't fan of the writing, I can understand the attempt to let us try an Irish sort of brogue for atmosphere but being english my second language I'm sure I missed some things.
The main characters weren't people I ended caring about. I wasn't particularly joyous they got their HEA and some of their attitudes instead of looking funny or feisty only looked silly and pointless to me. The meddling secondary characters also didn't appeal to me...
This is more a 1.5 actually because the idea and one or two elements in the narrative seemed good enough. But the execution just didn't match the possibilities.
I won't read the other books in the series.
January 26, 2018
I love Regency romance and while the historical parts in this one was spot-on, I found it lacking emotional depth. I didn't particularly care of either character (H/H) and their chemistry seemed forced. Disappointing.
My Rating: 3 stars
My Rating: 3 stars
September 12, 2015
Book Review (not paid for and is by an anonymous reviewer)
What's the difference between a good book and a bad one? A bad one will get maybe three reviews a good one will receive over 100. Truth.
The Spinster and The Earl was ranked #1 on Amazon free read and #23 on Nook free read and in top 100 in several different romance categories.
Just finished this first book of the Gentlemen of Honor series by Beverly Adam and I can honestly say that I thoroughly enjoyed it.
The book was a fast and satisfying read , the writing well done and easy flowing and the characters in the plot lovable .
The heroine, a die hard spinster , was believable and immediately likable. The hero, a former soldier and third son , who due to a bit of luck inherited a title and land, was from the get go a great counterpart to the heroine.
This is not a very deep going book, but a feel good book with all the markings of a good regency novel. A nasty villain, eccentric family members and a bit fairy magic make this book a solid 4 star. There are a couple of love scenes between the h/h , which are not happening behind closed door, but are also not too detailed - for me , well done.
My only negative comment would be , that I wished the author would have given us , the reader , more detail of some
of the side characters , which I hope , will be given when the series of the Gentlemen of Honor continues.
Over all , I can recommend this book and I will look for the continuation of this series.
What's the difference between a good book and a bad one? A bad one will get maybe three reviews a good one will receive over 100. Truth.
The Spinster and The Earl was ranked #1 on Amazon free read and #23 on Nook free read and in top 100 in several different romance categories.
Just finished this first book of the Gentlemen of Honor series by Beverly Adam and I can honestly say that I thoroughly enjoyed it.
The book was a fast and satisfying read , the writing well done and easy flowing and the characters in the plot lovable .
The heroine, a die hard spinster , was believable and immediately likable. The hero, a former soldier and third son , who due to a bit of luck inherited a title and land, was from the get go a great counterpart to the heroine.
This is not a very deep going book, but a feel good book with all the markings of a good regency novel. A nasty villain, eccentric family members and a bit fairy magic make this book a solid 4 star. There are a couple of love scenes between the h/h , which are not happening behind closed door, but are also not too detailed - for me , well done.
My only negative comment would be , that I wished the author would have given us , the reader , more detail of some
of the side characters , which I hope , will be given when the series of the Gentlemen of Honor continues.
Over all , I can recommend this book and I will look for the continuation of this series.
January 10, 2015
5 Stars! This romance enchanted me like I was the one holding the lucky coin! With lush and descriptive writing, the author brings her story to life. The hero and heroine were unusual and the setting was unexpected. And who doesn’t love a good house party, with all the intrigue and scandal lurking around every corner, lol? This book has the feel and tone of a true Historical and I can’t wait to read the next in the series!
March 18, 2015
Every once in a while, I venture out of my comfort zone and read something that was free or close to it off of BookBub. This is one of those books. It was not a terribly successful experiment. The plot was kind of thin and sappy, and we had my least favorite plot device of battling protagonists who are truly in love with each other. The book was readable and moved quickly, but it made me feel bad for giving some others a lukewarm rating. They deserve better in comparison to this.
January 25, 2015
A Good Tale
I enjoyed this story a lot. It is a story that is tried but true. It is a well written book, and the characters are very well designed. I enjoyed the way the author spun the story. It also has a whimsical quality about it, what with the idea of faeries included in the story. It is a good tale spun from a familiar plot.
I enjoyed this story a lot. It is a story that is tried but true. It is a well written book, and the characters are very well designed. I enjoyed the way the author spun the story. It also has a whimsical quality about it, what with the idea of faeries included in the story. It is a good tale spun from a familiar plot.
March 9, 2015
Couldn't wait for this one to be over. Beatrice had too many talents and none of them well-developed. She didn't need to be the belle of the ball and wealthy and a midwife. I also couldn't believe she'd be casual about having an intimate relationship with James. The writing was hard to follow continually switching between characters and perspectives. At least there was a happy ending!
March 3, 2017
I can't stand the characters - she's spunky but kind of an idiot; he's an ass. Her dad is terrible and not funny. And the author's writing is clunky. She constantly jumps from viewpoint to viewpoint with no breaking or shifts in scene, and the effect is jarring. I'm not wasting more of my time when there are better romance authors out there.
March 20, 2015
Great historical romance
I love the headstrong heroine in this book, she is a bit unconventional which helps in making the Earl want her. From her accidental shooting of him to the brave rescue of herself by the esteem gentleman there is a fulfilling romance. Enjoy.
I love the headstrong heroine in this book, she is a bit unconventional which helps in making the Earl want her. From her accidental shooting of him to the brave rescue of herself by the esteem gentleman there is a fulfilling romance. Enjoy.
May 1, 2015
There aren't enough words for me to express just how much I am happy to be finished with this book. The plot and story line were actually pretty good, but Ms. Adam really needs to work on her writing. The writjng almost made me put this book fown for good, and that is a very rare thing indeed.
June 19, 2015
It's just horrible. It was nice that the setting for historical romance's in Ireland. Unfortunately, that's the ONLY positive thing I can say. I don't really know how to start. Oh, well to be nice and all to the author who took pains in writing this, PLEASE research a bit more.
That is all.
That is all.
August 17, 2015
While this novel had some unusual elements based on its Irish locale, overall it was too superficial and stereotypical to make the main characters people I cared to know. It was pleasant but two dimensional
February 16, 2015
Beautiful Story!!!!
This story had everything!! Romance, suspense, mystery, and passion!!! A wonderful story about a spinster heiress finding true love !
This story had everything!! Romance, suspense, mystery, and passion!!! A wonderful story about a spinster heiress finding true love !
March 11, 2015
Meh. Kindle freebie. This book started out good but then got redundant and boring. I ended up skimming the last third of the book.
October 6, 2015
Extremely difficult to read. Multiple times I wanted to stop reading but I wanted to finish it. It jumped around too much and left the reader wandering what just happened.
August 15, 2017
Beatrice O'Brien is a sworn spinster. She's declared she never wants to marry anyone because all the men are after is her money. She is a sweet woman with a good heart and does good deeds. She's also a self-made success story, unheard of in this era for a woman.
The Earl of Drennan, James, is accidentally shot by Beatrice when she is out hunting. He decides to recover at her house, much to her chagrin. But what could she say? She shot him and she felt she owed it to him.
There is a coin that is said to be from fairies. To Beatrice, it is a bad luck thing. She sneaks it the Earl under the guise of being romantically interested in him. He finds it tangled in his bedclothes and took it to mean good luck. But was it good enough to sweep the spinster off her feet?
The story doesn't take place all that long at Beatrice's home. I thought it would, but it didn't. It was okay that it didn't. It wouldn't have worked at all if it had.
I enjoyed the story, but I didn't care all that much for the characters. In my opinion, Beau Powers could have been an outstanding character. I wish there had been more development between him and the Earl. All that was mentioned is that they were good friends and had been for a long time. It was hard to connect with Beatrice and James until almost the very end. *No spoilers*
The love scenes were rated PG-13 and suitable for a younger reader who enjoys a good romance. I didn't mind it at all.
There were a few minor issues with punctuation and hyphenation of words, but not enough to detract from the reading experience.
The Earl of Drennan, James, is accidentally shot by Beatrice when she is out hunting. He decides to recover at her house, much to her chagrin. But what could she say? She shot him and she felt she owed it to him.
There is a coin that is said to be from fairies. To Beatrice, it is a bad luck thing. She sneaks it the Earl under the guise of being romantically interested in him. He finds it tangled in his bedclothes and took it to mean good luck. But was it good enough to sweep the spinster off her feet?
The story doesn't take place all that long at Beatrice's home. I thought it would, but it didn't. It was okay that it didn't. It wouldn't have worked at all if it had.
I enjoyed the story, but I didn't care all that much for the characters. In my opinion, Beau Powers could have been an outstanding character. I wish there had been more development between him and the Earl. All that was mentioned is that they were good friends and had been for a long time. It was hard to connect with Beatrice and James until almost the very end. *No spoilers*
The love scenes were rated PG-13 and suitable for a younger reader who enjoys a good romance. I didn't mind it at all.
There were a few minor issues with punctuation and hyphenation of words, but not enough to detract from the reading experience.
August 14, 2018
The continuity in the book is appalling. Scenes and situations change so rapidly and contradict themselves it was a pain to read many chapters.
Not entirely without merit regarding general play and characters, but sorely sorely in need of a very firm editor. It really read like a fist draft which makes me more inclined to blame the editor than the author for whatever this nonsense was that I struggled through to the end of.
Not entirely without merit regarding general play and characters, but sorely sorely in need of a very firm editor. It really read like a fist draft which makes me more inclined to blame the editor than the author for whatever this nonsense was that I struggled through to the end of.
May 27, 2017
Ugh
Trite. Awful dialogue. Cliche after painful cliche. It's Three hours I'll never get back. Angora comes from angora goats not "angora sheep".
Trite. Awful dialogue. Cliche after painful cliche. It's Three hours I'll never get back. Angora comes from angora goats not "angora sheep".
March 19, 2015
There were parts of this book that were super - such as the overall character of our lovely spinster, Beatrice, and even our main guy - James, the Earl of Drennen. However, just as I thought I was beginning to understand the foundation of the storyline, it would seemingly take off in an entirely different direction. For example, the story indicated that the Earl was without funds to restore the properties he inherited and therefore needed to marry an heiress. However, he then proceeded to make extensive repairs to his castle and host a lengthy house party - where did the funds come from?
Also, from the beginning, the Earl didn't seem all that interested in Beatrice, but then without much inclusion regarding his thoughts in the story, he was like - crazy about her. Not, it seems "in love with her" but wanted her with everything in his soul.
As far as Beatrice, she served as a midwife, knew quite a bit about taking care of injuries - as evidenced by the manner in which she was able to help the Earl with his injury at their first meeting - yet, that part of her life was barely mentioned throughout the rest of the story. Also, although in the beginning, it was apparent that she had a reputation as a spinster and for awhile there, I thought she didn't have any serious suitors, indeed toward the latter part, it appeared men were lined up to woo her.
Then, at the house party, James spent way too much time with a certain beautiful airhead lady - in fact many afternoons and the story even indicated he found her company interesting. Hello? He was supposed to be over the top about Beatrice. I could understand if his intentions were to make Beatrice jealous - but, apparently not. This bugged me a little.
I was struck by some of the parts that I thought were errors such as the earl being referred to as "Your Grace" and the manner in which his properties were passed through to him since he was a self-described third son, until one individual (in comments under the top rated review) reminded all of us that the setting of this book was Ireland and in fact, apparently, there was a period where earls in Ireland were referred to as "Your Grace" and that indeed the way properties were passed down in Ireland often had different rules than the peerage in England. So, there - to all the smarty pants (like me) who assumed they knew more than "we" did - perhaps. I haven't done my own study of the actual details.
In the end, there were very interesting characters introduced in this story who had only striking, yet small parts, such as the beautiful village witch. Where did Beatrice's father go to on those mysterious walkabouts? I also found this book to be lacking in other details, such as feelings going here and there without giving the reader any reasons why the feelings were changing so quickly.
Even at the end, after James could not say for sure he was in love with Beatrice, yet when circumstances seem to contrive to remove her from his life, he could immediately say - apparently without a shadow of a doubt - he had always loved her without any explanation given as to how and why he came to his awakening.
Marvelous characters, but a storyline that meandered here and there.
Review by: Judge Tabor
Also, from the beginning, the Earl didn't seem all that interested in Beatrice, but then without much inclusion regarding his thoughts in the story, he was like - crazy about her. Not, it seems "in love with her" but wanted her with everything in his soul.
As far as Beatrice, she served as a midwife, knew quite a bit about taking care of injuries - as evidenced by the manner in which she was able to help the Earl with his injury at their first meeting - yet, that part of her life was barely mentioned throughout the rest of the story. Also, although in the beginning, it was apparent that she had a reputation as a spinster and for awhile there, I thought she didn't have any serious suitors, indeed toward the latter part, it appeared men were lined up to woo her.
Then, at the house party, James spent way too much time with a certain beautiful airhead lady - in fact many afternoons and the story even indicated he found her company interesting. Hello? He was supposed to be over the top about Beatrice. I could understand if his intentions were to make Beatrice jealous - but, apparently not. This bugged me a little.
I was struck by some of the parts that I thought were errors such as the earl being referred to as "Your Grace" and the manner in which his properties were passed through to him since he was a self-described third son, until one individual (in comments under the top rated review) reminded all of us that the setting of this book was Ireland and in fact, apparently, there was a period where earls in Ireland were referred to as "Your Grace" and that indeed the way properties were passed down in Ireland often had different rules than the peerage in England. So, there - to all the smarty pants (like me) who assumed they knew more than "we" did - perhaps. I haven't done my own study of the actual details.
In the end, there were very interesting characters introduced in this story who had only striking, yet small parts, such as the beautiful village witch. Where did Beatrice's father go to on those mysterious walkabouts? I also found this book to be lacking in other details, such as feelings going here and there without giving the reader any reasons why the feelings were changing so quickly.
Even at the end, after James could not say for sure he was in love with Beatrice, yet when circumstances seem to contrive to remove her from his life, he could immediately say - apparently without a shadow of a doubt - he had always loved her without any explanation given as to how and why he came to his awakening.
Marvelous characters, but a storyline that meandered here and there.
Review by: Judge Tabor
January 28, 2017
A bore
This was one of the half dozen books out of thousands that I couldn't finish. I rarely ever put down a book, even tedious ones. I made it to 50% so perhaps it improves later? First I was lost. I'm well read and schooled in historical romance and actual novels from real history. At times the region and language sounded Scottish, instead of Irish; the dress was described like the 18th century, yet the 19th, and the hero seems to be a real person of the 20th century (coincidence?), yet characters act backwards as if from the 16th century or earlier. Character development is wanting in that both protagonists have a sudden, complete personality changes for no reason. The heroine is an obnoxious, childish shrew that I could not sympathize with. As for plot, aside from an interesting meeting, nothing happens; skimming through, some action seems to appear at the end but I wasn't willing to read through it to get there. I'm usually a very patient reader. I was not fond of the strange POV, an omniscient narrator that suddenly appears when we were in main characters' heads prior and needless flashbacks and forwards about irreverent info. The positives? Grammar looked edited and well written and the folklore was on point and well researched. Admittedly, I downloaded it to read something not so Ton, but I got something so different it seemed unbelievable. I admire the attempt, but it doesn't feel authentic or accurate.
This was one of the half dozen books out of thousands that I couldn't finish. I rarely ever put down a book, even tedious ones. I made it to 50% so perhaps it improves later? First I was lost. I'm well read and schooled in historical romance and actual novels from real history. At times the region and language sounded Scottish, instead of Irish; the dress was described like the 18th century, yet the 19th, and the hero seems to be a real person of the 20th century (coincidence?), yet characters act backwards as if from the 16th century or earlier. Character development is wanting in that both protagonists have a sudden, complete personality changes for no reason. The heroine is an obnoxious, childish shrew that I could not sympathize with. As for plot, aside from an interesting meeting, nothing happens; skimming through, some action seems to appear at the end but I wasn't willing to read through it to get there. I'm usually a very patient reader. I was not fond of the strange POV, an omniscient narrator that suddenly appears when we were in main characters' heads prior and needless flashbacks and forwards about irreverent info. The positives? Grammar looked edited and well written and the folklore was on point and well researched. Admittedly, I downloaded it to read something not so Ton, but I got something so different it seemed unbelievable. I admire the attempt, but it doesn't feel authentic or accurate.
November 28, 2016
It took me forever to write a review for this book because I got distracted with other books and life XD
At first I was so looking forward toward the book and was looking for it like crazy, but after I found it and started I kinda dragged my feet at the beginning to finish it.
What I didn't like about this book is that it had a lot of inner thought and not enough dialogue between the characters, especially the main couple, and at times I didn't know who's POV I was reading, it was a bit confusing at time, I mean the switch between the monologue of each character, from a paragraph to the other, but here it was a bit unclear. Which eventually led me to skip couple of pages here and there just to get to gist of it XD
- But I liked how eventually the relationship between the couple evolved, from enemies to friends to lovers.
- My favorite part actually was when her ex-fiancée came and at the right moment the earl came to the rescue, it a cliché and not that important for the story as a whole but I don't why I loved it here.
- I just wished that there was an epilogue about the wedding or after that it would have been lovely XD
- Loved the part of the rescue at the end when he was with her dad to get her back XD
Overall, *thumbs up*
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