Tuesday Nights

The Sons of the Aristocracy #1

by Linda Rae Sande

If every man is a master of time, then what of the man who loses track of it?

A viscount's son and a bare knuckle boxer, Michael Cunningham is more interested in building his fortune than spending time at the Marriage Mart. But long ago he promised his mother he would get married "if not before, then on the eve of my twenty-eighth birthday".

Reminded by his sister, a duchess, that his next birthday is his twenty-eighth birthday, Michael realizes he has much to do in the three weeks he has to keep his promise – not the least of which is to secure the only woman he has ever considered for a wife – the younger daughter of his business partner and the very woman his sister has just hired to be a governess!

The duchess will rescind her offer of employment to Olivia Waterford, but there's no time for courtship, no time for banns to be read, and certainly no time to wait for a wedding to be planned once Michael proposes. His sister has the perfect plan, though. In order to meet his mother's deadline and ensure a quick marriage, she insists Michael must ruin Olivia!

Olivia has felt affection for her father's business partner since the day he rescued her from a rake. But since the gentleman never showed a romantic interest in her during his frequent visits to her family's home in Shipley, imagine her shock when he climbs into her bed and is discovered by her father! Ruined, indeed!

Now married and living in London, Michael is sure Olivia despises him for what happened, while Olivia is quite sure her husband has feelings for her sister and simply wandered into the wrong bedchamber that fateful Tuesday night.

Will a week be enough time for Michael to court his new wife and convince her of his affections? Or will he regret his last-minute efforts to accomplish too much in too little time? Only time will tell in "Tuesday Nights".

Genres: Historical Romance, Romance, Historical, Amazon, Historical Fiction, Audiobook, Marriage Of Convenience

418 pages, ebook

First published June 12, 2013

About the author

A self-described nerd and lover of science, Linda Rae spent many years as a published technical writer specializing in 3D graphics workstations, software and 3D animation (her movie credits include SHREK and SHREK 2). An interest in genealogy led to years of research on the Regency era and a desire to write fiction based in that time.

A fan of action-adventure movies, she can frequently be found at the local cinema. Although she no longer has any fish, she follows the San Jose Sharks. She makes her home in Cody, Wyoming. More information about her books can be found at www.lindaraesande.com.

Reviews

[Lynde Shaw · Rating 1 out of 5]

For someone "smitten" with a girl there isn't a single page of courtship in 32% of the book which takes place over 5 years. And suddenly, Michael is reminded it's his birthday in 3 weeks so it might be a good idea to let the young woman he's smitten with, Olivia, that he wants to marry her. For real? In 5 years worth of reading there have been 2 or 3 actual interactions between Michael and Olivia. Good grief, there were more pages devoted to a "relationship" (a word I would use loosely) between Michael and Olivia's sister, Eloise, during those 5 years and 32% of a book. I gave up. At the rate their courtship progressed, Michael and Olivia will be in their 60s before they're ever married. DNF. Very boring.

[Deborah · Rating 2 out of 5]

If I had read this book instead of listening to it, I would have enjoyed it more. The story was fine but the narration was terrible. The narrator had a pleasant voice but should have been narrating a Shakespearian play instead of a steamy HEA. I found myself wanting to fast forward through the sex scenes. If I had not agreed to write a review, I would not have forced myself to endure the entire book. Others may not find the narration as bad but for me it was almost painful to listen.

"This audio book was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBlast dot com."

[LaTanya · Rating 1 out of 5]

I always begin a book by reading the blurb on the back. This is just a way for me to get oriented and introduced to the characters. Well, I lost count of the number of times I had to read the "back of the book"! The title and the characters are not matching up. There are so many other characters and their story lines are all running at the same time. I had to stop and think to remember "a set" of characters and their story, which resulted in a very long and unmoveable book. I finally ended the book by just closing it. I can't move beyond this point. If someone else chooses to read this book and enjoy it, I'm happy you were able to see what I missed.

[Natasha · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book. It started out with a lot of promise. Young aristocrat teams up with a merchant to launch a profitable business venture. He fancies the merchant's youngest daughter, but they're both too young to seriously consider marriage. Fast forward a few years and the young lord rescues the merchant's oldest daughter from a brothel and sets her up in a townhouse under the guise that she's a war widow. These two meet innocently every Tuesday night. No one would suspect they're having an affair, right?

What starts out as a predictable plot gets jumbled up with a lot of foolish misunderstandings and mind games on the part of the characters. The men in this story are morons. I didn't like any of them. The hero pretends to ruin the heroine cause he hasn't taken the time to woo her properly before his 28th birthday. The hero's best friend asks the heroine to be his mistress to force the hero to pay more attention to his wife. The heroine sulks because she thinks her husband is having an affair with her sister. The sister doesn't even trust the heroine enough to be honest with her about what happened when she pursued a so-called governess job. Add a sub-plot about the hero's best friend and his beautiful lover, and now we have a confusing, headache-inducing story. I saw the attraction between the hero and heroine, but I never saw them fall in love. I wanted to see them fall in love with each other. More time should have been devoted to developing their relationship.

[Linda J. · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.25 STARS

I purchased this as part of a 3 book bundle that the author offered called THE SONS OF THE ARISTOCRACY: Boxed Set.

Wow, I feel like I've been in a traffic jam. The story dragged and the reason for the H to delay wedding, I understood. But, to not even inform the h what he intended was ridiculous. Her father didn't even share what he knew and he was supposedly close the his youngest daughter.

Then we have the oldest sister and what she experienced - WHAT!! Does the H do anything so more innocent women don't meet the same fate -NO! Why did he use his hard earned money to provide for her?

I enjoyed some of the story on the H's best friend and his love. We have 3 stories with 3 different couples and there isn't romance in any. So if you are expecting romance, this isn't it. There is lovemaking described, heat level 4 out of 5. Since I didn't feel a connection with any of the couples it was just lust.

Story line very simple and dragged out. No cheating, HEA, no romance and steam. (ljb)

[InD'tale Magazine · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5.0

The writing is an absolute delight in this regency romp of a read!

Read full review in the 2014 February issue of InD’tale Magazine.

[Janis Lauzon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

Although I found the story to be a bit long, I had to give it 5 stars because I enjoyed it so much. I almost thought they would end up with different partners, but all was well in the end. This is the first time I've read this author and I liked her style of writing.

[Karen Darling · Rating 2 out of 5]

Stupid. Couldn't finish it.

[Andrea · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am so terribly disappointed in this story because it was a bait and switch from one couple to another. The "love story" is ostensibly between Michael Cunningham and Olivia Waterfor, but as it turns out, there is more emotion and adoration between Michael and Olivia's older sister, Eloisa. Michael was doing business with Olivia and Eloisa's father and he spent hours and hours at their home.The first time Olivia saw him, she was instantly smitten, but so was her sister. I'm sure it's supposed to add tension to the story, but Eloisa's infatuation only serves to make it seem as if Eloisa is his mistress. In an attempt to lend credence to their liaisons, Michael finds her in London in a brothel. He has to save her to preserve her dignity and he becomes her protector. Fine, except that he sets her up in an apartment, has dinner with her every Tuesday and generally does what a suitor would do. Oh, and he actually is tempted to take off her clothes...as he starts to one night. But, of course, he remembers that it's Olivia that he wants to marry. It was at that point that I lost all respect for him and knew I wouldn't believe in the HEA. Even as I relive this in order to write this review, I'm sick to my stomach.He ruined Olivia so he could marry her before his 28th birthday as he promised his mother, but was so stupid that he couldn't remember that it was right around the corner. He thought he had plenty of time, so he has to ruin her to make her off limits for any other man. There is no passion between them. There is much more passion between Michael and Eloisa. Michael is so "caring" about Eloisa that he becomes jealous of her fiance. His self-talk is disgusting when he is convinced that OIivia detests him. Well, perhaps it's because he didn't touch her for a week as he sat and pouted about being so unloved. Trust me, he was impossible to love and truly TSTL. It would be a much better story if Olivia found her forever with someone else. The narration was excellent by Scott Richard Ehredt. His dynamic, well-modulated voice gave each character an individual personality and unique attitude.  

[BookLovingLady (deceased Jan. 25, 2023...) · Rating 2 out of 5]

It dragged on and on and on.... It was tedious, boring, too long, and had far too much repetition (love you, love you not, love you, love you not. Bleh...). Both the stories of Michael and Olivia and of Edward and Anna were not even the slightest bit believable or convincing. And yes, before anyone says anything, I'm aware it is supposed to be historical romantic fiction. But still, a bit more 'believable' would have been nice. I've read through the book till the end, as I kept hoping it would get better, but it wasn't a joy to read and I was ever so glad it was just a freebie so it didn't cost me anything.

[Zena · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book!
Michael and Olivia met when he saves her from being kissed when she didn't want to be and he immediately finds that he has feelings for her which grow over the years.
I loved these two characters. He is a member of the Aristocracy and yet he works very hard to replenish the family coffers. She has visions of becoming a Governess.
They have to learn to be open and trusting of one another in order to make this relationship work and this is what this well written story is about.
I found myself engrossed with this entertaining and romantic tale which is definitely a page-turner and I am quite happy to recommend it to you.

[Mallory · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book held so much promise but was not executed well. Literally everything could have been solved in Michael just spoke up and explained the situation. It was very frustrating to read. It took me nearly two months to finish because I just got so irritated with the same old situation over and over again.

[FrenzieMcKenzie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Michael is too cruel. I assume from later books in this series it’s meant to read as a silly tangle he gets himself into but thinking of bedding one sister so he can imagine bedding the other is just nasty.
Reading the other reviews it goes downhill from there.
DNF at 25%
Narration by Scott Richard Ehredt was charming.

[L JONES · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amusing Mar 2022

This is a fun story but not as good as of this author 's other work. The characters made it amusing but there were bits which were just boring and repetitive it lacked proof reading and backbone

[Carolynn Garcia · Rating 2 out of 5]

So much repetition, so much really unnecessary lack of communication and misunderstanding, H is an ass, he just assumes he'll marry her and never speaks to her about it?? For 5 years? Plot, writing, and characters all annoyed me.

[Queen Talk Talk · Rating 5 out of 5]

This can be a standalone.

The male protagonist does have communication issues. I liked the story anyway. Mild sexy times but a nice period piece.

[Sharon Jerry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed

This is a very good book. If you like this type of books, then I believe you will like this one.

[Kai · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tuesday Nights has two stories involved. The primarily story is Michael Cunningham and Olivia Waterford and the second story is Edward and Anna's story. Both story intertwined with each other that at one point, the question is which story is the author focusing on.

Michael has decided to make his fortune being a second son of a viscount. What he didn't expect was to rescue Olivia from a rake who was trying to steal a kiss from her and learning that she is the daughter of his business partner.

Since the day that Michael has rescued her, Olivia has hero-worshiped Michael. What she didn't know is that her father has warned Michael not to court her for few more years or until her oldest sister, Eloise is married first.

Everything became more scrambled when Michael rescued and became Eloise's protector and then realized that he needed to marry Olivia by his 28th birthday in order to keep his promise to his Mother. The only way for Michael to remedy his situation with Eloise is to matchmake her with someone decent and respectable. Olivia believed that Michael is in love with Eloise and Michael believed Olivia hates him for ruining her. Just when Michael and Eloise finally became comfortable with their feeling for each other, his best friend, Edward goes and cause more problems between them with the best of intention. It is to a point where Michael and Olivia might not reconciled their feeling to each other.

The story is OK because there is just too much going on that the readers/listeners might not like focusing on two major storylines and a minor storyline in the book. If the story was focused on just Michael and Olivia, it might be a bit more enjoyable.

The best point of the story was when Michael revealed what Tuesday nights meant to him to Olivia.

The narrator, Scott Richard Ehredt does a good job. His voice is a bit masculine and husky for the female characters.

I was given this audiobook by the author via Audiobook Blast in exchange for an honest review. I was not compensated or influenced in any way for writing this review.

[Carshena · Rating 3 out of 5]

A confusing story

I enjoyed this book but thought it went on much longer than necessary. The H seems kinda slow for such an intelligent man and there was way too much misunderstanding that went on way to long.

****SPOILERS*****

I thought it was ridiculous that the father would promise the h to the H and tell everyone in town except the h and her mother. I also was confused about the relationship with the h's sister. A sure sign that the book was too long was the fact that around the 39% of the book, I had to jump to the last chapter to read the ending. By that point, I was sure he was going to end up with her sister. The fact that the possibility existed and more than one person, including the h, thought the sister was his mistress and he even considered was a bit tacky and brought the rating down to a 3 for me.

[~JustMel~ · Rating 5 out of 5]

~~This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Blast.~~

Overall, this was such a sweet and sometimes steamy book. I loved the fact that the narrator (and author) painted such a wonderful picture. It was very easy to imagine the events unfolding. I loved how thoroughly everything unfolded. There were no areas that had me wondering when such and such took place or why did such and such happen.

The fully fleshed characters and all the events that took place made for some very romantic, and at times sexy, scenes. I could clearly "see" the main characters arguing, flirting, and being romantic with each other... As if I were a fly on the wall or watching a movie.

I think I would most definitely like to get my hands on book 2, just to see what else the author has up her talented sleeves.

[DD · Rating 4 out of 5]

Found this difficult to get into. Once I did I really enjoyed it. Fortunately unlike the precis, bare knuckle boxing it not a big part of the book
Michael is the younger son of a viscount, his older brother is a degenerate, gambling away the estates assets, so he decided to go into business. He first meets Olivia when she is only sixteen, younger daughter to be business partner. Her father recognises the mutual attraction,but let's Michael know his daughter is too young.
Along side Michael and Olivia's story we also have Michael's best friend Edward and his seemingly hopeless pursuit of Anne.

The layout of the text in kindle format made it more difficult to follow. One sentence being about one couple and the next about the other. A space between paragraphs would have signalled a change.

[Tammy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first thing I want to say is the description is a little misleading as to the actual content of the book. It describes the hero as a bare knuckle boxer, well, he isn't. Not really. He is an aristocrat who spares at Gentleman Jacksons a couple times a week. Now, with that being said. I enjoyed the story. The hero was a little dense and single minded for most of the book but he comes around by the end of the story. There may have been too many side stories going on in the book however, and they tended to take me out of the main storyline too much for my tastes. Still I enjoyed it enough to give it a 4/5 star rating.

[Pontiki · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book that was a bit long, and a man who was misguided and bumbling in his approach to marriage, but all in all this was a good book.

Both Olivia and Michael were too young when they met, and it was interesting that her father helped the match along. But, Michael kept too many secretes, and each one kept making Olivia doubt him.

I didn't like the Tuesday theme, it got in the way for me, both with what Micheal was doing when, and with Olivia staying stuck in things even after they were clarified. I did enjoy Edward's story with Anna, but still found Eloisa spoiled after having gotten in trouble but wanting to marry a gentleman anyway.

[Patricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Repeated Tuesdays, with all the days betwixt and between

This is a relatively good book. It does go on a bit, and gets bogged down. I kept ending up in other books.
The characters are entangled in several plots, all intertwined. There is the hero, the heroine, her sister, his sister, his mother, her father....and all ends well, of course. How they get there is the trick, the adventure, and of course, the premise of the book.
The book is what I tend to call sultry, with some fairly matter of fact, rather clinical sex scenes.

[Camisha Castle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Web of lies

This book was well written but at tones I wondered if the hero was a complete idiot. He was a business genius but he did a lot of things that were, for a lack of better word, stupid. The antagonist in this story was hidden feelings, lack of intuition,and a web of lies.

[Sally Hannoush · Rating 4 out of 5]

The way the time passage was set up in the book made it nice to see the years go by but at the same time it made things move slowly- even when it seems like things are suppose to be moving quickly. I enjoyed the story more in the second part of the book. It felt like much more was going on.

[Teresa Lyons · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book but I was screaming at these characters to talk to each other. Drove me crazyw

Because of the communication issues and I felt like these two people will never find happiness I have the book 4 stars

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ahhh Tuesday

Rather a very light and amusing story. Multiple characters and their love and loss interesting. Not !any authors can pull off so many interwoven lives with such. Definitely a good read

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Is a great book to read

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

fairly happy with this book, although not sure if I'll read any of the sequels.