What do you think?
Rate this book
Earls Trip #3
Brown-Eyed Earl
Ted Lasso
meets
Bridgerton
in
USA Today
bestselling author Jenny Holiday’s laugh-out-loud bromantic comedy featuring three Regency-era Earls on their annual trip. These ride-or-die buddies offer one another unconditional support in everything from Lady problems to family woes, but this year, the country house retreat will be earls-plus-girls as our trio of heroes is joined by two beloved wives
. . .
and an exceedingly charming lady’s companion.
Simon Courteney isn’t like the other earls. He was never supposed to be the heir or the spare. Yet when his older brothers tragically died in an accident, he suddenly found himself a peer of the realm. Strait-laced and scholarly, Simon is resigned to a quiet life of work and service. The two bright spots in his calendar are the annual Earls Trip with his best friends, Effie and Archie, and his visits to Archie’s mother—where he trades books with her beguiling lady’s companion.
Miss Diantha Brown has long been settled into her role as Lady Harcourt’s companion. On the shelf and alone in the world, it’s a better life than Diantha ever imagined for herself. But her boring yet peaceful existence is upended when an old enemy returns, threatening blackmail and forced marriage.
Determined to escape her fate—and to protect Lady Harcourt—Diantha devises a shocking her ruination. She needs just one a kind, intelligent, brave man to help
her . . .
Simon Courteney isn’t like the other earls. He was never supposed to be the heir or the spare. Yet when his older brothers tragically died in an accident, he suddenly found himself a peer of the realm. Strait-laced and scholarly, Simon is resigned to a quiet life of work and service. The two bright spots in his calendar are the annual Earls Trip with his best friends, Effie and Archie, and his visits to Archie’s mother—where he trades books with her beguiling lady’s companion.
Miss Diantha Brown has long been settled into her role as Lady Harcourt’s companion. On the shelf and alone in the world, it’s a better life than Diantha ever imagined for herself. But her boring yet peaceful existence is upended when an old enemy returns, threatening blackmail and forced marriage.
Determined to escape her fate—and to protect Lady Harcourt—Diantha devises a shocking her ruination. She needs just one a kind, intelligent, brave man to help
her . . .
302 pages, ebook
First published October 27, 2026
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 94 reviews
October 29, 2026
Brown-Eyed Earl by Jenny Holiday
Earl’s Trip series #3. Historical romance, romantic comedy. Can be read as a standalone but better in series order.
Simon Courteney is the last of his friends still single, so he’s made some adjustments to their annual Earls Trip. The first week will be just he and his friends Archie and Effie. The second week will include their wives, Archie’s ill mother and her companion.
Miss Diantha Brown has been Lady Emma’s companion for years. More servant than socialite, most of her time is spent reading or helping others. Diantha is being pressure to marry a man she doesn’t like or trust. Spending time alone with Simon may be just the scandal she needs.
🎧 I alternated between an ebook and an audiobook. The narration is performed by Harry Frost who recorded the full series with a wonderful British accent, appropriate for the period and location. He does an excellent job with characters, the men in particular. There is a different pitch for Diantha but the changing POV’s are determined more by content than voice. I enjoyed the humor in the full series which this narrator easily portrays.
Loved the discussions of the novel Frankenstein that Simon and Diantha have and that he’s even reading novels because of her.
And her repeated “Oh, those forearms” had me smiling in understanding each time.
The prior stories had a bit more comedy where this book in the series was more about the little things like the ribbons she collects. Also the female lack of power and available jobs, making me appreciate everything that is available to me.
Oh those forearms. A romance for Simon. Delightful.
I’m received a copy of this from NetGalley.
Earl’s Trip series #3. Historical romance, romantic comedy. Can be read as a standalone but better in series order.
Simon Courteney is the last of his friends still single, so he’s made some adjustments to their annual Earls Trip. The first week will be just he and his friends Archie and Effie. The second week will include their wives, Archie’s ill mother and her companion.
Miss Diantha Brown has been Lady Emma’s companion for years. More servant than socialite, most of her time is spent reading or helping others. Diantha is being pressure to marry a man she doesn’t like or trust. Spending time alone with Simon may be just the scandal she needs.
🎧 I alternated between an ebook and an audiobook. The narration is performed by Harry Frost who recorded the full series with a wonderful British accent, appropriate for the period and location. He does an excellent job with characters, the men in particular. There is a different pitch for Diantha but the changing POV’s are determined more by content than voice. I enjoyed the humor in the full series which this narrator easily portrays.
Loved the discussions of the novel Frankenstein that Simon and Diantha have and that he’s even reading novels because of her.
And her repeated “Oh, those forearms” had me smiling in understanding each time.
The prior stories had a bit more comedy where this book in the series was more about the little things like the ribbons she collects. Also the female lack of power and available jobs, making me appreciate everything that is available to me.
Oh those forearms. A romance for Simon. Delightful.
I’m received a copy of this from NetGalley.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
This series has been one of my historical romance delights for the past few years. Three green flag earls take an "earls trip" every year together. For the past two years, one of them has fallen in love during the trip. This year, the remaining singleton has encouraged his friends to bring along their wives and womenfolk ... and if that includes his crush, so be it! And if said crush happened to proposition him a month before the trip? That's just life.
If you've been reading along (and I encourage you to!) you know that Simon is totally into Miss Brown, his friend's mother's companion. However, he can't admit it to himself. He just esteems her greatly! And thinks she deserves a higher salary! And she's really pretty, too! The romance here is based on Simon and Diantha (yes, she has a first name!) getting to know each other in a place outside of their regular hierarchy, the yearly earls trip. It may also have the most dialogue of any romance novel I've ever read: the majority of the book takes place while Simon and Diantha talk to each other, both in company and alone, and begin to see the other below the surface. While I generally prefer more action in my novels, I ended up adoring this slow-paced love story. You can truly feel these two falling into love as they talk to each other. And it's not just fun banter or deep conversations: sure, they talk about their values and make each other laugh, but they also talk about everyday life and happenings, how they make them feel, and how their reactions make them more compatible.
Lest you think there's no conflict, never fear! There's a villain keeping these two apart, as well as their own most deeply-held beliefs.
Do you have to read the previous books before you read this one? I think you'd get the most out of the story, sure. But if this intrigues you and you're comfortable with chaos reading (like I am!), I think you could jump in here.
This objective review is based on a complimentary copy of the novel.
If you've been reading along (and I encourage you to!) you know that Simon is totally into Miss Brown, his friend's mother's companion. However, he can't admit it to himself. He just esteems her greatly! And thinks she deserves a higher salary! And she's really pretty, too! The romance here is based on Simon and Diantha (yes, she has a first name!) getting to know each other in a place outside of their regular hierarchy, the yearly earls trip. It may also have the most dialogue of any romance novel I've ever read: the majority of the book takes place while Simon and Diantha talk to each other, both in company and alone, and begin to see the other below the surface. While I generally prefer more action in my novels, I ended up adoring this slow-paced love story. You can truly feel these two falling into love as they talk to each other. And it's not just fun banter or deep conversations: sure, they talk about their values and make each other laugh, but they also talk about everyday life and happenings, how they make them feel, and how their reactions make them more compatible.
Lest you think there's no conflict, never fear! There's a villain keeping these two apart, as well as their own most deeply-held beliefs.
Do you have to read the previous books before you read this one? I think you'd get the most out of the story, sure. But if this intrigues you and you're comfortable with chaos reading (like I am!), I think you could jump in here.
This objective review is based on a complimentary copy of the novel.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Diantha Brown is minding her business as Lady Harcourt's companion when her late sister's husband reappears and announces that he intends to marry her. Diantha would rather fling herself directly into the sea, but unfortunately this man comes equipped with blackmail material, audacity, and the confidence of someone who has never once wondered whether a woman wants him in the room. Diantha's solution is therefore perfectly reasonable by Regency standards, which means it is completely insane by every other standard. She needs to become unmarriageable. Not catastrophically ruined. Just lightly ruined. Ruination with boundaries. And she knows exactly which man she trusts to help.
Simon Courteney was never supposed to be an earl. He wasn't even the spare. He was the extra Courteney son headed toward the church until his older brothers died and suddenly this scholarly, deeply serious man found himself responsible for an entire title and sitting in the House of Lords actually doing the homework. Simon has built his whole personality around being useful, sensible, and prepared, so Diantha essentially walking into his life and saying, “Could you compromise me, but professionally?” does things to this man's operating system.
The funniest part is that these two were already halfway into a relationship and apparently nobody sent them the paperwork. They trade novels. They discuss what they've read. They seek each other out for long conversations. Simon notices what Diantha likes. Diantha trusts Simon with the kind of problem you do not casually mention between tea and biscuits. Then Earls Trip becomes Earls Plus Girls, they wind up spending even more time together, and these two just keep talking and stargazing and getting closer while behaving as though they're conducting an unusually thorough literary discussion. At some point I wanted to slide a note across the table that just said, YOU ARE DATING.
And apparently I've wandered into book three of the Earls Trip series without reading the first two because chaos remains my preferred reading order. Archie and Effie are already married, Simon is the remaining bachelor, and these three men have an annual trip together where they are genuinely affectionate, supportive friends instead of Regency dudes standing around saying “quite” while repressing everything until somebody develops gout. I absolutely understood enough to jump in here, although there were definitely moments where everyone was carrying established relationship history and I was the stranger at brunch going, “Wait, which one did WHAT in the previous vacation?” Honestly, fair. I did this to myself.
But Simon. SIR. This man does not flirt like a normal human being. He arranges lemon desserts. He talks about books. He makes subtle little plans to spend time with Diantha. He sits under the stars having enormous conversations with her. His version of seduction appears to be remembering every tiny thing you've ever mentioned and quietly reorganizing his environment around your happiness without realizing this might indicate Feelings. Meanwhile Diantha is so busy trying to maintain her independence and escape a genuinely frightening situation that she has approximately zero available bandwidth for recognizing that the bookish earl beside her is becoming increasingly, spectacularly gone for her. The two of them are basically intellectual foreplay wearing spectacles.
And Diantha's situation is where all the silliness suddenly stops being silly. She's a woman without money or social power trying to preserve the small, peaceful life she has managed to build for herself. Even her ridiculous plan to engineer her own ruination comes from understanding exactly how few choices she actually has. Simon and the others taking seriously the question of whether she can freely choose anything, especially him, mattered. Nobody should have to pick the least terrible cage and call it freedom.
There is also Lady Harcourt, whose dementia is handled with such tenderness that every now and then I forgot I was reading about people skinny-dipping, plotting socially acceptable ruination, and vacationing at a hunting seat called Gurglewood. The care surrounding her feels lived-in. Diantha isn't simply performing a job, and the people who love Lady Harcourt are constantly adjusting to the painful reality that loving someone does not stop them from slowly becoming harder to reach. Then Olive wanders through being observant and mischievous and apparently the only person in England with functioning romantic radar. Give that woman her own book immediately.
I did spend some time waiting for Diantha's horrible brother-in-law and Simon's equally horrifying mother to produce the giant confrontation their behavior seemed to be ordering from the universe, only for some of that business to get handled away from me. Excuse me, I have been sitting here with snacks waiting to witness consequences. Especially Simon's mother. The things surrounding that woman are DARK, and when I learned more about what Simon had been carrying, I wanted somebody to physically escort me into the scene where she finally answers for herself. Instead I got the Regency equivalent of hearing afterward that HR handled it. Ma'am, I wanted the meeting.
Still, Simon and Diantha got me. They're two lonely, careful people who have spent so much time being useful to everyone else that neither quite recognizes what it feels like when somebody starts choosing them simply because they want to. Their relationship sneaks up through books and conversation and tiny acts of attention until suddenly you're looking at this man hauling lemons around and thinking, oh no. That's love, you absolute nerd.
And yes, I'm giving Brown-Eyed Earl 4 stars. I arrived at the third Earls Trip book with absolutely no knowledge of what Archie and Effie had previously put everyone through, immediately attached myself to two introverts flirting through literature, and somehow left emotionally invested in male friendship, lemon desserts, Diantha's freedom, and Olive's future romantic prospects. Chaos always, but this time the chaos brought reading material.
Thank you to Kensington Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC. I appreciate being invited on Earls Trip despite having skipped the first two vacations entirely, knowing none of the group lore, and showing up just in time to watch a woman request controlled ruination from a man who was already halfway in love with her. I have contributed nothing to this friend group, but I would absolutely like to be invited back.
Simon Courteney was never supposed to be an earl. He wasn't even the spare. He was the extra Courteney son headed toward the church until his older brothers died and suddenly this scholarly, deeply serious man found himself responsible for an entire title and sitting in the House of Lords actually doing the homework. Simon has built his whole personality around being useful, sensible, and prepared, so Diantha essentially walking into his life and saying, “Could you compromise me, but professionally?” does things to this man's operating system.
The funniest part is that these two were already halfway into a relationship and apparently nobody sent them the paperwork. They trade novels. They discuss what they've read. They seek each other out for long conversations. Simon notices what Diantha likes. Diantha trusts Simon with the kind of problem you do not casually mention between tea and biscuits. Then Earls Trip becomes Earls Plus Girls, they wind up spending even more time together, and these two just keep talking and stargazing and getting closer while behaving as though they're conducting an unusually thorough literary discussion. At some point I wanted to slide a note across the table that just said, YOU ARE DATING.
And apparently I've wandered into book three of the Earls Trip series without reading the first two because chaos remains my preferred reading order. Archie and Effie are already married, Simon is the remaining bachelor, and these three men have an annual trip together where they are genuinely affectionate, supportive friends instead of Regency dudes standing around saying “quite” while repressing everything until somebody develops gout. I absolutely understood enough to jump in here, although there were definitely moments where everyone was carrying established relationship history and I was the stranger at brunch going, “Wait, which one did WHAT in the previous vacation?” Honestly, fair. I did this to myself.
But Simon. SIR. This man does not flirt like a normal human being. He arranges lemon desserts. He talks about books. He makes subtle little plans to spend time with Diantha. He sits under the stars having enormous conversations with her. His version of seduction appears to be remembering every tiny thing you've ever mentioned and quietly reorganizing his environment around your happiness without realizing this might indicate Feelings. Meanwhile Diantha is so busy trying to maintain her independence and escape a genuinely frightening situation that she has approximately zero available bandwidth for recognizing that the bookish earl beside her is becoming increasingly, spectacularly gone for her. The two of them are basically intellectual foreplay wearing spectacles.
And Diantha's situation is where all the silliness suddenly stops being silly. She's a woman without money or social power trying to preserve the small, peaceful life she has managed to build for herself. Even her ridiculous plan to engineer her own ruination comes from understanding exactly how few choices she actually has. Simon and the others taking seriously the question of whether she can freely choose anything, especially him, mattered. Nobody should have to pick the least terrible cage and call it freedom.
There is also Lady Harcourt, whose dementia is handled with such tenderness that every now and then I forgot I was reading about people skinny-dipping, plotting socially acceptable ruination, and vacationing at a hunting seat called Gurglewood. The care surrounding her feels lived-in. Diantha isn't simply performing a job, and the people who love Lady Harcourt are constantly adjusting to the painful reality that loving someone does not stop them from slowly becoming harder to reach. Then Olive wanders through being observant and mischievous and apparently the only person in England with functioning romantic radar. Give that woman her own book immediately.
I did spend some time waiting for Diantha's horrible brother-in-law and Simon's equally horrifying mother to produce the giant confrontation their behavior seemed to be ordering from the universe, only for some of that business to get handled away from me. Excuse me, I have been sitting here with snacks waiting to witness consequences. Especially Simon's mother. The things surrounding that woman are DARK, and when I learned more about what Simon had been carrying, I wanted somebody to physically escort me into the scene where she finally answers for herself. Instead I got the Regency equivalent of hearing afterward that HR handled it. Ma'am, I wanted the meeting.
Still, Simon and Diantha got me. They're two lonely, careful people who have spent so much time being useful to everyone else that neither quite recognizes what it feels like when somebody starts choosing them simply because they want to. Their relationship sneaks up through books and conversation and tiny acts of attention until suddenly you're looking at this man hauling lemons around and thinking, oh no. That's love, you absolute nerd.
And yes, I'm giving Brown-Eyed Earl 4 stars. I arrived at the third Earls Trip book with absolutely no knowledge of what Archie and Effie had previously put everyone through, immediately attached myself to two introverts flirting through literature, and somehow left emotionally invested in male friendship, lemon desserts, Diantha's freedom, and Olive's future romantic prospects. Chaos always, but this time the chaos brought reading material.
Thank you to Kensington Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC. I appreciate being invited on Earls Trip despite having skipped the first two vacations entirely, knowing none of the group lore, and showing up just in time to watch a woman request controlled ruination from a man who was already halfway in love with her. I have contributed nothing to this friend group, but I would absolutely like to be invited back.
September 7, 2026
The three Earls have gotten their Happily Ever Afters, but I really wish this charming series could continue. What a delightful, supportive group of friends and what wonderful conclusion to their adventures.
This story starts with an outrageous request by the FMC, Diantha, a gentlewoman who works as a companion to the mother of one of the other Earls. She wants the MMC, Simon, to ruin her to avoid a forced marriage to the widow of her deceased sister. Simon is a sweet man who is trying to avoid marriage and he declines to help Diantha. The two are covert friends who share books with each other, so their relationship has a history and it grows during the year's Earls' Trip, which includes extended families now.
Despite the outrageous request, this installment is a little quieter that the previous books. It's funny without being slapstick and our characters have their spicey moments just the same.
This series is a bit of a trifecta and I imagine I'll be marathoning it for years to come. It truly is a wonderful, special series.
This story starts with an outrageous request by the FMC, Diantha, a gentlewoman who works as a companion to the mother of one of the other Earls. She wants the MMC, Simon, to ruin her to avoid a forced marriage to the widow of her deceased sister. Simon is a sweet man who is trying to avoid marriage and he declines to help Diantha. The two are covert friends who share books with each other, so their relationship has a history and it grows during the year's Earls' Trip, which includes extended families now.
Despite the outrageous request, this installment is a little quieter that the previous books. It's funny without being slapstick and our characters have their spicey moments just the same.
This series is a bit of a trifecta and I imagine I'll be marathoning it for years to come. It truly is a wonderful, special series.
September 13, 2026
Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for this eARC in exchange for my honest opinion!!
This is the third in the Earl Trip series but it is not necessary to read the previous books (but encouraged!)
This was fun and a quick read! Simon and Diantha are sweet and kind and share a love of novels. Diantha is being blackmailed and asks Simon for help and along the way the two fall in love!
I loved how supportive and understanding Archie and Effie are; truly wonderful to read about wholesome men! Their friendship is so sweet and they are so dedicated to each other and their families. I also enjoyed Simon’s makeover at the end; truly great!
This is definitely Ted Lasso meets Jane Austen and if that’s your vibe, you’ll love this book!
This is the third in the Earl Trip series but it is not necessary to read the previous books (but encouraged!)
This was fun and a quick read! Simon and Diantha are sweet and kind and share a love of novels. Diantha is being blackmailed and asks Simon for help and along the way the two fall in love!
I loved how supportive and understanding Archie and Effie are; truly wonderful to read about wholesome men! Their friendship is so sweet and they are so dedicated to each other and their families. I also enjoyed Simon’s makeover at the end; truly great!
This is definitely Ted Lasso meets Jane Austen and if that’s your vibe, you’ll love this book!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Simon Courteney, the Earl of Marsden is quiet, thoughtful, and scholarly, with a tendency to put others’ needs before his own. After losing his older brothers and unexpectedly inheriting an earldom, he builds his life around responsibility, parliamentary work, and loyalty to his friends, Archie and Effie. He expresses his kindness through small, consistent gestures rather than grand declarations. His difficult relationship with his mother contributes to his reluctance to marry, while his friendship with Diantha prompts him to reconsider his future. His choices are shaped by a sense of duty and concern for others, and his story follows his efforts to balance those responsibilities with his own happiness.
Diantha Brown is intelligent, determined, and protective of her independence. After her family loses its financial security, her position as a companion provides stability and allows her to care for someone else. But when her former brother-in-law threatens to blackmail her unless she agrees to marry him, she acts to protect both herself and the woman in her care. Deciding the only way to save herself and her charge is to make herself an undesirable bride, and for that she will need a man to ruin her, and she believes Simon is the perfect man for the job.
This was a warm, humorous story with wonderful characters and lots of supportive friends. The book touches on some serious issues, like grief, blackmail, dementia and personal freedom, but is saved from being a dark and heavy read by its lighter moments. That said, I would have liked stronger tension around the blackmail and more satisfying, on-page resolutions to the conflicts. If you are looking for a book that is historically accurate, this book is not for you, this is more what I would call “a contemporary in period dress”, but it is still an enjoyable read. The book has found family, blackmail, good friends, one warm love scene, and a happy ending. Overall, this was a good read, and I felt the author handled the sensitive subjects with compassion and respect, so while I can’t say I loved it, I am glad I read it. This is the third (and final?) book in the series, and while it could be read as a standalone, I would recommend reading the books in order.
*I am voluntarily leaving a review for a DRC/ALC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher/author. All opinions in this review are my own. *
Diantha Brown is intelligent, determined, and protective of her independence. After her family loses its financial security, her position as a companion provides stability and allows her to care for someone else. But when her former brother-in-law threatens to blackmail her unless she agrees to marry him, she acts to protect both herself and the woman in her care. Deciding the only way to save herself and her charge is to make herself an undesirable bride, and for that she will need a man to ruin her, and she believes Simon is the perfect man for the job.
This was a warm, humorous story with wonderful characters and lots of supportive friends. The book touches on some serious issues, like grief, blackmail, dementia and personal freedom, but is saved from being a dark and heavy read by its lighter moments. That said, I would have liked stronger tension around the blackmail and more satisfying, on-page resolutions to the conflicts. If you are looking for a book that is historically accurate, this book is not for you, this is more what I would call “a contemporary in period dress”, but it is still an enjoyable read. The book has found family, blackmail, good friends, one warm love scene, and a happy ending. Overall, this was a good read, and I felt the author handled the sensitive subjects with compassion and respect, so while I can’t say I loved it, I am glad I read it. This is the third (and final?) book in the series, and while it could be read as a standalone, I would recommend reading the books in order.
*I am voluntarily leaving a review for a DRC/ALC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher/author. All opinions in this review are my own. *
August 27, 2026
I didn’t realize this was next in a series. I haven’t read the others and this is the final one. Plot wise it was easy to jump in, but the relationship between the couple had been built up in previous books, so I missed getting invested in them. And they hardly share a scene for the first third of the book.
It might’ve been more entertaining if we didn’t know what Mr. Hill’s blackmail was in the beginning. The matter was easy to figure out, so the tension was missing throughout the story. A lot of page time was dedicated to characters from the other books, but since I didn’t read those, I struggled to care and wanted to get back to Simon and Dianthus. Between knowing the secret and realizing this series was meant to be read in order, I got bored, and I usually like a slow burn. And then there wasn’t much of a comeuppance for the villains, either. The subplots were handled off page, but I also never felt the chemistry between Simon and Dianthus.
Overall, the men’s trip was the focus, with Simon at the center, and there was no tension with the external conflicts and no chemistry between the couple. Maybe I’d feel different if I read first two books, but that shouldn’t have been necessary to get into this one.
I received an arc from NetGalley
It might’ve been more entertaining if we didn’t know what Mr. Hill’s blackmail was in the beginning. The matter was easy to figure out, so the tension was missing throughout the story. A lot of page time was dedicated to characters from the other books, but since I didn’t read those, I struggled to care and wanted to get back to Simon and Dianthus. Between knowing the secret and realizing this series was meant to be read in order, I got bored, and I usually like a slow burn. And then there wasn’t much of a comeuppance for the villains, either. The subplots were handled off page, but I also never felt the chemistry between Simon and Dianthus.
Overall, the men’s trip was the focus, with Simon at the center, and there was no tension with the external conflicts and no chemistry between the couple. Maybe I’d feel different if I read first two books, but that shouldn’t have been necessary to get into this one.
I received an arc from NetGalley
October 28, 2026
𝟰.𝟱⭐️𝗕𝗿𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗘𝘆𝗲𝗱 𝗘𝗮𝗿𝗹 (𝗘𝗮𝗿𝗹 𝗧𝗿𝗶𝗽 #𝟯) 𝗯𝘆 𝗝𝗲𝗻𝗻𝘆 𝗛𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗱𝗮𝘆.
“𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺𝘀𝗲𝗹𝘃𝗲𝘀. 𝗪𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝘆 𝗮 𝗺𝗮𝗻 ‘𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀’ 𝗮 𝘄𝗶𝗳𝗲, 𝗮𝘀 𝗶𝗳 𝘀𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮 𝗳𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝘆 𝗽𝗹𝘂𝗰𝗸 𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹. 𝗔 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗻 ‘𝗸𝗲𝗲𝗽𝘀’ 𝗮 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀, 𝗮𝘀 𝗶𝗳 𝘀𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗹 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝗰𝗮𝗴𝗲.”
This is the final book in this trilogy and Simon is the last man standing without a wife. Not that he is looking for one he has enough to deal with with his mother and work. Simon could be best described as quiet and devoted to his work. Being that he was the spare’s spare he never expected to be Earl, but here he is and he is devoted to it. But this year he won’t be sneaking any work with him on the trip. In fact the only thing he will be sneaking in is the novel in his pocket and a giant bag of lemons.
See Miss Brown has been lending him novels that she annotates herself so now he is quite taken with them. And she may have mentioned in passing she loved lemons so now he determined to work with the cook and bake anything and everything with lemon in it for her.
Times are changing, the ladies will be joining the men on part of their trip, with Miss Brown as she is the companion to the elder Lady Harcourt.
Diantha Brown has lost her family now find herself “on the shelf” meaning an older unmarried ladies. Her life as a companion is not the most exciting but she cares deeply for Lady Harcourt and makes the most of it. That is until someone from her past comes back to blackmail her and she enlists Simon in her plans to get out of it.
𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘮𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘭𝘰𝘶𝘥 & 𝘴𝘸𝘰𝘰𝘯. 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 “𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦”, 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘴𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘣𝘶𝘳𝘯 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘻𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘌𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘶𝘢𝘭 𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘱. 𝘚𝘸𝘪𝘱𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘮𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝟷&𝟸.
“𝗠𝘆 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘀. 𝗪𝗵𝗼 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗿𝗲𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗮 𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰?” “𝗜 𝗮𝗺 𝗯𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸, 𝗠𝗶𝘀𝘀 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻, 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗴𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝘂𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝗼𝗼𝗻𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗿 𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿, 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗹𝘆 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗮𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝘀.”
𝘛𝘦𝘤𝘩𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢𝘯 𝘌𝘢𝘳𝘭 𝘐 𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘑𝘦𝘯𝘯𝘺 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘶𝘴 𝘢𝘯 𝘏𝘌𝘈 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘖𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦.
Thank you to NetGalley, Kensington Publishing and the author Jenny Holiday for the advanced reading copy, all my opinions are my own.
𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄.• 𝗛𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲.• 𝗢𝘂𝘁 𝗡𝗼𝘄.
“𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺𝘀𝗲𝗹𝘃𝗲𝘀. 𝗪𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝘆 𝗮 𝗺𝗮𝗻 ‘𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀’ 𝗮 𝘄𝗶𝗳𝗲, 𝗮𝘀 𝗶𝗳 𝘀𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮 𝗳𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝘆 𝗽𝗹𝘂𝗰𝗸 𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹. 𝗔 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗻 ‘𝗸𝗲𝗲𝗽𝘀’ 𝗮 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀, 𝗮𝘀 𝗶𝗳 𝘀𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗹 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝗰𝗮𝗴𝗲.”
This is the final book in this trilogy and Simon is the last man standing without a wife. Not that he is looking for one he has enough to deal with with his mother and work. Simon could be best described as quiet and devoted to his work. Being that he was the spare’s spare he never expected to be Earl, but here he is and he is devoted to it. But this year he won’t be sneaking any work with him on the trip. In fact the only thing he will be sneaking in is the novel in his pocket and a giant bag of lemons.
See Miss Brown has been lending him novels that she annotates herself so now he is quite taken with them. And she may have mentioned in passing she loved lemons so now he determined to work with the cook and bake anything and everything with lemon in it for her.
Times are changing, the ladies will be joining the men on part of their trip, with Miss Brown as she is the companion to the elder Lady Harcourt.
Diantha Brown has lost her family now find herself “on the shelf” meaning an older unmarried ladies. Her life as a companion is not the most exciting but she cares deeply for Lady Harcourt and makes the most of it. That is until someone from her past comes back to blackmail her and she enlists Simon in her plans to get out of it.
𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘮𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘭𝘰𝘶𝘥 & 𝘴𝘸𝘰𝘰𝘯. 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 “𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦”, 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘴𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘣𝘶𝘳𝘯 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘻𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘌𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘶𝘢𝘭 𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘱. 𝘚𝘸𝘪𝘱𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘮𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝟷&𝟸.
“𝗠𝘆 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘀. 𝗪𝗵𝗼 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗿𝗲𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗮 𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰?” “𝗜 𝗮𝗺 𝗯𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸, 𝗠𝗶𝘀𝘀 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻, 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗴𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝘂𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝗼𝗼𝗻𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗿 𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿, 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗹𝘆 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗮𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝘀.”
𝘛𝘦𝘤𝘩𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢𝘯 𝘌𝘢𝘳𝘭 𝘐 𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘑𝘦𝘯𝘯𝘺 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘶𝘴 𝘢𝘯 𝘏𝘌𝘈 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘖𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦.
Thank you to NetGalley, Kensington Publishing and the author Jenny Holiday for the advanced reading copy, all my opinions are my own.
𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄.• 𝗛𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲.• 𝗢𝘂𝘁 𝗡𝗼𝘄.
October 25, 2026
Simon, Archie, and Effie are back for their annual Earls Trip: two weeks of bonding and merriment. However, things are a bit different since two of the three earls are married and Archie’s mom’s health continues to decline. So Simon suggests that all the ladies join them for the second week of the vacation. This includes Lady Harcourt’s companion, Miss Brown, someone that Simon cannot stop thinking about.
Diantha Brown has been given an ultimatum by her horrible former brother-in-law: marry him in six months time or he will expose scandalous secrets about Lady Harcourt. Determined to find a way out of marriage to anyone, Diantha asks Simon to give the appearance of ruining her and refusing to marry her. After Simon declines, Diantha must find another before it’s too late.
Brown-Eyed Earl is another wonderful tale in the Earls Trip trilogy. The bond between the three earls is special and unique. They share a genuine friendship and love which allows the trio to both laugh and cry together. To do anything for one another. And even though two of the earls have wives, it doesn’t lessen their connection, but rather gives each additional experience and perspective to share. I love how they have altered and morphed the Earls Trip to suit the changes in their lives, with Simon, the one who you assume would not want change, being the one that recommends the changes.
Simon has long held a fondness for Miss Brown. When they finally spend time alone, they realize they have much in common and truly enjoy spending time together. They both carry a lot of baggage, with difficult childhoods/growing up. It takes them a long time to open up and share their histories and truths with one another because of past hurts and disappointments. Luckily their friends help from behind the scenes. There are some moving moments, and I love how this author can be so silly and make me chuckle in one scene and then break my heart in the next.
While each book in the Earls Trip series is a standalone romance and story, I recommend reading them in order so you can witness and enjoy the deepening bonds which develop over the course of the three books. These historical romance tales are filled with unconventional men who love progressive women. Brown-Eyed Earl is a joyful story and a fitting cap to the series. However, I would love to get a book for Olive, so maybe the author can find another earl to join the group!
My Rating: B+/A-
Originally posted at That's What I'm Talking About
Review copy provided by Netgalley
Diantha Brown has been given an ultimatum by her horrible former brother-in-law: marry him in six months time or he will expose scandalous secrets about Lady Harcourt. Determined to find a way out of marriage to anyone, Diantha asks Simon to give the appearance of ruining her and refusing to marry her. After Simon declines, Diantha must find another before it’s too late.
Brown-Eyed Earl is another wonderful tale in the Earls Trip trilogy. The bond between the three earls is special and unique. They share a genuine friendship and love which allows the trio to both laugh and cry together. To do anything for one another. And even though two of the earls have wives, it doesn’t lessen their connection, but rather gives each additional experience and perspective to share. I love how they have altered and morphed the Earls Trip to suit the changes in their lives, with Simon, the one who you assume would not want change, being the one that recommends the changes.
Simon has long held a fondness for Miss Brown. When they finally spend time alone, they realize they have much in common and truly enjoy spending time together. They both carry a lot of baggage, with difficult childhoods/growing up. It takes them a long time to open up and share their histories and truths with one another because of past hurts and disappointments. Luckily their friends help from behind the scenes. There are some moving moments, and I love how this author can be so silly and make me chuckle in one scene and then break my heart in the next.
While each book in the Earls Trip series is a standalone romance and story, I recommend reading them in order so you can witness and enjoy the deepening bonds which develop over the course of the three books. These historical romance tales are filled with unconventional men who love progressive women. Brown-Eyed Earl is a joyful story and a fitting cap to the series. However, I would love to get a book for Olive, so maybe the author can find another earl to join the group!
My Rating: B+/A-
Originally posted at That's What I'm Talking About
Review copy provided by Netgalley
November 2, 2026
These are such “kick your heels and giggle” books. Simon is definitely the more somber/serious/proper of the Earls, but that’s a good match for Miss Brown. I’m hoping for one more book for Olive.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
5/5 Stars | Simon + Diantha 4eva
What I liked: Apparently my favorite microtrope is when an MMC reads books he borrows from an FMC and reads all the little notes she leaves and then PINES about it???? Who knew? Not me! I adore this special group of characters that Jenny Holiday has dreamed up--all of their quirks and the way they care for each other. This is such precious found family--something I don't always see done so well in a regency romance. I also love the depth of character that Holiday always has, balanced with the perfect amount of banter and shenanigans. Highly recommend this one if you're looking for a historical romcom!
What I didn't like: This is the last earl???? What am I supposed to do now? How are there not more earls for the trips? I weep.
Thank you to Kensington Publishing and NetGalley for the copy of this book!
What I liked: Apparently my favorite microtrope is when an MMC reads books he borrows from an FMC and reads all the little notes she leaves and then PINES about it???? Who knew? Not me! I adore this special group of characters that Jenny Holiday has dreamed up--all of their quirks and the way they care for each other. This is such precious found family--something I don't always see done so well in a regency romance. I also love the depth of character that Holiday always has, balanced with the perfect amount of banter and shenanigans. Highly recommend this one if you're looking for a historical romcom!
What I didn't like: This is the last earl???? What am I supposed to do now? How are there not more earls for the trips? I weep.
Thank you to Kensington Publishing and NetGalley for the copy of this book!
August 7, 2026
Thank you to Kensington Publishing & NetGalley for a change to read this ARC!
Unfortunately this book didn't really work for me - exhibit A: it took me nearly a month to get through it. I felt less than zero chemistry between Diantha & Simon, and constantly felt like their conversations were leading nowhere. Intimacy scenes felt completely out of left field (not great for a romance novel) as I just didn't feel any emotion behind them!
Ultimately not for me, but some may still enjoy this!
Unfortunately this book didn't really work for me - exhibit A: it took me nearly a month to get through it. I felt less than zero chemistry between Diantha & Simon, and constantly felt like their conversations were leading nowhere. Intimacy scenes felt completely out of left field (not great for a romance novel) as I just didn't feel any emotion behind them!
Ultimately not for me, but some may still enjoy this!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
The cute cover is misleading.
If you're hoping for something light and cozy, this is not it. Well, it is, but it comes with a heavy dose of emotional intensity.
This is the third, and final, book in a series, and unlike many series, each book gets better and better. I really enjoyed Earl's Trip. Manic Pixie Dream Earl was absolutely incredible. The way that the story is about someone truly coming to accept themselves, shape their life to fit, and find their person. It's so hopeful, warm, and satisfying.
I'm not saying that Brown-Eyes Earl isn't those things. It's more. The first two books gave Simon the most character development time, which made the story more compelling simply because by this third book, we know Simon deeply.
So by the time we get here, we have a feeling of knowing him.
Like the other two books, it turns out he (as the main character) has hidden depths, that are only brought out in emotionally fraught situations. When the option is to remain the same or step outside of habits and default emotional responses, Simon (reluctantly) makes the changes, because the end result is worth it.
While this is ostensibly a light and cozy Regency romance, it is incredibly slow in its burning. The deepening of the relationship between Diantha and Simon starts months before the main storyline, and is intense and fraught all on its own.
Then a forced proximity situation (masterminded by the delightful Olive Morgan), becomes the catalyst that gives Simon and Diantha the chance to drop their walls. And they both have very strong walls, although for different reasons.
This is absolutely a lovely romance with a happily ever after. You will tear up multiple times. You will get very attached to Simon and Diantha, as well as the other characters in the series. There are more serious issues that are addressed in a way that reminds me of The Gilded Rose by Joanna Shupe.
Diantha is in a very serious situation, and she literally has no way out. She is literally powerless as a result of the society she lives in. The book addresses how her position cages her in, in a very literal sense (without being physical bars).
Simon comes to many realizations as to Diantha's position and circumstances through conversations with his friends. So much of the character growth comes from the found family of the three main male characters of the series: Archie, Effie, and Simon. Their deep friendship is the foundation of all three love stories.
One of the main criterion for a 5 star rating from me is that the book made me FEEL. And Brown-Eyed Earl made me feel so much. It has left an impression that will stay with me for a long time. I'm glad that I originally picked up Earl's Trip, which was originally because I thought my best friend (found family sister) would like it. I'm grateful for the level of emotional engagement the whole series gave me, most of all in this final book.
I received an advance reader copy of this book. This review and opinions are my own.
If you're hoping for something light and cozy, this is not it. Well, it is, but it comes with a heavy dose of emotional intensity.
This is the third, and final, book in a series, and unlike many series, each book gets better and better. I really enjoyed Earl's Trip. Manic Pixie Dream Earl was absolutely incredible. The way that the story is about someone truly coming to accept themselves, shape their life to fit, and find their person. It's so hopeful, warm, and satisfying.
I'm not saying that Brown-Eyes Earl isn't those things. It's more. The first two books gave Simon the most character development time, which made the story more compelling simply because by this third book, we know Simon deeply.
So by the time we get here, we have a feeling of knowing him.
Like the other two books, it turns out he (as the main character) has hidden depths, that are only brought out in emotionally fraught situations. When the option is to remain the same or step outside of habits and default emotional responses, Simon (reluctantly) makes the changes, because the end result is worth it.
While this is ostensibly a light and cozy Regency romance, it is incredibly slow in its burning. The deepening of the relationship between Diantha and Simon starts months before the main storyline, and is intense and fraught all on its own.
Then a forced proximity situation (masterminded by the delightful Olive Morgan), becomes the catalyst that gives Simon and Diantha the chance to drop their walls. And they both have very strong walls, although for different reasons.
This is absolutely a lovely romance with a happily ever after. You will tear up multiple times. You will get very attached to Simon and Diantha, as well as the other characters in the series. There are more serious issues that are addressed in a way that reminds me of The Gilded Rose by Joanna Shupe.
Diantha is in a very serious situation, and she literally has no way out. She is literally powerless as a result of the society she lives in. The book addresses how her position cages her in, in a very literal sense (without being physical bars).
Simon comes to many realizations as to Diantha's position and circumstances through conversations with his friends. So much of the character growth comes from the found family of the three main male characters of the series: Archie, Effie, and Simon. Their deep friendship is the foundation of all three love stories.
One of the main criterion for a 5 star rating from me is that the book made me FEEL. And Brown-Eyed Earl made me feel so much. It has left an impression that will stay with me for a long time. I'm glad that I originally picked up Earl's Trip, which was originally because I thought my best friend (found family sister) would like it. I'm grateful for the level of emotional engagement the whole series gave me, most of all in this final book.
I received an advance reader copy of this book. This review and opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thank you to NetGalley, Kensington Publishing, and Jenny Holiday for the free ARC I received in exchange for my honest review.
Minus two stars for missing the heart of the series, plus one star for a well done trope bait-and-switch.
This is the third entry in the the "Earls' Trip" series with the focus on the final earl, Simon Courtenay, aka the Earl of Marsden, and his budding romantic relationship with Miss Diantha Brown, the ladies companion to the Dowager Countess of Harcourt who is also the mother of Archie, another of the earls. The only new characters in this book are the staff at Archie's hunting seat, provisionally named Gurglewood. While it isn't necessary to have read the first two books, there will be spoilers if you read out of order.
As most romance novels are, this follows a specific narrative formula for a friends to lovers relationship with a forced proximity trope. As I started reading, it seemed as though we were heading into a fake relationship story but that was, to my relief, a fake-out itself! This is something that I have enjoyed about Holiday's books, though the initial meetings sometimes strain belief, the relationships always seem to grow realistically from there.
This specific love story has been hinted at since the first book, so it was no surprise to find Simon exploring his feelings for Miss Brown. What was less expected was the obliviousness of the man toward the feelings that had been growing for over a year. For a series that takes the idea of masculine emotional connection so seriously, it's is hard to understand why they resist sharing their feelings with each other. Even stranger, Archie and Effie barely notice the change in their friend or the increasing amounts of time he spends with the genteely impoverished Diantha. It makes sense that Lady Harcourt, suffering from dementia, doesn't notice what is happening literally under her nose, but the only one who picks up on anything is Archie's sister-in-law Olive. The implication seems to be that when individuals couple off, they become so involved in their relationships that their friendships fall to the wayside. While often true, this also isn't in keeping with the core of enduring male friendships.
Since this is a romance, the couple do eventually recognize their feelings for each other, overcome all obstacles, and find their HEA. As Simon was the last of the earls, this was presumably the final installment in this series. While this novel had it's flaws, it is still a humorous and capably written tale that makes for good low-stakes entertainment for those that enjoy this genre and I find myself hoping for one more to keep Olive from being a perpetual seventh wheel.
Minus two stars for missing the heart of the series, plus one star for a well done trope bait-and-switch.
This is the third entry in the the "Earls' Trip" series with the focus on the final earl, Simon Courtenay, aka the Earl of Marsden, and his budding romantic relationship with Miss Diantha Brown, the ladies companion to the Dowager Countess of Harcourt who is also the mother of Archie, another of the earls. The only new characters in this book are the staff at Archie's hunting seat, provisionally named Gurglewood. While it isn't necessary to have read the first two books, there will be spoilers if you read out of order.
As most romance novels are, this follows a specific narrative formula for a friends to lovers relationship with a forced proximity trope. As I started reading, it seemed as though we were heading into a fake relationship story but that was, to my relief, a fake-out itself! This is something that I have enjoyed about Holiday's books, though the initial meetings sometimes strain belief, the relationships always seem to grow realistically from there.
This specific love story has been hinted at since the first book, so it was no surprise to find Simon exploring his feelings for Miss Brown. What was less expected was the obliviousness of the man toward the feelings that had been growing for over a year. For a series that takes the idea of masculine emotional connection so seriously, it's is hard to understand why they resist sharing their feelings with each other. Even stranger, Archie and Effie barely notice the change in their friend or the increasing amounts of time he spends with the genteely impoverished Diantha. It makes sense that Lady Harcourt, suffering from dementia, doesn't notice what is happening literally under her nose, but the only one who picks up on anything is Archie's sister-in-law Olive. The implication seems to be that when individuals couple off, they become so involved in their relationships that their friendships fall to the wayside. While often true, this also isn't in keeping with the core of enduring male friendships.
Since this is a romance, the couple do eventually recognize their feelings for each other, overcome all obstacles, and find their HEA. As Simon was the last of the earls, this was presumably the final installment in this series. While this novel had it's flaws, it is still a humorous and capably written tale that makes for good low-stakes entertainment for those that enjoy this genre and I find myself hoping for one more to keep Olive from being a perpetual seventh wheel.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Brown-Eyed Earl is a very sweet Regency romance with a slow-paced kind of romance borne from a love of discussing books. The story felt very Northanger Abbey-esque with all of the contemporary book references, and the found family elements continue to be very strong in this series.
Like the first and second books, the narrative switches between the two characters' POVs across the story. I very much liked both the FMC and MMC, so I didn't mind switching between the two. The FMC has a lovely determined strike despite being such a quiet and stereotypically bookish person, and she certainly doesn't fit into the wallpaper spinster mold. The MMC is a long-suffering dutiful son who has been overlooked by his own family and who was very endearing. (He reminded me of Henry Mortimer from Alexandra Vasti's The Halifax Hellions.) These two have a very believable romance built by disagreements over book themes and sharing their own books, and I had fun reading their discussions. The supporting characters had a large hand in this book, and they were all very supportive to the main couple.
Holiday is a solid writer, and it wasn't difficult to traverse this installment quickly. There were some repetitive bits of the main characters circling each other before they got together, but I enjoyed most of it. Also like with the first two books, Holiday handles serious topics in an engaging and enjoyable way, which is a tough line to walk. Lastly, I don't think the conclusion really tied up the conflict of this book, so I did feel like I was missing a chapter or two, but I was still content with the ending.
This is the third in the series, and you need not have read the first two, but there are copious references to the preceding couples and going ons of the first books. It's been over a year since I read the first two, so I didn't really remember enough to appreciate the references in this one. I rated the first book 3 stars and the second book 4 stars, and I think I do slightly prefer the second book over this one. This whole series has been very fun and offbeat for the historical romance genre. I imagine this is the conclusion of the series as this is the third and final member of the earl's trip, but I could see other characters getting their own stories.
This book has a lot of discussion of infertility and loss of children (neither of which relating to the FMC) as well as parental abuse, loss of siblings, dementia, and domestic abuse. If you liked the earlier books in this series or you are looking for a more modern Regency romance, I think you will enjoy this one! I look forward to reading more by Jenny Holiday.
Thank you, Kensington Publishing, for the arc!
Like the first and second books, the narrative switches between the two characters' POVs across the story. I very much liked both the FMC and MMC, so I didn't mind switching between the two. The FMC has a lovely determined strike despite being such a quiet and stereotypically bookish person, and she certainly doesn't fit into the wallpaper spinster mold. The MMC is a long-suffering dutiful son who has been overlooked by his own family and who was very endearing. (He reminded me of Henry Mortimer from Alexandra Vasti's The Halifax Hellions.) These two have a very believable romance built by disagreements over book themes and sharing their own books, and I had fun reading their discussions. The supporting characters had a large hand in this book, and they were all very supportive to the main couple.
Holiday is a solid writer, and it wasn't difficult to traverse this installment quickly. There were some repetitive bits of the main characters circling each other before they got together, but I enjoyed most of it. Also like with the first two books, Holiday handles serious topics in an engaging and enjoyable way, which is a tough line to walk. Lastly, I don't think the conclusion really tied up the conflict of this book, so I did feel like I was missing a chapter or two, but I was still content with the ending.
This is the third in the series, and you need not have read the first two, but there are copious references to the preceding couples and going ons of the first books. It's been over a year since I read the first two, so I didn't really remember enough to appreciate the references in this one. I rated the first book 3 stars and the second book 4 stars, and I think I do slightly prefer the second book over this one. This whole series has been very fun and offbeat for the historical romance genre. I imagine this is the conclusion of the series as this is the third and final member of the earl's trip, but I could see other characters getting their own stories.
This book has a lot of discussion of infertility and loss of children (neither of which relating to the FMC) as well as parental abuse, loss of siblings, dementia, and domestic abuse. If you liked the earlier books in this series or you are looking for a more modern Regency romance, I think you will enjoy this one! I look forward to reading more by Jenny Holiday.
Thank you, Kensington Publishing, for the arc!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Brown-Eyed Earl is the delightful conclusion to the Earls Trip series, delivering a slow-burn romance that celebrates friendship, vulnerability, and intellectual connection. Simon Courteney, the scholarly and dependable Earl of Marsden, has long harbored quiet feelings for Miss Diantha Brown, companion to his friend's mother. When Diantha faces blackmail and an unwanted forced marriage, she devises a shocking plan to escape her fate. Though Simon initially refuses her indecent proposal, circumstances bring them together during an "Earls-plus-girls" trip, where their bond deepens through starlit conversations, shared literary passions, and genuine emotional intimacy. Holiday masterfully balances weighty themes—including dementia, grief, and emotional abuse—with warmth and humor. The character development is exceptional, revealing two lonely souls who find solace and strength in each other. While some external conflicts resolve off-page, the focus remains firmly on Simon and Diantha's earned, authentic connection. The result is a heartfelt, thoroughly satisfying romance that rewards readers' patience with a deeply moving happily-ever-after.
I have loved this entire series and the Brown-Eyed Earl is a great conclusion that honors genre traditions while embracing modern sensibilities. The Regency setting provides elegant atmosphere, yet the characters' forward-thinking values and emotional depth feel remarkably contemporary and relatable. The novel celebrates two bookish protagonists whose romance unfolds through literary discussions and philosophical conversations. A treat for this librarian who enjoys intelligent banter and shared intellectual passions in couples. The emphasis on found family, male vulnerability, and genuine friendship adds emotional richness to this story. Most compellingly, the slow-burn friends-to-lovers arc, forced proximity, and house-party setting deliver everything romance readers crave, while the thoughtful characterization and earned happily-ever-after are totally satisfying. I love the idea of a annual friends trip (or Earls trip). While this series is super enjoyable. It can be read as a standalone. Definite recommendation to add it to your list of books to read.
Thanks to Kensington Publishing and NetGalley for an ARC of this book. Its planned pub date is October 27, 2026.
https://romancelibrarian88.blogspot.c...
I have loved this entire series and the Brown-Eyed Earl is a great conclusion that honors genre traditions while embracing modern sensibilities. The Regency setting provides elegant atmosphere, yet the characters' forward-thinking values and emotional depth feel remarkably contemporary and relatable. The novel celebrates two bookish protagonists whose romance unfolds through literary discussions and philosophical conversations. A treat for this librarian who enjoys intelligent banter and shared intellectual passions in couples. The emphasis on found family, male vulnerability, and genuine friendship adds emotional richness to this story. Most compellingly, the slow-burn friends-to-lovers arc, forced proximity, and house-party setting deliver everything romance readers crave, while the thoughtful characterization and earned happily-ever-after are totally satisfying. I love the idea of a annual friends trip (or Earls trip). While this series is super enjoyable. It can be read as a standalone. Definite recommendation to add it to your list of books to read.
Thanks to Kensington Publishing and NetGalley for an ARC of this book. Its planned pub date is October 27, 2026.
https://romancelibrarian88.blogspot.c...
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Brown-Eyed Earl is a sweet, not quite true to the times Regency romance. The earl of the book’s title, Simon, has a terrible mother, and for this reason he doesn’t want to marry, at least not until his mother is dead. His twin brothers died tragically and he, the “spare spare,” inherited the title. The heroine, Diantha, is the daughter of a gentleman – a gentleman who ruined the family through his gambling and left her without resources. She serves as companion to one of her mother’s old friends, who is suffering from dementia.
Three earls, tight friends, take an Earl’s Trip annually. This year, since two of them have married, they decide to include their wives, one sister-in-law, and one mother with her paid companion. The reason for Diantha becoming closer to Simon (her brother-in-law is blackmailing her into marrying him after his wife’s death) is contrived, but I was able to put aside my disbelief.
The friendship between the three earls is charming. The term “found family” is used in chapter 1; while this does describe the relationship of the earls, the term seemed jarring for 1823. Diantha also dreams of a cottage with bird feeders? Which I think were not a thing in 1823. I enjoyed Simon’s dilemma over his mother being a dowager, his brother’s widow being a dowager, and if he marries, there will be three Lady Marsdens.
(Some spoilers follow.) The relationship between Simon and Diantha is mostly of the slow burn variety, although there is a bit of deliberate sex and conversation about it that is definitely not of the times. Sex between unmarried people of the upper class was a huge risk for the woman, and any book that presents it as an equal risk for both doesn’t ring true (especially when the man is an earl and the woman a servant).
Brown-Eyed Earl is the third book in the series, and I haven’t read the first two. I kind of wish I had. While not absolutely necessary, I feel like I would have known the many characters better if I’d read the first two books. Still, I enjoyed the friendship and the romance. If you enjoy reading historical romance with a bit of sex that is not quite true to the times but offers a sweet happy ending, you might enjoy Brown-Eyed Earl.
Although I probably won’t go back and read books 1 and 2, I would read a book about side character Olive if one is written. I read an advance reader copy of Brown-Eyed Earl from Netgalley.
Three earls, tight friends, take an Earl’s Trip annually. This year, since two of them have married, they decide to include their wives, one sister-in-law, and one mother with her paid companion. The reason for Diantha becoming closer to Simon (her brother-in-law is blackmailing her into marrying him after his wife’s death) is contrived, but I was able to put aside my disbelief.
The friendship between the three earls is charming. The term “found family” is used in chapter 1; while this does describe the relationship of the earls, the term seemed jarring for 1823. Diantha also dreams of a cottage with bird feeders? Which I think were not a thing in 1823. I enjoyed Simon’s dilemma over his mother being a dowager, his brother’s widow being a dowager, and if he marries, there will be three Lady Marsdens.
(Some spoilers follow.) The relationship between Simon and Diantha is mostly of the slow burn variety, although there is a bit of deliberate sex and conversation about it that is definitely not of the times. Sex between unmarried people of the upper class was a huge risk for the woman, and any book that presents it as an equal risk for both doesn’t ring true (especially when the man is an earl and the woman a servant).
Brown-Eyed Earl is the third book in the series, and I haven’t read the first two. I kind of wish I had. While not absolutely necessary, I feel like I would have known the many characters better if I’d read the first two books. Still, I enjoyed the friendship and the romance. If you enjoy reading historical romance with a bit of sex that is not quite true to the times but offers a sweet happy ending, you might enjoy Brown-Eyed Earl.
Although I probably won’t go back and read books 1 and 2, I would read a book about side character Olive if one is written. I read an advance reader copy of Brown-Eyed Earl from Netgalley.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
The Brown-Eyed Earl is part 3 of a series. However, it can be read as a standalone. I personally did not read the other two books and was not aware it was part of a series when requesting it from NetGalley. However, it wasn't too much of a bother, other than the fact that most of the characters are already in some sort of relationship.
The book start with Diantha getting blackmailed into a marriage she does not want. She goes to Simon, an book friend who she has been exchanging reads with, in hopes that he would help ruin her so she doesn't have to go through with the marriage. Simon rejects the idea as he is not looking to marry and does not want this to be an excuse for his mother to force him into a marriage.
At the same time, the two of them are also going on a trip with the Simon's friends, Archie and Effie. Diantha is invited because she works under Archie and takes care of his mom who has dementia. Little do they know that their relationship is going to take a turn on this year's Earl-plus-ladies trip.
The book was a very fun and easy read. I love how it's historical fiction, but Holiday does not throw a bunch of regency era terms that are hard to understand. The characters all seem quite supportive of each other. I love how the Earls seem to have each other's back at all times.
Diantha also seems to be very well educated, even if she's from a family who went bankrupt. The fact that she's also a reader with good taste is a bonus for me. She is very headstrong and sometimes I wish I could shake her and tell her it's ok to lean on others sometimes. Similarly, I want to shake Simon and also tell him that it's ok to lean on his friends sometimes too. Everyone seems to know his troubles with his mother. I personally think he should have cut her off ages ago, but he seems way too nice/filial to do so. The two of them are perfect for each other - one's parents are no longer alive, and the other has a mom that he really should care less about.
Of course, like any other fiction, this book may seem a little unrealistic at times. However, I think that's the beauty of fiction. As long as it makes sense in the story, I could really care less if it's 100% historically accurate.
The book start with Diantha getting blackmailed into a marriage she does not want. She goes to Simon, an book friend who she has been exchanging reads with, in hopes that he would help ruin her so she doesn't have to go through with the marriage. Simon rejects the idea as he is not looking to marry and does not want this to be an excuse for his mother to force him into a marriage.
At the same time, the two of them are also going on a trip with the Simon's friends, Archie and Effie. Diantha is invited because she works under Archie and takes care of his mom who has dementia. Little do they know that their relationship is going to take a turn on this year's Earl-plus-ladies trip.
The book was a very fun and easy read. I love how it's historical fiction, but Holiday does not throw a bunch of regency era terms that are hard to understand. The characters all seem quite supportive of each other. I love how the Earls seem to have each other's back at all times.
Diantha also seems to be very well educated, even if she's from a family who went bankrupt. The fact that she's also a reader with good taste is a bonus for me. She is very headstrong and sometimes I wish I could shake her and tell her it's ok to lean on others sometimes. Similarly, I want to shake Simon and also tell him that it's ok to lean on his friends sometimes too. Everyone seems to know his troubles with his mother. I personally think he should have cut her off ages ago, but he seems way too nice/filial to do so. The two of them are perfect for each other - one's parents are no longer alive, and the other has a mom that he really should care less about.
Of course, like any other fiction, this book may seem a little unrealistic at times. However, I think that's the beauty of fiction. As long as it makes sense in the story, I could really care less if it's 100% historically accurate.
October 28, 2026
Don't let that adorable cover fool you. If you're expecting a fluffy Regency romance with charming Earls and witty banter, you're not entirely wrong. But this book has some emotional baggage to unpack.
Brown-Eyed Earl is the third and final book in Jenny Holiday's Earls Trip series, and can we appreciate a series that actually gets better with each book? I enjoyed Earls’ Trip, loved Manic Pixie Dream Earl, and this one was my favourite.
What makes Simon's story so compelling is that we've already spent two books getting to know him. Our quiet, scholarly, emotionally reserved Earl has apparently been stockpiling his feelings for three entire books. Sir, we have some work to do.
Enter Diantha, a woman whose carefully constructed life is threatened by circumstances beyond her control. Her situation highlights just how powerless women could be in Regency society. She doesn't really have a choice, and I was furious on her behalf.
Their romance is a wonderfully slow burn, built on books, friendship, and two people who would apparently rather do anything than discuss their feelings. Thankfully, Olive Morgan is available for some spectacular meddling. Someone had to intervene.
I particularly appreciated that Simon's growth didn't involve becoming a completely different person. He had to confront his own habits and learn how to support Diantha without making decisions for her.
But the real heart of this series is the friendship between Archie, Effie, and Simon. Three men who support one another, have difficult conversations, and occasionally tell each other when they're being idiots. Emotional intelligence AND accountability? In Regency England? Someone alert the authorities.
I laughed, I got teary, and I became far too invested in the emotional development of a fictional Earl.
A fitting conclusion to a series that offered far more emotional depth than those cute covers suggested. Jenny Holiday, you've set some rather unreasonable expectations for fictional men.
A big thank you to Jenny Holiday, Kensington Publishing, and NetGalley for the advance reading copy! Brown-Eyed Earl officially hit shelves on October 27, 2026!
Brown-Eyed Earl is the third and final book in Jenny Holiday's Earls Trip series, and can we appreciate a series that actually gets better with each book? I enjoyed Earls’ Trip, loved Manic Pixie Dream Earl, and this one was my favourite.
What makes Simon's story so compelling is that we've already spent two books getting to know him. Our quiet, scholarly, emotionally reserved Earl has apparently been stockpiling his feelings for three entire books. Sir, we have some work to do.
Enter Diantha, a woman whose carefully constructed life is threatened by circumstances beyond her control. Her situation highlights just how powerless women could be in Regency society. She doesn't really have a choice, and I was furious on her behalf.
Their romance is a wonderfully slow burn, built on books, friendship, and two people who would apparently rather do anything than discuss their feelings. Thankfully, Olive Morgan is available for some spectacular meddling. Someone had to intervene.
I particularly appreciated that Simon's growth didn't involve becoming a completely different person. He had to confront his own habits and learn how to support Diantha without making decisions for her.
But the real heart of this series is the friendship between Archie, Effie, and Simon. Three men who support one another, have difficult conversations, and occasionally tell each other when they're being idiots. Emotional intelligence AND accountability? In Regency England? Someone alert the authorities.
I laughed, I got teary, and I became far too invested in the emotional development of a fictional Earl.
A fitting conclusion to a series that offered far more emotional depth than those cute covers suggested. Jenny Holiday, you've set some rather unreasonable expectations for fictional men.
A big thank you to Jenny Holiday, Kensington Publishing, and NetGalley for the advance reading copy! Brown-Eyed Earl officially hit shelves on October 27, 2026!
November 2, 2026
This series has been such a mixed bag for me. On the one hand, I adore the characters and always enjoy the storylines. Yet, I find their pacing to be uneven, which leads to a slow read for me. Part of that problem had to do with the main characters not spending as much time together as I would want. While Simon and Diantha had quite a few chapters apart, it seemed to me they shared more time on page than the previous couples. That alone had me enjoying this book more than the previous two.
As open-minded and feminist as this friend group is, they are still men who were raised with title and money. There are things that just do not occur to them until they are pointed out. Such as, what happens to a lady’s companion when the lady passes on? Someone who has been an integral part of a family is suddenly without a home. Sometimes even without a family. These are things Diantha has to think of often. She loves the family she works for (Simon’s best friend’s mother with dementia), but she is neither servant nor family.
I love the care Simon takes with Diantha, but also with his widowed sister-in-law, and all of the women in his orbit. He is kind and patient. Simon has a sharp mind and a soft heart. The perfect combination. And the perfect fit for Diantha’s personality. I love these two together. They bring a sense of comfort to each other. Their interest don’t just align; they complement each other.
The way this found family works together to help each other in all aspects of life is beautiful. Diantha doesn’t realize how much she can lean on them as, like I mentioned, she’s in that in-between of servant and family. I knew in the long run, her woes would be handled with the help of her friends.
I’m going to assume this is the last book in this series, as the gentlemen who are the core group of the “Earls Trip” have all found their HEAs. There are a couple more characters that seem primed for their own stories, so I’m thinking there could be a spin-off series in the future.
**I received an ARC of this book courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and given freely. **
As open-minded and feminist as this friend group is, they are still men who were raised with title and money. There are things that just do not occur to them until they are pointed out. Such as, what happens to a lady’s companion when the lady passes on? Someone who has been an integral part of a family is suddenly without a home. Sometimes even without a family. These are things Diantha has to think of often. She loves the family she works for (Simon’s best friend’s mother with dementia), but she is neither servant nor family.
I love the care Simon takes with Diantha, but also with his widowed sister-in-law, and all of the women in his orbit. He is kind and patient. Simon has a sharp mind and a soft heart. The perfect combination. And the perfect fit for Diantha’s personality. I love these two together. They bring a sense of comfort to each other. Their interest don’t just align; they complement each other.
The way this found family works together to help each other in all aspects of life is beautiful. Diantha doesn’t realize how much she can lean on them as, like I mentioned, she’s in that in-between of servant and family. I knew in the long run, her woes would be handled with the help of her friends.
I’m going to assume this is the last book in this series, as the gentlemen who are the core group of the “Earls Trip” have all found their HEAs. There are a couple more characters that seem primed for their own stories, so I’m thinking there could be a spin-off series in the future.
**I received an ARC of this book courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and given freely. **
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thank-you to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for my arc copy of this book!
4⭐️
I had an overall fun time with this book. It was a 3 star for most of the book, but the ending was so good it bumped it up to a 4 star.
I enjoyed the writing style. I thought the author did a great job of reflecting the time period that this is set in. The verbiage the author chose and the actions of the characters were well representative of the time. The writing also flowed nicely and was easy to read. I read several chapters in what felt like minutes.
I enjoyed the characters. I thought they were fun. They had great personalities; even the supporting characters. I felt like we got to know every single character. I appreciated how the author wrote the elder Mrs. Harcourt and the struggles she was going through. As someone who has experience with someone suffering with dementia, I thought this was a touching piece to add to the story. Touching because it shows what the family members have to go through while showing how they care for their loved one.
The ending of the story was great. It had me kicking my feet and giggling. The grand romantic gesture was absolutely worth it and tied the whole book together.
I did think that this book was a bit lacking. I was lacking not only action to give excitement, but also the third act conflict. The third act conflict we got is not what I would classify as a third act conflict. I was sincerely hoping that Mr. Hill would come and try something crazy and Simon would have to jump in and save the day. What we got was just too mellow and didn’t build up as much romantic tension as I would have liked.
I also wasn’t as big of a fan of how many chapters were from Simon’s perspective. I was hoping it would be more equally balanced between Simon and Diantha.
Overall, this was a well written book. There were a couple of spelling errors, but for the most part everything flowed nicely and was period appropriate. I liked this book enough to want to read the first two books of the series. It was a fun time with high quality writing!
4⭐️
I had an overall fun time with this book. It was a 3 star for most of the book, but the ending was so good it bumped it up to a 4 star.
I enjoyed the writing style. I thought the author did a great job of reflecting the time period that this is set in. The verbiage the author chose and the actions of the characters were well representative of the time. The writing also flowed nicely and was easy to read. I read several chapters in what felt like minutes.
I enjoyed the characters. I thought they were fun. They had great personalities; even the supporting characters. I felt like we got to know every single character. I appreciated how the author wrote the elder Mrs. Harcourt and the struggles she was going through. As someone who has experience with someone suffering with dementia, I thought this was a touching piece to add to the story. Touching because it shows what the family members have to go through while showing how they care for their loved one.
The ending of the story was great. It had me kicking my feet and giggling. The grand romantic gesture was absolutely worth it and tied the whole book together.
I did think that this book was a bit lacking. I was lacking not only action to give excitement, but also the third act conflict. The third act conflict we got is not what I would classify as a third act conflict. I was sincerely hoping that Mr. Hill would come and try something crazy and Simon would have to jump in and save the day. What we got was just too mellow and didn’t build up as much romantic tension as I would have liked.
I also wasn’t as big of a fan of how many chapters were from Simon’s perspective. I was hoping it would be more equally balanced between Simon and Diantha.
Overall, this was a well written book. There were a couple of spelling errors, but for the most part everything flowed nicely and was period appropriate. I liked this book enough to want to read the first two books of the series. It was a fun time with high quality writing!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Brown Eyed Earl is Book 3 in the Earls Trip series of irreverent Regency romances and it is a joy! Three young aristocrats (Effie, Archie and Simon) who bonded at school, have a trip together every year where they leave their responsibilities (and their awful families) behind and just enjoy each other’s company. The third book is about Simon Courteney, a reluctant Earl and diligent parliamentarian who is missing out on his own life because of his awful mother and tragic family background. The other two Earls, Effie and Archie, are now married and it’s decided that the wives will joins them for the second week of Earls Trip, along with Archie’s mother and her companion, Miss Brown (Diantha). Simon and Diantha have been swapping books and he is starting to notice her, while Diantha is seeing the good in Simon. They are lonely and awkward and learning to trust each other, with a shared kindness and sensibility they both feel. Meantime the ongoing bromance between the Earls is so much fun.
Diantha and Simon’s slow burn is delightful to read – for much of the trip Simon doesn’t even know Diantha’s given name, but night swims, comets, lemon cakes and banter bring them closer and their chemistry is terrific. Even so, there are real problems for both of them: Simon’s mother is worse than toxic, and Diantha is being blackmailed.
Brown Eyed Earl is completely unserious (and unapologetically modern), and yet there is an emotional core around parental neglect and the very few options that unmarried (and poor) women had in the Regency. At times I struggled to distinguish between the Earls, and be warned, some of the idiom is very recent – the Earls Trip novels are not for purists! It is lovely fun though, with endearing characters falling in love and enough comeuppance to make for a satisfying finish.
Thank you Jenny Holiday and Kensington Publishing for the ARC. Opinions are my own.
Review also on SpoonerReads.
Diantha and Simon’s slow burn is delightful to read – for much of the trip Simon doesn’t even know Diantha’s given name, but night swims, comets, lemon cakes and banter bring them closer and their chemistry is terrific. Even so, there are real problems for both of them: Simon’s mother is worse than toxic, and Diantha is being blackmailed.
Brown Eyed Earl is completely unserious (and unapologetically modern), and yet there is an emotional core around parental neglect and the very few options that unmarried (and poor) women had in the Regency. At times I struggled to distinguish between the Earls, and be warned, some of the idiom is very recent – the Earls Trip novels are not for purists! It is lovely fun though, with endearing characters falling in love and enough comeuppance to make for a satisfying finish.
Thank you Jenny Holiday and Kensington Publishing for the ARC. Opinions are my own.
Review also on SpoonerReads.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thank you NetGalley for this ARC!
Everyone knows I adore this series and Simon’s story is no exception. He’s been a steadfast presence in the first two books, hinting at his loneliness and his devotion to his responsibilities but also something bubbling - sorry gurgling - underneath. Diantha is not dissimilar, occupied with duties and loneliness of a different kind. Before the events of the book these 2 are already drawn together by books, and being thrown together (or rather Simon’s subtle manipulations led them to be in the same place for a week) their attraction naturally spikes. I will say I do not think the initial premise of Diantha’s ruination or even Simon’s relationship with his mother feel on-page enough for this book. I would have liked for some of those resolutions to be less internal - because the book starts out very external and is externally resolved at the end too so it feels a bit like an afterthought when we hear that some of the villainy is handled off-page. The other thing that kept me from rating this a 5 star is not feeling much of Archie and Effie’s presence in the book until the very end - I think the boys have always played a role in helping their friend figure stuff out so their absence was felt.
Whenever Simon and Diantha were together however I felt like the book really shined and you could see the heat and familiarity and deep connection between these 2 people who have been living a sort of half life for much too long. The part with the yellow in the epilogue made me tear up a bit! Since this is essentially the finale I also want to say I love how letters and correspondence were a running theme in this series (lapse of, excess of, and lack of) and how nature and its miraculousness and power are very much part of these romances. I also love the treatise on liberation and captivity that is noted throughout the series.
I do hope Olive gets a HEA - she is a real scene stealer in every book!
Everyone knows I adore this series and Simon’s story is no exception. He’s been a steadfast presence in the first two books, hinting at his loneliness and his devotion to his responsibilities but also something bubbling - sorry gurgling - underneath. Diantha is not dissimilar, occupied with duties and loneliness of a different kind. Before the events of the book these 2 are already drawn together by books, and being thrown together (or rather Simon’s subtle manipulations led them to be in the same place for a week) their attraction naturally spikes. I will say I do not think the initial premise of Diantha’s ruination or even Simon’s relationship with his mother feel on-page enough for this book. I would have liked for some of those resolutions to be less internal - because the book starts out very external and is externally resolved at the end too so it feels a bit like an afterthought when we hear that some of the villainy is handled off-page. The other thing that kept me from rating this a 5 star is not feeling much of Archie and Effie’s presence in the book until the very end - I think the boys have always played a role in helping their friend figure stuff out so their absence was felt.
Whenever Simon and Diantha were together however I felt like the book really shined and you could see the heat and familiarity and deep connection between these 2 people who have been living a sort of half life for much too long. The part with the yellow in the epilogue made me tear up a bit! Since this is essentially the finale I also want to say I love how letters and correspondence were a running theme in this series (lapse of, excess of, and lack of) and how nature and its miraculousness and power are very much part of these romances. I also love the treatise on liberation and captivity that is noted throughout the series.
I do hope Olive gets a HEA - she is a real scene stealer in every book!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Brown-Eyed Earl is the the perfect conclusion to an utterly charming historical series. This latest book from Jenny Holiday features another annual Earls trip, where found family and forced proximity take center stage.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Simon Courteney, Earl of Marsden is looking forward to another Earls trip, especially since it means he’ll get to see Diantha Brown, companion to his friend Archie’s mother. While the first week of the trip will be just Simon, Archie, and Effie as usual, now that his friends are married, week two is Earls Plus Girls at Archie’s hunting lodge. Diantha and Simon have always exchanged novels and discussed them at length. But now Diantha is stuck in an impossible situation, and is desperately trying to find a way to preserve her independence. Can Simon help Diantha make her own choices, instead of being forced to simply avoid the worst possible outcome?
This book is for fans of:
📚 Found family
💛 Slow burn
📚 Historical romance
💛 Forced proximity
📚 House party setting
💛 Humor and banter
I can’t talk about this book without mentioning the found family these Earls have created. And, it’s the emphasis on men’s friendships, vulnerability, and emotions (and not in a sports environment) that really sets these books apart. Archie, Effie, and Simon all value their friendship, and the importance of their annual getaway just reinforces their bonds.
Note: this is a book that embraces modern language in a historical setting, which I adore, but your mileage may vary.
I love Brown-Eyed Earl. I’ve been waiting for Simon and Diantha to find their own HEA, and it was a joy to watch them do it on the latest Earls Trip. This entire series is perfect for historical romance fans with a sense of humor, and I’m keeping my fingers crossed for another installment.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Simon Courteney, Earl of Marsden is looking forward to another Earls trip, especially since it means he’ll get to see Diantha Brown, companion to his friend Archie’s mother. While the first week of the trip will be just Simon, Archie, and Effie as usual, now that his friends are married, week two is Earls Plus Girls at Archie’s hunting lodge. Diantha and Simon have always exchanged novels and discussed them at length. But now Diantha is stuck in an impossible situation, and is desperately trying to find a way to preserve her independence. Can Simon help Diantha make her own choices, instead of being forced to simply avoid the worst possible outcome?
This book is for fans of:
📚 Found family
💛 Slow burn
📚 Historical romance
💛 Forced proximity
📚 House party setting
💛 Humor and banter
I can’t talk about this book without mentioning the found family these Earls have created. And, it’s the emphasis on men’s friendships, vulnerability, and emotions (and not in a sports environment) that really sets these books apart. Archie, Effie, and Simon all value their friendship, and the importance of their annual getaway just reinforces their bonds.
Note: this is a book that embraces modern language in a historical setting, which I adore, but your mileage may vary.
I love Brown-Eyed Earl. I’ve been waiting for Simon and Diantha to find their own HEA, and it was a joy to watch them do it on the latest Earls Trip. This entire series is perfect for historical romance fans with a sense of humor, and I’m keeping my fingers crossed for another installment.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
1823.
Simon Courtney was never supposed to become the Earl of Marsden, not with two older brothers. He's always been more suited to nonfiction tomes on philosophy and life in the church, and he takes his parliamentary seat very seriously, but every year he takes an Earls' Trip with his best friends Archie and Effie. Diantha Brown, companion to Archie's ailing mother, is invited on this year's trip: Simon has suggested a new format with his two friends already married, so week two of Earls' Trip features their wives, a sister-in-law, a mother, and Diantha. When Diantha is under pressure to find a solution to rid herself of an unwanted suitor who is also blackmailing her, the only thing she can think of is ruination, but Simon is too much of a gentleman to agree to such a thing. Or is he?
This series continues to be a lot of fun to read. It's a fun blend of historical romance with a modern feel that works well for me. While historical accuracy may not be the first thing on the minds of Holiday's readers, we get some interesting political references including a defense of Queen Caroline that Simon makes in parliament. (See: Rebel of the Regency by Ann Foster for more!). Brown-Eyed Earl features two quieter characters, Simon and Diantha are less splashy than the couples of the first two books, but because of that, we get a lot of stargazing moments and conversation between the two of them in a way that works really well for the narrative. This book includes a number of hard conversations, mostly for Simon, and I love how Holiday handles those conversations.
You can certainly pick up this book if you haven't read anything else in the series, because the narrative doesn't rely on previous books, but the jokes will be more fun if you read the series in order. What happens on Earls' Trip stays on Earls' Trip, so you should read them all!
Thank you to Kensington for an eARC. Brown-Eyed Earl is out 10/27/2026.
Simon Courtney was never supposed to become the Earl of Marsden, not with two older brothers. He's always been more suited to nonfiction tomes on philosophy and life in the church, and he takes his parliamentary seat very seriously, but every year he takes an Earls' Trip with his best friends Archie and Effie. Diantha Brown, companion to Archie's ailing mother, is invited on this year's trip: Simon has suggested a new format with his two friends already married, so week two of Earls' Trip features their wives, a sister-in-law, a mother, and Diantha. When Diantha is under pressure to find a solution to rid herself of an unwanted suitor who is also blackmailing her, the only thing she can think of is ruination, but Simon is too much of a gentleman to agree to such a thing. Or is he?
This series continues to be a lot of fun to read. It's a fun blend of historical romance with a modern feel that works well for me. While historical accuracy may not be the first thing on the minds of Holiday's readers, we get some interesting political references including a defense of Queen Caroline that Simon makes in parliament. (See: Rebel of the Regency by Ann Foster for more!). Brown-Eyed Earl features two quieter characters, Simon and Diantha are less splashy than the couples of the first two books, but because of that, we get a lot of stargazing moments and conversation between the two of them in a way that works really well for the narrative. This book includes a number of hard conversations, mostly for Simon, and I love how Holiday handles those conversations.
You can certainly pick up this book if you haven't read anything else in the series, because the narrative doesn't rely on previous books, but the jokes will be more fun if you read the series in order. What happens on Earls' Trip stays on Earls' Trip, so you should read them all!
Thank you to Kensington for an eARC. Brown-Eyed Earl is out 10/27/2026.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I really enjoyed the first and second books in this trilogy of regency romances by Jenny Holliday, and was looking forward to the third book to complete the trio of happily ever afters; this did not disappoint. Holiday laid the groundwork for the earls’ deep bonds of friendship, which are part of the core of this book, in addition to the wonderful romance. Diantha is a lady’s companion to Simon’s friend’s mother. Their shared interest in novels and love of reading draws them together. When Diantha is coerced towards an unwanted marriage, she approaches Simon with a scandalous proposition to escape her blackmailer. While Simon refuses her initial request, they end up spending time together on his annual Earl’s trip, which has turned into a larger getaway with the whole friend group. The found family in this book has grown to include the three earls, two spouses, one sister-in-law, one dowager countess with dementia and her companion, giving us plenty of time with all our favorite characters from the previous books. Forced proximity works its magic on Simon and Diantha to give them the time to learn about and trust each other, turning them from friends to lovers. The story included come modern ideas, sensibilities and terminology within the historical setting. While full of Holiday’s classic humor, this book explores heavy subjects like dementia, abuse and grief, balancing deep moments with Holiday’s customary heart and humor. It’s still a light and easy read with somewhat emotionally intelligent male characters, who put in the work with the women they love. The slow burn romance definitely paid off by the end; I enjoyed seeing two intellectual characters find love and a real emotional connection through mutual respect and understanding.
Thank you to Kensington Publishing and NetGalley for the complimentary arc.
Thank you to Kensington Publishing and NetGalley for the complimentary arc.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
First of all—do they hand out awards for cover art? Because Brown-Eyed Earl completes a trifecta of absolutely stunning covers that deserve a spot on my wall. It's vibrant, romantic, packed with all the key couples, and honestly, it just makes me happy every time I look at it.
And then there's Simon.
I've been waiting for this book from the beginning. Simon has spent the entire series being the dependable friend, the sensible one, the bookish introvert Earl who somehow gets even more appealing with every appearance. The spectacles. The forearms. The quiet competence. Jenny Holiday knew exactly what she was doing.
At long last, Simon gets his happily-ever-after—and it's everything I hoped for.
This friends-to-lovers romance pairs him with the brilliant Miss Diantha Brown, his perfect intellectual match. The banter sparkles, the chemistry crackles, and the yearning is chef's kiss. Holiday hits every romance note flawlessly while raising the stakes with close proximity, blackmail, an unwanted suitor, and a mother who may be even more dangerous than any villain.
If you enjoy moonlit swims, stargazing, deep conversations, kind, thoughtful heroes who bake and treat everyone with respect, slow-burn romance, and undeniable chemistry, grab your coziest chair before diving into Simon and Diantha's story. It's a compelling, fast-paced read that had me completely hooked—and I honestly would have devoured it just as eagerly if it were 500 pages longer.
And can we please get one more book? Olive deserves a handsome adventurer and her own sweeping romance.
From beginning to end, this series has been an absolute delight. Brown-Eyed Earl is a wonderful finale that left me eager to explore the rest of Jenny Holiday's backlist.
And then there's Simon.
I've been waiting for this book from the beginning. Simon has spent the entire series being the dependable friend, the sensible one, the bookish introvert Earl who somehow gets even more appealing with every appearance. The spectacles. The forearms. The quiet competence. Jenny Holiday knew exactly what she was doing.
At long last, Simon gets his happily-ever-after—and it's everything I hoped for.
This friends-to-lovers romance pairs him with the brilliant Miss Diantha Brown, his perfect intellectual match. The banter sparkles, the chemistry crackles, and the yearning is chef's kiss. Holiday hits every romance note flawlessly while raising the stakes with close proximity, blackmail, an unwanted suitor, and a mother who may be even more dangerous than any villain.
If you enjoy moonlit swims, stargazing, deep conversations, kind, thoughtful heroes who bake and treat everyone with respect, slow-burn romance, and undeniable chemistry, grab your coziest chair before diving into Simon and Diantha's story. It's a compelling, fast-paced read that had me completely hooked—and I honestly would have devoured it just as eagerly if it were 500 pages longer.
And can we please get one more book? Olive deserves a handsome adventurer and her own sweeping romance.
From beginning to end, this series has been an absolute delight. Brown-Eyed Earl is a wonderful finale that left me eager to explore the rest of Jenny Holiday's backlist.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.
This was a charming conclusion to the Earl’s Trip series. As with the previous two books, the friendship between the men really stands out. So much care and attention is given to their relationship, that it casts a shadow over the romance.
Diantha and Simon had a lovely friendship. I enjoyed their deep conversations and how at ease they were with one another. Simon is a really endearing character, and it’s sweet how he goes out of his way to prove to Diantha that she’s seen. I believed that he loved her, though I never quite felt that Diantha loved him in return. It felt that she was more consumed with her situation and how to solve it than the actual romance. There’s never a real turning point where the friendship becomes more. So when they become intimate it doesn’t feel like the culmination of the tension they’ve built up. I’m not quite sure how to put this delicately, but the spicy scenes were vague and a bit confusing to track. I remember thinking to myself: wait were they intimate or just making out.
The subplots of the blackmail and Simon’s relationship with his mother were handled rather neatly and off the page. Simon’s mother’s actions deserved to have a reckoning. I wish there had been more nuance to her characterization, as well as Mr. Baldwin’s. As they stand they come across as cartoonish villains without any real depth.
My favorite side character has to be Olive. She’s quite charming and her meddling is fun and mischievous. I really hope she gets a novel of her own. It’s still an enjoyable read. But with the men’s relationship being the star of the show, it leaves a lot to be desired of the romance.
This was a charming conclusion to the Earl’s Trip series. As with the previous two books, the friendship between the men really stands out. So much care and attention is given to their relationship, that it casts a shadow over the romance.
Diantha and Simon had a lovely friendship. I enjoyed their deep conversations and how at ease they were with one another. Simon is a really endearing character, and it’s sweet how he goes out of his way to prove to Diantha that she’s seen. I believed that he loved her, though I never quite felt that Diantha loved him in return. It felt that she was more consumed with her situation and how to solve it than the actual romance. There’s never a real turning point where the friendship becomes more. So when they become intimate it doesn’t feel like the culmination of the tension they’ve built up. I’m not quite sure how to put this delicately, but the spicy scenes were vague and a bit confusing to track. I remember thinking to myself: wait were they intimate or just making out.
The subplots of the blackmail and Simon’s relationship with his mother were handled rather neatly and off the page. Simon’s mother’s actions deserved to have a reckoning. I wish there had been more nuance to her characterization, as well as Mr. Baldwin’s. As they stand they come across as cartoonish villains without any real depth.
My favorite side character has to be Olive. She’s quite charming and her meddling is fun and mischievous. I really hope she gets a novel of her own. It’s still an enjoyable read. But with the men’s relationship being the star of the show, it leaves a lot to be desired of the romance.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Brown-Eyed Earl by Jenny Holiday
Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 1/5 🌶️
Thank you to Kensington Publishing, Netgalley, and the author for access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Brown-Eyed Earl is a fast-paced, witty, and fun historical romance read! While this is Book 3 in the Earls Trip series, it can be read as a standalone. Cozy, joyful, and very charming, Brown-Eyed Earl balances more emotional moments with plenty of fun ones to form an unputdownable story!
Simon Courteney was never the heir. However, when his older brothers died in an accident, he found himself in a situation he had never expected. Simon is determined to a quiet life dedicated to work and service though. And, the two things he always looks forward to are the annual Earls Trip he takes with his best friends, Effie and Archie, and his visits to Archie’s mother. Miss Diantha Brown has been Lady Harcourt’s companion for a while and it’s a good life, but her monotonous and calm existence is no more when an old enemy returns. Determined to avoid her fate and to protect Lady Harcourt, Diantha wants to orchestrate her ruination. She needs just needs to find someone who is willing to help her.
Brown-Eyed Earl is such a sweet, slow-burn, friends-to-lovers romance full of excellent banter and fantastic chemistry. Particular highlights of the story include the well- developed plot as a whole, the found family dynamic, and the slow burn. Diantha and Simon’s connection feels genuine and meaningful. The friendship between the earls is wonderful and the cozy setting makes the story even more special.
Overall, Brown-Eyed Earl is a charming, witty, and heartwarming read that is perfect for fans for historical romance!
Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 1/5 🌶️
Thank you to Kensington Publishing, Netgalley, and the author for access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Brown-Eyed Earl is a fast-paced, witty, and fun historical romance read! While this is Book 3 in the Earls Trip series, it can be read as a standalone. Cozy, joyful, and very charming, Brown-Eyed Earl balances more emotional moments with plenty of fun ones to form an unputdownable story!
Simon Courteney was never the heir. However, when his older brothers died in an accident, he found himself in a situation he had never expected. Simon is determined to a quiet life dedicated to work and service though. And, the two things he always looks forward to are the annual Earls Trip he takes with his best friends, Effie and Archie, and his visits to Archie’s mother. Miss Diantha Brown has been Lady Harcourt’s companion for a while and it’s a good life, but her monotonous and calm existence is no more when an old enemy returns. Determined to avoid her fate and to protect Lady Harcourt, Diantha wants to orchestrate her ruination. She needs just needs to find someone who is willing to help her.
Brown-Eyed Earl is such a sweet, slow-burn, friends-to-lovers romance full of excellent banter and fantastic chemistry. Particular highlights of the story include the well- developed plot as a whole, the found family dynamic, and the slow burn. Diantha and Simon’s connection feels genuine and meaningful. The friendship between the earls is wonderful and the cozy setting makes the story even more special.
Overall, Brown-Eyed Earl is a charming, witty, and heartwarming read that is perfect for fans for historical romance!
October 28, 2026
Jenny Holiday is an auto-buy author for me, and I’ve been really looking forward to the third and final book in the Earl’s Trip series. Brown Eyed Earl is Simon’s story, and it is so touching. Simon and Diantha (Miss Brown) are both such kind and honest people who are focused on their work. I absolutely loved this couple and their story. Simon, Archie, and Effie are on their annual earl’s trip and enjoy the down time reading and relaxing at one of Simon’s country homes.
Diantha is Lady Harcourt’s companion and is generally content with her life. She loves reading and exchanging novels with Simon. When her former brother-in-law approaches her and tells her that they will marry, she panics. The only solution she can figure out is ruination. She makes a plan for herself, then they all head to the country for the second week of the earl’s trip. It is a pleasant trip for all, and Simon and Diantha are able to spend time one-on-one like they never have before. Soon they realize that all their future plans may not end up as they anticipated because they can’t ignore their feelings for each other. The ending to this book is wonderful. Simon solves all of their problems and his solution is perfect.
I loved this final chapter of the Earl’s Trip series. It’s always good to spend time with characters one knows and this group is quirky, funny, and very entertaining. The romance was full of yearning and suppressed feelings, expressed only initially by exchanging novels and writing notes to each other. It was a charming close to this series, and I really enjoyed it.
Thank you to Kensington Publishing and NetGalley for an advance reader’s copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Diantha is Lady Harcourt’s companion and is generally content with her life. She loves reading and exchanging novels with Simon. When her former brother-in-law approaches her and tells her that they will marry, she panics. The only solution she can figure out is ruination. She makes a plan for herself, then they all head to the country for the second week of the earl’s trip. It is a pleasant trip for all, and Simon and Diantha are able to spend time one-on-one like they never have before. Soon they realize that all their future plans may not end up as they anticipated because they can’t ignore their feelings for each other. The ending to this book is wonderful. Simon solves all of their problems and his solution is perfect.
I loved this final chapter of the Earl’s Trip series. It’s always good to spend time with characters one knows and this group is quirky, funny, and very entertaining. The romance was full of yearning and suppressed feelings, expressed only initially by exchanging novels and writing notes to each other. It was a charming close to this series, and I really enjoyed it.
Thank you to Kensington Publishing and NetGalley for an advance reader’s copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 94 reviews