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The Legend of Nimway Hall #3
1818: Isabel
New York Times bestselling author Suzanne Enoch spins a Regency-era tale at Nimway Hall, in a book series centered on a house where love and magic entwine to bring romance to all who dwell there. A passionate, determined young lady trying to prove herself worthy of a timeless, magic-touched legacy and a steadfast gentleman looking for his own place in the world join forces to restore an abandoned estate to its former glory. The moment Isabel de Rossi turns eighteen, she insists on taking charge of Nimway Hall, which has stood empty for the past ten years. Well-aware that all her female forebears found true love at Nimway, she can’t wait to discover her own destined match. Instead she’s faced with Adam Driscoll, the infuriatingly practical estate manager whose presence is a constant, insulting reminder that her own grandmother thinks she has no idea what she’s doing. Adam thought the recent offer of a position at Nimway Hall a godsend. After spending six years managing his elderly uncle’s estate he is at a crossroads, facing either a dreary career in the army or the church. At Nimway he can continue working with his hands, his feet firmly on the ground and his mind on practical matters of crops, millstones, and irrigation. He revels in the chance to restore this estate to its former glory as the well-run marvel of Somerset—even though several mysterious setbacks have befallen his efforts. The last complication he needs is a quirky, foreign-raised heiress intent on finding a magical orb and interfering with his well-laid plans; but practical Adam can’t help noticing that in her presence the repairs are suddenly going well, and that the pretty mistress of the Hall is clever, amusing, and genuinely interested improving her estate and the lives of her tenants. Despite their conflicting sensibilities he finds it hard to resist their simmering attraction. At the same time Adam is keenly aware that the more he helps Isabel with the estate the closer he is to assisting himself out of his position – and away from her. Despite herself, Isabel is reluctantly drawn to Adam’s quiet strength and dedication, but has begun to wonder if she somehow isn’t worthy of becoming the property’s guardian; though she searches everywhere for evidence of magic, the famous orb – the artifact reputedly responsible for every love match made at Nimway Hall, including her own parents’ – is nowhere to be found…until dreamy Lord Alton from the neighboring estate arrives and starts to pursue Isabel. The pesky orb suddenly appears, though it seems to have a preference for Adam’s room. For a young lady in need of some polish, the choice between a charming viscount and an headstrong, interfering employee should be a simple one, but magic is a stubborn thing – and the heart is even more headstrong. Praise for the works of Suzanne Enoch "A highly gifted author."—Romantic Times “Each and every Enoch romance is a sparkling gem brimming over with marvelous characters, depth of emotion, intense sensuality and a plot that twists and turns, leaving readers breathless and deliciously satisfied.”—Romantic Times, 4 ½ Stars! “A LADY’S GUIDE TO IMPROPER BEHAVIOR is another dazzling book from Suzanne Enoch. Suzanne Enoch, you have done it again! Wonderful writing and a passionate love story.”—Romance Junkies “Once again, Enoch has penned an exciting and captivating adventure. “—Booklist
212 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 1, 2018
145 people are currently reading
229 people want to read
About the author
Suzanne Enoch
102 books2,631 followersSuzanne was born in Southern California sometime in the latter half of the 20th century. In the way that some people are born knowing they want to be astronauts or cellists, Suzanne always knew she wanted to be a writer. Early dreams of becoming a zoologist and writing true stories about her adventures in Africa were crushed, however, after she viewed a television special about the world’s most poisonous snakes; she did NOT want to write about how she’d been bitten and lost a limb to a cobra. Thankfully at the same time the movie “Star Wars” premiered, and she realized that she could make up adventures and write about them, and not be eaten by deadly predators while doing research.
She dabbled in romantic fantasy writing for a year or two after graduating with a degree in English from the University of California, Irvine, until her affection for traditional Regency romances led her to write one for fun. After several encouraging rejections from publishers, she snared the interest of the world’s best and most patient literary agent, who advised her to revise the manuscript. This ultimately led to the publication of her first book, The Black Duke’s Prize, from Avon Books in the Spring of 1995. A second Regency, Angel’s Devil, followed that Fall.
When Avon folded its traditional Regency line, Suzanne was encouraged to try her hand at historical romance. As she remained keenly interested in England’s Regency period, she decided to attempt another manuscript set in that time. Lady Rogue hit the shelves in March of 1997. She wrote a total of 29 books for Avon, including two anthologies and a five-part contemporary series which received a pair of starred reviews from Publishers Weekly. One of those books, Twice the Temptation, was named one of the five best romances of the year by PW in 2007.
In 2002 her well-known love of all things “Star Wars” led to an invitation to appear on the E! channel in the television special “Star Wars: The Force Is Back”, where she discussed the romance in the movie series and ended up with more air time than George Lucas.
In 2010 Suzanne left Avon Books for St. Martin’s Press, where she continues to pen historical romance novels. Her 31st book, Taming an Impossible Rogue, is set to arrive in March 2012.
Suzanne is known for her humorous characters, sexy bad boys, and whip-sharp, witty dialogue. She currently resides in Placentia, California with several hundred guppies and various other tropical fish, and handful of very loud, spinach-loving finches. And her collection of action figures and statues from “Star Wars”, “Lord of the Rings”, “X-Men”, and “Pirates of the Caribbean”. Everybody needs some inspiration, after all.
www.facebook.com/SuzanneEnoch
She dabbled in romantic fantasy writing for a year or two after graduating with a degree in English from the University of California, Irvine, until her affection for traditional Regency romances led her to write one for fun. After several encouraging rejections from publishers, she snared the interest of the world’s best and most patient literary agent, who advised her to revise the manuscript. This ultimately led to the publication of her first book, The Black Duke’s Prize, from Avon Books in the Spring of 1995. A second Regency, Angel’s Devil, followed that Fall.
When Avon folded its traditional Regency line, Suzanne was encouraged to try her hand at historical romance. As she remained keenly interested in England’s Regency period, she decided to attempt another manuscript set in that time. Lady Rogue hit the shelves in March of 1997. She wrote a total of 29 books for Avon, including two anthologies and a five-part contemporary series which received a pair of starred reviews from Publishers Weekly. One of those books, Twice the Temptation, was named one of the five best romances of the year by PW in 2007.
In 2002 her well-known love of all things “Star Wars” led to an invitation to appear on the E! channel in the television special “Star Wars: The Force Is Back”, where she discussed the romance in the movie series and ended up with more air time than George Lucas.
In 2010 Suzanne left Avon Books for St. Martin’s Press, where she continues to pen historical romance novels. Her 31st book, Taming an Impossible Rogue, is set to arrive in March 2012.
Suzanne is known for her humorous characters, sexy bad boys, and whip-sharp, witty dialogue. She currently resides in Placentia, California with several hundred guppies and various other tropical fish, and handful of very loud, spinach-loving finches. And her collection of action figures and statues from “Star Wars”, “Lord of the Rings”, “X-Men”, and “Pirates of the Caribbean”. Everybody needs some inspiration, after all.
www.facebook.com/SuzanneEnoch
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
June 9, 2018
3.5 stars.
So this one is about the daughter of the previous book, the offspring of the Italian sculptor and her free-spirited mother. Isabel grew up in Italy but has heard about the magic of Nimway Hall all her life. So once she reached 18, she was eager to become the next Guardian.
Nimway Hall has been unoccupied for about a decade at this point... Her grandmother had just hired a new steward to oversee the place but Isabel was surprised at how young and handsome he is.
There's a bit of drama with an unsrupulous suitor and the orb does its usual magic thing. Given the length of the book, everything is resolved fairly quickly towards a HEA.
So this one is about the daughter of the previous book, the offspring of the Italian sculptor and her free-spirited mother. Isabel grew up in Italy but has heard about the magic of Nimway Hall all her life. So once she reached 18, she was eager to become the next Guardian.
Nimway Hall has been unoccupied for about a decade at this point... Her grandmother had just hired a new steward to oversee the place but Isabel was surprised at how young and handsome he is.
There's a bit of drama with an unsrupulous suitor and the orb does its usual magic thing. Given the length of the book, everything is resolved fairly quickly towards a HEA.
March 2, 2019
A light read. Not complicated to get your head around. I love reading Suzanne Enoch, she is an all time favourite of mine, but this story didn't seem as thrilling as her books can be.
3.5☆
3.5☆
November 7, 2018
What an exciting book!
I loved every minute off this story. I couldn't put the book down and Read it in one day. Adam was the man of all times, every girls dream. But he was such a solid figure in his pursuit of happiness. His love for Isabel was such a true love and she had to finally find that he was her destiny. Didn't care much for her full of himself caller. You could see right they his plight. I love reading Suzanne Enoch writings. Think I have purchased and Read pretty neat every one. Thank you for such a great read!
I loved every minute off this story. I couldn't put the book down and Read it in one day. Adam was the man of all times, every girls dream. But he was such a solid figure in his pursuit of happiness. His love for Isabel was such a true love and she had to finally find that he was her destiny. Didn't care much for her full of himself caller. You could see right they his plight. I love reading Suzanne Enoch writings. Think I have purchased and Read pretty neat every one. Thank you for such a great read!
July 25, 2018
Entertaining short novel
April 4, 2018
Really 4 1/2 stars
I liked this story a lot. I really liked that Isabel is the daughter of Marco and Charlotte. After her more unconventional upbringing, it makes sense that she would look for a more conventional husband. Adam is working hard at his new position as steward to Nimway Hall. Isabel wants to do it herself. She is quite young, and more idealistic than she thinks she is, typical for her age.
I especially liked how Adam tried to let Isabel come to her own conclusions. He didn't have to do that, but he respected her enough to do so. The steamy scenes were not until the very end. This story focused very much on character development. Read the stories in chronological order. Things will make much more sense then. Enjoy!
I liked this story a lot. I really liked that Isabel is the daughter of Marco and Charlotte. After her more unconventional upbringing, it makes sense that she would look for a more conventional husband. Adam is working hard at his new position as steward to Nimway Hall. Isabel wants to do it herself. She is quite young, and more idealistic than she thinks she is, typical for her age.
I especially liked how Adam tried to let Isabel come to her own conclusions. He didn't have to do that, but he respected her enough to do so. The steamy scenes were not until the very end. This story focused very much on character development. Read the stories in chronological order. Things will make much more sense then. Enjoy!
March 2, 2022
My rating: 2.5 stars, rounded up to 3 stars.
I had only read a couple of Suzanne Enoch's novellas before this book, so I didn't really know what to expect. I found, though, that I just didn't really like the main couple very much -- so it was difficult to enjoy the story of their romance.
I had trouble liking Adam, since he was so determined NOT to believe in the magic of Nimway. I get that he was a practical person, and had no reason to believe -- but he was rude about it, and basically told Isabel that anyone who believed in magic was just ignorant. I found it odd that he then decided he was in love with Isabel, even when he thought she was stupid to believe in magic.
Isabel was OK, but I got irritated with her being such a snob. She professed to adore her father, but still thought her mother had married beneath her -- and she was determined not to repeat her mother's "mistake". She was also incredibly naive, believing everything that her jerk of a suitor told her, simply because he was the perfect man for her. He had the right social status and was handsome, so he must be the person she was supposed to marry. There were even things she didn't like about him, but because he was so "perfect" for her, she was determined to believe that the magical orb had chosen him. That was just idiotic.
I also found it difficult to believe that Isabel and Adam were in love. They argued all the time, he thought she was stupid for believing in magic, and she was sure that he was "beneath" her. I just didn't buy that they were in love, when they had so many reasons not to even like each other much.
This book only contained one sex scene -- and it wasn't really very explicit at all.
My rating system is below.
1 star -- Hated it, or did not finish. I usually only give this rating if some of the content is truly objectionable to me, like if one of the main characters does something really awful, and gets away with it.
2 stars -- Didn't like it. This rating usually means that I thought the writing wasn't very good, the editing was terrible, I didn't like the characters, or it had other major flaws.
3 stars -- I liked it, but had some minor issues with it. This rating means that there were minor editing issues, the story needed more character development, it was just too unrealistic, or had some other fairly minor issue. The majority of books I read get this rating – I do not consider it a bad rating.
4 stars -- I liked it a lot. This is a high rating for me, and I rarely give a higher one.
5 stars -- I loved it, and will probably read it again. Very few books are good enough to get this rating from me. The ones that do are usually classics.
I had only read a couple of Suzanne Enoch's novellas before this book, so I didn't really know what to expect. I found, though, that I just didn't really like the main couple very much -- so it was difficult to enjoy the story of their romance.
I had trouble liking Adam, since he was so determined NOT to believe in the magic of Nimway. I get that he was a practical person, and had no reason to believe -- but he was rude about it, and basically told Isabel that anyone who believed in magic was just ignorant. I found it odd that he then decided he was in love with Isabel, even when he thought she was stupid to believe in magic.
Isabel was OK, but I got irritated with her being such a snob. She professed to adore her father, but still thought her mother had married beneath her -- and she was determined not to repeat her mother's "mistake". She was also incredibly naive, believing everything that her jerk of a suitor told her, simply because he was the perfect man for her. He had the right social status and was handsome, so he must be the person she was supposed to marry. There were even things she didn't like about him, but because he was so "perfect" for her, she was determined to believe that the magical orb had chosen him. That was just idiotic.
I also found it difficult to believe that Isabel and Adam were in love. They argued all the time, he thought she was stupid for believing in magic, and she was sure that he was "beneath" her. I just didn't buy that they were in love, when they had so many reasons not to even like each other much.
This book only contained one sex scene -- and it wasn't really very explicit at all.
My rating system is below.
1 star -- Hated it, or did not finish. I usually only give this rating if some of the content is truly objectionable to me, like if one of the main characters does something really awful, and gets away with it.
2 stars -- Didn't like it. This rating usually means that I thought the writing wasn't very good, the editing was terrible, I didn't like the characters, or it had other major flaws.
3 stars -- I liked it, but had some minor issues with it. This rating means that there were minor editing issues, the story needed more character development, it was just too unrealistic, or had some other fairly minor issue. The majority of books I read get this rating – I do not consider it a bad rating.
4 stars -- I liked it a lot. This is a high rating for me, and I rarely give a higher one.
5 stars -- I loved it, and will probably read it again. Very few books are good enough to get this rating from me. The ones that do are usually classics.
April 11, 2018
Isabel di Rossi has come into her inheritance as the guardian of Nimway Hall. As the only child of her artist father and free-spirited mother and recently returned from her life in Italy, Isabel needs the magic of Nimway to find her the perfect husband to make her the perfect guardian.
Adam Driscoll is acting steward of Nimway Hall, hired by Isabel’s grandmother to oversee the Hall. Adam loves the Hall, even when a series of events seem to allude the Hall doesn’t love him in return.
Through learning, a love triangle, and a magic that has a mind of it’s own, Ms. Enoch builds onto the world of Nimway creating a new perspective on an old (and persnickety) magic.
Adam Driscoll is acting steward of Nimway Hall, hired by Isabel’s grandmother to oversee the Hall. Adam loves the Hall, even when a series of events seem to allude the Hall doesn’t love him in return.
Through learning, a love triangle, and a magic that has a mind of it’s own, Ms. Enoch builds onto the world of Nimway creating a new perspective on an old (and persnickety) magic.
April 3, 2018
Magic Wins Out
The third adventure in this magical series has been every bit as satisfying to this reader's heart as the first two. I am so glad that these talented and creative authors decided to enrich our lives in this way! Perhaps Nimue's influence led them to the collaboration?! At any rate, Isabel and Adam had me swooning and giggling over their own journey to romance, arguments, beehives, and all. As for the nefarious Bell-Pratt, may his armpits be infested with the fleas of a thousand camels...
The third adventure in this magical series has been every bit as satisfying to this reader's heart as the first two. I am so glad that these talented and creative authors decided to enrich our lives in this way! Perhaps Nimue's influence led them to the collaboration?! At any rate, Isabel and Adam had me swooning and giggling over their own journey to romance, arguments, beehives, and all. As for the nefarious Bell-Pratt, may his armpits be infested with the fleas of a thousand camels...
February 23, 2022
This was a fun escape from the typical London scene as a young, somewhat naive heroine grew up and learned what she really wanted. This was more of a quiet romance with a dash of paranormal than what Enoch usually writes, but her humor and easy writing were still present.
The characters were not larger than life in this one, but were relatable. This story was also more heroine-centric which is not Enoch's typical style.
However, Enoch almost never disappoints me and I enjoyed this light read about two stubborn people learning important lessons as they fall in love.
The characters were not larger than life in this one, but were relatable. This story was also more heroine-centric which is not Enoch's typical style.
However, Enoch almost never disappoints me and I enjoyed this light read about two stubborn people learning important lessons as they fall in love.
March 5, 2025
A slight blush of magic shimmers delicately through this novel, but the real story is about learning to trust one’s self. A delightful novella, quick read, and decently realized characters. I especially like how Ms. Enoch is frugal with her words and descriptions. No brand names banded about here. No unnecessary padding. Elmore Leonard would approve.
April 4, 2018
My favorite era
I have enjoyed each book of this series, every author used expert talent to create the whole. I regret there is only one book coming out next. I will enjoy it as these four author's are favorites. Thank you
I have enjoyed each book of this series, every author used expert talent to create the whole. I regret there is only one book coming out next. I will enjoy it as these four author's are favorites. Thank you
August 13, 2020
Nice follow-up to Charlotte's story.
Isabel seems a tad impatient for the orb to work and was open to deceit. Thank goodness she saw the light and realized that Adam was true and honest, as opposed to Alton who was only looking to use women for their money.
Isabel seems a tad impatient for the orb to work and was open to deceit. Thank goodness she saw the light and realized that Adam was true and honest, as opposed to Alton who was only looking to use women for their money.
March 31, 2018
Ladies please write faster!
I mean, come on a series inter-related books written by some of my favorite authors. Woven tightly in to the lore of the story? What is not to love?
I mean, come on a series inter-related books written by some of my favorite authors. Woven tightly in to the lore of the story? What is not to love?
May 29, 2018
Rating 7 of 7
April 28, 2018
Not the best
Did not like Isabel. Too opinionated, wanting things her own way. Need to recognize her youth, that she does not know everything.
Did not like Isabel. Too opinionated, wanting things her own way. Need to recognize her youth, that she does not know everything.
May 11, 2018
I love Suzanne Enoch but this just didn't work for me.
October 7, 2018
Enjoyable if not now formulaic series but okay nonetheless. A light quick read.
October 20, 2018
Wonderful story!
I loved a cat being part of the story, but I love cats. The whole book was magical in every way!
I loved a cat being part of the story, but I love cats. The whole book was magical in every way!
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April 29, 2020-a shorter predictable novel. easy read, not much depth.
November 22, 2021
Loved it, want to read all the others!!
January 1, 2023
Cute. I love the cat.
April 23, 2024
1818 Isabel is a cute period romance with a touch of magic. I really enjoyed the book. It does have a sex scene (though it is rather mild). The narrator does a terrific job with the book.
January 23, 2025
Delightful story about the romance between the manager of an estate and its magical owner.
March 21, 2025
A fun quick and goofy read
May 11, 2018
Great story. Loved the continuance of this home!
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews