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In Service #1
At Your Service
After three years in the employ of a former British army officer turned Risk Assessment Specialist, widowed butler Mae Valentine is familiar with Major Kitt’s taste for scrambled eggs, bourbon, and brawling. Kitt knows of Mae’s fondness for order, her beloved dead husband, and the millions the man left her in trust. Their easy bond is tested the day Mae kills the man sent to murder her and the trust fund vanishes.
Soon, a volcano, a hand roasting in an oven, and a fish named Shirley accentuate sinister machinations that involve Mae and the missing money. To keep her safe from women in ugly shoes, homicidal bankers, and Mafia henchmen, Kitt risks exposing his true profession, which doesn’t trouble him as much as being in love with a woman who’s still in love with a dead man. If he can’t protect Mae, he’ll lose the best butler—and scrambled eggs—a spy ever loved.
Soon, a volcano, a hand roasting in an oven, and a fish named Shirley accentuate sinister machinations that involve Mae and the missing money. To keep her safe from women in ugly shoes, homicidal bankers, and Mafia henchmen, Kitt risks exposing his true profession, which doesn’t trouble him as much as being in love with a woman who’s still in love with a dead man. If he can’t protect Mae, he’ll lose the best butler—and scrambled eggs—a spy ever loved.
433 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 13, 2018
57 people are currently reading
424 people want to read
About the author
Sandra Antonelli
10 books64 followersSandra is the author of romantic suspense and romantic comedies featuring 'seasoned' characters who have four decades or more of life experience. Firmly believing foxy doesn't end at forty, her novels place women over the age of 40 as capable heroines, as lead characters, not as stereotypes.
Her books have twice been nominated for Australian Romance Readers Association awards.
Her books have twice been nominated for Australian Romance Readers Association awards.
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September 21, 2018I heard about a "James Bond and his housekeeper" romance with over 40s and an older woman, and one clicked so fast I sprained a finger.
There's a great deal to like in this. Mae is practical, sensible, copes well with the bizarre and violent series of events into which she's thrust, and has some excellent funny lines. Major Kitt is a classic hero dredging up some humanity after a lifetime in a terrible job. The plot is twisty and the action scenes very well done with some really good properly violent fights. I liked the way the romance was handled. Mae doesn't fall into Kitt's arms, she keeps a sensible distance even when she's falling for him and gets really angry with him when necessary, she still loves her dead husband and that's not something that evaporates in the course of a new romance. Also, lots of very enjoyable James Bond jokes if you're a geek. And Mae is *in her late 40s*, can we just dwell on that for a bit.
Couple of grumbles: There's some dizzying POV switching between the MCs which at least in my copy wasn't marked with line breaks etc. I would also like to put in a formal request that authors stop using 'phonetic' rendition of accents. It just doesn't work unless all your readers share your own accent and understand what vowels you're hearing in your head (or unless you use the phonetic alphabet I suppose), and the question of which accent is default and whose needs to be rendered on page tends to be problematic.
Lovely and clever cover, great concept. I'd definitely like to read more in this series.
There's a great deal to like in this. Mae is practical, sensible, copes well with the bizarre and violent series of events into which she's thrust, and has some excellent funny lines. Major Kitt is a classic hero dredging up some humanity after a lifetime in a terrible job. The plot is twisty and the action scenes very well done with some really good properly violent fights. I liked the way the romance was handled. Mae doesn't fall into Kitt's arms, she keeps a sensible distance even when she's falling for him and gets really angry with him when necessary, she still loves her dead husband and that's not something that evaporates in the course of a new romance. Also, lots of very enjoyable James Bond jokes if you're a geek. And Mae is *in her late 40s*, can we just dwell on that for a bit.
Couple of grumbles: There's some dizzying POV switching between the MCs which at least in my copy wasn't marked with line breaks etc. I would also like to put in a formal request that authors stop using 'phonetic' rendition of accents. It just doesn't work unless all your readers share your own accent and understand what vowels you're hearing in your head (or unless you use the phonetic alphabet I suppose), and the question of which accent is default and whose needs to be rendered on page tends to be problematic.
Lovely and clever cover, great concept. I'd definitely like to read more in this series.
March 21, 2019
A-/ 4.5 stars rounded up
This romantic suspense novel featuring a retired army Major and his female butler was like a breath of fresh air. The plot is twisty and complex and the dry, witty banter flows thick and fast; it’s an exciting, fast-paced story, and I really appreciated the protagonists being older than usual for romance novels – he’s late forties, she’s early fifties and they’ve both been around the block a few times.
Mae Valentine and Major Kitt have an interesting relationship. Mae is a widow of some sixteen years, and is still in love with her dead husband, albeit not in a ‘mopey’ way. She’s practical, self-sufficient and highly competent; she’s worked for Kitt for about three years, but while she’s his employee, he’s her tenant (she owns two adjoining houses, one of which he rents from her), which is an interesting way to address the employer/employee dynamic. Kitt is retired from the army and now works as a Risk Assessment Specialist that often takes him to dangerous parts of the world. It’s clear from fairly early on that that’s not the whole story, but Mae doesn’t ask, Kitt doesn’t tell, and they’re both content with that.
Things change, however, when Mae is receives the news that her late husband had some kind of trust fund of which she is the beneficiary, and she stands to inherit a large sum of money. Mae knew nothing about it, and doesn’t want or need the money, but she’s in the process of signing the necessary papers anyway. The representative of the bank she’s been dealing with actually asked her out for dinner – but he doesn’t show up at the restaurant and Mae ends up being walked home by Kitt, who’d been there as well. On the way back, Mae is attacked, her bag is stolen and Kitt beats the living crap out of the one of her assailants he catches hold of; and later, they arrive back at her flat to discover that it’s been ransacked. Clearly, whoever stole her bag was after her keys rather than her money and credit cards.
Nothing appears to have been stolen though, and Mae can’t help wondering if the attack and (not)break-in are somehow related to the trust, especially when the newspapers report the mysterious death of the same bank executive who’d stood her up. And when someone else claiming to be from the bank tries to kill her, there’s no doubt any more that it’s something to do with the money. Desperate to get Mae out of harm’s way, Kitt tells her to take a holiday, thinking she’ll go to a posh spa or something similar. He’d not banked on her running off to Sicily – where her husband was from – in order to try to follow the money and get to the bottom of what’s going on.
The story is well-put together and gripping, but the characters are what really drew me in. Kitt is obviously a James Bond type (and I have to say that the author’s description of him as being attractive in an ugly-handsome way brings Daniel Craig perfectly to mind!) with his love for strong drink, fast (Mae calls them “girly”) cars and married women, yet it’s clear from the start that his relationship with Mae is important to him. No matter where he goes, what state he’s in when he returns (he always seems to be bruised or battered) and whichever woman has been in his bed the night before, when he’s home, he’s always got a superb breakfast waiting – Mae’s scrambled eggs are his idea of perfection, it seems – and the pithy conversation of his expert butler to enjoy.
The story moves quickly and there’s a fair bit of violence, a bit more than I come across in most romantic suspense stories; there’s cross upon cross upon double-cross as they – and we – are left wondering who they can really trust. Mae’s suspicions as to Kitt’s real job begin to solidify, and they find themselves thrown into one dangerous situation after another.
Also dangerous is the fact that the close proximity into which Mae and Kitt are thrust is starting to stir up thoughts and feelings that both of them have been repressing for some time. Her attraction to Kitt comes as something of a surprise to Mae, while he is forced to acknowledge – to himself at least – that he’s had feelings for her for a while but has buried them in favour of her scrambled eggs (or at least in favour of not losing her as a butler and friend). The chemistry between them zings from the start and their deepening attraction is really well done.
I had a minor niggle about the sometimes dizzying speed with which Mae and Kitt lurch from one life-threatening situation to another without really thinking things through, but that didn’t spoil my overall enjoyment of the book. They’re attractive, three-dimensional characters and I really enjoyed the way their relationship developed, which felt completely right given their ages and life experience. One other thing I appreciated greatly was the “Britishness” of the book (and yes, I know the author is Australian!). There are no Americanisms and no unidiomatic language; the London locations are really well described, but more than that, the speech patterns, the dryness of the humour and the classically understated manner Mae and Kitt so often display towards one another felt spot on. At Your Service is a smart, sexy read peppered with sophisticated, dry humour and lots of in-jokes about spies for the geeks among us ;) I’m really looking forward to the next book in this series and to checking out Sandra Antonelli’s backlist.
This romantic suspense novel featuring a retired army Major and his female butler was like a breath of fresh air. The plot is twisty and complex and the dry, witty banter flows thick and fast; it’s an exciting, fast-paced story, and I really appreciated the protagonists being older than usual for romance novels – he’s late forties, she’s early fifties and they’ve both been around the block a few times.
Mae Valentine and Major Kitt have an interesting relationship. Mae is a widow of some sixteen years, and is still in love with her dead husband, albeit not in a ‘mopey’ way. She’s practical, self-sufficient and highly competent; she’s worked for Kitt for about three years, but while she’s his employee, he’s her tenant (she owns two adjoining houses, one of which he rents from her), which is an interesting way to address the employer/employee dynamic. Kitt is retired from the army and now works as a Risk Assessment Specialist that often takes him to dangerous parts of the world. It’s clear from fairly early on that that’s not the whole story, but Mae doesn’t ask, Kitt doesn’t tell, and they’re both content with that.
Things change, however, when Mae is receives the news that her late husband had some kind of trust fund of which she is the beneficiary, and she stands to inherit a large sum of money. Mae knew nothing about it, and doesn’t want or need the money, but she’s in the process of signing the necessary papers anyway. The representative of the bank she’s been dealing with actually asked her out for dinner – but he doesn’t show up at the restaurant and Mae ends up being walked home by Kitt, who’d been there as well. On the way back, Mae is attacked, her bag is stolen and Kitt beats the living crap out of the one of her assailants he catches hold of; and later, they arrive back at her flat to discover that it’s been ransacked. Clearly, whoever stole her bag was after her keys rather than her money and credit cards.
Nothing appears to have been stolen though, and Mae can’t help wondering if the attack and (not)break-in are somehow related to the trust, especially when the newspapers report the mysterious death of the same bank executive who’d stood her up. And when someone else claiming to be from the bank tries to kill her, there’s no doubt any more that it’s something to do with the money. Desperate to get Mae out of harm’s way, Kitt tells her to take a holiday, thinking she’ll go to a posh spa or something similar. He’d not banked on her running off to Sicily – where her husband was from – in order to try to follow the money and get to the bottom of what’s going on.
The story is well-put together and gripping, but the characters are what really drew me in. Kitt is obviously a James Bond type (and I have to say that the author’s description of him as being attractive in an ugly-handsome way brings Daniel Craig perfectly to mind!) with his love for strong drink, fast (Mae calls them “girly”) cars and married women, yet it’s clear from the start that his relationship with Mae is important to him. No matter where he goes, what state he’s in when he returns (he always seems to be bruised or battered) and whichever woman has been in his bed the night before, when he’s home, he’s always got a superb breakfast waiting – Mae’s scrambled eggs are his idea of perfection, it seems – and the pithy conversation of his expert butler to enjoy.
The story moves quickly and there’s a fair bit of violence, a bit more than I come across in most romantic suspense stories; there’s cross upon cross upon double-cross as they – and we – are left wondering who they can really trust. Mae’s suspicions as to Kitt’s real job begin to solidify, and they find themselves thrown into one dangerous situation after another.
Also dangerous is the fact that the close proximity into which Mae and Kitt are thrust is starting to stir up thoughts and feelings that both of them have been repressing for some time. Her attraction to Kitt comes as something of a surprise to Mae, while he is forced to acknowledge – to himself at least – that he’s had feelings for her for a while but has buried them in favour of her scrambled eggs (or at least in favour of not losing her as a butler and friend). The chemistry between them zings from the start and their deepening attraction is really well done.
I had a minor niggle about the sometimes dizzying speed with which Mae and Kitt lurch from one life-threatening situation to another without really thinking things through, but that didn’t spoil my overall enjoyment of the book. They’re attractive, three-dimensional characters and I really enjoyed the way their relationship developed, which felt completely right given their ages and life experience. One other thing I appreciated greatly was the “Britishness” of the book (and yes, I know the author is Australian!). There are no Americanisms and no unidiomatic language; the London locations are really well described, but more than that, the speech patterns, the dryness of the humour and the classically understated manner Mae and Kitt so often display towards one another felt spot on. At Your Service is a smart, sexy read peppered with sophisticated, dry humour and lots of in-jokes about spies for the geeks among us ;) I’m really looking forward to the next book in this series and to checking out Sandra Antonelli’s backlist.
December 28, 2018
4.5
Such an unexpectedly pleasant surprise to discover a new author and fantastic new series at the end of the year thanks to AAR's Maria Rose's lovely review.
At Your Service is a somewhat tongue-in-cheek tribute to James Bond featuring Major Kitt, a charming rake of a spy who has a penchant for beautiful, married women, alcohol, and rough and tumble adventures in his quest for intelligence. But as any good James Bond fan knows, Bond depends on the steady hand of his loyal staff to keep his life orderly and provide him with a safe resting place in between the life and death experiences in his service to the Crown. Here Kitt enjoys a solid and reliable Moneypenny in Bryce, but more importantly, his butler, Mae Valentine, is the ultimate trustworthy person in his life. She maintains his home to an impeccable degree of orderliness, and all while scooting young Bond women out the door before breakfast is served without batting an eye. In short, she is professional to a fault and completely without judgment of an employer she respects and values. From the start of the novel, it's clear that Kitt and Mae relish each other's place in their lives, though of the two, Mae is the one most intent on maintaining professional boundaries.
While this first book is a budding romance between an employer and his employee, it is also a high octane suspense novel that kicks into gear pretty early in the story. While tending to her daily chores and scrambling eggs for her boss, Mae learns that she has inherited an astonishing amount of money set up in a trust fund from her dearly departed husband. But before she can gain access to the money, it vanishes, and she gains instead the attention of some seriously dangerous people. Once it is apparent that Mae's life is in danger, Kitt gets Mae out of town and the two set off on a road trip adventure. Some of the action is over the top, as is some of the violence, and since I read this all in practically one sitting, I did feel some mental exhaustion toward the end trying to keeping track of the perils Mae and Kitt have to overcome to solve the mystery. The mystery itself is convoluted, and all is not what it seems even with the main players. Still, to say this is a gripping story is an understatement, and every time I set it aside, I couldn't wait to get back to it.
I would add that the best part of the novel is that it features a middle-aged couple, and it does so in a very knowing and reflective way. Unlike Bond, Kitt knows that he is too old for the young women he beds, and he's smart enough to know that Mae is his better half. Mae knows that she is old enough to know better than to fall in love with her employer as well as a man with proclivities for flashy youth and beauty (and violence!). Nevertheless, Mae and Kitt are attractive people in their own right and at a place in their lives where experience has given them wisdom and substance. Mae is just hands down one of the best heroines I've read in ages in her complexity, her outlook on life, her gentle self-deprecation, and her refusal to be second place to anyone. Thankfully, the hero recognizes all this and more in her. The ending has one of the best declarations I've read.
Fingers crossed more in this series are coming and that other romance authors take note that middle-aged couples deserve their own stories.
Such an unexpectedly pleasant surprise to discover a new author and fantastic new series at the end of the year thanks to AAR's Maria Rose's lovely review.
At Your Service is a somewhat tongue-in-cheek tribute to James Bond featuring Major Kitt, a charming rake of a spy who has a penchant for beautiful, married women, alcohol, and rough and tumble adventures in his quest for intelligence. But as any good James Bond fan knows, Bond depends on the steady hand of his loyal staff to keep his life orderly and provide him with a safe resting place in between the life and death experiences in his service to the Crown. Here Kitt enjoys a solid and reliable Moneypenny in Bryce, but more importantly, his butler, Mae Valentine, is the ultimate trustworthy person in his life. She maintains his home to an impeccable degree of orderliness, and all while scooting young Bond women out the door before breakfast is served without batting an eye. In short, she is professional to a fault and completely without judgment of an employer she respects and values. From the start of the novel, it's clear that Kitt and Mae relish each other's place in their lives, though of the two, Mae is the one most intent on maintaining professional boundaries.
While this first book is a budding romance between an employer and his employee, it is also a high octane suspense novel that kicks into gear pretty early in the story. While tending to her daily chores and scrambling eggs for her boss, Mae learns that she has inherited an astonishing amount of money set up in a trust fund from her dearly departed husband. But before she can gain access to the money, it vanishes, and she gains instead the attention of some seriously dangerous people. Once it is apparent that Mae's life is in danger, Kitt gets Mae out of town and the two set off on a road trip adventure. Some of the action is over the top, as is some of the violence, and since I read this all in practically one sitting, I did feel some mental exhaustion toward the end trying to keeping track of the perils Mae and Kitt have to overcome to solve the mystery. The mystery itself is convoluted, and all is not what it seems even with the main players. Still, to say this is a gripping story is an understatement, and every time I set it aside, I couldn't wait to get back to it.
I would add that the best part of the novel is that it features a middle-aged couple, and it does so in a very knowing and reflective way. Unlike Bond, Kitt knows that he is too old for the young women he beds, and he's smart enough to know that Mae is his better half. Mae knows that she is old enough to know better than to fall in love with her employer as well as a man with proclivities for flashy youth and beauty (and violence!). Nevertheless, Mae and Kitt are attractive people in their own right and at a place in their lives where experience has given them wisdom and substance. Mae is just hands down one of the best heroines I've read in ages in her complexity, her outlook on life, her gentle self-deprecation, and her refusal to be second place to anyone. Thankfully, the hero recognizes all this and more in her. The ending has one of the best declarations I've read.
Fingers crossed more in this series are coming and that other romance authors take note that middle-aged couples deserve their own stories.
May 1, 2020
This book caught my interest because the MCs are older (h is 50ish, H is 5 years younger) and because the h is the H's butler and landlord. It's hard to do much of a review for a romantic suspense without giving too much away so I won't say much. I will say that the book was much more violent than I was expecting and that the H didn't seem to be very good at his job since the h kept getting beat up/nearly killed. It also wasn't very safe for me. I'll include details in a spoiler tag.
The H/h have great banter. They are loyal to each other. They trust each other. They are cute with each other. But this book is mostly a mystery with just a dash of romance thrown in. If you're looking for a lot of romance, look elsewhere.
Overall, I liked the writing, the mystery, the characters and I even read book 2 despite the problems I had with this book.
The H/h have great banter. They are loyal to each other. They trust each other. They are cute with each other. But this book is mostly a mystery with just a dash of romance thrown in. If you're looking for a lot of romance, look elsewhere.
Overall, I liked the writing, the mystery, the characters and I even read book 2 despite the problems I had with this book.
January 13, 2019
(4.5 stars) Take Chelsea buns, scrambled eggs, toilet brushes, a fish named Shirley, sinister Mafiosi and other bad guys, an aging British spy and his middle-aged female landlady/butler, a trip to Sicily, lots of action/adventure, excellent writing, character and relationship development, intelligent romance, and put them all together for a really entertaining read.
Author Sandra Antonelli is a new-to-me author, although she has been around for a few years, I see. She describes her books as "quirky romance novels for grown ups and smart asses." The books she writes have male and female characters over 40 and 50 who fall in love and, yes, have their sexy times.
I'm a romance reader of A Certain Age and often don't appreciate, especially in contemporary romances, the bubble-brained 20-something females getting it on with, for example, 40-something males. That's a bit of an "ick" for me but is prevalent in the work of many popular CR authors.
Sandra Antonelli's stories fall into line with my taste in romance. That means mature men paired with mature women in an equal relationship, with mutual respect for each other and much more in common than just sexual compatibility. Her characters are much more interesting to me because of their life experiences and maturity, but they are much too young, in their 40s and 50s, to relegate to only aunt/uncle/parent category.
This particular book is described as a "romantic suspense cosy spy mystery thriller" and, yes, it is all that. It's fun, it's exciting, and it's romantic. The writing is very good, the dialogue is excellent, the characters have depth. I'm so glad I saw Blackjack's review here on GR and picked this up. Now I'm looking forward to the sequel. I've read the short story, YOUR SILVER SERVICE, which takes place chronologically before this and relates how the H and h met and she became his butler. Now I want to find out the direction their relationship will go in the future. Antonelli can count on me to read the next Service book in the series.
BTW, you may wonder why I did not give this 5 stars when I liked it so very much. Well, there was perhaps just a tad too much murder and violence in certain sections. So call me a wuss. The book is stellar except for my wussiness factor.
Author Sandra Antonelli is a new-to-me author, although she has been around for a few years, I see. She describes her books as "quirky romance novels for grown ups and smart asses." The books she writes have male and female characters over 40 and 50 who fall in love and, yes, have their sexy times.
I'm a romance reader of A Certain Age and often don't appreciate, especially in contemporary romances, the bubble-brained 20-something females getting it on with, for example, 40-something males. That's a bit of an "ick" for me but is prevalent in the work of many popular CR authors.
Sandra Antonelli's stories fall into line with my taste in romance. That means mature men paired with mature women in an equal relationship, with mutual respect for each other and much more in common than just sexual compatibility. Her characters are much more interesting to me because of their life experiences and maturity, but they are much too young, in their 40s and 50s, to relegate to only aunt/uncle/parent category.
This particular book is described as a "romantic suspense cosy spy mystery thriller" and, yes, it is all that. It's fun, it's exciting, and it's romantic. The writing is very good, the dialogue is excellent, the characters have depth. I'm so glad I saw Blackjack's review here on GR and picked this up. Now I'm looking forward to the sequel. I've read the short story, YOUR SILVER SERVICE, which takes place chronologically before this and relates how the H and h met and she became his butler. Now I want to find out the direction their relationship will go in the future. Antonelli can count on me to read the next Service book in the series.
BTW, you may wonder why I did not give this 5 stars when I liked it so very much. Well, there was perhaps just a tad too much murder and violence in certain sections. So call me a wuss. The book is stellar except for my wussiness factor.
April 4, 2019
4 stars
It’s a rare day when you pick up a romance featuring older MC’s. Rarer still when one of them is a strong, successful, capable woman (a butler, no less) who isn’t a mother or a career-minded super bitch. If that doesn’t completely do it for you, imagine the MC’s played by Helen Mirren and Daniel Craig. Yeah, baby!
I really enjoyed book. It’s a romantic-suspense-spy-caper with zero virginal damsels in distress and absolutely no alpha males who act like assholes. Basically, it has a complete lack of tired tropes and I couldn’t be happier.
Mae is a fully grown adult woman who takes her job seriously, invests her money, speaks several languages and lives a fairly quiet life, still mourning the sudden loss of her husband 16 years prior. She dates men, of course, but never gets seriously involved. Kitt is a retired army major who still works for the government, albeit in a less official capacity (think James Bond), and who relies on the ever professional Mae to keep his life in order. When Mae finds herself suddenly and inadvertently the target of some rather unpleasant people, her and Kitt work together to find out why someone wants her dead.
I loved that Mae wasn’t some shrinking violet needing Kitt to bail her out of every situation. Yes, he’s more than capable - it is his job after all - but she finds herself more than proficient at dealing with the bad guys too. I found her to be realistically kickass and pragmatic to a fault, and I can’t tell you how refreshing I found it.
If you’re looking for something to break you out of a reading slump, or you find that constantly reading about people half your age is getting boring, or if you just want to read about an older woman who isn’t relegated to wife/mother/career-bitch status, then I definitely recommend picking this one up.
It’s a rare day when you pick up a romance featuring older MC’s. Rarer still when one of them is a strong, successful, capable woman (a butler, no less) who isn’t a mother or a career-minded super bitch. If that doesn’t completely do it for you, imagine the MC’s played by Helen Mirren and Daniel Craig. Yeah, baby!
I really enjoyed book. It’s a romantic-suspense-spy-caper with zero virginal damsels in distress and absolutely no alpha males who act like assholes. Basically, it has a complete lack of tired tropes and I couldn’t be happier.
Mae is a fully grown adult woman who takes her job seriously, invests her money, speaks several languages and lives a fairly quiet life, still mourning the sudden loss of her husband 16 years prior. She dates men, of course, but never gets seriously involved. Kitt is a retired army major who still works for the government, albeit in a less official capacity (think James Bond), and who relies on the ever professional Mae to keep his life in order. When Mae finds herself suddenly and inadvertently the target of some rather unpleasant people, her and Kitt work together to find out why someone wants her dead.
I loved that Mae wasn’t some shrinking violet needing Kitt to bail her out of every situation. Yes, he’s more than capable - it is his job after all - but she finds herself more than proficient at dealing with the bad guys too. I found her to be realistically kickass and pragmatic to a fault, and I can’t tell you how refreshing I found it.
If you’re looking for something to break you out of a reading slump, or you find that constantly reading about people half your age is getting boring, or if you just want to read about an older woman who isn’t relegated to wife/mother/career-bitch status, then I definitely recommend picking this one up.
March 17, 2019
I’ve been desperate for something different. Asking everyone for recs with older characters. I don’t want overt sex. I don’t want penis descriptions. I don’t want to hear the characters’ looks lauded. I want a lot of action. Good (but not flowery writing). And I want the problems to be outside the characters’ heads.
I have been giving out 3 stars like they were candy. Nothing inspires me. Nothing gets me fully engaged. And then I saw Caz mention it and Blackjack’s review of this book. I didn’t read the entire thing (no reviews before I read the book, but I’m excited that I get to read the review now). A few phrases from the review caught my attention - and I thought this might be a thing. It was.
But here’s the deal. I was so into this book. But surface level. It’s quirky. The tone is so odd. Is that humor? How seriously should I take any of this? I thought it was fun and cute. I loved the age of the characters. I love spy books. The action was top notch.
And then the last 20% of the book showed me that I’d been snowed. Just like....eh eh eh. No spoilers here. I’m not going to tell you much. Except that this was much more book than I gave it credit for being. Basically the entire thing is a set up for...right. Never mind that.
I’m happy. And sad. I cannot wait for the next book. This was everything I needed.
I have been giving out 3 stars like they were candy. Nothing inspires me. Nothing gets me fully engaged. And then I saw Caz mention it and Blackjack’s review of this book. I didn’t read the entire thing (no reviews before I read the book, but I’m excited that I get to read the review now). A few phrases from the review caught my attention - and I thought this might be a thing. It was.
But here’s the deal. I was so into this book. But surface level. It’s quirky. The tone is so odd. Is that humor? How seriously should I take any of this? I thought it was fun and cute. I loved the age of the characters. I love spy books. The action was top notch.
And then the last 20% of the book showed me that I’d been snowed. Just like....eh eh eh. No spoilers here. I’m not going to tell you much. Except that this was much more book than I gave it credit for being. Basically the entire thing is a set up for...right. Never mind that.
I’m happy. And sad. I cannot wait for the next book. This was everything I needed.
March 27, 2019
Oh, I positively devoured this terrific book. The writing is lovely, the humor is dry and just a bit silly, Mae is a delight and Kitt ... more Kitts, please. I’d like to know more about Bryce, too - hope he gets a book as well!
July 18, 2018
My goodness I love Kitt and Mae! And I really love this author. If you haven't read Sandra Antonelli (and I'm a fan), then you need to expect the unexpected. Antonelli excels at challenging stereotypes. Firstly in this, both lead characters are older than those you might expect in traditional romance. As best I know it, Antonelli only writes characters who are over 40 in lead roles. Second, Mae is a butler. Yes, that threw me for a while because I only ever thought of butlers as blokes.
Third, there is death by toilet brush, and many other scenarios and situations that create originality, quirk, fun, and a rollicking read.
This story starts in England, but ends up in Italy, with several stops in between as Kitt and Mae follow a trail of murder and mayhem across Europe, trying to clear both their names. That they're falling in love is just another little complication...
I highly recommend this, and Sandra's Antonelli's other books (particularly A Basic Renovation, which remains a firm favourite of mine).
Third, there is death by toilet brush, and many other scenarios and situations that create originality, quirk, fun, and a rollicking read.
This story starts in England, but ends up in Italy, with several stops in between as Kitt and Mae follow a trail of murder and mayhem across Europe, trying to clear both their names. That they're falling in love is just another little complication...
I highly recommend this, and Sandra's Antonelli's other books (particularly A Basic Renovation, which remains a firm favourite of mine).
March 18, 2023
Picture this: a slow burn romance about James Bond and his butler. If only this lived up to the premise! Mae is both butler and landlord for Kitt when she becomes embroiled in one dangerous situation after another and he feels duty bound to look after her. She doesn’t know he’s an intelligence officer, which is initially for the best, because he’s really bad his job. He excuses his mistakes as being distracted because he’s been pining after Mae for the last few years while she’s worked for him. But I had trouble believing that he was in love with her when he has all these one night stands, often with married women, and Mae has to pick up after them. It’s not that he should have been celibate or not dated at all—there are valid reasons for him not making a move and the employer-employee power dynamics are only a small part of that. I just didn’t buy the depth of his supposed feelings or see how she could have ever picked up on him wanting more based on his behavior. Also I don't think intelligence officers can just switch off their spy senses like that.
The primary reason Kitt hasn’t tried to start something with Mae is that she’s still in love with her husband who died 16 years ago. She mocks the idea of “complicated grief”, which was quite concerning to me as a former medical social worker and bereavement counselor. Grief transforms love. We’ll always love the people we lost but grief shouldn’t prohibit someone from moving forward with their life this many years after the death. Mae and Caspar weren’t even married all that long. Given the details we learn about him later, I was even more puzzled about why she struggled to mourn to the point where she refuses to sleep in a full size bed because she doesn’t want to roll over in the morning and have him not be there. It just didn’t seem like their marriage warranted this much “devotion.”
The mystery didn’t make much sense to me either.
The romance felt extremely underbaked. I enjoyed their dynamic in the first half but when Mae finally kissed him, it came out of nowhere and the first time they had sex made sense on the surface (adrenaline!) but didn’t match the characters’ arcs. It was like they had personality changes. I needed a lot more underpinning their decisions in order for me to root for them. Frankly, Mae should have gotten hers and then quit as planned. Enjoy a fling with James Bond if you want but he does not have the emotional maturity for someone like Mae. However, she doesn’t quit and I’m sufficiently interested in what Kitt and Mae will be like now that they’re in a relationship that I plan on reading the next book eventually. I already own it so I might as well.
A few last thoughts: this was quite gender essentialist, right down to Mae always telling Kitt he drove a “girly sports car”. It was a lot to take on top of Kitt’s casual sexism. The author used phonetic accents, primarily for Mae, and this got on my nerves. There are other, better ways of conveying accents. There’s also a lot of head hopping.
Characters: Mae is a white Irish butler and landlord who wears reading glasses. Kitt is a white British intelligence officer and ex-Army. Mae is 5 years older than Kitt; they’re in their 40s or 50s. This is set in London.
Content notes: infidelity , drug assault, abduction, murder, attempted murder, immolation (victim), off page waterboarding, physical assault, knife wounds, mugging, house burglary, sexism, misogyny, past death of husband (car accident 16 years ago), identity theft, vomit, past war (secondary character), unsafe sex practices (unprotected sex without discussion of pregnancy or STI prevention), on page sex, alcohol, inebriation, hangover, cigarettes, transphobia (small penis insult), gendered pejoratives, gender essentialism, ableist language, mentions of people who died of cancer and congenital heart defect
The primary reason Kitt hasn’t tried to start something with Mae is that she’s still in love with her husband who died 16 years ago. She mocks the idea of “complicated grief”, which was quite concerning to me as a former medical social worker and bereavement counselor. Grief transforms love. We’ll always love the people we lost but grief shouldn’t prohibit someone from moving forward with their life this many years after the death. Mae and Caspar weren’t even married all that long. Given the details we learn about him later, I was even more puzzled about why she struggled to mourn to the point where she refuses to sleep in a full size bed because she doesn’t want to roll over in the morning and have him not be there. It just didn’t seem like their marriage warranted this much “devotion.”
The mystery didn’t make much sense to me either.
The romance felt extremely underbaked. I enjoyed their dynamic in the first half but when Mae finally kissed him, it came out of nowhere and the first time they had sex made sense on the surface (adrenaline!) but didn’t match the characters’ arcs. It was like they had personality changes. I needed a lot more underpinning their decisions in order for me to root for them. Frankly, Mae should have gotten hers and then quit as planned. Enjoy a fling with James Bond if you want but he does not have the emotional maturity for someone like Mae. However, she doesn’t quit and I’m sufficiently interested in what Kitt and Mae will be like now that they’re in a relationship that I plan on reading the next book eventually. I already own it so I might as well.
A few last thoughts: this was quite gender essentialist, right down to Mae always telling Kitt he drove a “girly sports car”. It was a lot to take on top of Kitt’s casual sexism. The author used phonetic accents, primarily for Mae, and this got on my nerves. There are other, better ways of conveying accents. There’s also a lot of head hopping.
Characters: Mae is a white Irish butler and landlord who wears reading glasses. Kitt is a white British intelligence officer and ex-Army. Mae is 5 years older than Kitt; they’re in their 40s or 50s. This is set in London.
Content notes: infidelity , drug assault, abduction, murder, attempted murder, immolation (victim), off page waterboarding, physical assault, knife wounds, mugging, house burglary, sexism, misogyny, past death of husband (car accident 16 years ago), identity theft, vomit, past war (secondary character), unsafe sex practices (unprotected sex without discussion of pregnancy or STI prevention), on page sex, alcohol, inebriation, hangover, cigarettes, transphobia (small penis insult), gendered pejoratives, gender essentialism, ableist language, mentions of people who died of cancer and congenital heart defect
December 1, 2020
Basically 007 and his housekeeper/butler, mostly murder and mystery with one of the most satisfying slow burn romances I've ever read. Nearly perfect with breakneck pacing, excellent plot twists, and characters I want to read more about. I only wish some events in the text were a little more clear and some POV changes were more clearly defined. I already have the next book downloaded on my kindle
April 14, 2025
Probably not for everyone, but I enjoyed all the nuances of their relationship and laughed out loud at some of their banter. With all the twists in the mystery portion of the story, I fully expected Mrs Valentine to be the criminal mastermind. That's not a spoiler! Still undecided as to whether I'll continue the series.
February 11, 2020
Hmmm...well, I loved the plot. The dialogue and the odd words that didn't work where they were placed and the choppy phrasing, not so much. Here's an example of what I mean: "...Her unwavering, odious gaze tipped out drops of the larger ocean of rage he’d held dammed. He swore and she blinked at the crude vociferousness of his words." ??? Wth?
At first I thought this must be something written way back when and just re-published, and that might explain the oddities. But, nope, it's new. All the technology clued me in. Then, I thought maybe the author speaks/writes English as a second language, but nope, evidently not. So, I'm not sure why it was so stilted and odd.
I acknowledge I'm not a James Bond junkie and those jokes/allusions swished over my head, bat-like. Nor, is my English colloquially British--I'm American, so that too may have added to my confusion. But I'm curious, for those British English readers skimming this review, do people actually talk to each other this way where you live? (I can't imagine real people's dialogue anything like what's in here. And, yes, I get that the two are bantering--but really?)
BUT, in spite of the authorial oddities in dialogue and text, I enjoyed the characters, plot and non-stop action. Upon finishing, I one-clicked book 2 and am reading it now.
P.S. I'd really like to hear from other readers. How did you feel about this book? Did you have a similar reading experience, or am I just weird? I've never read anything by this author before, so maybe this is just the way she writes?
Just a note added later to say that I found that author is actually Australian. Does that influence the weirdness of the text I've mentioned above? I have no idea. I've read Australian and NZ authors before, but nothing similar.
BTW: If you like this type of plot, and want more reads with suspense & a featuring woman butler, have you tried Linda Howard's Dying to Please already?
2/4/20 3.5 stars. I'm enjoying these books more on the re-read.
At first I thought this must be something written way back when and just re-published, and that might explain the oddities. But, nope, it's new. All the technology clued me in. Then, I thought maybe the author speaks/writes English as a second language, but nope, evidently not. So, I'm not sure why it was so stilted and odd.
I acknowledge I'm not a James Bond junkie and those jokes/allusions swished over my head, bat-like. Nor, is my English colloquially British--I'm American, so that too may have added to my confusion. But I'm curious, for those British English readers skimming this review, do people actually talk to each other this way where you live? (I can't imagine real people's dialogue anything like what's in here. And, yes, I get that the two are bantering--but really?)
BUT, in spite of the authorial oddities in dialogue and text, I enjoyed the characters, plot and non-stop action. Upon finishing, I one-clicked book 2 and am reading it now.
P.S. I'd really like to hear from other readers. How did you feel about this book? Did you have a similar reading experience, or am I just weird? I've never read anything by this author before, so maybe this is just the way she writes?
Just a note added later to say that I found that author is actually Australian. Does that influence the weirdness of the text I've mentioned above? I have no idea. I've read Australian and NZ authors before, but nothing similar.
BTW: If you like this type of plot, and want more reads with suspense & a featuring woman butler, have you tried Linda Howard's Dying to Please already?
2/4/20 3.5 stars. I'm enjoying these books more on the re-read.
July 31, 2018
What if a British secret agent---think Daniel Craig---lived a life of danger and glamour, but looked forward most at adventure’s end to returning to his home and butler? And what if his butler was a cool, professional, no-nonsense widow who tended his household, stocked his liquor cabinet and ensured that a superb breakfast greeted his every morning after the latest Bond Girl was ushered out the door? What you get is At Your Service, a great book on so many levels that I don’t know where to start.
When a series of vicious attacks threaten his butler’s life and his peaceful home, secret agent Kitt realizes he cares more about Mae than he bargained for. Mae, stoic, fiercely competent and never at a loss for words, wants to handle her predicament alone. But Kitt cannot tolerate the prospect of life without Mae, so into the maelstrom he dives.
At Your Service delivers a delightful, witty, stunningly crafted story that can be enjoyed as a quick, compelling read, or savored for its nuances. There’s the genre-bending fun of dropping an MI-5 agent into a romance with a heroine who’s more like the head of operations than Miss Moneypenny. You get a clever plot with more dodges and feints than most action adventures. You get a reluctant couple whose efforts to fight the sizzle between them is great fun all by itself. Then there is the supporting player of exotic Sicily as an active Mt. Etna gurgles and pops and threatens to blow. Plus, the novel is satisfyingly sexy. Definitely for mature audiences.
Sandra Antonelli's voice is fresh, her characters unpredictable, and her stories are gloriously original. These are about grownups finding their way through what life has dished up when they least expected it.
P.S.: Nestled among the action and building romance are lovely little discoveries for the discerning reader. Easter eggs for the win.
When a series of vicious attacks threaten his butler’s life and his peaceful home, secret agent Kitt realizes he cares more about Mae than he bargained for. Mae, stoic, fiercely competent and never at a loss for words, wants to handle her predicament alone. But Kitt cannot tolerate the prospect of life without Mae, so into the maelstrom he dives.
At Your Service delivers a delightful, witty, stunningly crafted story that can be enjoyed as a quick, compelling read, or savored for its nuances. There’s the genre-bending fun of dropping an MI-5 agent into a romance with a heroine who’s more like the head of operations than Miss Moneypenny. You get a clever plot with more dodges and feints than most action adventures. You get a reluctant couple whose efforts to fight the sizzle between them is great fun all by itself. Then there is the supporting player of exotic Sicily as an active Mt. Etna gurgles and pops and threatens to blow. Plus, the novel is satisfyingly sexy. Definitely for mature audiences.
Sandra Antonelli's voice is fresh, her characters unpredictable, and her stories are gloriously original. These are about grownups finding their way through what life has dished up when they least expected it.
P.S.: Nestled among the action and building romance are lovely little discoveries for the discerning reader. Easter eggs for the win.
April 15, 2020
Yikes. I destroyed my nails as I read my way through this adventure romp. And promptly purchased the next book in the series.
At Your Service, the second book in Sandra Antonelli’s In Service mystery series, is a fast moving and action packed novel. This title unveils new information about MMC/Major Kitt and the details and responsibilities of his position as a Risk Assessment Specialist. At Your Service unfolds with Kitt and Mae/FMC, Major Kitt’s British butler, seeking answers to Mae’s late husband’s suddenly revealed finances. Uncovering the truth, however, is like peeling back an onion - another layer of questions and half-truths awaits.
This is a series that may certainly appeal to fans of (fast moving) contemporary English mysteries, action adventure novels, and perhaps romance suspense novel readers, as well. At Your Service reminded me very much of a James Bond movie, of which I am a fan. I completed it with mixed emotions - I couldn’t wait to discover the ending, but I truly didn’t want the journey to be done.
(I read Your Sterling Service prior to At Your Service as the former title briefly introduces the characters in this series. At Your Service begins 3 yrs later). I enjoyed this episode very much (although there were a few editing errors).
Reader Cautions - At Your Service contains occasional profanity and British slang. There are several brief on-scene sexually intimate situations in the latter half of the book (that rate a 2.5 or so, on 0 to 5 Sweet to Very Steamy scale). The violence level present is similar to a James Bond movie. Readers that would be offended by such would probably not enjoy this book.
At Your Service, the second book in Sandra Antonelli’s In Service mystery series, is a fast moving and action packed novel. This title unveils new information about MMC/Major Kitt and the details and responsibilities of his position as a Risk Assessment Specialist. At Your Service unfolds with Kitt and Mae/FMC, Major Kitt’s British butler, seeking answers to Mae’s late husband’s suddenly revealed finances. Uncovering the truth, however, is like peeling back an onion - another layer of questions and half-truths awaits.
This is a series that may certainly appeal to fans of (fast moving) contemporary English mysteries, action adventure novels, and perhaps romance suspense novel readers, as well. At Your Service reminded me very much of a James Bond movie, of which I am a fan. I completed it with mixed emotions - I couldn’t wait to discover the ending, but I truly didn’t want the journey to be done.
(I read Your Sterling Service prior to At Your Service as the former title briefly introduces the characters in this series. At Your Service begins 3 yrs later). I enjoyed this episode very much (although there were a few editing errors).
Reader Cautions - At Your Service contains occasional profanity and British slang. There are several brief on-scene sexually intimate situations in the latter half of the book (that rate a 2.5 or so, on 0 to 5 Sweet to Very Steamy scale). The violence level present is similar to a James Bond movie. Readers that would be offended by such would probably not enjoy this book.
Read
April 11, 2025I read the first quarter of this before giving up. I was quite disappointed, as it had a lot of elements I thought could be very intriguing. A slow burn romance between an ageing James Bond character and his female butler, also in her late 40s sounds good, doesn't it?
Unfortunately, I just didn't click with the characters, who I found completely baffling. So were their interactions. We get what is supposed to be witty banter, but it didn't feel witty, just nonsensical. They don't talk like normal people, and their interactions felt fake. And then there was the violence, which felt pretty sickening.
Not for me, sadly.
Unfortunately, I just didn't click with the characters, who I found completely baffling. So were their interactions. We get what is supposed to be witty banter, but it didn't feel witty, just nonsensical. They don't talk like normal people, and their interactions felt fake. And then there was the violence, which felt pretty sickening.
Not for me, sadly.
December 31, 2018
If you’re looking for an exciting and humorous mystery, a bit of adventure, an older-couple romance, and aren’t squeamish about blood and bruises then At Your Service should definitely be on your to-read list. The hero is a Daniel Craig type of James Bond figure and the heroine is a self-assured, smart and competent woman who finds herself in possession of a sudden fortune until the mystery of its appearance unravels piece by piece in a life-altering way.
Mae Valentine and Major Kitt have an unusual relationship. Mae is Kitt’s butler, housekeeper, and cook, a steady, competent figure Kitt comes home to, weary and battered from his regular missions as a Risk Assessment Specialist that often take him to dangerous locations. Mae is also Kitt’s landlord as they share adjoining townhouses and he rents his property from her. Sometimes they meet up as employee/employer and sometimes as landlord/tenant but always with a friendly if reserved demeanor. She calls him Sir and he calls her Mae and that’s just the way of things. Mae’s seen an array of attractive women pass through Kitt’s quarters but she’s still grieving her husband Caspar who died in a traffic accident sixteen years earlier and has no interest in Kitt romantically, nor he in her (or so it appears).
Mae has recently received word that Caspar had a trust fund worth millions and that she stands to inherit it. The gentleman who works at the bank has expressed a romantic interest in Mae and and invites her to dinner. But when she gets stood up at the restaurant it’s Major Kitt who comes to her rescue as he also happens to be dining there, and he offers to escort her home. In a shocking turn of events on their way to their cars, Mae is violently mugged, and her purse stolen; and while Kitt does go after the culprits, they escape. In short order, Mae discovers that the date that stood her up has been murdered, and to top it off, someone who claims they are from the bank tries to kill her. The money and its provenance are the key to the mystery of why people seem determined to remove her from her tidy life, and with Kitt’s help they work to unravel the clues, first at home in England and then in Sicily where her dead husband is from. With danger at every turn, will they live to solve the mystery? And can they possibly get their own happy ever after when all the secrets between them come out?
If a story can be called a cozy mystery despite lots of blood and a few rather gruesome deaths then that’s how I’d classify this one, with a rather sweet romance mixed in the middle of all the mess. Mae ends up in one disturbing situation after another, with no real hint of where things are going at the start. Major Kitt is a godsend but also a mystery. It’s apparent soon enough that his job is a cover for something else, and in Sicily things start to really heat up, both in the revelations and in the romance. Being in close quarters has never been an issue for them before, but Kitt’s protective nature and his desire to keep Mae close stirs feelings in her long dormant. Kitt’s got that kind of ugly-handsome face that for some reason attracts women and though she knows that commitment is clearly out of his comfort zone, it doesn’t stop her from giving in to temptation and taking him up on his offer of sex for sex’s sake. And it’s good and fulfilling, and reminds Mae of what she’s been missing.
But then things turn on their heads again when more is revealed. Are the good guys really the good guys? Are the bad guys really bad? There’s more than one agenda at work and for Mae to keep her head requires all her wits while she figures out who she can really trust. At one point I wasn’t sure how it could possibly work out to a happy ending but it does, and in the nick of time. The scenes in Italy are my favorite, not for the bloody parts but for the vicarious enjoyment of the countryside and the tidbits of information an armchair tourist like myself delights in reading. It’s also a treat to have a couple over forty (and Mae is a few years older than Kitt) – who’ve been around the block and know what really matters in life – come together and find their path to a second chance at romance. At Your Service is a fast paced and engaging romantic mystery that will keep you well entertained.
This review also appears at All About Romance: https://allaboutromance.com/book-revi...
Note: a copy of this story was provided by the author for review.
Mae Valentine and Major Kitt have an unusual relationship. Mae is Kitt’s butler, housekeeper, and cook, a steady, competent figure Kitt comes home to, weary and battered from his regular missions as a Risk Assessment Specialist that often take him to dangerous locations. Mae is also Kitt’s landlord as they share adjoining townhouses and he rents his property from her. Sometimes they meet up as employee/employer and sometimes as landlord/tenant but always with a friendly if reserved demeanor. She calls him Sir and he calls her Mae and that’s just the way of things. Mae’s seen an array of attractive women pass through Kitt’s quarters but she’s still grieving her husband Caspar who died in a traffic accident sixteen years earlier and has no interest in Kitt romantically, nor he in her (or so it appears).
Mae has recently received word that Caspar had a trust fund worth millions and that she stands to inherit it. The gentleman who works at the bank has expressed a romantic interest in Mae and and invites her to dinner. But when she gets stood up at the restaurant it’s Major Kitt who comes to her rescue as he also happens to be dining there, and he offers to escort her home. In a shocking turn of events on their way to their cars, Mae is violently mugged, and her purse stolen; and while Kitt does go after the culprits, they escape. In short order, Mae discovers that the date that stood her up has been murdered, and to top it off, someone who claims they are from the bank tries to kill her. The money and its provenance are the key to the mystery of why people seem determined to remove her from her tidy life, and with Kitt’s help they work to unravel the clues, first at home in England and then in Sicily where her dead husband is from. With danger at every turn, will they live to solve the mystery? And can they possibly get their own happy ever after when all the secrets between them come out?
If a story can be called a cozy mystery despite lots of blood and a few rather gruesome deaths then that’s how I’d classify this one, with a rather sweet romance mixed in the middle of all the mess. Mae ends up in one disturbing situation after another, with no real hint of where things are going at the start. Major Kitt is a godsend but also a mystery. It’s apparent soon enough that his job is a cover for something else, and in Sicily things start to really heat up, both in the revelations and in the romance. Being in close quarters has never been an issue for them before, but Kitt’s protective nature and his desire to keep Mae close stirs feelings in her long dormant. Kitt’s got that kind of ugly-handsome face that for some reason attracts women and though she knows that commitment is clearly out of his comfort zone, it doesn’t stop her from giving in to temptation and taking him up on his offer of sex for sex’s sake. And it’s good and fulfilling, and reminds Mae of what she’s been missing.
But then things turn on their heads again when more is revealed. Are the good guys really the good guys? Are the bad guys really bad? There’s more than one agenda at work and for Mae to keep her head requires all her wits while she figures out who she can really trust. At one point I wasn’t sure how it could possibly work out to a happy ending but it does, and in the nick of time. The scenes in Italy are my favorite, not for the bloody parts but for the vicarious enjoyment of the countryside and the tidbits of information an armchair tourist like myself delights in reading. It’s also a treat to have a couple over forty (and Mae is a few years older than Kitt) – who’ve been around the block and know what really matters in life – come together and find their path to a second chance at romance. At Your Service is a fast paced and engaging romantic mystery that will keep you well entertained.
This review also appears at All About Romance: https://allaboutromance.com/book-revi...
Note: a copy of this story was provided by the author for review.
April 1, 2019
Why was this book so outstanding? Good premise. Funny. Surprising. Excellent sexual tension (not "seal" tension, weird autocorrect), and genuine development. Lovely.
September 24, 2018
4.5 stars.
I loved the dialogue between Mae and Kitt for their blunt honesty and ironic passion. The combination of a Daniel-Craig-like Bond ca. Skyfall and a female butler who I imagine as a cross between Felicity Kendal and Jane Asher definitely works for me. The novel is fast-paced, quite gruesome at times, with a worthwhile reveal.
My grumbles are: sloppy proofreading (again and again little words are missing; a pronoun here, an article there - annoying and unnecessary). And, on the level of plot: In a novel that seeks to undermine stereotypes of the genre, I mean, seriously. Wuht?
I loved the dialogue between Mae and Kitt for their blunt honesty and ironic passion. The combination of a Daniel-Craig-like Bond ca. Skyfall and a female butler who I imagine as a cross between Felicity Kendal and Jane Asher definitely works for me. The novel is fast-paced, quite gruesome at times, with a worthwhile reveal.
My grumbles are: sloppy proofreading (again and again little words are missing; a pronoun here, an article there - annoying and unnecessary). And, on the level of plot: In a novel that seeks to undermine stereotypes of the genre, I mean, seriously. Wuht?
June 9, 2019
In theory I should have loved this book, since I like light action movies with romance. But it didn’t entirely work for me. I did love that it had older characters, particularly Kitt coming to terms with what his work had done to him and whether he could be something else than a soulless womanizer. I enjoyed a lot of the banter. Mae’s competence, both domestic and otherwise, was great too. I could believe them as a couple finding a new future together.
But for me the book often dragged. I think I want this kind of plot to move so fast that you can’t stop to question it, and here I sometimes struggled to suspend my disbelief and found the book easy to put down. I didn’t expect the graphic nature of the violence, either. Unlike in a fluffy action film, there’s blood, and at least some reckoning with the emotional/psychological consequences of doing violence. That sat awkwardly with the lightness and witty banter, for me. The tone of the book was uneven. I think my response to this could have a lot to do with my genre expectations/what I was in the mood to read when I picked it up. I can see why others liked it much more.
And one other small thing—Kitt seemed very obviously based on Daniel Craig’s Bond and I dislike picturing celebrities when I read. That��s just me, though.
But for me the book often dragged. I think I want this kind of plot to move so fast that you can’t stop to question it, and here I sometimes struggled to suspend my disbelief and found the book easy to put down. I didn’t expect the graphic nature of the violence, either. Unlike in a fluffy action film, there’s blood, and at least some reckoning with the emotional/psychological consequences of doing violence. That sat awkwardly with the lightness and witty banter, for me. The tone of the book was uneven. I think my response to this could have a lot to do with my genre expectations/what I was in the mood to read when I picked it up. I can see why others liked it much more.
And one other small thing—Kitt seemed very obviously based on Daniel Craig’s Bond and I dislike picturing celebrities when I read. That��s just me, though.
October 9, 2018
This was the most surprising book. I've read Sandra Antonelli before and I've always appreciated how she doesn't consider characters over 40 to be dead, but I didn't expect this one at ALL.
Mae is smart, organized, amazingly competent and still grieving her late husband when she takes on a new tenant, Major Kitt. She then becomes his butler. He pays her rent for his lodging and she makes his scrambled eggs and cleans up his booze and the female debris left behind after his numerous conquests.
And then the trouble starts and doesn't stop. And they are in the thick of it.
Kitt is not quite James Bond, but there is some definite channeling of Daniel Craig here. He's usually quite competent but Mae throws him off his game.
I love that Mae is older than he is. I love that he values so much more about her than her scrambled eggs with Bernaise.
I don't want to spoil too much, but this is a tour de force.
Read it.
And I'm very encouraged about that Book 1 signifier up there in the title.
Mae is smart, organized, amazingly competent and still grieving her late husband when she takes on a new tenant, Major Kitt. She then becomes his butler. He pays her rent for his lodging and she makes his scrambled eggs and cleans up his booze and the female debris left behind after his numerous conquests.
And then the trouble starts and doesn't stop. And they are in the thick of it.
Kitt is not quite James Bond, but there is some definite channeling of Daniel Craig here. He's usually quite competent but Mae throws him off his game.
I love that Mae is older than he is. I love that he values so much more about her than her scrambled eggs with Bernaise.
I don't want to spoil too much, but this is a tour de force.
Read it.
And I'm very encouraged about that Book 1 signifier up there in the title.
October 14, 2018
Loved this book! Quirky, fascinating characters who are vulnerable beneath their professional demeanours, with snarky and sparkling dialogue.
Mae is Kitt's landlady as well as his butler. She scrambles his eggs to perfection and doesn't judge him for the string of married women who spend the night and whom she gently eases out the front door the next day. An unexpected financial legacy from Mae's deceased husband shatters their comfortable routine and leads both of them to Sicily. With a range of interested parties dogging their footsteps, Mt Etna spreading a pall of ash over the island, and a hitherto suppressed awareness of one another building, they work together to solve the disappearance of Mae's trust fund before those threatening to kill her, catch her.
Wonderful twist at the end. With nods to James Bond and others of his ilk, this is a fabulous story.
A keeper!
Mae is Kitt's landlady as well as his butler. She scrambles his eggs to perfection and doesn't judge him for the string of married women who spend the night and whom she gently eases out the front door the next day. An unexpected financial legacy from Mae's deceased husband shatters their comfortable routine and leads both of them to Sicily. With a range of interested parties dogging their footsteps, Mt Etna spreading a pall of ash over the island, and a hitherto suppressed awareness of one another building, they work together to solve the disappearance of Mae's trust fund before those threatening to kill her, catch her.
Wonderful twist at the end. With nods to James Bond and others of his ilk, this is a fabulous story.
A keeper!
March 16, 2022
*4.5/5
AHHHH thanks to this amazing book for getting me out of my slump. The plot, romance, characters, development everything was chef’s kiss. This was so refreshing and was somewhat humorous. I’m gonna be starting on the second book soon for sure
AHHHH thanks to this amazing book for getting me out of my slump. The plot, romance, characters, development everything was chef’s kiss. This was so refreshing and was somewhat humorous. I’m gonna be starting on the second book soon for sure
November 18, 2018
I loved the heroine. The hero is meant to look like Daniel Craig as a cranky James Bond, and he’s portrayed more convincingly and humanly than you might expect. She is the standout though. She’s self possessed, intelligent, with a sense of her own worth and not remotely the cliched lonely, helpless widow.
In fact she’s far more like women I know IRL than the out-of-touch, needy middle aged women routinely portrayed in fiction. So, it was a near constant shock reading this to realize I was seeing a real middle aged woman, with a real woman’s strength, sophistication, humor and inability to take shit from anyone. She’s set financially, she’s not wanting children or grandchildren, she’s capably making her way through the world on her own terms, and although mourning a beloved husband, not mourning the fact that she’s got no one to look after her, because she can look after herself.
I can’t tell you the relief of it. To find a woman I can identify with who’s actually about my age in a book. Along with a there-as-eye-candy man.
Also there’s LGBT rep in passing because despite cishet leads this is a world that’s very like the real world.
Why not five stars? I got tangled in all the Italian names. I’m not much of a suspense or mystery reader, so that figuring out who dunnit was not my thing. i didn’t like reading the phonetic bits showing her accent, they jolted me out of the story. And I was a bit fed up with her mourning for the husband, after 16 years one ought to have moved on. But, who’s to say? I’ve never been a widow.
In fact she’s far more like women I know IRL than the out-of-touch, needy middle aged women routinely portrayed in fiction. So, it was a near constant shock reading this to realize I was seeing a real middle aged woman, with a real woman’s strength, sophistication, humor and inability to take shit from anyone. She’s set financially, she’s not wanting children or grandchildren, she’s capably making her way through the world on her own terms, and although mourning a beloved husband, not mourning the fact that she’s got no one to look after her, because she can look after herself.
I can’t tell you the relief of it. To find a woman I can identify with who’s actually about my age in a book. Along with a there-as-eye-candy man.
Also there’s LGBT rep in passing because despite cishet leads this is a world that’s very like the real world.
Why not five stars? I got tangled in all the Italian names. I’m not much of a suspense or mystery reader, so that figuring out who dunnit was not my thing. i didn’t like reading the phonetic bits showing her accent, they jolted me out of the story. And I was a bit fed up with her mourning for the husband, after 16 years one ought to have moved on. But, who’s to say? I’ve never been a widow.
January 18, 2023
Fast paced spy, murder-mystery with mature leads. She's a butler for the H, a British government spy. She's an unlikely heroine, gets involved with a murder and he's an anti-hero. It's a complex adventure, lots of murders and gore. Great mix of adventure and romance in odd places.
Want to read
August 24, 2018pre-order from Amazon.
December 6, 2020
This is definitely one wild ride for Kitt and Mae. The plot is complex and convoluted, and there is really no way to figure out what is going on until it's all revealed. The fact that Kitt turns out to be hiding things make it even more confusing. Still I couldn't help liking him, although I felt Mae might have forgiven him a little too quickly.
Kitt in At Your Service reminds me a little of Kit in K.J. Charles Will Darling Adventures. Both are hiding more than they are sharing and although they care about the other person (Will and Mae), they still deceive them. I find this Kitt a little more relatable.
Antonelli's writing style is different from what I'm used to in romantic suspense, and although this is definitely suspense and there is definitely a romance building, I'm not inclined to give it the RS label. While part of the story is watching Mae and Kitt figure out their own feelings and motivations, that is not the focus of the book. The relationship development, or perhaps it's better to say relationship revelations, are seamlessly woven into the action and the mystery. The reader isn't sure where their relationship is eventually headed for most of the book.
Kitt in At Your Service reminds me a little of Kit in K.J. Charles Will Darling Adventures. Both are hiding more than they are sharing and although they care about the other person (Will and Mae), they still deceive them. I find this Kitt a little more relatable.
Antonelli's writing style is different from what I'm used to in romantic suspense, and although this is definitely suspense and there is definitely a romance building, I'm not inclined to give it the RS label. While part of the story is watching Mae and Kitt figure out their own feelings and motivations, that is not the focus of the book. The relationship development, or perhaps it's better to say relationship revelations, are seamlessly woven into the action and the mystery. The reader isn't sure where their relationship is eventually headed for most of the book.
May 24, 2019
This is the story of a grieving but very businesslike, can-do 50 year old woman, Mae, who serves as butler / housekeeper for the man who is renting a home she owns. Kitt is a flinty, hard-drinking, womanizing, secretive man her age who has an intriguing job...you get the sense he's a spy or assassin or something, as he often goes on assignment and then comes home banged up. Kitt and Mae are fond of each other but very proper around each other, too. When Mae is informed she's due the proceeds from a previously-unknown bank account managed by her late husband, the story changes. Mae flees to Italy where most of the story takes place. Kitt follows. Various bad guys pursue them. Intrigue mounts with the body count (this is quite a violent book!)
I was impressed with the writing and the storytelling, as well as Antonelli's expansive knowledge and attention to detail. However, as a love story it's a stretch for me, given all the blood and guts they had to wade through to get to the all too short happy ending. Still, nicely done.
I was impressed with the writing and the storytelling, as well as Antonelli's expansive knowledge and attention to detail. However, as a love story it's a stretch for me, given all the blood and guts they had to wade through to get to the all too short happy ending. Still, nicely done.
June 23, 2022
3.5 rounded up
Kindle
This story was a great little caper. It had a bit of a cozy mystery feel to it, but had a good mix of mystery, intrigue, and romance. The story got a bit bogged down in the middle, but worked its way through that slump and had an interesting twist that I did not see coming. I really liked that both the FMC and MMC were in their 40s, although their communication could have been a little better. Many times they were intentionally talking about 2 different things at the same time to avoid uncomfortable topics. Cute in 20 year olds; not so much in mature adults. Overall, it was a good read and I look forward to the next in the series.
Kindle
This story was a great little caper. It had a bit of a cozy mystery feel to it, but had a good mix of mystery, intrigue, and romance. The story got a bit bogged down in the middle, but worked its way through that slump and had an interesting twist that I did not see coming. I really liked that both the FMC and MMC were in their 40s, although their communication could have been a little better. Many times they were intentionally talking about 2 different things at the same time to avoid uncomfortable topics. Cute in 20 year olds; not so much in mature adults. Overall, it was a good read and I look forward to the next in the series.
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