An engaging earl… Thomas, Earl of Bergen is on his way to London for Christmastide and traditional fun with friends and family when an injured donkey leads him to the home of a lovely widow and her menagerie of children and animals.
A winsome widow… Lady Elizabeth Newton enjoys her life and her home in the country raising her three adopted children from her late husband’s mistress, as well as caring for helpless animals of every description that would otherwise, have no home. But her life is completely upended when the handsome and charismatic Lord Bergen arrives on her doorstep with a cross-eyed donkey.
Drawn to Elizabeth’s spirit and beauty, Thomas finds himself agreeing to help the young widow’s charming children with their Christmas pageant. But can a budding romance survive the unexpected danger that seems to follow the donkey at every turn?
Who knew I’d become an author? Not me. But when the opportunity knocked, I answered the door and welcomed it in. I approach life with as much positivity as I can—celebrating the hits and laughing at the misses. Nothing worthwhile is easy, and that includes everything in my life. But I have much to smile about—my lovely mother, a beautiful daughter, two precious granddaughters, my adorable dogs, and my sweet husband of over thirty years. He has always supported me—including uprooting to move to the other side of Charlotte, N.C. for a life change, just when we thought we were settled.
If settled means not going after my dreams, then I never want to be settled. I give my all to things I enjoy—and that includes writing. In 2021, I hit the USA Today Bestselling Author list, and recently, two of my books were named RONE Finalists!
I love to express myself to the point that my daughter avoids going to the movies with me because I’m that woman in the row in front of you who gleefully munches her popcorn and laughs at every hilarious scene. Loudly. Besides my family, I love chocolate, popcorn, laughter, and animals. I love animals so much that I frequently sprinkle them in my stories as secondary characters. They usually steal the show! British and American history have always interested me, so writing historical romances set in the U.K. and the US is where my passion is.
When I was barely three years old, my parents divorced, and my mom moved my sister and me from New York to South Carolina to live near her parents. Juggling a full-time job and full-time school, my mother became my first genuine hero—she never waved the white flag when things were tough. And things quickly got tough. My grandmother, who helped care for my sister and me while my mother worked, became ill with cancer, and didn’t survive the surgery, dying before I was seven. Losing Grandma devastated me. She read to me and taught me to read before I started first grade. I credit her for inspiring my love of reading, and I credit my mother for encouraging me to turn my ideas into stories.
When I was ten, my neighbor gave me her book club copy of Margaret Mitchell’s Gone with the Wind and it remains one of my favorite books. But it was Kathleen Woodiwiss’ Shanna and Ashes in the Wind, that hooked me on historical romance and sparked my dream of becoming a published author.
While I primarily write Regency Romance, I enjoy almost any period in American and British history.
I love hearing from readers. To get in touch, email me at annastclaireauthor@gmail.com.
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The most perfect Christmas story that captured my heart and spirit! Anna St Clair has outdone herself with her magical words bringing forth moments that meld together finding happiness when least expected and the true meaning of Christmas. When Thomas, Earl of Bergen stops at an Inn on his way to London, he would never have thought his life would change forever. A charming donkey he named Clarence (yes loved him) with a magical talisman hanging around his neck, a widower who takes care of helpless animals and children of her deceased husband’s and a Christmas play, kept me unable to stop reading until the last page was turned. Did it make my heart smile? Oh yes and then some. Thank you Anna!! ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
This was a delightful story of an Earl, a widow and a donkey named Clarence. It was the first book I’ve read by Anna St. Clair, but won’t be my last. It captured my heart from the first page to the last. There was humor, mystery, danger, Christmas spirit, and of course, love. The characters were well developed and secondary characters were as well. Especially the cross-eyed smiling donkey named Clarence. I couldn’t put it down. Read this and you will be glad you did. Five well deserved stars. Thank you Ms. St. Clair for a endearing and heartfelt read. It left me smiling.
This historical Christmas story was so good! It was funny and made me laugh, it was romantic and made me sigh. This well-written story held my interest from start to finish. I absolutely loved it, and I highly recommend it!
Earl of Bergen, book 17 of the Wicked Earls' Club, was about Thomas Bergen, Earl of Bergen, and Lady Elizabeth Newton, a widow who lived in Stony Stratford and was raising the three children her late husband had shared with his mistress, as well as a bunch of stray animals. Thomas found an abandoned donkey and was informed that Elizabeth took in the strays in the area. Upon delivering the donkey to her door, he became enamored with her and her children and decided to spend Christmas with them and participate in the Christmas pageant, much to Elizabeth's dismay. Thomas, upon his decision to stay for a while to woo Elizabeth, sent a message to his aunt that his arrival in London would be delayed. Quite dismayed, his aunt then sent a message to his friend the Earl of Shefford, saying she was going to rescue her nephew from the "vile Mrs. Newton". Shefford, realizing the aunt had the wrong woman in mind, decided he wanted to be there when the fireworks went off, so he could enjoy the amusement of it all, and prepared to join Thomas in Stony Stratford. Oh, the humor that took place in this book! It far outweighed any and all other emotions, indeed. Although there was a good deal of chemistry between the two main characters, the drama and humor were more prominent. A touch of angst and intrigue were prevalent as well. This was more a rom-com than just a basic romance novella, and it was delightful! This book will absolutely join the rest of the Keeper for the Shelves books.
This is the fourth book in the second series of The Wicked Earls Club, at the moment I am completely dumbfounded on how this series was perfect then along comes the second series and so far it has outdone itself.
Anna St. Claire and Lauren Harrison I have a new Christmas Book that I loved so very much. Thank you both ❤️👏
At the start of this book we are introduced to our Earl of Bergen, who is on his way home to spend Christmas with his Aunt, along the way he stays at an Inn, while trying to sleep he hears noises outside, being a Wicked Earl😉he had to listen, they were discussing a donkey, let’s leave it there🤔
The following morning he heads to the stables to collect his horse, Merry, hearing a noise he follows, shock horror he sees a little donkey tired up to a tree, he untangles the rope and frees the donkey, which to him looked like a Clarence 🥰unbeknown to the Earl he has created a friend for life.
Now we get to meet our lady Elizabeth Newton, widowed who has a unique menagerie of her own, also three children of her late husband and his mistress.
Thomas take Clarence to her home hoping to leave the little donkey there who by the way loves to sing 🎵. The fun that starts at that meeting and onwards is at times loud out loud moments, with Clarence nearly stealing the book.
The children are pure adorable as is the two Aunts Jane and Faith.
Leaving this story at that, for if you have read the blurb you know more or less where it is heading.
One of my best Christmas reads in years and that’s saying something after all my years on this earth.
Bravo ladies 👏👏👏👏❤️❤️
Highly recommend, but would really suggest you read the whole series.
I bought this book in appreciation of the authors work.
Devo confessar, que estou lendo Wicked Earls' Club toda fora de ordem... E não é que estou amando a minha própria ordem.. O Earl of Bergen, com certeza conte a história que mais dei risada até agora... É sério, quem pode imaginar que um Burro seria a alma da história, e que alma, mas engraçada e divertida... Bom, Thomas o Earl of Bergen, está a caminho de casa para o Natal, mas inesperadamente ele para para descansar, e no momento que retornar sua viagem, ele encontra um Burro abandonado, o mesmo que ele ouviu que era Amaldiçoado... Essa é a melhor parte da história um burro amaldiçoado, primeiro eu chorei de rir, e depois continuei rindo. Retomando, ele decide que não pode abandonar o pobre animal e com isso ele volta para a encontrar um lugar onde pode deixar o Clarence (amei esse nome), e é mandando ou melhor levado a porta da casa de Lady Elizabeth Newton, que é uma viúva de bom coaração que acolhe animais abandonados, e claro que ela aceita o Clarence (burro). Mas é claro o destino decide agir, uma peça de Natal está preste a ocorrer, e sem Maria e José, não tem como, e é assim que o casal é aproximado, quanto mais perto ficam e assim o amor nasce entre eles.. E tudo ocorre de forma perfeita, com uma aventura por causa de um amuleto que faz a pessoa dizer a verdade, um desejo de proteger três crianças e uma Lady, e por fim o amor, o desejo de ser feliz para sempre ao lado do amor de sua vida... Tudo em 136 páginas.. É tão poucas páginas para uma linda história de amor com um grande toque de comédia...
Thomas, Earl of Bergen is on his way to London for Christmas to spend it with his Aunt Faith. He spends the night in an inn then he’s delayed when he finds an abandoned donkey whom he christens as Clarence and his efforts to save the animal bring him into contact with a lovely widow and a menagerie of both animals and children who need his help with their Christmas pageant. Widowed Lady Elizabeth Newton enjoys her life and her home in the country. She cares for three children from her late husband’s mistress, as well as helpless animals of every description that would otherwise, have no home. Life changes when the handsome Lord Bergen brings an abandoned, cross-eyed, singing donkey, believed cursed, to her doorstep. What a entertaining humorous read, the children are delightful, Aunts Faith & Jane are brilliant, two warring old ladies who debuted together & have held grudges for decades – they were priceless. I loved both Thomas & Lizzie who were attracted to each other from their first meeting but it's Clarence who stole the book with his smiles. I read it in a sitting & loved every minute ideal to bring a smile to your face My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read
Stopping overnight in a small village, the Earl of Bergen discovers himself in the middle of a hilarious farce that had me laughing out loud. Rescuing an abandoned donkey, Lord Thomas endeavors to find it a good home for it, but the donkey has its own agenda. Arriving at the home of Lady Newton who is well known for taking in strays of all kinds, including the children of her late husband's mistress, the kind-hearted lady shows no hesitation in taking on Clarence. Thomas is immediately attracted to Lady Elizabeth, but she comes as a whole package with her eccentric aunt, her late husband's children, and the stray animals all following in her wake. Thomas cannot help but laugh at the situation and when his uptight aunt gets caught up in the mix, it adds another spin on the merry-go-round. This is a well written, witty, and romantic story with a touch of suspense. I received a copy of this novella as a gift and this is my honest and voluntary review.
Anna St Claire provides another great addition to the Wicked Earls Club collection. While the Earl himself is a great character, this book's best character is a donkey named Clarence. Clarence is the smartest animal I've ever read. He seems to know what is happening, he sings, he's smart and he takes care of his family. Thomas, the Earl, finds Clarence tied to a bush on the side of a tree. The previous night he had heard gypsies talking about how the donkey was bad luck. Thomas takes Clarence to a local woman, Elizabeth Newton, who is known for taking in strays. Her 3 children take to the little donkey right away. Clarence is wearing an amulet when they find him - the gypsies think it is bad luck but it seems to cause the person holding it to tell the truth. Clarence brings Elizabeth and Thomas together and the whole family finds the Happiest Ever After of the Christmas season.
This was a sweet and simple love story. I liked the characters, but they could have had a little more personality. Clarence made a great addition. I laughed often because of him. This book had nothing dramatic or intriguing, but I did enjoy it. This would make a great Hallmark Christmas movie. There are some grammatical errors, but nothing too drastic.
A magical donkey that leads a Lord to a lady! A wicked earl that rescues a donkey with an amulet taking it to a farm that has miscellaneous animals and children. The widowed lady of the house looks on the lord with trepidation as she has no desire for any entanglements after her husband was unfaithful.
This is the second book I have read by this author, and I am looking forward to reading more. Great characters and lots of fun. There are some laugh out loud moments, and some tearful ones. Happy tears! I am looking forward to reading her next Wicked Earl, Shefford. I highly recommend this book.
I enjoyed this book, especially Clarence the little donkey. He is the one that brought them together. It was fun reading about two older ladies taking on an individual who broke into their house, the use of the frying pan always does the trick. I highly recommend this book. 👍👍👍👍❤❤❤❤
What a delightful Christmas story. I can just picture Clarence the donkey. He is such a character. I loved Thomas and Elizabeth, the children, the aunts. I laughed so much. I kept turning the pages to see what would happen next.
Recommended for those who enjoy a happy romance, comedy, animals ( this one has an adorable donkey) and a family atmosphere. Very relaxing! Please write more of these! Very sweet.
So many writers writing in one series. It works so well that you'd never realize it wasn't one author writing. Each is a standalone but blends into the others before or after it perfectly.
This is a fun, entertaining, holiday read. Thomas and Elizabeth are entertaining, relatable, captivating characters. They captured my attention from the start and held it until the very end. This story has a little bit of everything – holiday feels, romance, intrigue – in it, which I loved. The story takes place in the Wicked Earls’ world – which I also love. The secondary characters – especially the aunts, the children and the donkey – all added to the fabric of the story and my enjoyment. The story is easy to read and get into.
This is a fun, entertaining, holiday read. Thomas and Elizabeth are entertaining, relatable, captivating characters. They captured my attention from the start and held it until the very end. This story has a little bit of everything – holiday feels, romance, intrigue – in it, which I loved. The story takes place in the Wicked Earls’ world – which I also love. The secondary characters – especially the aunts, the children and the donkey – all added to the fabric of the story and my enjoyment. The story is easy to read and get into.
What is not to like about little children with lisps. Seniors acting outrageously, and a dwarf donkey with charisma. Bergen appeared as a good natured, kind man in the Earl of Weston’s book so it is no surprise he continued. This is a quaint Christmas story., and a quick read.
A sweet storyline, at a length I like. The two short novels I have read so far by this author are of a lighter weight than my usual reads. I believe I need to read a more compelling novel before returning to finish this series. (I shall finish it nevertheless but when I’m in need of something lighter to read)
The author brings such amazing secondary characters to life, they almost overshadow Thomas and Lizzie. The romance is wonderful and all the characters add to the story. Definitely some laugh out loud moments.
I enjoyed reading this book very much. There were a few good laughs. I loved the characters and storyline so much. Lizzie and Thomas were strong characters. One big happy family. On to the 3rd one. Lord Shefford. 💜💜💜💜💜
While stopping for the night at an in the earl ends up finding a donkey, getting it to a good home and becoming involved with a widow with three kids and lots of animals. They end up finding their hea
This start was rather dubious but ended beautifully! The earls all feel they would be horrid husbands only to find they never had the right type of wife. Good things happy when the right person comes along!