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Stranded with the Reclusive Earl
Saving him from solitudeNo matter how hard he protests… Seeking shelter in a storm, Lady Iris Springfeld arrives at the doorstep of Theo Crighton, the grumpy Earl of Greystone. Discovering he has shut himself away since the fire that took his eyesight, Iris uses her sunny optimism to counter his dourness. Theo is the first man to appreciate her for herself, not her looks or social connections. Now can she be the one to bring him back to life?From Harlequin Your romantic escape to the past.Young Victorian LadiesThree spirited sisters, all highly individual, find the men who are just right for themBook 1: Wagering on the WallflowerBook 2: Stranded with the Reclusive Earl
196 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 24, 2021
11 people are currently reading
62 people want to read
About the author
Eva Shepherd
84 books24 followersAfter graduating with degrees in history and political science, Eva Shepherd worked in journalism and as an advertising copywriter.
She began writing historical romances because it combines her love of a happy ending with her passion for history.
She lives in Christchurch New Zealand, but spends her days immersed in the world of late Victorian England.
She began writing historical romances because it combines her love of a happy ending with her passion for history.
She lives in Christchurch New Zealand, but spends her days immersed in the world of late Victorian England.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
January 21, 2022
3.5 stars
A clean, sweet, slightly angsty, late Victorian, slow burn romance about a beautiful heroine who wants to be loved for her inner beauty and the embittered, blind H who just wants to be left alone with his loyal dog Max (aka Maxie Waxie), for company.
I usually avoid novels with a MC who has a disability, but sometimes my instinct overrides my superficiality and I end up trying such a book and it works out well for me.
It first happened with It Ain't Me, Babe, where I became OTT obsessed with that H, despite his speech impediment/stammering. In fact, Tillie Cole was such a skilled storyteller, that his speech impediment actually enhanced his overall sex appeal and visceral badassery. Very few authors can accomplish such a task.
That's when I realized that I don't actually mind reading about a H with a disability, if:
🔸 It's not one that makes him physically ugly. After all, I'm reading romance to be wowed by the outward ultra sexiness of a hunky H.
🔸 The heroine has no problem with his disability, from the very moment she meets him.
🔸 Pity isn't a core factor that affects the heroine's feelings for the H. In fact, I love it when she treats him like a normal person, even arguing with him, because a real man ought to be able to handle a challenging heroine, without wallowing in self pity or clinging to victimhood.
Anyway, the heroine, Lady Iris, is bored with shallow men who think she's the sum total of her outward appearance. She's almost at her wits end, trying to escape the cloying attentions of the smarmy, obsequious Viscount Pratley, when she gets stranded in a storm and ends up outside the H's home.
She knows it's not the done thing to turn up, uninvited, at strange country mansions but it's a literal matter of life or death.
Theo, the blind H, has been living in seclusion for about 7 years after his fiancée dumped him, when he was blinded in an accident trying to save her nasty, selfish ass. He's bitter because the slag dumped him to marry another Earl and so he spends his life sequestered in his Cornwall mansion, with his cutiepie Irish wolfhound, Max, for company.
This is the H, Theo:
The heroine's whirlwind entry into his household, upends the poor man's established routine. He's forced to be sociable once again and even his huge handsome doggy, is happy to receive extra attention from the adoring heroine. Through the wily actions of Iris' lovable but interfering mother, Theo is forced to re-enter society and mingle with his peers once again.
This is heroine, Iris:
This story works well, despite the absence of sex scenes, because the onus was more on the developing emotional bond between the MC's rather than just sexual chemistry. Obviously this novel won't work for readers who prefer some erotic flavouring to a story's menu, but it works for me because it was always evident, from the outset, that the MC's shared an intense connection to each other. But the best part was the classy, but cold, comeuppance that the H delivered to the vain former OW, when she came slutting around him again.
This is the H's dog, Max:
Safety: A wannabe OM, a former OW but no cheating because both MCs are uninterested in these idiots.
A clean, sweet, slightly angsty, late Victorian, slow burn romance about a beautiful heroine who wants to be loved for her inner beauty and the embittered, blind H who just wants to be left alone with his loyal dog Max (aka Maxie Waxie), for company.
I usually avoid novels with a MC who has a disability, but sometimes my instinct overrides my superficiality and I end up trying such a book and it works out well for me.
It first happened with It Ain't Me, Babe, where I became OTT obsessed with that H, despite his speech impediment/stammering. In fact, Tillie Cole was such a skilled storyteller, that his speech impediment actually enhanced his overall sex appeal and visceral badassery. Very few authors can accomplish such a task.
That's when I realized that I don't actually mind reading about a H with a disability, if:
🔸 It's not one that makes him physically ugly. After all, I'm reading romance to be wowed by the outward ultra sexiness of a hunky H.
🔸 The heroine has no problem with his disability, from the very moment she meets him.
🔸 Pity isn't a core factor that affects the heroine's feelings for the H. In fact, I love it when she treats him like a normal person, even arguing with him, because a real man ought to be able to handle a challenging heroine, without wallowing in self pity or clinging to victimhood.
Anyway, the heroine, Lady Iris, is bored with shallow men who think she's the sum total of her outward appearance. She's almost at her wits end, trying to escape the cloying attentions of the smarmy, obsequious Viscount Pratley, when she gets stranded in a storm and ends up outside the H's home.
She knows it's not the done thing to turn up, uninvited, at strange country mansions but it's a literal matter of life or death.
Theo, the blind H, has been living in seclusion for about 7 years after his fiancée dumped him, when he was blinded in an accident trying to save her nasty, selfish ass. He's bitter because the slag dumped him to marry another Earl and so he spends his life sequestered in his Cornwall mansion, with his cutiepie Irish wolfhound, Max, for company.
This is the H, Theo:
The heroine's whirlwind entry into his household, upends the poor man's established routine. He's forced to be sociable once again and even his huge handsome doggy, is happy to receive extra attention from the adoring heroine. Through the wily actions of Iris' lovable but interfering mother, Theo is forced to re-enter society and mingle with his peers once again.
This is heroine, Iris:
This story works well, despite the absence of sex scenes, because the onus was more on the developing emotional bond between the MC's rather than just sexual chemistry. Obviously this novel won't work for readers who prefer some erotic flavouring to a story's menu, but it works for me because it was always evident, from the outset, that the MC's shared an intense connection to each other. But the best part was the classy, but cold, comeuppance that the H delivered to the vain former OW, when she came slutting around him again.
This is the H's dog, Max:
Safety: A wannabe OM, a former OW but no cheating because both MCs are uninterested in these idiots.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 6, 2025
Stranded With The Reclusive Earl is historical fictional romance set in Cornwall.
Lady Iris Springfield escapes from a boring house party by setting off for a walk alone. Caught out in a sharp and sudden West Country storm, she seeks shelter in a very medieval looking grand house.
Theo Crighton, the Earl of Greystone has spent the last six years being a recluse after a nasty accident left him scarred and blind. While he cannot throw out a damsel in distress, he’s not thrilled by her chatter and her company.
With her sunny disposition and kindness Lady Iris begins to penetrate the darkness which has descended on the Earl. When her whirlwind of a mother, hears about him, Theo finds himself agreeing to attend a dinner party, host a country fete and grumpily admits to enjoying life once more.
This was a light fun story and it had me smiling and chuckling on more than one occasion. I whipped through the pages and would be happy to pick up another story written by this author.
Lady Iris Springfield escapes from a boring house party by setting off for a walk alone. Caught out in a sharp and sudden West Country storm, she seeks shelter in a very medieval looking grand house.
Theo Crighton, the Earl of Greystone has spent the last six years being a recluse after a nasty accident left him scarred and blind. While he cannot throw out a damsel in distress, he’s not thrilled by her chatter and her company.
With her sunny disposition and kindness Lady Iris begins to penetrate the darkness which has descended on the Earl. When her whirlwind of a mother, hears about him, Theo finds himself agreeing to attend a dinner party, host a country fete and grumpily admits to enjoying life once more.
This was a light fun story and it had me smiling and chuckling on more than one occasion. I whipped through the pages and would be happy to pick up another story written by this author.
September 17, 2021
Loved it…just wish there had been a sex scene! Oh, and thank you Eva Shepherd for writing a grumpy hero that STAYS grumpy for more than a chapter!! Loved him!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 26, 2023
Nemesi - per RFS
.
Ciao a tutti, amici lettori; inizio con il dire Bello! Bello! Bello!
Siamo in Cornovaglia nel 1890, epoca dei treni a vapore, dei lampioni stradali elettrici e delle ferrovie sotterranee.
Dopo un grave incidente che lo ha menomato levandogli la vista, il nostro protagonista, Theo Crighon, conte di Greystone, si chiude in se stesso, nella solitudine e nel silenzio, che diventano parte di lui, e decide di vivere come un eremita nel suo castello in stile gotico. La vita di Theo viene stravolta dall’esuberante Lady Iris Springfeld, che chiede rifugio in casa sua, durante un temporale. La fanciulla è il suo opposto, piena di vita, chiacchierona, e con la testa ricolma di sogni d’amore, che la portano a vivere non una, ma ben cinque stagioni, senza ancora aver contratto nessun matrimonio.
L’autrice è stata bravissima a raccontare, senza soffermarsi in scene provocanti, una storia commovente e profonda, che tocca il cuore. Mi piace molto come ci spiega le difficoltà del protagonista rispetto alla sua cecità e il modo in cui le affronta con coraggio. Contare i passi, avere gli oggetti sempre nelle stesse posizioni, i mobili attaccati al muro…
Diventare ciechi è ben diverso dall’esserlo fin dalla nascita: il ricordo di ciò che si è perso è sempre così vivido, tanto più per un uomo forte, che si vede strappato il futuro, dal giorno alla notte.
L’amore però può tutto, e con una protagonista così tenace e intrepida non poteva che esserci uno splendido lieto fine.
«…Avete portato luce e calore nell’oscurità della mia esistenza. Incontrarvi è stato come veder uscire il sole in una grigia giornata d’inverno.»
Avrei voluto che questo romanzo fosse più lungo e più sviluppato, ancor di più, avrei voluto ci fossero episodi passionali, ma ci accontentiamo, perché merita di essere letto anche così com’è.
.
Ciao a tutti, amici lettori; inizio con il dire Bello! Bello! Bello!
Siamo in Cornovaglia nel 1890, epoca dei treni a vapore, dei lampioni stradali elettrici e delle ferrovie sotterranee.
Dopo un grave incidente che lo ha menomato levandogli la vista, il nostro protagonista, Theo Crighon, conte di Greystone, si chiude in se stesso, nella solitudine e nel silenzio, che diventano parte di lui, e decide di vivere come un eremita nel suo castello in stile gotico. La vita di Theo viene stravolta dall’esuberante Lady Iris Springfeld, che chiede rifugio in casa sua, durante un temporale. La fanciulla è il suo opposto, piena di vita, chiacchierona, e con la testa ricolma di sogni d’amore, che la portano a vivere non una, ma ben cinque stagioni, senza ancora aver contratto nessun matrimonio.
L’autrice è stata bravissima a raccontare, senza soffermarsi in scene provocanti, una storia commovente e profonda, che tocca il cuore. Mi piace molto come ci spiega le difficoltà del protagonista rispetto alla sua cecità e il modo in cui le affronta con coraggio. Contare i passi, avere gli oggetti sempre nelle stesse posizioni, i mobili attaccati al muro…
Diventare ciechi è ben diverso dall’esserlo fin dalla nascita: il ricordo di ciò che si è perso è sempre così vivido, tanto più per un uomo forte, che si vede strappato il futuro, dal giorno alla notte.
L’amore però può tutto, e con una protagonista così tenace e intrepida non poteva che esserci uno splendido lieto fine.
«…Avete portato luce e calore nell’oscurità della mia esistenza. Incontrarvi è stato come veder uscire il sole in una grigia giornata d’inverno.»
Avrei voluto che questo romanzo fosse più lungo e più sviluppato, ancor di più, avrei voluto ci fossero episodi passionali, ma ci accontentiamo, perché merita di essere letto anche così com’è.
April 16, 2022
3.5 stars
Missed the passion
Missed the passion
February 28, 2023
Iris Springfield is at the home of family friends in the Cornwall countryside when she gets lost in a storm. The first dwelling she stumbles upon to beg for shelter is the castle-like home of the reclusive Earl of Greystone, Theo Crighton. While Theo is not too happy about giving Iris shelter, as he's lived in seclusion for six years after an incident which left him blind, he feels he can't turn her away. He is also irritated by the fact that she never stops talking while he rarely speaks. She is a ray of sunshine that clashes with his dark world and rubs against it.
Iris reads gothic novels so when she stumbles upon the old castle Theo Crighton lives in, she thinks she's stepped into one of her novels, but when she sees the inside of it, she is impressed with how lovely it is, if a little less well-lit than the homes she's used to. If it weren't for the dour man that owns it, she may have enjoyed her short stay more. When she hears a man screaming and moaning in the middle of the night, she first thinks it may be a ghost, but realizes it's Theo Crighton. Impulsively, she goes to his door and opens it. While Theo is embarrassed to be coddled and more embarrassed to be caught in a 'less than formally attired manner,' he just wants Iris to leave his room and yet he can't forget she was there.
Iris's mother then embarks on a campaign to get her daughter married, as Iris has shown no signs of being interested in the scads of men who have waltzed past her in the five years she's been attending Seasons. Through some 'friendly manipulation,' Iris's mother soon is drawing out the Earl to start living a normal life again. Iris is embarrassed that her mother is trying to catch her an Earl and lets Theo know this. She has vowed to marry for love and not because a man was coerced into it.
Can Theo overcome his reclusive lifestyle and start enjoying life again with Iris?
This was a delightful story. Iris had such a sunny outlook on life and wouldn't let Theo undermine that while he was still being dour. She was exactly what he needed. Enjoyable read.
Iris reads gothic novels so when she stumbles upon the old castle Theo Crighton lives in, she thinks she's stepped into one of her novels, but when she sees the inside of it, she is impressed with how lovely it is, if a little less well-lit than the homes she's used to. If it weren't for the dour man that owns it, she may have enjoyed her short stay more. When she hears a man screaming and moaning in the middle of the night, she first thinks it may be a ghost, but realizes it's Theo Crighton. Impulsively, she goes to his door and opens it. While Theo is embarrassed to be coddled and more embarrassed to be caught in a 'less than formally attired manner,' he just wants Iris to leave his room and yet he can't forget she was there.
Iris's mother then embarks on a campaign to get her daughter married, as Iris has shown no signs of being interested in the scads of men who have waltzed past her in the five years she's been attending Seasons. Through some 'friendly manipulation,' Iris's mother soon is drawing out the Earl to start living a normal life again. Iris is embarrassed that her mother is trying to catch her an Earl and lets Theo know this. She has vowed to marry for love and not because a man was coerced into it.
Can Theo overcome his reclusive lifestyle and start enjoying life again with Iris?
This was a delightful story. Iris had such a sunny outlook on life and wouldn't let Theo undermine that while he was still being dour. She was exactly what he needed. Enjoyable read.
October 26, 2021
A very different perspective. Theo, the Earl of Greystone is blind and Lady Iris simply talks too much. She is very impulsive, the surprise is that she hasn't gotten into trouble before this. One of those impulses brings her to Theo. She is determined to make him cheer up, which he doesn't want being comfortable is his grumpiness. I did like the situation that Iris is quite beautiful, but Theo cannot see her. Then her mother gets involved, then the neighbors are involved. No surprises here but the HEA is quite nice.
There is the same amount of steam in this one as in Wagering on the Wallflower. I am looking forward to little sister Daisy's story.
There is the same amount of steam in this one as in Wagering on the Wallflower. I am looking forward to little sister Daisy's story.
March 7, 2022
Quite engaging so I read it in one sitting. Refreshing to find a unique plot with strong characters that complement each other.
April 21, 2022
Lovely
Such a lovely romance! Iris' personality is just what Theo needed and Iris' mother was such a great schemer and supporter of her daughter's happiness. The author did a great job.
Such a lovely romance! Iris' personality is just what Theo needed and Iris' mother was such a great schemer and supporter of her daughter's happiness. The author did a great job.
October 26, 2021
Loved the characters and plot of this book. Just wish it was a little spicier. But if you loved ‘My Darling Duke’ by Stacy Reid, you should enjoy this.
July 29, 2025
Lady Iris Springfeld è la più bella delle tre sorelle ed è la più bella dama che abbia partecipato alle ultime cinque stagioni mondane a Londra, ma nonostante le numerose richieste di matrimonio è ancora nubile. Iris desidera sposarsi solo per amore come è successo alla sorella maggiore. Una sera per sfuggire a un pretendente davvero troppo assillante, si ritrova a fingere un mal di testa per lasciare in anticipo e da sola una festa. Ma durante la sua passeggiata viene colta da una tempesta. Cercando rifugio bussa alla porta dello scontroso Conte di Greystone, il quale ha perso la vista e la voglia di vivere. Iris in realtà mi risulta piuttosto insopportabile e ciarliera. Anche la madre di lei sembra irrispettosa della sofferenza e desiderio del conte che ha molto sofferto. Anche questo secondo capitolo della saga mi ricorda la storia de: ''La bella e la bestia'', ma non con i ruoli invertiti come nel primo volume.
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August 1, 2021Categories
Historical Romance, Historical Fiction, Sagas, Victorian Historical Fiction
Miniseries
Young Victorian Ladies (Book #2)
Historical Romance, Historical Fiction, Sagas, Victorian Historical Fiction
Miniseries
Young Victorian Ladies (Book #2)
October 10, 2023
Perfectly fine and enjoyable "heroine is in love because she's in love" style romance. I liked Iris and Theo a lot.
November 15, 2023
This was my first Mills & Boon book but will certainly not be the last. Cute storyline but something was missing. Loved Iris and her mother though!
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews