The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion: Vol. 4

The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion #4

by Beth Brower

"It all began very innocently. Truly."

The Year is 1883 and Emma M. Lion has returned to her London neighborhood of St. Crispian’s. But Emma’s plans for a charmed and studious life are sabotaged by her eccentric Cousin Archibald, her formidable Aunt Eugenia, and the slightly odd denizens of St. Crispian’s.

Emma M. Lion offers up her Unselected Journals, however self-incriminating they may be, which comprise a series of volumes. Armed with wit and a sideways amusement, Emma documents the curious realities of her life at Lapis Lazuli House.

Readers have compared Beth Brower's writing to Jane Austen, Oscar Wilde, P.G. Wodehouse, and L.M. Montgomery.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Audiobook, Fiction, Historical, Romance, Humor, Victorian

206 pages, Hardcover

First published January 21, 2021

About the author

Like many of my siblings, I would sneak out of bed, slip into the hallway, and pull my favorite books from the book closet. I read my way through the bottom shelf, then the next shelf up, and the shelf above that, until I could climb to the very top shelf, stacked two layers deep and two layers high, and read the titles of the classics. My desire to create stories grew as I was learning to read them.

Subsequently, I spent my time scribbling in notebooks rather than listening to math lectures at school.

I graduated with a degree in literary studies, and have spent several years working on the novels that keep pounding on the doors of my mind, as none of my characters are very patient to wait their turn. I currently live in Orem, Utah, with my wonderful chemist husband, and books in every room of the house.

Reviews

[Brady Lockerby]

each one of these is just more and more delightful than the last! i love Emma, i love St. Crispian’s, i love this mismatched group of unlikely friends, and i just smile my way through every single one! i’m trying to pace myself through the 8 that are out (9th is currently being written 🎉) ((20+planned)) i can’t stop reading them. i was planning on waiting until the end of the series to rate it as a whole, but just know each book is 5 stars
o b s e s s e d

[Abby · Rating 5 out of 5]

May these journals never end!

[Maddie Fisher · Rating 5 out of 5]

RATING BREAKDOWN
Characters: 5⭐️
Setting: 5⭐️
Plot: 4⭐️
Themes: 4⭐️
Emotional Impact: 4⭐️
Personal Enjoyment: 5⭐️
Total Rounded Average: 4.5⭐️

I love how this story just keeps getting more convoluted with hilarious characters, and deeper with grief and post-war effects. Emma is as entertaining, resourceful, clever, and bold as ever, and the characters around her are as smitten as always.

The structure of these volumes will always be brilliant for me. Journal entries are such a fun way to tell a story and make the reader invested in the characters.

There is nothing more comforting than an Emma M. Lion volume, and I cannot wait to see how Emma's story continues to unfold.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

That was so brilliant; I want to laugh and cry at the same time. This was my favorite volume so far. I love the friendships that are developing and coalescing. I love the comic bits with the Reprobates Ten and The Drunken Duck. I laughed sooo hard at a Certain Scene. It reminded me of listening to the audiobook of PG Wodehouse’s “Something Fresh” years ago where there was a comic scene that kept me howling with laughter. I love the tragic bits with the deep griefs in the characters’ lives and how beautifully they support each other (even to fisticuffs…what did Evelyn say??). I love the minor characters who add such color and mystery and amusement to the story (Mrs Penury anyone?). I love Emma’s ongoing battle to be her own person…to be learned, to be good, to be free to live fully and well despite many obstacles. Just all around loved. (This review pathetically fails to convey how lovely this series is. Would that I had the Duke’s skill with a pen!)

Omg!! I’m re-reading this already in Dec 2024. Since I last read it a month ago (ha!), I’ve been reading Little Dorrit, and I had noticed some echoes of that story in this one. Sure enough, there’s a reference to Little Dorrit on page 8!

[Christina Baehr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally, we get a some flesh on Maxwell and Emma’s backstory. It’s very elegantly done, and a lot is only implied, but it’s exactly right and I shed a tear. I’ve been a bit bewildered at Emma’s growing collection of male friends, but this book has an “avengers, assemble” kind of moment where it feels like the collection is complete and a core group has been formed. To what purpose I’m not sure. But I’ll keep reading to find out!

I was a little irked at first at Hawkes’ telling of the story of Thermopylae (a story that every British schoolboy knew backwards), but by the end it had won me over. Leonidas = Lion, and Emma also fights in the shade. When I started this series, I was a bit taken aback by some of the things Emma has been through and insists on making light of, but now I see that this is part of her character. The sparkle isn’t cheap tinsel - it’s the sparkle of sunlight on swords in battle.

[Janssen]

I think this is the one that really made me fall in love with this series: https://www.instagram.com/p/DAkHaoOt_ZE/

[Kennedy Larson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Emma is THAT girl

[Youssra (semi ia- shelving books don't mind me) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just love these so much 💖 The funniest but also the most emotional one so far🤧 Emma is, by far, one of my favorite fmcs to read about💖 The men in this series are all so wonderful too; each with a unique personality and I can't choose a favorite😩 I love the budding friendship between all of them and the reprobates ten are HILARIOUSSSS😂

I want to experience an "English Tea" once in my life😂

[Alisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

And at some in-between moment, a key fit a lock, a door opened. As if the four of us created a room not having previously been in existence before. Which sounds mad.

This is the volume where a very beautiful little friendship circle starts to take shape: Emma and her tenant and a vicar and a duke… all enigmatic and all wonderful. I loved re-reading it and recognizing those early moments as they recognize the alchemy that’s taking place whenever they get together. Reading it is like being granted access to a delightful secret garden.

Oh yes, and there are also the antics at The Drunken Duck… and Hawkes’ sermon the next day…ah, this series!

[Mikayla Noel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I felt every emotion reading this book

[Cindy Rollins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Getting longer and better. Seeing some interesting threads. But I do so hate Emerson.

[Reggie Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok I’m enjoying these much more now! I want to be besties with Emma.

[Whitney Newby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, I’m officially hooked to this series, and this was my favorite book yet (and I hear they just get better!). The friendships, the dialogue, the character development… it can’t be beat. This one had me in tears. I can’t wait for my daughter to read these in the next few years.

[Hallie (thecommonroomshop) · Rating 5 out of 5]

INFINITY STARS!!!! ♾️💗✨💗!!!! The found family is officially locked in and it may be one of my favorite found families to ever exist. This series feels so LIFELIKE. It’s heartwarming, mystical, hilarious, devastating and full of the slowest and most authentic yearning.

I actually started tearing up just writing that🥹 I feel so lucky to have found these books. They are one of my greatest treasures of 2025!

[Miriam Simut · Rating 5 out of 5]

"We will fight in the shade." 😌

[Ellery Adams · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

This installment was a little on the glum side. I realize the reader needed to peek inside Emma's first and only romance and that she needed closer before she could entertain a real relationship with one of her many possible suitors, but I missed the levity of the previous journals. Also, I am still struggling with her boundless impropriety and how no one but her cook seems to notice that she spends most of her free time with unmarried gentlemen. Her behavior would be the talk of the town! It's great fun to accompany her on her escapades, but I wish they stayed closer to the realm of the believable.

[Anne (In Search of Wonder) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Always unexpected, always a tad unlikely, always highly whimsical, always insightful, often humorous, occasionally emotional... this series continues steadfastly in all the things that make it wonderful!

[abigailscupoftea · Rating 5 out of 5]

me: *scared i won’t find very many 5 star reads this year*
emma: *hold my journals*

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

Obsessed

[Charlie Holmberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Have tissues handy.

[Samantha (ladybug.books) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

My favorite so far for sure! The group dynamic really kicks off in this one and it added so much to my enjoyment. Emma is also really funny! I think this has finally won me over to the series.

[Stefani Murdock · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite so far. I laughed and sobbed. Apologies to all those who begged me to read this series sooner 🫣

[Elizabeth Santelmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay I give up… I’m addicted. These books are so charming. It’s the perfect combination of enough action, but slow reading I’ve been needing for this stage of life.

[Sarah Therèse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Emma M Lion has my heart.

It is so whimsy, raw, exciting and cozy. Part of me wants to slow down a bit thru these books as I find they may keep me warm during the Fall/Winter season.

The first book is quite slow, the second much more interesting and now finishing this one, I am absolutely hooked.

Highly recommend these books, don’t sleep on them!

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

"My friends do not go to war alone."

Congratulations, The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion: Vol. 4, for being the first in the series to make me cry.

Oh man, I wondered what it was that made someone I follow here on Goodreads cry, and I should have seen it coming because Emma had written about it in a previous entry, but the revelation hit me almost as bad as it did Emma when she discovered the news. When that happened, I did not think I would cry, but alas I did.

The further in I go, the more I adore Emma and all of her friends, and the support they give her. Niall Pierce, especially, really shined when it came to that situation.
 
Favorite Moments
Pierce decking Evelyn.

Emma: "I see why you have so many friends."
Pierce: "Oh?"
Emma: "You are loyal, Pierce. True friendship, and all that."
Pierce: "If anything, it's self-serving. I like good people. They remind me of what I used to be myself."

[kenzie ❀ (peeta mellark’s version) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was not expecting to cry over the book my grandma recommended to me 💀

but seriously. this series is a hidden treasure.

[Booksblabbering || Cait❣️ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is where we start to get more emotional depth from Emma and her romantic interests.

A sentence if you aren’t familiar with this series: the diaries of a witty young woman navigating Victorian London.

We also get all four sitting down together. It goes to show that Beth has ensured Emma’s compatibility as the four of them clicked together too which is something I always appreciate when there are signs of a love triangle… a love square?

These are definitely the kind of books that blur together as they’re so short and are a continuation. I always end up listening to them in an afternoon walk.
3.5 stars.🌟

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[Katja Labonté · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars. Oh my heart, I loved this! It really solidified my realization that these are more historical fantasy than historical fiction, but I do not care. All the characters we've met so far play their part, and so charmingly! Though Cousin Archibald hardly features (beyond throwing a spoon), Jack has two scenes (thank goodness one favour is over with), and Roland reappeared for a few (I love that guy so much) and Emma's cousin finally popped up. I love the group friendship between Hawkes, Pierce, Islington, and Emma (though I could've shaken the Reprobates) and I loved learning more about Maxwell. That side of the story was so sweet and sad—Pierce took such good care of Emma, though. 💙 But there's still so much humour... I'd have laughed aloud at places, especially the bit about agricultural French, except that I was at my library and had to stifle my giggles. I'm so eager to see what this all leads to into book 5!!!

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am officially a part of the Emma Lion fan club. I liked the books before this... loved them a bit too. But now? Now I am all in. They have all been cute so far, but this one was next level. I can't count the number of times that I laughed out loud and I can't believe how emotional I got...many times. The ending of this book was so so good.

Gosh I'm happy about this.

[Gil K · Rating 5 out of 5]

Then we will hold the pass
No traitors among us.
Let us fight in the shade.

Wow. 1000 Wows. Ive never laughed so hard while reading. NEVER. My siblings were suspicious I was laughing so hard. Shall I tell you what they expected I was doing? No. Too incriminating.

NO! ITS EML! THIS IS PRICELESS! THIS IS PERFECTION!

HURRAH FOR THE REPROBATES! HURRAH FOR THE MIGHTY NIGEL HAWKES!

MAKE SURE THE PUDDING IS WELL STOCKED! COME ON E OF A! GET YOUR ACT TOGETHER!
Oh wait... That's right. Abbreviation is bad form.

IVE BEEN WAITING FOR THE ALCHEMY TO ASSEMBLE! HAWKES AND PIERCE AND ISLINGTON AND EMMA! YESSSSS! ESPECIALLY THE END. THE AMOUNT OF DEPTH AND VARIATION OF EMOTIONS AND HUMAN EXPERIENCE FIT IN THESE TINY NOVELS IS ABSOLUTELY INSANE!

I'm nearing tears and then laughing uncontrollably... And then soberly reminiscing my own life...

We will fight in the shade... Alchemy is the combination of several chemicals to make gold... Man. Boy howdy... Book three- AUGH! What is home? I love the tie ins to Emerson and I intend to go read his essays now that Ive read this.

Piracy is lucrative. And so long as Pierce will recover I vote we do that.

HAWKES! HAWKES!
HOW DO YOU KNOW EVERYTHING!
OH MY GOODNESS MAN! I WANNA KNOW MORE ABOUT HAWKES!
Roland I could totally get behind as a match with Emma. He would buy her a library complete with doubles to give to friends and/or children.
And then she would be have free reign in what children she bore.
Speaking of which. The Intended Unintended... I cannot wait to see Charles Goddard removed entirely. He is creepy and WHERE ON EARTH IS HIS RESPECT OF EMMA?! YOURE CONSUMED WITH YOUR OWN SELF CREEP!

AND PIERCE! Aghhhhh! The funeral was... Oy... That was a lot. I was more angry than anything most of the time. And Pierce was the champion of the day. I cannot say that I did not envy him his satisfaction in de-seating Emma's foes.

THE PORTRAIT IN THE PANTRYYYYY!
*DEFINITELY NOT ME SCANNING THE PAGES AND CACKLING LIKE A FERAL ANIMAL RELIVING THE CREAM OF THE CROP*

Anyway. All that to be said. I am completely addicted. But... Please hit me if I get the next book before money allows... Once you get addicted... its impossible to get off. All you can hope is to hold it at bay till the temptation overwhelms...

With that... I leave you...

*DISTANT FAN-GUYING SCREECHES*