The Legend of Lyon Redmond

Pennyroyal Green #11

by Julie Anne Long

Bound by centuries of bad blood, England’s two most powerful families maintain a veneer of civility...until the heir to the staggering Redmond fortune disappears, reviving rumors of an ancient curse: a Redmond and an Eversea are destined to fall disastrously in love once per generation.

An enduring legend

Rumor has it she broke Lyon Redmond’s heart. But while many a man has since wooed the dazzling Olivia Eversea, none has ever won her—which is why jaws drop when she suddenly accepts a viscount’s proposal. Now London waits with bated breath for the wedding of a decade…and wagers on the return of an heir.

An eternal love

It was instant and irresistible, forbidden...and unforgettable. And Lyon—now a driven, dangerous, infinitely devastating man—decides it’s time for a reckoning. As the day of her wedding races toward them, Lyon and Olivia will decide whether their love is a curse destined to tear their families part...or the stuff of which legends are made.

Genres: Historical Romance, Romance, Historical, Regency, Historical Fiction, Second Chance, Fiction

Audio CD

First published September 29, 2015

About the author

Well, where should I start? I've lived in San Francisco for more than a decade, usually with at least one cat. I won the school spelling bee when I was in 7th grade; the word that clinched it was 'ukulele.' I originally set out to be a rock star when I grew up (I had a Bono fixation, but who didn't?), and I have the guitars and the questionable wardrobe stuffed in the back of my closet to prove it.

But writing was always my first love.

I was editor of my elementary school paper (believe it or not, Mrs. Little's fifth grade class at Glenmoor Elementary did have one); my high school paper (along with my best high school bud, Cindy Jorgenson); and my college paper, where our long-suffering typesetter finally forced me to learn how to typeset because my articles were usually late (and thus I probably have him to thank for all the desktop publishing jobs that ensued over the years).

Won a couple of random awards along the way: the Bank of America English Award in High School (which basically just amounted to a fancy plaque saying that I was really, really good at English); and an award for best Sports Feature article in a College Newspaper (and anyone who knows me well understands how deeply ironic that is). I began my academic career as a Journalism major; I switched to Creative Writing, which was a more comfortable fit for my freewheeling imagination and overdeveloped sense of whimsy. I dreamed of being a novelist.

But most of us, I think, tend to take for granted the things that come easily to us. I loved writing and all indications were that I was pretty good at it, but I, thank you very much, wanted to be a rock star. Which turned out to be ever-so-slightly harder to do than writing. A lot more equipment was involved, that's for sure. Heavy things, with knobs. It also involved late nights, fetid, graffiti-sprayed practice rooms, gorgeous flakey boys, bizarre gigs, in-fighting—what's not to love?

But my dream of being a published writer never faded. When the charm (ahem) of playing to four people in a tiny club at midnight on a Wednesday finally wore thin, however, I realized I could incorporate all the best things about being in a band — namely, drama, passion, and men with unruly hair — into novels, while at the same time indulging my love of history and research.

So I wrote The Runaway Duke, sent it to a literary agent (see the story here), who sold it to Warner Books a few months after that...which made 2003 one of the most extraordinary, head-spinning years I've ever had.

Why romance? Well, like most people, I read across many genres, but I've been an avid romance reader since I got in trouble for sneaking a Rosemary Rogers novel out of my mom's nightstand drawer (I think it was Sweet Savage Love). Rosemary Rogers, Kathleen Woodiwiss, Laurie McBain...I cut my romance teeth on those ladies. And in general, I take a visceral sort of pleasure in creating a hero and a heroine, putting them through their emotional paces, and watching their relationship develop on the page. And of course, there's much to be said for the happy ending. :)

And why Regency Historicals? Well, for starters, I think we can blame Jane Austen. Her inimitable wit, compassion and vision brought the Regency vividly to life for generations of readers. If Jane Austen had written romances about Incas, for instance, I think, we'd have racks and racks of Inca romances in bookstores all over the country, and Warner Forever would be the Inca Romance line.

But I'm a history FREAK, in general. I read more history, to be perfectly honest, than fiction (when I have time to read!) these days. When we were little, my sister and I used to play "Littl

Reviews

[sraxe · Rating 1 out of 5]

Up until the 60% mark, I was honestly really enjoying this. I thought this would be a 5-star read for me. And then this happened:

There had been pleasure since then, some of it extraordinary, some of it memorable, all of it mindless, in the arms of other women.

Give me a fucking break. I felt so very I-was-rooting-for-you-we-were-all-rooting-for-you at this point.

The author even uses the ever-cliched "but he never loved any of them!!" business by saying it wasn't love with those women, that word was only ever associated with Olivia. Olivia even asks him later (because he's acting all jealous that she's kissed Lansdowne, her fiance).

“I suppose you’ve been celibate.”
Her words had a certain studied casualness.
Which sparked a tiny flame of something like hope in him.
“Of course not.” He shrugged.

And at that point, I was done. I was pretty done from the line above but then this really hammered it home and I'd really rather not torture myself through the rest, especially knowing I'm going to give it a 1-star rating anyway.

I even skimmed ahead, and it only further cemented that I'm glad I quit.

“I went very far indeed.” He smiled slightly. It wasn’t the most pleasant smile. It contained memories of things he’d seen and possibly things he’d done.
And, in all likelihood, women he’d made love to.
He’d been doing this while she was in Pennyroyal Green deflecting suitor after suitor and instructing the footman where to put flowers delivered by men who hadn’t a prayer of gaining her attention.
Because they weren’t Lyon.

So while she stayed in England and rusticated, denying suitor after suitor, he was enjoying other women. Isn't that just lovely?

So Lyon has been with others, while Olivia hasn't? And no, a single kiss during her proposal with her fiance doesn't count. I know people get all oh but historical accuracy!!! when it comes to this stuff...that men have mistresses and women don't do this stuff. Yeah, whatever, it seems "historical accuracy" only ever counts when it comes to constraints for women. What about "historical accuracy" when it comes to Lyon being a pirate and trying to abolish slavery and not dying during that time? Making a fortune while he's at sea in less than five years? When he's young and able-bodied? What about "historical accuracy" when it comes to being with tons of women (and yes women because he, himself, uses plural, not singular) yet not contracting a single STD or bringing home a by-blow? Fuck your cherry-picked "historical accuracy."



And I honestly don't get why the author couldn't have just kept him celibate during that time. The biggest thing of all is that the author doesn't HAVE TO tell the reader Lyon has been with other women! He could've just as easily lied to Olivia, because he's done it before. He lied with the Mrs. More business. He could've just as easily lied about this in order to get a rise out of her, to make her jealous or some BS. But he isn't. He admits himself that he isn't lying:

It was absolutely true, but the shrug was meant to hurt her.

(He follows this line with the exchange above, when she asks if he's remained celibate.)

I continued to read until I got to this part because I was hoping that maybe it wasn't true, that he was being deceitful...but I couldn't. This ruined the book for me and I hated continuing and didn't want to bother.

So, yeah, he could've lied to Olivia, but he isn't. While the author had her deny suitor after suitor for five years, she allowed Lyon to live his life. Olivia even admits that she stopped eating for a time after he left. And all this while he was living his life, making a fortune and sleeping with other women.



I'm so fucking sick and tired of this bullshit. I'm also sick to death of that BS that the H only ever loved the h, but it's a-okay that his dick has been in several other women in the meantime. Fuck no, that shit is not okay. And that shit would never fly if it was the woman. If it was the h who slept around while the H was away, that she was dead inside and the sex meant nothing with all those other men...this shit would NEVER fly!



It's honestly un-fucking-believable that women write this shit and don't expect better--the best--of the men they write. This is supposed to be romance, yeah? Where's the romance in knowing the H fucked around while he was away? What's so damn desirable, so utterly attractive, about a man who couldn't be bothered to wait for the woman who he supposedly loves? I seriously fucking can't. I don't get it!

I tried looking at reviews before the book came out because I didn't want to be disappointed. This is one of the things that disappoints me about second chance romances, the h remaining celibate while the H doesn't, so I wanted to know if it happens before I picked up this book. I kept coming across spoiler-free reviews raving about the book, saying it's a breathtaking tale, one which would be all the readers had hoped for and dreamed of. The single, solitary wish I had for this book was the Lyon would remain celibate, that's it. I didn't care how everything went down so long as he waited for her, as women are so often expected to do for men, as Olivia obviously did for Lyon. And I didn't get it. Why? No fucking clue! The 60% I read, it had no bearing on the story, other than to make Olivia feel bad. If it were taken out, if Lyon had admitted to lying, it wouldn't change even a bit of the story.

But we just couldn't get that, right? Because men have needs and desires and can't control it? Well women do, too, so fuck you and your sexist notions and ideas. And, fuck this book, too, for being a book in a long line of books in which women are shelved, waiting around for men who obviously care more about their dicks than they do about the supposed loves of their lives.

[WhiskeyintheJar · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars, was there any doubt? I will say though, it's a 5 star rating put into the context of the journey you take if you read every book in the series. Taken on its own, I would have probably given it somewhere in the range of 4 stars.

Men will do things for women they wouldn’t otherwise in their right minds do.
No one knew that better than Lyon.

The Redmonds and the Everseas have been the staunch adversaries of Pennyroyal Green ever since 1066 and a cow argument, or so history murkily relays. But when Lyon Redmond meets the gaze of Olivia Eversea across a crowded ballroom, a stolen waltz changes all their destinies. Living a Romeo and Juliet story is thrillingly romantically dangerous to the young couple who put off reality for as long as they can but when they are forced to face it, reality hits back hard. A stormy night filled with fear and pride separate Lyon and Olivia for five years, until Lyon receives word that Olivia is set to marry. This time anger and hurt keep them apart until longing works to crumble their walls. The story of Lyon and Olivia has been the whispers in the corners for a long time but no one has known their full story, until now.

How she loved that sentence. "Love the people with whom fate brings you together, but do so with all your heart." And she loved the little silence that followed when he’d read it to her, because she knew he was thinking about her, and wanted her to know it.

I knew that Lyon and Olivia must have fallen in love hard and fast but I had no idea it was so deeply consuming. The first half of the story is mostly flashbacks to their first meeting and clandestine get-togethers. They're young and as a consequence their love is at times immature and petty but also overwhelming and deeply felt; they have the love but not necessarily the tools, experience and maturity, to understand it. Every word they spoke to each other and every action they took felt so real, believable, and raw; I lost the ability to think of them as fictional characters.

She loved him. She always had. He knew it as surely as he knew the color of his own eyes. And he was just as certain then he'd been born loving her, as surely as he'd been born with blue eyes. It was that simple. That permanent. And if it was a curse, then he didn't know what a blessing was.

Going back and seeing how it all started, the first love, excitement, and sense of home they had with each other was fascinatingly beautiful and knowing the heartache to come added some bitter sweetness to it all. I was shocked and impressed, for all the sense of doom hovering over our couple, that Ms. Long still was able to infuse them with lightness. Through their words and actions you could almost see their burdens lift when in the presence of one another and they were humorous together, which I, rightly or wrongly, didn't expect.

“Ah,” Lyon said softly. “I believe I understand now. You didn’t have the courage to fight for the woman you loved. You made the wrong choice. And look at you. Look at what you’ve become.”

If you have read the other books in the series, then you know that there has been the suggestion that Lyon's father Isaiah once loved and possibly still does, Olivia's mother Isolde. This is rumored to be the current strife between the two families and similarly in other books, Isaiah plays the villain here. The conversation between Lyon and his father was so amazingly tense and well done, it took me awhile to come out of my stupor and turn the page when the final harsh words were proclaimed.

And suddenly she hated him as much as she loved him for forcing her to make this decision, now, in the pouring rain, in the dark.

Lyon and Olivia were blinded by their love in the beginning, it added to the tension seeing everyone cautiously dancing around their covert warnings to the couple. When the real world hit our couple it was even more painful that I had prepared myself for. I think Olivia will take the brunt of anger from readers and her actions may slightly skew into added for angst sake but they still felt real.

She sensed a sort of coiled potential in him that boded ill, something was being wound tighter and tighter. His face was taut, his mouth white at the corners.
But she couldn’t seem to help herself from winding it tighter. She wanted it to break. You weren’t there. I needed you I missed you. You missed it. You missed it all.

The second half of the story is what readers have been dying for, Lyon and Olivia coming together and having their reckoning. I know I keep saying this but it all felt so real, the brittle pain between the two was gripping, deeply moving, and emotionally draining to read because of the author's talent of metamorphosing words on a page to emotions was riveting. Olivia and Lyon kept hammering away at one another with their own pain, until they both shattered from it. If I was to have a disappointment in this story, this would be it. Waiting almost ten years for their story must have made me a little into a sadist because I would have liked for their struggle and eventual main fight to have lasted longer. I was left a smidge unsatisfied with how it all went down and the swiftness of their joining and forgiveness of the past.

No one else had ever been able to really hurt her. No one else could save her from herself.

The ending had me a bit divided, on one hand I see what Lyon needed and was asking for from Olivia but on the other hand, it felt like forced in angst again. These characters weren't perfect but they will overfill your heart, stomp on it, and most importantly absorb you into their story. We get explanations into little mysteries that were sprinkled throughout the series, the white gloves, Olivia's miniature, and the elm tree. While others, Isaiah and Isolde's true story and Olivia's father's involvement in the slave trade, are still left strongly implied but never confirmed. I know some readers will sympathize strongly with Landsdowne, Olivia's fiancé. Thankfully, the author doesn't make him an easy victim, readers will like him, but I was also ok with him getting a bit of the shaft in this book. As with Henry in What I Did for a Duke, this wasn't to be his story and his happily ever after wasn't Olivia, I bet he has something better and right waiting for him on the horizon.

"Why did you do it?' she whispered. He was silent a moment, thoughtful. And then his mouth quirked at the corner.
"Because you couldn't." He said it gently. But deliberately. Ruefully. Laying those words out as if delivering a truth. Just the way he'd done the night he'd left: What if loving you is what I do best? It was indeed what he did best. He had gone and proved it. Her breath snagged in her throat.

Lyon and Olivia's journey is the sweeping love saga we all dream about, not sure we would want or could survive going through, read and reread, and end up pushing a bit desperately at friends to read. Is the last half and ending a bit sappy and over indulgent with looking back at past characters and overall stories? Yes but it's also the ending those of us that have been there from the beginning ultimately deserved. This might sound weird but I would suggest waiting a while after finishing the last chapter and moving on to reading the epilogue, I found it took away from my sweet closure of Lyon and Olivia’s story. I’ve seen rumblings of Ms. Long moving into the world of contemporaries and I think we may have a glimpse here of where that move may start.

My almost ten year wait was to get to the immediate above quote and let me tell you, it was worth every sibling, cousin, and friend story to get there. Read this series and find out what I mean.

[SidneyKay · Rating 1 out of 5]

Spoiler: They lived happily ever after...uh, then they died.

Many spoilers ahead. In case you don't know it by now, alllll those heroes and heroines who had happy endings in allll those historical romance books you've been reading over the years are now no longer with us. Of course, they never were because they are fictional, but that's beside the point. So just so you know, they are allll dead.

Where to begin - where to begin - ponder. Once again I find myself in the minority. I am confessing now, I am one of those people who did not care for The Legend of Lyon Redmond. In fact, when I was finished with this book I was deeply disturbed. We should be able to explore these disturbances because I made a plethora of notes while I was reading.

I will also get this out of the way: I stumbled over a number of typos, in this case words that were missing. I even had an entire page that was not there. So, somewhere, someone wasn't watching-editing-whatever or doing their job. Did I call customer service? No. I really don't have time to deal with the person on the other end. But my electronic copy was a careless representation of an author's hard work.

Now, back to The Legend of Lyon Redmond. I confess, I confess! I wanted John, Lord Lansdowne to get the girl. Of course, I knew that the author probably would never go in that direction. I was anticipating that with this book I would be presented with a very very good reason for Lyon and Olivia being together besides the fact that was what the original outline said. Sometimes an author's initial intentions at the beginning of a series doesn't always work when that series ends. Characters and dynamics take over occasionally and the direction of the story changes. The path originally intended is lost and a new one begins - but then the author still goes down the old path. For me, going down the old path of Olivia and Lyon being together didn't work.

The Legend of Lyon Redmond is partly told through the use of flashbacks. I have nothing against flashbacks, sometimes they work sometimes they don't. In this case they sort of work because we get to see a very young Lyon and an even younger Olivia falling in teenage love/lust. It overwhelms them. I was unable to find anything in their relationship but the lust part. I was never able to comprehend any insight into why they love each other or, for that matter why they like each other. While we do get to see how Olivia thinks, we hardly ever get to see Lyon's introspective. Maybe if I had been able to see more of Lyon's thought process I would have liked it better, but he was pretty much a closed book.

So, anyway Lyon and Olivia fall in love/lust at a dance. They are bowled over. They cannot think about anyone or thing but each other. They are also very young. It is Tony and Maria at the dance, only there aren't any Jets and Sharks to do the tap dancing. Then we get to see more of Ton...ur...Lyon and Olivia meeting in secret and the relationship moves from touching each others hands to touching other things. But never the final binga-bang. Lyon decides to tell his father, Isaiah, that he intends to marry Olivia. Isaiah, being Isaiah, says if you do, I will cease all monetary support. Lyon walks out on his father, stalks over to Olivia's place, throws pebbles at her window, and then proposes. Contrary to what he believes will happen, Olivia starts asking question (wayyyy beyond her years by the way.) Questions such as: What will we live on? What will we eat? Where will we live? Who will be our friends? What about our families? Well, evidently that isn't the response Lyon wanted and he becomes really enraged. He stomps off and out of Olivia life in a fit of spoiled-boy temper-tantrum. In the next five years he becomes many things: a pirate, a privateer, an owner of a plantation, a spy, an owner of an estate in Cadiz - he becomes wealthy. Does he attempt to contact Olivia through the years? Does he remain faithful to Olivia? Does he expect her to remain faithful to him? No, no and yes. What a guy.

I never understood why he would hold a grudge for so long. Especially over something so mundane, so logical. And, because I was never given the ability to follow Lyon and his exploits through those five years I was not inclined to like him. I will say this though - I was not upset that he couldn't keep his Mr. Toad inside of his trousers through those five years. I think it's unrealistic to expect a person to remain celibate for five years, especially when supposedly they have moved on. But, what irritated me was that our heroine, Olivia mooned, daydreamed, withdrew, didn't so much as glance at another guy through that time period. Then when she finally breaks free of her boo-hoo-I-cannot-live-without-Lyon mood and became engaged to John and dares to "kiss" him, Lyon lashes out. Lyon makes his grand entrance and has the nerve to berate her for "kissing" her fiancé once...once! Uhggggg, I did not like Lyon.

What is love all about? At no time in this story did I ever discover just why Lyon and Olivia loved each other. Oh sure, I understood the mad crazy lust hormone part, but love...nah. Didn't see it. I especially didn't see Lyon as loveable, he was actually quite a bonehead.

Cadiz. Lyon kidnaps Olivia and takes her to his big old house in Cadiz where there are waterfalls, beaches and swimming holes. You can run naked in all that water, sand and rocks. You can have mad passionate crazy whankee-roo there! Who cares if you’re engaged to someone else? Who cares if that someone else is the nicest person ever? Not Olivia, that's for sure. She does occasionally feel bad, 'cause she knows what it's like to be hurt and she would never ever ever want to do that to someone else. But who can resist Lyon in the water hole? Not Olivia. Of course, there is a fly in the ointment. After weeks and weeks of humping and bumping in the water Lyon tells Olivia he is sending her back to England. Without him. If she really really really wants him she must fight for him. Fight for him! OMG, is there a ringing in my ears? Why should she! You remember her, Olivia, the girl you left behind. You know the one you didn't say boo to for five long years! She has to fight for you! AAAAkkkk! Why!

By the way, did anybody do anything to prevent any kind of disease or baby-boo-hoo during Cadiz? I don’t remember any Lyon spills on the sacred stomach.

John. Now Olivia has returned to England after her little water escapade. John is one of the nicest secondary characters we've been introduced to in Romanceland. He could have been a wonderful hero. But since he's so nice, I guess it's ok to just step all over him. If Olivia had told John as soon as she saw him that she needed to break their engagement I wouldn't have been so revolted. But that isn't what she did. She waited until she is in front of everyone in Pennyroyal, after John has said yes he will take this woman to be his wife, to drop her bomb shell. I cannot tell you how much I detested this part of the book. If I hadn't been so close to the end, this book would have hit the wall. But the damage had already been done, and this horribly painful book moment will join some other memorable horrible-feel-bad book moments in by brain. This left an unpleasant taste in my mouth, but there was more to come.

The epilogue. Yes, there was an epilogue in The Legend of Lyon Redmond. It takes place in the future and we have a contemporary woman visiting England finding her roots - in the cemetery. She is descended from the Redmonds, she also meets a man who is descended from them and through their conversation we get to hear about what happened to all of the characters we had grown to love in Pennyroyal - well almost all of them - not John. Anyway, it seems they all die. Who would have thunk it? A HEA doesn't mean people die, it means they just fade away...like Douglas MacArthur. Not only do all the Pennyroyal heroes and heroines die but we also find out that one of the main secondary characters has been murdered at some point in the past. What? Why? What? I sputter. I thought epilogues were supposed to resolve everything.

To say I was disappointed in this book, the last of the Pennyroyal series is an understatement. I was disturbed by Olivia's callus treatment of John. I didn't find anything redeeming about either Lyon or Olivia. The ending was distasteful to me in so many ways. While I enjoyed most of the books in this series, for me this final story wasn’t on par with the rest of them. While others may be happy that Lyon and Olivia are finally back in each others arms; for me, there were just too many backs that were stabbed on the way to those arms. I found this book distressing.

KaysBlog

[Sher❤ The Fabulous BookLover · Rating 4 out of 5]

**4 Can't Believe the Series is Over Stars**

The Pennyroyal Green series is a long series with some amazing books and one of my favorite HRs to date:What I Did For a Duke. Fans of this series have been waiting a mighty long time for Lyon and Olivia's happy ending.

I'm a sucker for second chance romance and I really liked the suspense in this story, the waiting of the moment when they finally meet again. The dialogue was witty, sensual and beautiful. I did feel like this was a bit wordy at times, and I do wish there was a longer epilogue about Lyon and Olivia, but overall this was a beautiful story.

Julie Anne Long is still one of my favorite historical authors and I can't help but be absorbed by her characters and her writing.

Here's my list of faves in this series:
1. What I Did For a Duke
2. It Happened One Midnight
3. Like No Other Lover
4. How the Marquess Was Won
5. A Notorious Countess Confesses tied with I Kissed an Earl and The Legend of Lyon Redmond
6.It Started With a Scandal tied with Between the Devil and Ian Eversea
(I haven't read Perils of Pleasure and Since the Surrender)

*********************************************************

☆☆☆Lyon and Olivia's story...finally!!!!!☆☆☆

My happy dance

[Jilly · Rating 3 out of 5]

You know when you watch a television show and they do like a recap or walk down memory lane and you're feeling all cheated because it's not really a new show and you feel a bit tricked into watching it? They always tell you they are including new material or never before seen footage. Like that helps...

It was like that a bit.

We started this series knowing that Lyon Redmond has been missing for years because Olivia Eversea broke his heart. Then, in all of the subsequent books, we see Olivia turning away suitors because she is pining for Lyon. Well, Olivia finally decides at one point to move on with her life and get engaged. That's when Lyon decides to show up again.

Typical man. Doesn't want her until someone else is going to have her.

There is a message in there somewhere girls. They always want what they can't have or what some other guy wants.



So, we get their whole history together as flashbacks while she is getting ready to marry someone else.

Will she be a runaway bride?
Why did he wait until the last minute to contact her again? Why not sometime else in the past 5 years?
If she wasn't going to marry someone else, would he have just left her alone to pine for him for the rest of her days?
What about the poor shlub that she's supposed to marry?

All of these burning questions are answered, plus we get an epilogue that occurs when everyone we love from the series is long dead. Cuz, you know we all love to imagine our book characters dead in their graves for years and years.



In other words: worst epilogue in the history of epilogues.

Overall, this book felt like closure on the series.

[StMargarets · Rating 2 out of 5]

I finally got around to reading this one and I can see why so many hated it. Turns out the big romance of the series - that endured for 11 books - was a case of teenage infatuation and the hero being angry the heroine wouldn't run off with him to live a life of poverty and danger.

When the hero finds out the heroine - after pining for him for five years - is going to marry a fine upstanding man, he kidnaps her, takes her virginity (with her willing consent) and then drops her off after a week, telling her she must fight for him.

!!!!!!!!!!?

So heroine dumps her very fine upstanding man in church, as they are saying their vows. Hero is there, disguised as a beggar. He "reconciles" with his father (it's basically an alpha contest with the old lion admitting he's too old to keep up) and the H/h marry a few days later. Both families are fine with this and they never pay a price for their selfishness or immoral behavior. (Hero was not celibate during their separation and enjoys hurting the heroine with that knowledge. )

Then there is the weirdest epilogue of all time. Two hundred years later a descendant of the Redmonds tells a hot biker dude what happened to all the characters. All righty then.

JAL - does emotion so well - her closed scenes with the just the H/h feeling all the feels are wonderful. Where she falters is the bigger story - the context of these love scenes - and er - logic. So read for the feels, not the story is my advice for those who are interested in this author.

My favorite is still What I Did For a Duke. Now there's a hero.

[Holly · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Enjoyable, but I wouldn’t put this in my top 3 books written by this author. I wouldn’t suggest reading this one unless you have read several of the other earlier books in this series first.

In case you’re interested, my current top 3 for this author are:
What I Did for a Duke
How the Marquess Was Won
It Started With a Scandal

[Melanie THEE Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Two households, both alike in dignity, In fair Verona, where we lay our scene, From ancient grudge break to new mutiny, Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean......"

OOPS, wrong story! While we have two families beefing-The Everseas and The Redmonds-everyone makes it out of this one alive. So, let's celebrate that!

"She saw herself reflected in his eyes. And that was how both she and Lyon had seen the world for years: through the lens of each other."

This romance is why I will always have a special place in my heart for the second-chance trope. When it's done badly, it can be a disaster but when it's done well, as in the case with "The Legend of Lyon Redmond," it is utterly delicious.

People have been alluding to Olivia Eversea and Lyon Redmond's romance throughout the series, so the pressure was ON. Even though it took me a minute to get into their story (The first half of the book is flashbacks with bits of Olivia preparing for her wedding to Landsdowne in the present) once they FINALLY met face to face in the present, I was invested and really started to root for them. Plus, Lyon had started rocking a ponytail and I will always be a weak bitch for a long haired hero 😩

Olivia and Lyon were likable MCs and I immediately understood why they were drawn to each other. I felt terrible for Olivia because imagine being surrounded by artwork and songs about how you broke your ex's heart! No wonder she had to get out of town. I also felt bad for Lyon, because even though I understand why Olivia broke up with him-he was pressuring her a bit-she said some really hurtful things to him. It was clearly her fear talking but still: she said what she said. And guess what guys? When she meets up with him years later, she actually apologizes for the things she said! And they have a real discussion about what went wrong in their relationship. COMMUNICATION IS SEXY.

Random thoughts:
1. The way the feminism left my body after it was revealed that Lyon named his ship The Olivia. Sure, he kind of sort of kidnapped her right before her wedding BUT HE'S PLANNING ON BRINGING HER BACK PLUS HE NAMED HIS SHIP AFTER HER.
2. The way Lyon read Olivia DOWN. I think this is the first historical romance I've read (and I've read quite a few 😂) where the hero read the hell out of the heroine, and it's actually deserved. Like my man had been holding that in for 5 years 😭he needed to get it out for them to move forward. Also, him immediately comforting her when she started crying after getting read had me like 😍
3. I actually don't mind that Lyon had lovers during their FIVE-YEAR SEPARATION. I wish Olivia had some too but thus the double standard of the time-period. Also, she was in her "LOVE IS CANCELLED" era. It's not like the dude was rubbing it in her face. Yeah, he was dumb about her kissing her fiancé. But she made an assumption that he wasn't celibate, and he shrugged and confirmed that he wasn't! He didn’t brag about all the women that he's slept with.
4. Landsdowne getting dumped at the altar? That's rough buddy. But it looked like things are looking up for him ❤️ But Olivia waiting to call things off at the last minute was risky as hell! Especially since her and Lyon had a whole sex marathon on that island. She could’ve at least postponed the wedding to make sure that she wasn’t pregnant 😭
5. WATERFALLS ARE SEXY.


WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT EPILOGUE. I wanted a cute epilogue with all the Everseas and Redmonds getting their portrait taken with their babies but noooooooo we get an info dump about all the couples via one of their descendants that we don't care about. Who's apparently the blond doppelganger of Olivia 🙄Ok. Thanks, I hate it.

Beside this gripe, it was a great ending to a somewhat uneven series.

Olivia/Lyon’s songs:
Make This Go On Forever-Snow Patrol
Minefields-Faouzia ft. John Legend
This Love-Taylor Swift

[Joanna Loves Reading · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the book that the whole series leads up to. It delivers on intensity and magnitude of the tale. It’s a rare book for me where I don’t particularly like Olivia or Lyon but enjoy their story.

[Zoe · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am very, very, very angry at this book.

That almost cost the book the 4th star. I am so disappointed. I can honestly say that I have never been this disappointed by a book before.

I need to calm down before I write a coherent review. Did I mention that I am disappointed?

OK I wrote a looooong review after I had cooled down my disappointment. Only to lose it all because of a cruel trick Google Chrome played on me. I don't know whether I have it in me to re-write all that, but I shall try.

Anyone who has been following the Pennyroyal Green series has been waiting for the epic romance of Lyon Redmond and Olivia Eversea. Lyon and Olivia, Romeo and Juliet, guileless, genuine budding young love, family drama, passionate confession under the elm (or was it oak? no matter, it was a big tree) tree, hope and despair, destiny and fate, unrequited love, you name it, Lyon and Olivia have got it.

But Julie Anne Long has got everyone's hope so high by leading us on for 10 books before we finally get to read about what really happened between Lyon and Olivia. What really happened, as it turned out, was an anti-climatic scene if I ever saw one. I asked myself really?? This was it?? I think what happened was significant. But the way it was depicted was anti-climatic. There should have been more anguish, more desperation (ah I love a little drama in my romances) and more longing. But instead, we got a very sweet story of 2 young lovers who believed love conquered all, which I thought was not all together a bad idea. But come on, this was Lyon Redmond, the larger-than-life Redmond heir, and Olivia Eversea, the one great love Lyon Redmond ever had. I expected so much more than a glimpse into their past and a rather boring reckoning on an island where Lyon and Olivia pretty much admitted that they loved each other right away.

And because this is the last book of a very popular series, Julie Anne Long had to wrap things up and bring everyone back. So we read about all the Redmonds and Everseas, even the romance of the last generation, which did not help Lyon and Olivia because it took the limelight away from a couple who desperately needed more page space for reconciliation as adults who have loved and lost, and been given a second chance at pursuing their one great love.

And Jesus Christ, what is going on with that epilogue??? I hated, hated that epilogue. And I do try to refrain from using such strong language in my reviews. But no I despised that epilogue. I am reading a historical romance. I do not want an epilogue about their offsprings a few centuries later. I honestly do not know what happened in the epilogue. I read one page and gave up in disgust. Why throw a contemporary element at me in my historical romances? I don't like it. I want to know more about Lyon and Olivia. I want to see them in their final show-down, how they give up a little bit of themselves for love. I do not want to read about some young woman in the 21st century going to Pennyroyal Green to do whatever. This is NOT a fitting ending to Lyon and Olivia. I rarely use such strong language in a book review, but what the hell was Julie Anne Long thinking? I am so bitterly disappointed. And that modern day epilogue made me angry. I do not want anything contemporary in a historical romance. If I wanted contemporary, I would have read a contemporary story.

And this is how I feel after having cooled down for a day. Imagine my bitter disappointment when I finished the book. I wanted to throw my kindle on the wall. I hated that epilogue. I have no other words for it.

I wish someone else would write another story for Lyon and Olivia. They deserved so much more.

[Arya99 · Rating 1 out of 5]

This has to be the most disappointing book of the year for me

... the back story of them falling in love felt like just a teenage infatuation .. nothing that would inspire years of waiting ... the reason they separated was lamely done ... And when they met (after 45% of the book i think) - it was just all about lust. They have like a 30 second conversation and poof! all anger gone .. and what was the epilogue all about ? ... To those who have followed the books, there was a hint of the idea that one of their fathers may be involved in slave trade. That would actually have been a brilliant side plot line. But that too was discarded in haste

The series has had both hits and misses - but largely i liked it. The best for me was WIDFAD. Given that THIS was the story that was built up to, it was sadly very disappointing

I just realised that I have rated most of the historical romances i have read in the past 6 months poorly. Maybe i have just reached a saturation level with this genre.

[Gloria · Rating 5 out of 5]

6/27/2025 Reread: 4.5 stars, rounded up
2022 Original read: 5 stars

I’m still pissed at Olivia. I’m upset with her for refusing to trust Lyon when he asked her to elope with him and especially for sneering as she left him standing in the rain. I also sympathize that she was trying to make a life for herself after five fruitless years of waiting for Lyon to return when she agreed to marry Landsdowne. This time around, however, I’m deducting half a star for the phony parting after she and Lyon reconnect in Spain. For not telling her how he still felt and asking her to choose him, it would have served Lyon right if she had gone ahead and married Landsdowne. For not telling Lyon how she still felt about him and asking him if they had a future—and storming off in a snit—it would have served Olivia right if she had never laid eyes on him again.

Landsdowne still deserves better than what he got.

After reading Isaiah & Isolde: A Pennyroyal Green Prequel, it hurts to even look at Isaiah. For all his wealth and power and social position, his life is a sad, lonely failure. And worse, deep down, he knows it.

Original review:

All in all, this was a pretty satisfying conclusion to the Pennyroyal Green series. A couple of quibbles: how in the world did Olivia even think to be angry with Lyon for leaving when she refused to go with him? Yeah, she was afraid and I can even sympathize with that, but why blame him for her fear and for him leaving? I’m not at all sure she deserved his undying love and I KNOW Landsdowne deserved better than Olivia dragging him all the way to the altar before crying off but hey, a forever is what Lyon and Olivia both wanted, so okay. Also, while I appreciated the way the epilogue dropped hints about what happened to some members of future generations, using it as a tease for a contemporary romance was just bogus. I’d rather have a book about how Argosy ended up with one of Genevieve and Alex’s daughters…and how in the world did Jack Fountain snag Violet and Aardmay’s daughter? Am I really never going to hear that story?

[Lizzy · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's rainig heavily outside, but I have just finished a light and enjoyable romance, so I could almost forget the weather outside! I quite enjoyed Lyon and Olivia’s beautiful love story, despite the slow beginning (in all likelihood inevitable). Often poignant, at time sorrowful, and at last triumphant. Nevertheless The Legend of Lyon Redmont was a great end to the Pennyroyal Green series.

‘I can’t remember the last time I so egregiously abandoned my manners. It’s just that I… that it seemed important to reach you before you could disappear.’
That little hesitation charmed her. ���Disappear?’
He paused again. ‘The way dreams do when wake in the morning.’

I liked that Lyon understood how vital it was for Olivia to choose for herself, hard but true!

For romance lovers, I recommend this Julie Anne Long story. A good book to keep you cozy on a rainy day...

[♥ℳelody · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a difference a story makes. My second JAL book and much better than my last experience. Yes there were still typos abound but the overall writing was much tighter and cleaner and a couple that actually grabbed my interest. So there's that. While I enjoyed this there were a few things that definitely could have been better or had me scratching my head.

1. How old were Lyon and Olivia when they first met and fell in love? That unanswered question kind of drove me nuts. I really wish the author included it simply because of the 5 year gap and how much it's stressed that these two grew up and learned and how silly, young and naive they were. We get a hazy generalization that Lyon was in his early 20s when he first met Olivia...so that makes him roughly what....26? 27? when he returns? That strikes me as still pretty young and much younger than he comes across, especially given all the things he's done while away. As a lovesick young man he carried himself and sounded so much older. And yes some children grow up faster and are more mature beyond their years, but still. I needed ages. I have no clue how old Olivia was in all this. Is she around the same age as Lyon or younger? When ages aren't given it bugs me, I need something to go off of. And I *sometimes* let it slide but given the heft of this story and the long drawn out reunion, it would have helped and sharpened the edges of the character development. To me it's the same as not bothering with giving physical descriptions of your characters.

2. Either Lyon's ship has some serious magical components or Miss Long doesn't know her geography at all. Sailing a ship at full mast from England to Spain in ONE DAY is ludicrous and asking readers to imagine the ship can fly, Hogwarts style. This more or less screamed of the author running out of page time to pace out the h/hr's reunion in a more realistic gradual fashion. Which is a shame. But oh what a fun reunion it was!

3. I am a new reader to this series, meaning I did not read books 1-10, (book 1 was a DNF disaster). From my guess and some nosing around, these two's story and Lyon's sudden disappearance were milked, teased and dragged out through every book. That's a lot of build up. But the fact that the sole reason these two broke up and Lyon left Pennyroyal Green is exactly what rumors and song ballads speculated on for years just seemed.....underwhelming? Just a little. Ok more than a little. Olivia Eversea a.k.a the 'clever one', the most beautiful and coveted woman of the ton, did in fact break his heart. He did in fact run off and become a pirate. Welp...ok then. 😐 I was expecting a little more given the high stress it caused and dramatic tales spun over these two. I just thought there would be more to the story over what separated them. More to Olivia's flinching and wringing hands and refusing to speak his name for 5 years, more to why their story was made into a song for everyone to hear about and whisper about. More to Lyon's many colorful escapades that are illustrated and sold as prints in newspapers. This is just another example of the bigger you build something up, the bigger readers' expectations will be. Not saying I hated it or was invested in something bigger I just found it a little thin and falling flat.

4. Lyon was not celibate for 5 years. The horror! How dare he sleep with other women while the heartbroken heroine tried to move on with her life by getting engaged to another man. *scratches head* Am I missing something? Because I don't get why this ruffled feathers (not bashing any reviews here just a general observation) considering they BOTH moved on, tried to at least. Liv could move on but Lyon wasn't allowed to? Was he supposed to live like a monk? It's not considered 'cheating' when the 2 parties involved are in fact not together. (This is more an observation than anything to do specifically with the book).

5. That epilogue.

What kind of absurd ridiculous fuckery is that?? I didn't bother reading it but the caption itself said enough. No I don't want to know what Pennyroyal Green is like in 2015.

Are you kidding me? You want to set up an opening for your new series, fine. Do it as a sneak preview. But to waste 40 pages of the book and title it as the 'Epilogue' when it has NOTHING to do with the hero/heroine's story is ridiculous. It's also a total disservice to readers who follow this series and expect a 100% payoff and full closure. Don't cram in a silly subplot for an alternate genre to promote new work. I also hate hate hate when authors do flash forwards to modern day in Historical's because the beloved characters are freaking dead by then. Don't freaking ruin my happy bubble dammit. It's just so jarring and unnecessary and the hopeless romantic in me just finds it incredibly morbid and sad.

[Jultri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Listened to this as part of another buddy read in 2022. Not much more to add. Still sublime.

My first reread of this epic end to an epic much-loved series. Still loving it. Okay, maybe this powerful tale of first love alternating with second-chance romance is not quite so perfect the second time around. Perhaps buddy-reading it this time has exposed a few incongruencies and minor character fallacies, but overall, it is still so sigh-worthy and moving. For that and JAL's superb writing, the 5 stars remain. I'll just add a few quotes to my original review below.

Oct 2015
Achingly beautiful, sweet and heartbreaking at the same time, this final book in the series juxtaposed between the past back story of suppressed passions between the young star crossed lovers and the present reality 5 years later, of both still struggling to move onwards with their lives, knowing that they left their respective hearts behind. Just powerfully written with soul-piercingly gorgeous prose as the author fluently alternates between the points of view of the two magnetic leads. I confess only to have read half the books in the series, although most of these were quite good. This book though was in a class of its own. Ignoring the oddly incongruent epilogue, it was otherwise utter perfection in recreating the feelings of joy and uncertainty of first love, the plethora of emotions conveyed in a single light touch, a look, a word and the heartbreak of knowing your dream is out of reach. Reading it was just one endless sigh for me - and quite a few tears along the way.


She, in fact, hadn’t spoken those two words aloud to anyone for years. Oh, she supposed she’d resorted to the pronoun “he” once or twice, when it could not be avoided. As if Lyon were the Almighty. Or Beelzebub.


She closed her eyes against an onslaught of fury and yearning so painful it made her nauseous and she nearly swayed.


Fury was always the safest emotion when it came to Lyon.


He understood, all at once, the word “joy,” and why it was so small, just three letters. It was as simple and profound as a sudden flame.


“Oh, I’m certain the discussion will take at least three waltzes. It might even require a lifetime.”


His father considered excessive use of metaphor a character flaw.


He was a lively man? As lively as the song? This Lyon Redmond?” Was he lively? She did not want to think about Lyon during the final fitting of her wedding dress. No, he wasn’t lively. He’d been life itself.


He understood why Romans didn’t feed the lions before they set them upon the Christians. Hunger made one furious and untenable.


Her pillow was probably shocked at the attention she lavished upon it at night.


He stood next to the “O” he didn’t dare turn into “Olivia” with his knife. He didn’t need to. The word was carved on his heart.


Unfortunately for Isaiah Redmond, the apple really didn’t fall far from the tree. Lyon’s will was very like his father’s. Absolutely immovable. And when Lyon loved, it was forever.


“Funny, isn’t it, that the things we don’t say can become more important than the things we do say.”


“I was not withering. You are not the sun and the moon and the stars. Life can and did go on in your absence.”
“The nerve of life,” he said softly.
She stole a swift glance at him again, her eyes flaring, as if she, too, was remembering the things about him that had set him apart. Made him uniquely him. Made him uniquely hers.


“Why did you do it?” she whispered.
He was silent a moment, thoughtful. And then his mouth quirked at the corner. “Because you couldn’t.”
He said it gently. But deliberately. Ruefully. Laying those words out as if delivering a truth. Just the way he’d done the night he’d left: What if loving you is what I do best? It was indeed what he did best. He had gone and proved it.

[Wollstonecrafthomegirl · Rating 3 out of 5]

This just hits three stars. I said that it was going to be tough for JAL to manage the follow through on this series and, for me, she hasn't managed it.

~Spoilers below~

JAL's set herself a gargantuan task. In only about 100,000 words [I think that the length of your average romance?!] she had to convince us Lyon and Olivia are in love and meant for one another to the extent they'd shape their whole lives around mourning the loss of one another for years. Then she has to find a plausible reason to split them up (because, really, if you loved someone that much, would you leave them?). Then she had to bring them back together and deal with everything that's happened in their absence, all at the same time as tying up the loose ends and explaining the Eversea/Redmond animosity.

The characterization and the actions of the H/h left me cold. Lyon leaving after dropping the bombshell on Olivia and asking her to runaway was, in my view, pretty weak. Give the poor girl a few hours to think about it, for heaven's sake. The whole animosity with his father and going off and being a pirate was underdeveloped and amounted to a few throwaway lines towards the end. Lyon's character never felt fully formed. He returned to Olivia imperious and angry and demanding and I took against him because I didn't buy into his reasons. He blamed her for their separation and I thought that was daft and shallow.

Olivia. I really wanted to like Olivia. And, rather like Lyon, I just didn't. We're told Olivia is a passionate believer in various causes but we never see her do anything for any of them. You need to show this stuff as well as tell it. I would've loved to see her blossom/grow a little away from Lyon but she hadn't. She was thoroughly uninteresting to me. I think it's one of Sherry's Thomas's books (separating and reuniting stories being one of her specialities) where, during the separation from the hero, the heroine has slept around, become somewhat of a society darling and, on the sly, opened up a money lending company to lend exclusively to women. She's still broken hearted, still hung up on her lost love, but she's done something. I'm not saying heroines have to buck all the trends of society to win me over. I would've quite liked it if Olivia and Lyon's story had examined the constraints of (particularly unmarried) womanhood vs the massive freedom available to men. Instead we have a shell of a heroine because JAL simply hasn't developed her sufficiently. When Lyon turned up and demanded she come to his ship now, or never, I wanted her to refuse, to show any kind of spine but she didn't.

As a consequence of the weakness of the characterization I never really bought into the romance that much, although, I did buy the love at first sight thing. I thought that was nicely done.

Much of the language is too fluffy and fruity for me. And it's very cheesy towards the end. The whole thing with Lyon as the beggar - well, I could really have done without that.

Sex was rubbish. Losing your virginity in a Spanish waterfall just can't be that fun. This book really wasn't kind to Olivia.

And, everyone is right: the epilogue was weird.

I read this all the way through. It's not terrible. But it's not great either. Then again, when I think about it, that's pretty much the Pennyroyal Green series in a nutshell for me. There are a couple of great highs in there, but mostly, it was very mediocre.

[Daniella]

Welcome to my HR Purgatory shelf !

In Roman Catholicism, the purgatory is where the souls of the dead wander in an indefinite state. They stay in such a state unless they "become fit for heaven" at some point. Similarly, this shelf is where books that I am warned about stay—untouched and unread—unless a very compelling reason forces me to read them.

***

Reason(s) for putting The Legend of Lyon Redmond in this shelf:
LOL. There are so many things I find problematic about both the hero and the heroine that I'm simply going to defer to sraxe's review here.

***

Thank you, sraxe, as always!
sraxe's Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Susana · Rating 2 out of 5]

Warning: Some mild spoilers ahead.


Although I've read almost all the books in this series _ that's right, I still haven't read the famous book about Violet _, only a small number of them are actually favourites.
Normally the more recent ones... but as you can see it isn't a done deal.

My indisputable favourite still is, What I did For a Duke . Compared with Genevieve and Falconbridge's romance, Lyon and Olivia are just forgettable secondary characters.

As much as I wanted, I just couldn't care about them.

Their insta love and all that follows felt very immature, so I really couldn't understand what all the fuss was about. But I am a grumpy old cat lady ;)

I didn't like the format in which the story was told, because in the first half we get to see Lyon and Olivia falling in love, and like I already mentioned it was very insta...everything. I didn't get that sense of... FATE.

Then they fight as couples do, and he decides to go away, and she to pine over him... until she agrees to marry someone else, in which moment Lyon decides to come back.

Frankly my favourite character ended up being the jilted groom.

So Lyon comes back and he decides to put Olivia to a test...
Thing is still couldn't feel their connection. There wasn't enough romance for it.

I know which test I would put him through, but it wouldn't be polite to write that in here. o_O

So, sorry, but this definitely didn't work out for me... unless we're talking about "are you fuc***g kidding me?" moments, in which case I experienced a lot of those.

Oh, well, maybe the next book will be of the poor guy who was jilted at the altar.

Really mature of you, ___. *eye roll*

[Iliada · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just to write a few brief words about this one... Was this the best book in the series as I fully expected? Not for me. Was it all I expected? No. And why? I believe because writers work under a specific word limit, but I'm afraid it doesn't work for all stories. This could have seriously benefited from 100 or more pages. I felt that it all went too fast (both the past and the present). Maybe JAL should have focused on either one or the other because none was 100% satisfying as things stand.

BUT, and there's a big but here, Lyon was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. I can't stress this enough. Gosh, what a man?! You gotta love him. And I like how the tables were turned as most readers clearly expected something else to have happened than what actually happened, if this makes any sense.

Some loose ends were tied up and some others remained loose. Hopefully, JAL will get back to this series eventually as there's still a lot to tell.

I hate that another of my favourite HR authors is going CR and those authors who should truly make this transition, don't.

BTW, I seriously hated the epilogue. I would actually advise people not to read it. It's the first time I feel that an epilogue has not only nothing to offer but also destroys the feelings a book has managed to build. The epilogue is not even about Lyon and Olivia and this is O and L's book.

All in all though, I loved this one and, I believe, given some space, it would have the potential to be a masterpiece and go down in history as one of the best HRs ever written. As it is, it's still worthy of my 5 stars and a worthy conclusion to this wonderful series. I realise it's time it ended but it still makes me sad.

[Kat at Book Thingo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Updated to add: I've been looking at some of the comments about people's expectations for this book. I can't wait for you guys to read it because I think it's going to blow a lot of your assumptions wide open! I think this is one of the best series finales I've read (although as I mention below, I would have preferred it without the epilogue and I very rarely say such a thing!). I can't wait to read your thoughts after reading the book!

Review to come. But here are my initial thoughts about the book...

This is actually quite a complex romance. I'm still a bit haunted by it. Generally, Lost Love Rekindled isn't my favourite trope because I just can't get over the wasted years, but JAL tackles it in a really intelligent way. Still heartbreaky, though, so I'm a bit emotionally conflicted.

Coming into the book, I wasn't sure how Lyon could possibly be redeemed. But JAL really surprised me. If you're looking for a kind of innocent love, this won't be the book for you. I found this book closer in spirit to the older epic historical romances (think Kinsale and Canham) than the modern Regency. I didn't think this book could possibly live up to the anticipation that JAL created in the series, but when as I read it, I was surprised at how well JAL has crafted this romantic arc.

Also, the cover for this book is just about perfect.

[Sam I AMNreader · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would take any one of the Redmond children to marry, I'm just saying. They are my favorite.

I found this kind of over the top but in that characteristic JAL way. So I loved it. I read her for the romancey romance fluffy feels (and I loved that all right up until one of the final scenes), but, hell that epilogue trash.

When I'm in the mood for hearts and flowers in my eyes and writing, she is pretty fantastic. Thought this was super satisfying conclusion even if I wanted a little more...

[Missy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh, my goodness! This book was totally worth the wait! It can be read as a standalone but I don’t think I would be emotionally invested if I hadn’t read all of the other books in the series first, particularly when the Redmonds are reunited. I couldn’t stop my eyes from watering during that scene.

I feel bad for Isiah Redmond. I would be interested in reading a novella about his (unsuccessful) love story.

[Crysallys · Rating 5 out of 5]

Only 4 stars because the epilogue was not about Olivia and Lyon



After all the years we waited for this book I think readers deserved a better epilogue

[Dagmar · Rating 5 out of 5]

EPIC ending to one of the most luminous, sensual, memorable, funny, heartwrenching, captivating, adventurous historical romance series out there. Absolutely loved Lyon and Olivia's story and hard won HEA. It tied everything up beautifully.
... JAL'S writing is absolute perfection!!!
💗

[Esther · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was incredible. I've just completed this beautiful love story and my emotions are all over the place.

I'm not really going to go into a review on the synonymous of the story but just what my thoughts and feelings are about this incredible book.

Olivia and Lyon's story is one of forbidden love, in as both families have been rivalries for what seems like forever. The story is interwoven with past and present.It begins in the present with Olivia the heroine preparing for her wedding to a man she just likes. Lyon the wonderful hero who's been gone for five years, is being told that Olivia's getting married. We have the past part of the story on how they first meet, fall in love and the heartbreaking split which last five years. It's done so well and seamlessly that the story flows beautifully. We see and feel (trust me you will be immersed into what they are feeling) the beginning of their first meeting and the blossoming of their love/romance. You'll also be transported into the heartbreak and agony of their lost love and separation. And then the journey of hurt, anger and healing. Relationships of Father's and Mother's are relevant and significant in their love story. Siblings are interwoven throughout the story and how they impact and affect hero and heroine. And the end is a crescendo of emotions and feeling of one of the top most beautiful love stories I've read in a long time.

This story touched my emotions in such a way I was crying at certain parts (rarely happens when I read) of the book. I was pulled into Olivia's and Lyons world in such a way that I was living every wonderful, agonizing and heartbreaking moment of their relationship. It's so clear to the reader that these two are made for each other, compliment each other, and know each other like know one else. The characters are living, breathing people that come to life in the span of this book. The secondary relationships are just as vivid and real. Drawing emotions of anger, frustrations, empathy and sadness. You had a major epic love story and interwoven are other beautiful secondary love stories with some that are tragic (one of the tragic love stories surprised me at the end). I liked Olivia the heroine but absolutely loved her when she was with Lyon, she became a beautiful person with him, if that makes sense. And Lyon, wow what can I say but what an epic hero who I absolutely loved. His love for Olivia and total devotion was incredible to behold.

This one goes on my keeper shelf and goes on my list of best historical's I've read (Violet and The Earl Ardmay are up their too, Book 4 -I kissed and Earl).

Just a couple side notes. I wish it was a longer read and felt there was more to add to their story to write about and their reconciliation. Their scene of finally confronting their pain and hurt could/should have been longer. Haven't read the epilogue yet, relishing in their story because a lot of disappointed reviews on it not being about Olivia and Lyon. And with that being said how about a novella on Olivia and Lyon five years later and where their lives are at. Okay 2 AM and I'm hoping this review makes sense. VERY happy with Oliva and Lyons story.

[Bubu · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe I'll revisit this book in the future. Unlike others, I had started going through the Pennyroyal Green series this year, so all the stories were quite fresh on my mind, with What I did for the Duke and It started with a Scandal being my favourites. The rest were hit and miss for me.

This one actually has all the ingredients of a Romance that I love, but I couldn't connect to either of them. I guess I lost the connection right at the start. I know First Love can be as deep and all consuming as it can be selfish and incredibly hurtful. However, when the initial break-up between Olivia and Lyon is revealed, I saw two young people who were used to getting everything they wanted, spoiled brats, who let their relationship at the first sight of obstacles crumble.

From there on, the book was lost to me. But as I said, I'll give this book another go at one point.

[Shabby Girl ~ aka Lady Victoria · Rating 4 out of 5]

ETA: To be clear, 3.5 rounded up to 4, rounded up, rather than down, only because author has written some really beautiful books, some of my favourites.

That was a really enjoyable close to the Pennyroyal Green series. Like most people reading this series over such a long time I was keen to finally hear the real story of Olivia and Lyon. Whilst I did love Olivia and Lyon together, I had some difficulties with the story, which I thought the writer could have overcome and it seemed a little in retrospect she had a good outline of a story, but the details let it down. Considering this story was around 10 years in the making, I felt a bit let down by these details. If you are interested, I have listed in spoilers why I felt the details in the story let this book down.

I loved Olivia and Lyon together and their sex scenes were very steamy. I must admit whilst I prefer love scenes in books as, come on, in romance sex is a major part of relationship growth, I quite often skim those scenes, but I thought these ones were very well-done. I really felt this couple would adore each other for a life time, that you could really believe in the couple, and I did, which is what you're looking for in a good romance. I realised whilst I was writing this review too, that I really loved Olivia in this book, having right through the previous books the glimpses I had of her I wasn't convinced I even liked her. After reading this I realised I loved her, she was a really lovely woman who didn't deserve the pain she endured for five years. It also occurred to me whilst writing this review, I'm not convinced I really liked Lyon. While I was reading the author had me convinced he was amazing, and yet after I finished the book I realised he had some really dumb, and let's fact it, nasty moves.

This is obviously (spoken of constantly through the series and in the blurb so no secret) a second chance romance, but I was most appreciative that the writer didn't unnecessarily drag out the angst when they got back together. There was some initial angst when they met up again, as you would expect, but they did talk about their problems and they both realised quite quickly it was young age and circumstances that pulled them apart, both having some responsibility, and not a lack of love.

I gave it four stars as whilst I loved the story, it wasn't up to the best standard I know this writer can write. This whole series has been up and down in quality (in my opinion) the best being What I Did for a Duke and It Started with a Scandal for the wonderful writing and How the Marquess Was Won for the lovely story, and this story fit into a secondary category of good story, but not as wonderful writing as the two aforementioned books.

The reasons why I couldn't give this five stars:

I wasn't very happy with the way the hero was upset the heroine kissed her fiance and knew that she had rejected many potential marriage partners since he left, and yet it was totally acceptable that he had been f*cking his way around the world, but it was okay because he was a man and "it didn't mean anything". If this was such an epic romance, he adored her so much, and the fact that he was so busy on her behalf with his pirating and making his fortune, I don't think it was unreasonable for him to stay faithful to her. This kind of spoiled the "epic romance" for me. She pined for him for five years and he didn't pine for her.

I also felt a tad cheated that he asked her why she suddenly decided to get married after so many years to someone she didn't love and she never explained to him that the catalyst was her getting back her miniature that he'd sworn he would keep forever. She was totally gutted to receive it back via Sylvaine, and after five years of never seeing or hearing of him, not knowing whether he was dead or alive, took this as the final sign the hero had let her go. It was mentioned that when she got it back, she was so incredibly hurt that she decided it was time she let go of her love for him that had suspended her life for five years and got on with giving herself some happiness finally.

I also felt cheated that the hero had stayed away so long (his choice - he was so rich and could have come back for her years earlier) and in fact was ambivalent about coming back after learning she was getting married. She was suspended, not knowing whether he was alive or dead, and yet he knew what she was doing and had no intention or plans it seemed to come back to her, he only did so because she had finally decided to move on. Nothing epic about that, and in retrospect, quite nasty. It all seemed rather wishy washy, his ambivalence to return. It quite clearly stated in the book on a couple of occasions he hadn't been sure he would make moves towards her, then decided he would. Sounded rather spoiled brattish to me that he only did so because someone else was going to take his toy and he said he took her to his Spanish place to "rub her nose in it", to show her what she could have had. This also seemed rather churlish when you consider if she had chosen to go with him, he would not have been able to do what he did to become independent. I mean, she couldn't go on a ship apirating with him when she was around 18 and he was the lowest of the low on the totem pole, could she? Then it seemed rather contradictory because he did the pirating part for her, yet he had no plans to ever tell her since he only came back on a whim when his favourite toy was moving on.

I don't know - I had a lot more respect for Olivia in this story. She was very young when he wanted to her to leave with him and he expected her to leave her beloved family on the spur of the moment and had no tangible hope of basic survival since he had absolutely no way of supporting her and the fact she pointed out, quite rightly at the time he left, the Duffys had lost their love through hardship and poverty, I think showed she was able to make mature and good decisions and that she made the right decision, heartbreaking though it was, yet he took five years to acknowledge she had been right which seemed very immature on his part. I would have had more respect for him if he had, during the parting scene when they were young, said to her I know you can't come with me as I can't support you, but hang on for me, I'll be back in a year or two or three when I've made my fortune to come get you. Yeah, no really "epic" story in that, but wholly sensible. Even if in the spur of the moment he felt betrayed, a bit of thought over the next few days it would have come to him how sensible her decision was and he could have written her a note to say wait for me, I'll be back.

I was also confused with the bit near the end where Lyon talked to his father about Olivia's father and slavery. I wasn't sure whether Olivia's father was a slaver or Lyon's father had set it up to make it look like he was into slavery - totally confused me. Also there was a reference in the epilogue to someone killing Lyon's father down the track, what was that about? If the new contemp books this writer is moving onto are not Pennyroyal Green books about the descendants, this reference is very strange if it's not going to be explained.

The epilogue, whilst telling us a lot of what happened to the families through the years, seemed kind of jarring. Like a huge, rushed, contemporary info dump appended onto the end of an historical series. I have read this author is going to write contemps next, so after reading the epilogue one would assume the epilogue was a prelude to a contemporary series continuing with the descendants of the Everseas and Redmonds, but I've also read that apparently the new series will be unrelated, in which case the epilogue seems rather weird. Anyway, we'll have to wait and see whether she does continue with a contemp Pennyroyal or moves on.

All in all I was happy to see Olivia and Lyon's story at last, but I think the "epic" romance was a bit of a letdown and it kind of felt like the author had the major story line, but muffed it in the details, and since we'd waited nearly 10 years for it, I think she could have done it better. I might have marked it lower if it weren't Olivia and Lyon!

[Keri · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would have given this book a higher star rating had the ending been longer. We have been waiting years for these two and we just get a couple of pages in the end. :-( I didn't mind the Epi, because I got why JAL did it that way, so she could bring everybody in on fell swoop. I think the decisions that both Lyon and Olivia made were decisions of young, immature people. They were both new to what they were feeling and decisions were made in the heat of the moment on both their sides. They were both responsible for how it played out. I liked Olivia much better here, when in other stories she came off as a cold character to me. I would have liked for them to have had more time then a couple of days to figure it out, but we did need the flashbacks in order to grasp their depth of feeling for one another. But the slavery issue was explained that it was all a set up to discredit Olivia's dad, which was very evil of Lyon's dad. Overall it was a somewhat satisfying conclusion to the series. I hope that John gets his HEA with Emily and I hope we get other stories from Pennyroyal.

[Addie · Rating 4 out of 5]

(Tropes: Second Chance, Forbidden Love)



I did not expect to like this. Which is quite unfair when starting a book, but the characters in this book has been talked about in the 10 previous ones, so expectations were high. How could it possibly deliver?

Well it just did.

The flashbacks and “present” story were rife with charm, despair, hotness, tension and romance. I was more or less hooked from page one, and while I did not necessarily think what caused them to first part was serious enough, I decided to go with it.



*****
She exhaled at length. As if she could finally release the breath she’d been holding her entire life. Waiting for him.
*****

- Olivia was an innocent, but hardly naïve. And the air between them was as full of sparks as the hours before a lightning storm, and it seemed almost dishonest not to discuss it directly. A bit like not saying the word “rain!” even as the sky opened up and poured.

- When they stood near each other the space between them pulsed with heat, until it seemed patently absurd that she wasn’t pressed against him.

- “I want to give you the moon. But I was forced to make do with gloves.”

- “I thought you were going to be gone for a month,” she said softly.
“I invented an excuse to come home.”
“I thought you wanted to be in London.”
“All I ever want is to be wherever you are.”

- His face was tucked into her throat, and her hands moved over his back gently, soothing him as the storming rush of his breathing and hers became more even. There were a lot of things she ought to be thinking. But with every breath she drew in and breathed out, all she could think was at last at last at last.



4 solid stars

[Just A Girl With Spirit · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will always think of Lyon Redmond whenever I see waterfalls..iykyk. That man was truly it for me. Help my life!

Lyon Redmond—he could get it. “He filled the doorway. Large, hard and shockingly beautiful.”

This book was second chance lovers perfection. I just don’t have words at the moment to describe what I’m feeling, but this book is on my reread list forever. This kind of hero and love story is simply my undoing. Stick a fork in me…

“Let your body decide.”