Historical Romance Book Club discussion

For the month of JULY 2022, we will be reading HRs that feature SUSPENSE/MYSTERY: Books with a mystery or suspense subplot. Includes spy/espionage themed books.

To see definitions for the month theme, check out message 7 in the Theme thread

Rules of Nominations :

1. Not more than 2 novel nominations per member.
2. Not more than 1 novella nomination per member. We will track novella nominations separately.
3. No book we have read as a group read in the last 2 yrs. (Please check the group's Bookshelf)
4. No author we have read in the last one year.

>> Nominations end on MAY 15th. <<

Authors ineligible for July 2022:

K.C. Bateman - April 2022
Lila DiPasqua - April 2022
Johanna Lindsey - April 2022
Loretta Chase - April 2022
Cat Sebastian – May 2022
Mackenzi Lee – May 2022
Sally Malcolm – May 2022
E.E. Ottoman – May 2022
Loretta Chase - April 2022
Johanna Lindsey - April 2022
Lila DiPasqua - April 2022
K.C. Bateman - April 2022
Tessa Dare - March 2022
Erica Ridley - March 2022
Kat Martin - March 2022
Alyssa Cole - March 2022
Jennifer Ashley - February 2022
Evie Dunmore - February 2022
Maya Banks - February 2022
Karen Hawkins - February 2022
Virginia Heath - January 2022
Lisa Kleypas - January 2022
Julie Garwood - January 2022
Carolyn Lee - January 2022
Anna Bradley - December 2021
Eve Pendle - December 2021
Laura Lee Guhrke - December 2021
Nicola Davidson - December 2021
Grace Burrows - November 2021
Grace Callaway - November 2021
Harper St. George - November 2021
Bethany Sefchick - November 2021
Courtney McCaskill - October 2021
Suzanne Enoch - October 2021
K.J. Charles - October 2021
Eliza Braden - September 2021
Julia London - September 2021
Sarah MacLean - September 2021
Mia Vincy - August 2021
Meredith Duran - August 2021
Mary Balogh - August 2021
Georgette Heyer - July 2021
Judith McNaught - July 2021
Lorraine Heath - July 2021

I nominate : been on my TBR for awhile
And
it's hard finding an AQ book that most haven't read ;) This can be read as a standalone.

Id like to nominate

The Anatomist's Wife
The Woman in White

Lauren wrote: "I nominate : been on my TBR for awhile
And
it's hard finding an AQ book that most haven't read ;) This can be r..."

I just want to note that there is very little romance on the A Study in Scarlet Women. Later books in the series have more, but this one features just a hint of it.

I also like to nominate
Intimate Betrayal

Ive been trying to find this book - hes a scotland yard detective whos suddenly inherited a Viscountcy. The heroine ia a Companion whos trying to find ll the jewellery stolen from her house the night her father was killed. Its a great novella -brilliant mix of suspense and romance. And fits this trope

Leena wrote: "Ive been trying to find this book - hes a scotland yard detective whos suddenly inherited a Viscountcy. The heroine ia a Companion whos trying to find ll the jewellery stolen from her house the nig..."

If you figure out the novella name, you can nominate it, but you do need to drop to only two novel-length nominations. Right now you have three.

Thanks for letting me know Joanna! I'll nominate another book

A Woman Scorned by Liz Carlyle. A lovely romance with a suspenseful murder mystery threaded throughout. Whodunnit???? Captain Cole Amherst makes a wonderful hero. One of my fav book boyfriends ;)


The Forbidden Rose by Joanna Bourne. This was the book that converted me to start liking spy-themed HRs. First book in a really good and well-written series. Set during the madness of the French Revolution, William, an English spymaster falls for Marguerite, a French aristocrat. Disguises, secret identities, drama and mystery along with the romance.

Novella: Once Upon a Moonlit Night by Elizabeth Hoyt. There is a mystery related to a kidnapping and the heroine's identity, which the hero doesn't believe at first. It's from the Maiden Lane series, but I believe can be read as a standalone.

Joanna Loves Reading wrote: "Leena wrote: "Ive been trying to find this book - hes a scotland yard detective whos suddenly inherited a Viscountcy. The heroine ia a Companion whos trying to find ll the jewellery stolen from her..."

Hi Leena - I was going to nominate 'The Anatomists Wife' by Anna Lee Huber....so if you want to drop one of your three novels, you can drop this one and I will nominate it.

Joanna - it is primarily a mystery, with a romance thrown in? Not sure if this is what you had in mind

Susan, go ahead and nominate The Anatomist's Wife.

Susan wrote: "Joanna Loves Reading wrote: "Leena wrote: "Ive been trying to find this book - hes a scotland yard detective whos suddenly inherited a Viscountcy. The heroine ia a Companion whos trying to find ll ..."

That’s fine. I do think the nominations should feature romance, but if members choose books that are more heavy on the mystery, fine by me. I only commented on the Sherry Thomas nom because I know several who were disappointed in the lack of romance. Many of the historical mystery series out there feature a romantic duo as the crime-solving leads, which lends itself better to featuring romance early on than those that don’t, I’m inclined to believe.

Joanna , I'm glad you pointed it out. This is the first time I nominated a book from my TBR. I would have been disappointed with the lack of romance.

I nominate
Lady Anne and the Howl in the Dark and
Heiress for Hire

Minerva Hepplewhite has learned the hard way how to take care of herself. When an intruder breaks into her home, she doesn't swoon or simper. Instead, she wallops the rogue over the head and ties him up—only to realize he is Chase Radnor, the man who nearly got her convicted of her late husband's murder. Now, he's insisting that Minerva has inherited a fortune from his uncle, a wealthy Duke. Only one thing could surprise her more: her sudden attraction to this exasperating man...
After receiving a distressing letter from a friend, Lady Anne Addison wastes no time in traveling to Yorkshire to offer whatever help she can. She has no idea what she’ll find there, but she certainly wasn’t expecting to be met by tales of a werewolf terrorizing the area—nor the dead body she discovers upon arriving. Driven by curiosity and a keen intelligence, Lady Anne dismisses the notion of such a beast, but she’s nonetheless drawn into the mysteries by the secrecy surrounding her friend and the infuriating yet enticing Lord Darkefell.

Please void Sherry Thomas nomination. Instead I nominate:
The synopsis doesn't mention the seriel killer. Someone is killing women and now they're after the h. The mystery (obviously) is who is the killer

This is a favorite of mine. So, I need to take a screen shot of all to read later.
Here are my noms
I do not remember how strong the romance is in this book

I’m nominating a couple stories that have been on my tbr forever:


Nine Coaches Waiting by Mary Carter


The Duke by Gaelen Foley

As a novella, I nominate:


Dancing With Danger by Kerrigan Byrne
(Although not billed as a novella, the book is only 200 pages, which is a novella for me. If someone takes issue, I’ll remove the nom.)

I would like to nominate A Poisoned Season by Tasha Alexander https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5...
Heirs and Graces by Rhys Bowen https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

I would like to nominate The Anatomist's Wife by Anna Lee Huber
(I am nominating it instead of Leena)

Thanks Susan

I nominate
Bronwyn Scott—Revealing The True Miss Stansfield
Chasity Bowlin—-The Haunting of a Duke

I wanted to avoid Amanda Quick and Sherry Thomas, my first nom. Make sure there are no problems . My new nominations : The Club by sharon page and Scandal Becomes Her by Shirlee Busbee.

I wanted to nominate To Capture a Spy by Silvia Violet but I can't find it on KU :(

Leena wrote: "Ive been trying to find this book - hes a scotland yard detective whos suddenly inherited a Viscountcy. The heroine ia a Companion whos trying to find ll the jewellery stolen from her house the nig..."

I think I found it! Is it To Love A Thief by Darcy Burke?

I nominate The Lotus Palace by Jeannie Lin. I second the Forbidden Rose as it’s one of my favorites.

It is the 15th of May where I live, so getting close to the end of nomination time. Still some time left if anyone has any more.

To date, I have the following nominations. Let me know if I have missed any......

The Anatomists Wife – Anna Lee Huber
The Woman in White – Wilke Collins
Intimate Betrayal – Adrienne Basso
A Woman Scorned – Liz Carlyle
The Forbidden Rose – Joanna Bourne
Lady Anne and the Howl in the Dark – Victoria Hamilton
Heiress for Hire – Madeline Hunter
Scandal Becomes Her – Shirlee Busbee
The Sign of the Raven – LC Sharpe
A Brazen Curiosity – Lynn Messina
Nine Coaches Waiting – Mary Stewart
The Duke – Gaelen Foley
A Poisoned Season – Tasha Alexander
Heirs and Graces – Rhys Bowen
Revealing the True Miss Stansfield – Bronwyn Scott
The Haunting of a Duke – Chasity Bowlin
The Club – Sharon Page
Lotus Palace – Jeannie Lin

Novellas:
Once Upon a Moonlit Night – Elizabeth Hoyt
Dancing with Danger – Kerrigan Byrne
To Love a Thief – Darcy Burke

I would like to nominate:

Thief of Shadows by Elizabeth Hoyt

and

A Rogue to Remember by Emily Sullivan

Susan wrote: "It is the 15th of May where I live, so getting close to the end of nomination time. Still some time left if anyone has any more.

To date, I have the following nominations. Let me know if I have mi..."

Susan, here, where I live it's after lunch time! :D

I nominate:



In the Shadow of Croft Towers In the Shadow of Croft Towers
by Abigail Wilson

The Body in the Garden (Lily Adler Mystery #1)
by Katharine Schellman

Leena wrote: "Ive been trying to find this book - hes a scotland yard detective whos suddenly inherited a Viscountcy. The heroine ia a Companion whos trying to find ll the jewellery stolen from her house the nig..."
could it be The Detective Duke?

I am going to nominate The Detective Duke by Scarlett Scot as my second novel nom as it sounds quite good. I will close nominations now and see whether I can work out how to get the voting sheet up and working.....wish me luck!

Best of luck!

Merry Jewelhound wrote: "This is a favorite of mine. So, I need to take a screen shot of all to read later.
Here are my noms
I do not reme..."

Just my opinion but in order to fully enjoy The Sign of the Raven by L.C. Sharp you are recommended to read the first book of the series The Wedding Night Affair - book 2 picks up where book one ends.

I will nominate The Wedding Night Affair as my first novel

Good luck, Susan. I hope you don't have any trouble.

Hi, before we vote, is there a final, complete list of nominations we can look at? Thanks, Jan.

Jan wrote: "Hi, before we vote, is there a final, complete list of nominations we can look at? Thanks, Jan."

Hi Jan. It is the 2nd comment in the Voting post. Sorry, it was probably not clear in the voting instructions.

Susan wrote: "Jan wrote: "Hi, before we vote, is there a final, complete list of nominations we can look at? Thanks, Jan."

Hi Jan. It is the 2nd comment in the Voting post. Sorry, it was probably not clear in t..."

Thanks Susan. In the email I received about voting, the link to the list of books is back to here. Didn't realise there was a separate post about voting. I will check it out and make my vote :)

Jaime wrote: "Merry Jewelhound wrote: "This is a favorite of mine. So, I need to take a screen shot of all to read later.
Here are my noms
[bookcover:A Brazen Curiosit..."

I didn’t see my nomination on the voting list.

Hi Jaime. Are you referring to the Wedding Night Affair. if so, it is second last on the list. I had almost finished putting the voting form together when your nomination came through which is why it was not with the other LC Sharpe book

Hi all,

The results changed slightly with the removal of a duplicate vote. Here are the choices for the 3 BOTMs:

Thief of Shadows by Elizabeth Hoyt 26
The Forbidden Rose by Joanna Bourne 20
Heiress for Hire by Madeline Hunter 15 - wins tie breaker

And here are the remaining results:
The Duke by Gaelen Foley 15
The Detective Duke by Scarlett Scott 14
The Haunting of a Duke by Chasity Bowlin 11
Lotus Palace by Jeannie Lin 10
Lady Anne and the Howl in the Dark by Victoria Hamilton 8
Nine Coaches Waiting by Mary Stewart 8
A Poisoned Season by Tasha Alexander 7
Heirs and Graces by Rhys Bowen 7
A Rogue to Remember by Emily Sullivan 7
Scandal Becomes Her by Shirlee Busbee 6
In the Shadow of Croft Towers by Abigail Wilson 6
A Brazen Curiosity by Lynn Messina 5
The Body in the Garden by Katharine Schellman 4
A Woman Scorned by Liz Carlyle 3
The Club by Sharon Page 3
The Woman in White by Wilke Collins 2
The Sign of the Raven by LC Sharpe 2
Intimate Betrayal by Adrienne Basso 1
Revealing the True Miss Stansfield by Bronwyn Scott 0
The Wedding Night Affair by LC Sharpe 0


For the novella the choice is:
Dancing with Danger by Kerrigan Byrne 16


And the remaining results:
Once Upon a Moonlit Night by Elizabeth Hoyt 8
To Love a Thief by Darcy Burke 5

Susan wrote: "Hi Jaime. Are you referring to the Wedding Night Affair. if so, it is second last on the list. I had almost finished putting the voting form together when your nomination came through which is why ..."

sorry about that… I missed it. Thank You😃

to love a thief is such a gun book. Jenny867 thanks