Elizabeth Essex

Sally Kent decides to take her younger brother's place when he refuses to report for duty on the Audacious. Her brother would rather be writing sermons than joining the British Navy like the rest of their family. Sally has been surrounded by ships her whole life. She grew up learning everything about them and really does not think it is fair that her brothers and father get to sail while she is stuck at home.

Lieutenant David Colyear knows most of the Kent family, but it has been six years show more since he laid eyes on Sally. He is expecting her brother, and at first the charade works for the most part. But he starts to get suspicious because Richard is supposed to be very inexperienced when it comes to ships, and Sally, pretending to be Richard, knows exactly what she is doing. She is smart and gets along well with just about everybody on the ship. No one sees past her disguise. It helps that she is built just like her brothers - very tall and lean. She's nineteen, and though her face is not masculine, she is able to pass as a teenage boy.

Once it finally dawns on Colyear who Richard really is, Sally is very established on the ship. He knows he should tell his captain that Richard is really a girl, but after Sally begs him not to, he keeps her secret.

Colyear really admired Sally when he thought she was boy. She's brave, not afraid to try anything on the ship and extremely intelligent. He liked how adept she was at looking ahead and knowing the consequences of their actions. That admiration continued when he realized she was a girl, but his feelings also grew to desire. It was getting harder and harder to be on the ship with her and treat her like one of the men, especially when they go into battle. Sally pretty much lusts after Colyear from the beginning. But she is able to keep herself occupied with the ship. She has never been happier; it is where she belongs. I loved Sally's enthusiasm and zest for sailing. She did feel a little too young, too innocent, for me at times, especially her inner dialogue and sighing over how handsome she found Colyear. But mostly I really really liked her.

Essex obviously did a lot of research for this book. The majority of the sailing terms went over my head, but she was able to write it in a way that made me feel like I was there. She was able to explain a lot about the Navy, ships, and sailing without it reading like one large info dump. The language was the most fun for me - "Compliments of the oars, sir, but seeing as you're still leaking blood like a bleeding pin cushion, might I make a suggestion?"

This book was actually a really pleasant surprise for me - well written and whole lot of fun.

ARC provided through NetGalley. show less

Mulan in the 19th Century British Navy could’ve been the alternate title of this novel. I do not think I can convey in words how much I loved reading this book. I’ve had an interminable 2.5 weeks, that doesn’t really seem like it’s going to get a lot better before April 15th and I cannot express how much this book came to me at exactly the right time.

I will say, I do not have the qualms about mistaken gender that a lot of more discerning readers seem to have. Mulan is literally the show more best Disney movie of the pre-CGI generation. I will literally fight you over this. So along comes this book, and I sincerely believed it was going to amount to a typical pirate/sea-faring romance novel and boy was I fucking wrong and delightfully so.

The heroine is from a Navy family. There’s a long tradition of men and Navy captains in Sally Kent’s pedigree. She’s the lone girl amongst 4 brothers and a father, her mother having died when she was young. She did the majority of her growing up on board Navy ships, only to be left at port when she reached a certain age. To condense a lot of backstory: she finds herself in a position to take her 15 year old brother’s place as a midshipman (and save her family disgrace). The lovely thing about Sally is that she’s only slightly deluded as to her justification for the risk she takes in pretending to be her brother, also, I love Sally Kent and I will fight you for her.

The hero is Col, Lieutenant David St. Vincent Colyear, and old family friend of the Kents. I have to say, as with most of the romance novels that I end up just wanting to crawl into a hole and die over, the hero is just…rather unremarkable when sat next to the heroine. Don’t get me wrong, Col is plenty likable. And in a great way, he respects Sally. When his protective instincts get engaged, I was left feeling that he would feel that instinctive protective instincts even if she were a boy. He was protective because he was in love with her, not because he didn’t know what she was capable of.

I suppose part of this is because Sally feels the same protectiveness over Col, so you get both sides of that coin, and it comes across as that they both fear, deeply, losing the other instead of some machismo power struggle.

At any rate, let me count the ways I loved this:
1) While I would’ve happily accepted MORE “gaypanic” there was still a really wonderful portion of this novel where Col kind of wanted to bang what he thought was a 15 year old boy. AND WHILE I’M SURE SOME PEOPLE WILL DISAGREE, that was the part that I was like “WELP I’M IN FOR THE REMAINDER OF THIS NO MATTER WHAT.”

2) This is a slow burn book. If you’re picking this up thinking it’ll follow the traditional format where the meetcute happens around 5%, the first makeout/grope session happens between 23-27%, the sex happens around 45% and the marriage proposal at 65-73% with some major catastrophe between 75-85% that threatens the couple, reassess expectations. There is the very real presence of everyone else on the ship and the realities of the complete and utter lack of privacy onboard a ship as WELL as the fact that people —- well, Col and Sally could stand to be more circumspect. Even before feelings are ever even sort of admitted to, there’s an air about them that people pick up on. In fact, Col is warned away from making Sally his whipping boy (…so to speak) at one point and like. I shrieked with delight.

4) The characters in this book are not idiots. They’re capable military men (and woman) who make hard decisions and are alive for a reason and that’s amazing and I want to marry it.

5) This book is not a book that spends 90% of the time on the couple. This is really, and truly, at its heart the story of Sally Kent. It is a romance novel. I wouldn’t hand this to someone with a distaste for romance novels. But oh man, Sally Kent. My favourite lady.

6) SPEAKING OF. OH MY GOD I WILL FIGHT YOU OVER GRACE KENT NEE HOWE. SHE IS THE BEST OF US ALL. I REALLY WISH THIS WERE A NOVEL WHERE I COULD CONVINCE PEOPLE TO WRITE ME AU FEMMESLASH OF GRACE AND SALLY. AND IF YOU DON’T WANT THAT, I DON’T WANT TO BE FRIENDS WITH YOU.

7) And seriously, though this may be attributable to the fact that I’m hormonal right now, by the time Col and Sally get to the horizontal portion of their relationship I was like so there so into it yes please keep going dear god oh my. Which RARELY RARELY HAPPENS.

8) Also, sailors say “fuck” in this novel which is all I’ve really ever wanted.

9) CUNNILINGUS AND IT’S SO GOOD.

10) I feel like there’s so much worth mentioning that I’m forgetting to mention.

My one gripe with this book was that the pacing could use tightening in spots. There’s not even one specific part I could point to. I just feel like maybe it wouldn’t have been awful to have another 25-50 pages to wrap it up. Though there was something utterly befitting about the ending and how it reflected Sally and Col. show less

4.5 stars

Jane has lived a very sheltered and quiet life but she also lives a shocking secret, she is the mind behind J.E. Burkes the renowned conchologist, not her father. When an opportunity to go on a 2yr expedition comes up and her father declines, she decides to go in his place. Even with her voice and hands shaking Jane is able to convince the other members of the expedition to accept her presence, with the subtle support of Lt. Charles Dance. Dance has been a sailor without a ship show more since the ending of the war has decreased many opportunities so when he is assigned as First Lieutenant to the Tenacious he is ready to go, the ship and her crew not so much. Battling the forces of a drunken captain, lazy crew, mutinous under dealings from the Bosun, and surprising attraction to a shy bluestocking with a spine of steel, Dance may just be on his most dangerous post yet.

First off, I loved both Jane and Dance separately and together, which doesn't always happen for me in romance books. Jane's first appearance to the reader and Dance is one of a shy, bumbling, petite spinster but with a strong backbone. Jane's determination to be recognized for her talent and thirst to live and experience life will have many women hoping and cheering her on. Dance's calm, strength, leadership, and support for Jane will make you sigh wistfully. The man has a lot on his plate with making sure the ship runs smoothly and yet, he is always there and present with Jane when he needs to be. Their courtship is slower moving with the outer story details moving the story along but when they are together, they are felt. Their back and forth teasing and charmingly realness make Jane and Dance such a heart melting pleasure to read about.

The beginning of the book and for a lot of it, the story focuses more on the dancing around ship politics and Dance having to deal with the disgruntled crew. I'm a big fan of nautical stories, you're going to have to be somewhat of a fan to enjoy this, so I didn't mind but there is a heavy focus on Dance's work and responsibilities for running the ship. I enjoyed how Dance was basically the captain but had to be ever weary of not being accused of mutiny, the mini focuses on crew members titles and their responsibilities, how life is lived on a ship, and how a ship is its own world when out to sea. Each descriptive detail the author provided created a world and scenery that I not only felt but was wholly engrossed in. Dance and Jane definitely have their moments of growing closer but it wasn't until the second half of the story that the focus on their relationship ramped up.

I did feel that the ending wrapped up a little too quickly and the main villain was given a weaker reason for all the problems he caused, he fell flat at the end. Also, the cursing in this book was definitely over the top for what you typically see in a historical, Dance's favorite word seems to be "fuck" and he is not shy about using it, so if that bothers you, beware. Ultimately, this story's strength was the gentle and sweet romance between Dance and Jane. For the responsibility Dance takes on and how he gives Jane due respect, how he is weighed down with responsibility but still lighthearted and for Jane's shyness, awkwardness, but ability to snap her spine straight, I adored this book. Elizabeth Essex has become an author on my radar and I can't wait to read the other books in this series. show less

ONE HOT SCOT by Suzanne Enoch
Series: Scandalous Highlanders (Book .5)

Duncan Lenox lives surrounded by enemies, a MacLawry in a land of Campbells. But when an English beauty has nowhere else to turn, he feels obligated to help. Now that they must spend a night together in an abandoned cottage while a storm rages on, will their mutual passion save -- or doom -- them both?

Very short, but very fun story. Julia was visiting Aberdeen with her family when an overzealous suitor kidnapped her in an show more attempt to force a marriage between them. Though somewhat naive, she isn't stupid and bides her time. When they arrive at his home she takes the first opportunity to steal a horse and attempt to escape. This attempt doesn't go as planned and she stumbles on Duncan Lenox, who is bathing naked in the lake. This could have been a case of going from bad to worse, but Duncan turns out to be the rescuer she needs.

I really loved these two characters. Even though the story is short, I felt like their characters were well developed. Julia is somewhat impulsive, which is what got her into trouble, but smart enough to know she needs to get away. Once she does, even when she ends up on foot, she knows she needs to make it hard for her kidnapper to find her. I loved her first encounter with Duncan and the impression he made on her. She wasn't going to be too trusting to begin with, having learned her lesson, but was willing to be convinced.

When Duncan spies a bedraggled English lass wrapped in his kilt as he finishes his swim, he has no idea what to make of her. Once he hears her story, he knows she needs his help and feels compelled to give it. I loved the way he tries so hard to put her at ease, but lets her know that he needs the truth of what happened to her. The scene in the cabin as he's trying to get to that truth was pretty funny. When he finds out what happened to her, his protective instincts kick in. There's something about her that really calls to him. I really enjoyed his confrontation with the kidnapper that night.

I was a bit surprised at what Julia did, but she seemed to know just what she wanted and was willing to go after it. Duncan also seemed to be willing to take the risk, knowing that it could end badly. Once they arrived at his home, I really enjoyed seeing what transpired. I loved the solution he came up with to save Julia when the bad guy returned with reinforcements. I loved the way the story ended and hope to see them again in a later book.

ONCE UPON A CHRISTMAS SCANDAL by Alexandra Hawkins
Series: Lords of Vice (Book 8)

Lady Ellen is outraged when she learns her dowry's been increased by her dad, eager to draw every bachelor in England to her front door. So when Lord Swainsbury comes knocking, Ellen assumes he's another dreadful fortune hunter. Little does she know that Swainsbury has completely fallen for her -- body, heart, and soul....

Lady Ellen is furious with her parents, who have tripled the size of her dowry. Her father is very ill and wants her settled before he dies. Unfortunately, all Ellen sees are men who are more interested in the money than in her. She would much rather continue to stay at home and help care for her father. Her mother has planned a large house party for over the holidays, and many of those same bachelors have been invited. Ellen is determined to avoid being caught by any of them.

Derrick has wangled an invitation to the party through an acquaintance of his. That man thinks Derrick is another who is interested in Ellen's dowry, but Derrick actually has a far different agenda. Several years earlier his sister had married a man while he was out of the country. By the time he returned, his sister was dead, her husband and all her money had disappeared. Derrick wants to find that man and see him punished, and thinks that Ellen is a prime target for a repeat performance. He is determined to protect Ellen from the danger he sees.

I liked the relationship that grew between Derrick and Ellen. I enjoyed their first meeting in the conservatory. Their conversation was proper but seemed to have some undertones to it, especially from Derrick. He found her far more attractive than he expected. His plan is to give the impression that he is one of those courting her for her dowry, but he finds himself truly attracted to her. Ellen did not expect to find herself attracted to one of the men she sees as fortune hunters. She's not one to just sit back and take what others intend for her, and when she goes to Derrick's room to see what she can find out about him, she discovers he's not what she expected. This intrigues her even more as he tells her why he is really there.

I really liked the way that Derrick's protectiveness turned to more. When her father had an attack, I loved seeing Derrick take care of Ellen, trying to relieve some of her distress. The passion that followed brought them closer as they wait to see if his suspicions are correct. I enjoyed the scene between Derrick and her brother and his friends just before the villain made his move. I loved what he said about the dowry. One of the best parts about the confrontation with the bad guy was Ellen's ingenuity and how she didn't wait to be rescued.

THE SCANDAL BEFORE CHRISTMAS by Elizabeth Essex
Series: Reckless Brides (Book 3.5)

Lieutenant Ian Worth needs a wife by Christmas. He has to find her, woo her, and wed her before he goes back to sea. Anne Lesley is a shy spinster with no prospects, so she accepts Ian's hasty offer only for the security it will bring. But when a midwinter storm rolls in, things start to heat up between them... and they might just find true, honest-to-goodness love....

I really liked this story a lot, though I wasn't too sure I would at the beginning. Ian is a young naval officer, second son to a viscount. One day near Christmas his father shows up at Ian's home in Portsmouth, demanding that Ian leave the navy and get married. It seems that Ian's older brother has been badly injured, and if he lives at all, may never walk again, leaving it up to Ian to secure the family line. Dear old dad is really obnoxious, and before he knows it, Ian is telling him that he's already married, even though he isn't. This means that he has to find a marry a woman asap. As he's sitting in a local tavern wondering what he's going to do, he encounters a former colleague who is leaving the service and going home to his family. It just so happens that he has a daughter who is the quiet type who would be happy with solitude when Ian isn't around. Ian makes arrangements for the colonel to bring his daughter to his home for the marriage to take place.

When the colonel, his wife and his daughter arrive, Ian is dismayed. Anne is so quiet and plain that she all but disappears when anyone else is around. Quiet he wouldn't mind so much, he feels, but how can he possibly consider being with someone he can't even look at? When Anne accompanies her parents to their rooms, Ian begins to complain and make disparaging comments to his friend and servant, Pinky, not knowing that Anne had started back down the stairs and heard everything he said. Anne then exited the house, furious and hurt and wondering how she could possibly marry such a man. At this point I was totally disgusted with Ian and his selfish attitude and wondered if there was any hope for him at all.

Fortunately, Ian redeemed himself rather quickly. I liked the fact that he immediately followed her and apologized for his rudeness. He admitted to her that he considers himself to be rather shallow, but will do his best to be worthy of her if she will just give him a chance.

I liked Anne very much. She is a young woman who is happiest when she is being quiet and still, reading or thinking or just entertaining herself. She likes being outdoors rather than spending too much time inside. Her appearance of fading into the background is a self-defense mechanism, as her mother is one who couldn't be still or quiet to save her life. Anne looks at marriage to Ian as her only hope for a life of her own. She is somewhat overcome by Ian's good looks and obvious charm as she has never been around anyone like him. She starts out barely able to look at him or talk above a whisper and a few words at a time. But Ian puts some real effort into trying to make amends and by the time they go back in the house he feels that he's making some progress. He also thinks that maybe there is more to Anne than he first thought.

I really enjoyed seeing Ian exert himself to bring Anne out of her shell. In doing so he discovered that they had more in common than he had originally thought. He also finds that he is, quite surprisingly, attracted to her, which he considers a bonus. He realizes that she is quite innocent and sets out to flirt with her and try to make her more comfortable with him. The scene in the library when Ian shows her his books was fantastic. Things are going quite well in that regard, until Ian's father shows up, making rude comments about her looks, and whether or not she's pregnant yet. Ian confesses to Anne about his lies, and she agrees to uphold the deception if they can just keep his father and her parents apart. Unfortunately a storm strands his father there, making keeping the secret difficult at best.

I really enjoyed seeing Anne gain confidence in herself and the relationship between her and Ian. There were some really fun parts as they tried to keep their secret, and were aided and abetted by Ian's servant. I loved seeing the two of them grow closer and happier with the prospects for a good marriage. There comes a point when Ian's father goes too far and I absolutely loved seeing Ian face him down calmly and firmly, leaving no question about what was going to happen. The ending was fantastic.

I also liked the way the secondary characters were portrayed. Anne's mother was silly and thoughtless and seeing the type of person she was made it clear why Anne is the person she is. I loved Ian's friend and servant Pinky. He's quite a character, being a retired seaman, but he is also really sweet. He goes to a lot of trouble to make Anne feel comfortable. He also is terrific at anticipating Ian's needs, and always seems to be one step ahead of Ian. I loved his part in the activities of Christmas morning. Ian's father is the character that I detested the most. His callous attitude about his older son's injuries was disgusting. His attempts to force Ian to give up the life he loved were incredibly selfish, and his rudeness to Anne and her father was awful. The best thing he had ever done was send Ian off to the navy when he was a boy, though that comes back to bite him in the butt.

IT HAPPENED UNDER THE MISTLETOE by Valerie Bowman
Series: Secret Brides (Book 3.5)

Oliver Townsende intends to avoid the hordes of marriage-minded misses at a friend's holiday party. When he meets Miss Cerian Blake, who's dodging her own unwanted set of admirers, the two decide to join forces and fake an infatuation to keep their suitors at bay. But when mistletoe becomes involved, will their Christmastime prank turn into a love to last all seasons?

Very fun story of two people who come to each other's rescue and find love at the same time. Both Oliver and Cerian are guests at a Christmastime house party who find themselves under siege by members of the opposite sex. Oliver has recently inherited his title of duke and has found himself the target of a particularly aggressive young lady. As he is literally running from her, he takes refuge in a silver closet, hoping to hide from her, only to discover that the closet is already occupied. Cerian is a young lady with an impressive dowry who is being pursued by several gentlemen who seem more interested in her money than herself. She wants the chance to fall in love with someone who doesn't care about the money, but her mother is set on Cerian marrying a title. After discovering their common problem, Oliver suggests that they pretend an interest in each other for their mutual protection.

I really liked both Cerian and Oliver. He knows he needs to marry, but he would really like to find someone who doesn't care about the title. Unfortunately, since inheriting, it's impossible for him to tell the difference. Finding Cerian seems like the answer to a prayer because she really doesn't want to marry a man with a title. He also discovers that pretending to be interested in her isn't hard at all. In fact, he finds he doesn't have to pretend at all. I loved watching him get closer to her as the week went on, while trying to convince himself that he is still pretending. He tries to do what he thinks is right when threats are made against her, but that only makes him more miserable. I loved the conversation between him and Medford in the barn, when he finally faces his feelings and realizes what he has to do.

Cerian is quite at odds with her mother. Mom wants her to marry a man with a title, but the idea of it terrifies Cerian. She is used to her simple life in Wales and the prospect of having to deal with the complexities of a society life in unthinkable. Though Oliver is a duke, as they are only pretending, she feels quite comfortable with him - at least until the first time he kisses her. Suddenly she's feeling things she's never felt before, and has to keep reminding herself they are only pretending. By the end of the week she has quite fallen for him, but can't believe he would really be interested in her. I loved the ending and how Oliver made his feelings clear in front of everyone.

I really enjoyed seeing Oliver and Cerian thwart Lady Selina and her attempts to capture Oliver. I detested her mother and the threats she made and thought they both got what they deserved at the end. I loved the gray cat and its matchmaking efforts. show less