Lord Dashwood Missed Out [novella]

If you read the synopsis for this book and were like "who are these people", you wouldn't be alone. Elinora Browning and George Travers (aka, Lord Dashwood) have never ever been mentioned in any Spindle Cove book before now, and we will all promptly forget about them as soon as we read Charlotte's book. Honestly, I'm not sure why this book was made. I'm sure Dare put a lot of hard work into it, but the characters were so random and the romance was so measly that it felt like a filler story to buy the author more time before she released her next, full length work. Let me explain.

First, half of the story isn't even dedicated to Elinora and Dashwood. Half of it is basically a sequel to Dare's last novel, Any Duchess Will Do. Pauline is show more hosting Elinora at her library, who's essentially a motivational speaker, but Griff is just mucking everything up. So, he and the other men go on an adventure because Dare thought there suddenly needed to be more testosterone in her books but then skimps on the parts with the most testosterone. If you're going to throw me a bone, at least make it one of the bigger bones.

The parts that were about Elinora and Dashwood were flimsy. There was fabricated drama, a rushed romance, a boring sex scene (it has to be said), and the grand gesture lacked pizzazz. First, why did Dashwood love Elinora? Why did he come back for her now as opposed to sooner? Or later? How did he know where she was going to be for them to run into each other? What if she'd actually died during his little scheme? Why is he called "Dash" like a superhero from the 1950s? And why isn't he the least bit guilty for being a manipulative jackass for the past 12 hours? So many questions in so few pages.

In addition, for a woman who's supposed to be preaching that your worth isn't determined by a man's willingness to marry you, I felt remarkably uninspired. This has nothing to do with the fact that she winds up married at the end. No, it has to do with the fact that Elinora clearly didn't even believe in her own concepts. She literally says at the end that the only reason she's as great as she is today is because she's trying to spite the man she loves. By that logic, women will never amount to anything unless they have a difficult man at their side making them pluck their eyes out.

If you want to read about the least-convincing motivational speaker ever and the gang of the least macho Fabios in existence, then this is the story for you. show less

I adore Tessa Dare, but this novella was ridiculous, and not in a good way. The whole thing was mystifying. There are no clues along the way to explain why the MMC changes direction, from anger to true devotion. And if he was really feeling that all along, why would he not have simply told the FMC? There are weird cutaways to characters from former books. Dare could have have used space in this little novella to flesh out the baffling central story, but instead, we get a stupid lords' caper and half a chapter on portraits. I love an Easter egg, but these cameos made no sense and made an already choppy book choppier. This was a couple of hours of audio to fall asleep to. Given the small investment of time, I am not too mad at the book, show more but it felt like something Tessa threw together on a quiet Friday night while watching Friends reruns. show less

Digital audiobook read by Eva Kaminsky

From the book jacket: Miss Elinora Browning grew up yearning for the handsome, intelligent lord-next-door…but he left England without a word of farewell. One night, inspired by a bit too much sherry, Nora poured out her heartbreak on paper. Lord Dashwood Missed Out was a love letter to every young lady who’d been overlooked by gentlemen—and an instant bestseller. Now she’s on her way to speak in Spindle Cove when snowy weather delays her coach. She’s forced to wait out the storm with the worst possible companion: Lord Dashwood himself.

My reactions:
A typical regency romance with a devilishly handsome gentleman (who isn’t much of a gentleman), and a prim lady of impeccable reputation, show more forced to endure a potentially compromising situation, and then embracing the compromise wholeheartedly. Bodices heave, knees go weak, their passion overcomes any hesitancy.

The novella length doesn’t give much opportunity for a build-up to the hit-the-sheets scene. Still, it’s a fun, fast read (or listen).

Eva Kaminsky does a fine job of narrating the audiobook. She sets a good pace and has clear diction, so I could easily understand even when I listened at double speed. show less

The ending redeemed this one for me, and I think it catches me up on Spindle Cove, since the first one I ever read was book 5 (and still my favorite). I loved seeing the characters from other books, especially Colin, Griff, Thorne, and Bram and their search party. Colin is such a delightful ninny, and the names he proposed for their group made me smile so much. What a dork.
Dash was kind of a meanie at the beginning, and I’m not sure his explanation really justified how he talked to Nora, but he still made up for it in the end. I liked that Nora remained true to herself, both with who she had become and who she remained.
A nice little ditty for Dare fans, especially fans of this series.

2.5 stars

“Do you know,” he said, “you’re ravishing when you’re trying to hate me forever.”

Was fun to get glimpses of past main couple's from the series. Alas, the novella format alludes me again with rushed romance and a not quite historical feel.

Lord Dashwood Misses Out by Tessa Dare is a 2015 Avon publication. I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher and Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

I have enjoyed most everything I’ve read by this author, but I haven’t been able to read as many of her books as I would like, but when I saw this was a novella length story, I was sure I could squeeze it into my review schedule. I’m so glad I did!

Years ago, Elinora Browning was humiliated by Lord Dashwood, leaving her frustrated, angry and heartbroken. She never recovered, unfortunately, and began to write about her feelings. She never dreamed her essay, entitled “Lord Ashwood Misses Out”, would actually be published and become wildly popular among other women, show more so much so, she is invited to speaking engagements.

On her way to one of these gatherings, she finds herself stuck on a coach ride with none other than Lord Dashwood himself!! Has he read her pamphlet by chance?

This story has a huge heart and lots of charm, a few laugh out loud moments, and is very romantic. I loved how Dash helps Elinora realize she can be a strong, independent woman, and still have a marriage and children, and continue setting a positive example for her readers.

Naturally, once I started reading this story, I wished it could have been longer and fleshed out more, because it was so much fun! 4 stars show less

I do enjoy a chance to catch up with the previous couples in a series. This one has a comic adventure as a side-plot which I adored. Normally I am incapable of seeing something in my mind, literally no visual imagination. But watch enough movies and lay up a store of visual references, and I can damn near see this.

Hmm. Perhaps the popularity of Bridgerton will result in more series being adapted. Spindle Cove is a marvelous setup for a very long-running series.

Library copy