Winning Miss Winthrop (Regency Brides: A Promise of Hope)

Winning Miss Winthrop is a historical work of fiction that deserves to be read. Imagine falling in love only to believe the person does not love you back. This situation happens to Catherine Winthrop and Jonathan Calrew. God has a way of bringing people back together, and such is the case for this pair.

Catherine’s father dies and Jonathan inherits essentially everything. So Catherine has to find joy in circumstances that are less than ideal. She shows faith, courage, and love. I respected and admired her character traits. I loved how the storyline progressed and how I learned about Catherine, Jonathan, and the other characters in the book. It illustrates how our perceptions sometimes can cloud our judgment.

Sometimes love deserves a show more second chance. Even though Jonathan becomes engaged to another woman and Catherine finds herself amid a scandal resulting from her father’s actions, this book captured my attention and imagination from the beginning.

Catherine shows Christian love by caring for the tenants of her father’s estate, but when he dies unexpectedly, her life transforms. I love how various characters such as her aunt, her best friend, and even a general support her. The author illustrates even though the path may be rocky, love requires faith, work, and diligence. So check out this book for yourself.

I received a complimentary copy of this book, but this in no way influenced my review. All opinions are my own. show less

I love that this is a retelling of Persuasion (one of my favorite Austen works), but it does a couple things that I didn't like. First it plays off of my least favorite trope: miscommunication. The entire book wouldn't have happened if people had been reasonable and talked to each other in the first place. It made me so mad and frustrated (particularly with the hero). On top of that, I didn't like that Miller took it so far as to get the heroine fake engaged and the hero actually engaged to other people. That just crossed a line I wasn't comfortable with and took some finagling to get them out of.
On the positive side, I do like the writing style. The spiritual content was also nicely done (didn't feel forced or unnatural in the story) show more and I would have even enjoyed more of it. show less

Before I finished Carolyn Miller’s book and read the author’s note, I saw echoes of Jane Austen in Winning Miss Winthrop—especially Persuasion in the first three quarters and a little Pride & Prejudice in the final pages.

Yet Miller’s story is original and engaging (and maybe a little sad—at first). I couldn’t help but feel bath for Catherine as trial after trail invades her life. She is forced to leave the only home she’s known to live with her unhappy mother. Then man she once loved is now the master of her family’s home and land.

The new master of Winthrop Manor has the burden of fixing the crumbling home, paying the outstanding debts of the previous Lord Winthrop, providing for a family that has had little to do with show more him in the past, and dealing with the machinations of a marriage-minded mother.

Jon’s mother was actually the character who surprised me the most. I never could exactly read Lady Harkness’s motives.

Readers of Miller’s previous series will enjoy the cameos from a few people but don’t worry, this book stands just fine on its own. And there’s no shortage of drama.

Miller’s portrayal of the aristocracy in Bath is filled with pictures of diversions such as concerts and balls as well as the assembly that are fresh and descriptively colorful. And though I wanted to yell at Catherine and Jon to just talk to each other already, it’s the journey they take that makes the ending worth the wait.

Disclosure statement:
I receive complimentary books from publishers, publicists, and/or authors, including NetGalley. I am not required to write positive reviews. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255. show less

The author has written an enchanting story of two people who were in love, but drifted apart. Catherine is such a sweet and caring person. She can't figure out why the love of her life suddenly stopped seeing her. You can feel the anguish she carries deep within her. Have you ever loved someone and they one day without explanation, disappeared from your life? Catherine's pain is so deep, I could feel her emptiness.

The story is very emotional and takes us on a journey of forgiveness and rediscovery. When Catherine and her mother suffer a great loss they are shocked and emotionally spent. I loved how the author turns the story when Catherine's past walks in the door. Jonathan is vert straight forward and seems to do everything he can to show more ignore Catherine. How is it possible that Catherine's future is now determined by her lost love Jonathan?

There is no doubt that Catherine is hurt and angry when Jonathan has taken over their home and has been given a noble title. The richness of the Regency period is undeniable in this beautifully written book. I loved the description of the beautiful land and the attires that women wore. They are very prim and proper and all vying for Jonathan's attention. It must be hard for Catherine to watch women swoon over Jonathan. The author writes of lost love in a romantic way while showing us how hard it is to hold on to hope. Will Catherine and Jonathan be able to forget the past and find happiness again? Don't miss this lovely story of hope, forgiveness and love that runs deep between two people.

I received a copy of this book from Celebrate Lit. The review is my own opinion. show less

What a beautifully written story! If you like Jane Austen's "Persuasion," you will love "Winning Miss Winthrop!" "Winning Miss Winthrop" is the first book in a new series called "Regency Brides: A Promise of Hope."

Ms. Miller writes a great story filled with a lot of faith content. I appreciate that she doesn't shy away from putting Christianity into her story. Faith plays such a big role in many of the characters’ lives and there are many important lessons learned as the characters grow in their faith. I love that Ms. Miller’s characters pray, read the Bible, have devotions and recall Scripture. I also enjoy the little similarities to Austen’s novels sprinkled throughout, especially the parallels to her novel show more “Persuasion.”

"Winning Miss Winthrop" has relatable and down-to-earth characters. Our heroine, Catherine, loses so much and feels abandoned by God in the beginning of the book. Her struggles and faith journey are very realistic. She has a slight stammer when she is intimidated and she is not always described as being very pretty. I love that she realizes she can be happy even when she thinks the man she loves has chosen someone else for a bride. Catherine learns great lessons about not getting stuck in the past, being the heroine of her story and choosing to live life to the fullest.

You won't be sorry if you pick up this novel. It's sure to give you plenty of entertainment while encouraging you in your faith--“Winning Miss Winthrop” is a definite win-win.

Content: This book is a clean read overall with a PG rating for a little content. Some examples of the content are: talk of a person possibly being illegitimate; talk of a man who has gambled; characters drink alcohol; reference to a man possibly propositioning a woman; reference to a lady being large bosomed; talk of a man being unfaithful.

Rating: I give this book 4.5 stars.

Genre: Christian fiction; Regency; Romance; Historical

I want to thank Carolyn Miller and Kregal Publications for the complimentary copy of this book for review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I express in this review are my own. This is in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s CFR 16, Part 255. show less

Excellent Regency tale, giving a taste of the early 18oos English high society. The heroine is attractively complex, the hero even more so. Character-driven with a healthy and appropriate faith element, the Winthrop family drams will have you turning the pages to see how they wiggle out of self-made social traps and emotional twisters. It's a lot of fun.

What I think you should know:
Winning Miss Winthrop by Carolyn Miller is a Christian Regency Romance. It is set in 1816 England and is the first book in the Regency Brides: A Promise of Hope series. It does contain some characters from Miller’s Legacy of Grace series and give updates on them, if you have not read the series you *might* want to read them as they were great books (Start with The Elusive Miss Ellison)

What I think about this story:
While the plot isn’t extremely original I really enjoyed this book and the details put into it. Miller does a
wonderful job of describing the settings. Catherine was a character that I immediately wanted to have a happy ending. She was gracious in the face of tragedy, I love that she tried to show more find ways to cope with her reduced status and still held herself to higher standards. Jonathan was a very compelling character. There were many times in the book that I wanted to just make Catherine and Jonathan communicate with each other. The gossips in this book ,like in real life, only made problems worse. I love Miller’s style of writing and how she weaves Faith naturally into the story. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Celebrate Lit, this in no way influenced my review. All opinions are my own. show less