Review: A Deceptive Composition by Anna Lee Huber

 

A Deceptive Composition (Lady Darby #12) by Anna Lee Huber

Publication Date: June 18th 2024 by Berkley

Pages: 384

Source: Publisher & Purchased Audio Book

Rating: ★★★★½

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Libro.fm | Audible | Kobo | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

A Deceptive Composition is book twelve in a series best read in order.

 

Lord Gage, Sebastian’s father, receives an urgent request to come home when his uncle is found dead and his great aunt suspects murder. Lord Gage has been estranged from his family since a scuffle with the law led to tragedy for him and his best friend at the tender age of eleven. A tragedy that could’ve been avoided had his family not sent him out in peril!

 

It’s obvious from the start no one is being straight with Kiera, Gage and his father, exasperating them all! Lord Gage’s family were something else, and not in a good way. Getting the history of what happened to Lord Gage at eleven and getting acquainted with his family as they tried to find the truth shed a new light on Lord Gage, making it easier to understand his gruff and cruel behavior in the past. I’ve been enraged by his behavior more than a few times over the course of the series, but I had a softening towards him after all was revealed.

 

My heart was in my throat by the end with the danger a few of the characters faced in the final scenes! I wonder how this will affect how Kiera and Gage investigate in the future. It certainly would give me pause. This installment wrapped up abruptly after that intense standoff. Kiera’s last words whet my appetite for the next story!

 

I’ve loved this series from the beginning and recommend it to anyone who enjoys well written historical mysteries with a bit of romance! The audios with Heather Wilds performing are excellent!

4.5 Stars

Book Description:

Lady Kiera Darby and her dashing husband, Sebastian Gage, hope they’ve finally found peace after a tumultuous summer, but long-buried family secrets soon threaten to unravel their lives . . .

October 1832. Kiera is enjoying the slower pace of the English countryside. She, Sebastian, and their infant daughter have accompanied her father-in-law, Lord Gage, home so that he can recuperate from the injuries he sustained in a foiled attempt on his life. But as the chill of autumn sweeps across the land, they receive a summons from an unexpected quarter. Lord Gage’s estranged uncle—a member of the notorious Roscarrock family—has been murdered, and his family is desperate for answers. Despite Lord Gage’s protests, Kiera and Sebastian press on to Cornwall to assist. 

It isn’t long before they discover that almost nothing is as it seems among the Roscarrocks, and they’ve been lured to their isolated cove under false pretenses. There are whispers of a lost treasure and frightening allusions to a series of murders stretching back decades that touch the lives of the family personally. Kiera and Sebastian are left with no choice but to uncover the truth before the secrets of the past threaten to destroy them all.

Top Ten Tuesday: Books on My Summer 2023 to-read List

 

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Artsy Reader where each week they post a new top ten list and ask fellow bookish folk to share their lists on that topic. 

This week Books on My Summer 2023 to-read List

I'm so excited for each and every one of these books! How do I choose which one to start first?!! A bookish dilemma!

Click on cover for Goodreads link:

Remember Me by Mary Balogh

I love her historical romances! This is book two in the Ravenswood series and can be read as a standalone in a pinch. 

A Fatal Illusion by Anna Lee Huber

Book 11 in the Lady Darby Mysteries and should be read in order. This series is excellent! I highly recommend the audio version narrated by Heather Wilds. All voices and accents are perfection!

A Little Ray of Sunshine by Kristan Higgins

Her brand of womens fiction usually strikes a cord and hits me emotionally. Plus, she usually adds a little bit of romance.

The Cafe at Beach End by RaeAnne Thayne

I scoop up every new release by Thayne! Love the setting of this series, too! It's book 5 in the Cape Sanctuary series, but can be read as a standalone.

A Stolen Child by Sarah Stewart Taylor

Book 4 in the wonderful Maggie D'arcy series. A police/crime procedural with a new mystery with every book, but should be read in order because of the ongoing relationships and history. 

Resonance Surge by Nalini Singh

Psy-Changeling Trinity #7. Each installment is a must-read for me. Such a great mix of fantasy, sci-fi, paranormal romance! Each book is focused on a romantic couple, but it should be read in order for the ongoing story arc.

Dead of Winter by Darcy Coates

Darcy Coates is famous for her ghost stories, but this seems to be a straight thriller and it sounds good! 

Hello Stranger by Katherine Center

Her romances are top notch! I have an e-copy and an audio, but I'll be buying the hardcover for my shelf! She's an another auto buy for me. 

Magic Claims by Ilona Andrews

So excited they are writing more Kate Daniels! I have an e-copy but I'm sure I'll be buying the audio bundle when it comes out of Magic Tides and Magic Claims and be listening as a re-read. 

North of Nowhere by Allison Brennan

This sounds like a heart pounding thriller! Kids on the run from their murderous father crashing in the wilds of Montana so now not only are they on the run from trackers, but also a deadly storm. Can't wait!

What do you plan to read this summer?

Review: A Perfect Equation by Elizabeth Everett

 

A Perfect Equation (The Secret Scientists of  London #2) by Elizabeth Everett

Publication Date: February 15th 2022 by Berkley & Penguin Audio

Pages: 336

Source: Publisher & Purchased Audiobook

Rating: ★★★★½

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible | Kobo | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

Six years ago, the Viscount of Greycliff, Grey, gave Leticia Fenley a judgmental set-down when she was at her lowest and the words sting still. Now they must work together to oversee Athena’s Retreat since Violet and Arthur are leaving the city.

Outwardly, Athena’s Retreat is a social club for ladies to gather and discuss lectures on science, but secretly the women conduct experiments and study science, something highly frowned on at the time. It wasn’t easy for woman to be a scientist in the 19^th century when women had few rights. Grey and Letty must put aside their differences to keep the club safe since they’re being targeted by the radical Guardians of Domesticity, who’d like to keep women in their so-called place.

Letty was such a fun character with a fearless drive to stand up for women, especially the women of her club. She was more insecure when it came to standing up for herself, but Grey gave her the courage to hold her head high and shine. Grey had his own insecurities to battle with and I appreciated that neither dismissed the concerns of the other, but rather supported each other to face the issues.

A Perfect Equation was a delightful enemies-to-lovers romance, with clever banter and emotional depth. A cast of quirky and fun secondary characters made many hilarious scenes that had me laughing out loud. Add in an adorable hedgehog and this story was a complete win! I’m eagerly awaiting Grantham and Margaret’s story next!

4.5 Stars

Book Description:

How do you solve the Perfect Equation? Add one sharp-tongued mathematician to an aloof, handsome nobleman. Divide by conflicting loyalties and multiply by a daring group of women hell-bent on conducting their scientific experiments. The solution is a romance that will break every rule.

Six years ago, Miss Letitia Fenley made a mistake, and she’s lived with the consequences ever since. Readying herself to compete for the prestigious Rosewood Prize for Mathematics, she is suddenly asked to take on another responsibility—managing Athena’s Retreat, a secret haven for England’s women scientists. Having spent the last six years on her own, Letty doesn’t want the offers of friendship from other club members and certainly doesn’t need any help from the insufferably attractive Lord Greycliff.

Lord William Hughes, the Viscount Greycliff cannot afford to make any mistakes. His lifelong dream of becoming the director of a powerful clandestine agency is within his grasp. Tasked with helping Letty safeguard Athena’s Retreat, Grey is positive that he can control the antics of the various scientists as well as manage the tiny mathematician—despite their historic animosity and simmering tension.

As Grey and Letty are forced to work together, their mutual dislike turns to admiration and eventually to something... magnetic. When faced with the possibility that Athena’s Retreat will close forever, they must make a choice. Will Grey turn down a chance to change history, or can Letty get to the root of the problem and prove that love is the ultimate answer?

About the author:

Elizabeth Everett lives in upstate New York with her family. She likes going for long walks or (very) short runs to nearby sites that figure prominently in the history of civil rights and women's suffrage. Her series is inspired by her admiration for rule breakers and belief in the power of love to change the world.

Connect with Elizabeth Everett:

Website | Instagram | Facebook | Goodreads

Review: Someone Perfect by Mary Balogh

 

Someone Perfect (Westcott #9) by Mary Balogh

Publication Date: November 30th 2021

Pages: 400

Source: Publisher

Rating: ★★★★½

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible | Kobo | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

Lady Estelle Lemarr is content with being single. No one has come along to tempt her, and she’s determined not to settle for someone less that her idea of perfect.  I could understand her feelings. Why settle when you’re fine with things as they are? However, that’s usually when you find love as is the case here with Estelle. The Earl of Brandon, Justin Wiley, with his broody looks and attitude immediately sets her back up and Estelle’s not inclined to like him as he hasn’t bothered to visit his younger sister, Maria, for years when she clearly needed him. But first impressions can be very wrong.

Justin had inherited the title of Earl of Brandon with the passing of his father six years earlier, but hasn’t been around his younger half sister since she was eight. With the passing of his stepmother Justin is now Maria’s guardian. He intends to live up to his duties and take Maria back to the family home of Everleigh. Maria isn’t happy with her brother at all.  Seeing that Lady Estelle and her brother Bertrand are friends with Maria, he invites them to stay to make the changes for Maria easier. He tells himself that he’s only inviting them for Maria, but his first accidental meeting with Estelle has stuck in his head and he can’t help but be drawn to her.

It took a while for me to get into the story and I didn’t even really feel any romance between Estelle and Justin until the 30% mark, but there was some time that had to be spent setting up the story. There were a lot of characters involved and it took some doing getting them straight in my head. Honestly, I just gave up after a while and concentrated more on Estelle and Justin, but by the end I think I had the different families and relations mostly sorted.

As the story goes on Estelle begins to realize her first impressions of Justin were not fair, and he began to gain her respect and admiration in the way he dealt with Maria and the many family members. Estelle had strong feelings about Justin, even at their first meeting, that she comes to realize as stirrings of attraction. Much more powerful that she wanted to admit to, and she finds herself reluctantly drawn to him at every turn.

My heart broke for Justin and all he went through because of a spiteful, selfish woman. His interactions with Estelle were muddled, but endearing. I loved the inescapable quality to their romance and the unexpected heat!

This is book nine of the series, but it’s not necessary to read the previous books. There are mentions of the previous couples and there’s a lot of extended family named, but honestly you don’t need to keep it all straight to enjoy it.

Someone Perfect took a little while to get into but ended up being so lovely! Justin and Estelle’s story filled my heart with joy!

4.5 Stars

Book Description:

Sometimes, just one person can pull a whole family apart. And sometimes, it just takes one person to pull it back together. For fans of Bridgerton, New York Times bestselling Regency Romance author Mary Balogh shows how love truly conquers all in this new Friends of the Westcotts novel.

As a young man, Justin Wiley was banished by his father for mysterious reasons, but now, his father is dead, and Justin has been Earl of Brandon for six years. A dark, dour man, he, nonetheless, takes it as his responsibility to care for his half-sister, Maria, when her mother dies. He travels to her home to fetch her back to the family seat at Everleigh Park.

Although she adored him, once, Maria now loathes Justin, and her friend, Lady Estelle Lamarr, can see, immediately, how his very name upsets her. When Justin arrives and invites Estelle and her brother to accompany Maria to Everleigh Park to help with her distress, she begrudgingly agrees, for Maria's sake.

As family secrets unravel in Maria's homecoming, Justin, too, uncovers his desire for a countess. And, while he may believe he's found an obvious candidate in the beautiful 25-year-old Lady Estelle, she is most certain that they could never make a match...