Top 5 Unusual Historicals for March 2018

March seems to be roaring in like a lion for most of us in North America and having once lived in an area prone to 70 degrees one day, blizzard the next, I know the importance of having warm blankets, emergency lighting, and plenty of books at the ready - you know, just in case.  This month’s highlights in Unusual Historicals features a lot of variety, including two of my personal favorites - the 1920s and a new western!

All That Jazz!

Love’s Serenade by Sheryl Lister

Escaping an arranged marriage, Leigh Jones flees her southern hometown for Harlem's vibrant jazz scene to pursue her dream of becoming a singer. She finds more than she expected, namely Miles Cooper. The smooth-talking musician walked out on her three years ago, taking her music and her heart with him. Leigh has no intentions of falling for Miles or his charms again, until he tempts her with the one thing she can’t resist: a recording contract. But when her past comes calling, she realizes Miles is the one person who can save her from a man who won’t take no for an answer. 

Miles isn’t one for putting down roots or staying in one place for longer than a season. Yet, memories of Leigh's sultry voice, beauty and sass make him long for the life and love he forfeited. Having walked away once, but never again, Miles sets out to prove he's a changed man willing to go to any lengths to protect his woman. He's determined to show Leigh, one passionate note at a time that the music they make together will last a lifetime.

I adore the 1920s as a setting for historical romance because it’s such a fascinating time period in women’s history.  As if that catnip weren’t enough, I love musical backdrops and reunited lovers (where one of those lovers needs his comeuppance).  This appears to be Lister’s first published historical, and I’m curious to see how she handles the time period.

From Russia, With Love!

From Governess to Countess by Marguerite Kaye

The scandalous truth about the count’s new mistress! 

Count Aleksei Derevenko has hired governess Allison Galbraith for her skills as a herbalist, not a mistress! But when rumors spread, Allison is more shocked by her wanton reaction to Aleksei—inscrutable and impossibly handsome, his icy blue eyes promise white-hot nights of sin. She knows too well how fragile her reputation is, but will the price of their passion be worth paying?

Kaye is one of my favorites in the Harlequin Historical stable, and this kicks off her new series, Matches Made in Scandal.  This story is set in St. Petersburg and features a down-on-her-luck herbalist heroine masquerading as a governess.  There’s also a murder mystery afoot!  I’m really excited to dive into this one!

Smuggler!

Counting on a Countess by Eva Leigh

For a shameless libertine and a wily smuggler in the London Underground, marriage is more than convenience—it’s strategy... 

Christopher “Kit” Ellingsworth, war veteran and newly minted Earl of Blakemere, buries his demons under every sort of pleasure and vice. His scandalous ways have all but emptied his coffers . . . until a wealthy mentor leaves him a sizeable fortune. The only stipulation? He must marry within one month to inherit the money. Kit needs a bride and the bold, mysterious Miss Tamsyn Pearce seems perfect. 

Husband hunting isn’t Tamsyn’s top priority—she’s in London to sell her new shipment of illicit goods—but she’s desperate for funds to keep her smuggling operation afloat. When a handsome earl offers to wed her and send her back to Cornwall with a hefty allowance, Tamsyn agrees. After all, her secrets could land her in prison and an attentive, love-struck spouse could destroy everything. 

But when an unexpected proviso in the will grants Tamsyn control of the inheritance, their arrangement becomes anything but convenient. Now, Kit’s counting on his countess to make his wildest dreams a reality and he plans to convince her, one pleasurable seduction at a time.

I have complicated feelings about Avon’s cover art - which is to say I hate their historical romance covers roughly 90% of the time.  But this cover?  It has haunted me since the moment I laid eyes on it.  I love it.  The wind-swept heroine, the jewel tones, and did I mention green is my favorite color?  Anyway, I also love that the heroine is the smuggler in this story!  OMG, where has this role reversal been all my life?  Leigh writes interesting historicals and I always appreciate her lighter touch while not throwing out the history with the baby’s bathwater.

Western!

Bright Montana Sky by Debra Holland

Sweetwater Springs, Montana 1896 

Jilted seamstress Constance Taylor travels to Sweetwater Springs to live with her estranged father, the livery stable owner. She plans to open a dressmaking shop and bring sophisticated clothing styles to the frontier town. 

Doctor Angus Cameron is bitter and discouraged from his work with upper class Londoners and the wretched poor in the East End slums. He arrives in Sweetwater Springs to join the medical practice of his brother, the town doctor. 

Sparks fly when Constance and Angus clash over her fashionable creations, which he believes are unhealthy. Every encounter worsens their relationship, and the pair fights their ill-suited attraction. For love to grow, two stubborn souls must call a truce to their battle of wills. 

As always, Debra Holland enchants readers with her warm, uplifting portrayal of life and love in a small town. 

I recently read a prequel novella to this series and really enjoyed it, so I’m definitely curious to read more Holland.  The series seems to fall into the “cute western small town” mode, as opposed to the “will we survive the winter or get murdered by outlaws” mode, and I love the premise of this one.  For Kindle Unlimited users, this entire series is available to make all your binge-reading dreams come true.

Bonus Story!

A Bittersweet Moment by Vanessa Riley

A second son must find his place in the world, but can he trust his heart and not the heavy-handed antics of his father, the Earl of Crisdon. 

Ewan Fitzwilliam needs his life to change. Unwilling to follow in the footsteps of his abusive father, he gathered the strength to break free. Saving a young flower picker from troubles upon his father's estate may prove the opportunity he needs to become a man of honor. 

Theodosia wants a better life, and she intends to build a flower business that caters to the perfumers in Town, but can she trust a rich man's son to teach her better diction to impress potential clients? Or will she learn a different lesson, succumbing to the dangerous attraction she feels for the tortured playwright?

If you couldn’t get enough of Riley’s The Bittersweet Bride, featured in February's column, you’ll be happy to see that there’s now a short story prequel featuring the same couple!  This looks to give more insight into the reunited couple’s backstory and provide a glimpse into the heroine’s life prior to her inheriting an estate.

What Unusual Historicals are you looking forward to this month?

Note: Unusual Historicals is now cross-posted at the Love in Panels site.  Stop on by and see them sometime!

Mini-Reviews: Catching Up With The Wicked Quills

In a bid to delude myself that I'm making progress on the TBR Of Doom, I've started on audio editions of books I own in either print or digital.  I also have this nasty habit of leaving series unfinished for long stretches of time, so when I saw that work had the Wicked Quills of London trilogy by Eva Leigh, I decided on a back-to-back listen.  The results were mixed.

Scandal Takes the Stage is the second book and was the real dud in the series for me.  I liked the first book well enough, although felt there were "pacing issues."  This one?  I was just bored.  Literally, nothing happens.  Maggie Delamere is a playwright at the Imperial Theater in London.  She's feeling pressure from the theater benefactors to write a sequel to her most successful play and she has horrible, awful writer's block.  She's stymied.  Into the mix enters our hero - Cameron, Viscount Marwood.  An heir to a Dukedom, a notorious rake, and completely smitten with Maggie.  Of course she's having none of it - loathing the aristocracy as a general rule because she was "done wrong" in her younger days.

And that's it.  Maggie doesn't like aristocrats and has writer's block.  Cam is warm for Maggie's form.  No, really.  That's it.  Eventually they get together, fall in love, and must move past the minor obstacle that Maggie is a nobody and Cam is a Duke's heir.

None of this is helped by the audio narrator, who is merely serviceable.  Is Mandy Williams the worst narrator I've ever listened to?  Hardly.  But there's something flat about her delivery which isn't helped by the flatness of this romance.  Honestly I would probably grade this lower, but Leigh handles the time period well and the world-building is really good.  I can't in good conscience slap this with a D.  So....

Final Grade = C

While listening to Scandal, my hold for Temptations of a Wallflower came in.  Given my lackluster response to Scandal, I had serious doubts jumping into this one right after - but in for a penny, in for a pound.  Turns out I really enjoyed this book - and I think it's the strongest book in the whole trilogy!

Lady Sarah Frampton is a Duke's daughter and has been labelled by the ton as the "Watching Wallflower."  Our girl is half a breath away from being "on the shelf."  What nobody knows however is that she's also the Lady of Dubious Quality, a writer of salacious erotic novels.  She has gone to great lengths to keep her identity under wraps, recognizing that the scandal would ruin her parents and likely result in her banishment from England.

Jeremy Cleland is a third son of a demanding, moralistic Earl, which means Jeremy was slated for the Church.  Now a vicar, he's in London, having been summoned by his father and uncle to ferret out the Lady of Dubious Quality.  Daddy sees this as a way to remind people of all his wonderful (ha!) work being the voice of morality for the county (ugh!) but he's not about to go sleuthing at his age - so he orders Jeremy to do it, or else he'll cut off his allowance.

Jeremy and Sarah happen to meet at a garden party and are immediately drawn to each other.  But even though he is an Earl's son, he's a third son.  Which means a Duke's daughter is way, way above him.  But they can't stay away from each other and, naturally, fall in love.  But Jeremy doesn't know that Sarah is the Lady and Sarah doesn't realize that the man she loves is trying to ferret out her true identity so his father can ruin her.

This does sound fairly unsavory, but it works.  Sarah and Jeremy are both characters forced into boxes by outside forces.  Sarah is expected to play the dutiful Duke's daughter, the perfect society girl, and catch herself a husband.  Jeremy's life is not his own, having been strong-armed into his father's plans and wishes.  I suspect some readers will question why Jeremy doesn't just tell his father to go hang - and I'll admit there were moments I was frustrated with him.  But I also can understand that a third son of an Earl, making a living as a vicar, would be concerned with his father cutting him off financially.  Sarah's motivations for keeping her secret are, frankly, blatantly obvious.

The left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing, and by the time they fall in love, the suspense of the story kicks up several notches.  The Big Secret is literally a Sword of Damocles hanging over the second half of this story.  Also, this was by far the sexiest tale in the trilogy.  These are two characters so perfectly suited for each other, and you have the added complication of their different social standings.  The attraction is immediate, steamy, and the anticipation is particularly well done.  I tend to get easily bored by love scenes that don't really mean anything in romance novels (other than beef up word count or because "readers expect them!") - but the passion is particularly well-written in this book and makes the Black Moment when the Big Secret is revealed all the more blacker and gut-wrenching.

The audio version is particularly well done, with Eva Christensen narrating.  It was a pleasure to listen to.  I also appreciated how the author chose to end this story.  Like the previous two, she avoids the trap of everything being Absolutely Stunningly Perfect on the final page.  Our couple is happy, but there is collateral damage.  People who turn their noses up at unconventional unions, parents not happy with the choices made by their children.  And honestly, that's so refreshing it somehow manages to make the happy ending even more rewarding.

Final Grade = B+

Forever Your Earl

I have a complicated relationship with "light historical romance."  I want to like them but finding one that doesn't make my brain bleed is getting to be an increasingly tall order.  The problem, as I see it, is sometimes authors confuse "light in tone" with "light in substance."  Yes, I will happily gorge at the Cotton Candy Trough, but you've got to toss in a bran flake or almond every now and then to give me something to actually chew on.

By now I think it's pretty well known that Eva Leigh is a new pseudonym for Zoe Archer.  When I first heard this news I thought, "But why?!  Zoe Archer writes historicals, Eva Leigh writes historicals, what gives?"  Now that I've read Forever Your Earl the first book in Leigh's Wicked Quills of London series it makes more sense.  Archer historicals tend to be a bit action and adventure while Forever Your Earl is straight-up frothy Regency historical.  The thing that keeps it buoyant is Leigh's sparkling knack for dialogue and a feminist core that somehow doesn't feel totally overblown modern.

Eleanor Hawke owns and edits a scandal rag, The Hawk's Eye.  She's worked her way up from nothing, brought her paper into profitably, and her readers love every juicy morsel she tosses their way - especially when she's writing about Daniel Balfour, Earl of Ashford.  Lord A-d is a rake of the highest order, so he rarely disappoints when it comes to providing publishable material.  Well, that is until he shows up at her office demanding to see "Mr. E. Hawke."  Imagine his surprise when he finds out the editor of the scandal rag that's obsessed with his every move is a woman.

Daniel would normally not give a flying fig, but Eleanor's keen eye dogging his every move could blow apart a bigger scandal he has no intention of making known.  A good friend, a Duke's younger son, has gone missing.  The Duke's heir dying unexpectedly leaves Jonathan next in line, but ever since he returned from the war he hasn't been quite right.  Daniel will do anything to find and help his friend, but having Miss Hawke sniffing around is too dangerous by half.  So he figures, why not keep your enemy close?  He promises to take her out on the town, show her what a rake's life is really like, and she gets plenty of material that will keep her diverted from Daniel's true mission.  It all seems perfect, until of course he finds himself falling in love with her.

What Leigh has done is give readers a heroine who is "ahead of her time" but somehow keeps this story from completely jumping overboard into the absurd.  There are some readers who will say that all "ahead of their time" heroines are anachronistic - a theory I've never subscribed to.  I mean, if there never were, truly, any "ahead of their time" heroines in the world - well, the lives of women would have remained totally unchanged since the dawn of time.  I think where Leigh succeeds is by not completely throwing the baby out with the bath water.  Eleanor is unconventional, but she still has to play by some rules.  Every time she's around "polite society" in this story it's hanging out with rakes after hours, in disguise, and digging up dirt.  We don't see her in glittering ballrooms having conversations with people who, in actuality, would treat her like something unpleasant they need to scrap off their shoe.

What's remarkable about this book is that it almost reads like a love letter to romance readers and writers. 

Why was she so bloody angry?  It wasn't as though Ashford hadn't expressed opinions she had never heard before.  People called her work, and The Hawk's Eye, trash.  Or they damned it, and her, with faint praise.  You're too talented to waste yourself on ephemera.  Why don't you try writing something real?  Something with actual substance?

It's like deja vu all over again.

And that's the tip of the iceberg.  Eleanor's first night out with Daniel involves her having to disguise herself as a young man.  As Daniel teaches her how to "act the part," she, in turn, basically tells him the unvarnished truth about how unpleasant it can be to be a woman in a man's world - right down to the Regency equivalent of "man spreading."

Still, sometimes the parts don't always add up to a whole.  I found this book a slog to get through at times and it took a while to put my finger on why - it's the pacing.  Here's a perfect example - it takes us 100 pages for Daniel to show up at Eleanor's office, proposition her, for her to go to her friend's theater for a disguise (Sequel Bait!) and for them to get through their first night out together.  100 long pages.  Do I read too much category romance?  Is it the seemingly constant lack of focus miring me in my current reading slump?  Is it because this story is "light" and there's not a bucket-full of Angst-O-Rama-Jama?  Perhaps. Pacing is in the eye of the beholder.  But I could have done with 50-75 fewer pages.

Which leaves me with This Was Good.  I didn't love it to bits like some of Leigh/Archer's other work (check out her Blades of the Rose quartet or Lady X's Cowboy), but this is the strongest "light historical" I've read in a dog's age.  Plenty of banter, interesting characters who rub each other in just the right way, and a feminist core that never devolved the story into absurdity...the book's title notwithstanding.

Final Grade = B-