Thankful for Unusual Historicals: November 2020 Highlights

I’m not sure how November can feel like the fastest and slowest months at the same time, but it’s 2020 and I’ve given up trying to explain anything anymore. At this point it’s a minor miracle I’m not in a bunker surrounded by books and booze. The holidays are here, COVID cases are rising, and I don’t know a single person who isn’t tired down to their bones. My advice? Snatch your moments of joy where you can, make new traditions, be kind to yourself and others. What better way to take my own advice than to gaze upon some shiny new unusual historicals that debuted this month.... 

Confessions in B-Flat by Donna Hill 

The year is 1963. In Harlem, the epicenter of Black culture, the fight for equality has never been stronger. The time is now. Enough is enough. Yet even within its ranks, a different kind of battle rages. Love thy neighbor? Or rise up against your oppressors? 

Jason Tanner has just arrived in New York to help spread the message of his mentor, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., of passive resistance, while beat poet Anita Hopkins believes the teachings of Malcolm X with all her heart: that the way to true freedom is “by any means necessary.” When Jason sees Anita perform her poetry at the iconic B-Flat lounge, he’s transfixed. And Anita has never met anyone who can match her wit for wit like this… 

One movement, two warring ideologies—can love be enough to unite them? 

So there will be some folks who think that a book set in 1963 shouldn’t be classified as “historical” and I’m going to tell those folks that they are wrong. Set nearly 60 years from the time it was published? Historical, y’all. Hill has a long romance pedigree, and I like that she’ll be addressing the different ideologies that sprung out of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement. Also, and this cannot be overstated - the heroine is a beat poet!!! 

Tempted by Her Viking Enemy by Terri Brisbin 

“What do I get if I help you?” 

“Whatever I have to give…” 

The only person who can help Katla flee a violent marriage is the Viking in her father’s dungeon, the strong and honorable Brandt Sigurdsson. Except Brandt is hungry to see justice done for his family’s destruction, the final vengeance on behalf of all the sons of Sigurd. Is there any persuasion she can offer that will free them both to live—and love—together? 

This is the fifth and final book in the Sons of Sigurd series and we’ve come to Brandt’s book. Brandt would be the brother whose wife and unborn child were murdered on their wedding day. Oh, not to mention that his father was also killed that day. So there’s been plenty of angsty build-up leading to this final installment. 

The Secret Agent by Elisabeth Hobbes 

My name is Sylvie Duchene and I am a dancer. There is no network. I am just a dancer. I know nothing. Please…I swear it… 

An unknown location, occupied France, 1944 

Dropping silently behind enemy lines, Sylvia Crichton, codename Monique, is determined to fight for the country of her birth and save it from its Nazi stranglehold. 

As one of the dancers at the nightclub Mirabelle, Sylvie’s mission is to entertain the club’s German clientele and learn their secrets. In a world of deception and lies, she can trust no one. Not even Mirabelle’s enigmatic piano player Felix… a part of the resistance or a collaborator? 

But despite her SOE training, nothing can prepare Sylvie for the horrors she is about to face – or the pain of losing those she grows closer to undercover… 

I’m not sure how I didn’t know about this book’s existence before now - but here we are. Hobbes has written some very enjoyable books for Harlequin Historical and I am here for anything French Resistance. 

The Captain’s Midwinter Bride by Liana De La Rosa (novella) 

Life at sea sharpened Captain Phillip Dalton into a shrewd and strategic military man...yet none of those skills prepared him for the intricacies of planning his daughter’s upcoming Christmas wedding. His family, most especially his wife, are all but strangers to him thanks to his service to the Crown. But if Phillip finds himself bewitched by his practical, charming, and guileless wife, he does his best to hide his struggles. 

Annalise Dalton raised two children and built a comfortable life for herself while her husband of convenience provided for them from afar. But now Phillip's home to stay, and she finds it impossible to ignore his gruff manner, brilliant blue eyes, or the gentle way he looks after her needs. And if Annalise is unnerved by the budding feelings her husband inspires in her, she does her best to hide how they unsettle her. 

When past secrets and misunderstandings threaten the tenuous steps they've taken to create a real and loving marriage, can Phillip and Annalise overcome the years they spent apart to forge a happy future together, and for every Christmas to come? 

I don’t know about y’all, but my struggles this year with lack of concentration hit epic status in November. Thank heaven for novellas, and lookie here - a Christmas novella! Featuring a sea captain hero and maybe not a hardcore marriage in trouble trope - but at the very least a falling in love after a marriage of convenience trope. Either way, gimme, gimme, gimme! 

Under the Warrior’s Protection by Ella Matthews 

Letting down her guard 

Might save her life… 

With their family name in tatters, Katherine Leofric and her sister are headed for a new life at their brother’s estate. They are escorted by the hardened Jarin, Earl of Borwyn, who Katherine believes is only after her dowry! Until her sister is abducted on the treacherous journey, and Katherine must rely on Jarin’s protection. Now, seeing a different side to the man she swore to hate, it’s her heart that’s most at risk! 

This is Matthews second book for Harlequin Historical and the Leofric brother was the hero in her first book, The Warrior Knight and the Widow. A medieval featuring “tattered” nobility and an enemy-to-lovers trope is Wendy catnip. 

What Unusual Historicals are you looking forward to reading?

More Than Words

One of the things I love about romance is that it's a genre that celebrates women.  Women aren't mere bit players.  They aren't relegated to sassy side-kick or femme fatale.  They're the lead.  The star of the show.  Yes, yes, hunky heroes are very swoon-worthy, but without a compelling heroine, a romance novel tends to lose a bit of luster (at least in this heroine-centric reader's opinion).  Harlequin has taken this element of the genre to heart and the last several years has sponsored the More Than Words program.  Women who are making a difference in their community are nominated, winners are chosen, and they are awarded $10,000 for their chosen causes.  As if that wasn't awesome-sauce enough - Harlequin then corrals some of their authors to write novellas inspired by these causes, and puts them out in an anthology.  The latest edition, More Than Words Volume 7 features stories written by Carly Phillips, Donna Hill and Jill Shalvis.

Compassion Can't Wait by Carly Phillips

Julia Caldwell is a social worker at a children's hospital in Miami.  Manny Cortez is a young patient with leukemia, and while his single mother has her hands full caring for him, his twin brother, Michael is lost in the shuffle.  Julia knows what it's like to be the lost child in the wake of a sibling's illness, so she wants to do something great for Michael.  He idolizes the star pitcher for the Miami Suns baseball team, Kyle Hansen.  Julia decides to pull some strings so Michael can meet him - but the fly in the ointment?  Julia and Kyle were high school sweethearts, and the relationship didn't come to a graceful conclusion.

What I enjoyed about this story is that both Julia and Michael, while still a bit hung-up on their romantic past, acknowledge that they both were at fault for the demise.  I also liked that they both acknowledged that they changed and "grew up" after their split.  What didn't always work so well for me was the writing style.  A little too much "telling" over "showing" creeps in fairly frequently.  But that aside?  This was a solid read.  Even when I wanted to nit-pick the baseball "stuff" to death.  It's obvious that Phillips is at least a passing fan, because when I scoffed at the idea of an expansion team winning the World Series after only three years in existence, I used my mad librarian skills to look it up.  Yeah, the Arizona Diamondbacks did it in their 4th season (first season = 1998, World Series = 2001).  Carly = 1, Wendy = 0.

Grade = B-

Someplace Like Home by Donna Hill

Burnt out from her current job, social work Verna Scott decides to start her own youth residence facility.  Her group home is proving to be a success, but the need for funding and volunteers means she's always beating the drum.  It's while she's out promoting her program among high school guidance counselors that she meets Ronald Morris.  He thinks her program sounds great, and hey, Verna ain't so bad herself.  He starts putting on the full court press, but can Verna unload her baggage to give this budding attraction they share a fair shot?

This is a nice story with a realistic feel to it.  Unfortunately, the pacing of it is a real issue.  I liked that both Verna and Ronald behaved like "real people" and adult ones at that - but reading about them going on dates and getting to know each other is...well...kinda boring.  The conflict in this story is non-existent until very, very late in the game.  Which would be OK, except that conflict turns out to be some pretty heavy stuff.  Frankly, I have a hard time believing anyone is this well-adjusted.  Especially when one of the concerned parties is a teenager who hasn't had the easiest go at life thus far.  But Hill can write, and I liked these people.  I'm definitely open to reading more by this author.

Grade = C+

What the Heart Wants by Jill Shalvis

Reformed wild child, Ellie Cahn runs a non-profit program for troubled teenage girls.  The idea is to bolster their self-esteem, teach them about self-worth and healthy relationships, steering them on a positive life path.  A flat tire puts her back in the sights of Jack Buchanan.  A former wild child himself, Jack is ex-military and runs his own string of self-defense/martial arts studios with one of his brothers.  Jack and Ellie used to run together in high school, but they were "just friends."  But now?  Yeah, they're looking at each other in a whole different light.

This story was the highlight of the anthology for me.  Shalvis includes a secondary character, one of Ellie's teenage students, that puts a nice focus on her work, and also helps to highlight Ellie's troubled past.  A past she shared with Jack, who at the time, was her only real anchor.  In turn, Jack has always felt protective of her, but still feels guilt over an incident that happened when they were kids, that almost ended very badly for Ellie. A nice mix of romance and compelling conflict that the author wraps up in a neat, tidy bow at the end.  A lovely reunion story.

Grade = B+

The romance genre is a "feel-good" genre.  Readers read it for a variety of reasons, but at the end of the day, we like romances because they leave us "feeling good."  Never, ever discount the power of a positive ending.  What I especially loved about this anthology is that not only do you get that "feel good" vibe from the stories?  You get it from the remarkable women and the causes they run/support that inspired them.  A lot of times I turn to anthologies when I'm in a reading slump, or Real Life is so hectic that a full-length novel is just too daunting to contemplate.  More Than Words Volume 7 not only would succeed on that level, but I defy anyone to read these stories and not think "Wow!" when you learn about the truth behind the fiction. 

Overall Grade = B