False Pretences by Rosemary Morris

Blurb:

Five-year-old Annabelle arrived at boarding school fluent in French and English. Separated from her nurse, a dismal shadow blights Annabelle’s life because she does not know who her parents are.

Although high-spirited, Annabelle is financially dependent on her unknown guardian. She refuses to marry a French baron more than twice her age.

Her life in danger, Annabelle is saved by a gentleman, who says he will help her to discover her identity. Yet, from then on nothing is as it seems, and she is forced to run away for the second time to protect her rescuer.

Even more determined to discover her parents’ identity, in spite of many false pretences, Annabelle must learn who to trust. Her attempts to unravel the mystery of her birth, lead to further danger, despair, unbearable heartache and even more false pretences until the only person who has ever wanted to cherish her reveals the startling truth, and all’s well that ends well.

About the Author:

Rosemary Morris was born in 1940 in Sidcup Kent. As a child, when she was not making up stories, her head was “always in a book.”

While working in a travel agency, Rosemary met her Indian husband. He encouraged her to continue her education at Westminster College. In 1961 Rosemary and her husband, now a barrister, moved to his birthplace, Kenya, where she lived from 1961 until 1982. After an attempted coup d’état, she and four of her children lived in an ashram in France.

Back in England, Rosemary wrote historical fiction. She is now a member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, Historical Novel Society and Cassio Writers.

Apart from writing, Rosemary enjoys classical Indian literature, reading, visiting places of historical interest, vegetarian cooking, growing organic fruit, herbs and vegetables and creative crafts.

Time spent with her five children and their families, most of whom live near her, is precious.

Review by Rochelle:

Anyone who follows Roses & Thorns knows I shy away from historical romance because I absolutely hate anomalies—things like the use of modern jargon in period pieces. But this book was a Christmas gift, and I’m familiar with Ms. Morris, so I thought I’d give it a try. I’m so glad I did. As you can see, I found no anomalies and no modern jargon.

Annabelle is eighteen when she runs away from school on the eve of her wedding to a much older man. A handsome stranger named Roland rescues her from highwaymen and identifies himself as her fiancé. When they spend the night in separate rooms at an inn, she’s so innocent, she doesn’t understand why he wants the innkeeper’s daughter to sleep in her room as a chaperone. Not having a mother to talk with her on the night before her wedding, she has no clue what sex is, and she remains innocent until her wedding night. The next morning they encounter a truly odious man whom she dubs “The Toad.” She later learns he is really her fiancé.

Annabelle also worries that her status as an orphan may compromise Roland’s social standing. She’s heard the girls at school speculate that she may have been born “on the wrong side of the blanket.” And then she learns from the woman Roland hired as her ladies’ maid that there are kidnapping charges pending and a reward posted as a result of her disappearance from school. The maid tries to blackmail her, but Annabelle runs away hoping to find out who her birth parents are, who her guardian is, and why they wanted her to marry “The Toad.” She also hopes to persuade them to allow her to stay married to Roland, the man she loves.

Again, I found no glitches in this tale. The characters were well-drawn, and I rooted for them from beginning to end. Even when Roland lied to Annabelle, I always knew he did so to protect her, not to deceive. It was a page-burning mystery that I had difficulty putting down, and a truly delightful read.

Author Website:  http://www.rosemarymorris.co.uk/

Heat Rating: PG-13

Length: 218 Pages

Price: $5.95

Buy Link: https://museituppublishing.com/bookstore/index.php/now-available-in-ebook/false-pretences-detail

You’ll notice we always include the publisher’s buy link. That’s because authors usually receive 40-50% of the net proceeds from the publisher. Editors and cover artists  receive about 5%. When you buy a book from Amazon, Barnes & Noble or another third-party vendor, they take a hefty cut and the author, editors and cover artists receive their cuts from what is left. So, if a book costs $5.99 at E-Book Publisher.com and you buy from there, the author will receive about $2.40-$2.99. If you buy the book at Amazon, the author will receive about $1.70-$2.10.

Download the file from the publisher onto your computer as you would any other file. I’ve created a folder for books on my computer, with subfolders by source (Marketing for Romance Writers, Net Galley, Authors who find me on Kindle lists, etc.). That way, if there’s a glitch with your Kindle, the books are on your computer. Some publishers send books in all digital formats. If my Kindle breaks and my kids buy me a Nook, I won’t have to replace all of my books. If you have a Kindle and your hubby has a Nook, you won’t have to buy separate copies, so buying directly from the publisher can save you money.

Moving the file from your computer to your e-reader is as easy as transferring any file from your computer to a USB flash drive. Plug the larger USB end of your e-reader charging chord into a USB port on your computer and simply move the file from the folder into which you’ve downloaded the book to Documents/Books directory on your e-reader. Your author will be happy you did when he/she sees his/her royalty statement.

Thanks for visiting. Donna, Julie, & Rochelle

Bella’s Betrothal by Anne Stenhouse

Blurb:

While she is travelling north to find sanctuary from the malicious gossip of the Ton, Lady Isabella Wormsley’s room in a Dalkeith inn is invaded by handsome Scottish Laird, Charles Lindsay. Charles has uncovered a plot to kidnap her, but Bella wonders if he isn’t a more dangerous threat, at least to her heart, than the villainous Graham Direlton he wrests her from.

Bella settles into the household of her Aunt Hatty Menzies in Edinburgh’s nineteenth century George Square where Charles is a regular visitor. She has been exiled to the north by her unfeeling mama, but feels more betrayed by her papa to whom she has been close. Bella hopes the delivery of her young cousin’s baby will eventually demonstrate her own innocence in the scandal that drove her from home.

Bella’s presence disrupts the lives of everyone connected to her. Direlton makes another attempt to kidnap her and in rescuing her a second time, Charles is compromised. Only a betrothal will save his business and Bella’s reputation.

Mayhem, murder and long suppressed family secrets raise confusion and seemingly endless difficulties. Will the growing but unacknowledged love between Bella and her Scottish architect survive the evil Direlton engineers?

About the Author:

ANNE STENHOUSE has always loved words. Reading them and using them greedily, she can’t truly remember a time when she couldn’t escape into the pages of a book and certainly can’t remember when she couldn’t talk and ask questions. Anne is a published and performed playwright. She studied both English and History at University in Edinburgh, and finds it a great joy to combine these two disciplines in her first novel, Mariah’s Marriage. Being a playwright means Anne loves dialogue and knows a piece is going well when she ‘begins to hear the characters talking to each other’. She has been a civil servant, full-time Mum and, for a while, a worker in an Addictions’ rehabilitation unit. Anne lives in Scotland with her husband and dancing partner of over thirty years. Their children and a grandchild are close by.

Review by Rochelle:

Bella’s Betrothal is about the granddaughter of an Earl who is sent to live with her aunt in Scotland when her reputation is ruined by rumors of an affair with a married man in London. The rumors are false, but her mother banishes her anyway, sending her on the long, perilous journey north without the protection of a male relative to escort her.

When the unscrupulous Lord Direlton hears of Bella’s pending arrival, he decides to kidnap her and have his way with her. He invites his buddies to partake, as well. Charles Lindsay is like a son to Bella’s uncle and wants nothing to do with the plot. He decides to rescue the girl, and falls in love with her at first sight. Part of him doesn’t believe the rumors and part of him doesn’t care about them. He’s already flaunting society by working as an architect, and Bella is working hard to clear her name. As time goes by and word arrives that her cousin is expecting while Bella is not, it becomes clear that Bella’s honor has not been compromised—until Direlton tries again to kidnap her and she and Charles are seen alone together late at night with their clothing rumpled. They must become betrothed to save both their honors.

I normally avoid historical romances. I absolutely hate anachronisms. There’s nothing worse than reading an historical book littered with modern idiom. When I expressed this opinion in an online discussion, Ms. Stenhouse challenged me to find an anachronism or modern idiom in her book, Bella’s Betrothal. I found one semi-questionable line that was so iffy, I didn’t even bookmark it.

Another of my pet peeves is the misuse of homonyms. One of the most confusing pairs is affect/effect. Rarely do I see the word effect used correctly as a verb. Yet, at twenty-seven percent of the way into the book, Charles says, “Give me the pen. I caused the damage, and I will effect a repair.” I almost fell out of my chair when I saw Ms. Stenhouse using “effect” correctly. Bravo! I have found a Regency author who not only avoids anachronisms, but knows how to write English grammatically! There must be something special about the Scottish school system, since that, I believe is where J. K. Rowling was also educated.

In addition to the historical consistency and good grammar, the characters are well-drawn and the action starts on page one and keeps you on the edge of your seat throughout the book. Bella is never quite certain of Charles’s feelings for her, and Direlton and his men hover over them like the flaming sword of Damocles. I really enjoyed this book, and look forward to more accurate, well-written, page-burning historical fiction from Ms. Stenhouse.

Author’s Website:

https://annestenhousenovelist.wordpress.com/

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/AnneStenhouseAuthor/

Amazon Author Page:  http://www.amazon.com/Anne-Stenhouse/e/B00D2UINKE/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1

Heat Rating:  PG-13

Length:  271 Pages

Digital Price:  $5.95

Buy Link:  https://museituppublishing.com/bookstore/index.php/museitup/romance/historical-romance/bella-s-betrothal-detail

You’ll notice we always include the publisher’s buy link. That’s because authors usually receive 40-50% of the net proceeds from the publisher. Editors and cover artists usually receive about 5%. When you buy a book from Amazon, Barnes & Noble or another third-party vendor, they take a hefty cut and the author, editors and cover artists receive their cuts from what is left. So, if a book costs $5.99 at E-Book Publisher.com and you buy from there, the author will receive about $2.40-$2.99. If you buy the book at Amazon, the author will receive about $1.70-$2.10.

Download the file from the publisher onto your computer as you would any other file. I’ve created a folder for books on my computer, with subfolders by source (Marketing for Romance Writers, Net Galley, Authors who find me on Kindle lists, etc.). That way, if there’s a glitch with your Kindle, the books are on your computer. Some publishers send books in all digital formats. If my Kindle breaks and my kids buy me a Nook, I won’t have to replace all of my books. If you have a Kindle and your hubby has a Nook, you won’t have to buy separate copies, so buying directly from the publisher can save you money.

Moving the file from your computer to your e-reader is as easy as transferring any file from your computer to a USB flash drive. 

Plug the larger USB end of your e-reader charging chord into a USB port on your computer and simply move the file from the folder into which you’ve downloaded the book to Documents/Books directory on your e-reader. Your author will be happy you did when he/she sees his/her royalty statement.

Thanks for visiting. Donna, Julie, & Rochelle

Son of a Duke by Jessie Clever

Blurb:

Society’s most capable housekeeper, Eleanora Quinton, has a problem.  Not only does a dead body fall right into the middle of her mistress’s ball and her son get kidnapped, the only person who can help her also forces her to face her most crippling fears.  

But the last thing Eleanora expects when the dead body hits the floor is love with the son of a duke. 

A spy for the British War Office and illegitimate son of a duke, Nathan Black pulls the infallible housekeeper into a cyclone of espionage, intrigue and danger as he searches for the meaning behind her son’s kidnapping. Fighting to keep Eleanora safe, Nathan struggles with his growing attraction to the unflappable housekeeper, but as the treasonous plot twists around, too many clues point to Eleanora and a past of which she will not speak. 

Can their love withstand her dangerous secret? 



Donna's Review:

In Son of a Spy Jessie Clever takes us into the world of espionage during the Napoleonic era. Spies abound, treachery is everywhere, and spy Nathan Black and head housemaid Eleanor Quinton’s worlds collide.

While there was nothing particularly remarkable about his book (I didn’t learn anything new, I wasn’t taken into a world I didn’t know, I didn’t have any earth shifting eye opening experiences) it was a very enjoyable read. The plotting was quick and moved along, and I found myself irked I had to put the book down when I just had to go do something. (My family does have to eat now and then.) I certainly did not mind picking it back up again. In fact, I made time to do so. That says a lot.

Jessie Clever has a distinctive, fresh style that is easy to read. The only problem with this is that the “voice” of each character sounds very much the same, but this is a skill authors refine over time. It is also one of the hardest things for an author to do. It did not, however, detract from the story, and this is Ms. Clever’s first novel. There is also the matter of quite a few mistakes, but again, I am easier on first books than subsequent books. 

The relationship between Nathan and Eleanor was sweet and endearing. Their internal and external goals are clearly defined straight away, and these goals play well off each other as they work towards their happily-ever-after. Clever leaves no stone unturned in making the most of her plot twists.

One word of caution – this book does goes beyond “steamy” as far as the sexual content, so if you only read clean fiction with nothing more than kissing, then I recommend you pass this one up.  There is also an unresolved story line with two characters (not Nathan and Eleanora), so you will wish to pick up the next book in the series right away if you read this one.

4 roses for this one for a quick, entertaining read.

Length: 297 pages

Price:     

   Print:   $9.99

   Digital: $2.99

Buy Link: http://www.amazon.com/Son-Duke-The-Series-Book-ebook/dp/B00DQI48YW