Reviews of the Classics and the contemporary…and Discovering Sarah M Eden

Roads of destiny by O. Henry ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Each story in this collection has a deep message, and ends with a gasp or a sweet surprise, or an involuntary “aww Henry” or a smile and sometimes a laugh.

Mail Order Bride: Bitter & Pregnant Michael Podgorski ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Even though it was shorter than I liked, it was really good. Not a typical mail ordered bride plot, the romance was sparse but I liked the characters, the dialogue and the ending.

The lady and the highwayman Sarah Eden ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I loved it, everything was a delight to read in this book. The stories within the story is a very enjoyable writing style, the romance is so sweet and romantic, the elements of suspense and intrigue are very powerful and I can’t wait to read the rest of the books, not just because they’re all good, but I really want to know the identity of DM or the Dread Master.

The gentleman and the thief by Sarah Eden ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Delightful, creative, eventful, enjoyable, intriguing and new style of writing to me by combining three stories in one book. I liked everything in the book, especially the writing style and how the romance was written. Each book in this series is a gem among today’s romance books.

Lady Anna by Anthony Trollope ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Even though the writing style was somewhat repetitive and dragging, I liked the book. What I liked the most was how Trollope painted the hideous face of aristocracy, how the “nobility” looked down at the people with no noble ancestry. I loved Anna, she’s one of the few female characters that I liked in Trollope’s books, I love how she’s written and how she is in general.
Mr. Thwiate’s presence was less than I liked, but he’s also a very likable character. The “evil” characters are written in a way that made me despise every one of them, which is a telltale sign of the author’s remarkable talent.

Necessary Proof by Camy Tang ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Fast paced full of action and suspense, the romance is nicely developed and the ending was sweet.

courage to heal by Shanae Johnson ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Sweet fast paced Christmas themed romance, with a beauty and the beast plot line.

LOVE FOR LENORE by Regina Tittel ⭐️⭐️⭐️
I liked the story and the fast paced style, the dialogue was enjoyable. The author leaned on sensuality more than romance, but in the end it was a good read.

Lightning Strikes By Bonnie McCune, Kim McMahill, Carlene Havel, Trinity Hart, & Josie Riviera ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I read this short story a few years ago, and I still remember some of the scenes. So it’s memorable, and sweet.

Cousin Maude by Mary Jane Holmes ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Sad, romantic, with a touch of mystery. Most of the atmosphere of the book was gloomy, even the few sweet moments and joyful events were overshadowed by the unfortunate events. But, It was a good read with a happy ending.

Bessie’s fortune by Mary Jane Holmes ⭐️
The story would’ve been better without the uninteresting mystery and the awful suspense that wasn’t suspenseful at all. The romance didn’t come until the second book, and there are too many tragedies for one story. The portrayal of the children was absurd, every child in the book acted way older than their age. Then it was too tedious to finish the book when it started to be repetitive and boring. I didn’t like any of the characters, they were either too weak or disgustingly evil, and they all cry….all. the. time.

Back to Classics

With some non fiction and Audiobooks

The Belton Estate by Anthony Trollope ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This is a story of a man’s nobility that shows in his actions rather than his family’s name, and another man’s nobility that evidently was by his family’s name only. I loved Will, poor Will. His love and passion are very romantic, something I didn’t expect in a Trollope book. But, Clara was annoyingly stubborn, and her stubbornness -which she mistakes for a strong will and independence- sometimes borders towards stupidity, by the end of the book, I even doubted the sincerity of her feelings.

Lost for love by Mary Elizabeth Braddon ⭐️⭐️⭐️

I should be prepared for Braddon’s style by now, but the myriad of feelings that I experience with every book I read by her is unstoppable. This book started well, the characters and the plot were interesting, then halfway through I was tempted to stop reading the book, but I persevered and through it all I never let myself hope for the best for any of the characters. Even if the ending was pleasant enough, the means that led to it was agonizing and unjust.

Dr. Wortle by Anthony Trollope ⭐️⭐️⭐️

not as good as other books by the author. Interesting story and a very slow pace, but I wanted to continue so I could find out how it will end.

A Weaver of Dreams by Myrtle Reed ⭐️⭐️

The author’s personal views on love and marriage are very obvious in her writing, the result is a gloomy story with unpleasant surprise and unsatisfying ending. This is the last book I will read by this author.

The Vintage ladies by Marilyn Messik⭐️⭐️⭐️

The pictures are wonderful, it gives us a glimpse of the past and how people used to pose for pictures. The commentary though, wasn’t funny and wasn’t what I wanted to read under each picture. I was hoping for a brief history of each Picture, instead I got a comic caption that I stopped reading after the first few pictures.

Rhett’s Make Believe Marriage by Liz Isaacson ⭐️⭐️

I liked the western atmosphere, I liked the plot and the development of the story, the characters are okay and Rhett’s character was the best. But, I wished the focus on the physical aspect of the relationship was non-existent, it was so distracting and ruined all of the above, it was like painting a beautiful picture then splashing a bucket of dirty water over it. there is so much innuendo and sexual tension between the main characters that I had to go check if this wasn’t a “religious romance” and the multiple POVs and stories was also distracting. I’m thoroughly discouraged from finishing this series.

Twin Souls by Barry Rachin ⭐️⭐️

Even with the unique writing style, and how intriguing the story was, the language and the ending made it hard to like this short story.

Trip’s Trivial Tie by Liz Isaacson ⭐️⭐️

The same plot like the first book, with different characters and less depth.

Liam’s Invented I-Do by Liz Isaacson ⭐️

Repetitive, predictable, and almost identical to the previous two books. … I give up on the rest of the series.

Where love begins by Donna Fletcher Crow ⭐️

Preaching book disguised as a romance story.

Hopeful Cowboy by Elana Johnson ⭐️⭐️⭐️

I loved the setting here, and the plot is very interesting. I liked how the characters are written and the dialogue was enjoyable. The romance is good and clean, it was really refreshing to read a kissing scene without any innuendo, but I wanted more emotional moments and more romantic gestures between Nate and Ginger. All in all, it was enjoyable to listen to the audiobook and I’m looking forward to listening to the rest of the books in this series.
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Mistakenly married by Victorine E. Lieske ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Funny, witty, and intriguing. Nothing typical and no clichés, the dialogue is funny and the romance is really clean. The best part about this series is the various plots and ingenuity in each story.

Blissfully married by Victorine E. Lieske ⭐️⭐️⭐️

I liked the comedy part of this romantic comedy, but not so much the romance. I didn’t like adding poor Ted to the mix and most of the “grownups” behavior here was somewhat immature. I might’ve liked it more if it was a young adult plot.

Acting married by Victorine E. Lieske ⭐️⭐️

I wish I could give it more stars but the humor wasn’t as plenty as the previous books, and the romance was almost the typical “I love her/him and I won’t say it until the end of the book”…almost. I still enjoyed listening to the audiobook, and I’m glad I found an author that I can read her books without hesitation or fearing clichés and physical “romance”.

Overprotective cowboy by Elana Johnson ⭐️⭐️

I liked Ted but I couldn’t tolerate Emma, the plot was fast paced but it was too identical to the previous book. It was okay and I’m looking forward to listening to the next book.

Smoothies for weight loss by Jackson Nash ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Really good recipes, easy to make and with available ingredients.

Back to Classics and Promised Reviews

The measure of Katie Calloway by Serena B. Miller ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Good plot that introduces us to the logging world, with a slow beginning, and too many events happening within a few days.
I especially liked the introduction of each chapter and the historical facts that are interwoven with the events of the story. I liked the well written characters and dialogue, and how the romance was written and developed. What I didn’t care for was the preaching, I understand it’s a Christian romance so I had to skip these parts of the book to enjoy it.

Rocky Mountain Oasis by Lynnette Bonner ⭐️⭐️⭐️ The thrilling part of the story is interesting and the romance is good, the preaching is overwhelming but I managed to skip it easily.

Charity’s Cross by MaryLu Tyndall ⭐️ I really didn’t like this book, even if the plot was really promising, it was written in a way that was almost repulsive. I didn’t like any of the characters, but Charity was the worst.

Smitten by Colleen Coble⭐️⭐️⭐️
I liked Colleen cobble’s story, the rest were okay. What I liked the most was the kissing scenes, they were not physical, but more on the emotional side.

Secretly Smitten by Colleen Coble and others ⭐️⭐️⭐️
This book is about a family of three girls and their mother, with a side of mystery surrounding their grandmother and her sisters. I liked Tess’s story and Anna’s story, but Zoey’s wasn’t romantic or interesting and Clare’s was a disappointment because I was looking forward to reading it, the plot and the writing style was a huge disappointment, I didn’t see how combining preaching with thighs could make a romantic story!

A blizzard wedding by Gay N. Lewis ⭐️⭐️⭐️
I read this book years ago and still remember that I liked it, the whole series is sweet and romantic. I didn’t like the preaching but it wasn’t overwhelming, and I could easily skip it.

Isabelle and Alexander by Rebecca Anderson ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
It is so refreshing to read a romance…..not physical attraction, not sexual tension…just real emotional and sweet at the same time romance. A convenient marriage is one of my favorite plots, and it was written here so beautifully, like it’s never been written like this before. There isn’t a dull moment in this story, unpredictable and fast paced, with a happy ending. The characters are brilliantly written, especially Isabelle, she’s everything I want to read in a romance book heroine. Glory is both a delightful and sad addition, the author gave a glimpse into the life of a family with an angel like her.
The cherry on top is how clean the romance is, and the necessary aspects of a marriage are hinted to delicately. All in all, this book is a rare gem in nowadays world of fictional romance.

The wedding invite by Melissa hill ⭐️⭐️
Too wordy, repetitive, and filled with uninteresting scenes and details.

Gretchen by Mary Jane Holmes Mary Jane Holmes ⭐️⭐️
A long series of agonizing misfortunes, and exaggerated emotional fits, with a slight hint of romance and a happy ending.

Taken at the flood by Mary Elizabeth Braddon ⭐️⭐️⭐️
This is not a romance, nonetheless, it was written beautifully. The heroine is the villain in this story, and around her most of the events took place. There are unexpected elements here, like the mystery and the unexpected twists and turns. Even if the general atmosphere is Christian, the message in this book was delivered without overwhelming preaching. The long detailed background of the main characters is understandable, but the lawyer’s background and family affairs felt unnecessary and was very uninteresting. Braddon’s style might be dark and gloomy, but by the end of the book you may be sure that justice will be served.

Jane Eyre and Other Books

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This is probably the third time I read this book, but I’ve never written a review for it until now. This book doesn’t need my review, its popularity that lived through the ages is enough to show how good it is. So this is only my humble opinion.
The writing style makes you live with Jane and feel her pain and suffering, from the very first paragraph you become invested in the life of this little girl, feel sorry for her and hate with vengeance those who mistreat and bully her. The orphanage era is a little better for her but not good, there we see the inside of a corrupt institution that starve children in the name of religion and the teaching of endurance.
The progress is smooth but there are a lot of poetic parts in between, I lose interest during these parts. Then we are rewarded by the introduction of Mr. Rochester, he should be a model for how a leading male character should be written in some romance books, every romance author should build their leading male characters on him. The romance between the two starts from their first meeting, and you can detect some of it with every encounter. It is not overdone nor it is lacking, you can feel it and fall in love and rejoice with these two. It’s so skillfully written that you’ll find yourself smiling with the sweet scenes and despair with the hopelessness of their situation. Religion was an important part here, but the author used it for a purpose, she didn’t preach, but the message was delivered nonetheless. The ending of the book is the best written ending of a romance story ever, for me at least, it took care of every little detail that was mentioned through out the book and was very satisfying, this is how every romance book should end.

Madam Love, Actually by Rich Amooi ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I loved this book because the plot was something you don’t read every day in a romance book, it was really funny and romantic. The best thing about this book is that it’s a clean read, and the ending was really good. The only thing I struggled with was the lies, there was too much to forgive but I guess love prevails in the end.

Mr. Crotchety by Rich Amooi ⭐️⭐️⭐️
The humor in this book is one of a few that made me laugh out loud, and the romance was so sweet -except that tango tongue kiss- and the ending was perfect.

Bored of the Rings by Rich Amooi ⭐️⭐️⭐️
While I liked the plot and the humor was nice, I didn’t appreciate the dirty jokes. The author could’ve skipped those and he would still have a beautifully written romantic comedy.

Dead Love Has Chains by Mary Elizabeth Braddon ⭐️⭐️⭐️
You know the saying that you should not go shopping on an empty stomach, well you should not read a Mary Elizabeth Braddon when you’re depressed. This probably is the last book I read by this author, not because she’s not good, far from it, but her books plots are very depressingly good. This was no different, suffering and agony from the beginning of the book. And don’t expect a happy ending, you’re welcome.

Hot Shot By Denise Devine ⭐️⭐️
An okay fast read, clean but nothing else special about it.

The Duke’s Bride in Disguise by Claudia Stone ⭐️⭐️
This book is an example of how shallow language can ruin a good story, the plot and the characters are good but the romance wasn’t a romance. When it came to the two main characters, fantasizing about each other’s thighs and curves wasn’t romantic, every single “romantic” notion in this book was pure physical urges.

The duke’s governess in disguise by Claudia Stone ⭐️⭐️
The same physical attraction ‘not romance’ is present in this book, which is really disappointing because the plot was good. So, with the repeating of parts from the previous book, word by word, this became a two stars review. Some inspirations from Jane Eyre can also be detected here.

Blind Spot by Sariah Wilson ⭐️⭐️
Nice light read, even if it was predictable and focused on physical attraction rather than real emotional connection. It was funny and I liked Paulo, and the ending was nice too.

Abraham by Jennifer Beckstrand ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Abraham is a unique character in nowadays romance books, he’s not the usual combination of good looks and strong character, he’s insecure and shy. It’s a light, drama free book, the twins antics were mostly fun and the religion didn’t dominate the whole book -a huge plus for me- unfortunately neither did the romance.

The importance of being Eunice by Claudia Stone ⭐️
I really liked how this book started and had high hopes for it, until the first meeting of the two main characters, innuendo was unleashed like a wild animal. In fact, romance was absent from this story, until the very last scene, that was the only romantic scene in the whole book, which was described by the author as “wasn’t the most romantic of scenes”. I won’t be reading any more of this author’s books, the writing style is not good.

DiPrinanio’s Stand by Jim Caldwell ⭐️⭐️⭐️
The plot of this book is different from any romance story I’ve read before, the characters are written well, the dialogue is enjoyable to read and there was no cliches or typical moments in it. The ending was good but I needed more, there was a gap between two critical times in the end, it felt rushed and left out a lot of important moments.

katies first social by By Elanor Miller ⭐️⭐️
Very typical and very short Amish romance, with good writing style and a happy ending.

Echoes of Daniel A 5-minute romantic thriller by Bronwyn Parry ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Lovely five pages read, a shot of thrill and some romance with a happy ending.

#Awestruck Sariah Wilson ⭐️

Shallow, typical, predictable and filled with clichés from every romance book out there.

Old Disappointment and New Disappointments

Homegrown Dandelions by Judith Bronte ⭐️⭐️
The beginning was good, but as the story progressed I found many unpleasant things in this book. For example, the women folk here are written in a very weird way, slobbering after a man even fighting over him. And for a religious book, the innuendo was too much. The only thing I liked is the way the kids were written, especially Rayan.

The Day Will Come by Mary Elizabeth Braddon ⭐️⭐️
This book has a theme, and it’s not criminal. At first you’ll believe this book is a romance story with a whodunnit theme, but as you continue reading you realize that there’s a hidden message and it’s about elopement and the grim fate of its pursuers. Reading the first few chapters of the marital bliss for the newlyweds was a torture, because the blurb tells you how it will end. The mystery is not hard to solve, I figured out the identity of the murderer halfway through the first volume. And derailing from the main plot was very annoying and uninteresting, I really didn’t want to know the details of other unrelated characters, but as I said it was for the sake of a hidden message in this book. The ending was less than satisfying.

The Reluctant Widow by Georgette Heyer ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I liked it, even if romance wasn’t the main theme and was very vague. The characters are very well written, even Bouncer the dog was a delight to read. I thought this will be a very gloomy book with murders and villains, but it wasn’t, I was surprised by the humor that was present from the beginning.

Mary Barton by Elizabeth Gaskell ⭐️⭐️⭐️
This is a very gloomy read, there’s too much death and those who survive are doomed with a loss of sight or hearing or both. But it’s an eye opener, poverty is still present in our lives and starvation is not rare. The quotes and the old songs took a big part of the book, a few verses would’ve sufficed but it was too long for me. All in all, it’s a very sad read with a dash of romance and a satisfying ending.

This Rough Magic by Mary Stewart ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This is the mother of all mysteries that I’ve read so far by Mary Stewart, and the romance was a big part of the plot. When I read a mystery book I usually solve the mystery before finishing the first half of the book, that wasn’t the case here, it was very cleverly written. As I was reading, one question was on my mind “how come no one write like this nowadays?”. I really enjoyed this book and the ending was mind blowing… pun intended😉.

The Child is Mine by Mildred Colvin ⭐️⭐️
The plot is interesting and I really liked the babies scenes, the romance was disappointing though. I didn’t like the protagonist at all, but Beth the mother was written nicely, Beth the heroine wasn’t. The last part of the book was written in a very typical Harlequin style, minus the physical and sexual interactions.

Alice Adams by Booth Tarkington ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Leave it to Tarkington to write a’Woman’. All of the female characters in this book are unlikeable and realistic. From the start you can see how the author magnifies the flaws in Alice, her mother and before them the nurse, and we even find ourselves sympathetic with the husband and the brother…i,e the ’Men’. This was not a fiction book, it’s very realistic and very unpleasant read.

A Brother’s Duty By Bill Sanderson ⭐️⭐️
The plot is good but the writing was amateurish. There is too much unnecessary filling and too much religion, with nice clean romance.

A Pine Island Christmas by Caroline Mickilson ⭐️⭐️⭐️
I liked the plot and the characters, but it was too fast to fall in love after seeing each other a couple of times, I would’ve liked it better if there was a longer time frame between meeting and falling in love.

The Wedding Chapel by Caroline Mickilson ⭐️⭐️
I liked the plot, the humor was nice and the mystery was good, but the romance wasn’t that good, there was that focus on body parts and physical attraction that could make any love story less enjoyable. And the two main characters were neither interesting nor realistic.

Storm on the Horizon by Kathi Macias ⭐️
Too preachy, the mystery and romance were almost nonexistent.

Witch Weigh by Caroline Mickilson ⭐️⭐️
I love magic and witches, so naturally the plot is good. What I don’t love is writing sexual and physical attraction as romance, the author seems to focus on that instead of actual romantic feelings and emotions. Other than that, I enjoyed the magic and the humor.

Her big fat foxy billionaire by Victorine E. Lieske ⭐️⭐️⭐️
The friendship between the two main characters was really enjoyable to read, but not the romance, there wasn’t anything special or unique about it. I did appreciated how the romance was portrayed, clean and not as physical attraction but as something deeper and meaningful.

Treasures and Other Books

The Trimmed Lamp by O. Henry ⭐️⭐️

This book was going to be a two stars ‘just okay’ review, but then it started to be better. Some of the stories were more like essays, the contemplations of the author dominated the plot. Then there are some where the well known style of Henry’s storytelling was back with an admirable wealth of imagination.
The ones I liked are: The Trimmed Lamp. The Rubaiyat of a Scotch Highball. Two Thanksgiving Day Gentlemen. The Buyers from Cactus City. The Badge of Policeman O’roon. Vanity and Some Sables. The Purple Dress. The Lost Blend. A Harlem Tragedy (hilarious). The Last Leaf (goosebumps). The Count and the Wedding Guest.

Please Come to Dundee by Anne Hendricks ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Very short but very sweet and romantic.

Man Smoothies by Chris Kane ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Easy to make smoothies with ingredients that -most of them- are available for everyone, and I really liked the names of the smoothies.

Ayala’s Angle by Anthony Trollope ⭐️⭐️⭐️
I didn’t like Ayala, maybe because she’s immature delusional creature, and maybe I -unfortunately- could relate to her way of thinking. I wished the plot was about Lucy instead, and the difficulties of being with the one she loves, but the difficulties here are of a more complicated nature. It’s obvious that the author is highlighting how the money is running people’s lives, your wishes and thoughts are of no consequence. Some of the characters were really frustrating, and I guess it’s all for the benefit of the protagonist. You’d think I got used to Trollope’s repetitive writing style, but it’s still as frustrating as ever.

Whirligigs by O. Henry ⭐️⭐️⭐️
This collection was like other collections by the same author when it comes to romance, it was sweet and very romantic. The rest of the stories are less romantic and more dramatic and deeper in meaning, which is a plus for me. Some of them with subjects that are not very interesting to me, but I kept reading because I like Henry’s style.

Silverbeach Manor by Margaret S. Haycraft ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Deeply dramatic and somewhat religious, religion wasn’t overwhelming though. I liked the plot and the writing style, and the romance was nice but not dominant.

Go Softly All My Years by Virginia Benson ⭐️⭐️
Nice plot with high doses of religion, politics and a variety of historic facts. I might’ve liked it better if the dosage of each was moderate, but unfortunately it overwhelmed the whole book. The romance was vague, except for the kiss after every meal -which reminded me of an article about how men expected payment in the shape of a kiss or more after a dinner date with a woman- there was nothing romantic about how the couple treated each other, and most of their talk is about politics and the war.

Black Sheep by Georgette Heyer ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I believe that Jane Austin had built a “city” in regency romance genre, and Georgette Heyer built a whole nation from that city. It’s as if she could never run out of new plots and characters, and there’s something surprising in every book that I’ve read so far by her! This was no different, Miles is not like any protagonist that I’ve encountered in her books, and the ending -the surprise- was amazing. The only thing that was almost irritating is giving Stacy a lot of undeserving space, I would’ve liked it reserved for the two main characters instead.

Thunder on the Right by Mary Stewart ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I like reading mysteries but I love Mary Stewart’s mysteries. This book was no exception, even with the slight irritation because I didn’t understand the French dialogue in addition to some predictable moments towards the end of book. The characters were marvelously written and there was more romance here than in other books by Mary Stewart. Painting places, buildings, people and more with words is something I enjoy reading and this author had a rare talent doing just that.

Charity Girl by Georgette Heyer ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Satisfaction is guaranteed with every book I read by Georgette Heyer, even if the dose of romance was less than I hoped for in this one. The plot is different, and we were introduced to a variety of characters, plus the point of view here is from the male protagonist, which gives an exclusive look into the male community of the regency era. Charity is very different from the usual strong female characters that we find in each one of Georgette Heyer books, and the beginning of the book kept me guessing about the main female character, but as I read on everything became clearer. The humor was really good here and the ending was very sweet as usual in Georgette Heyer books.

A Classic Masterpiece and Discovering O. Henry

The masqueraders Georgette Heyer ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I loved it, I had to read the first chapter twice to untangle the confusion of who’s who, but after that everything went very smoothly. The plot is new to me for Heyer’s books and all the characters are great, I especially loved Robin, he’s funny and his role as miss Merriot was done beautifully, the scene with him dancing with Tony was hilarious. As for the romance, be still my heart, it’s everything you look in a romantic fairytale but with a delicious subtlety. The “mountain” character was a new form of hero to me, like a mountain he’s calm and placid on the outside but volcanic in the inside. The ending was really satisfying and it reminded me of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night -my favorite among his plays- and as Heyer put it here, everyone got their “happily ever after”.

Taking Their Second Chance Brenna Welles ⭐️⭐️
Lovely Western atmosphere , clean romance, nice plot and perfect setting. Unfortunately , the ending was very disappointing.

The actor’s wife by Vidal D’costa ⭐️⭐️⭐️
I liked it, the plot is simple but the events and the pace were good. I really liked the Scottish accent, the humor was nice too.

The four million by O. Henry ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Where do I start! Each story in this collection was a masterpiece. Some had romance and the other had comedy as the dominant element, but the last one was different. The furnished room was a hard one to read, I won’t give any details but I’ll just advise you to read it first before you go through the other stories. My only complaint is the language, it’s very literary and almost ruined the book for me, but it didn’t.

Monsieur Beaucaire by Booth Tarkington ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Different genre by this author, it was fast paced and intriguing. No real romance here, but the ending was good.

The gentle grafter by O. Henry ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Even though I didn’t like the plot, the humor and the storytelling style was enjoyable. I liked the writing style of the stories and the surprising end of each one of them.

Strictly Business by O. Henry ⭐️⭐️⭐️
I enjoyed the well known style of O. Henry , I liked some of the stories here and loved one, but most of them were too philosophical for my taste.

Gentle Julia by Booth Tarkington ⭐️⭐️
I’ve never hated a 13 year old character as much as I hated Florence, and her aunt “Not gentle Julia” is even worse. In fact, I didn’t like any character in this book, except Katie Silver, she’s the best written character in this book. But I liked Tarkington’s sense of humor, whether it’s about children antics or grown ups suffering.

A Sky So Big By Ransom Wilcox & Karl Beckstrand ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This was an adventurous read, most of the plot was in the wilderness fighting against harsh nature and wild west hunters. The style is not a favorite but it kept my interest, I liked the characters and how they’re written, but Wade’s was very real and very special. I expected a long boring read, fortunately this wasn’t the case.

Alice Dugdale by Anthony Trollope ⭐️⭐️⭐️
This is a short book for Trollope, I was glad it wasn’t filled with unnecessary details and concluded the plot quite fast. The “hero” was obviously spineless and indecisive, but I liked Alice. The characters are well written, but the desperate mother was really annoying.

Reviews of Masterpieces and Contemporary Books

When breaks the dawn⭐️
A book about how the frontiers were working so hard to change the native people’s language, religion and ways of life, and their struggle to cope with the limited resources among other issues. Some things in the book didn’t feel right, for example, I was surprised when a native boy was compared to a dog because he can’t talk. There was no romance, unless you consider a tentative husband romantic, and the religion didn’t hold my interest.

Almost an angel by Debbie Macomber ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This is an office romance, -a favorite genre- it’s classic with some touches to modernize it. The plot is different and the characters were special each in their own way, but I especially loved the kid’s character, she was so funny and believable. I really enjoy Debbie Macomber’s clean books, like this one, because there is absolutely nothing sexual about the kisses or any other romantic gesture in the books. I like my romances spiritual not physical.

Lady of quality by Georgette Heyer ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I never thought Georgette Heyer have a romantic comedy book, and this is one! It has it all, the banter, the comebacks and the shocking -in a funny way- remarks. From the beginning, the humor was there, and the main characters’ love of laughter was evident. I loved Miss Wychwood and Mr. Carleton is officially one of my favorite male characters. The ending scene was by far the funniest and most romantic.

Parents in training by Barbara McMahon ⭐️⭐️⭐️
This is the journey of a married couple trying to define their relationship , find love in their five years marriage, and discovering what they really want in life. The plot is good but was very repetitive, and the ending was predictable. But the fact that the author wrote a clean romance about a married couple was a plus.

Nine couches waiting by Mary Stewart ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This book has it all, romance, mystery, suspense and a happy ending. I loved the characters and the writing style that was really gripping. Since the beginning of the book I was trying to figure out who’s the protagonist, and I never did, not until the last epic scene when confessions were made. This is another masterpiece by Mary Stewart that I feel the need to read again, each character was written beautifully and the development of the events sailed through smoothly.

Beauvallet Georgette Heyer ⭐️⭐️⭐️
I loved Simon the Coldheart, but didn’t love this “sequel” as much. I liked the plot and Beauvallet’s character was very enjoyable to read, but I didn’t like the heroine.

A civil contract by Georgette Heyer ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Ever thought that sometimes your one true love is not the person who will make you happy? I don’t like love triangle plots, but you – I – can’t dislike a Georgette Heyer book. The story was beautifully written and the flow of events was fast paced and intriguing. You will have questions and doubts at the beginning but little by little the questions will be answered and the doubts vanish.
I sympathized with the three characters that made the love triangle, and I found that each was cleverly written to convey a certain message. There was some hints to Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austin in this book, but there is no similarity between the two. Here is a new way to look at romance, and a sub genre should be named after this book.

Summer at Firefly beach by Jenny Hale ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Even though reading a clean romance is really refreshing, but this one was marred by the unbelievable grief for an aunt who died six months ago, and trying to fill it up with long monologues. I lost my interest during these monologues, but I enjoyed Ben and Hallie’s relationship.

Magic wand ranch by Caroline Mickelson ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I like everything about magic and cowboys, so this book has the ingredients for a magical romance. The kids were written hilariously and the style in general was really good and enjoyable. The ending wasn’t predictable but it could’ve been better, and the best part was that it’s a clean romance.

Western vs Regency

Footsteps in the dark by Georgette Heyer ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I’m awestruck by Heyer’s imagination, a whole book and not a single cliche.
I can’t remember the last time I was so intrigued by a thriller as much as I am by this book, you never know what will happen next and you can’t wait to know the answer to this mystery. Romance and humor are a welcome addition to the plot and I loved Charles, all characters are well written but he was my favorite.

Jacob’s Daughter by Samantha Jillian Bayarr ⭐️⭐️
The way the main characters got married was unrealistic, they both didn’t say or do anything to stop it wasn’t convincing. Too much inner thoughts, and it was very repetitive. The Amish words are distracting and so are the names of mother and daughter, I couldn’t tell one from the other.

The heritage of the desert Zane Grey ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
As a western fiction fan I loved this book, even if the romance didn’t meet my expectations. The limitless imagination of the author was amazing, I loved the how the characters were written and developed. The portraying of the wild scenery was really good that I could almost see it, and the writing style was really enjoyable and absorbing.

Riders of the purple sage Zane Grey ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Unlike The heritage of the desert, this book was against Mormons and their lifestyle. I didn’t like it as much as The heritage of the desert, and the ending wasn’t very satisfying. I couldn’t feel the romance and the adventures weren’t really exciting, actually I was bored by the details of everything.

The rainbow trail Zane Grey ⭐️⭐️⭐️
I liked the plot but it was too slow and predictable for a Zain Gray book, and I was hoping it would continue where the first book ended with Jane and Lassiter. The suffering of the women from that era is very well written, and so is the injustice that native Americans were suffering from. All in all it’s a nice read and the ending was good.

Just Ella (Books of Dalthia Book 1) by Annette K. Larsen
I thought this book will be boring and predictable romance but It really wasn’t, I actually enjoyed it. I was surprised that I related to Ella in more than one way, I kept thinking that I would do or say what she did or said if I was in her shoes. It’s a clean sweet romance and I enjoyed listening to the author reading it on YouTube and I recommend it.

 Rustlers of Pecos county Zane Grey ⭐️⭐️⭐️
This book was a little bit different from other books I’ve read so far, the romance was a big factor in the story, and the long description was missing. I liked the humor but wished the point of view was told by both Russ and Steel, I wanted more Steel scenes. I love my romance and I love a big dose of it, unfortunately, Grey is brilliant and remarkable author when it comes the western genre but not so much in romance, at least for me. None the less, a Zane Grey book is always an enjoyable read and I highly recommend it.

The unfinished clue by Georgette Heyer ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genuinely written mystery. It started with many similarities to Envious Casca, but it turned out to be a lot better. It’s a detective fiction story so romance -naturally- was at minimum, nevertheless it was sweet and romantic.

Forgiveness Found in Honey Grove: A Sweet, Small Town Romance (A Braxton Family Romance Book 4) by Anne-Marie Meyer ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Good plot, nicely written characters and sweet romance but it has some issues. It could’ve been a 5 stars read if it wasn’t for the ongoing agony and describing every single insignificant action.

To the last man Zane Grey ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A western Romeo and Juliette story in a lawless country, thriller like no other. The writing style here was a little bit different, it was really thrilling and emotionally intense.

The Billionaire’s black book Amy DeLuca ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Really smart retelling of my favorite fairy tale, with a look inside the world and mind of an author. It’s romantic and realistic at the same time, but the best part was that it’s a clean romance. I really liked it and would like to read the next book too.

The billionaire secret marriage ⭐️⭐️⭐️
I liked the plot -one of my favorites- and the look inside the world of a disabled person. But I wanted a real development, any development. Unfortunately, it was the usual agonizing “I love him but I can’t tell him and I love her but I can’t tell her”. Not bad but I won’t read any more of the series.

My Latest Reads

Wasted Years JY Saville ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Nice plot and believable characters, good writing style with a nice touch of humor in it, and the setting was very interesting. My only complaint is that it took way too long for what felt like the beginning of a romance to actually happen, [spoiler alert] and when it did it was at the very end of the book. I didn’t mind though, I even enjoyed reading it and would love to read a sequel.

Dr. Thorne by Anthony Trollope ⭐️⭐️⭐️
This one came after skimming through the first two books in this series, it was better than the previous books but I thought dr. Thorne will have a share in the romance, unfortunately he never did. I liked the characters and the development of the plot but didn’t like the long descriptions of places nor the long background recital of each character. I did enjoy the book but couldn’t get over a feeling that the happy ending was built over the death of others.
I listened to a librivox recording and the narrator was one of the best.

Glass Slippers, Ever After, and Me (Proper Romance) by Julie Wright ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Brilliant! Was the first word that came out of my mouth at the last word of this book. It was perfect; so romantic it hurts, so realistic it stings, so funny I laughed out loud and so sweet it almost brought tears to my eyes. I keep wondering why romance authors think sex is essential in a romance novel, this book is a proof that you can write a clean meaningful deep -definitely not shallow- romance. I don’t often recommend books but I highly recommend this one to romance readers.

Black Oxen by Gertrude Atherton ⭐️⭐️⭐️
I’ve heard of having “mixed feelings” about a book but never had any, not until I read this one. I liked the plot and the writing style is admirable, too deep and philosophical but it reveals so many emotions and ideas we never knew we had and it almost destroyed my hopeless romantic vision of love. [spoiler alert] the ending was neither disappointing nor satisfying, I wanted a different ending but the conclusion wasn’t bad….hence the mixed feelings.

What the Wind Knows by Amy Harmon ⭐️
I decided to read this book because it is labeled as “clean & wholesome” -I reported it to Amazon and the label was thankfully removed- it wasn’t clean but it was wholesome. It would’ve been a master piece but the author opted for sexual scenes which ruined the whole book for me, and the ending wasn’t better.

The Yellow Dove by George Gibbs ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
“Not for twenty Englands”
I loved this book, it’s definitely the best book among George Gibbs books. It’s very different from every other book I’ve read so far by him, the plot is very suspenseful and romantic at the same time. No dull moment with this one, you’re always on the edge of your seat, hoping for a happy ending but you can never tell what will happen next. Unlike his other books, this one has a faint religious tone, and the typical love triangle in GG’s other books is -thankfully- not present here.