An engaging, edifying Regency romance with a side of social conscience.
In Baxter’s historical romance, a widowed aristocrat’s desire for independence clashes with a new love interest.
The young, widowed Isabel, the Marchioness of Axbridge, eschews all ambitions of remarriage; her late husband, an elderly marquess, left her with wealth, respectability, and the independence to do as she pleases. “Marriage is a ridiculous ambition for a woman who has attained some form of independence,” she feels. The blond-haired and blue-eyed Isabel now devotes her time to writing abolitionist pamphlets decrying slavery in England. “I think it is a disgrace that it continues,” she indignantly argues. The dark Mr. Drake and the handsome Marcus Bateman also support abolition, and both express admiration for Isabel. Meanwhile, the repugnant Mr. Wetherby, a known enslaver, accosts her at every turn. “How else are we meant to run our plantations without such labour?” he sneers. “Females have the most nonsensical ideas.” His lack of character (and his tendency to assault her) infuriates Isabel, who feels pressured to tolerate him in society. Meanwhile, Isabel must judge the integrity of her two other suitors, Mr. Drake and Mr. Bateman. Both have secrets, but only one of them tempts her to consider a love match. While the narrative takes the form of a Regency romance, the inclusion of issues like slavery and violence against women provokes reflection on modern society and adds to the depth of the story, which otherwise might focus on such activities as trimming hats with ribbon or donning beautiful dresses. Period references to the 19th century, such as the Caribbean sugar cane boycotts and the cotton trade, provide historically accurate context. Isabel’s status as a Methodist follower of John Wesley in a world where slavery connects with economic interests illustrates faith-based approaches to activism. But Isabel’s privileged position as a wealthy white woman unfortunately means that some passages involve the usual pitfalls of discussing Black experiences through a white lens. Still, Isabel’s sincere desire to make a difference in her world rings true.
An engaging, edifying Regency romance with a side of social conscience.Pub Date: March 17, 2026
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: March 13, 2026
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A romance that could have used significant rethinking.
Childhood friends, almost-sweethearts, a misunderstanding, and a funeral.
Blair Lang and Declan Renshaw were best friends who went on one date before a disagreement and an accident sent them in different directions after high school. Now Blair is back from college to be with her great-aunt Lottie, who’s dying, and to support her single mother in small-town Seabrook, California. Finding a job at a coffee shop puts her in the path of her former boyfriend, since he turns out to be its owner. Can the two get past their mistakes? The novel uses the popular second-chance romance trope, but Pham fails to energize it through interesting characters. Blair’s grief over her great-aunt’s death and her plan to help her mother are overshadowed by internal monologues about her feelings, the way her friends aren’t paying attention to her, and the novel she plans to write. Declan’s distinguishing characteristic, besides being a former high school quarterback, is his skill at building birdhouses. Unsurprisingly, the couple doesn’t have much chemistry; when they embrace, their “bodies meld like…memory foam.” The wooden characters, unusual word choices (“conglomerate of pedestrians,” “litany of plants”), and odd turns of phrase (“tension melting from his eyebrows like butter melting in a warm pan”) are almost enough to obscure the lack of plot development. What passes for stakes is easily defused when Blair comes into an inheritance that saves her from working as a consultant at Ernst & Young in New York—so she can write a romance novel.
A romance that could have used significant rethinking.Pub Date: March 3, 2026
ISBN: 9781668095188
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: Feb. 16, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2026
A smart, steamy romance.
Tomforde’s sports romance pairs boardroom power plays with dugout drama.
As the youngest and only female owner of a Major League Baseball team, Reese Remington is used to pressure. Even though Reese is the granddaughter of the Windy City Warriors’ former owner, the men around her still question her position; she’ll “most likely have to work twice as hard and make [the] club’s success twice as noticeable to have any hope of being viewed as the right person to operate this team.” It doesn’t help that the franchise is bleeding money, the result of her grandfather’s hands-off approach in the years before his retirement. Reese must use her razor-sharp intelligence and fierce business sense to not only prove herself in a role in which the public is eager to see her fail, but also to make unpopular financial decisions to get the team out of the red. Enter Emmett Montgomery, a former All-Star turned field manager whose priorities lie firmly with people rather than profit. A man devoted to his team and his adopted child, Emmett has long since closed the door on romance, despite gentle nudging from his loved ones. His empathetic team-first mentality puts him immediately at odds with Reese’s pragmatic agenda, and with his contract up at the end of the year, Emmett worries he’ll be on the chopping block if he speaks out too much. Told from the perspectives of the leads, the novel gives equal page time to Reese and Emmett. Their concerns––the scrutiny Reese must endure as a woman in a male-dominated industry, and Emmett’s worries over his contract renewal––are tangible and add a sense of urgency to their every decision. While the novel includes some unavoidable exposition dumps to orient readers, it more than compensates by establishing clear stakes and a sense of momentum from the outset. The narrative successfully introduces credible barriers to the romance, which largely follows recognizable genre beats. The baseball setting is also used effectively, with the season-long arc mirroring the couple’s romantic and professional journeys.
A smart, steamy romance.Pub Date: March 3, 2026
ISBN: 9781649379795
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Entangled: Amara
Review Posted Online: Feb. 13, 2026
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
