A deeply thoughtful and well-developed love story.
Two women at a convent find love with each other in Douglas’ historical novel, set in the 1960s.
Maureen Collins doesn’t believe in church doctrines, and she’s not even sure if she believes in God. She joined a convent, taking the name Sister Matthew, to have a place where she’s surrounded by women; she also wanted to learn how to be a better person and to better serve the world. However, she found what she was truly seeking, not in the enforced silence, constant praying, or isolation from society but in her love for another woman. Rose Clancy grew up first with a father who often yelled at her mother and then with a widowed mother who drank too much. She escaped into what she calls “time travel,” in which her mind wandered to distant places and times and provided visions she believed were sent from God. Her church and Catholic school were safe havens from her troubled family, and her faith had always been her true home. It seemed a logical choice to join a convent and live a spiritual life in service to others. She didn’t plan on falling in love. This historical romance tells the story of two women who, against all odds and all indoctrination, find that life can be better than they ever imagined. Douglas, who wrote the fantasy romance Lancelot: Her Story (2015), once again picks up the theme of oppression facing people in love. The work masterfully and respectfully discusses the Catholic religion, offering criticism when necessary, and interweaves these analyses into the characters of Maureen and Rose. The author shows how all the nuns at the convent learn to live with the heavy duties, responsibilities, and restrictions of their chosen life. In addition, the narrative provides glimpses into the outside world and the greater events surrounding the characters, showing how society is changing; it also reveals how isolated the women are from information and what that means for their faith. Douglas does a fantastic job of building out her fictional world and putting the romance at the center of it all.
A deeply thoughtful and well-developed love story.Pub Date: Sept. 17, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-9967722-9-7
Page Count: 415
Publisher: Hermoine Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 29, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A top-notch, spooky Regency page-turner.
Two lady novelists are haunted—and not just by thoughts of each other.
Lady Georgiana Cleeve has had enough. She and her mother gave up everything to escape her abusive father, and her writing career keeps them afloat, but lately every time she writes a novel, it's plagiarized before it’s even published by someone calling herself Lady Darling. When, after staking out Belvoir’s Library one morning at dawn, she discovers to her horror that Lady Darling is none other than Catriona Lacey, the daughter of her family’s butler, with whom she was once “hopelessly infatuated.” It turns out that Cat—shocked to see the aristocratic girl she used to pine for—also depends on writing Gothic romances to support her family. Unfortunately, after they part ways in the worst of tempers, they almost immediately see each other again at their publisher’s office, and then at a haunted churchyard, and then, somehow, at a haunted house in Wiltshire where both expected to find inspiration for their next novel. They agree to stay out of each other’s way, but in just a few days, their chemistry has fully reignited. Their first kiss is the “most erotic” experience either has had, but after their second kiss, they find a dead body in the probably haunted garden—and things only get stranger from there. And despite the supernatural happenings and growing danger, they can’t keep their hands off each other, leading both to wonder if a future together might be possible. The third story in the Belvoir’s Library series starts in the bookstore and then, as the women face being haunted by both the paranormal and their pasts, comes alive against the eerie setting. Georgie and Cat are tempted into plenty of scorching-hot moments no matter where they are, and they forge a gripping emotional connection as well. The satisfying ending is topped only by the excellent author’s note, in which readers will be delighted to learn how much of the story was drawn from the historical record.
A top-notch, spooky Regency page-turner.Pub Date: Sept. 23, 2025
ISBN: 9781250910981
Page Count: 352
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Review Posted Online: July 4, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A bumpkin duke and a young woman belatedly acquiring a gentlewoman’s education make for an entertaining love story.
When a Regency duke would rather feed blancmange to his prize pig than pay court to prospective brides, it’s fortunate that the girl next door also likes pigs.
Anthony Farr, Duke of Radcliffe survived an unhappy first marriage and is deathly afraid of marrying again. He would rather spend his days pottering about on his farm and skipping stones on the lake with his 8-year-old son, Wakefield. But when a poor relation of the Penhallow family arrives in the neighborhood, she quickly becomes friends with both Anthony and Wakefield. Where Anthony is simple and even childlike, Jane Kent is just uneducated and still suffering from the traumas of spending her early life in poverty. In their first encounter, afternoon tea in the company of Jane’s relatives turns into a fierce competition. Jane and Anthony are both determined to devour more food than the other—all while maintaining a polite facade. It’s the first of many deftly funny scenes in the novel, although some of the jokes become a little repetitive, such as Wakefield’s frequent mispronunciations of long words. The dialogue, too, is both funny and a little tiresome, with long conversations that don’t significantly advance the plot. But the book has other strengths that set it apart from typical Regency romances. It’s body-positive. There are several scenes where Jane, Anthony, and Wakefield demolish decadent food. There’s also a little light sadomasochism, which feels surprising since the main characters are otherwise so childlike. And it's a nice portrait of what courtship is like for a dedicated single parent. The child and his needs are central to the love story.
A bumpkin duke and a young woman belatedly acquiring a gentlewoman’s education make for an entertaining love story.Pub Date: Jan. 12, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-06-285237-3
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Avon/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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