A briskly paced, entertaining historical romance.
In Brewer’s (Quests, 2016, etc.) historical novel, a land deal brings romance and mortal danger into the life of a member of the House of Commons in 1536.
Master Easterling, a goldsmith and banker, is interested in a pending decision by the Crown to seize smaller abbeys and monasteries and sell their land. Easterling wants to purchase real estate for his son, so he invites Henry Barrowby, a member of the Commons for Bedfordshire, to dinner to get an update on the decision. While discussing business, Barrowby is enchanted by his host’s beautiful daughter, Mary; however, she’s being courted by another guest, Lord Lavenham. Barrowby distrusts Lavenham’s motives, and his suspicions take on added urgency when Barrowby is attacked in a local market, presumably on Lavenham’s orders. Easterling offers the MP a safe place to recover, and his attraction to Mary soon turns into a romance and engagement. Undeterred, Lavenham continues his scheme to win Mary’s hand, placing Barrowby and his trusted manservant, Tom Cross, under threat. As the MP navigates the complexities of the land deal, he becomes locked in a race against time to outwit Lavenham and marry his beloved Mary. Brewer’s latest is a rollicking, fast-paced romance replete with action and political intrigue. Barrowby is a thoughtful, amiable protagonist who meets his match in the passionate, intelligent Mary. Although their love story forms the emotional center of the novel, Brewer successfully incorporates two other romances: Tom Cross’ courtship of serving woman Stephanie Duchanel and Lavenham’s relationship with Mary Swanford, Barrowby’s former fiancee. Brewer successfully balances these romantic aspects with well-staged action sequences—particularly Barrowby and Cross’ encounter with Lavenham’s henchmen in a cemetery. Historical details abound, from the significance of certain colors of clothing to the royal intrigue surrounding Anne Boleyn. The novel would have benefited from a stronger copy edit, however.
A briskly paced, entertaining historical romance.Pub Date: Nov. 21, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4917-8053-4
Page Count: 162
Publisher: iUniverse
Review Posted Online: May 25, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
With frank language and patient plotting, this gangly teen crush grows into a confident adult love affair.
Eleven years ago, he broke her heart. But he doesn’t know why she never forgave him.
Toggling between past and present, two love stories unfold simultaneously. In the first, Macy Sorensen meets and falls in love with the boy next door, Elliot Petropoulos, in the closet of her dad’s vacation home, where they hide out to discuss their favorite books. In the second, Macy is working as a doctor and engaged to a single father, and she hasn’t spoken to Elliot since their breakup. But a chance encounter forces her to confront the truth: what happened to make Macy stop speaking to Elliot? Ultimately, they’re separated not by time or physical remoteness but by emotional distance—Elliot and Macy always kept their relationship casual because they went to different schools. And as a teen, Macy has more to worry about than which girl Elliot is taking to the prom. After losing her mother at a young age, Macy is navigating her teenage years without a female role model, relying on the time-stamped notes her mother left in her father’s care for guidance. In the present day, Macy’s father is dead as well. She throws herself into her work and rarely comes up for air, not even to plan her upcoming wedding. Since Macy is still living with her fiance while grappling with her feelings for Elliot, the flashbacks offer steamy moments, tender revelations, and sweetly awkward confessions while Macy makes peace with her past and decides her future.
With frank language and patient plotting, this gangly teen crush grows into a confident adult love affair.Pub Date: April 10, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5011-2801-1
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Gallery Books/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2018
Heartfelt and funny, this enemies-to-lovers romance shows that the best things in life are all-inclusive and nontransferable...
An unlucky woman finally gets lucky in love on an all-expenses-paid trip to Hawaii.
From getting her hand stuck in a claw machine at age 6 to losing her job, Olive Torres has never felt that luck was on her side. But her fortune changes when she scores a free vacation after her identical twin sister and new brother-in-law get food poisoning at their wedding buffet and are too sick to go on their honeymoon. The only catch is that she’ll have to share the honeymoon suite with her least favorite person—Ethan Thomas, the brother of the groom. To make matters worse, Olive’s new boss and Ethan’s ex-girlfriend show up in Hawaii, forcing them both to pretend to be newlyweds so they don’t blow their cover, as their all-inclusive vacation package is nontransferable and in her sister’s name. Plus, Ethan really wants to save face in front of his ex. The story is told almost exclusively from Olive’s point of view, filtering all communication through her cynical lens until Ethan can win her over (and finally have his say in the epilogue). To get to the happily-ever-after, Ethan doesn’t have to prove to Olive that he can be a better man, only that he was never the jerk she thought he was—for instance, when she thought he was judging her for eating cheese curds, maybe he was actually thinking of asking her out. Blending witty banter with healthy adult communication, the fake newlyweds have real chemistry as they talk it out over snorkeling trips, couples massages, and a few too many tropical drinks to get to the truth—that they’re crazy about each other.
Heartfelt and funny, this enemies-to-lovers romance shows that the best things in life are all-inclusive and nontransferable as well as free.Pub Date: May 14, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5011-2803-5
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Gallery Books/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: March 2, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2019
© Copyright 2024 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.
bookshelf
