Tag Archives: historical romance

It Happened One Autumn (Book Review)

July 20, 2026 rebekahjmarshall Leave a comment

*These images created by Rebekah Marshall’s prompts using AI on Gencraft.com website.*

It Happened One Autumn is the 2^nd book in the Wallflowers Series and is my favorite so far. I love the enemies to lovers trope and this one has it in spades. It also has false friends, kidnapping, near-death danger, terrible mothers, unexpected love, scoundrels, pride and prejudice sort of dynamics, love potion magical perfumes, and defying of stodgy conventions. It is also nearly entirely set at Stony Cross Park, Hampshire, England, which has become my favorite English Manor of all the English Manors I have read about due to the beautiful details about the gardens, ponds, fields, and paths. I want to live there in my fantasies.

This story follows the hopes of the second Wallflower, the American heiress Lillian Bowman. She is beautiful, fearless (unless she is expected to eat British delicacies like calf’s head), and certain she will never experience love. She and her sister Daisy will be spending a month at Stony Cross Park under the annoying eye of the 8^th Earl of Westcliff, Marcus. He is a serious man whose “constant striving for excellence led him to get the highest marks in school, to break all records in his chosen sports, and to judge himself far more harshly than anyone else ever could.” The American woman and the British man are both irritated by the mere presence of each other, so of course we know they are destined to have chemistry. And the ensuing developments are very satisfying.

Kleypas, Lisa. It Happened One Autumn, Avon Books, 2005.

These are images created from the description of Stony Cross Park, Hampshire in the novel:

Essays, Writing

Secrets of a Summer Night (Book Review)

June 28, 2026 rebekahjmarshall Leave a comment

In London, 1843, it is most egregious to be a young lady out in society if you don’t check all the boxes considered desirable for marriage. Four young ladies find themselves on the wrong side of the marriage market, sitting alone together and decide to form an alliance, calling themselves The Wallflowers. They make pacts to help each other snag husbands and form fierce friendships along the way. And what, pray tell, are their crimes? One has fallen on hard times and does not have as much money as she used to because her father passed away and left more debt than wealth. Oh, and she’s old, a whopping 25 years old. Another has a stutter. And two are from America, for shame.

They decide to start with Annabelle because her situation is the direst, this being her last season due to her aged decrepitness of 25 years and near spinsterhood. And to her chagrin, the only male sniffing around her is Simon Hunt, a brash, outspoken, not-very-gentlemanly, non-noble, annoying man who grates on her nerves. He is fascinated with Annabelle and has even suggested that he will take her on as a mistress if she gets desperate enough. Needless to say, she is not impressed by his offer. The ensuing tale is delightful, playful, and full of twists and turns. There are even several extremely climactic and traumatic events near the end that kept me flipping pages late into the night.

I will give away that Annabelle’s situation is satisfactorily resolved, but that means we have three more Wallflowers to marry off. I can’t wait for their books. And hints have already been given throughout Secrets of a Summer Night by Lisa Kleypas as to who the next pairing might be.

Kleypas, Lisa. Secrets of a Summer Night, Avon Books, 2004.

Essays, Writing

Again The Magic (Book Review)

June 28, 2026 rebekahjmarshall Leave a comment

*Image created by Rebekah Marshall’s prompt using AI on Gencraft.com website.*

It has finally happened. All my life I’ve heard of the trope where a royal young lady falls in love with the stable boy, but I’ve never actually read a romance where that was present. Again The Magic by Lisa Kleypas opens in Hampshire, England, in 1832. Lady Aline Marsden is the oldest daughter of the Earl of Westcliff. Her best friend and closest confidant is the stable boy McKenna who she has grown up with. But their relationship has budded into much more than friendship as they have blossomed into young adults. And that spells disaster for the fate of McKenna if the Earl finds out. Separation, a terrible accident, crossing of continents, new friendships, and deaths occur in rapid succession.

Jump to 1844, a changing world, a new Earl (Aline’s brother, who is more open-minded), and visiting Americans. Is love possible for either Aline or her sister Livia? A desperate alcoholic is on the brink of no return as he drinks himself to death. A woman stays in hiding due to grief and unwillingness to be hurt ever again. A man seeks revenge. And the new Earl, Marcus Marsden tries to keep everything afloat with modernizing investments in American technologies, a radical idea that other gentry are not open to. There are so many different fascinating threads of character stories in this novel that kept me hooked, eager to know their outcomes. I adore the loving, but no-nonsense, Mrs. Faircloth who is a surrogate mother to both Aline and McKenna. In my opinion, this is the best book yet in the series. The development of Ms. Kleypas’s writing is richer, the descriptions more alive, and the character development better flushed out. I can’t wait for the next book.

Kleypas, Lisa. Again The Magic, Avon Books, 2004.

These 2 images created by Rebekah Marshall’s prompts using AI on Gencraft.com website.

Essays, Writing

Three Weddings And A Kiss (Book Review)

June 22, 2026 rebekahjmarshall Leave a comment

Fancy Free by Catherine Anderson

Set in a rural town in Oregon in the 1890s, Fancy Free by Catherine Anderson is a charming tale of hijinks gone wrong, misunderstandings galore, and a literal shotgun wedding that throws a nearly blind young lady into a household of eight males. In her attempts to keep her blindness hidden for fear of rejection, Rachel scorches the clothes, puts salt in the pies, and trips over everything, leading to many wacky scenarios. And just as true love seems to be blossoming, another woman arrives on the scene to throw a kink in the works. I quite enjoyed this novella and could totally see it as a successful film. I would watch it in a heartbeat.

The Mad Earl’s Bride by Loretta Chase

The novella The Mad Earl’s Bride by Loretta Chase was my favorite of the four stories in this collection. It is set in the late 1820s in Dartmoor, Devon, England, with the dangerous bogs of the open moors playing a part in the storyline. The story centers around a mother and son who seem to experience similar symptoms of a brain disorder that has no cure. The young heroine of the story is a medical student who will not give up on researching the problem and refuses to kowtow to the opinions of most of the medical experts of the day. Her open-minded, science-obsessed, driven nature makes her a perfect match for the man who has lost all hope of survival, let alone comfort or peace. The romance is fabulous, and the peak inside the medical world of the early 1820s is fascinating.

Promises by Lisa Kleypas

I dedicated an entire review to this novella set in London because it went with the cannon of stories I was reading in The Gamblers of Craven’s Series. See “Promises (Novella Review)” for full details.

The Kiss by Kathleen E. Woodiwiss

This is the shortest of the four novellas in the book and by far the most unsettling. This one takes place near Charleston, South Carolina, around the turn of the 19^th century, and addresses themes of human trafficking. A 19-year-old woman from London is being sold by her good-for-nothing uncle to some sleazy older man and escapes long enough to run into a tall, handsome, rich stranger, who just happens to be a very eligible bachelor. You can imagine where the story goes from here. Black servants in the home are mentioned, and the author makes a terrible attempt at dialect. There might be a reason this book is out of print. I will say that there is some good chemistry between the characters. I would not have chosen to end with this novella, but no one asked for my input.

Anderson, Catherine; Chase, Loretta; Kleypas, Lisa; Woodiwiss, Kathleen E., Three Weddings And A Kiss, Avon Books, 1995.

Essays, Writing

Promises (Novella Review)

June 19, 2026 rebekahjmarshall Leave a comment

Lidian – *Image created by Rebekah Marshall’s prompt using AI on Gencraft.com website.*

This novella by Lisa Kleypas called Promises, feels like an early piece possibly written as Ms. Kleypas was still figuring out her style. Though published after the 2 novels centered around 1820s London where Derek Craven’s casino entertains the uber-wealthy, it is set in the early days of that fictional world. The young woman at the center of the novella is earnest in love and all matters of propriety. She has lost her father, her fortune, and is barely keeping everything running for herself and her mother as she waits for her true love to return from his travels. She cannot imagine a world where he is not her future.

I love that this young woman, so lacking in relationship experience, is certain that her steadfast loyalty is the right course for her life. How long is too long to wait? Is her waiting a pipe dream? Does the object of her affection feel as strongly toward her as she does toward him? Has he pined for her for over a year as she has for him? Only his return can answer any of these questions. And though this piece is short, it contains much of the elegance, charm, romance, adventure, and passion, just in a small package. And in order of books, I would read it first before Then Came You as a little introductory taste of Derek Craven’s gambling house before launching into the two meatier books of The Gamblers of Craven’s Series.

Kleypas, Lisa. Promises, Anderson, Catherine; Chase, Loretta; Woodiwiss, Kathleen E., Three Weddings And A Kiss, Avon Books, 1995.

Essays, Writing

Dreaming of You (Book Review)

June 18, 2026 rebekahjmarshall Leave a comment

This image is a collaboration between Rebekah Marshall & Lyra (my ChatGPT assistant.)

The hero of Dreaming of You by Lisa Kleypas is one of the most refreshing characters I’ve met in a long while. She is honest, kind, straightforward, and spunky. She knows her world view is limited and narrow and is trying to do something about it. She doesn’t play games, leave words unspoken, or have any regrets whatsoever. It is unusual to find a character completely lacking in guile that is both enjoyable and still has room to grow. Sara Rose is charming and innocent, lacking the vices of many in the seedy underbelly of London, who she has come to “research.” She is a writer bent on shedding light on the less fortunate and has earned a bit of fame for a novel called Mathilda about a prostitute.

Her entanglement with the owner of a gambling establishment begins a cascade of events that are certain to broaden her perspectives and maybe even teach her a thing or two about love. She finds herself at the center of a murder, kidnapping, a riot, secret passageways, danger, sexual assault, stalking, multiple engagements, scandal, and new friendships. Her courage in the face of such dramatic changes, and the way she stays true to herself and her heart, make this a poignant story of love and feminism way ahead of its time. Set in 1825, this regency era novel is a true delight and a satisfying sequel to Then Came You.

Kleypas, Lisa. Dreaming of You, Avon Books, 1994.