Thursday, January 9, 2025

Romance Roundup (2)


I'm trying out a new feature that's similar to mini reviews except this feature will be all about romance! Sometimes you just need a light escape from reality and I'm hoping the books featured here will do just the trick.
 
 
  The Stranger I Wed by Harper St. George
Pages: 344
Genre: Romance
Pub. Date: April 23, 2024
Publisher: Berkley
Source: Publisher for review
Other Books By Author: The Heiress Gets a Duke,
My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
 

Goodreads says, "
New to wealth and to London high society, American heiress Cora Dove discovers that with the right man, marriage might not be such an inconvenience after all. . . .

Cora Dove and her sisters’ questionable legitimacy has been the lifelong subject of New York’s gossipmongers and a continual stain on their father’s reputation. So when the girls each receive a generous, guilt-induced dowry from their dying grandmother, the sly Mr. Hathaway vows to release their funds only if Cora and her sisters can procure suitable husbands—far from New York. For Cora, England is a fresh start. She has no delusions of love, but a husband who will respect her independence? That’s an earl worth fighting for.

Enter: Leopold Brendon, Earl of Devonworth, a no-nonsense member of Parliament whose plan to pass a Public Health bill that would provide clean water to the working class requires the backing of a wealthy wife. He just never expected to crave Cora’s touch or yearn to hear her thoughts on his campaign—or to discover that his seemingly perfect bride protects so many secrets...

But secrets have a way of bubbling to the surface, and Devonworth has a few of his own. With their pasts laid bare and Cora’s budding passion for women’s rights taking a dangerous turn, they’ll learn the true cost of losing their heart to a stranger—and that love is worth any price."

Cora Dove, an American heiress, is escaping New York for London as she looks for a title and for someone who doesn’t know her family’s past as she and her sisters are all illegitimate. To accept their large inheritance, they must be married, so off to London they go. While there, Cora encounters Leopold, the Earl of Devonworth, at a sporting event. He literally tumbles into her and sparks fly. Could this man be the answer to her problems? Leopold’s estate is crumbling, and he could use money; perhaps Cora is the answer to his problems. The story continues in the vein of Downton Abbey as what starts as a marriage of convenience, then a slow-burn romance develops into something more as the story progresses. The Stranger I Wed by Harper St. George is a solid historical romance and a start to a promising new series that her fans will enjoy.

As always St. George’s female protagonist is not some shrinking violet and that is the case in Stranger I Wed. Cora is involved in politics and is a feminist; in fact, she writes under a pseudonym. So, I appreciated that aspect of Cora and was rooting for her happy ending. At first, she thinks she has entered into a marriage of convenience for about two years in order to get her inheritance, but their mutual respect and friendship blossoms into something more. Fans of St. George, as well as the Bridgerton series, will appreciate all the historical details and the steamy moments. St. George’s fans will also want to continue with the series to see what Cora’s siblings are up to in London.



The Ex Vows by Jessica Joyce
Pages: 399
Pub. Date: July 16, 2024
Publisher: Berkley
Source: Library
My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
 
 
Goodreads says, "
Estranged exes must stick close together to save their best friend’s wedding after a string of disasters in this swoony and steamy second-chance romance.

Georgia Woodward lives by her lists, none more so than the one about her ex, Eli Mora. It’s full of the ironclad dos and don’ts they’ve been following since she returned to the Bay Area after their cataclysmic breakup five years ago.

With the wedding of their mutual best friend, Adam, looming, and them about to step into their roles as best woman and man, Georgia’s never needed it more. She refuses to threaten their tight-knit friend group with her messy—and still very present—feelings. The rules on that list will keep her cool, calm, and compartmentalized.

What’s not on her list? Eli arriving from New York with a new rule-breaking attitude or the all-inclusive venue burning to the ground, leaving the bride and groom in dire straits. Nor does she anticipate Adam asking her and Eli to help him make a miracle happen. Together.

As Georgia and Eli rush up to Napa Valley to pull off the perfect wedding, their old chemistry comes back in technicolor. Somewhere between cake tastings gone wrong, disastrous DJ auditions, and Eli’s heated attention, Georgia starts recognizing the man she fell in love with before. And if she lets herself break her rules, she might find what they’re building isn’t the something old that ruined them—it’s a chance at something new.
 
 
Georgia has known Eli since they were teens as they both share a best friend in Adam. After dating for quite some time and then breaking up, they are reunited with Adam's upcoming wedding in Napa Valley. They vow to put their history aside and work together to save Adam's wedding. But, as you might expect, feelings are still there and the more they work together, the more these feelings get in the way. But could this relationship even work? Georgia is in Seattle and Eli has been offered a job in San Francisco. Does this second chance romance stand a chance after they leave Napa? Jessica Joyce's The Ex Vows is a delightful romance filled with a lot of wedding shenanigans.

I love a good second chance romance and Joyce captures one very well in The Ex Vows. It was believable, sparks were flying, and the setting of Napa only enhanced the romance. My only irritation with The Ex Vows was the wedding disasters - one after another. I mean how many things can go wrong with a wedding? It got to be a little too much and over the top; plus, there was a lot of angst brewing. Nonetheless, I still enjoyed this romance and recommend it to fans who want something light and enjoy romances involving weddings.  


Have you read either romance? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

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