Fortune Favors the Duke (The Cambridge Brotherhood #1) by Kristin Vayden

Quick note: The cover image says Fortune Favors the Duke is a book in "The Cambridge Brothers" series and Goodreads says it's the first in "The Cambridge Brotherhood" series. Since the hero of this book attended Cambridge and his only brother has passed away, I think "Brotherhood" is likely the correct name of the series and that's why I chose to put it in the title line. Hope that's correct. 

Catherine Greatheart and the new Duke of Wesley have something in common: the loss of his brother and her fiancé, the former Duke. Six months have passed and the loss still stings. The new duke, Quinton, misses his brother and is not thrilled that he has been thrust into the management of an estate when he was perfectly happy working as a professor at Cambridge. Catherine actually loved her fiancé in a time when one is more likely to make a match based on money than love and is tired of the pity but not entirely ready to resume her social life. 

When Catherine's grandmother insists that the time has come for Catherine to return to society, she does so reluctantly and is surprised to find friendship offered by Quinton. Meanwhile, Catherine's grandmother and the woman who would have been her mother-in-law have become close and would like to see Quinton and Catherine become a couple. But, when Catherine and Quinton begin to realize that their friendship has grown into something bigger, they must take care. Society may frown upon the new duke taking the place of the former and think Catherine a money-grubbing social climber. 

After disaster strikes and Catherine is no longer allowed to run her grandmother's estate, what will happen? There's definitely something fishy about the fellow who has been named the trustee for the estate and the bitter old woman he has named as Catherine's companion and chaperone. If Quinton marries Catherine, will he be betraying his brother's memory?

Neither recommended or not recommended - I liked Fortune Favors the Duke but . . . there are several buts, actually. There were a few historical anachronisms that bugged me ("And so it begins," a very modern phrase, for example, and women were always swatting the men — in a time period when people barely touched). I was also skeptical that Catherine would be considered a social climber or made a pariah if she married Quinton. Social climbing was pretty much the modus operandi of young women in Regency England, after all, and matchmaking seldom about love. However, in spite of these things, Fortune Favors the Duke is a sweet story, I loved the relationship between Catherine and her grandmother, and I found the building affection between Quinton and Catherine believable and lovely. So, I liked the story and I'm glad I read it, although it's not a favorite.

My thanks to Sourcebooks for the review copy!

And, a further note: This is my very last recently requested review copy (I do have plenty I didn't get to in a timely manner). Last week I received an email saying an unsolicited ARC is on its way to me and that's fine. I will be happy to read and review any unsolicited books that arrive, providing they appeal to me. The goal is to read almost exclusively off my shelves. A few exceptions will be nice, actually. And, apparently, I'm still fine with reviewing so I'll carry on, although we'll just have to see how much I feel like writing about future reads. 

I've just finally printed out my list of 2021 Reads and am working on narrowing down my favorites for a Year in Review post, so that's still forthcoming and I'm thinking that I may try to continue the blog but maybe mix things up a bit and write beyond just book reviews. I have, for example, a few books I want to donate but I'd like to keep the marked quotes so I may occasionally do quote posts. Anyway, it's all up in the air and just call me flighty. I'll figure things out but I'm very much looking forward to some changes, this year. 

©2022 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery or its RSS feed, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.

True Spies by Shana Galen (Lord & Lady Spy #2)

True Spies (Lord and Lady Spy #2) by Shana Galen

Copyright 2013

Sourcebooks Casablanca - Historical Romance
346 pp.

First sentence:

Elinor paced the vestibule of her London townhouse, her slippered steps echoing in the strained silence.

Summarize the plot without giving away the ending:

Lady Elinor is bored and fed up with her husband's disinterest in her after years of managing her household and children on her own.  When her husband doesn't show up in time to accompany her to a party, she decides to attend alone in a bold red dress that leaves little to the imagination. Yearning for a little excitement, she is already finding herself intrigued by the advances of a man who is trying to lure her to bed by fabricating an elaborate story about being a secret agent.  Will she give in to an affair for the sake of adventure? What will happen when she discovers the truth about her husband?

Lord Keating is weary with life as a spy but the Barbican group's deadly enemy has already taken out half a dozen of their people.  With one last mission to finish before he retires, he unexpectedly discovers that not only is his wife no longer interested in him, she's on the verge of an affair and so eager to do something different and meaningful that she will happily set herself in the path of danger.  

When a faltering marriage and a sinister threat collide, passions flare.

Capsule Description:

True Lies meets Regency romance.

What did you like best about True Spies?

I read Shana Galen's books for the action scenes and this was no exception.  I enjoyed the spy story within the larger romantic theme, loved the spy scenes and was satisfied with the denouement.  I also liked the fact that Elinor wasn't described as perfect and beautiful.  She was a woman who had blossomed (in her 30s, I think?) and her husband was surprised because he'd paid her so little heed for such a very long time.  I was one of those women who briefly went from duck to swan in my 30s so I did think that made sense and I appreciated reading about a heroine whose looks weren't ridiculously perfect.

What did you dislike about True Spies?

I really hate graphic sex, so it's important to read my thoughts with that reality in mind.  I saw a quote about that, today, actually:

I've always preferred the implied sex scene anyway, because having it spelt out always seems a bit tacky. 

~Henry Cavill, quoted in "Hello, Hot Superman," June 2013 Glamour (British edition)

Mr. Cavill is referring to movie roles, but that quote struck me as similar to my thoughts about graphic sex scenes in novels. I don't know about the word "tacky" but it's a personal preference, obviously. I prefer action and plot to relationship (external vs. internal, blah, blah).  I keep coming back to Shana Galen's books, though, because they're adventurous enough to please me.  Of course, True Spies is Historical Romance -- I knew what I was getting into.  

In this case, I did find it a little difficult to buy into both storylines, a bit.  Winn (Lord Keating) didn't marry for love, sired two girls and has always been cold and distant.  It was hard to define the line between lust and love on his part.  I just couldn't accept that he "fell in love" with his wife so quickly and I thought Elinor should have resisted him longer.  It would have been more interesting if there had been more personal interaction before they started ravishing each other and I would have preferred a bit more fun with the pretend spy trying to lure her to bed before he was removed from the picture, although that was pleasingly wrapped up.

Also, Elinor was sharp but when she wanted to become involved in the Barbican group its leader said she was a natural.  It appeared to me that she was more natural at thinking things through than participating in the dangerous undercover side of the work. Unlike "Saint" (the female lead in Lord and Lady Spy), Elinor never seemed entirely prepared for the job.  I kept trying to imagine what on earth her plan was to deal with her voluminous skirts when under attack.  That's pretty relevant in action scenes that take place during the Regency time period. To be fair, she had little time to prepare and minimal training but managed to hold her own (Regency Girl Power!) 

A favorites scene:

There were a lot of fun scenes in True Spies.  I like the opening, when Lord Keating is running from the bad guys across a rooftop in London and the scene in which Elinor is trapped in a brothel.  And, the scene with the Prince Regent, when a number of spies are trying to save his life but he's more interested in the fact that they might hurt the pretties lying about the room.

Recommended particularly to fans of historical romance.  Not my favorite of Shana Galen's books,  but I enjoyed True Spies.  In spite of the fact that the book is heavier on romance than action,  I absolutely loved the spy bits and that's what kept me reading. Galen's action scenes rock.  I gave True Spies a 3.5/5 rating at Goodreads.

Past reviews of Shana Galen's novels:

The Making of a Duchess
The Making of a Gentleman
The Making of a Rogue
Lord and Lady Spy

Shana Galen's website

I received a copy of True Spies from Sourcebooks in return for an unbiased review.

©2013 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery  or its RSS feed, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.

The India Fan by Victoria Holt

The India Fan by Victoria Holt
Copyright 2013 (orig. published in 1988)
Sourcebooks Casablanca - Historical Fiction
394 pp.

Drusilla Delany has never thought too highly of the wealthy Framling family.  A rector's daughter, Drusilla lives in the rambling rectory with an absent-minded but kind father who is happy with the simple things in life and completely besotted with the Greek classics.  He pays little attention to Drusilla, who is closer to her nurse, Polly, than her father.  

When Drusilla is invited to the Framling estate to play with Lavinia Framling, she is curious about the house more than the child.  Lavinia is a beautiful, spoiled brat who treats Drusilla with contempt.  She is the closest little girl in proximity to the estate, though, and Lady Harriet finds the studious, intelligent Drusilla a suitable companion for her daughter.  Since the rector is in Lady Harriet's employ, Drusilla can't really refuse.  Thus begins a strange, long-time friendship in which Drusilla is compelled to accompany Lavinia from one school to another and eventually becomes Lavinia's hired help. 

During one of her early visits, Lavinia's brother Fabian insists that they pretend to be his slaves and sends them to fetch forbidden objects.  Drusilla returns with a peacock fan from India.  But, she is quickly chastised and told of the fan's curse.   From England to France to India and back, danger follows Drusilla.  Will the curse follow her throughout her lifetime?  Or, is the peacock fan's curse just the silly whim of a sad, old woman?

What I loved about The India Fan:

Technically, I suppose The India Fan is historical romance, but there are three men Drusilla may or may not end up with and they are all woven in and out of the story. In truth, you always know who Drusilla is going to end up with and the romance ends up feeling secondary to the story of Drusilla's friendship with and employment by Lavinia, as well as her deep friendship with Polly -- who is pretty much a surrogate mother.  I liked the fact that it wasn't all gushy romance, instead focusing on friendship and setting.

The changing settings are one of the best things about the book.  Because Drusilla accompanies Lavinia, she travels pretty extensively.  It took me a while to figure out the time period and I found that a tiny bit annoying, at first, but eventually looked at figuring out the time period as a bit of a challenge and searching for clues to figure out when the story was taking place became rather fun.

What I disliked about The India Fan:

I'm afraid the book did ramble on a bit and Drusilla can be a bit severe.  But, even though Drusilla is just a wee bit stuffy, she has a big heart.  So, I cared about Drusilla and wanted to know what would happen.  I especially wanted to see her through to eventually finding love and her place in the world.  She's a typically stubborn historical-fiction heroine who will not simply settle down and marry merely because everyone else thinks she should.

Lavinia is a nasty character and her unchanging personality does grate a bit.  And, the mystery is not really all that mysterious.

The bottom line:

Recommended - I didn't love The India Fan because it's a bit overlong, but Victoria Holt's writing is captivating enough that I was never tempted to set the book aside.  An engrossing, escapist read with exceptional characterization, an solid storyline, and rather unique and fascinating historical settings (which led to further reading online). Victoria Holt is a pro, of course. I can't complain about her writing style.  Apart from being a bit detail-heavy -- which some people love, but I do not -- it's pretty close to flawless.

©2013 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery  or its RSS feed, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.