eyes.2c Reviews

How to Cross a Marquess (The Way to a Lord's House #4)   by Jane Ashford           Arthur Shelton, Earl of Macklin, continues his advice to lost and grieving men, popping up like some demented leprechaun, in his quest. Once again he's brought together a group of men who have suffered personal tragedy to reflect on the subject of death and grief. This time the target of his attention is Roger the Marquess of Chatton whose petulantly stubborn wife Arabella caught a chill and died after riding in the rain against all advice. Unfortunately his neighbor Fenella Fairclough has born unwarranted blame for the tragedy. The enigmatic young Tom, wise beyond his years, accompanies Macklin. Here’s a figure to watch! So cupid’s (aka Macklin) arrow is pointed towards Roger's neighbor Fenella. Apart from the inanely enjoyable line oft repeated about 'sodding sheep' I found the story fairly ordinary, although I did really liked Fenella. In fact she Tom and her ne...

The Lady Travelers Guide to Happily Ever After (Lady Travelers Society #4)   by Victoria Alexander I had a whole lot of trouble identifying with Violet Hagen and James Branham, heir to the Earl of Ellsworth. After being married to "avoid scandal," I admire that under difficult circumstances Violet hied off to the Continent and grew into the woman she wouldn't have if she'd been left to languish as a "responsibility." Then when James inherited his title, it came with conditions attached. Violet and in his will James' uncle stipulated that James and Violet had to live as man and wife, presenting themselves to society as a reconciled couple, with no hint of scandal. Personally I thought Uncle Richard should have not played Cupid from beyond the grave. Violet should have stayed on the Continent and made her life there. But Violet was very attached to Richard, and it seems she'd always loved James. Forgiving him is entirely another matter. To me J...

How To Love A Duke in Ten Days (Devil You Know #1) by Kerrigan Byrne. Kerrigan Byrne just keeps surprising! Such a creative mind! This time intrigue sits alongside murder. The series revolves around three young woman who meet at school in Switzerland in the 1880's, and how that time together not only forged strong bonds but changed their lives forever. Alexander "and her dearest friends, Francesca Cavendish and Cecelia Teague, had created a haven for their Red Rogues Society. Red, because they all had hair of some variant shade of such." Rogues because ... Well you'll just have to read their stories to find out more! The first story is about Lady Alexander Lane who fled the school along with her chums after being abused by the headmaster of the school, a darkly abhorrent character taking pleasure in the degradation he inflicts. I must admit that scene sent shivers down my spine. Hiding herself in her work and in her appearance Alex trains as an archaeologist an...

The Art of Dying (DI Wetsphall #3) by Douglas Lindsay         At first I thought what have I let myself in for. A few pages in and I was hooked. I was knee deep in vicious murders, Corporate concerns and Russian intervention. Opening with a litany of deaths caused by the hero seemed a tad daunting, but as I progressed I realized their import. This is DI Westphall's "line-up of guilt," from his MI6 days. Now they're joined by ghosts from his cases. This latest investigation begins with a football match death, links somehow to an up market care home and seems to have a whiff of Russian assistance. Westphall's church attendance is an interesting twist. Is he looking for absolution? Maybe. Release from his guilt? Who knows? His attention is caught by the line from the service, "My blood of the Covenant." My attention is grabbed by the inclusion of one of my favorite hymns, "I the Lord of sea and sky." Oh yes, there's more to this novel...

Gothic Love Stories by Erica Ridley                  Delightful gothic romp through four charming novels each with a different focus be it crippling psychic abilities, pirates and people with strange gifts. We have a bluestocking, a ton desirable, a rake and a governess, all with a different story to tell. The full length novels are all Too Readable to stop: Too Wicked to Kiss (Book 1) Too Sinful to Deny (Book 2)   Too Tempting to Resist (Book 3)   Too Wanton to Wed (Book 4) I thoroughly enjoyed these re-released novels that have now been published simultaneously. No waiting for the next in the series! An added bonus for me is that I hadn't read these tales before. An Author Collective 20 ARC via NetGalley  ****

Death in a Desert Land (Agatha Christie #3) by Andrew Wilson         Wilson continues his fictionalized stories about Agatha Christie's life, positing her travels and adventures partly as undercover work for British Intelligence, as supporting her detecting aspirations, and as gathering material for her writing. An inspired idea, the reimagined life of Agatha! Agatha has been asked by her friend and Intelligence Officer Davison to go to Ur by way of Bagdad to investigate the death of a prominent archaeologist, writer and Intelligence Officer Gertrude Bell. (Bell also helped drafted the antiquities law in Iraq. Given the rape of antiquities from the Middle East and Egypt this was an important accomplishment for the times). Agatha is presented as a quiet force, still reeling with self doubts after her infamous disappearance, followed by her divorce from her husband Archie. To those she meets she is a crime writer with interests in archaelogy. The buildup of ten...

Tidelands (Fairmile #1) by Philippa Gregory          I am still recovering from the ending of this, the first in series Fairmile. Set in 1648 at the time of the English Civil War this dramatic tale reeks of authenticity, penned by the masterly hand of Phillipa Gregory. The cover is a satisfying reflection of what my mind conjures up as I imagine the novel's geographic description. Tidelands is set on Sealsea Island, off the Wessex Coast. With its shifting sands and dangerous waterways, the community and the Island itself reflects the swirl of place and times and becomes so much more. The tide has swung against the rule of Kings. Cromwell's parliament is in charge. And into the Tidelands, seeking help for King Charles, comes a young priest, a spy for the royal family and their followers sequestered in France, masquerading as a tutor and known as James Summer. Waiting in the churchyard this Midsummer Eve was Alinor Reekie. She "went to the graveyard in ca...

The Mage-Fire War (Saga of Recluse #21) by L. E. Modesitt, Jr.           ***** How is it that I have become absolutely gripped by Beltur and Jessyla's efforts to find a place for themselves in a world that turns against them? Maybe because we all want a sense of place in our own reality. Continuing on from the 'Outcasts of Order', they and their companions have fled from Axalt to Montegren. They have been given sanctuary by the Duchess and under a new charter appointed as the Council for the disintegrating town of Haven. 'A part of Montgren that lies between Certis, Lydiar and a tiny piece of Hydlen.' It inconveniently lies in the pathway of the tyrant Duke of Hydlen's access to Lydiar. Of course the mages are going to have to fight, cajole and threaten to keep Haven free. Everyone from brigands, sullen innkeepers, to imperious traders, and the Duke of Hydlen's invading forces is a challenge. All of which was not that clear when the mages took the o...

Forbidden Legacy (Forbidden #1)   by Diana Cosby  How can I not be beguiled by such a combination! And then there's the SECRETS!  Secrets held by all the characters involved! In fact as I reflect just about every person met or mentioned seems to have been holding some sort of secret that will affect the story's resolution. (Even down to the fisherfolk and their knowledge of hidden bays.) Lady Katherine Calbraith of Avalon Castle watches her family cut down before her eyes by the English invaders. Determination, cunning and opportunity speed her escape to her godfather's protection. Robert the Bruce assists her but in an unexpected way. She will return as the wife of a trusted knight, Stephan MacQuistan, a Knight Templar who, along with his men, is carrying out the orders of his Grand Master. They are to use secret ways to enter the castle and wrest it back from the English. Not the outcome Katherine wanted. And yes she has her secrets about the why of that too. ...

Forbidden Alliance (Forbidden #4) by Diana Cosby         Having a soft spot in my heart for the mythical and romanticized view of all things Knight Templar, I was excited by the premise.  "The wrongful accusations and slaughter of warriors who’d vowed to protect the innocent, men who’d given their lives to serve the Brotherhood’s cause ... sacrificed without hesitation by the duplicitous French monarch' King Philip." The Templars have been secretly disbanded, and the brotherhood lives on to support new causes. Out of this understanding rises the Forbidden series stories. I the was captivated! I adored the Knights Templar connection. It's 1308 in the snow covered Scottish Highlands. Elspet McReynolds, of Tiran Castle, in naught but the clothes she stood in is fleeing the treachery of the Earl of Dalkirk as he murdered her stepfather and mother and dragged away her stepbrother Blar, is confronted by two ragged brigands degenerate laden intent on her! Not ...

The Twice-Hanged Man (Medieval Mysteries #15)   by Priscilla Royal        Autumn of 1282. Prioress Eleanor, of Tyndal Priory, the faithful Sister Anne, healer and sub-infirmarian, and Brother Thomas escort Eleanor's brother Robert's pregnant wife out of the their Welsh Marcher lands into one of Robert's lesser holdings, Wynethorpe manor, just inside the English border. Apart from the threatened difficult birth, the three are plunged into a community troubled by the supposed apparition of a ghost, the shade of a dead man, Hywel, the village stonemason, recently hanged! Twice! And there's a dead priest the ghastly figure was seen leaning over. Dark, demon ridden tidings indeed! The local abbot, having "failed to exorcize this malign spirit", wants Eleanor to investigate this stark deed, to "save [the village] from this malignancy", and send the demon back to whence it came. Well actually, half Welsh Abbot Gerald wants a bit more than that and w...

Singapore Sapphire (Harriet Gordon Mystery #1) by A. M. Stuart          It's the early 1900's in Singapore. So realistic I felt I was there! Harriet Gordon, widowed and made childless in one fell swoop in India due to Typhus, went home to England. It was there she came in contact with the Suffragette Movement, an organization that espoused those things she'd not only envisioned, but felt deeply. That path ended badly and she joined her brother in Colonial Singapore where he is the Reverend and Headmaster of a prestigious boys school for expats. Wanting to at least earn some sort of living (any work she does for the school is unpaid) Harriet takes out an advertisement to work as a private secretary. Sir Oswald Newbold is deciding to write his memoirs and calls on her services. Unfortunately when Hattie arrives she finds Sir Oswald dead with his throat cut. Inspector Robert Curran is quite taken with the sensibility of Harriet when he arrives at the crime...

Archaeology from Space: How the Future Shapes Our Past by Sarah Parcak           Sarah Parcak is enthusiastic and stimulating about archaeological data gathering, and advances in that field, of how satellite imaging has helped amongst many things, new archeological discoveries and assisted in the investigation of looting of sites globally. A leader in her field, a winner of the Ted talk 2015 million dollar award, and a force to be reckoned with. Yet there is a humility to her writing that makes this book so much more engaging. She's witty and a fabulous communicator making this work so very approachable. I felt like I was actually there with her. I'm no archeological or technological buff but I was mostly able to understand what she was talking about. She brings to the topic excitement, awe and the ability to inspire. This book is just so very readable! Her humorous part about meeting Harrison Ford I found delightful. Actually she has quite a few humorou...

My Fair Viscount (The Scandal Sheet #4) by Jess Michaels       Train up your man! A clever slant on an old story where roles are reversed. This time it's the boy who needs the culturing not the girl. The time is Regency England and a rookery lad, (well, slightly dangerous man really) David Shaw, is turned Viscount. This diamond in the rough needs a makeover. A wonderful ploy that didn't really follow through for me. Miss Rose Higgins, (not Henry) who brings debutantes up to scratch is hired by the lovely Richard, David's cousin who was to be the Viscount before he did a search and found our rough and ready Davey. Richard is the one to be most admired here. Of course the two main characters are attracted to each other. But I didn't feel the chemistry, and despite the promise of the premise, things faded away. A Victory Editing ARC via NetGalley The Reluctant Duchess (The Brides of St Ives #4) by Jane Goodger       Bartered bride! I must a...

How to Forgive a Highlander by Michelle McLean     Kidnappings do go wrong! I dithered around with reading this over a week. Alas that says it all!  I generally read a novel of this genre in a couple of hours, give or take. In the end I just could n't identify with either Rose or William or their story. A bit sad as generally I rather like Michelle McLean's works. The lead characters William MacGregor and Rose Thatcher are not titled, which gives a different and interesting slant to how events might unfold. It maybe accounts for MacGregor kidnapping Rose under the impression that she's her mistress. Now we have the perfect scenario for two strong and committed personalities clashing mightily. What we end up with is a distinct lack of verve and dash on either side. Oh sure there's some posturing. But I wasn't convinced. Too bad! I really wanted to become immersed in this one, but I barely dragged myself over the finish line. Obviously though, I'm in the ...