Chasing Cassandra

Chasing Cassandra (The Ravenels #6)- Lisa Kleypas
Avon/HarperCollins Publishers
Release Date: February 18, 2020

Rating:
📚📚📚📚

Synopsis: Railway magnate Tom Severin is wealthy and powerful enough to satisfy any desire as soon as it arises. Anything—or anyone—is his for the asking. It should be simple to find the perfect wife—and from his first glimpse of Lady Cassandra Ravenel, he’s determined to have her. But the beautiful and quick-witted Cassandra is equally determined to marry for love—the one thing he can’t give.

Severin is the most compelling and attractive man Cassandra has ever met, even if his heart is frozen. But she has no interest in living in the fast-paced world of a ruthless man who always plays to win. 

When a newfound enemy nearly destroys Cassandra’s reputation, Severin seizes the opportunity he’s been waiting for. As always, he gets what he wants—or does he? There’s one lesson Tom Severin has yet to learn from his new bride: 

Never underestimate a Ravenel.

The chase for Cassandra’s hand may be over. But the chase for her heart has only just begun . . .

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Cassandra is the last in her family to remain single, but not because she has anything against marriage.  On the contrary, she wants a home and family of her own but has one requirement of her husband: love.  Men may offer for her because of her beauty and wealth, but they don't look beneath the surface to the woman inside and she's determined not to accept a traditional, 'surface' marriage.  Tom Severin is more intelligent than most men, his brain always running five steps ahead of everyone else in business- a talent that has made him rich and powerful.  But he doesn't know much about people, and even less about the heart.  He's willing to give Cassandra everything she wants- except love.  Can these opposites do more than attract, but find a way to be happy together?

Cassandra may be willing to play by (most of) society's rules, but she refuses to lose herself and what is important to her as she navigates the Season's dangers.  She's intelligent, curious, compassionate, and loving- a delightful combination of personality traits that men tend to ignore in favor of her appearance.  Kleypas did a wonderful job switching up the expected trope: instead of a plain wallflower waiting to bloom, Cassandra is a beauty hoping to be seen for herself.  Kleypas also addresses a form of body shaming with delicacy and tact: Cassandra is told because of how she looks, she's clearly "asking for" whatever a man wants to do to her.  Fortunately, while she may question herself and believe this, she has a loving family who's more than willing to set her straight on the subject.  Through them, she learns the difference between men and boys (other rather excellently descriptive phrases used by various Ravenel men can also be entered here). 

At first I worried that Tom was going to be too similar to Rhys Winterbourne (Marrying Winterbourne).  While I love Rhys (he may be one of my favorite Kleypas heroes), something different was needed for Cassandra.  I shouldn't have doubted Kleypas though.  Tom may be a self-made man who is now rich and powerful, but that's about where his similarities to Rhys end.  Tom is incredibly intelligent, but not necessarily when it comes to people.  He prides himself on having only five emotions, believes that his own upbringing didn't affect who he is now, and is sure he is incapable of love because it isn't a real thing.  Despite all that, he's a good person without knowing it.  And his interpretations of the point of various novels are priceless.

Chasing Cassandra can be read as a stand alone book, but other Ravenels and their spouses are key characters throughout the book, so if you've enjoyed the rest of the series you get to catch up with them.  It was a fast-paced and entertaining, with Kleypas' usual excellent writing style drawing the reader right into Cassandra's world.  An excellent new book reader's are sure to enjoy!

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

1774

1774: The Long Year of Revolution- Mary Beth Norton
Knopf
Release Date: February 11, 2020

Rating:
📚📚📚📚

Synopsis:  This masterly work of historical writing, Mary Beth Norton's first in almost a decade, looks at the sixteen months during which the traditional loyalists to King George III began their discordant "discussions" that led to their acceptance of the inevitability of war against the British Empire and to the clashes at Lexington and Concord in mid-April 1775.     
Drawing extensively on pamphlets, newspapers, and personal correspondence, Norton reconstructs colonial political discourse as it happened, showing the vigorous campaign mounted by conservatives criticizing congressional actions. But by then it was too late. In early 1775, governors throughout the colonies informed colonial officials in London that they were unable to thwart the increasing power of the committees and their allied provincial congresses. Although the Declaration of Independence would not be formally adopted until July 1776, Americans, even before the outbreak of war in April 1775, had in effect "declared independence" by obeying the decrees of their new provincial governments rather than colonial officials.

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Readers interested in the details behind the larger picture of the American Revolution will thoroughly enjoy reading Mary Beth Norton's new book, 1774: The Long Year of Revolution.  Drawing extensively from letters, diaries, pamphlets and newspapers, Norton explores the true mindset of Colonial America during 1774.  Did the majority of people remain loyal to king and country?  Did most people think alternatives would bring England and America back into harmony?  

1774 offers some fascinating insights into incidents like the 'Boston Tea Party' and the reaction other colonies had to the Bostonians' radical destruction of property.  Tea became such a flashpoint politically that whether one drank tea or not said a great deal about their politics.  Yet men rarely included women as economic decision makers in debates behind things like whether to boycott tea.  What did women think about the boycott- and the patently false health claims made against drinking tea that were written to convince women to give it up voluntarily?  Mob rule and 'patriotic terrorism' were as debated then as they are now, and many of the points brought up against mob decisions could still apply today.  Free speech and free press versus an open press are flashpoint of contention, and then as now we see papers shift from showing both sides of an issue to focusing on only the side that paper supports.  

Although occasionally a little longer than necessary, the writing was good and the research is thorough. History lovers and teachers alike will be interested in the examples of daily life and political thought as it developed over the 'long year' leading up to the shots heard round the world and the war that changed everything. 

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

The Winter Companion

The Winter Companion (Parish Orphans of Devon 4)- Mimi Matthews
Perfectly Proper Press
Release Date: February 11, 2020

Rating:
📚📚📚📚📚

Synopsis:  As a lady's companion, Clara Hartwright never receives much attention from anyone. And that's precisely how she likes it. With a stormy past, and an unconventional plan for her future, it's far safer to remain invisible. But when her new employer is invited to a month-long holiday at a remote coastal abbey, Clara discovers that she may not be as invisible as she'd hoped. At least, not as far as one gentleman is concerned.

Neville Cross has always been more comfortable with animals than people. An accident in his youth has left him with a brain injury that affects his speech. Forming the words to speak to his childhood friends is difficult enough. Finding the right things to say to a lovely young lady's companion seems downright impossible. But Miss Hartwright is no ordinary companion. In fact, there may not be anything ordinary about her at all.

During a bleak Devon winter, two sensitive souls forge an unexpected friendship. But when Clara needs him most, will Neville find the courage to face his fears? Or is saying goodbye to her the most heroic thing he can do?

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For the last of her Parish Orphans of Devon series, Mimi Matthews (A Convenient Fiction) gives us the story of Neville and Clara- a sweet romance and story of bravery and love overcoming fear and the restrictions that we place on ourselves.  We've known Neville for the entire series- a gentle, quiet man who's childhood accident was, in many ways, the catalyst to the four friends becoming who they are today.  Neville's head injury left him with difficulties speaking sometimes, and his self-consciousness over how he must appear to outsiders led him to a retiring life focused more on spending time with animals rather than people.  He's seen his friends meet their matches and has begun to wonder if he can have more in life when he meets Clara.  A ladies companion, Clara wants more out of her life- she wants knowledge and learning and to be useful. Her goal is to be her brother's assistant when he's finished at Cambridge.

A Winter Companion spoke to me in a lot of ways, and touched me in ways other books haven't.  As a sufferer from TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury) myself, I had an easy time identifying with Neville.  His frustrations and difficulties when he would lose words or drift off and lose time were things I experience myself- and Matthews does a wonderful job of sensitively and naturally showing readers what Neville deals with every day.  He begins to want more than what he has, but isn't sure he can reach for it.  What if he fails? Is it better to stay safe and at home, not risking anything, but not being completely content?  Clara also shines as a woman trying to fit the mold that circumstances and society tell her she needs to fill: an invisible companion  who has no dreams of a larger life using her intellect.  Life has taught her not to expect anything: no help from family, no friends, no romance, and no dreams.  

Neville and Clara become the right people in the right place at the right time for each other, and Matthews did a lovely job of slowly and naturally growing their romance and their confidence in themselves.  There were no murderers to catch here, no evil villains to overcome.  Instead, Neville and Clara have to overcome something even harder: their own fears and to decide if love is enough to try to dream new dreams, and if love itself can open new doors to new dreams even grander than they might have imagined alone.

Although book 4 in a series, A Winter Companion can also be a stand alone book.  Readers who've enjoyed the rest of the series will get to see Justin, Alex, and Tom again, and happily close the circle on the friends and their happily ever afters, but new readers won't feel lost among the characters.  This was a sensitive and lovely book, and a definite must read.  

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Heart of Blood and Ashes

A Heart of Blood and Ashes (A Gathering of Dragons 1)- Milla Vane
Berkley/Penguin Group
Release Date: February 4, 2020

Rating:
📚📚📚

Synopsis: A generation past, the western realms were embroiled in endless war. Then the Destroyer came. From the blood and ashes he left behind, a tenuous alliance rose between the barbarian riders of Parsathe and the walled kingdoms of the south. That alliance is all that stands against the return of an ancient evil—until the barbarian king and queen are slain in an act of bloody betrayal.
 
Though forbidden by the alliance council to kill the corrupt king responsible for his parents’ murders, Maddek vows to avenge them, even if it costs him the Parsathean crown. But when he learns it was the king’s daughter who lured his parents to their deaths, the barbarian warrior is determined to make her pay.
 
Yet the woman Maddek captures is not what he expected. Though the last in a line of legendary warrior-queens, Yvenne is small and weak, and the sharpest weapons she wields are her mind and her tongue. Even more surprising is the marriage she proposes to unite them in their goals and to claim their thrones—because her desire for vengeance against her father burns even hotter than his own…

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A Heart of Blood and Ashes begins a new, dark fantasy series from author Milla Vane (aka Meljean Brook).  It's a world rebuilding after being torn apart by the Destroyer and holding tentative alliances as each kingdom focuses on protecting itself from invaders.  It's been roughly a generation since the Destroyer swept through, but now rumors claim he is returning to lay waste again. That might be the big picture, but Parsathe warrior Maddek is focused on a smaller, more personal one: his king and queen (and parents) have been murdered by a corrupt king and to keep the peace, the alliance forbids Maddek to fight.  But Maddek will have his revenge, no matter where it takes him.

Maddek is a tough character.  You can sympathize completely with his pain, grief, and rage.  His parents have been murdered and the leaders of the alliance they have sworn to help aren't interested in true justice.  Lies have been told, and the alliance would rather have temporary peace at the cost of good leaders and turn a blind eye to the corruption Zanathe is spreading throughout the land because it doesn't effect them at the moment.  It isn't a surprise that he wants revenge and may do some reckless things to get it.  He decides to go after Zanathe's daughter Yvenne- who he believes had something to do with his parents' deaths. Here's where he starts losing me.  There's no evidence Yvenne had anything to do with the murders.  But Maddek would be happy to kill her and then go after Zanathe and his sons even if that means his own people are attacked by the alliance.  Everyone expects him to be the next Parsathe king, but he isn't thinking of his people- only his hatred.  He's fully prepared to use Yvenne as a tool of revenge, whether that means killing her or having children with her that will usurp Zanathe on the throne. Maddek refuses to listen to Yvenne about his parents, and ignores evidence of her own suffering under her father to better fit his ideas.  He sees her as weak and lashes out at her every chance he gets- then gets mad at her for not wanting to talk to him and tell him personal things.  

Yvenne is patient and cunning, but also has a joy in seeing the world that makes her seem younger than she is, and it is delightful to see someone who has suffered her whole life not give in to rage and hatred, but allow joy and hope to live alongside those darker emotions.  She's not all sweetness and light, but has a bloodthirsty practicality to her that I really enjoyed.  She's fully prepared to fall in love with Maddek because she's heard about how honorable and strong he is, their goals align and she believes they should be able to work together.  But that isn't a side of himself that Maddek shows her. It's painful to watch her start to connect with Maddek only to be slapped back down as he tells her she's only a vessel for revenge.  Even after he snaps at her to remind himself to not fall in love with her, she doesn't know that.  But every time her hope is crushed, or disaster happens, Yvenne gets up.  And we learn what she tries to teach Maddek- you only really know a person after they've been defeated and if they get up again.  

A Heart of Blood and Ashes was a hard book to get into, but when Yvenne entered the scene I started to get into it more.  Maddek might have been a sympathetic character in terms of his pain and grief, but I didn't like him as a person- especially in the beginning.  The narrative switches between Maddek and Yvenne so we get to learn their inner thoughts and drives, and Maddek doesn't change for most of the book.  By the end, he does become more the kind of main character we can appreciate and there is a great scene as the army storms the castle to rescue Yvenne where we can cheer Maddek as finally really understanding things- and recognizing Yvenne as a strong person all her own.  As one of the other warrior points out, they come in to perform legendary heroics and Yvenne very simply takes care of things ahead of them.

A good ending made the long and slightly plodding pace of most of the book worth it for me, but I'm not sure I'd pick up the next book in the series based on this one.  

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Her Scandalous Pursuit

Her Scandalous Pursuit (Mad Morelands Book 7)- Candace Camp
HQN Books
Release Date: January 28, 2020

Rating:
📚📚📚📚📚

Synopsis: Thisbe Moreland is used to men not taking her seriously. As a scientist, she’s accustomed to being the only woman at lectures and meetings, her presence met with scorn and derision. So it comes as a pleasant surprise when she sits next to a handsome young man who is actually interested in having a conversation about science.

Desmond Harrison cannot believe his good fortune when he sits next to Thisbe—she’s intelligent and incredibly beautiful. He longs to see her again—but he’s ashamed of his low birth. Not to mention his employment with the infamous Professor Gordon, a formerly respected scientist who turned to spiritualism and is now deeply scorned.When Professor Gordon demands that Desmond recover an artifact for him—an ancient object reputed to have terrible power, known as the Eye of Annie Blue—Desmond realizes that only Thisbe holds the key. Desmond must choose between his love for Thisbe and his loyalty to his mentor…but humanity’s very future will depend on his choice.

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Finally, Candace Camp has written the prequel to her Mad Morelands series! Thisbe and Desmond have been married since book one, but how did they meet?  Each of the Mad Morelands books (His Wicked Charm) has included a hint of the supernatural, but Desmond and Thisbe are both scientists who don't believe in ghosts or magic- just what they can see and measure.

Thisbe Moreland has had to be strong and stubborn since she decided to become a scientist.  She has several marks against her. One: she's a woman, and everyone knows women can't think rationally or analyze anything.  Two: she's the Duke of Moreland's daughter, and everyone knows aristocrats might dabble in things, but they don't have careers.  Three: she's the Duke of Moreland's daughter and everyone knows that family is odd at best, mad at worst. She's never felt a connection to a man before, but when Desmond Harrison sits next to her at a lecture everything changes.  They develop a sweet romance based on mutual respect and appreciation- and attraction- but Thisbe doesn't want to tell him she's an aristocrat and have him change the way he sees her.  Desmond is shy and lives in his head, always wanting to know the why's behind everything.  He doesn't want to admit to Thisbe his low birth, or that his father was sent to Australia for theft.  

All that could get straightened out if it wasn't for Desmond's work.  His mentor is determined to prove that ghosts exist and to do that he wants Desmond to steal a relic called Annie Blue's Eye.  Desmond doesn't want to steal anything- and then finds out that Thisbe's grandmother has the relic! Now he's afraid Thisbe will think he made up to her just for the Eye and he'd rather lose his work than Thisbe. But spiritualism can lead people down dark paths and when Thisbe is threatened, Desmond has to decide how to protect her- even if that means giving her up.

Her Scandalous Pursuit brings long-time readers back to the world of the Morelands, where romance and mystery blend with a hint of supernatural in a way that shouldn't put off too many readers of "regular" historical romance.  The writing and characters are strong and flow well, and emotions run high, making for a book you won't want to put down.     

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review

Almost Just Friends

Almost Just Friends- Jill Shalvis
William Morrow/HarperCollins Publishers
Release Date: January 21, 2020

Rating:
📚📚📚📚📚


Synopsis: Piper Manning’s about as tough as they come, she’s had to be. She raised her siblings and they’ve thankfully flown the coop. All she has to do is finish fixing up the lake house her grandparents left her, sell it, and then she’s free.

When a massive storm hits, she runs into a tall, dark and brooding stranger, Camden Reid. There’s a spark there, one that shocks her. Surprising her further, her sister and brother return, each of them holding their own secrets. The smart move would be for Piper to ignore them all but Cam unleashes emotions deep inside of her that she can’t deny, making her yearn for something she doesn’t understand. And her siblings…well, they need each other.

Only when the secrets come out, it changes everything Piper thinks she knows about her family, herself…and Cam. Can she find a way to outrun the demons? The answer is closer than she thinks—just as the new life she craves may have already begun.

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Piper Manning has had to be an adult since she was 13, raising her two siblings and trying to keep them all together.  Now, just when she thinks she can have a life of her own, they're back home with their own dark secrets and a new neighbor has moved in with demons of his own.  Cam's learned too late what it means to be present in someone's life and he's not going to make the same mistakes again.  He's just not sure he can convince Piper that as similar as their pasts are, their futures can be even better.

Piper is a great heroine.  She's sassy, snarky, and hanging on to sanity by her fingernails.  She tries to control everything in her life with bullet point journals and office supplies (another reason I lover her- someone who gets my "inner office supply ho") and is afraid to let go, be surprised, and enjoy life.  She's terrified of letting people in, because that's when they hurt you the most.  And she's terrified of loving anyone because none of the people she loves have ever put her first.  Brother and sister Gavin and Winnie may be younger than Piper, but have managed to have life crisis at the same time and come home.  Because despite all the fighting Piper, and Wildstone, are home.  They may be trying to get themselves together, but by not sharing that with Piper, she feels like she has to continue worrying about them and putting her life on hold.

Cam is a Coast Guard, and does his best in high stress, no emotion situations.  When his younger brother dies, Cam goes home to their father and finds a life he never expected.  A life that includes Piper faster than he could have anticipated.  I loved the chemistry between them- both the slow burn and the firestorm varieties.  They manage to be perfect compliments to each other in ways they didn't know they needed, and they understand each other in ways that terrify them.  Neither one is perfect, and they (and Gavin and Winnie) make plenty of mistakes along the way, but they personify what making family work can be all about when you have love.

With characters dealing (or not) with the deaths of loved ones there is definitely some soul searching and tear-jerker moments in Almost Just Friends, but Shalvis mixes the serious and the emotional with just the right amount of humor and sarcasm to keep things going.  All the characters in Friends are deep, flawed, and completely human and relatable- no surface characters here.  Almost Just Friends was a great read, full of heart, and not to be missed!   

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

The Vanishing

The Vanishing (Fogg Lake 1)- Jayne Ann Krentz
Berkley/Penguin Group
Release Date: January 7, 2020

Rating:
📚📚📚📚📚

Synopsis: Decades ago in the small town of Fogg Lake, The Incident occurred: an explosion in the cave system that released unknown gases. The residents slept for two days. When they woke up they discovered that things had changed—they had changed. Some started having visions. Others heard ominous voices. And then, scientists from a mysterious government agency arrived. Determined not to become research subjects of strange experiments, the residents of Fogg Lake blamed their “hallucinations” on food poisoning, and the story worked. But now it has become apparent that the eerie effects of The Incident are showing up in the descendants of Fogg Lake.…

Catalina Lark and Olivia LeClair, best friends and co-owners of an investigation firm in Seattle, use what they call their “other sight” to help solve cases. When Olivia suddenly vanishes one night, Cat frantically begins the search for her friend. No one takes the disappearance seriously except Slater Arganbright, an agent from a shadowy organization known only as the Foundation, who shows up at her firm with a cryptic warning.

A ruthless killer is hunting the only witnesses to a murder that occurred in the Fogg Lake caves fifteen years ago—Catalina and Olivia. And someone intends to make both women vanish.

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Jayne Ann Krentz (Untouchable) goes back to her paranormal romance/mystery genre with The Vanishing, although slightly different from what fans know and love.  In The Vanishing psychic powers come from the result of an 'Incident' decades ago at a hidden lab in Fogg Lake. Instead of the Arcane Society there is the Foundation, a shadow group that has been trying to help psychics (with mixed results) since the Incident.  Slater is one of the people who tracks down artifacts that potentially have paranormal provenance.  Recovering from an 'incident' of his own, he's not sure how stable he is or how ready he might be for another investigation, but things change when he meets Catalina.  He goes from investigating a potential cold case murder to helping Catalina search for her kidnapped friend and has to jump in the deep end when it comes to trusting his battered senses. 

Catalina is a sensible, cynical, investigator whose visions help read crime scenes.  She has no reason to trust the Foundation, but also has no choice since Slater is the only one who can help find Olivia.  Sparks fly between the two from the beginning and they work well together.  I found it enjoyable that every time Slater started getting worried about his altered senses and getting a little disturbed that Catalina wasn't panicking about him being a monster she would just shrug him off and tell him that she was too busy worrying about other things, but maybe later.  Her attitude worked well to help ground Slater, and for him  to realize that Catalina knows the difference between a real monster and someone whose powers are just a little different- and that 'different' doesn't bother her.  

One of the things I enjoyed most about the plot in The Vanishing was the personal aspect.  This wasn't an investigator in the course of a case discovering dark secrets that had nothing to do with her- this was Catalina's home town, her past, and her best friend on the line.  The urgency to find Olivia thrummed throughout the book, helped put a lot of things into perspective for Catalina and Slater, and kept the book's pacing moving quickly.  All the different characters and plot threads come together nicely at the end and still leave us with a few shadowy villains lurking for possible future books.  I was hoping for more details about the original 'incident' at Fogg Lake and the people there, but with luck some of those questions might be answered in the future as well.  Krentz's trademark dry humor runs throughout the book and keeps the reader smiling even in dangerous circumstances.  Readers of Krentz's Harmony series (Illusion Town) will feel right at home in the labyrinth of paranormal energy filled caves near Fogg Lake.  Overall, a fast-paced and enjoyable book that Krentz fans will be happy with, and a good introduction to her writing for new readers.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review