Kathleen Woodiwiss’ SHANNA – The Gold Standard for Historical Romance! A Keeper!

This was my first by the queen of the modern historical romance novel, Kathleen Woodiwiss and I highly recommend it. A wonderful Georgian romance. A classic and a keeper!

Set in mid 18th century London, the Caribbean and the Colony of Virginia, this is the story of the strong willed Shanna Trahern, the only daughter of a successful British merchant who has retired with his wealth to his Caribbean island, Los Cammellos. There he is both governor and owner of a thriving plantation and trade business. His much-loved wife has died by the time the story begins and he wants grandchildren from Shanna and he wants them now!

Her father gives Shanna, who has rejected all her suitors, one year to find a suitable husband or he's picking one for her, preferably one with a title. She has no interest in complying and spends that year in London enjoying herself. Nearing the end of the year, she decides that in order to avoid her father's picking a man for her, she'll take a husband from among those in Newgate Prison facing the gallows. Her goal is to be an instant widow with a good name.

She finds Ruark Beauchamp, a convicted murderer, and marries him. When she first sees him, he is dirty, bearded and unkempt, living in the prison's squalor. At the wedding, after her man has cleaned up Ruark, she discovers a handsome, intelligent and virile man who is a bit, well… overwhelming. His price for giving her his name is one night with her after they are wed--a marriage in truth, however brief. He manages to claim a bit of it just before her scheme is discovered. With hatred and anger in his voice, as they drag him away, he vows to hold her to their bargain if God grants him mercy from the hangman's noose.

Unbeknownst to Shanna, that mercy will be granted to him.

This romance is worth your money. At 666 pages of well-told, detailed, historically accurate, page turning romance, it's a keeper! The characters are brilliantly developed and the settings well described. The hero's love for his woman never varied (which I loved). He is a man I'd give up decades for. Kathleen Woodiwiss, who unfortunately is no longer with us, could write!

This is on my Top 20 list!

Heather Graham’s SWEET SAVAGE EDEN – A Magnificent Love Story That Begins in England and ends in the New World – a Keeper!

This is the first in Heather Graham’s North American Women trilogy and one of my favorites. It’s part of the 6-book Cameron Saga that I highly recommend. They were the first books I read by Heather that led me to become a huge fan of her historical romances.

It begins in 17th century England and tells of Jasmine ("Jassy") and Jamie. The story follows them to New World (Virginia), which was then very much a wild wilderness, untamed and inhabited by hostile Indians. 

Jassy has had a hard life as the bastard daughter of a dead nobleman. When her mother dies for lack of medical attention, Jassy learns of her connections to a noble family and, through a series of events, the family takes her in but treats her as little better than a servant. There she meets the dark Lord Cameron who wants to marry her because she reminds him of his "wild Virginia" where he is building a new life. Jassy is in love with his friend, the charming and fair Robert, but Robert has other plans.

Because Jassy fears dying in poverty like her mother, she consents to wed Jamie even though she is not even sure she likes him. But she is honest and tells him she is marrying him so she will not starve.

Jamie Cameron wants the beautiful Jassy—she makes his blood boil—and he believes she will be strong enough to endure the life in the wilderness where there are still Indians and pressures just to survive. But Jamie does not tell Jassy that he intends to take her to the New World because he knows Jassy wants the security of Jamie's beautiful manor in England.

Can she love a man she hates? Can she forget the fair Robert? Can Jamie love the tavern wench who wants only his wealth? So begins an adventure that is so well told and so well done, I have read it again and again. And the others in the series are equally good.

Heather Graham's writing is superb.  Her portrait of wild early America is wonderful. The story pulls you in and does not let you go. There are no slow spots as the action and characters are very real. The sexual tension permeates the book and is very believable. You will love Jassy and Jamie and you will find yourself drawn back to those historical times at the beginning of America. This is a keeper!

The Cameron Saga:

The North American Women trilogy:

Sweet Savage Eden
A Pirate's Pleasure
Love Not a Rebel

The Civil War trilogy:

One Wore Blue
And One Wore Gray
And One Rode West

Review: Kathleen Woodiwiss’ SHANNA – The Gold Standard for Historical Romance! A Keeper!

This was my first by the queen of the modern historical romance novel, Kathleen Woodiwiss, and I highly recommend it. A wonderful Georgian romance.

Set in mid 18th century London, the Caribbean and the Colony of Virginia, this is the story of the strong willed Shanna Trahern, the only daughter of a successful British merchant who has retired with his wealth to his Caribbean island, Los Cammellos. There he is both governor and owner of a thriving plantation and trade business. His much-loved wife has died by the time the story begins and he wants grandchildren from Shanna and he wants them now!

Her father gives Shanna, who has rejected all her suitors, one year to find a suitable husband or he's picking one for her, preferably one with a title. She has no interest in complying and spends that year in London enjoying herself. Nearing the end of the year, she decides that in order to avoid her father's picking a man for her, she'll take a husband from among those in Newgate Prison facing the gallows. Her goal is to be an instant widow with a good name.

She finds Ruark Beauchamp, a convicted murderer, and marries him. When she first sees him, he is dirty, bearded and unkempt, living in the prison's squalor. At the wedding, after her man has cleaned up Ruark, she discovers a handsome, intelligent and virile man who is a bit, well… overwhelming. His price for giving her his name is one night with her after they are wed--a marriage in truth, however brief. He manages to claim a bit of it just before her scheme is discovered. With hatred and anger in his voice, as they drag him away, he vows to hold her to their bargain if God grants him mercy from the hangman's noose.

Unbeknownst to Shanna, that mercy will be granted to him.

This romance is worth your money. At 666 pages of well-told, detailed, historically accurate, page turning romance, it's a keeper! The characters are brilliantly developed and the settings well described. The hero's love for his woman never varied (which I loved). He is a man I'd give up decades for. Kathleen Woodiwiss, who unfortunately is no longer with us, could write!

This is on my Top 20 list!

Review: Constance O’Banyon’s VELVET CHAINS – Superb Storytelling in this Privateer Adventure from the American Revolution

Set during the American Revolution, 1779-1781, this tells the story of Lady Season Chatsworth, a young English beauty who fakes a tumble in the hay with the stable boy on their English estate to avoid a dreaded arranged marriage. Her reputation in tatters, her father the duke sends her away to America to marry her cousin, Sir Edmund Kensworthy, captain of His Majesty’s Guards in New York. But her reputation as a loose woman, false though it may be, has followed her to the Colonies.

Both Edmund and his handsome friend Lucas Carrington, to whom Season is immediately attracted, assume she is free with her favors, much to her chagrin. Meanwhile, there is an American privateer called “the Raven” terrorizing the British and winning the praise of the patriots.

This is a great story of a worthy heroine who is constantly faced with the foibles of men who underestimate her. She put up with so much one could only wonder at the wisdom of a 19-year-old girl. When she is captured by the Raven and held for exchange of an American prisoner, the adventure begins and Season finds herself in love with the masked man who takes her innocence.

O’Banyon vividly portrays the emotions of the Colonists with the British living among them. Our hero is a spy as well as a privateer and I loved that! This is one that will hold your interest. And though I might not have wanted to wait until the very end for Season to learn The Truth, I cannot deny I was absorbed enough to hang in there.

A few nits: With her careful attention to historical details, it was surprising O’Banyon got the forms of address wrong for the British nobility. If her father was the Duke of Chatsworth, their surname would not be “Chatsworth,” and she would not be “Lady Chatsworth” (that would have been her mother); she would be “Lady Season (surname).” Also, I just have to say that naming your daughter “Season” in England at that time (when “Season” referred to the London social season) would be like naming an American girl “Cotillion.” Seemed bizarre and it distracted. But these were minor in the scheme of the whole story.

This is a bodice-ripper, a privateer tale and an American patriotic romance. And it’s a keeper.

Review: Heather Graham’s SWEET SAVAGE EDEN – A Magnificent Love Story That Begins in England and ends in the New World – a Keeper!

April is Classics Month on my blog and I’m starting with one of my favorites, the first in Heather Graham’s North American Women trilogy, a classic and one of my favorites by Heather Graham. It’s part of the 6-book Cameron Saga that I highly recommend. They were the first books I read by Heather that led me to become a huge fan of her historical romances.

It begins in 17th century England and tells of Jasmine ("Jassy") and Jamie. The story follows them to New World (Virginia), which was then very much a wild wilderness, untamed and inhabited by hostile Indians. 

Jassy has had a hard life as the bastard daughter of a dead nobleman. When her mother dies for lack of medical attention, Jassy learns of her connections to a noble family and, through a series of events, the family takes her in but treats her as little better than a servant. There she meets the dark Lord Cameron who wants to marry her because she reminds him of his "wild Virginia" where he is building a new life. Jassy is in love with his friend, the charming and fair Robert, but Robert has other plans.

Because Jassy fears dying in poverty like her mother, she consents to wed Jamie even though she is not even sure she likes him. But she is honest and tells him she is marrying him so she will not starve.

Jamie Cameron wants the beautiful Jassy—she makes his blood boil—and he believes she will be strong enough to endure the life in the wilderness where there are still Indians and pressures just to survive. But Jamie does not tell Jassy that he intends to take her to the New World because he knows Jassy wants the security of Jamie's beautiful manor in England.

Can she love a man she hates? Can she forget the fair Robert? Can Jamie love the tavern wench who wants only his wealth? So begins an adventure that is so well told and so well done, I have read it again and again. And the others in the series are equally good.

Heather Graham's writing is superb.  Her portrait of wild early America is wonderful. The story pulls you in and does not let you go. There are no slow spots as the action and characters are very real. The sexual tension permeates the book and is very believable. You will love Jassy and Jamie and you will find yourself drawn back to those historical times at the beginning of America. This is a keeper! 

The Cameron Saga:

The North American Women trilogy:

Sweet Savage Eden
A Pirate's Pleasure
Love Not a Rebel

The Civil War trilogy:

One Wore Blue
And One Wore Gray
And One Rode West

Review: Heather Graham’s SWEET SAVAGE EDEN – A Magnificent Love Story That Begins in England and ends in the Wild New World – a Keeper!

This is the first in the North American Women trilogy, one of my favorites by Heather Graham. It’s part of the 6-book Cameron Saga series (see list below) that I highly recommend. They were the ones that led me to become a huge fan of Heather Graham. It’s a keeper.

It begins in 17th century England and tells of Jasmine ("Jassy") and Jamie. And it will follow them as they travel to New World (Virginia), which was then very much a wild wilderness, untamed and inhabited by hostile Indians. 

Jassy has had a hard life as the bastard daughter of a dead nobleman. When her mother dies for lack of medical attention, Jassy learns of her connections to a noble family and, through a series of events, the family takes her in but treats her as little better than a servant. There she meets the dark Lord Cameron who wants to marry her because she reminds him of his "wild Virginia" where he is building a new life. Jassy is in love with his friend, the charming and fair Robert, but Robert has other plans.

Because Jassy fears dying like her mother in poverty, she consents to wed Jamie even though she is not even sure she likes him. But she is honest and tells him she is marrying him so she will not starve.

Jamie Cameron wants the beautiful Jassy—she makes his blood boil—and he believes she will be strong enough to endure the life in the wilderness where there are still Indians and pressures just to survive. But Jamie does not tell Jassy that he intends to take her to the New World because he knows she wants the security of hiss beautiful manor in England.

Can Jassy love a man she hates? Can she forget the fair Robert? Can Jamie love the tavern wench who wants only his wealth? So begins an adventure that is so well told and so well done, I will read it again and again. And the others in the series are equally good.

Heather Graham's writing is superb.  Her portrait of wild early America is wonderful. The story pulls you in and does not let you go. There are no slow spots as the action and characters become so real. The sexual tension permeates the book and is very believable. You will love Jassy and Jamie and you will find yourself drawn back to those historical times at the beginning of America when it was truly an exotic locale. This is a keeper!

On Amazon

The Cameron Saga:

The North American Women trilogy:

Sweet Savage Eden
A Pirate's Pleasure
Love Not a Rebel

The Civil War trilogy:

One Wore Blue
And One Wore Gray
And One Rode West

Review: Heather Graham's SWEET SAVAGE EDEN - When America was an Exotic Locale... a Keeper!

This is the first in the North American Women trilogy, part of the 6-book Cameron Saga series (see list below). I highly recommend these romances. They were the ones that led me to become a huge fan of Heather Graham. This is the first book in the series and I loved it. It’s a keeper.

It begins in 17th century England and tells of Jasmine ("Jassy") and Jamie. And it will follow them as they travel to New World (Virginia) which was then very much a wild wilderness, untamed and inhabited by hostile Indians. 

Jassy has had a hard life as the bastard daughter of a dead nobleman. When her mother dies for lack of medical attention, Jassy learns of her connections to a noble family and, through a series of events, the family takes her in but treats her as little better than a servant. There she meets the dark Lord Cameron who wants to marry her because she reminds him of his "wild Virginia" where he is building a new life. Jassy thinks she is in love with his friend, the charming and fair Robert, but Robert has other plans.

Because Jassy fears dying like her mother in poverty, she consents to wed Jamie even though she is not even sure she likes him. But she is honest and tells him she is marrying him so she will not starve.

Jamie Cameron wants the beautiful Jassy—she makes his blood boil—and he believes she will be strong enough to endure the life in the wilderness where there are still Indians and pressures just to survive. But Jamie does not tell Jassy that he intends to take her to the New World because he knows Jassy wants the security of Jamie's beautiful manor in England.

Can she love a man she hates? Can she forget the fair Robert? Can Jamie love the tavern wench who wants only his wealth? So begins an adventure that is so well told and so well done, I will read it again and again. And the others in the series are equally good.

Heather Graham's writing is superb.  Her portrait of wild early America is wonderful. The story pulls you in and does not let you go. There are no slow spots as the action and characters become so real. The sexual tension permeates the book and is very believable. You will love Jassy and Jamie and you will find yourself drawn back to those historical times at the beginning of America when it was truly an exotic local. This is a keeper!

Buy on Amazon

The Cameron Saga:

The North American Women trilogy:

Sweet Savage Eden
A Pirate's Pleasure
Love Not a Rebel

The Civil War trilogy:

One Wore Blue
And One Wore Gray
And One Rode West

Review: Virginia Henley's MASTER OF PARADISE - A Great Civil War Romance!

This romance features life in the American south in the 19^th century on the eve of the Civil War, though the beginning and the end take place in England (in Kent). Henley did justice to a difficult theme and portrays the mixed feelings of some Southerners and the real, economic conflict over the issue of slavery. The story is entertaining and the love between the hero and heroine very believable.

Nicholas Peacock always thought he’d inherit Peacock Hall in Kent from his British lord father. But just as he is ready to take over their lands, he learns he is a bastard, and will not be the son to inherit. When his father dies suddenly, Nicholas faces a vindictive stepmother, so he sails to South Carolina, determined to become the owner of a successful plantation.

He buys land and plants cotton and works very hard, right alongside his slaves. Eventually he builds a magnificent house known as Paradise Plantation. Though he does not like the concept of owning another person, he accepts slavery as a part of the Southern way of life. He falls in love with Mandy Jackson, the young daughter of his neighbor, but her youth forces him to agree to a marriage in name only, a marriage he promises her father he won’t consummate until she is 18.

One of the things I loved about Nick as a hero was his unwavering love for Mandy. And, Mandy, even as an immature teenager, had great courage and common sense with an adventuresome spirit. Nick could spot a diamond in the rough and he chose Mandy the first time he saw her. Those guys are few, so I enjoyed him very much!

As with all Virginia Henley’s romances, I recommend them as worthy tales.

Buy on Amazon.

New Review: Betina Krahn’s NOT QUITE MARRIED – From England to America and Back Again in the late 18th century

First released as RAPTURE’S RANSOM, this is the story of Brien Weston, daughter of the Earl of Southwold, who one day wakes up and realizes his daughter, now in her early 20’s is too stubborn and willful and must be married. Believing no man would have her, the earl picks the son of a French business associate for her husband. After she meets him, though he is handsome and smooth talking, she discovers the French nobleman only wants her money. So she determines to make herself unavailable to him by marrying another. A friend finds her a husband in a dockside tavern, one Aaron Durham. He’s a man who, for a sum of money, will wed her and then go away.

When Brien’s French fiancé learns of this, he is furious and promises to get even. Then her father does some investigating and tells her the wedding Brien went through with the stranger was not a real wedding and there is no record of it in the church. Brien is horrified, especially since the handsome stranger consummated the marriage that wasn’t real. Thus, she is forced to marry the man she hates, but then there is a fire…

Original cover, original title

The story begins in 1787 in England but moves to America when Brien happens to take a ship to Boston to sell a part of her father’s business. Turns out the ship is owned by Aaron Durham. Krahn keeps you guessing as to when Brien and Aaron will get together. Aaron is constant throughout but Brien loathes the role of a woman and loves being an active partner in her father’s trading business. Of course in the 18^th century nobility considered trade something for the other classes. And, for some reason Krahn kept referring to America as “the colonies” though it was a sovereign nation by 1783.

Still, it’s a fun tale, well-told and I can recommend it.