[Review] The Devilish Lord Will, by Jennifer Ashley

Title: The Devilish Lord Will
Series: Mackenzies & McBrides #10
Author: Jennifer Ashley
Publisher: JA / AG Publishing
Number of pages: 315
Publication date: January 15th 2019

Synopsis:

Scotland 1747

When Josette needs help finding a trove of gold believed lost in the Highlands, she turns to Will Mackenzie, the most cunning, devious, and clever man she knows. But trusting Will with her secrets is akin to trusting the devil himself.

They've worked together in the past, pretending to be man and wife to ferret out information, and the venture did not end well. Will is dangerous, and so is his life, and danger is not what Josette needs.

But she knows the real reason she's avoided him is because he's Will Mackenzie, the golden-eyed, red-haired, unpredictable man with warm hands that bring her to life. Will has more secrets than Josette ever can fathom, and the most dangerous thing of all is that he's already stolen her heart.

Review:

I received an eARC at no cost from the author, and I am leaving a voluntary and honest review. Thank you.

I love Jennifer Ashley. I've read some of her historical romances, some of her mysteries and I keep finding myself entertained for hours.

First of all, I have to admit this wasn't the first book I read in 2019. I started the year with a book that just wasn't doing it for me. And so, when The Devilish Lord Will arrived in my inbox, I almost jumped with happiness - better times were coming!

As usual, I was not disappointed. This book is full of adventure, and romance, and family and friends, and courage, so much courage.

Josette (Josie) and Will have a great chemistry, it worked so well with the story line of the book. Both characters are stubborn, and they both what's best for one another - of course will know what that is, right?

It was fun to see different personas for Will and Josie, and at the same time, never lose track of who they really are. It's difficult to sometimes not lose ourselves in the variations we create, but Jennifer Ashley managed to showcase this experience wonderfully.

This book happens after the Jacobite rebellion, and when the English think all the Mackenzies are dead. We know they aren't and, we readers, want Kilmorgan, their ancestral home, back on its feet almost as much - if not more- than the characters.

And so, it's great joy that we follow Will and Josie's adventure looking for French Gold, for a way to bring Kilmorgan back to its former glory, and to help families that were broken apart but, most importantly, to find each other and stay together.

A book full of adventure and romance that keeps us readers happy for hours and leaves us wanting for more.

[Review] Murder in St. Giles, by Ashley Gardner

Title: Murder in St. Giles
Series: Captain Lacey Mysteries #13
Author: Ashley Gardner
Publisher: JA / AG Publishing
Number of pages: 300
Publication date: April 10th 2018

Synopsis:

London, 1819: When Brewster, my bodyguard, comes to me about a murder of a pugilist—and what’s more, says his wife has summoned me—I must hasten to St. Giles to find a killer before Brewster is arrested for the crime.

This is made difficult because Donata's late husband’s odious cousin has materialized to try to wrest her son into his care. After all, seven-year-old Peter is a viscount, and his cousin wants to get closer to the title.

But how close? If Peter’s life is in danger, I must remain, but Brewster risks hanging for the death of his wife’s brother-in-law. He’s done too much for me to turn my back on him, but the devil if I’ll let the Breckenridge cousin get his clutches on Peter.

It will take all my perseverance, and a few wiles, to plough through these difficulties. In the meantime, I meet a Runner who teaches me about crime and punishment in this enlightened age, and Brewster’s old trainer, who made him the excellent pugilist—and thief—he is today.

Review:

I received an eARC at no cost from the author

Murder in St. Giles was my first Captain Lacey’s book – and I can’t wait to read the other books!

Although I do like mysteries, I usually end up a bit disappointed because I can tell right away who did what (in this case, who killed Finch). But with this book, I kept thinking “who did it? Who did it?” because I just couldn’t tell. I really enjoyed discovering the killer along with Gabriel Lacey and Brewster.

The one tiny thing I would have liked a bit more is movement. Sometimes it was a bit slow, how the story was developing, and at the end it was maybe a bit too quick. But it was very satisfying, I didn’t feel like things were left to chance, everything was very well planned, since the order of meeting the suspects, to the suspects themselves.

The subplot was also good, although I have to say I didn’t connect with Donata and her son Peter that much, but that might have to do with only meeting them now, and not in a previous book. The most important part of this subplot, for me, was showing Captain Lacey in a different light, more of a husband and father (same thing with his daughters, Anne and Gabriella), which I could appreciate.

In the end, it was a great historical mystery book, it kept me guessing and wondering and I liked most of the characters, which meant I was truly engaged with what happened to each of them. I will, definitely, return to this series and read more about Captain Lacey.

[Review] Death Below Stairs, by Jennifer Ashley

Title Death Below Stairs
Series: Kat Holloway Mysteries #1
Author: Jennifer Ashley
Publisher: Berkley Books
Number of pages: 313
Publication date: January 2nd 2018

Synopsis:

Victorian class lines are crossed when cook Kat Holloway is drawn into a murder that reaches all the way to the throne.

Highly sought-after young cook Kat Holloway takes a position in a Mayfair mansion and soon finds herself immersed in the odd household of Lord Rankin. Kat is unbothered by the family’s eccentricities as long as they stay away from her kitchen, but trouble finds its way below stairs when her young Irish assistant is murdered.

Intent on discovering who killed the helpless kitchen maid, Kat turns to the ever-capable Daniel McAdam, who is certainly much more than the charming delivery man he pretends to be. Along with the assistance of Lord Rankin’s unconventional sister-in-law and a mathematical genius, Kat and Daniel discover that the household murder was the barest tip of a plot rife with danger and treason—one that’s a threat to Queen Victoria herself.

Review:

I received an eARC at no cost from the author

Although I already knew (and loved) Jennifer Ashely as a historical romance writer, I had never read a mystery book from her, so this was my first attempt.

Our main character, Kat, is a cook with a lovely young daughter and a past. She goes to work in a house where a young girl (a scullery maid) dies. And so she decides to get Daniel’s help – he’s someone she knows from her past, but that neither she nor us know much about. And that doesn’t really change throughout the book. It might be the only thing I would like to change – I would have liked to have known just a little bit more about Daniel and his son James, but I’m guessing Jennifer Ashley will start lifting the veil a bit more in the next book.

It was full of mystery and I usually find out right away who killed whom, but in this book I was kept on the edge of my chair trying to find out who planned to kill the scullery maid. In the end, it made perfect sense, and I really enjoyed finding out what was happening alongside with Kat and Daniel.

It was a very pleasurable read, with a small touch of romance between our main characters. I can’t wait to see what happens next to our Kat, and if she and Daniel upgrade their romance status (I’m sure they will!!).