Book Review: Fortune Said (Haberdashers Tales #2) by Sue London

Whit Whitman is known amongst the household staff as a harmless flirt. As the Earl's valet, he also has a uniquely personal relationship with Gideon. When Whit comes down with a deathly fever, it is up to newcomer Sissy Devonport to care for him. She has only been working at the Earl's townhome for six months, ever since her entire family lost their lives to this same fever. But she survived it and now she may be the only thing that can get Whit through it. Whit and Sissy were fond of each other before, but inevitably this brings them closer together.

This was such a sweet and lovely romance. Both of these characters are lonely in their own way, and the few weeks they are forced to spend in confined quarters together really makes their love blossom.We also once again get to see just how much Gideon cares for his staff. They may work for him, but he doesn't treat them as lesser beings and he is genuinely distraught when Whit becomes ill.

I absolutely adore these side tales that go along with author Sue London's The Haberdashers full length series. Now they can all be read solo of course, but when you read them all, you gain so much more depth for the characters and the era. And if you especially enjoy steamy historical romance novels, I recommend you check them all out.

Book Review: A Common Christmas (Haberdashers Tales #1) by Sue London

I loved Sue London's first two books in her The Haberdashers series so I was excited to read the first novella in the Haberdashers Tales mini-series. Unlike the full-length novels, which are a bit on the steamy side, the Tales novellas are more on the sweet side. No there isn't any sex in this read, but trust me it doesn't need it.

You can't come across harder times than Grace Ashman has. With both her parents now gone, she finds herself homeless just a week before Christmas. She knocks on the back door of the Earl of Harrington's house hoping that whoever answers will be kind enough to offer her any sort of help.  When butler Joshua Dibbs opens the door, he isn't expecting to find a young woman and her cat standing there drenched in the pouring rain. He finds himself doing the unusual: inviting her in to dry off and eat. His pretty visitor turns out to be a blessing when the Earl returns home early for the holidays. Running the household on a limited staff should be nearly impossible, but with the help of Grace they will try to pull it off. And while she does a stellar job of cooking, she also manages to bring some much needed holiday spirit to the household.

Book Review & Author Interview: Athena's Ordeal (The Haberdashers #2) by Sue London

Sabrina "Sabre" Bittlesworth is easily the leader of The Haberdashers trio. She may be petite and beautiful, but she is also extremely outspoken and can wield a sword better than most men. Quincy "Quince" Telford, Duke of Beloin, a fairly level headed man who is not driven by his baser desires. But when his eyes fall on the lovely Sabrina while visiting her older brother, he mistakes her for something she is not and impulsively asks that she be his mistress. Now on top of dealing with someone black mailing him, this insult sets in motion a force that Quince has absolutely no chance of fighting off. A force named Sabre.

We briefly met both main characters in book one as Sabre is Jack's best friend and Quince is Gideon's. I didn't see enough of Sabre for me t form an opinion of her before now, but I absolutely loved her in Athena's Ordeal. She is not afraid to go after what she wants. Sabre has her sights set on Quincy and she will not stop until she gets him. And she will get him, of that she has no doubts. I loved that her form of seduction was to plant herself into his daily life and basically take over running his household.

In Trials of Artemis it was quite clear that Gideon and Quincy had a strong difference of opinions in regards to politics. However now we see just how completely opposite they are which is actually quite amusing. Physically Quincy is handsome and blonde with perfectly coiffed hair while Gideon is dark and brooding. Gideon has a reputation as "Lord Lucifer" due to how he spent many years indulging in drink and women whereas Quincy always prided himself on not using women and was usually the person pulling Gideon from the gutter.

Book Review: Trials of Artemis (The Haberdashers #1) by Sue London

Jacqueline "Jack" Walters and her two closest girlfriends created a special group for themselves known as The haberdashers when they were just eight years old. These Haberdashers prefer boyish pursuits like weapons over girlish ones. Amongst the ton, Jack is known as a bluestocking and would rather spend time reading books than attending balls. So after two seasons, she has come to terms with not marrying and becoming a spinster. That is until an accidental encounter with an earl changes everything.

Gideon Wolfe, Earl of Harrington, has no intentions of on marrying. Ever. But when he is caught in a compromising position with Miss Walters, he does the only thing he: he offers to marry her. Jack is of course outrages as she has no intention on marrying either. She figures she will go along with the engagement for a few weeks and then break it off. But when someone leaks the scandal to the papers, it forces their hand into an immediate marriage. Can Jack survive a marriage to a brooding, overbearing man? And Can Gideon get used to his new wife's saucy mouth and headstrong ways?

While I may focus a lot on contemporary romance novels, I truly enjoy a good Regency Era historical romance story. The main characters in this are similar to what you may find on other books of this genre: a young virginal maiden and the older, rakish man. However the interesting twist here is the Haberdashers club and that Jack isn't your typical bluestocking. Not only is she smart and well read but she is also very accomplished in weaponry.

Gideon is exactly what I like in my English gentlemen as he has got that whole dark and brooding thing going on, with a slight air of danger. I loved how these two would butt heads and argue which would lead to incredible passion. I'm also a fan of stories in this era where the couple grows to care for each other after they are thrown together. This is a wonderful story that contained humor, a little suspense and a healthy dose of passion. I enjoyed all of it and dove right into book two: Athena's Ordeal.

Excerpt

“You hardly seemed shocked by my attentions." Jack gasped and looked up at him in outrage. "How dare you! Shocked is exactly what I was." She looked around to see that they had garnered the attention of a good number of the dancers. She grabbed Harrington's arm and dragged him toward the French doors that let out “onto the veranda. Once outside she pushed him into the shadows and drilled a finger into his chest. "What exactly is this about?" "You say you were shocked. You say a lot of things. But your body says something else. And I'm more likely to suspect your words to be lies." "You are the most outrageous-" Jack's retort was cut short by Harrington taking her lips in a swift kiss. She started to pull away but he wrapped one arm around her back, his other hand cupping her face as he deepened the kiss. He licked and nibbled the seam of her lips until she surrendered and let him plunder her mouth. She had never felt this before, as though she was floating, all of her nerves tingling in sudden awareness. The sensations were new, novel, wicked. The warm, solid strength of him pressed against her. The band of his arm across her back. The swirl of his tongue in her mouth. The gentle strength of his hand holding her head while his thumb stroked her jaw. As she melted into his embrace he turned and now she was the one hidden in the shadows with her back pressed against the cool stone of the townhouse wall. His mouth moved down to kiss the side of her throat, her ear. His hand caressed one breast, finding and teasing the nipple that had peaked. "See?" he whispered to her. "Your body welcomes my attentions. I imagine that with very little effort I could have you out of that dress and begging me for more. Why should I trust a woman who can be seduced by a man she doesn't even like?"

Read my review of Athena's Ordeal (The Haberdashers Book#2).

Marianna's Rating:

**I received an ARC in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Title: Trials of Artemis
Author: Sue London
Series: The Haberdashers #1
Genre: Historical Romance
Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/book/show/17912308-trials-of-artemis
Website: bysuelondon.wordpress.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/bysuelondon
Twitter: @cmdrsue

Book Blurb
Loving Lord Lucifer...

An independent bluestocking sneaks into a library to read rare Greek texts and ends up with a husband instead.

Jacqueline “Jack” Walters loves archery and Greek military history. In her third season she has failed to inspire so much as one marriage proposal and is planning to settle into the quiet life of a spinster.

Gideon Wolfe, Earl of Harrington, has been avoiding marriage but a case of mistaken identity in the library has left him saddled with an argumentative and unwilling fiancee.

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