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NEW RELEASE BLITZ: To Beguile A Banished Lord by Fearne Hill (Excerpt)
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RELEASE TOUR: To Defend A Damaged Duke by Fearne Hill (Excerpt)
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PROMO BLITZ: To Defend a Damaged Duke by Fearne Hill
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COVER REVEAL: To Defend A Damaged Duke by Fearne Hill (Giveaway)
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REVIEW: The Gentleman and His Vowsmith by Rebecca Ide
The Gentleman and His Vowsmith by Rebecca Ide
Set in Regency England, The Gentleman and His Vowsmith by Rebecca Ide is a queer historical fantasy of magic, murder, high heat and humour.
Lord Nicholas Monterris, the last remaining heir of a crumbling ducal house, must marry to save his family from complete decline. His father chooses Lady Leaf Serral, eldest daughter of his greatest rival, at which point Nic is sure it can’t get any worse. Until he learns the head negotiator is to be Dashiell sa Vare, an old flame he has neither forgiven nor forgotten, a man their rigid class structure forbids him to love.
Locked in the mouldering grandeur of Monterris Court (a house more haunting manifestation of dynastic ambition and ancestral guilt than home), the first dead body is troubling. The second, a warning that someone doesn’t want the contract to go ahead. But while Nic and his wife-to-be team up to banter their way through a secret murder investigation, it’s Dashiell he can’t stop thinking about. What would be worse? To love and have to let go, or to wholly deny the yearning of one’s heart forever?
Perfect for fans of Freya Marske and Alexis Hall, The Gentleman and His Vowsmith by Rebecca Ide is the perfect blend of gothic and romantic – including a locked room murder mystery, forbidden love and otherworldly automatons.
The Gentleman and His Vowsmith by Rebecca Ide is a blind read that hooked me from the opening chapter till the end. Half of it is due to new-to-me narrator James Langton, whose storyteller voice immediately drew me in, and the author’s engaging writing style that kept me riveted.
The plot is part romance, part fantasy, and mostly murder mystery, weaving together family drama, bad blood, dark secrets, and vengeful ghosts.
The story is in Lord Nicholas Monterris’s third-person POV. Nic, being the sole heir of a dukedom on the brink of bankruptcy, is about to be contracted to marry Lady Leaf Serral of the wealthy House Serral.
The two families were bitter rivals, so it was a surprise to Nic his father, the duke, is hell-bent on completing the contract despite the numerous tragedies happening during the negotiations.
My favorite aspect is the world-building. This is set in an alt-Regency world where LGBTQ+ is accepted and people with magic abilities are called Brilliants. They are generally the aristocracy. Everything is governed by contracts and contracts are made by vowsmiths.
Vowsmiths are glorified lawyers with magical abilities. They write the contracts and make them binding by smithing, which is the process of inscribing magical runes. It’s actually as tedious as real-world contracts, but I think this paper-based magic is pretty fabulous!
As much as I liked the world, there are also some low-key steampunk elements that I wished were utilized more. The Regency part was also so subtle, I initially didn’t realize this was set in England.
Brilliance, vowsmithing, and other concepts mentioned, like the Care Clause, could have been expanded more. The Care Clause was invoked but what happened after that was not shown.
The vowsmith hired by the Serral to negotiate on their behalf is none other than Nic’s childhood friend a.k.a. long-time crush, Dashiell sa Vare. Dash was the duke’s former apprentice, the duke being a vowsmith before he inherited the title.
Dash and Nic’s interactions weren’t as frequent as I preferred but I lived for those moments they were together. The chemistry is chef’s kiss! Dash is polite and professional but when he makes passionate declarations, it’s swoony as hell!! And those long looks across the table! Also, buying a whole new wardrobe just to impress Nic.
Meanwhile, Nic has perma heart eyes from the moment Dashiell steps into his house. Dash was the one who got away, so him walking back into Nic’s life…our boy isn’t letting him go again!
While the negotiations are underway, the brilliants are magically obligated to stay within the duke’s residence. And this is where the fun starts, because they cannot leave even with ghosts and dead bodies in their midst.
Rather than Nic, our amateur sleuth turned out to be Leaf. She was the best character, smart, determined, and ambitious, even if her sleuthing skills were just based on detective novels. She quickly became Nic’s best friend, their playful natures and mutual understanding of their predicament bringing them together. She’s also a fantastic aro/ace character.
The murder mystery was very intriguing. It built up my expectations and I was looking forward to being shocked. The big reveal was a bit anti-climatic but Nic’s resolution was clever. The epilogue was the cherry on top!
I love standalones but I hope the author would write another book in this setting, possibly another couple with lots of Dash and Nic cameos. I want more of the vowsmith world!
The Gentleman and His Vowsmith is far from perfect but I had a great time nonetheless. It’s a fun, cozy-ish, hella charming tale with a chockful of dark and drama. Overall, as gothic and romantic as promised!
Rating:
4 Stars – minor quibbles but I loved it to bitsSoundtrack: Promised You A Miracle
Artist: Simple Minds
Album: New Gold Dream (81,82,83,84)
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THE GENTLEMAN AND HIS VOWSMITH: Kindle | Audiobook
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REVIEW: The Gentle Art of Fortune Hunting by K.J. Charles
Gentlemen of Uncertain Fortune: The Gentle Art of Fortune Hunting – K.J. Charles
Robin Loxleigh and his sister Marianne are the hit of the Season, so attractive and delightful that nobody looks behind their pretty faces. Until Robin sets his sights on Sir John Hartlebury’s heiress niece. The notoriously graceless baronet isn’t impressed by good looks or fooled by false charm. He’s sure Robin is a liar, a fortune hunter, and a heartless, greedy fraud – and he’ll protect his niece, whatever it takes. Then, just when Hart thinks he has Robin at his mercy, things take a sharp left turn. And as the grumpy baronet and the glib fortune hunter start to understand each other, they also find themselves starting to care – more than either of them thought possible. But Robin’s cheated and lied and let people down for money. Can a professional rogue earn an honest happy ever after?
The Gentle Art of Fortune Hunting is the first book of Gentlemen of Uncertain Fortune by my all-time favorite, K.J. Charles. I started this book beforehand but finished the sequel, The Duke At Hazard, first because, for some reason, I wasn’t jiving with the story.
I enjoyed The Duke At Hazard so much, and Hart and Robin had a fun cameo that I wanted to give their book another try.
Second time’s the charm!
Still, it was a bit of a slow start but I had a better appreciation of the cleverness of the plot, the layered characterizations, the scandalous family politics, and the surprising rightness of Hart and Robin’s dynamics once they started their arrangement.
Robin and Marianne Loxleigh of Nottinghamshire are in the business of stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. The poor being them. They set their sights on Alice Fenwick, a brewery heiress, and the titled gentlemen of the Season, all of whom were impressed by their manners and attractive appearance.
Alice’s uncle is the grumpy Sir John Hartlebury, a known misanthrope who saw through their ruse from the get-go. Hart tries to convince his sister Edwina that her daughter is being wooed by a fortune hunter, but she isn’t convinced and tells Hart to prove his claims.
This is one of the most amusing parts. Doing his damnest, Hart pointed out all the signs that Robin is a charlatan who uses his appearance and charms to gain advantages and titles. Only for Edwina to counterargue, “It’s what people do” in the Marriage Mart.
I loved the irony and how the author made it seem the Loxleighs are really no different from everyone else, except that they have no illustrious lineage, and that everybody is, in a way, a charlatan when it comes to securing an advantageous marriage.
Another fun part is the unexpectedly endearing relationship between Robin and Alice. Our young heiress might be average-looking, but she’s no fool and a math prodigy, too. Also, she has no interest in marriage. Schemes aside, Robin developed a fondness for the lady and had an enthusiastic appreciation of her mathematical skills.
I loved how he encouraged her to pursue her dream to be a mathematician. Might be that he sees potential use of her math theories in the gaming halls. I could imagine Robin rubbing his hands in glee as he raked in the money. But really, this enterprising fortune hunter is actually soft-hearted and wants to help Alice enter a university.
Also, he’s lusting after the uncle with the thunder thighs.
Hart and Robin’s arrangement started after an unfortunate card game (guess who lost). The author did a spectacular job weaving the hurt comfort, the class difference, the importance of consent, the kink exploration, and the blossoming affections in this clandestine arrangement.
The characters are wonderfully nuanced and if you love words of affirmation, this has swoon-worthy declarations to melt the heart!
Robin more or less trampled the power dynamics with his unbridled sensuality, shameless imagination, and sincere admiration for the “unlovable” Hart.
Robin is easy to like but Hart is the underdog I was rooting hard for. Going against his heartless mother to protect his sister and their family legacy and thus practically a social pariah, he is a man with only three known friends.
He is also considered physically unattractive by even his mother. Add to that his lack of conversational skills and social graces, it was hard for Hart to believe anyone would actually like him.
But Robin saw through the gruffness. Hart is fiercely protective of those he loves. He’s an astute business owner, a loyal friend, kind, generous and fair even to desperate fortune hunting rogues.
This wouldn’t be a K.J. Charles book without a twisty-turny climax. The scene is deliciously sharp, cutting with surgical precision, bringing the bad guys down before they even realized their heads were sliced off. Metaphorically that is, since no blood was shed, just dignity and enemy reputations in tatters.
And you got to hand it to narrator Cornell Collins for performing this scene to it’s most dramatic effect.
The Gentle Art of Fortune Hunting is a story of pretty faces and plain janes, false claims, and genuine treasures. Set against the backdrop of dazzling ballrooms, bustling gaming halls, and secluded private rooms, it is a tale where fortune favors the bold (and desperate) in the game of love, money, and privilege. Swoony and captivating, it’s definitely a winning hand!
Rating:
4.5 Stars – perfection is only half a step awaySoundtrack: Fortunately
Artist: Mokita
Album: FortunatelyP.S.
The books in the Gentlemen of Uncertain Fortune can be read as standalones. Witness another fortune lost and gain during a card game in The Duke At Hazard.
If you like my content, please consider using my Amazon affiliate links below to buy your copy of The Gentle Art of Fortune Hunting. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying Amazon purchases at no additional cost to you.
THE GENTLE ART OF FORTUNE HUNTING: Kindle | Audiobook
If you like my content, please consider supporting me on Ko-fi or PayPal. Your donations will help keep this website going. Thank you so much!
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BLOG TOUR: To Tempt A Troubled Earl by Fearne Hill (Excerpt & Giveaway + Character Interview)
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NEW RELEASE: The Unquiet House by Ellie Thomas (Excerpt)
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RELEASE BLITZ: Town Bronze Regency Box Set Trilogy by Ellie Thomas (Excerpt)
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RECENT RELEASE: An Increasing Entanglement by Ellie Thomas (Excerpt)
