New Covers!!

I thought it was going to be a quiet week for covers but I found a whole slew of them today! 

Love, love, love this cover!! I can not wait to see the stepback for it as I'm sure it will be smoldering!  It's a bit unfortunate there is not allusion to the heroines birthmark on her face but I guess you can't really have that on a romance cover.  So, so, so excited to read A Lady by Midnight at the end of August!  A beautiful midnight blue cover to match the title :)

Bam!  That's what I think when I see this cover, lol :)  She looks like she knows what she wants and how to get it and no one is going to mess with her.  Love the pretty blue.  I'm really looking forward to this one as well!  This one also releases August 28th.

Book four in Eloisa James' Fairy Tale series is obviously based on The Ugly Duckling and I love the swan on the cover. The Ugly Duchess will also be out August 28th (a month which I am going to go broke apparently!)

Lessons from a Scandalous Bride is book two in Sophie Jordan's Forgotten Princesses series and yet another eye-catching cover!  I really like the hot pink as a background.  I wonder if there will be a step back for this one?  This one will be out July 31st.

While I don't like this cover as much as Anna Randol's debut book, it still is giving me the feeling that it is set somewhere beyond just London/England area by the background.  Looking forward to more info about Sins of a Virgin before its August release.

The Warrior Laird will be July 31st.  I've read a few of her books and enjoyed them but this one looks to be more Scottish themed which is always a nice change of pace.

A Little More Scandal will be an ebook exclusive and is available for preorder at my favorite price, .99!  It will be out May 29th and is book 1.5 in her Christies series.  I have yet to read Flawless so I need to get on that soon so I can be caught up for her two new releases!  I really do like when publishers take the time to make even short novellas have lovely covers!

And then the next month (June 26th) we get the full lengthy release of Starlight!  Another pretty cover and I love the little sparkle of the stars.  Carrie Lofty sure has been blessed with some lovely covers!  (Flawless is one of my favorite covers ever)

When the Duchess Says Yes is book two is Isabella Bradford's debut series (under this pen name) the Wylder Sisters.  It fits in very nicely with the previous book and I love the fan :)  It will be out Sept 25th.

And lastly (seriously, I only had two covers until this morning!) is the upcoming start of a new self published series from Jess Michaels, who I have only read under her Jenna Petersen name but really enjoyed what I have read.  I'm intrigued by the series title 'Mistress Matchmaker' and can't wait until June to read this one!  I really love this cover as well!

As always, covers can change anytime :)

Whew!  What a bunch of lovely covers!  Sorry for your pocketbooks :)  I know mine will be crying, especially in August!  (Why, why, why does Avon publish so many great books in one month?!?  They need to spread it out a bit more, lol)

Brazen by Margo Maguire

Lady Christina Fairhaven has known she was adopted as a young girl her whole life and her love for her parents and younger brothers runs deep.  So when she is blackmailed into gathering two thousand pounds for information about her supposedly dead brother, she does not hesitate to gather all the jewels from her late husband.  They were not jewels meant for her, but for his lover whose bed he died in and she has no qualms about selling all of them.  But just as she is about to leave, she meets the battle-scarred Captain Gavin Briggs and lets just say there first encounter starts off with a bang!

Captain Gavin Briggs is on a mission to bring home the long lost granddaughter of a duke.  He is relieved to finally find her and anxious to bring Christina back with him to reunite with her grandfather and her sister, both of whom come as quite a shock to Christina.  But as excited as Christina is to meet her twin, she is less than enthused about meeting the man who ignored her for years plus she must complete her mission to gain information about her brother first and Gavin reluctantly agrees to head to London first.  Gavin believes that her brother is truly dead, but as they travel and details are discussed he starts to have some suspensions that all is not as it seems.   Also adding some tension to their travels is the fact that the dukes heir, a scheming, greedy man, wants Christina dead as she will inherit quite a fortune at the dukes death and he does not want to share one shilling.  Oh, but where there is tension, there is passion!  And Gavin and Christina have an immediate attraction that grows and Christina wants to enjoy before she must remarry.

Overall, this was a enjoyable historical romance!  I loved the fact that Christina had short hair and while other people made little snide remarks about it, it was one of the first things that attracted Gavin to Christina and he does not let her forget that.  I also admired Gavin and his fierce protection he has for his sister who was shunned by society and he just wants to collect his reward from the duke and buy her a home in the country to live in.  Gavin believes that no one could love him with his past transgressions from the war but Christina makes him see what a compassionate, decent man he is.  And in return, Gavin proves that Christina is worth all the love that should have been showered upon her by her late husband.  The mystery surrounding Christinas brother added a nice element and when the truth was revealed, I was quite surprised.  My only little problem with this book was the epilogue.  I wished there had been a bit more.  I don't want to say much for spoiling it but maybe there will be a novella or something in the future to just expand on it a bit.  I mean, I understand the epilogue and think it works, I personally just wanted more :)  If you are looking for a book that is a bit unique with a dashing, gruff, caring Captain and women a bit burned by love who is looking to reclaim her heart mixed with a bit of mystery with no big misunderstanding, Margo Maguire as delivered a sexy story!  4 stars

I received this book from the publisher via netgalley.com

Related book but not necessary to read first:

Mid-End of November Releases

Upcoming November 15th releases



November 22nd



November 29th



Overall, I think its nice to seem them all spread out a bit.  Its much easier to convince myself to buy one book a week instead of three or four on one day :)  Any in particular that you are looking forward to?  I have had the pleasure of already reading Pride and Passion, A Midsummer Night's Sin, and Brazen but I have my eye on Desired as I have had a few friends recommend it highly.  Also looking forward to the latest in Sabrina Jeffries fun series about brothers and sisters who must all marry within a year to claim their inheritance.  A Scottish Love got a good review from RT Magazine so I hope to try Karen Ranney with this one.
Hang on to those wallets friends because December is looking to be a huge debt maker with lots and lots of great releases coming out!  Wish for gift cards from good old Saint Nick!

Seducing the Governess by Margo Maguire

Mercy Franklin was brought up believing that the vicar and his wife were her true parents but after the death of them, her mother reveals that she was adopted by them because her birth mother had unfortunate circumstances, leading Mercy to believe she was a wanton woman. Realizing she has no funds, she accepts the request to become governess to the niece of the Earl of Ashby, Nash. Upon arriving in a rainstorm and walking towards Ashby Hall, Mercy is run off the road twice, the second time throwing a man off his horse and twisting his ankle. She is startled by his scarred face but it does not throw her and she offers her assistance to the man. He accepts and has her remove his boot which leads to a few interesting moments that stiffen Mercys back.

However, much to Mercys dismay, when she arrives at the dreary, run down Ashby Hall she realizes the man is Lord Ashby and the first group of men are the servants. Even though Mercy is attracted to Nash, she must stay and be Emmalines governess. Emmy has had two tragedies befall her in her young life. First her father, the first Earl, was shot 'accidentally' at a hunting party and then later, her uncle, the second Earl, perished in a carriage accident. Naturally she is very reserved and a bit frightened of her big uncle with his scarred face but Mercy draws out the little girl. However, she is a bit surprised that there is no housekeeper or nursemaid in the house, just men that are from Nashs army days and in need of work.

As the story progresses and the fiery snaps between Mercy and Nash grow, Nash is investing his brothers deaths because even though they were ruled accidental, he just can't shake the feeling that they are not. Mercy has her mothers journal that she does not want to go through but one rainy day she reads it and is once again devastated and hurt. She keeps shoving down her feelings for Nash as she does not want to be a wanton woman like her birth mother and as she realizes that Nash is in dire needs of funds to survive, and she has none, she knows they can not be.

Now, this is where the beginning of the book comes into focus. Mercy, and her twin, were daughters of a lovely married couple, the woman being the daughter of a duke who disinherited her due to her choice of husband (who was wealthy in his own right, just not of noble blood). The duke is now on his deathbed and wants to find the girls and bequeath them a large sum of money. So there is a man, Captain Gavin Briggs, out searching for her and realizes that he is being tailed and knows Mercys life could be in danger. This is a running side story and I am happy to see Gavin is the hero in the next book in this series as he continues his search for Mercys sister.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. This was my first novel by Margo Maguire and I am very interested in continuing this story. There were a few looses ends that were left dangling and the suspense around the brothers death was interesting, if a bit predictable in some spots. I really enjoyed the premise of long lost twin sisters finding each other and look forward to reading that happen in the next book. If you are in the mood for a feisty heroine and a slightly scarred hero with a sweet child thrown in, curl up with this one. 3 1/2 stars

I received this ebook via netgalley.com