The Dueling Duchess, by Minerva Spencer

I started reading this ARC, after being reminded of its impending release via SuperWendy’s Unusual Historicals post for May, but stopped when I realized how much of the beginning is intertwined with the events of the first book in the series. So I read that first, then came back to this one.

Beware: explicit language; explicit sex on page; death of a parent on page; brief incident of fatphobia; mentions of miscarriage; newborn death.

The Boxing Baroness, by Minerva Spencer

I have a number of Minerva Spencer’s books in the TBR, and for the life of me I can’t say why I haven’t read any of them before; after reading this ARC, I am officially hooked, so it’s a good thing that there’s a sizable backlist waiting for me. (footnote ¹)

Reader beware: explicit language, explicit sex on page; killings on page; all the following as character background: miscarriage; death in childbirth; infidelity; marital rape; attempted suicide; death of children due to smallpox infection.

Also: this review is long, even by my standards.

Heiress for Hire, by Madeline Hunter

After reading the ARC for The Heiress Bride, I found this one on sale for under a dollar, and so I grabbed it.

Beware: PTSD from sexual, physical and emotional domestic abuse; explicit sex.

Think of England, by K.J. Charles

Despite my love of K.J. Charles’ work in general, and several of her books in particular, this title has been in my TBR since 2017, because I need to have “read in case everything has gone to shit” books in reserve for when things, inevitably, do go to shit. (see footnote ¹)

Then the lovely willa posted a link to this blog post on social media over the weekend, and that was that, I had to start it immediately.

Mind you: a good writer can parody another writer’s work, be scrupulously fair to it, and still misrepresent it in the best possible way. Therefore, heed thee these warnings:

Explicit sex on the page between two adult men; the casual xenophobic racism and antisemitism of early 1900’s England (see footnote ²); several mentions of suicide and one death by suicide on page; one incident of mental torture; several people killed on page (remember the author’s tagline, “romance with a body count”? it’s not an idle joke).