When newspaper editor Miles Quincey starts questioning the intentions of the Benevolent Academy for the Betterment of Young Ladies the academy sends one of their brightest graduates Penelope “Nell” Trewlove to quell his interest. What’s supposed to be an easy task gets complicated when Nell arrives in London at the same time one of Miles’ reporters gets murdered. When Miles and Nell get caught in a compromising situation they agree to an arrangement that will save their reputations while enabling them to investigate the story that lead to a man’s death.
When I’m in a historical romance mood, I immediately think of Mimi Matthews. Her novels are romances, but more importantly she really seems to research and know the period she is writing about lending her novels a lean towards historical fiction rather than romance. The Crinoline Academy touches on the subjugation of women in this period of history. The Academy where Nell resides does a bit more then enable women to launch into society, they are also training these women on how to ‘distract, disrupt, and discredit men in power who would seek to harm the advancement of women’. It’s during this time that women are starting to fight for their rights, and I love that Mimi Matthews has chosen this time in history to set her stories.
Nell is a bit of a fish out of water. She’s never left the academy in large part due to her disability. She was injured as a child and walks with a cane. She tires easily, but doesn’t let her fragility stop her from pursuing the leads that draw her into danger. Miles rose in station through hard work and takes his job and place in life very seriously. When he and Nell get caught in a compromising position he offers her marriage, but it’s not until they are investigating the murder that the two of them really get to know each other. It’s during those moments that the story really becomes interesting and the chemistry takes center page. ❤️❤️❤️❤️
I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review and it was honest!
Tess Bright has been cast in her dream role in the film version of Jane Austen’s Northanger Abby. After being fired from her last TV job, Tess knows this is her last chance to redeem herself. One thing stands in her way, her co-star, Hugh Balfour. A method actor, Hugh doesn’t want anything to do with the People’s Choice winning Tess, who is admittedly kind of a mess. His serious nature means their chemistry is lacking and Tess knows they need to fix it. What she doesn’t count on is an electrical storm sending them back to the 19th century. Tess and Hugh have only each other to rely on as they deal with a case of mistaken identity.
A cute premise and great writing captured my attention and held it. I love a fish out of water plot and Tess’s 20th century charm in 19th century dress was humorous and entertaining. Hugh’s character took me a little longer to connect with, but his dour personality lightened up a bit in a world where his seriousness matched the era. Their lack of chemistry in present day took a back seat when they only had each other to get them through this time in the past. I enjoyed how they came to rely on each other and eventually became a team.
There were several fun moments in this book. Tess’s reaction to meeting the real-life Jane Austen, navigating a ballroom, and Hugh’s courteous etiquette all showed us different sides to these characters helping the reader make the connection that would get them rooting for this unlikely couple to get their happily ever after. I’ll definitely be looking for the next book from this author!
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I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review and it was honest!
Just outside of London lies an institution with a secretive aim, to train young women to distract, disrupt, and discredit the patriarchy. When a powerful lord’s systemic attacks on young women’s rights in Parliament, the Academy sends for one of their best pupils to infiltrate the lord’s inner circle. If she brings down the viscount she earns her freedom. Betting shop owner Gabriel Royce has different plans for the viscount. He needs his support to help him rebuild the rookeries of St. Giles and Effie’s plans completely stand in his way. Effie and Gabriel engage in a battle of wits and wills that’s complicated by a blossoming desire.
Mimi Matthews delivers another really great historical romance. This time with the theme of women’s rights. Although I got the feeling that Effie was more interested in her freedom at first, but as the story moved forward you could feel her shift to believing that what she was fighting for was in fact what was best for her. Her attraction to Gabriel was immediate and their conflict gave a really great tug and pull of both their developing feelings but also where they stood in the fight for womens rights. Gabriel had his own interests he wanted to protect, but it ended up being the love of a good woman that won him over in the end.
This author has always shown us different sides of London society and this novel was no different. Although Effie was passing herself off as a lady, she had a mysterious background that was a sub-plot and gave insight into her actions. She and Gabriel ended up having a lot in common which drew them together as well. With the addition of a truly reprehensible bad guy to add more conflict to an already great story this one you shouldn’t miss reading. ❤️❤️❤️❤️
I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review and it was honest!
Can I admit that historical romances are a guilty pleasure? My taste in subject matter has changed a bit since I was a teenager sneaking my older sisters books to read late into the night. I’ve come to appreciate a more diverse cast of characters and often look for historicals that are racially diverse or break the class barrier. Yes, those “Duke is a Scoundrel” romances are still fun occasionally but really I want my view of historical time periods to be a bit more educational, even if it’s just seeing how the lower classes lived. I had run across a group where the question was asked if anyone could recommend a historical romance that didn’t involve the upper crust and Alice Coldbreath’s Victorian Prizefighter series was recommended twice, and the third book was both of these reader’s favorites. Seeing that there were actually three books in the series, and because I’m a Virgo and I like to read things in order, I started with book #1 A Bride for the Prizefighter and cautiously started reading.
Mina’s dad is on his deathbed when he drops a bombshell, notifying her that she has a half-brother whom he has written on her behalf. When dad dies, Mina will be broke, with no chance to support herself. When her brother shows up, he’s two sheets to the wind and takes her immediately to an inn in the countryside and marries her off to the innkeeper, a prizefighter named William Nye. Mina finds herself going from teacher at her father’s school to running an inn with a man who only married her because her brother held something he desired and that was the only way he could get it. The story that unfolded showed Mina’s strength of character. She worked hard, didn’t hold herself above anyone else at that inn, and provided a little polish to a kind of rough tavern. Her husband at first had very little to do with her and left her alone, but he provided her with small things that brought a little joy into her life. A small parlor filled with furnishings, some fabric to make curtains, a place for her to put her mother’s fine china tea set. Inside that gruff exterior was a mushy teddy bear. This book gave insight into those establishments in England, but also that class of people. I enjoyed this book tremendously! ❤️❤️❤️❤️
Plain, Lizzie Borden, was the poor relation dependent upon her Aunt and Uncle to keep a roof over her head. At a dinner party she sees something that she shouldn’t and instead of staying quiet, she speaks up and tells the truth. Unfortunately it’s a truth no one wants to hear and she gets cast out of the house. At this dinner party is her cousin’s new fiancé, Benedict Toomes. Benedict is an ex-prizefighter who wants to raise his station in life by marrying well, but this incident turns his stomach and instead of marrying her beautiful cousin, he proposes a scheme to Lizzie that will keep her out of the workhouse- marry him. Instead of living in a nice house, though, he plans to hit the fair circuit with his family. Something that Lizzie may have looked down on in the past, but now looks at as a challenge and an adventure. This novel was my favorite in the series. Not only did I love Lizzie and her fearlessness at living in a wagon, like a gypsy, but because Benedict protected her and had such care for the sanctity of their marriage. The setting was unique, but so were the characters. This is one of those books where you’ll go back and read it again just to see if it has that same magic as it did the first time you read the book. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
This story was the favorite pick in the series by the two reviewers I mentioned above, and I can see why. Theodora was unlike any other character I’ve read. She was raised in an acting family, but no one else in her family sees her talent and will not give her a break. It’s not until she meets Clem Dabney, who owns a competitive music hall that she sees her chance and she’s going to take it. She proposes a deal to Clem, marry her and allow her a chance on the line-up at his music hall, and he’ll receive her 25% stake in her families theater. What makes her completely unique is that her talent lies in male impersonations, and once she gets on stage- she steals the show. The more complicated part of this story is the romance between Clem and Dora. Dora is so truthful and there isn’t one hint of artifice in her persona, but Clem was a prizefighter and he has learned to con and scheme and he feels awful for how he has not believed in Dora. Just like book #2, I know I’ll come back and read this one again as well. Shoot, I’ll re-read the entire series since I bought all three books. They were just so unique and fresh. ❤️❤️❤️❤️
As I do with most new author’s who I haven’t read and have a backlist of books, I took a look at the other series. At some point I know I’m going to give them a try, but you know, I think it will be really hard for her to write better characters and stories as she did with the above three books. They were not perfect but they were really enjoyable and gave me that fix that I needed at the time I was looking for something different to read.
Copyright 2025 The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved
Stella Hobhouse is a skilled rider, stalwart friend, and decent sketch artist. She’s also overlooked in London society. Her gray hair makes her invisible and her pious brother’s restrictions and dwindling inheritance means that things are becoming desperate. She must find someone to marry. Edward “Teddy” Hayes is an aspiring artist and knows true beauty when he sees it. After a bout of scarlet fever left him in a wheelchair, Teddy knows good fortune when he finds it. He’s determined to make Stella his muse and is willing to offer marriage to make it happen.
I’ve appreciated Mimi Matthews novels about the “Belles of London” for various reasons but mostly because her heroines buck society’s expectations. Stella’s story is a little bit different because she is both a pariah because of her unusual hair color but she’s also close to impoverished and reliant upon her brother’s good nature, of which he has none. When she has to make a difficult decision about her future she is brave enough to try to make things happen on her own.
Teddy also has his own difficulties. As a man in a wheelchair, his family tends to coddle him and try to make decisions for him. His “marriage of convenience” that he offers to Stella helps his independence, but isn’t the only reason for his offer. He truly is attracted to and wants to be with Stella. I loved that these two people who had difficulties in their lives found each other and a way to be in love together. For me, their stories made for a more emotional book which made it different than the others. I liked it!
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I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review and it was honest!
Margaret Arden wants more from life than the existence she’s known. She dreams of becoming a successful writer but after she takes a brutal set-down from a publisher she fears that she might have to give up that dream and marry to support her family. Bridger Darrow is back from the war and hopes to build a successful career as a publisher. The future looks grim until he stumbles upon some loose pages of a fantastic novel and realizes that the author is none other than the young woman he told off at a party earlier that week. Bridger must publisher her book and he fights to regain her trust, sparks fly, and they find themselves embroiled in a mystery that they must solve in order to help their friends.
I haven’t read a book by this author but and was so pleased when I found the characters to be interesting, the dialogue fun, and the story easy to read. Despite Margaret and Bridger’s disastrous first meeting the chemistry was undeniable and their passion for books something that most romance readers share. I loved these characters and rooted for their happiness, especially in light of all the chaos surrounding them.
A pretty typical story about a young woman reliant upon her relatives for survival, Margaret knows her only chance at not marrying an old geezer to pave the way for her younger sisters in society is to sell her novel and make enough money to launch them into society. Despite this story of a woman’s plight being told again and again the love for writing and stories was a refreshing take on this historical novel. What really added originality was the fact that a male publisher saw enough in a woman’s story to stand by her and publish the novel. That might have been a bit of a historical stretch for the time but it made for a great way for this couple to have a bit of conflict and fall in love.
If you’re like me and you like to dip into the historical romance genre as a palate cleanser I think this one will hit the right note for you. Not too serious and not too silly, for me this one was just the right fit. ❤️❤️❤️❤️
I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review and it was honest.
Lady Anne Deveril is the unofficial leader of her group of friends and she has slowly seen them fall in love. When her father died many years before, she chose to leave that chance of love behind and followed her distraught mother into mourning. Her childhood friend, Hart, was the one she left behind and ever since their relationship has become antagonistic. However, when she needs a favor he is the first person she turns to, but being the difficult man that he is, he wants something in return. He wants Anne to attend a house party at his grandfather’s estate and to forego wearing her mourning colors.
Mimi Matthews historical romance novels often have interesting situations and diverse characters which makes her novels really enjoyable to read giving them a realistic feel that a lot of historical novels just don’t achieve. In this case Anne makes a difficult decision to stand by her mother in her many years long of mourning her father, wearing black and putting herself in a difficult place with her peers. A young woman is supposed to be trying to catch a husband, of course, and Anne has zero interest in achieving that goal. Hart, however, is tired of waiting on the sidelines and decides to push her towards her future, which includes him.
Of the three novels in the series this one is my least favorite only because of its more straight historical romance path. It was interesting to see how Anne and Harts past was intertwined as we had no inkling before this novel and only saw their antagonistic behavior towards each other. However, they were both in the upper echelon of society so there wasn’t really any diversity, and the only difficulty was the fact that a distant cousin inherited her father place in society which leaves she and her mother reliant upon him. An unfortunate part of our history but I found it interesting to see how they dealt with being victims in a world ruled by elite white guys. To me that was the best part of this novel.
Despite it landing in the my number three spot in the series, I still enjoyed this novel. Mimi Matthews is truly a talented writer and creates really interesting characters that you want to know more about. If you’re a fan of historical fiction, pick this series up. Although this novel can be read as a stand alone I think you’ll get more out of it if you’d read the other two novels first. They will give you a feel for this author’s writing and you’ll understand a bit more of the characters you’ll be reading about. ❤️❤️❤️❤️
I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review and it was honest.
Lady Imogen Loveless has a love for experiments and explosives, which comes in handy when she and her counterparts in the Hell’s Belle’s are investigating some bombings in the East End of London. Private Detective Thomas Peck keeps running into Imogen in suspicious circumstances, most recently at the site of one of the bombings he’s investigating. When she turns up missing, he’s assigned to find and guard her giving him access to this woman whom he finds so fascinating.
This is not the first time we’ve come across Tommy and Imogen. They’ve crossed paths in the first two novels and the author has given readers hints of how exciting their own story would be. I wasn’t disappointed at all. Lady Imogen, who is the sister of an Earl, uses her rank to keep close to some of the more reprehensible members of society and helps feed Det. Tommy Peck clues that have helped him bring some men to justice. Imogen’s love for explosives has made her a really unique heroine in this historical romance genre and it was interesting to see how two people from two walks of life find commonalities and surprisingly explosives seems to be one of those things. When Tommy decides that Imogen is his there is a shift from he needs to keep her out of trouble to he must protect her at all costs, which adds some tension to their romance plot that kept things very interesting!
I love how this series keep giving us unusual heroines and heroes who have met their match despite the differences they may have, both societal and upbringing. I also like how the characters reflect real life people, in this case a slightly overweight woman who likes explosives. Haha! The explosives part isn’t that normal but the overweight insecure woman certainly is. I love a good historical romance and Sarah MacLean always seems to deliver something unique and different. And fun! ❤️❤️❤️❤️
Introverted spinster, Catriona Campbell fights for women in the Suffrage Movement, is writing an academic novel, and helps her father run their ailing estate. When he asks her to introduce his colleague from the Middle East into the academic world at Oxford she doesn’t miss a beat until she realizes he’s the stranger who saw her swim naked in the Scottish loch on their estate. Claiming the need to examine some ancient artifacts from his country, Elias is in England under false pretenses and realizes the quickest way to get close to the items he needs to return to his homeland is to become close to Catriona, but she’s been burned by love before.
I love, love, love this series. The characters are always so interesting and this time in history is fascinating. I love the Suffrage Movement as a backdrop to our heroine’s lives and the struggles women in that point in history have had to suffer through to make our lives better today. It really makes the story come alive. Catriona and Elias’s story included those historical moments, but the fact that he was from the Middle East and not of the ton created another roadblock to their being together and added to my enjoyment of the novel. The way his culture was written into the story and why he was in England, gave depth to his character but also the overall story arc. I truly couldn’t put this book down.
The romance in this story was titillating, forbidden, and romantic. Catriona and Elias had so many things working against them that it seemed as if they wouldn’t find their happily ever after. Of course, in romance novels, we always get the ending that we want and it did happen, but not without these two interesting characters being put through their own trials and tribulations, facing their hopes, fears, and dreams. I can’t think of a thing I’d change to make this story better. It was heart-warming, heart-rending, and the ending was oh so joyful. I believe this is the last book in the series because the author gave us an epilogue that included all of the female leads from this series. I’m bummed, but at the same time I’m looking forward to what this talented author will write next. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review and it was honest!
When a favorite author releases a new book I typically have it on pre-order and eagerly starting digging in. I did both of these things with Kristen Ashley’s new book. Check and check! Are you ever disappointed after all of that anticipation? Me too! I’ll let you know how I feel in the review and a hint of it below.
JUST FINISHED
Book #2 in the Misted Pines series. This series is a departure for this author in that these books are really romantic suspense. I loved the first novel (5 stars!), but had trouble getting into this one. Was it because it was written from the male perspective? I need to mull this one over before I write this review, for sure!
JUST STARTED
I feel the need to genre swap and a fun historical is just what I’m in the mood to read! I haven’t yet started this book so I don’t yet have an opinion but I’m really looking forward to reading it! Check back for a review soon!
The Reading Chick 
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