leslie_books_and_socks_rock's review
5.0
This was such a sweet story. Both are widowers and marry for convenience. I kept reading, hoping they would find love. I loved seeing Lucas with the boys.
_ems28's review
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.75
peachyb6d6c's review
Not sure why I picked up this book. DNF at 59%. It's fine, I just hate reading about children in books. My bad.
daleydale's review
3.0
*Caution: This review contains very vague spoilers.*
The Earl and His Lady, by Sally Britton, is an overall enjoyable read, with likeable characters, a sweet romance, and a frank exploration of human grief. Unfortunately, it fell a bit short of being a truly interesting story for me, owing to a few drawbacks to its plot and in its storytelling.
Now, I’d like to preface this review by first saying that pure romance is not a genre I usually read. I prefer action with a side of romance, so perhaps I wasn’t the intended audience for this particular story. I also haven’t read the rest of the books in the Branches of Love series, or anything else by this author, so my experience of this book will most likely be different from many other readers.
That being said, I did find this book to be a satisfying read. I liked the characters, who were strong and sensible people, if they did seem to fall into the common tropes of a romance story. I especially enjoyed how Britton portrayed the two children in the novel; they were very cute, and I could see why people would dote on them.
I thought the romance was very sweet. It’s not the kind of romance that gets your heart all aflutter as you read it, but it’s a regency romance, which, I would imagine, is generally pretty tame. I did appreciate that the characters came together in a very natural way; the romance didn’t seem forced, or to come out of nowhere, which, for me, is always a plus.
One thing I didn’t much like about The Earl and His Lady, however, was the villain. His character was very contrived, and his actions predictable. I think Britton could have painted him to be even more evil, even more distasteful. I suppose from an 18th century Earl and Countess’ perspective his actions, in the one scene in which we met him, were deplorable, but it just didn’t seem like that big of a deal to me, so I didn’t see why we should really hate him, except that he was trying to take the boys away. A little more development into his character could have gone a long way into building this into a better story.
Because, since the villain was weak, the general plot was lacking, in my opinion. As I said, I like a story with a little more action, and this book certainly didn’t have it. Even the climax of the story was not very exciting. I thought it was well done, but without making me hate Mr. Macon first, I didn’t feel any true suspense in the moment.
The story was also very predictable, not only for the villain but also the romance. I wouldn’t have minded how predictable the romantic storyline was, if the novel had honestly just been a love story. The villain felt like an afterthought, which he may-well might have been.
I did, however, really like how the author handled grief, and how she explored how different people experience grief. I believe it was beautifully done, and I, as the reader, was able to understand what each character was going through, even the children.
Overall, I did enjoy this book. It’s a light, quick read, with a feel-good story and a believable premise. For general readers, this book may fall short of being a quality read, but fans of romance and historical fiction, especially regency romance, will likely enjoy this book far better than I did.
The Earl and His Lady, by Sally Britton, is an overall enjoyable read, with likeable characters, a sweet romance, and a frank exploration of human grief. Unfortunately, it fell a bit short of being a truly interesting story for me, owing to a few drawbacks to its plot and in its storytelling.
Now, I’d like to preface this review by first saying that pure romance is not a genre I usually read. I prefer action with a side of romance, so perhaps I wasn’t the intended audience for this particular story. I also haven’t read the rest of the books in the Branches of Love series, or anything else by this author, so my experience of this book will most likely be different from many other readers.
That being said, I did find this book to be a satisfying read. I liked the characters, who were strong and sensible people, if they did seem to fall into the common tropes of a romance story. I especially enjoyed how Britton portrayed the two children in the novel; they were very cute, and I could see why people would dote on them.
I thought the romance was very sweet. It’s not the kind of romance that gets your heart all aflutter as you read it, but it’s a regency romance, which, I would imagine, is generally pretty tame. I did appreciate that the characters came together in a very natural way; the romance didn’t seem forced, or to come out of nowhere, which, for me, is always a plus.
One thing I didn’t much like about The Earl and His Lady, however, was the villain. His character was very contrived, and his actions predictable. I think Britton could have painted him to be even more evil, even more distasteful. I suppose from an 18th century Earl and Countess’ perspective his actions, in the one scene in which we met him, were deplorable, but it just didn’t seem like that big of a deal to me, so I didn’t see why we should really hate him, except that he was trying to take the boys away. A little more development into his character could have gone a long way into building this into a better story.
Because, since the villain was weak, the general plot was lacking, in my opinion. As I said, I like a story with a little more action, and this book certainly didn’t have it. Even the climax of the story was not very exciting. I thought it was well done, but without making me hate Mr. Macon first, I didn’t feel any true suspense in the moment.
The story was also very predictable, not only for the villain but also the romance. I wouldn’t have minded how predictable the romantic storyline was, if the novel had honestly just been a love story. The villain felt like an afterthought, which he may-well might have been.
I did, however, really like how the author handled grief, and how she explored how different people experience grief. I believe it was beautifully done, and I, as the reader, was able to understand what each character was going through, even the children.
Overall, I did enjoy this book. It’s a light, quick read, with a feel-good story and a believable premise. For general readers, this book may fall short of being a quality read, but fans of romance and historical fiction, especially regency romance, will likely enjoy this book far better than I did.
katiereads42's review against another edition
5.0
Fabulous!
Another awesome read! I am so glad the Earl found love after the death of his wife. Absolutely loved it!
Another awesome read! I am so glad the Earl found love after the death of his wife. Absolutely loved it!
bookswithnopictures's review against another edition
4.0
The beginning was okay but my original expectations were unfounded. The story was much better than anticipated based on the summary. Sally doesn't disappoint!
a_neverending_tbr's review
5.0
I can’t decide if this one is my favorite in this series so far or if it’s the first because I loved both of them! It’s a different scenario since they are older and have both been married before plus the added tension of children needing to mesh into the picture as well but such a sweet, quick, clean read.
dcgw's review
5.0
Satisfying
I know it's just a story, but I wish I had a guy like Lucas! He reads like the most perfect guy, ever (ok, I prefer dark hair, but apart from that - wow!). The whole story was well crafted, it was like living a movie. I normally do not like stories with children in them, but these children were nice. All in all a really good read.
I know it's just a story, but I wish I had a guy like Lucas! He reads like the most perfect guy, ever (ok, I prefer dark hair, but apart from that - wow!). The whole story was well crafted, it was like living a movie. I normally do not like stories with children in them, but these children were nice. All in all a really good read.
ghumpherys's review
5.0
This is a story about a widow and widower marrying initially for protection more than anything. I loved how the two characters were able to freely talk about their previous spouses and how that factored so much into their relationship.
hjmo's review
3.0
2 1/2 stars. It's a sweet and gentle story about two practically perfect people who find new love after loss. There are literally no obstacles in their personalities or circumstances. Besides the initial marriage of convenience trope and some convoluted drama at the end (which is why I dropped a half star) there isn't really any conflict. That's not to say that the story is bad but rather it's just kind of bland. I am not saying I need the characters to be horrible people but it would have been nice if they had some flaws or misunderstandings at least that got in the way of the relationship. I also wasn't a fan of the children in this one but it's difficult to do children, especially Regency children for which we have no real template.