The Beautiful Ones by Silvia Moreno- Garcia
Historical Romance/Fantasy
Repub- 04/27/2021 by Tor

I’m pretty sure every book I’ve picked up by this author has been completely different. A mix of genres, a mix of tropes, you just never know what you’ll get. The Beautiful Ones is what I would describe as a historical romance with a dash of fantasy. This is at its heart a love story.

Hector Auvray has come to the city after a decade to win back the heart of the women he desperately loves. Only Valerie is now married and enjoys her role as a Beautiful One in high society. So Hector begins to court her niece, Nina, a young woman just out for her first grand season. Nina is quirky and does not always do the right, proper thing in polite society. She and Hector do get on rather well, (even if he has ulterior motives) and share the gift of telekinesis. Hector is a great performer and it’s not long before he is teaching her how to control her gift. But there is always Valerie in the background, and she’s not happy that Hector might have feelings for someone else, even if she doesn’t want him anymore.

I won’t really get into the main plot, but as you can see with more than two people it gets rather complicated. (understatement) But this is a romance, and there is a classic romance HEA. I really love this author’s voice, in whatever genre she chooses to write in. The Beautiful Ones does move slowly, with the pacing not really picking up until the end when Nina and Hector come to their senses, but I was hooked from page one and eager to see how it would all come together at the end.

Final grade- B

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Scoundrel of My Heart by Lorraine Heath
Once Upon a Dukedom #1
Historical Romance
03/30/2021 by Avon
ARC

I love this author. I will basically one-click on anything with her name attached to it. The Once Upon a Dukedom series is a bit of a spin-off of her previous Sins for all Seasons series, having introduced the Stanwick family in Beauty Tempts the Beast.

I wasn’t expecting the look back in time to how this couple met. After the previous book, with featured Griffith’s sister Althea as the heroine, I thought this author would jump right into the current circumstances facing this family after their father was found to have been plotting against the crown. Instead, readers get a look into the family dynamics before that event and see Griffith and Kathryn’s relationship when all was relatively well. I would say their relationship is a mix of romance tropes… enemies to lovers, best friend’s brother being the ones that immediately come to mind.

Griff’s new circumstances aren’t the only thing keeping this couple apart, there is the small matter of Kathryn meeting the terms of an inheritance and a betrothal to another man (who is the hero in the next book in the series, YAY!). But their relationship is so romantic and I ADORED Kathryn’s seductive ways to keep Griff on his toes.

Scoundrel of My Heart is a wonderful start to a new series and I am so excited to see what comes next.

Final grade- B

Amazon * Goodreads