adeles_belles

Reading historical romance since I discovered how modern the story lines have become! (Thank you Culture Study community and Fated Mates podcast : )

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Beyond the Bodice-Ripper: Historical Romance

My Taste

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The Duke of Shadows

Meredith Duran

In a debut romance as passionate and sweeping as the British Empire, Meredith Duran paints a powerful picture of an aristocrat torn between two worlds, an heiress who dares to risk everything...and the love born in fire and darkness that nearly destroys them. From exotic sandstone palaces... Sick of tragedy, done with rebellion, Emmaline Martin vows to settle quietly into British Indian society. But when the pillars of privilege topple, her fiancé's betrayal leaves Emma no choice. She must turn for help to the one man whom she should not trust, but cannot resist: Julian Sinclair, the dangerous and dazzling heir to the Duke of Auburn. To the marble halls of London... In London, they toast Sinclair with champagne. In India, they call him a traitor. Cynical and impatient with both worlds, Julian has never imagined that the place he might belong is in the embrace of a woman with a reluctant laugh and haunted eyes. But in a time of terrible darkness, he and Emma will discover that love itself can be perilous -- and that a single decision can alter one's life forever. Destiny follows wherever you run. A lifetime of grief later, in a cold London spring, Emma and Julian must finally confront the truth: no matter how hard one tries to deny it, some pasts cannot be disowned...and some passions never die.

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Ice Planet Barbarians (Ice Planet Barbarians, #1)

Ruby Dixon

You'd think being abducted by aliens would be the worst thing that could happen to me. And you'd be wrong. Because now, the aliens are having ship trouble, and they've left their cargo of human women—including me—on an ice planet. And the only native inhabitant I've met? He's big, horned, blue, and really, really has a thing for me...

adeles_belles commented on moonheart's review of Ladies in Waiting: Jane Austen's Unsung Characters

moonheart

Aug 26, 2026

Ladies in Waiting: Jane Austen's Unsung Characters

3.0

Enjoyment: 3.0Quality: 3.0Characters: 3.0Plot: 3.0

❤️‍🩹

💐

☕️

i’ve put these in order of enjoyment, not chronological :P

sense, sensibility, and snapdragons: 5/5 now this is what i’m talking about!!! never read the original and prob won’t. but man idk if it’s eloisa james’ writing but i’m feeling all of Margaret’s feelings as if they were my own ugh “I am romantic in ambition but cynical in spirit” what an absolute bar of a line!! i felt that in my soul b/c i might be the same way. one can only call themselves a hopeless romantic for so long before realizing it’s not going to happen to you, thus turning you (re: me) into a bit of a curmudgeon. not even ashamed to admit that i got weepy near the end b/c HOW ROMANTIC 😭

spongebob wheezes hearts

“i adore you. with a passion that is the backbone of my life” might be one of the most romantic lines i’ve ever read, damn

the triumph of hetty jane bates: 4/5 i never doubted sarah maclean 🙂‍↔️ this was so well done for such a short story. i have not read emma so i didn’t know this character beforehand but i thought the way sarah wrote her and gave her a very happy ending was beautiful
lace and larceny: 4/5 “lmaoo not a sympathy piece about caroline bingley. i’ll pass thanks” were my initial thoughts going in. however, giving it a chance i started to like the story and characters. dare i say, i got invested 😏 damn
lydia’s story: 3.5/5 she’s not my favorite character but i enjoyed this story. i, especially enjoyed the handsome palestinian vicar 😉
the bennets of jane street: 3/5 this one wasn’t too bad! i liked reading about mary, even if she took on wayyyyy too much and would refuse help or even asking for help lmao but she got there in the end. definitely liked her lil happy ending 🥰
the elizas: 2.5/5 started depressing, remained depressing, ended hopeful
miss bates bobs her hair: 1/5 ehhhh didn’t like this or really understand it that much. the writing felt very clunky and unnatural
what georgiana wants: 0/5 brother ewwww what’s that? yeah no thanks lmaooo i was hoping for some reflection on the whole wickham situation not a lowkey yearning for the past, sensually 😷

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Pride Comes Before a Fall (Miss Prentice's Protegees, #3)

Virginia Heath

In the third installment of this witty Regency romcom series, a headstrong chaperone is torn between following her rigid principles or her heart Despite his many responsibilities, there is nothing Leopold Sloane, the 11th Duke of Debden, takes more seriously than the safety of those he loves. When one of his sisters is injured at a protest rally, he drags his family to Bath for the summer to keep his reckless and rebellious siblings out of harm’s way. The only flaw in his plan is his overwhelming but inexplicable attraction to the new chaperone he has hired to watch out for them. An outspoken conundrum of a woman who soon causes him more trouble than both his sisters combined...but who calls to his soul regardless. From the moment Portia Kendall read her first revolutionary pamphlet beneath her bedcovers at Miss Prentice’s School for Girls, she realized that her true calling was to make the world a fairer place for the masses downtrodden by the aristocracy. A calling that led her to Equitas, a radical newspaper that champions reform. But as Portia discovers, writing doesn’t pay the bills. To make a living, she must push aside her principles and serve the very people she criticizes weekly in her column. A temporary position as a chaperone in the home of a pompous duke seems like the perfect way to earn enough to follow her heart. Unfortunately, the duke who hires her seems to be more dashing and noble than pompous and soon begins to call to her heart too—as much as she tries to deny it. But dare she risk her principles for love or will her pride always come before a fall?

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adeles_belles

Thoughts from 86% (page 318)

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Thoughts from 75% (page 278)

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A Rogue's Guide to Winning a Wife

Meredith E. Phillips

An aspiring architect is determined to enter the Royal Academy’s all-male Exhibition, if only her rakish viscount husband weren’t so enticingly distracting, in this sexy, STEMinist Regency romance Hannah, the newly-minted Lady Tunbridge, agreed to marry the rakish Christopher Westfall hoping he would be gallivanting around London, leaving her free to craft architectural masterpieces for the Royal Academy’s Exhibition. But when her irritatingly handsome husband begins showering her with thoughtful gifts and compliments, Hannah grows suspicious. So, she makes a wager with him: if she doesn’t succumb to his charms by the end of the Season, she’ll move into her own home, with the independence to do as she wishes. The trouble is, Christopher doesn’t make himself easy to resist. And when he brings her in on a scheme to save his sister from their cruel father’s clutches, she finds herself falling for her husband against her better judgment. But as Christopher’s plans begin to clash with Hannah’s preparations for the Exhibition, he must battle his own growing feelings and choose between saving his sister or supporting Hannah’s dreams—and winning her heart.

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As Long as It Takes

Jill Francis

Set in a seaside town in Italy, As Long as It Takes is a charming summer romance about finding your roots and letting love blossom.Love isn’t exactly a priority for Lora Brooks. After all, her last break-up made perfectly clear she can’t rely on anyone but herself. That’s why Lora’s number one focus is her research, where she’s hard at work debunking Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. But when she’s offered a prestigious post-doctoral position in Zurich—one whose funding hinges on her having European citizenship—everything changes. Hoping to claim citizenship through her birth father, Lora and her best friend travel to the quaint Italian town where he was born. She knows little about her father (and intends to keep it that way) but nothing, not even the ghosts of her past, will stand between Lora and this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Except, perhaps, Italian bureaucracy. And an outdated filing system. And Andrea, the handsome—and slightly anxious—mayor. In between trying to save the town from bankruptcy, wrangling quirky business-owners, and debating whether to run for a second term, Andrea somehow finds the time to show Lora what it really means to live, and perhaps love, like a local. Between Lora destined for a future hundreds of miles away, and Andrea’s parents pushing him to return to his fast-paced life in New York, is it possible the pair might discover that their most basic need is actually just…each other?

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Thank You for Remembering

Emily Harding

A woman wakes up with amnesia to a totally different life and teams up with her charming new neighbor to piece together her missing memories in this tender and funny romantic comedy from the author of How Freaking Romantic.Growing up, Marnie Stephens believed in magic. That destiny was real, the universe had a plan, and every problem could be fixed by one of her grandmother’s many crystals or mantras. But now, at thirty, Marnie’s dreams have fallen by the wayside as real life proves to be more difficult than divine. That’s all about to change, though, thanks to her upcoming move from LA to Boston with her boyfriend Matt. Sure, she still has some nagging worries about the future, but those things will work themselves out. She just needs a fresh start. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what Marnie gets when she wakes up at a hospital in Boston with no knowledge of how she got there. Her doctor tells her she suffered a head injury, Matt insists they broke up months ago, and, most distressing of all, her hair is somehow eight inches shorter. Nothing makes sense, but one thing is Marnie has no memory of the past year. Soon, she’s discharged and finds herself in an apartment she doesn’t remember with a new neighbor, Ben Morgan, a man she’s sure she won’t forget. Now, with the clues she finds scattered around her home, and Ben, who knows Boston like the back of his hand, Marnie sets out to retrace the past year to figure out where things went wrong and set them right. But despite what her grandmother always told her, there’s no magic to make her recovery easier. Between doctor’s visits and treks across the city in search of her lost memories, the last thing Marnie needs is to start falling for the grumpy—and incredibly attractive—man helping her. But the universe has other plans, and it’s not long before Marnie begins to wonder if fighting for the past is as important as the one person who could be her future.

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adeles_belles

Thoughts from 66% (page 244)

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Out with Lanterns

Hillary Bowen

A new voice for historical romance fans, Hillary Bowen's book takes readers out of the Regency ballrooms and into the 20th century English countryside. Amidst the challenges of the wartime home front and the fight for equality, love blooms. Found family, scorching chemistry, and the beauty of finding your place in the world make this book a must-read. A newly independent woman. A man severed from all his anchors. A love that will remake their world. Somerset, 1917. Ophelia Blackwood has a continue to evade a parade of her father’s ill-advised suitors, or seize control of her future and join the war effort with the Women’s Land Army. Ophelia finds camaraderie and confidence through hard work on a Somerset farm, and the independence she has always craved. But a year into her assignment, Silas Larke arrives, and she is irritated to discover that he is just as intriguing and attractive as he was during their intense summer friendship, years ago. Injured on the front lines of World War I, Silas has spent a year convalescing, focused on returning to his work as a tenant farmer. When the British government unexpectedly assigns him to lend a hand on a local farm, he finds himself thrown together with the woman he couldn’t forget. But Ophelia has new dreams for her future, none of which include marriage. Forced to examine the future he always imagined, he will have to decide if love is worth changing all your plans for. When pressure from the War Office raises the spectre of the farm’s repossession, should the harvest fail, the WLA women must pull together harder than ever to meet the required wheat quota. Ophelia knows she can’t afford distraction, no matter how beguiling the man, but the feelings kindled during her and Silas’s 1915 summer have returned as a blaze. Desperate to produce more for the war effort and save the farm with the people who have become her family, Ophelia and Silas push against the rising tide of their attraction, but Ophelia begins to wonder if they could be a force to be reckoned with, together.

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adeles_belles

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The Hating Game

Sally Thorne

Nemesis (n.) 1) An opponent or rival whom a person cannot best or overcome; 2) A person’s undoing; 3) Joshua Templeman. Lucy Hutton and Joshua Templeman hate each other. Not dislike. Not begrudgingly tolerate. Hate. And they have no problem displaying their feelings through a series of ritualistic passive aggressive maneuvers as they sit across from each other, executive assistants to co-CEOs of a publishing company. Lucy can’t understand Joshua’s joyless, uptight, meticulous approach to his job. Joshua is clearly baffled by Lucy’s overly bright clothes, quirkiness, and Pollyanna attitude. Now up for the same promotion, their battle of wills has come to a head and Lucy refuses to back down when their latest game could cost her her dream job…But the tension between Lucy and Joshua has also reached its boiling point, and Lucy is discovering that maybe she doesn’t hate Joshua. And maybe, he doesn’t hate her either. Or maybe this is just another game.

adeles_belles TBR'd a book

Rilla of Ingleside (Anne of Green Gables, #8)

L.M. Montgomery

This is an alternate cover edition for ISBN 9780553269222 Anne's children are almost grown up, except for pretty, high-spirited Rilla. No one can resist her bright hazel eyes and dazzling smile. Rilla, almost fifteen, can't think any further ahead than going to her very first dance at the Four Winds lighthouse and getting her first kiss from handsome Kenneth Ford. But undreamed-of challenges await the irrepressible Rilla when the world of Ingleside is endangered by a far-off war. Her brothers go off to fight, and Rilla brings home an orphaned newborn in a soup tureen. She is swept into a drama that tests her courage and changes her forever.

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Love in the Big City 🏙️🍸💋

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Fast-paced lives. Crowded streets. Late nights. Ambition, longing, and messy, magnetic love—all happening in real time.

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A Wicked Kind of Husband (Longhope Abbey, #3)

Mia Vincy

It was the ideal marriage of convenience...until they met Cassandra DeWitt has seen her husband only once--on their wedding day two years earlier--and this arrangement suits her perfectly. She has no interest in the rude, badly behaved man she married only to secure her inheritance. She certainly has no interest in his ban on her going to London. Why, he'll never even know she is there. Until he shows up in London too, and Cassandra finds herself sharing a house with the most infuriating man in England. Joshua DeWitt has his life exactly how he wants it. He has no need of a wife disrupting everything, especially a wife intent on reforming his behavior. He certainly has no need of a wife who is intolerably amiable, insufferably reasonable ... and irresistibly kissable. As the unlikely couple team up to battle a malicious lawsuit and launch Cassandra's wayward sister, passion flares between them. Soon the day must come for them to part ... but what if one of them wants their marriage to become real? Hilarious, heartrending, and hot, this historical romance set in Regency London tells the story of a marriage of convenience between opposites.

adeles_belles commented on rachaelsreading's review of A Wicked Kind of Husband (Longhope Abbey, #3)

rachaelsreading

Aug 20, 2026

A Wicked Kind of Husband (Longhope Abbey, #3)

5.0

Enjoyment: 5.0Quality: 5.0Characters: 5.0Plot: 5.0

5 stars for my babies Cassandra and Joshua 🥹

God Mia Vincy knows how to write a book and use every single word and page to her advantage. The fact that this is her debut is just astonishing.

I’m more than half way through Mia’s small but mighty backlist and like most authors I find that don’t have an extensive backlog and/or seem to have disappeared I get this wave of anxiety when I pick up their books because I never want to be without an unread book from them.

Mia has this extremely rare ability in drawing you in within a matter of paragraphs and never letting go even when the story is long finished. I don’t have many authors that I feel this way towards but so far with the works I’ve picked up from her, I’ve been transported.

The romance. Cassandra and Joshua were married 2 years ago and are estranged.Having not been in the right frame of mind when they married they went on to live separately until Cassandra turns up to London needing her grandmothers help in launching her sister in society. Joshua who is much too busy for a wife is content to stick to his work, he doesn’t need a wife around and he most definitely doesn’t need one in London, so when they have an extremely awkward meet cute where they both don’t recognise each other in front of their friends (even though sparks are FLYING), they both need to get on with it in order to make swift exits out of each others lives, but nothing ever runs smooth. Cassandra will need to convince her grandmother to take her sister under her wing and until then she cannot leave, but Joshua finds himself amidst a lawsuit where they must both band together to set things to rights. Unfortunately for them the path is not straight forward and I mean… how awful would it be to fall in love with the person you’re married to 😏

The sex. Mia writes absolutely extraordinary sex scenes, while I’ll admit I lost count on the number it never felt gratuitous or out of character for these two and made a lot of sense given their story. They’re not overly explicit and most of the scenes do lean heavily on reminiscing or short paragraphs when they aren’t in the moment.

The writing. I’m always in awe when I pick up one of Mia’s books. Just absolute gorgeous prose with hilarious banter and back and forth that never feels forced or over the top. This is also a book where there’s a good amount of miscommunication but it’s done in a way that is actual true to who these characters are. Joshua is deeply insecure and never felt wanted or needed, Cassandra has been left to pick up after her family and is under appreciated. These two deeply flawed characters are carrying on in a way that makes sense and is often like a security blanket for them.

I only have two more books left from Mia Vincy and I’m trying my hardest to really make them last into at least next year (her Christmas novella WILL be gobbled up this year though) it’s bittersweet to find an author who’s works resonate and make you FEEL, but who are no longer writing. Forever sending out my Mia Vincy bat signal though in hopes she’ll come back.

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