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The Dressmaker's Secret by Susanne Dunlap #Review

We are diving into the past to the nineteenth century with the Regency romance, The Dressmaker's Secret Earl by Susan Dunlap . It was published by Comfortable Prose Publishing on 25 Mar. 2025 .   A marriage of convenience to a scoundrel? Not if Augusta can help it. The impoverished daughter of a baronet, Augusta has no intention of being bartered away like a prize horse. Instead, she flees to London, determined to forge her own path as a modiste. But fate has other plans. On her very first day in the city, she crosses paths with a brooding earl—one burdened with a clubfoot and a reputation nearly as scandalous as the proposal she ran from. His captivating sister, Mariana, is not only Augusta’s employer’s best client but harbors a secret ambition of her own: to marry the one man society deems wholly unsuitable. Drawn into Mariana’s reckless schemes of masquerades, cross-dressing, and Whig intrigue, Augusta soon finds herself entangled in more than just scandal—she’s lo...
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The Garden of Forgotten Wishes by Tricia Ashley #Review

Tricia Ashley's The Garden of Forgotten Wishes was published by Bantam Press on July 23rd. I am thrilled to be on the tour.

All Marnie wants is somewhere to call home. Mourning lost years spent in a marriage that has finally come to an end, she needs a fresh start and time to heal. Things she hopes to find in the rural west Lancashire village her mother always told her about.With nothing but her two green thumbs, Marnie takes a job as a gardener, whichcomes with a little cottage to make her own. The garden is beautiful –filled with roses, lavender and honeysuckle –and only a little rough around the edges. Which is more than can be said for her next-door-neighbour, Ned Mars. Marnie remembers Ned from her school days but he’s far from the untroubled man she once knew. A recent relationship has left him with a heart as bruised as her own.

Can a summer spent gardening help them heal and recapture the forgotten dreams they’ve let get away?

My Thoughts

Tricia Ashley creates a delightful setting for her latest novel. The garden she describes becomes a major part of the story and as Marnie sets about pruning and sorting out the overgrown areas, she begins to sort out her thoughts. The whole village has an other worldly feeling and there seems to be something soothing and healing about the place. Of course, this isn't a straightforward process. There are some secrets to be revealed and family history to uncover.

    I particularly liked Marnie's depreciating sense of humour and the gentle sarcasm she uses. You can sense through her down to earth attitude that she is a survivor. There are some lovely secondary characters who are all drawn to the garden. There seems to be a certain quirkiness about them. Friendships are formed and there is definitely a message to make your own mind up about people. Probably the biggest character in the story turns out to have four paws and a lot of ginger fur! Caspar the cat seems to get the last word and adopts Marnie from the start.

In short: The romance is gentle the Grace garden stunning and the humour, spot on.

About the Author


Trisha Ashley’s Sunday Times bestselling novels have twice been shortlisted for the Melissa Nathan Award for Comedy Romance, and Every Woman for Herself was nominated by readers as one of the top three romantic novels of the last fifty years.Trisha lives in North Wales.

You can follow Tricia here:  Website  |  Facebook | Twitter

Book link: Amazon UK

Thanks to Tricia Ashley, and Anne Cater of Random Things Tours  for a copy of the book and a place on the tour.


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