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Blitz Spirit at Harbour House by Fenella J Miller #Review

  I am delighted to be on the tour to celebrate the next in the Harbour House series by Fenella J Miller . Blitz Spirit at Harbour House   continues life in 1940,with the Second World War underway. It was published by Boldwood Books on October 7th.   September 1940 As the new housekeeper at Harbour House, Lily Turner and her teenage daughter Daphne have forged a resilient life since Lily’s husband Patrick abandoned them. But as war rages, Patrick, now vital to the war effort, is dispatched to Wivenhoe shipyard, forcing him to confront his past—and Lily—once more. He's no longer the reckless boy who deserted his family; hardened by the years, he’s determined to make amends. Yet, for Lily, the scars of abandonment run deep, and forgiveness is a luxury she's not sure she can afford. But she finds this new version of Patrick intriguing nonetheless.. With the Blitz intensifying and German bombers pounding Britain, life is precarious. When Patrick, Lily, and Daphne are...

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 losing her heart to a man who embodies everything she swore to escape.

But the earl has secrets of his own. Is he truly the rogue society believes him to be?

And when Augusta’s past comes calling, will her newfound independence—and her heart—survive?


 My Thoughts

 This is the first in Susan Dunlap's Double Dilemma series. Both storylines revolve around two spirited and determined young women who are conscious of the constraints for women in their time but who have ambitions beyond a superficial social life. Augusta has run away from an undesirable forced marriage and is determined to meak e her way as a dressmaker and designer. To do this, she has to conceal her high born status and take on the appearance of an ordinary working seamstress.  Drawn to a certain Earl who keeps crossing her path, she is unaware that he too is concealing something from her.

    Mariana, the Earl's sister, has interests which are different to those the Ton expects her, as a rich heiress, to have. She follows the political issues of the day and is keen to participate as far as she can. However, women are frowned on, so she has to take on a cunning disguise. She has also rejected all the eligible young men of her class, being drawn towards a political assistant to the Prime Minister, Spencer Percival. 

    I enjoyed this look at the place of women in Regency England and found both heroines to be entertaining and sincere characters. The fashions of the day and the social whirl of the Ton sit side by side with other social issues, especially around disability and poverty.

In short: a classy read

 

About the Author

Susanne Dunlap is the award-winning author of over a dozen historical novels, as well as an Author Accelerator Certified Book Coach in fiction, nonfiction, and memoir. Her love of history began in academia with a PhD in music history from Yale. Her novel THE PORTRAITIST won first prize in its category in the 2022 Eric Hoffer Book Awards, and was a finalist in the CIBA Goethe Awards and the Foreword Indies Awards. THE ADORED ONE: A NOVEL OF LILLIAN LORRAINE AND FLORENZ ZIEGFELD, won first place in its category in the 2023 CIBA Goethe Awards for Late Historical Fiction. Today, she lives, coaches, and writes in beautiful Biddeford, Maine.

You can follow Susan here: Instagram  |  Facebook  |  LinkedIn  |  You tube

Book links: Amazon UK |  Amazon US

 Thanks to Susan Dunlap, Comfortable Prose Publishing and Rachel of Rachel's Random Resources for a copy of the book and a place on the tour. 

Check out the rest of the tour!


 


 

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