#Manda Collins

[acotars]

Read in 2023:

Puncturing male self-importance is one of my favorite activities.

A LADY'S GUIDE TO MISCHIEF AND MAYHEM by Manda Collins ★★★

[stardustandrockets]

What was your favorite read from October?

I spent the month completing the #OwnedOctober challenge @treereads hosted. I managed to fill my bingo board.

Books read:

• Happy Place by Emily Henry

• You Feel it Just Below the Ribs by Jeffrey Cranor and Janina Matthewson

• Ander & Santi Were Here by Jonny Garza Villa

• Fire Becomes Her by Rosiee Thor

• A Lady's Guide to Mischief and Mayhem by Manda Collins

• Flip the Script by Lyla Lee

• 10 Things That Never Happened by Alexis Hall

• The Restaurant at the End of the Universe by Douglas Adams

• A Shot in the Dark by Victoria Lee

I think my favorites were Ander & Santi and 10 Things That Never Happened. Though, the latter I checked out from the library to decide if I wanted to buy it or not. I absolutely adored Sam and Jonathan's dynamic. I thought the amnesia plot was going to be weird, but it wasn't. Not sure what I'm going to start next, but I'm happy to have my tbr a little more under control.

[lynnwriting]

WOMS: A Governess's Guide to Passion and Peril

How is it that Manda Collins never ceases to delight me? It's time I reviewed her Ladies Most Scandalous series since I've finished with the latest installment, A Governess's Guide to Passion and Peril. #bookreview #historicalromance #murdermystery

How is it that Manda Collins never ceases to delight me? Her latest installment (and maybe final?) in her Ladies Most Scandalous series, A Governess’s Guide to Passion and Peril, is no exception to the reputation she’s established as a charming author of historical romances, even when there’s a murder to be solved. With all the chaos my life has been over the last four years, I’ve never been…

[danielleurbansblog]

Review: A Spinster's Guide to Danger and Dukes

Synopsis: It is a truth universally acknowledged that a lady in danger must be in need of rescue, but whether she wants to be rescued is up for debate—for fans of Evie Dunmore and Netflix’s Bridgerton from the bestselling author of A Lady’s Guide to Mischief and Mayhem! England, 1867: Miss Poppy Delamare is living a lie. To escape an odious betrothal, she fled to London where she’s been hiding…

[somewherelostinbooks]

A Spinster's Guide to Danger and Dukes-Review

A Spinster’s Guide to Danger and Dukes Manda Collins Genre: Historical Romance Series: Ladies Most Scandalous #3 Publisher: Forever Publication Date: March 28,2023 Source: Received an ARC in exchange for an honest review Rating: 4 Stars Amazon Indiebound Description: It is a truth universally acknowledged that a lady in danger must be in need of rescue, but whether she wants to be…

[bookishbethanyerin]

• ARC Review: A Spinster’s Guide to Danger and Dukes •

Well, this book is a ton of tropey fun!

A little bit Enola Holmes, a little bit Bridgerton, Manda Collins’s story follows Flora – the assistant to two ladies who write a crime column for a London newspaper – who ends up traveling to her hometown with the Duke of Langham, a man she can’t stand after she’s robbed at the train station. And on that train ride, Flora reveals that she’s really Poppy Delamere and that her sister, Violet, has been accused of murdering her husband, and the Duke of Langham promises to help her – but only if she poses as his fiancée for the weekend.

Nothing about the plot will necessarily shock you here – well, *maybe* the Satanic cult – but even so, this book is such a delight.

It is the third in an interconnected series, and I’ll be honest: I haven’t read the others. (Not for lack of trying! I’ve had them on hold at the library for months!) Though there are points where it’s clear you’re missing certain insider-y connections, it doesn’t take away from the story or leave you feeling as if you’re missing something major.

Fast-paced, funny, more than a little swoony, and with a punchy bit of spice, A Spinster’s Guide to Danger and Dukes is the perfect accompaniment for an enjoyable afternoon — preferably one spent on a train ride to the English countryside.

4.25🌟

1.25🌶️

[dilawrosas]

[BOOK REVIEW] ARC: A Spinster's Guide to Danger and Dukes by Manda Collins

This Manda Collins book is AVAILABLE NOW! ✍️✍️✍️✍️✍️ The heroine had fled her old life to escape a forced betrothal and began a new life as a secretary with a new name. However, when the heroine learned that her sister is accused of murder, she returns to her old life to help her sibling. Along the way she meets the hero, who asked for a favor in return to helping her. With a fake betrothal…

[the-forest-library]

January 2024 Reads

The Gentlemen's Gambit - Evie Dunmore

A Lady Guide's to Mischief and Mayhem - Manda Collins

The Ladies Rewrite the Rules - Suzanne Allain

One Night in Hartswood - Emma Denny

The Breakup Tour - Emily Wibberley

Places We've Never Been - Kasie West

Most Ardently - Gabe Cole Novoa

Okay, Cupid - Mason Deaver

Love, Me - Jessica Saunders

Dungeons and Drama - Kristy Boyce

Seven Percent of Ro Devereux - Ellen O'Clover

Eight Dates and Nights - Betsy Aldredge

Rules for Being a Girl - Candace Bushnell, Katie Cotungo

The Christmas Wish - Lindsey Kelk

After the Forest - Kell Woods

All the Hidden Paths - For Meadows

Shady Hollow - Juneau Black

Strong Poison - Dorothy L. Sayers

The Silver Chair - C.S. Lewis

The Chalice of the Gods - Rick Riordan

The Marvelous Magic of Miss Mabel - Natasha Lowe

Elf Dog and Owl Head - M.T. Anderson

Winter - Kelsey E. Gross

The Bookstore Cat - Cylin Busby

The Glass Castle - Jeannette Walls

Brain on Fire - Susannah Cahalan

A Book of Days - Patti Smith

Karma - Boy George

I Hate Everyone, Except You - Clinton Kelly

The Life Brief - Bonnie Wan

The Stress Prescription - Elissa Epel

Infectious Generosity - Chris J. Anderson

Break the Cycle - Mariel Buque

Eve - Cat Bohannon

House Love - Patric Richardson

Pests - Bethany Brookshire

Freaks, Gleeks, and Dawson's Creek - Thea Glassman

But Have You Read the Book? - Kristen Lopez

The Good, the Bad, and the Barbie - Tanya Lee Stone

Normal is Just a Setting on the Dryer - Adair Lara

Men to Avoid in Art and Life - Nicole Tersigni

Friends to Keep in Art and Life - Nicole Tersigni

Parenting Advice to Ignore in Art and Life - Nicole Tersigni

Bold = Highly Recommend Italics = Worth It Crossed out = Nope

Thoughts: 

Messy memoirs, healing from generational trauma, and recovery from burnout - these are a few of my favorite things.

Goodreads Goal: 43/200

2017 Reads | 2018 Reads | 2019 Reads | 2020 Reads | 2021 Reads | 

2022 Reads | 2023 Reads | 2024 Reads

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

🪞 What to Read After Watching Bridgerton Season 3

🪞 Don’t Want You Like a Best Friend - Emma R. Alban 🪞 The Ladies Rewrite the Rules - Suzanne Allain 🪞 Confounding Oaths - Alexis Hall 🪞 Hathor and the Prince - J.J. McAvoy 🪞 Ne’er Duke Well - Alexandra Vasti 🪞 The Lord of Stariel - A. J. Lancaster 🪞 The Lily of Ludgate Hill - Mimi Matthews 🪞 To Catch a Suitor - Sarah Adams 🪞 To Woo and to Wed - Martha Waters 🪞 My Season of Scandal - Julie Anne Long 🪞 Damned If I Duke - Anna Bradley 🪞 A Viscount for the Egyptian Princess - Heba Helmy 🪞 The Diamond and the Duke - Christi Caldwell 🪞 An Unlikely Proposition - Rosalyn Eves 🪞 A Governess’s Guide to Passion and Peril - Manda Collins 🪞 Lies and Weddings - Kevin Kwan 🪞 Viscount in Love - Eloisa James 🪞 A Lady for a Duke - Alexis Hall 🪞 Lady Charlotte Always Gets Her Man - Violet Marsh 🪞 My Rogue to Ruin - Erica Ridley 🪞 Never Met a Duke Like You - Amalie Howard 🪞 Never Blow a Kiss - Lindsay Lovise 🪞 Wake Me Most Wickedly - Felicia Grossman 🪞 The Duke’s All That - Christina Britton 🪞 Bookshop Cinderella - Laura Lee Guhrke 🪞 Dukes Do It Better - Bethany Bennett

[aurumacadicus]

Well, it's time to pick our club's book for May! If you're interested in book club, shoot me a message for an invite. All summaries are underneath the cut! Happy reading!

A Tempest of Tea by Hafsah Faizal

On the streets of White Roaring, Arthie Casimir is a criminal mastermind and collector of secrets. Her prestigious tearoom transforms into an illegal bloodhouse by night, catering to the vampires feared by society. But when her establishment is threatened, Arthie is forced to strike an unlikely deal with an alluring adversary to save it��and she can’t do the job alone.

Calling on some of the city’s most skilled outcasts, Arthie hatches a plan to infiltrate the sinister, glittering vampire society known as the Athereum. But not everyone in her ragtag crew is on her side, and as the truth behind the heist unfolds, Arthie finds herself in the midst of a conspiracy that will threaten the world as she knows it. Dark, action-packed, and swoon-worthy, this is Hafsah Faizal better than ever.

Things We Lost in the Fire by Mariana Enriquez

In these wildly imaginative, devilishly daring tales of the macabre, internationally bestselling author Mariana Enriquez brings contemporary Argentina to vibrant life as a place where shocking inequality, violence, and corruption are the law of the land, while the military dictatorship and legions of desaparecidos loom large in the collective memory. In these stories, reminiscent of Shirley Jackson and Julio Cortázar, three young friends distract themselves with drugs and pain in the midst of a government-enforced blackout; a girl with nothing to lose steps into an abandoned house and never comes back out; to protest a viral form of domestic violence, a group of women set themselves on fire.

But alongside the black magic and disturbing disappearances, these stories are fueled by compassion for the frightened and the lost, ultimately bringing these characters—mothers and daughters, husbands and wives—int a surprisingly familiar reality. Written in hypnotic prose that gives grace to the grotesque, Things We Lost in the Fire is a powerful exploration of what happens when our darkest desires are left to roam unchecked, and signals the arrival of an astonishing and necessary voice in contemporary fiction.

The Spirit Bares Its Teeth by Andrew Joseph White

Mors vincit omnia. Death conquers all.

London, 1883. The Veil between the living and dead has thinned. Violet-eyed mediums commune with spirits under the watchful eye of the Royal Speaker Society, and sixteen-year-old trans, autistic Silas Bell would rather rip out his violet eyes than become an obedient Speaker Wife.

After a failed attempt to escape an arranged marriage, Silas is diagnosed with Veil sickness—a mysterious disease sending violet-eyed women into madness—and shipped away to Braxton’s Finishing School and Sanitorium. When the ghosts of missing students start begging Silas for help, he decides to reach into Braxton’s innards and expose its guts to the world—so long as the school doesn’t break him first.

Featuring an autistic trans protagonist in a historical setting, Andrew Joseph White’s much-anticipated sophomore novel does not back down from exposing the violence of the patriarchy and the harm inflicted on trans youth who are forced into conformity.

Gold Diggers by Sanjena Sathian

A magical realist coming-of-age story, Gold Diggers skewers the model minority myth to tell a hilarious and moving story about immigrant identity, community, and the underside of ambition.

A floundering second-generation teenager growing up in the Bush-era Atlanta suburbs, Neil Narayan is funny and smart but struggles to bear the weight of expectations of his family and their Asian American enclave. He tries to want their version of success, but mostly, Neil just wants his neighbor across the cul-de-sac, Anita Dayal.

When he discovers that Anita is the beneficiary of an ancient, alchemical potion made from stolen gold—a “lemonade” that harnesses the ambition of the gold’s original owner—Neil sees his chance to get ahead. But events spiral into a tragedy that rips their community their community apart. Years later in the Bay Area, Neil still bristles against his community’s expectations—and finds he might need one more hit of that lemonade, no matter the cost.

Sanjena Sathian’s astonishing debut offers a fine-grained, profoundly intelligent, and bitingly funny investigation into what’s required to make it in America.

Inkheart by Cornelia Funke

One cruel night, Meggie’s father reads aloud from a brook called INKHEART—and an evil ruler escapes the boundaries of fiction and lands in their living room. Suddenly, Meggie is smack in the middle of the kind of adventure she has only read about in books. Meggie must learn to harness the magic that has conjured this nightmare. For only she can change the course of the story that has changed her life forever. This is INKHEART—a timeless tale about books, about imagination, about life. Dare to read it aloud.

A Lady’s Guide to Mischief and Mayhem by Manda Collins

The widowed Lady Katherine Bascomb has little use for the rules of society—instead, she engages in such “vulgar” activities as managing The London Gazette and writing about crimes against women. But when her latest article leads to a suspicious arrest, the attractive detective in charge of the case is incensed that she’s interfered with his investigation. Only before Kate can make amends, she stumbles, quite literally, upon another murder entirely.

Detective Inspector Andrew Eversham is appalled that Kate is entangled in one of his cases—again. Yet when he asks her to kindly keep away, Kate offers a bargain: She’ll refrain from writing about the case—if he allows her to study his methods. Before long, Eversham can’t deny his attraction to both her beauty and brains. But with a killer lurking in the shadows, will they learn to trust their instincts, each other, and the undeniable passion that is blossoming between them before it’s too late?

[intotheclash]

Il grande capo di Washington ci manda a dire che vuole comprare la nostra terra. Il grande capo ci manda anche espressioni di amicizia e di buona volontà. Ciò è gentile da parte sua, poiché sappiamo che egli non ha bisogno della nostra amicizia in contraccambio. Ma noi consideriamo questa offerta perché sappiamo che se non venderemo, l'uomo bianco potrebbe venire con i fucile a prendere la nostra terra. Quello che dice capo indiano Seattle, il grande capo di Washington può considerarlo sicuro, come i nostri fratelli bianchi possono considerare sicuro il ritorno delle stagioni. Le mie parole sono come le stelle e non tramontano. Ma come potete comprare o vendere il cielo, il calore della terra? Questa idea è strana per noi. Noi non siamo proprietari della freschezza dell'aria o dello scintillio dell'acqua: come potete comprarli da noi? Ogni parte di questa terra è sacra al mio popolo. Ogni ago scintillante di pino, ogni spiaggia sabbiosa, ogni goccia di rugiada nei boschi scuri, ogni insetto ronzante è sacro nella memoria e nella esperienza del mio popolo. La linfa che circola negli alberi porta le memorie dell'uomo rosso. I morti dell'uomo bianco dimenticando il paese della loro nascita quando vanno a camminare tra le stelle. Noi siamo parte della terra ed essa è parte di noi. I fiori profumati sono nostri fratelli. Il cervo, il cavallo e l'aquila sono nostri fratelli. Le creste rocciose, le essenze dei prati, il calore del corpo dei cavalli e l'uomo, tutti appartengono alla stessa famiglia. Perciò quando il grande capo che sta a Washington ci manda a dire che vuole comprare la nostra terra, ci chiede molto. Egli ci manda a dire che ci riserverà un posto dove potremmo vivere comodamente per conto nostro. Egli sarà nostro padre e noi saremo i figli. Quindi noi consideriamola vostra offerta di acquisto. Ma non sarà facile, perché questa terra per noi è sacra. L'acqua che scorre nei torrenti e nei fiumi non è soltanto acqua ma è il sangue dei nostri antenati. Se noi vi vendiamo la terra, voi dovete ricordare che essa è sacra e dovete insegnare ai vostri figli che essa è sacra e che ogni tremolante riflesso nell'acqua limpida del lago parla di eventi e di ricordi, nella vita del mio popolo. Il mormorio dell'acqua è la voce del padre, di mio padre. I fiumi sono i nostri fratelli ed essi saziano la nostra sete. I fiumi portano le nostre canoe e nutrono i nostri figli. Se vi vendiamo la terra, voi dovete ricordare e insegnare ai vostri figli che i fiumi sono nostri fratelli e anche i vostri, perciò dovete usare la gentilezza che usereste con un fratello. L'uomo rosso si è sempre ritirato davanti all'avanzata dell'uomo bianco, come la rugiada sulle montagne si ritira con il sole del mattino. Ma le ceneri dei nostri padri sono sacre. Le loro tombe sono terreno sacro e così queste colline e questi alberi. Questa porzione di terra è consacrata, per noi. Noi sappiamo che l'uomo bianco no capisce i nostri pensieri. Un porzione di terra è la stessa per lui come un'altra, perché egli è uno straniero che viene nella notte e prende dalla terra qualunque cosa gli serva. La terra non è suo fratello, ma suo nemico e quando l'ha conquistata, egli si sposta lascia le tombe dei suoi padre i diritti dei suo figli vengono dimenticati. Egli tratta sua madre, la terra e suo fratello, il cielo, come cose che possono essere comprate, sfruttate e vendute, come fossero pecore o perline colorate. Il suo appetito divorerà la terra e lascerà dietro solo un deserto. Non so, i nostri pensieri sono differenti dai vostri pensieri. La vista delle vostre città ferisce gli occhi dell'uomo rosso. Ma forse questo avviene perché l'uomo rosso è selvaggio e non capisce. Non c'è alcun posto lieto nelle città dell'uomo bianco. Alcun posto in cui sentire lo stormire di foglie in primavera e il ronzio delle ali degli insetti. Ma forse io sono un selvaggio e non capisco. Il rumore delle città sembra quasi che ferisca le orecchie. E che cos'è mai li la vita, se un uomo non può ascoltare il rumore del succiacapre o delle rane attorno ad uno stagno di notte ? Ma io sono un uomo rosso e non capisco. L'indiano preferisce il dolce sapore del vento che soffia sulla superficie del lago o l'odore del vento stesso, pulito dalla pioggia o dagli aghi di pino. L'aria è preziosa per l'uomo rosso poiché tutte le cose partecipano allo stesso respiro. L'uomo bianco sembra non accorgersi dell' aria che respira e come un uomo da molti giorni in agonia, egli è insensibile alla puzza. Ma se noi vi vendiamo la nostra terra, voi dovete ricordare che, per noi,  l'aria ha lo stesso spirito che essa sostiene. Il vento che ha dato ai nostri padri il primo respiro, riceve anche il loro ultimo respiro. E il vento deve dare ai nostri figli lo spirito della vita. E se vi vendiamo la nostra terra, voi dovete tenerla da parte come sacra, come un posto dove anche l'uomo bianco possa andare a gustare il vento addolcito dei prati. Perciò noi considereremo l'offerta di comprare la nostra terra, ma se decideremo di accettarla, io porrò una condizione: l'uomo bianco deve trattare gli animali di questa terra come suoi fratelli. Io sono un selvaggio e non capisco altri pensieri. Ho visto centinaia di bisonti marcire nelle praterie, lasciati lì dall'uomo bianco dal treno che passava. Io sono un selvaggio e non riesco a capire come un uomo bianco preferisca un cavallo di ferro sbuffante che un bisonte che noi uccidiamo solo per sopravvivere. Che cos'è l'uomo senza gli animali? Se non ce ne fossero più gli indiani morirebbero di solitudine. Perché qualunque cosa capiti agli animali in seguito capiterà agli uomini. Tutte le cose sono collegate. Voi dovete insegnare ai vostri figli che la terra sotto i loro piedi è la cenere dei nostri antenati. Affinché rispettino la terra, dite ai vostri figli che la terra è ricca delle vite del nostro popolo. Insegnate ai vostri figli quello che noi abbiamo insegnato ai nostri: LA TERRA E' NOSTRA MADRE. Qualunque cosa capiti alla terra, capita anche ai figli della terra. Se gli uomini sputano in terra, sputano a se stessi. Questo noi sappiamo: la terra non appartiene all'uomo ma è l'uomo che appartiene alla terra.Questo noi sappiamo.Tutte le cose sono collegate, come il sangue che unisce la famiglia..Qualunque cosa capiti alla terra, capita anche ai figli della terra.Non è stato l'uomo a tessere la tela della vita, egli è soltanto un filo. Qualunque cosa egli faccia alla tela, lo fa a se stesso. Ma noi consideriamo la vostra offerta di andare nella riserva da voi stabilita per il mio popolo. Noi vivremmo per conto nostro e in pace.Importa poco dove spenderemo la fine dei nostri giorni. I nostri figli anno visto i loro padri umiliati nella sconfitta. I nostri guerrieri hanno provato la vergogna. E dopo la sconfitta, essi passano i giorni nell'ozio e contaminano il loro corpo con cibi, dolci e bevande forti. Poco importa dove passeremo il resto dei nostri giorni: essi non saranno molti. Ancora poche ore, ancora pochi inverni, e nessuno dei figli delle grandi tribù, che una volta vivevano sulla terra e che percorrevano in piccole bande i boschi, rimarrà a piangere le tombe di un popolo, una volta potente e pieno di speranze come il vostro. Ma perché dovrei piangere la morte del mio popolo? Le tribù sono fatte di uomini e nient'altro. Gli uomini vanno e vengono come le onde del mare. Anche l'uomo bianco, il cui dio cammina e parla con lui da amico ad amico, non può sfuggire al destino comune Può darsi che siamo fratelli dopo tutto. Vedremo. Noi sappiamo una cosa che l'uomo bianco forse un giorno scoprirà: il nostro dio è lo stesso dio. Può darsi che voi ora pensiate di possederlo, come desiderate possedere la nostra terra. Ma voi non potete possederlo. Egli è dio dell'uomo e la sua compassione è uguale sia per l'uomo rosso che per l'uomo bianco. Questa terra è preziosa anche per lui. E far male alla terra è come far male al suo creatore. Anche l'uomo bianco passerà, forse prima di altre tribù. Continuate a contaminare il vostro letto e tra qualche notte soffocherete nei vostri rifiuti.

(Lettera del capo Sethl al presidente degli Stati Uniti Franklin Pierce 1855)

[acotars]

y’all really want me to read historical romance and i hear you. i do.

[magnetarmadda]

Nine people you'd like to get to know better

I was tagged by both @bluejayblueskies and @wordsintimeandspace!

Three ships

JonMartin of course, Aziraphale/Crowley, and Diggory/Percy

First ship

Okay, actually this is kind of hard? I remember shipping characters before I started writing fic (Addie and Rhys from The Two Princesses of Bamarre come to mind immediately lol), but I think Ron/Hermione might've been the first ship I wrote about when I was like 12

Last song

In Her Arms You Will Never Starve by Copeland

Currently reading

ho boy, so many. Okay let's see

Upright Women Wanted by Sarah Gailey

Rogue, Set, Match by Manda Collins

At Bertram's Hotel by Agatha Christie

Murder at Morrington Hall by Clara McKenna

Sunbringer by Hannah Kaner

All the Hidden Paths by Foz Meadows

When the Light of the World Was Subdued, Our Songs Came Through, edited by Joy Harjo

The Weight of Silence by Heather Gudenkauf -> this is a reread, because the author is coming to my town in a couple of weeks!

Black, Brown, Bruised by Ebony Omotola McGee

How Colleges Change by Adrianna Kezar -> for work

Last film

Mansfield Park (1999)

Currently Craving

A vanilla chai, which tbh I'm usually craving anymore. It's my go-to lil treat these days

No pressure friends! My nine tags are @morning-softness, @amberastra, @beesabuzzin, @0rosenstern0, @inthewild-flowers, @lolgmalolg-did-nothing-wrong, @shinyopals, @peri-scoop-da-loop, and @artificialdaydreamer

[stardustandrockets]

What's a trope you find incredibly underrated?

I finished Don't Want You Like a Best Friend by Emma R. Alban and, no spoilers, but this book was everything! I absolutely love the hijinks Gwen and Beth come up with to get their parents together so they don't have to get married themselves. The parent trapping was ✨️immaculate✨️ and definitely an underrated trope. And getting dual POV made this so much more enjoyable!

Mixing my love of historical romance, queer discovery stories, and badass ladies, this was an absolute joy of a book.

The cast of characters was also great. Aside from the main duo, Albie was a stand-out to me. Same with Meredith. They were both so accepting of Gwen and Beth and probably realized they had a thing for each other before the girls did.

I can't say it enough, but I absolutely adored this book and cannot wait to read the sequel! Highly recommend for fans of authors Evie Dunmore and Manda Collins, as well as Bridgerton and the Parent Trap (obvi).

[mermaidsirennikita]

ARC Review: A Spinster's Guide to Danger and Dukes by Manda Collins

3.25/5. Releases 3/28/2023.

For when you're vibing with... Romance with a dash of cozy mystery, light enemies to lovers, fake engagements, and romcom vibes.

Poppy Delamare escaped an unwanted betrothal by fleeing to London and living as a secretary under an assumed name. But when her sister is accused of murder, she leaps into action--and in the process, enlists the help of the Duke of Langham. Langham would really rathe not deal with all that marriage mart bullshit, so he and Poppy enter into a fake engagement. As the engagement begins feeling more and more real, Poppy and Langham are on the brink of uncovering a dangerous plot...

This was cute--really cute. I really like Manda Collins's writing style--it's fun, and engaging, and dare I say, SPARKLING. I just think that historical romance mysteries are hard for me to follow. I think that it's one thing when murder and mayhem is happening--but it's another when the hero and heroine are like. Actively trying to solve the murder.

Quick Takes:

--All that being said, I don't want to make it sound like the mystery is hard to follow in general. I didn't find it super predictable, and I did understand what was happening. It was entertaining--the issues are largely user error for me!

--The chemistry between Langham and Poppy is great. It's very Darcy and Elizabeth, if Darcy was a bit... sluttier. Which, honestly, is a great approach for Darcy. That said, I do think I would have benefited from reading previous books first, as you come into this one with them knowing each other.

--The romance develops very naturally, and I appreciated that Collins didn't skim over the progression or, for that matter, Langham's personal biases.

The Sex Stuff:

There's one full sex scene, and it's well-done--sexy, fairly explicit, and like... respectful of Poppy's lack of experience without feeling fetishistic or weird. I could've done with more, to be honest. But again, it's a very good sex scene.

If you like cozy mysteries and historical romance, this is for you. I don't know if that particular subgenre is for me--but I do want to read more from Manda Collins.

Thanks to Forever and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book. All opinions are mine.

[francyfan-bukowsky]

scarpe

scarpe nell'armadio come gigli di Pasqua,

le mie scarpe lì da sole adesso,

e altre scarpe con altre scarpe

come cani che camminano per le vie,

e il fumo da solo non è abbastanza

e ho ricevuto una lettera da una donna in ospedale,

amore, mi dice lei, amore,

altre poesie,

ma io non scrivo,

non mi riconosco più,

mi manda fotografie dell'ospedale

scattate dall'alto,

ma mi ricordo di lei in altre sere,

non moribonda,

scarpe con tacchi a spillo come pugnali

lì di fianco alle mie,

come possono sere così forti

mentire alle colline,

come possono sere così diventare tranquille sul finire

le mie scarpe nell'armadio

pieno di soprabiti e di strane magliette,

e sbircio dentro la fessura lasciata dall'anta

e fisso i muri, e non

scrivo.

Charles Buk🖤wski