#The Hellions of Halstead Hall

[readtilyoudie]

“I now understand why you’re determined to thwart her,” Maria went on. “She does have a hateful side.”

He stared down into the goblet. “I suppose you’d see it that way. She sees it as protective.”

“Yet you’re angry at her.”

“Oh, for God’s sake, will you stop harping on that? I’m not angry at Gran.” He stepped closer to her. “And if you intend to stand out here all night and plague me with questions about it, I’ll give you something better to do with your mouth.”

She gazed up at him, perplexed. “I don’t under—”

He cut her off with a kiss. Let her knee him in the groin. Let her slap him. Anything was better than having her ask him about things he didn’t want to discuss. Ever.

But she didn’t kick him. She stayed very, very still, but she didn’t fight him.

He drew back to eye her suspiciously. “Well? Aren’t you going to punch me in the kidney? Pull a knife on me?”

A smile curved her lips. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you? I kick your shin and march off in a huff, and you don’t have to answer me. But I’m wise to your tricks now, Oliver. I’m not going to stop asking just because—”

He kissed her again, dropping the goblet so he could drag her close and take advantage of her gasp to plunge his tongue into her mouth. Her sweet, silky mouth. So warm and innocent.

So dangerous.

The Truth About Lord Stoneville (Hellions of Halstead Hall, #1) by Sabrina Jeffries

[the-other-art-blog]

A lot of historical romance authors are way better than Julia Quinn, if you are looking for more family driven plots The Hellions of Halstead Hall by Sabrina Jeffries is a good option

Thanks! I'll check them out!

[triviareads]

Releases on March 28th, 2023

Summary

Eliza Pierce is a widow who runs Elegant Occasions, a party planning business, with her sisters. She's approached by her late husband's best friend Lord Foxstead with a request: His ward Mrs. March is a widow of a fellow soldier with a two year old son, and he wants Elegant Occasions to help her come out into society with the aim of finding a husband. Foxstead is inconveniently attracted to Eliza who comes to reciprocate, but their family histories have a way of catching up with them.

Some background:

I read The Truth About Lord Stoneville and How to Woo a Reluctant Lady from Sabrina's Hellions of Halstead Hall series a few months ago on the recommendation of my friend @viscountessevie. I also read the first book in her Designing Debutantes series for research (What Happens in the Ballroom is the second).

I could see a clear difference in Sabrina's writing between then and now. In the decade since she published the Hellions series, her dialogue has gotten less cutesy since, though no less humorous, and her heroines have gotten more *knowing*. Like, we've come a long way since Minerva asked Giles if that's a pistol in his pocket. Now, the Harper sisters get their sex ed from "Fallen Females" and casually insinuate they want to have an affair with the hero. Good for them.

My review:

I liked What Happens in the Ballroom's take on husband's-best-friend-pining-after-his-widow because it was less about the guilt of it all and more about dealing with the fallout of the husband's death, if that makes sense (although I do enjoy when a man feels aaaaaall the shame and guilt).

I also liked that Eliza (and Diana in the previous book) is willing to embrace the grey when it comes to her and Foxstead's relationship. There's not much holier-than-thou railing about him being a rake; instead, she just hooks up with him because she knows he'll make her feel good. Foxstead and Eliza are at their best when they're sneaking around to have sex in random carriages and failing So Hard at being cool ("They'll know we did it if your flowers I tucked between my tits are wilted!" "Dw babe just take them out and put them back in after we fuck in this carriage."). Foxstead is an ex-rake who was reformed by war. I think this makes for a more steady love interest (which, I suppose was the point here, especially compared to Eliza's late husband), but not necessarily a more entertaining one, particularly since his rakishness was diminished by the beginning of the story itself.

Speaking of familial obstacles, the situation with Mrs. March (the situation being, who is she?) carried throughout the story. There were some parts where her subplot and other family stuff overshadowed the romance. Like, I think even the Big Grovel was hijacked by it? The revelations kept coming even as the story neared the end, and that kinda took away from my enjoyment.

On a separate note, I liked the theme of sisterhood that continues into this book from the last one, particularly when it comes to sticking together through scandal, and how women navigate scandal. It also carries into Mrs. March's situation, which I did appreciate.

Thank you to Kensington Books and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review.

[viscountessevie]

He wished he could have laid her down in the straw and discovered what secrets lay beneath today’s outdated gown—a yellow and white muslin thing that made her look like a lemon drop. Which was only appropriate, since he wanted to unwrap her and suck her and savor her, to satisfy his sweet tooth by devouring her whole.

LMAO GABRIEL WHAT IS THIS - he's both a hoe and kinda wholesome. We LOVE the duality of this Horse Girl!!

[dontforgetoctober3rd]

For anyone who has finished the Bridgerton books I HIGHLY recommend the Hellions of Halstead Hall series by Sabrina Jeffries (who btw happens to be a huge inspiration to Julia Quinn!) The whole major plot point is that a family of orphaned siblings in high society have a year to marry or their grandmother will disinherit them all. To show she is serious, she also immediately cuts them off as well. The eldest, a marquis, has let the estate go into disrepair and ruin so they really need this money but don’t want to marry. How will they outsmart their grandmother?

It’s very much the same formula where there is different siblings, the Sharpes, for each book, in this case:

Oliver Sharpe, eldest of the siblings and Marquis of Stoneville, is the protagonist of book one “The Truth About Lord Stoneville”

From then on I’m not quite sure about the order but the rest of them are:

Jarret Sharpe, second eldest and one to take the helm of their grandmother’s brewery business.

Minerva Sharpe, third eldest and an accomplished author.

Gabriel Sharpe, second youngest and avid horse fan.

Celia Sharpe, the baby of the family who loves guns.

Overall, it’s one of my favorite romance series and it canonically takes place in 1825, when most of the Bridgerton siblings are already married so fanfiction overlapping the two universes is not out of this realm.

Go read and enjoy!

[noqueenbutthequeeninthenorth]

romance recs!

For @missfaber​ and anyone else who wants some!

Caveats: I can give more tailored recs if you tell me what tropes you like, and also I basically only read historicals which are overwhelmingly (but not exclusively) white and hetero. Also, most of these can be found on Scribd if you have that service.

Authors you can’t go wrong with (and who will show up a bunch in the rest of my recs):

Courtney Milan - excellent prose, complex protagonists, love stories that feel earned, and just overall ... she’s the best, truly, chef’s kiss

Sarah MacLean - extremely fun and extremely sexy, her books are just bursting with life, full of fantastic lead and side characters, and every single one is a delight

Meredith Duran - her books have a gravity to them that I really appreciate; situations and characters are genuinely really difficult sometimes but so worth it

Some books/series I’d recommend if you like 

Dysfunctional families, close-knit siblings, and/or angst about bad parents: 

The Hellions of Halstead Hall by Sabrina Jeffries The Bareknuckle Bastards by Sarah MacLean The Turner Series by Courtney Milan The Royal Brotherhood by Sabrina Jeffries The MacLean Curse by Karen Hawkins Marriage Mart Mayhem by Callie Hutton

Revenge schemes gone wrong:

Beware a Scot’s Revenge by Sabrina Jeffries No Good Duke Goes Unpunished by Sarah MacLean Sins of a Duke by Stacy Reid Wicked and the Wallflower by Sarah MacLean

ANGST ANGST ANGST (and possibly in need of a TW):

The Duke of Shadows by Meredith Duran The Bashful Bride by Vanessa Riley The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Cheever by Julia Quinn A Woman Scorned by Liz Carlyle Fool Me Twice by Meredith Duran

Working women:

Scientists --  Talk Sweetly to Me by Courtney Milan The Duke’s Quandary by Callie Hutton A Lady’s Guide to Celestial Mechanics by Olivia Waite The Countess Conspiracy by Courtney Milan [***this is my favorite romance novel of all time***] Let Sleeping Rogues Lie by Sabrina Jeffries

Writers --  The Highlander’s Accidental Marriage by Callie Hutton A Summer for Scandal by Lydia San Andres The Suffragette Scandal by Courtney Milan

Other --  The Bittersweet Bride by Vanessa Riley [owns a flower farm] Proof by Seduction by Courtney Milan [fortuneteller] Brazen and the Beast by Sarah MacLean [runs a shipping business] Lady Be Good by Meredith Duran [thief aspiring to be more] Luck Be a Lady by Meredith Duran [runs an auction house] A Hellion in Her Bed by Sabrina Jeffries [runs a brewery]

A few faves that haven’t yet been mentioned:

The Day of the Duchess by Sarah MacLean [estranged spouses, second chances, seducing your spouse, it’s also kinda like the bachelor]

Caught by the Scot by Karen Hawkins [friends to lovers, ridiculous scheming, marriage of convenience]

To Pleasure a Prince by Sabrina Jeffries [beauty and the beast vibes, dyslexic heroine, making a deal]

The Marrying Season by Candace Camp [friends to lovers, marriage to save her reputation, heroine doesn’t believe in love]

The Lady’s Disgrace by Callie Hutton [friends to lovers, marriage to save her reputation, seducing your spouse]

Feel free to ask for specifics about any of these titles, or to tell me if there are any particular tropes or character archetypes or anything else you particularly want me to recommend to you.

Also, if you have anything you’ve read that you’ve loved, PLEASE let me know.

[fromjesstoyou]

A #bookreview of mine from 2011 of TO WED A WILD LORD by Sabrina Jeffries - check it out: https://frommetoyouvideophoto.blogspot.com/2011/10/feasted-on-hellions-of-halstead-hall.html

#virtualassistantservices #bookreviewer #fromjesstoyou #fromjesstoyouservices #virtualassistant #virtualassistance

[katsbookcornerreads]

This was Pierce and Camilla story!!! One of my fave Hellions of Halstead Hall and Christmas read!! #12daysofbookmas2018 https://www.instagram.com/valentine5062/p/BrbAt8NlNu1/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1wdyu9tba61eg

[readtilyoudie]

She walked to her own room, discouragement weighing her steps. She couldn’t believe that it had come to this—Nathan threatening to sue her.

Reaching her door, she looked down to see a parcel. When she opened it, she found two kidney pies, still warm. So Freddy had already been here, and recently, too. Where was he now? Shaking her head in bewilderment, she unlocked her door and walked in.

Oliver’s voice said from the window, “It’s about time you returned.”

Startled, she dropped the pies.

Despite the shadows beneath his eyes, she’d never seen a more welcome sight. Even with his cravat badly tied, his black hair sticking out in all directions, and his expression uncertain, he made her breath catch in her throat.

“What are you doing here?” she asked.

“You forgot something when you left Halstead Hall,” he said hoarsely.

“What?”

Her heart leapt into her throat as he strode purposefully toward her. “Me.”

The Truth About Lord Stoneville (Hellions of Halstead Hall, #1) by Sabrina Jeffries

[firstdraftpod]

A Seething Undercurrent of Rage with Renee Ahdieh

First Draft Episode #213: Renee Ahdieh

Renee Ahdieh, New York Times bestselling author of The Wrath and the Dawn, The Rose and the Dagger, the Flame in the Mist duology, talks about her latest series, which kicks off with The Beautiful, out October 8.

This episode was brought to you by Freedom — upgrade to Premium and use code FIRSTDRAFT for 40% off a yearly or Forever plan!

Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode

Renee says The Flame in the Mist contains nods to Disney’s Mulan and the classic marital arts film 47 Ronin

When it comes to pitching books by Sabaa Tahir (listen to her First Draft interview here), Traci Chee, or Sarah Nicole Lemon (listen to her First Draft interview here), Renee has you covered. Not so much, she says, when it comes to pitching her own books.

Though Renee loves physically strong female heroes like Katniss, from Susanne Collins’ The Hunger Games, she says the hero of the Flame in the Mist series has “strength of the heart.”

The Beautiful series is an homage to Anne Rice’s seminal Interview with the Vampire series (omigod don’t miss the movie version, optimistically titled Interview With the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles, starring Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt). She read The Queen of the Damned first. Renee loves Twilight by Stephenie Meyer, too.

Each book in The Beautiful’s four-part series will have a different main character, but they will all take place in the same world. Renee borrowed this narrative structure from the world of regency romance novels; in particular, Renee cites Sabrina Jeffries’ Hellions of Halstead Hall series as an inspiration. I came across this in getting recommendations from Bea and Leah Koch, who run The Ripped Bodice bookstore in Culver City, Calif. (listen to their First Draft interview here)!

Renee loves mysteries, like the TV series Columbo and Agatha Christie’s Poirot

In addition to Anne Rice’s many vampires novels and Twilight, Renee was also inspired by Charlaine Harris’ Sookie Stackhouse books (which were adapted into the True Blood HBO show) (and I recommended fellow YA author Morgan Matson watch the series - hear me and Morgan chat in her First Draft interviews here and here!).

Renee says almost every book series she loves is a version of Romeo & Juliet by William Shakespeare or The Count of Monte Christo by Alexandre Duma, and she’s also obsessed with Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.

Renee and I gush over Mirage by Somaiya Daud, but I have a bone to pick with her vis a vis robots

Google is funding efforts to delay or end death! Science is trying to restore activity to a deceased brain! Dogs and cats are being cloned (Barbara Streisand did it)! Life is wild!

Laini Taylor, New York Times bestselling author of the Strange the Dreamer series and the Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy, gave incredible worldbuilding advice on her episode of First Draft!

I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998. You can also email the podcast at firstdraftwithsarahenni@gmail.com. 

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Listen now!

[alrightsnaps]

Hey. I want to read more historical romance. After the Bridgerton series, what do you recommend? Are there any good authors or series I can try. I am new to this genre...

Yay historical romps recs!!!

Okay so obviously tastes vary when it comes to romance so just to let you know, personally I found I lean more towards romance books that have a more romcom-y, humorous and banter-filled tone. If you liked the Bridgerton series you'll probably enjoy them as well.

If you found enjoyed the Bridgerton family dynamic you should start some other Julia Quinn series. Her older ones (pre Bridgerton) aren't really my thing as they have a very different style, but I adored her later series. They all take place within the same universe too so again if you loved the Bridgertons that will be an extra treat for you!

The Smythe-Smith Quartet which follows four Smythe-Smith cousins (special shoutout to The Sum of All Kisses because it simply stole my heart)

The Rokesbys which is a prequel series to the Bridgertons

The Bevelstoke Trilogy (though I'd stir clear of the first book...the second and third are amazing though, and as with all Regency romances they're standalones)

How to Marry A Marquis

Then you should definitely give Tessa Dare a go. Her books have a hilariously modern vibe and are a total treat to read.

The Spindle Cove series is a must (my personal favourites: A Week to be Wicked and A Lady by Midnight)

Castles Ever After (When a Scot Ties the Knot stands out for me because I have a weakness for Scottish/English romance!)

Girl Meets Duke

Julie Anne Long's Pennyroyal Green series is worth a go as well. Her books can be a hit or miss, but I definitely recommend these:

Like No Other Lover

What I Did For A Duke

How the Marquess was Won

It Started with a Scandal

The Legend of Lyon Redmond

After Dark With the Duke

Vivienne Lorret is another author I enjoyed a lot who has a couple of good series:

The Mating Habits of Scoundrels (Lord Holt Takes a Bride being my personal favourite)

Wallflower Weddings (favourite book: Finding Miss McFarland)

Misadventures in Matchmaking

The Rakes of Fallow Hall (especially The Elusive Lord Everhart)

Steicy Reid's When the Earl Met his Match is a great read (and it features a deaf male lead!) and you may like Sabrina Jeffries' Hellions of Halstead Hall that also revolves around siblings like the Bridgerton books. Lenora Bell is worth a go too (If I Only Had a Duke is pretty good).

Another author that I didn't really love but many do and whose style is close to Julia Quinn is Eloisa James.

Now if you prefer more plot heavy, angstier books:

Lisa Kleypas' Wallflowers series (the historical context being Victorian rather than Regency) is pretty much iconic among historical romance lovers. Kleypas isn't really my cup of tea but I enjoyed it overall, though I deeply hated the third book (which is pretty much everyone's favourite in the entire genre!). My favourites were It Happened One Autumn (though TW: there is a dubcon sex scene pretty similar to that of Bridgerton's The Duke and I, except the genders are reversed) and Scandal in Spring. If you enjoy Kleypas' writing, she has tons of romances (Suddenly You is a pretty good one), including a sort of sequel series to the Wallflowers.

Sarah MacLean is also loved by fans and is closer to Lisa Kleypas rather than Julia Quinn. Again, not really my thing, but Eleven Scandals to Steal a Duke's Heart wasn't bad.

Kerrygan Bern's Victorian Rebels series is really good (I loved The Highlander).

Loretta Chase is a popular one as well, particularly Lord of Scoundrels, but personally I didn't like it so I didn't give any other book of hers a go.

If you prefer books which are pretty light in sex scenes and more historically accurate you need to read Mary Balogh! She's a great writer and probably the most period accurate author I've come across. Her Bedwyn Saga focuses on family like the Bridgerton books, following a Bedwyn sibling per book (Slightly Dangerous, which is the last installment, is amazing)

If you're more into American rather than British history, though I can't give you any personal recommendations since it doesn't really appeal to me, I've heard that Beverly Jenkins is pretty great.

Regency authors I haven't read yet but I've seen recommended a lot: Elizabeth Hoyt, Connie Brockway, Courtney Milan, Olivia Waite and of course Georgette Heyer aka the original Regency romance writer.

(The above recommendations are basically historical romps, but if what you're looking for is more serious historical fiction I must recommend Sarah Waters, she writes the most incredible lesbian love stories!)

[triviareads]

The Hellions of Halstead Hall by Sabrina Jeffries are a great historical romance fanily too

The ongoing mystery plot and the couples are very interesting, I think it would make a great tv show

I read The Truth About Lord Stoneville in 2022 and I wasn't a huge fan. Her writing reminded me of Julia Quinn's style so it was quite funny, but I was underwhelmed in terms of the romance. But I did get a lot of second-hand info from @viscountessevie while they were reading through the series and I remember there were a lot of twists and turns when it came to the mystery of their parents' deaths.

tbh if I wanted a murder mystery with my historical romance tv adaptation, I'd want something more along the lines of what The Alienist gave us (in terms of the murder and mystery; not the romance because while there were some great moments it was not nearly enough 😭) or I guess the comparable HR books in terms of intensity would be Elizabeth Hoyt's Maiden Lane series. It would also be preferable this way because a lot of the mystery in the Hellions of Halstead Hall series occurs in the past and the present-day characters are just trying to piece together what happened all those years ago, and that's something I feel would be harder to portray, as opposed to the situation going down in real-time.

[viscountessevie]

Started A Lady Never Surrenders and with 4 books worth of build up I was looking forward to it but....

One of the suitors Celia is considering is Portuguese and God the xenophobia within these characters jumped out 🤢🤢 I swear if they keep up the comments about him I'm going to yeet this book

[matchpredictions-blog]

To Wed a Wild Lord (The Hellions of Halstead Hall)

To Wed a Wild Lord (The Hellions of Halstead Hall)

Price: [price_with_discount] [ad_1] New York Times bestselling author Sabrina Jeffries delights readers with the fourth Regency romance in her sexy Hellions of Halstead Hall series, featuring the dark and dangerous Lord Gabriel Sharpe. To fulfill his grandmother’s ultimatum, Lord Gabriel Sharpe pursues a spitfire he believes desperately needs him. Then the tables are turned… Like everything…

[viscountessevie]

Holy shit OP thank you for the recommendations I will check them out once I finished all the Bridgerton books (I have the last 3 to go!)

For anyone who has finished the Bridgerton books I HIGHLY recommend the Hellions of Halstead Hall series by Sabrina Jeffries (who btw happens to be a huge inspiration to Julia Quinn!) The whole major plot point is that a family of orphaned siblings in high society have a year to marry or their grandmother will disinherit them all. To show she is serious, she also immediately cuts them off as well. The eldest, a marquis, has let the estate go into disrepair and ruin so they really need this money but don’t want to marry. How will they outsmart their grandmother?

It’s very much the same formula where there is different siblings, the Sharpes, for each book, in this case:

Oliver Sharpe, eldest of the siblings and Marquis of Stoneville, is the protagonist of book one “The Truth About Lord Stoneville”

From then on I’m not quite sure about the order but the rest of them are:

Jarret Sharpe, second eldest and one to take the helm of their grandmother’s brewery business.

Minerva Sharpe, third eldest and an accomplished author.

Gabriel Sharpe, second youngest and avid horse fan.

Celia Sharpe, the baby of the family who loves guns.

Overall, it’s one of my favorite romance series and it canonically takes place in 1825, when most of the Bridgerton siblings are already married so fanfiction overlapping the two universes is not out of this realm.

Go read and enjoy!