If the Earl Only Knew

May 9, 2016
Forester (The Highlander’s Bride), a champ at crafting feisty and independent Regency-era women, has outdone herself with Lady Katherine Ashton. Kate and her twin brother, Robert, Earl of Darington, have been fabulously successful privateers for several years and are returning to London to pay dividends to their investors. Kate hates being forced to spend a few weeks in the city, away from the high seas, rubbing elbows with other lords and ladies. She absolutely refuses to be tamed and bound to any man in matrimony, but this visit does offer an opportunity to find a bride for Robert. It’s with that in mind that they agree to stay at the home of family friend John Arlington, Earl of Wynbrook, and plan to attend a handful of social fetes. Needless to say, Wynbrook’s dutiful offer to escort Kate quickly advances to full-on attraction amid Forester’s reliably entertaining signature trinity of danger, intrigue, and dry wit.

May 15, 2016
An earl's sister lives in isolation after a difficult childhood until a friend of her brother's helps her overcome her bitterness. Forester (The Highlander's Bride, 2015) returns with the first book in her new Regency series, The Daring Marriages. Lady Katherine Ashton has come back to England after a long absence. She and her twin brother, Robert, the Earl of Darington, have recovered from their childhood penury and become quite wealthy, thanks to Kate's financial acumen and Robert's daring career as a privateer for the English crown. When they meet with a group of investors to repay them for helping finance Robert's sailing career, Kate is dismayed to find that a certain investor has appeared in person to collect his money. John Arlington, the Earl of Wynbrook, had a steamy encounter with Kate the last time she was in England. Now years of hardship and loneliness have taken their toll. Kate is a grim, unhappy woman, dressed in severe black because masquerading as a widow makes it easier to avoid drawing attention to herself. Although Kate and Robert would like to keep to themselves, a series of mishaps soon makes it clear that they're being pursued by an unknown enemy. They're forced to accept the help of the Arlington family, which means Kate and John have to reckon with their past and figure out how to get along. The book is a dramatic tale of debtors prison, kidnapping, gunshot wounds, and runaway maidens. The story is well-paced and absorbing, the characters complicated and likable, and the prose straightforward and clear. While the heroine's transformation in a few short weeks is just a bit too extreme to be believable, the book is well-written and most readers will be entertained.

COPYRIGHT(2016) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

July 1, 2016
Lady Katherine Ashton has never acted like the lady she was born to be. Losing her parents at a young age and being sent to debtor's prison have caused her to despise society and London. Forced to come to town for business, she reluctantly returns with her brother, Lord Robert Darrington. From the moment they set foot in London, it is one disaster after another, beginning with Lady Kate seeing John Arlington, Earl of Wynbrook, the only man she has ever kissed. Soon Kate and John are embroiled in an epic chase as they try to find her kidnapped brother and solve the mystery surrounding her father's death. Kate is staunchly against marriage, but the wickedly charming and equally frustrating earl may just change her mind. Forester (Wedding in Springtime, 2013) combines romantic tension with over-the-top adventures in this witty read for historical-romance fans who like a touch of mystery. A cast of engaging secondary characters will have readers eagerly waiting for the next book in Forester's new Regency romance series, the Daring Marriages.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)