Today’s Steals and Deals at AAR…..

This is a flat out DIK for us.

 

The Pygmalion myth gave George Bernard Shaw the idea for his play Pygmalion which was turned into the wonderful musical My Fair Lady. Judith Ivory takes this story and gives it a twist, (and a lot more romance than grumpy old GBS did). Edwina Bollash, linguistics expert and tutor of gauche young ladies in the social graces and proper speech is to take Mick Tremore, a Cornish/Cockney ratcatcher and pass him off as a gentleman.

Winnie is the daughter of the Marquess of Sissingley, an expert linguist and heir to the Dukedom of Arles. Her mother deserted the family and Winnie was loved, but ignored by her father. She lived a lonely life, raised by a series of governesses and has had almost no fun in her life. When Winnie’s father and grandfather both died unexpectedly, her cousin the new Duke would have nothing to do with her, so she has made her way in life by her own intelligence and hard work. Winnie is not a beauty. She is six feet tall, with golden red hair and freckles. She has small breasts and large hips, but she has beautiful long legs. All these disparate physical features combine to make a striking woman who is very attractive to her pupil Mick Tremore.

As for Mick – such an adorable man! He grew up in Cornwall the oldest child of a fey mother and an absent father. Since he was very young, he has been the support of his 13 siblings whom he loves very much. His childhood may have been poor, but it was filled with love and Mick is one of the most naturally happy men I have ever met. Mick embraces life and all it throws his way. “Life be rich. Why don’t you bite yourself off a piece”? is Mick’s philosophy. Winnie is simply blown over by him. He is tall and handsome and loves to laugh and dance and throws himself into everything he does, whether work or play, with total joy. Mick proves himself to be smart as a whip, easily able to mimic proper speech and behavior, and takes on the role of gentleman with total ease and assurance.

 

It’s at Amazon today for 1.99 here.


This is a 4.3 starred read at Amazon. (Our guest reviewer didn’t like it, however.)

 

On the verge of realizing her dream of being a doctor, Preeti Patel should be ecstatic. But between the stress of her residency, trying to find a job, and managing her traditional, no-boundaries family, Preeti’s anxiety is through the roof. Relationships and love aren’t even an option. Fortunately, Preeti’s finally found a new place to stay . . . only to discover that her new roommate is her ex.

Preeti never quite got over Daniel Thompson. Super-hot, plenty of swagger, amazing cook—the guy is practically perfect. And if it weren’t for their families, there might have been a happily ever after. But it’s hard to keep her sanity and libido in check when the man of her dreams is sleeping mere feet away. Can Preeti and Daniel find a way to stand up and fight for each other one last time . . . before they lose their second chance?

 

It’s at Amazon for 2.99 here.


Caz gave this HR a B+.

 

Liberty Lovejoy and her siblings – her twin brother, Gideon and their sisters Hope and Verity – are in London for the Season following Gideon’s unexpected ascension to the title of Earl of Wendover.  Liberty has no plans to attract a suitor; she was in love with her fiancé, who died of cholera some five years earlier and she has no wish to replace him, but she has hopes that her sisters will find good matches.  Her brother, however, is giving her cause for concern, having got himself in with an undesirable set of young bucks who are clearly leading him astray, and having been unable to make Gideon see the error of his ways, she decides to take another tack.  She’s led to believe that the man responsible for her brother’s sudden waywardness is Lord Alexander Beauchamp, younger son of the Duke of Cheriton, so she decides to speak to the duke, make him aware of her concerns and ask him to rein Alex in.  When she arrives at the duke’s London residence however, she encounters Lord Alexander himself on the doorstep and tells him immediately what has brought her to Beauchamp House – only to discover that she’s not talking to Lord Alexander at all, but to his older brother Dominic, Marquess of Avon, who is widely known to be the most correct and upstanding gentleman in the entire ton.  Oops.  Liberty is thrown even further onto the back foot by the fact that this rather disdainful man has the face of a Greek God [and] the body of a warrior – but her irritation swiftly returns when the marquess tells her that her brother is undoubtedly following in the footsteps of many a young gentleman when faced with the delights London has to offer, and suggests that she is being rather too over-protective.  This, of course, doesn’t go down very well, but Liberty is somewhat appeased when Avon says he’ll have a word with his brother.

Readers of Ms. Preston’s Beauchamp Betrothals series will no doubt recall Dominic, Leo’s eldest son and heir as being somewhat aloof and rather serious, intent on doing his duty and the right thing at all costs.  Still intent on doing his duty, he has decided that it’s time he got married and secured the succession and is determined to choose a bride this Season, a young woman of good breeding, perfect behaviour and excellent bloodlines.

 

It’s at Amazon for 1.99 here.


This Medieval is a DIK for us. 

 

A book is a keeper when you know what’s going to happen, and you still feel as if you’ve taken an emotional voyage when you reach the end. A Dove at Midnight gives me that feeling every time, even ten years after it was first published.

The dove of the title is Lady Joanna Preston, a young, beautiful, and maligned maiden who for the past five years has lived a content if not happy life at a convent following the suicide of her abused mother. Joanna is pleased to be at the convent, not because she is particularly suited to life as a bride of Christ, but because it enables her to stay far from the father she blames for her mother’s death. The convent also keeps her safe from all other men. The actions of her cold and abusive father have scarred her ability to view men without distrust.

Joanna is a tempestuous heroine, but she walks the line of bravado and defiance without crossing over into the TSTL territory where many heroines of early medieval novels lived. Joanna is a product of her time – innocent but without illusions and beautiful while remaining unaware of her own beauty and self-worth. Unwanted by her family, resigned to her dull lot in life because she doesn’t know it’s possible to even wish for more, she’s a healthy young woman struggling to repress her natural inclinations because that’s what she’s been told to do. Welcome to a young noblewoman’s life in Medieval England.

Enter Sir Rylan Kempe, Lord of Blaecston, a powerful Yorkshire baron with an axe to grind against King John, and alliances he needs to solidify through marriage agreements. When Joanna’s father and his heir fall to a fatal sickness, Rylan seizes what he views as an opportunity to further his cause. Joanna’s newfound status as the heiress to Oxwich Castle (a neighboring castle to Blaecston) makes her a valuable prize, and Rylan is determined to marry her off to one of his allies with all haste, ensuring that King John cannot seize Oxwich and thus occupy a castle so near Rylan’s own power base.

These two meet for the first time at the convent where Rylan goes to tell Joanna of her family’s fate and informs her that she will leave with him for Oxwich. They strike sparks off each other immediately, not the least of which because Joanna flatly refuses to leave the convent, especially not for the hated Oxwich, her childhood home full of bad memories. Rylan is not about to take no for an answer, and he abducts her from the convent. What follows are a series of misadventures, escape attempts, and stirring exchanges (both verbal and physical) between two smart and determined characters at odds with each other.

 

It’s at Amazon for 1.99 here.


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