Shadow Mountain

Review: The Slow March of Light by Heather B. Moore

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It’s been so long since I’ve read a book that stressed me out this much, at the same time tugging at my heartstrings. Reading a book based on real people and real events has a way of doing that.


This book was a story of survival and friendship. I’m glad I didn’t Google Bob Inama before I read this. I probably would’ve been crying the entire time. Between the beatings he received in the jail, and not knowing if today is your last day on this world, I’m surprised I made it through. He is definitely one of the strongest people I’ve ever read about.


I know Luisa Voight wasn’t a real person, but based on real people almost hits harder. There were people who cared so much that they’d risk their own lives in order to smuggle others out. Those were true heroes.


It was a long and brutal ordeal but Bob held tight to his faith, when all other things let him down, and somehow got through this and found his way home.


From the moment I started this book I couldn’t put it down. I was riveted by the landscape and the realness of the story. I mean, it WAS real, but you know what I mean. And I pretty much read the last few chapters with tears in my eyes. These are the type of books I crave. I’m so happy I took a chance on this.

-Melpomene

Grab a copy here: https://amzn.to/3tjJMoM

Review: A Captain for Caroline Gray by Julie Wright

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Caroline has had three very unsuccessful seasons and is left with no choice but to sail to India in hopes that she’ll snag a husband there. She doesn’t want this but being a woman in those times often had them doing things they didn’t want.


Thomas has been saving for his own fleet and in doing so he makes this three month trip to India every year. He sees all type of women who hope to find a better life and it makes him sad to think that this is a last resort for many of them. India is not a safe place for gentle bred women. But the money is good, so he continues to do so.


This trip is different however. Thomas meets Caroline and his world is flipped. He’s never felt anything for the girls he’s traveled with before but there’s something about her spirit that draws him. He has a plan for his life and she doesn’t fit in it so he tries to stay away and force himself to stick to the job. But life has a funny way of messing things up.


Caroline isn’t your typical genteel woman which is why she’s here and why she has a harder time making friends. So she sticks by the captain. Even if it kills him.


Soon innocent feelings start to blossom and they both know what her plans are once she arrives in India but again, life happens…


This was a sweet romance to watch unfold. I get so bad for those girls who were made to travel in hopes of finding their HEAs. You know that some didn’t work out for the better but thankfully this one did.


~Melpomene

Grab a copy here: https://amzn.to/2Odc97I

Review: Brass Carriages and Glass Hearts by Nancy Campbell Allen

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This is the 4th book in the Proper Romance Steampunk series. While it’s technically an interconnected standalone, I highly recommend you read the others first to get the full effect. Plus you’ll get to meet some of the current characters.

Emme is all about full rights for everyone, including shifters. Unfortunately there are those who disagree and have made their feelings known, in the way of a death threat. So Inspector Oliver Reed is charged with being her bodyguard. After dealing with the aftermath of her many protests, he is less than thrilled with being forced to be around her even more.

Watching these two together was so fun. They circled around each other for a while. It was bit like enemies to lovers, which is my favorite sub genre of romance. They clearly didn’t feel good and happy thoughts in the beginning. But the more they’re put together the more they come to the realization that they care for each other.

Plenty of butterflies in the belly moments sprinkled with a few heart stopping ones makes this the perfect sweet romance. I really hope we got more from this world!

~Melpomene

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Review: The Lady and the Highwayman by Sarah M. Eden

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As a headmistress of an all girls school, Elizabeth Black wrote in her spare time. She’s know for her “silver fork” novels. And being a woman, this was acceptable. But what they didn’t know was that she also wrote “penny dreadfuls” under the name of Mr. King. If people knew she wrote those, her school would be ruined and so would she. So she kept it secret and used all the funds to help out her school.

Now the men who normally write those were part of a secret society who used their wages to help those in need. So when Mr. King starts to worm his way into their earnings, they take it upon themselves to discover who it is. They can’t risk not having the funds when they need to plan rescues and such. So their leader, Fletcher Walker asks Elizabeth for help. As a fellow author he hopes that she’ll know things he doesn’t.

I enjoyed watching these two. They both were doing things for the right reasons, but neither one could let their secrets be known. And while working together they grew closer. Amid all the mysteries and suspense, romance was blooming. And it was sweet.

This is another Proper Romance that I adore. I can’t get enough of these. They’re a nice breath of fresh air in the midst of the stress of life.

~Melpomene

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Quick review: Daisies and Devotion by Josi S. Kilpack

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I love this troupe. Friends to lovers have some of the sweetest moments.

In Daises and Devotion, Timothy and Maryann play matchmaker to each other. Maryann wants to find someone who wants her, not her money. And since Timothy’s uncle surprised him with an inheritance, he is now able to search for the “perfect” woman, not just a wealthy woman.

As their searches go on, Maryann gets more and more discouraged. I think part of her always thought that Timothy didn’t look at her for her money, so therefore he would be a good match for her. As he continues with his list, her feelings about herself grow more and more self conscience. But she won’t say anything except to be his loyal friend and confidant.

These two were so sweet in their own heads. They wanted to want someone else but hey kept thinking back on each other. Maryann didn’t fit Timothy’s list at all, but then why couldn’t he stop thinking about her? And why couldn’t Maryann be happy with any of the men that wanted to court her? Why was she always watching Timothy?

This is another Proper Romance that’s the second in a series, but it can totally be a standalone. In fact, we get a glimpse of what I’m hoping is the next story. I’m keeping my eyes opened for that one.

~Melpomene

Dive into this sweet series.

Review: A Song for the Stars by Ilima Todd

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“But she is in the stars I try to read. She’s in the wind of our sails and in the water that surrounds us. I’ve discovered the problem with learning to observe everything in nature—it means I am aware of her, always, because she is in all of it.”

There’s something about a story that says “Inspired by a true story” that makes my heart clench. While I was reading A Song for the Stars I could feel it happening quite often. Imagine living in the Hawaiian Islands in 1779. Your world is small. You only know what’s on your island. When new people come bringing their traditions and unfamiliar wares, your world gets even smaller.

Maile and John meet under very heartbreaking circumstances. She is told to train him in their ways, so he can navigate and find his way home. But the more time they spend together learning and sharing, the more time their hearts soften to each other.

I loved watching them interact. She was so angry and devastated in the beginning, my heart broke for her. She starts out leery of him but, then John’s openness and eagerness to learn about her makes her question what she originally thought. Soon she realizes that her heart may find healing after all.

This story was beautifully written I could see and feel the world around me. And knowing that these are the author’s ancestors, makes this story all the more real.

Melpomene

Buy A Song for the Stars https://amzn.to/2UutgTK

Review: Healing Hearts by Sarah M. Eden

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What a wild and intense story! I mean seriously. This poor girl jumps off a stagecoach and is immediately swept up and taken to her wedding, but she had no idea! She thought she was coming to Savage Wells to be a nurse, not a wife. Talk about miscommunication.

Gideon is plain tuckered out. He’s the only doctor for Savage Wells and all the towns around it. He has no one to help him so that’s why he requested a mail ordered bride, who is also a nurse. But somehow wires were crossed and only the nurse was delivered.

Miriam is hiding a secret. One that I never even thought of! But it’s not a surprise how people treated others back in those days. I loved her. She was so strong, even in the face of everything she’s had to endure. So when she’s allowed to stay on as a nurse instead of a wife, she thinks things are starting to look up. But when her secret is discovered, she must face her greatest fear head on. But luckily she’s not alone anymore.

As I’ve said numerous times before, I love these Proper Romances. They’re super sweet and innocent and they make the story the most important part, not the romance. That being said, I adored watching these two dance around each other. Shyness turned to jokes, which turned to soft touches and then BAM. A perfect sweet romance. On a side note, I am hoping for a certain US Marshal to get his own story. There just HAS to be a perfect girl for him!

~Melpomene

Buy Healing Hearts https://amzn.to/2sAUl8b

Review: Promises and Primroses by Josi S. Kilpack

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Another Proper Romance to sink your teeth into. I can’t get enough of these. This is the first in the Mayfield Family series. What a way to start. The moment I opened the book, I couldn’t put it down. I was instantly sucked in.

Elliot doesn’t like the direction his family is headed. So he comes up with the idea of a marriage campaign to bring them out of the scandals and to erase the many mistakes they are making. He remembers making the worst mistake of his life and he doesn’t want his nieces and nephews to suffer as he did. He wants them happy and respectable. He’s he’s going to start with his eldest nephew, Peter.

Peter is widower and a father of two young girls. He’s looking for a governess, not a wife. No matter what his uncle is hoping for, her is just happy being a father and a dog breeder. Yes, this book has puppies. YAY! When all his options are taken away, he is stuck with a young lady who, frankly, is too pretty to be a governess. But the crazy thing is, she’s perfect. Julia is really good with his daughters, and they love her and are learning from her. Plus she has the added bonus of being good with dogs, which definitely comes in handy on more than one occasion.

Now everything may look perfect, but when Julia’s mom, Amelia, discovers that her daughter is now a governess in the household of someone related to the man who broke her heart, she is determined to get her away. She doesn’t want what happened to her to happen to Julia.

Not that I condone Amelia’s actions, but I understand why she responded the way she did. She has lived a happy life, even after her husband died, but she’ll never forget the heartache Elliot caused. I feel as their story was a nice little bonus. Two stories for the price of one. It was sweet and sad, but I loved it.

But my favorite was watching Peter slowly come to the realization that he doesn’t need to be alone. He may have loved his wife very much, but that doesn’t mean her can’t find love again. Especially one that fits in his household. He was so adamant that he would be content alone, it was fun to see him fall in love.

Now, I don’t know when we’ll get more of the Mayfield Family, but I hope it’s soon. I love series based on big families. And since the marriage campaign is based on love, I know it’s gonna be sweet.

~Melpomene

Buy Promises and Primroses https://amzn.to/2MpWhMF

Review: Kiss of the Spindle by Nancy Campbell Allen

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I adore fairy tale retellings and Kiss of the Spindle fit the bill. This had everything that made me happy. Witches, shifters, curses and swoony men. Can’t go wrong with that.

Isla Cooper has been put under a spell and she must do everything in her power to find the witch that cast it, even if it means blackmailing her way onto an airship. She basically sleeps like the dead every night. She’s running out of time. Soon the curse will be permanent. Her calling as a shifter empath has put her in the sights of a few who would like her to fail in her endeavor. So she must call upon her fellow airship occupants to help her, even though she’s used to doing things alone.

Captain Daniel Pickett was mot amused into being blackmailed. He’s a mission and he doesn’t have time to be messed around with. He has no idea what’s in store for him. Just when he’s content with his life, Isla brings a spark into it and draws him into her. He falls hard. But when he find out what’s happening to her each night, he does everything in his power to help her.

I love the slow burn of this romance. It kept me turning the pages. I was so excited to see where this was headed. I’m glad we got to see Daniel’s story. We met him in the previous story, Beauty and the Clockwork Beast. But this is a standalone, so don’t worry about missing anything.

I’m still fairly new to the world of steampunk. I’ve read less than a handful of them. But I gotta admit, they intrigue me. They’re like historical, and yet not. Kiss was no exception. I just have to reset my mind and jump into a world of gadgets and gizmos. I hope we get more in this series.

~Melpomene
Buy Kiss of the Spindle https://amzn.to/2tt4mUW

Review: Miss Wilton’s Waltz by Josi S. Kilpack

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What an heartbreaking and heart healing story. Once I sat down, I couldn’t stop reading. I needed to know that Lenora ended up happy. When we first met her, in The Vicar’s Daughter, I had hoped we’d see more from her. She deserved an HEA, just like her sister, Cassie.

After stepping aside, so her sister could marry her fiance, Lenora leaves town to make a new life for herself. She decides that teaching music, at an all-girls school, is perfect thing for her. She moves in with an aunt and decides that she will no longer wait for marriage but continue on with her life in the hopes of just being happy. Her heart needs healing and she needs a break from all the stares.

But her quiet life is interrupted by a 12 year old girl with a load of attitude. It takes all her power and patience to dig deep and find the cause of it all. But as she deals with all that stress, the girl’s uncle somehow weasels his way into her heart. From a late night mishap to informal conversations about his niece’s schooling, Lenora tries to keep her feelings close to her heart, at the risk of being hurt again. But after an innocent kiss, a secret is revealed, and her life is flipped yet again. She is devastated and doesn’t know how she’ll ever face society again. Her heart can’t take any more.

My heart was shattered right along with her. I felt like crying when she did. Whether it was trying to teach an unruly child or trying to hide feelings for an unobtainable man, Lenora’s pain was pouring off the pages of this book. But you gotta stay strong, just as she did. Life isn’t without drama. But if you’re lucky, true love will find a way into your heart.

As I’ve said many times before, I love these Proper Romances. They are a palette cleanser. A nice and refreshing story filled with sweet love and enough heartache to keep you flipping those pages.

~Melpomene

Buy Miss Wilton’s Waltz https://amzn.to/2qxxGIs