Member Reviews
Funny and engaging. The main character is someone you can relate to. An independent women trying to make it on her own after her fathers passing. It is a fun love story adventure with good character development and keeps you engaged.
Okay, Joanna Barker can pretty much writing anything and I'm all in! Jack and Ginny are delightful together—their romance is a blast and the plot keeps moving, making this an engaging book that's hard to put down. I loved it and, of course, I'm already on the lookout for Joanna Barker's next book!
Oh be still my beating heart. How much did I love this book? Joanna Barker, how are you so talented?
A mystery, a concerned household, an adorable best friend, a mean older sister, a determined magistrate (his determination in the face of little to no persuading reminded me of Mr Collins) a charismatic thief-taker, and an extremely stubborn and strong FMC. Plus, banter, flirting, kisses and against all odds romance.
I don't need to say anymore. But I will put the link in my stories so you can all experience this joy as soon as it releases. You're welcome.
Thank you @netgalley and @shadowmountainpub for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
What an incredible book. I loved the storytelling from the main heroine POV but also really loved both main characters, as their banter was so much fun, and the more deeper into the plot, the more I actually fell in love with them.
After her father's death, Genevieve Wild was left with only half sister, who hasn't liked her, an estate, that had to be taken care of and precious pocket watch, that reminded her of her father. But when the most precious thing to her heart goes missing and due to incapability of the authorities Ginny hires an independent, yet handsome and flirtatious investigator Jack Travis. She suddenly learns about more accidents that has happend of lately on her property and probably weren't accidents at all but planned attacks.
When Jack promises to keep her save, although she doesn't always agree with his methods, she unexpectedly feels alive in his presence.
From avoiding of his annoying person to finding herself more and more in his company and slowly falling in love.
Peeps I really enjoyed this incredibly well told tale and can only recommend to everyone who loves strong characters.
Wonderful regency romance, this is a romance definitely worth reading. Great banter and chemistry between Jack and Ginny and adored the happy ending.
Oohh my. It's been a minute since I've read anything by Joanna Barker. I've absolutely loved everything of hers that I've read so far, so I was really excited to get my hands on her newest novel, A Heart Worth Stealing. Thank you @netgalley and @shadowmountainpub for this early e-copy!
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🌼 I have to say, it felt really good to start and finish a book in under two weeks. I couldn't put this down the last couple days, it was just SO good ❤️
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🌼 This has incredible character development, chemistry that jumps off the page, hilarious banter, and oohhh is it swoony!!! It also had a mystery that I was not able to figure out, so that kept me really engaged.
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🌼 If you're a regency romance fan, this is an absolute MUST READ. It'll surely be a favorite read of 2023 for me, it was just perfect. Her books are always clean, I have no content warnings!
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🌼 Be sure to add this to your tbr, it will be published in May!
Ginny Wilde hires a “special investigator” when her estate has a break in and a special item is stolen. Can Ginny & Jack solve the mystery before someone
gets hurt?
A fun whodunit with some pretty dreamy kissing scenes set in my favorite historical time period by one of my all time favorite regency romance authors.
Joanna’s writing it always beautiful and I could not get enough of Ginny and Jacks relationship. There were sparks flying from their very first encounter and I was here for it.
Loved, loved, loved it!
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for sending me a copy. All opinions expressed are my own.
I loved this book! It was funny and different. A great regency read that wasn’t sappy. It kept me guessing the whole time.
It was wrapped up in a satisfying and believable way. It didn’t have wished-washy characters that didn’t know what they wanted and it had an amazing kissing scene (in a tree).
This is one you don’t want to miss!
I really enjoyed this story, Ginny is such strong main character. She is taking care of her families estate following her fathers death. Things aren't going well there are a lot of accidents going on at her estates and missing items. She employs Jack to help her with the investigation. Cute Ginny just can't stand back and watch.
The mystery in the story really help to add to the development of characters. I loved the way this ended.
Genevieve Wilde a magistrate’s daughter and independent heiress is determined to meet life’s challenges on her terms, so when she finds her father’s pocket watch missing, she is not impressed by the local authorities who don’t take her seriously, so she takes matters into her own hands and she hires thief-taker, Jack Travers.
Jack Travers is a flirt, handsome and unpredictable, and Ginny doesn’t know if she made a mistake but as time passes, she finds out it isn’t just her father’s missing pocket watch that something is afoot. But Jack also had a depth to him, a former Bow Street runner, there’s a history that he isn’t willing to disclose at first. His family was delightful and I wished we had gotten more of them.
This was definitely a fun read, I found myself smiling at the smart dialogue between Ginny and Jack and all the characters.
My gratitude to Netgalley and Shadow Mountain. All opinions expressed are mine.
I'm a big Joanna Barker fan and I think this book might be my new favorite! The mystery aspect of the plot was so well done. It kept me on the edge of my seat. The chemistry and romance between Jack and Ginny was so sweet and natural. With the perfect mix of humor, suspense, and swoon-worthy kisses, this book was absolutely fabulous!
Oh my! This book! I have never read a Joanna Barker book I didn't love and this one was just as great! Ginny is dealing with trying to keep her father's estate together while a series of mishaps occur. She hires Jack to help find her missing item and they both dive deep into the secrets following her.
The story kept me guessing and trying to figure out the mystery the whole book. The story was surprising yet wasn't. At first I thought through who the likely culprit was, then was unsure as things didn't seem to be as I thought. Then the last part came with a shocking revelation. I loved her subtle hints and clues that were not at all obvious, though looking back at the story I can totally see where she was heading.
And Jack! He is a hero that you can't help but love. His mannerisms and dialogue were spot on! And I loved the dynamic between the two. And the tree, lol! As implausible as that was I still loved it.
This book has back and forth POV between the two leads. I love Joanna's writing style and how easily her words flow. There is the PERFECT amount of inner thoughts and spoken dialogue. Content is clean a few kisses etc. I would say age 15+ And I hope we will see future books about other characters in the future. I absolutely loved this book and will be purchasing it when it is released. I highly recommend if you love sweet romances with mystery.
I received a copy from the publisher for my honest opinion.
Witty comments, enjoyable banter, funny scenes, good sarcasm, honest characters, vivid descriptions. These are all the things I thought while reading A Heart worth Stealing by Joanna Barker. This is the first book of hers I have read, and I look forward to reading more! I enjoyed this novel, the pace was good, it kept my interest, the ending had a few turns I wasn’t expecting, and I would recommend this without hesitation to anyone who might enjoy regency romance. The mystery mixed with romance was well done. I also enjoyed the first-person point of view and got a good sense of why the main character, Genevieve, changed throughout the novel. Grab yourself a copy of this book and enjoy!
*I received an advanced copy of this book for my honest review.
A woman is trying to make it as lady of the manor after her father passes, but is plagued by incidents, so she hires a man to investigate the incidents.
This story hit every comfort reading box, and was very enjoyable for a Sunday afternoon! A bit of mystery and romance to keep things interesting. Ginny hires Jack to help find a missing family heirloom but problems keep growing until Ginny is in need of protection from nefarious intentions.
The two main characters were compelling and actually written with real flaws and personalities, hey look at that! Jack was a bit of a flirt but it worked well with Ginny’s more cold exterior (don’t worry, she’s all softness hidden inside). Ginny’s character was refreshing in that she was neither complacent but not overly headstrong. I liked that she had the sense to ask for help when she really needed it, instead of jumping into everything carelessly.
I felt like the book was rather slow with things actually happening, that is, the bit of mystery in the plot. But they growth of their relationship kept it interesting and I never really got bored. Very enjoyable!
When I saw Joanna Barker had a new book, then read the description I HAD to read it! And I’m so glad I did. This book was a delight! Romance, chemistry, banter, mystery… such fun! I absolutely loved it from beginning to end. The characters and dialogue were well-written and the story was beyond enjoyable. If you enjoy regency romance with just enough mystery to add a fun layer that adds to—not takes away from—the romance, do not miss this book!
One word… Jack.
Jack was a flirt and a tease which I loved! He also knew when to be serious. I think one of the most endearing things about him was he was not perfect. He made some pretty big mistakes but he apologized then tried to do better. Jack made this book special.
In addition to Jack, this story had a mystery. The who and the why of the mystery were pretty easy to guess, but don’t let that stop you from enjoying the story. There are lots of twists and turns with the mystery.
Additionally, there is a great friendship to enjoy and some family dynamics that added to the story. I would love to read a book about Jack’s sister.
Finally, there is a perfume incident that spoke to my heart. I had a similar thing happen in high school. I’m still sorry for everyone in the car with us.
I loved this book! Although the mystery aspect was predictable, the characters were so perfect together. I loved both Ginny and Jack and their banter was perfect. Joanna Barker is quickly becoming an auto-buy author and I can't wait to see what she writes next.
Any romance with a first impression that involves the heroine wielding an absurd weapon at the hero just has my heart. I don’t make the rules.
This was my first book by this author, and I’m a fan, like, big fan, like “DM barrage the author” big fan. It’s a testament to the clever, excellent writing that I did not mind a single tea biscuit the first person single POV in a historical romance. I was immediately rooting for Ginny, my fellow indoorsy girl.
I’ll just say it, since it’s all you need to know: so much of what I love about Miss Scarlet and the Duke here. An independent heroine struggling to prove herself after her father’s death, a capable, protective investigator, palpable tension and delicious quick-witted banter with both of them just very into the other’s competence, intriguing mystery and peril. Except here we get class difference, and instead of a gruff inspector, we have a roguish, wide-grinned, flirty thief-taker who could charm the lorgnette off a dowager. And once Jack Travers locks eyes on our feisty Genevieve and her weapon of choice, it’s like it’s his new life mission to get a rise out of her, while special investigating and safeguarding her, of course. How we get forced proximity scenarios in the context and societal strictures of historical romance is always interesting to see, and fake idiot cousin is a new one for me. It was just so fun the whole way through, and so swoony and lovely. Did I say I’m a fan?
So thankful to the generous souls at Shadown Mountain Publishing and Netgalley for blessing me with an ARC.
Genevieve Wild finds herself in a predicament when her father's watch goes missing. When the authorities don't take her seriously, she is forced to hire a thief-taker. Little does she know how much she'd fall for the handsome and charming Mr. Travers.
Thank you to Netgalley and publisher for this opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book. I first discovered this author with her Game of Hearts book and fell in love with her writing. I was excited to read this book as well.
Unfortunately, I felt like the first 50% of the book dragged. I found myself skimming until it picked up halfway through.
Til that point, I was confused why Genevieve was so angry and bothered by Jack all the time. She had hired him to do a job and criticized him the whole way or got in his way.
Jack came off as superficial but I liked him more by the end. I wish I felt better chemistry between the characters but the romance on the page was written well. Their kisses were amazing but also not timed well for their circumstances.
Overall, I still enjoyed the book. Maybe I'm in the minority but I didn't know who the culprit was from the beginning so it was a nice reveal for me. I also enjoyed scenes between Genevieve and her friend and sister. And I also liked the way the book ended.
If you love regency romance, mystery, and no spice in your books, you'll enjoy this.