Return of the Knight
by Elizabeth Johns
Book #8

This is the first book in this series that I read. It is book #, and the 1st I've read from the author. It was a great book, slow at times and hard to get into, but the matched well and their story was cute tho it was almost over by the time they gave into the idea. Clean, a bit of a twist. I will try to read other work from this author.

A delightful romantic, but clean, read. Every character was built to perfection and the family troubles kept you guessing at how things would end up. I loved every minute of this one!

Rose Sutton is awaiting something that is not coming. Gabriel Lloyd is wanting to change her outlook.
I found this book original and wonderfully written. I had forgotten about this series until the middle to the end where she reminds us of other characters. So having said that you don't need to read other books in this series to know whats going on.
I recieved a free copy so that I might tell you what I honestly think. Hope you enjoyed my review. Now go enjoy the book.

This is the eight book of the series and although I haven't read series from the beginning, I had no trouble reading this as a standalone. Gabriel Lloyd, Earl of Mottram, has returned home after years of being away. He now needs to fulfill his duties to marry and provide an heir. He is a shy man and an introvert, and he was nervous to return home because of the scandal his father had been caught up in. Gabriel has spent these past years in the army as a spy for the Crown, trying to redeem his family name. Rose was orphaned as a child and has been living with her uncle and helping him take care of her cousins as well as giving her time in the community.
Gabriel has no idea how to court a lady, but when he meets Rose, he is immediately taken with her. But Rose sees him only to be cold and arrogant, and does not care to spend time with him. Because of his introvert nature, Gabriel is uncomfortable in most situations and is often misunderstood. But if he wants to win over Rose and make her his wife, he must rally all his courage and follow his heart. It also doesn't hurt when he gets some intervention from those who care for him and Rose.
This was a well-written, slow burn romance, and I enjoyed seeing Gabriel and Rose grow closer as they began to understand each other more. The characters were well-crafted and I immediately fell in love with them. A tender, warm, and sweet romance between two people who were very well suited for each other.
I received a complimentary copy from Dragonblade Publishing and Netgalley and this is my honest and voluntary review.

Rose and the Earl

Gabriel returns home after years at war, ready to find a wife. The minute he sees Rose, he knows she is the one. She does not care for him. Can he change her mind? Soon, Rose will learn a secret that will change her life. She goes to London, and while there, she gets to know Gabriel, a man on a mission to help soldiers returned from the war with nowhere to turn. In London, she also encounters a villain that makes her life difficult. Gabriel finds himself protecting her from this man. If you like Regency romance, you might enjoy this entertaining story.

4 1/2*STARS*
Major Gabriel Lloyd has returned to Edwinstowe after ten years as a spy for the Crown to take his place as the Earl of Mottram. He's not sure of his reception since his father was labeled a thief of honor and decency.
Rose Sutton is twenty-four and lives with her family in Edwinstowe. Gabriel shows up at the assembly, but only dances with Rose, then leaves. Rose would make a perfect wife, but Gabriel has no idea how to court the lady. A trip to London for the season, brings good news for Rose, but worries for Gabriel. He has his hands full to win Rose and keep his cousin in line. Ladies should always take a second look at the quiet ones!
Clean romance.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book.

❤️❤️❤️❤️
💋💋

Always a very readable author, this series is a great way to pass time .
I enjoyed it thoroughly, wonderful characters and great stories from Elizabeth, that always hold my attention and inspire me to read more from this genre.
I received an Arc copy of this book and chose to post this review

Gabriel Lloyd ,Earl of Mottram spent his years in the Army among secrets and shadows. Scandal and treachery are attached to his family name. Now it's time to come out of the shadows and start his own family .

Miss Rose Sutton was taken in by her aunt and uncle as a child and brought up as their own. A happy and full life in the countryside, until a secret is revealed.

Fabulous characters make this a very entertaining read. It's part of a series where you will have met some of the characters before, but each one can be read on it's own.

Good fun.

A classy historical romance with a charm that tunnels under your skin pressuring the reader to root for the love interests to work out. A social country lady meets a reserved grumpy Earl. It has meet-cute moments, vulnerability, and scandal.

Elizabeth Johns created a clean romance with the feel of Pride and Prejudice but with the perspective of Mr. Darcy. Everything also is a little bit brighter in the world with happy endings. Highly recommend to any age group.

I received this ARC through NetGalley for an honest review.

Return of the Knight by Elizabeth Johns - could we call him a nerd?

Gabriel returns from the Napoleonic war with Napoleon removed to St Helena. His father died and he is now the earl. During the war he worked with men and did a lot of spying. But he is not good at social events and entertaining the ton. A bit of a shy nerd. So how to find a woman to marry and settle down with. In his first week back but still incognito he barges into the vicar's niece he knew in the past. She would do.

In the story we see two people who have to make arrangements for their future slowly becoming friends.

It is quite a nice story that has a refreshing anti-hero as a hero.

There is one BUT.... in the beginning it is often mentioned that he would rather face a column of French soldiers than a room full of debutantes. That is UTTERLY silly to write. No one would prefer mortal peril. It would have been easy to say something as "send to join the British army overseas" or something.

What makes me still give it 4 stars out of 5 is the sympathetic and realistic person Gabriel is.

Return of the Knight is a well-written, warmhearted, and tender romance, which kept me glued to my Kindle right to the closing chapter. Both the Earl of Mottram and Miss Rose Sutton live under a cloud of disgrace and whilst Gabriel tried to redeem his family name by carrying out the less savory missions that helped to overcome the French in the war against Napoleon, Rose cared for and nurtured her cousins and less fortunate members of her community. The initial meeting between the main characters fizzled out like a damp squib and the second led to something of a disaster, but the man who was willing to stare death in the face discovers the following his heart takes all his courage. When Rose's circumstances take an abrupt turn, her only recourse is to accept the invitation extended to her and go to London to finally take part in a season, where even more surprises awaited her. With the intervention of those that cared most for them, Gabriel and Rose manage to overcome their misgivings, even though an unscrupulous character did try and throw a spanner in the works. The novel is part of a series but is nevertheless a standalone and comes to a delightful conclusion. I received a copy of the novel as a gift through Dragonblade Publishing and NetGalley and this is my honest and voluntary review.

Orphaned as a child and raised by her uncle, Rose Sutton has spent the last five years helping him with her cousins and the parish while eagerly awaiting her sweetheart’s return from the army. However, when it becomes clear her beau is not coming back, and her uncle decides to marry the meddlesome village busybody, Rose is desperate to leave. Gabriel Lloyd, Earl Mottram, is more suited to shadows and secrecy than glittering ball rooms, but after a decade in the army he steels himself to return to England to fulfill his duties. The need to provide an heir is increasingly pressing since his cousin is a rake and a blackguard. On his first day in Nottinghamshire, Gabriel sees Rose Sutton and knows she is the one for him.
The eighth book in the series & it’s easily read on its own. A well written slow burn romance, which was well paced & had strong relatable characters. I really liked both Gabe & Rose, he outwardly seems unapproachable & quiet but as Rose finds out appearances can be deceptive. I loved their journey to a HEA with no misunderstandings but two people getting to know each other & fall in love. There was some drama concerning Gabe’s heir. I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall when Gabe told Rose’s uncle & his new wife that he wished to marry Rose.
My review is for a special copy I voluntarily read

Return of the Knight by Elizabeth Johns is a very low-key romance, which is not to say it was not a good read. Gabriel Lloyd, Earl of Mottram has returned to Arden Hall after ten long years away. He was a shy man and nervous for the reaction to his return. His father had been embroiled in a scandal and he had helped bring it to light. He had learned to be secretive and it was doing him no good now. He had been lurking in the village for several days but the time had come for him to return home and become the man he was destined to be. On his way he saw the most beautiful young woman he had even seen, Rose, and moments later heard a scream. It turned out to be a young boy, her brother, who had fallen out of a tree and dislocated his shoulder, something he could remedy. He forced himself to attend the assembly the next evening, saw her again, danced with her, and then, uncomfortable with the crowd, strode out of the hall, embarrassing her. The next day he had several callers, including her father, who was the local vicar. He was invited to dinner. A family dinner, better, but still difficult. He had already decided he wanted her as his wife, but he was unable to be charming enough to win her.

Gabriel is “blessed” with an affliction that is part and parcel to many people: he is an introvert. Charming when he is comfortable, but he is so seldom comfortable. How is he to convince her when she can barely tolerate him? Plus, he wants her to choose him, not be stuck with him. He doesn’t want a marriage of convenience. Fortunately, he has plenty of help, including the poor people on his estate, with her soft heart being pierced as he figures out ways to help them. Rose is as beautiful and kind as she can be. She is the niece of the vicar, not his daughter, and that causes some heartache as the truth becomes apparent. It is a nice, quiet romance. No kidnappings, unruly trysts in gardens during a ball, or untoward behavior on the part of any principal characters. I enjoyed it very much.

I was invited to read a free e-ARC of Return of the Knight by Dragonblade, through Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are mine. #Netgalley #Dragonblade #ElizabethJohns #ReturnOfTheKnight

This was the first book in the series that I read but I don't think that was a problem. I'm guessing some of the couples we meet had stories in other books, but I don't feel like I had to have read those books in order to following what was occurring in this book (although now I do want to go back and find some of those books). I liked Gabriel and Rose right away and enjoyed watching their relationship evolve as the story went on. I also loved that he wasn't pushy in trying to gain her attention - if anything, he was almost too understated in his feelings. I also really liked that this was just a sweet romance; no big drama, no misunderstandings. There a little bit of drama involving Bertie, but that never took over the story too much. Gabe's proposal/expression of love was so sweet and it was good to have Rose finally get to know what we as readers had known all along. Much like Rose, I would have liked to have been there when her new stepmother found out she was engaged to Gabe. I liked the way Rose's relationship with her grandparents was handled. It happened quickly, but it wasn't as though Rose just immediately forgave them for the past.

A sweet romance between a retried reclusive soldier and a woman who has lived in a small village without a season.
Gabriel comes home to his estate but has little interest in socializing or becoming idle.
Rose’s mother died young and she has cared for her uncle and his children her whole life.
Gabriel knows his duty and determines Rose will be his wife and mother of his heirs but Rose is unaware of his interest with his rough demeanor.
A couple of surprises lends a twist to their relationship but can they overcome these to find common ground?

This was a slow burn which I do enjoy. I like how both characters truly wanted to know more and understand each other without jumping to conclusions about who they thought the other person was supposed to be. Rose & Gabe are a perfect fit. I really liked Gabe as a male character since he wasn’t overly happy and confident with maintaining or initiating conversations which I can relate to. He was more quiet in his approach.

I knew Bertie was going to be trouble from the start so I was not surprised at all with all the things he tried to pull.

Mind you, I haven’t read from this author before or the other previous 7 books on this series but I was able to follow along just fine but I’ll probably go back and read the rest.

Overall good story with enjoyable characters and side characters. A bit predictable and slow but it is what it is.

Thanks to Net-Galley for the e-arc of Return of the Knights.

This story was wonderful. I liked the personality of both characters. Together they make a good couple with an engrossing story. I really understood Gabe because I am also not a smiley, happy social person. Rose was a lovely person with a caring heart. Nothing overly dramatic or great action throughout the story, but it was well-written and held my attention. There is only a subtle bit of passion and love, but it is there and it works well with the characters and story.
Definitely a book and series I will read again.
I received this book from NetGalley and Dragonblade Publishing for an honest review.

What a swoon-worthy tale of a battle weary, shy Earl seeing the lady of his dreams and doin all he can to make her his, but allowing her to make her own choice. Rose is a simple, country girl whose ancestors was inadvertently kept from her. It was so adorable to see how the two of them circled each other, one thinking there is no interest, the other thinking, not good enough. This is a clean, sweet story, full of twists and turns, angst and love. The villain is easy to spot, but the set down is a surprise. Loved this story, especially “Grandfather”! Would have loved to have seen Mrs. Winton’s face when Rose came home with Gab!

I received this ARC copy for free and these are my own opinions

I was hooked from the very beginning with the well written and well planned plot and the characters were written with such detail that I couldn't wait to read the next page!.