Rescued by the Wolf

In this delightful fairy tale retelling, Rose was rescued by a man they called the Wolf. He was no beast, for he was there for those in need. It turned out that Rose was his grandfather's neighbor, and his grandfather was in dire need of help. Could Rose help Ruadh to rescue his grandfather from a scheming wife? It would be a dangerous endeavor. Ruadh’s grandfather was surrounded by an evil woman and her minions who were willing to resort to treachery to accomplish their goals. I loved this story and would recommend it to those who like twisted fairy tale retellings and Regency romances with suspense.

Ruadh Douglas, Major Douglas, the new Viscount Merrick and Master of Glencowan, roams the dark streets of London at night as the Wolf of Whitecross. Saving Rose and her companions one night from harm, Ruadh pursues the lady as society dictates and falls in love. His promise to his mother to visit his grandfather is blocked by his grandfather's new wife. Fortunately, Rose made friends with his grandfather, who lives next door, and has seen his abuse. With help from Rose and her family, he makes plans to rescue his grandfather kept prisoner in his own home. When Rose inadvertently puts herself in danger, Ruadh will stop at nothing to save her. Short and sweet with a worthy hero. A clean romance with a few kisses.
I voluntarily read and reviewed a copy of this book from NetGalley.

An engaging, amusing and different take on the nuances of the ton in regency times. Enjoyable at every chapter, we follow clever FMC as she navigates the perils of the female in challenging times. Thoroughly enjoyable at every chapter.

The first time they met, he rescued her from a gang of thugs. The next time was in her brother’s parlor. Rosalind Ransome, while accepted by her family, feels out of place in society. She applies her energy and time to visiting the hospital caring for returning soldiers. Major Ruadh Douglas’s mind is haunted by the misery he saw on the battlefields. He spends his time rescuing those in danger in the streets of the seedy side of London as the mysterious vigilante the Wolf. Another fairy tale come to the Regency, this one pulls you straight into the story. There are secrets, betrayal, kidnapping, and a grandfather to be rescued. Rose and Ruadh are wonderful characters. Both are intelligent, strong, and caring. The chemistry between them sizzles. Their journey to happily ever after is exciting and entertaining.
I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley and voluntarily reviewed it.

Good quick telling of Robin Hood fairy tale. This is set in nice clean very short Recency Era story. I enjoyed reading this retelling of a very old and enjoyable fairy tale. Read this.

It's not just the Rookeries where danger hides in this historical romance.
Our hero returned from War feeling unfit for polite company. He has found a way to release his frustration. Our heroine believes she is unlikely to marry, and finds helping at a hospital to be rewarding.
A short and sweet tale with lovely characters.
Good fun.

Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this enovella and this is my freely given opinion.

This continues on the regency historical romance with a fairy tale twist theme, and is loosely based on Little Red Riding Hood. The twist also is that the big bad wolf is bad for the bad guys and is more a hero in disguise.

Ruadh Douglas is a Scottish soldier on extended leave, putting off his return home because he has some demons he is unable to exorcise except through hunting and fighting off the criminal low lifes in the rookeries of London. During one of his masked vigilante hunts at night, he comes across a broken down carriage of a pair of women of the peerage and their servants, targeted by a local gang. He comes to their rescue, but one of them, Lady Rosalind Ransome, makes an impression on him.

Rose is not comfortable being presented to Society, considering the scandal simmering just at the surface about her and her sister's origins (brought to light in book 1). She is much more comfortable in her role of healer and volunteer at a local hospice for soldiers. But they were luckily saved by the Wolf of Whitehall.

Shortly afterwards, she notices a new man showing up at the hospital, Major Douglas, and he intrigues her. Douglas, now revealed to be Lord Merrick, a viscount, then shows up at the Ransome home, seeking information from her and her sister in law on how to set up a similar hospital at his home estate in Scotland. Ruadh finds himself attracted to Rose and starts to court her. But while he is in London, he also has another task on behalf of his mother, who was estranged from her family after daring to run off with his father, who at the time, was an untitled Scotsman, and she, the daughter of an Earl.

Ruadh, Rose, and her family find themselves caught up in a family drama as things are not as they appear at his grandfather's home, and there is a conspiracy to keep Ruadh from revealing a heinous conspiracy, and Rose is endangered when she tries to intervene.

This is more of a novella length story, and revisits many of the characters that have been featured in previous stories. However, this reads out of the timeline. It occurs after Ariel and Peter have wed for a number of years, and Rosalind and Vivienne are grown up enough to be presented (they were young girls when the couple wed), but Pauline, Peter's stepsister, is still living in the Ransome home, so before the events of Book 4.

In general, I enjoyed it, but am feeling the kidnapping trope has been used a bit too frequently in this series now. The darkness in Ruadh, which I presume is a bit of PTSD, and his role of the masked vigilante felt like it could have been explored more fully and was left a bit of a truncated, unresolved storyline for me.

3.5 stars out of 5

I just loved the main characters in this story, Rosalind and Ruadh. Rosalind was such an honest and brave lady. Ruadh was suffering from the effects of his war experience. They meet in a variety of different settings and the more they met, the greater was the attraction to each other. There is also the situation regarding his grandfather. Reading this story was a delightful way to spend an afternoon. I did enjoy meeting up with characters from the other books in the series. There are some dangerous events but a very satisfying ending. I received a copy and have voluntarily reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own. However, I did preorder my own copy.

Although a fairly quick read, this novella kept my attention, as it is fast-paced, suspenseful, and romantic. While Ruadh may have thought his identity was a secret, Rose quickly comes to realize that the Scotsman who is sitting in her brother's parlor is one and the same dark Wolf who swept in to rescue her and her sister from thugs, intent on doing their worst. That he is also the grandson of the dear old man she has been chatting to in the garden next door, makes him even more beguiling, especially when she suspects that there is a plot afoot to hurt the old man. Despite
Ruadh's battle with PTSD as a result of his experiences during the war, he finds that Rose calms him and makes the world a better place. Unfortunately, there are those who would thwart both of them. Nevertheless, this standalone romance comes to a happy conclusion. I received a copy of this book as a gift through Dragonblade Publishing and NetGalley, and this is my honest and voluntary review.

The Wolf And The Misfit

I really enjoyed this quick to read novella. The plot is good, with class difference, age gap and dual identity tropes, emotional depth, some intrigue and suspense. The characters are very likable. Ruadh is the classic broken, protective hero and Rose is warm, compassionate and caring, which I found very admirable.

This book is connected to some of the characters from earlier books in the series, so I recommend reading the books in order.

Major Ruadh "Red" Douglas, a soldier on leave from his deployment in Ireland, is suffering from his traumatic experiences and therefore does not want to visit his family in Scotland. Instead, as the "Wolf of Whitecross", he avenges and helps the weak and helpless in the rookeries of London.
One night, he saves Lady Rosalind Ransome and her sister from an attack by a gang of thugs.

As the illegitimate daughter of the former and sister of the current Earl of Stancroft, Rose is an outsider in polite society, even though her family supports and encourages her. She prefers to cultivate her plants and support the patients at the veterans' hospital in the Rookeries.
When she is attacked on her way home, she is rescued by the notorious "Wolf of Whitecross".

Ruadh is fascinated by Rose and her work and begins to visit the hospital. They both feel drawn to each other from afar. But then Ruadh receives news that changes his life. On the one hand, he learns that his uncle and cousins have died and that he is the new Viscount Merrick and must therefore return to Scotland. On the other hand, his mother asks him to visit his grandfather, with whom he fell out years ago and who has been out of contact with his mother for some time. With the help of Rose, one of his grandfather's neighbours, he finds out that his grandfather's life is in danger. Together, Ruadh and Rose try to save him...

All in all, a lovely addition to the series that I am happy to recommend!

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I have enjoyed this series a lot - the adaptations to the fairy tales are cleverly done (although some stories are easier to match to their fairy tale than others). I didn't realize this was a novella initially and I think in some ways that worked well for it and in others hurt it. Because of the short length of the story there wasn't a ton of time for character development and for fully developing some of the plot points. This was also another book in the series where I could not quite figure out where it existed with regard to the other books. I liked the characters of Rosalind and Ruadh and despite this only being a novella I thought their relationship was actually pretty well paced and didn't feel too rushed. I also really enjoyed the part of the story involving the plot against Ruadh's grandfather - it was a good way to weave the wolf-in-grandmother's bed part of Little Red Riding Hood. The part I didn't think was as well developed was Ruadh being out at night prowling for bad guys. Other than a way to have him first encounter Rosalind it didn't really fit the story or seem necessary.

This is a sweet little nugget, perfect for a quick read. Ruadh and Rosalind are the types of heroes and heroines I love in a historical romance. Ruadh was fierce, protective, and broken. At the very heart of him, however, was a kind and gentle spirit. Rosalind’s spirit showed itself in the way she nurtured her garden as well as the wounded soldiers she cared for. Each of them struggled with pain from the past and neither thought to ever find healing.

This is my first time reading anything by this author. Her talent was displayed in how well developed these characters were along with an engaging storyline. Within an hour’s block of reading time, I laughed, swooned, gasped and cheered. And now I am going to check out her backlist.

What is better than a fairy tale brought to life in Regency times? You are right, when it is a tale by Jude Knight, you become pulled into the story quickly!

Two people, both with their own issues find each other in an unlikely meeting. Ruadh is scarred by war and tries to help others while fighting his demons of remembrance

Rosalind does not find satisfaction in society but in helping others by visiting the hospitals.

When she is attacked, Ruadh comes to her rescue. Can they now rescue each other?

This novella is the seventh entry in a historical romance series set in the 1820s and "inspired" by fairy tales; in this case, the author's note at the end tells me, the inspiration was Little Red Riding Hood. Aside from having a character calling himself The Wolf of Whitecross and wearing a red hood and mask, I do not see a connection between the two.

Beware: PTSD; gender essentialism; age gap; elder abuse; suicide.

This novella is the very definition of telling without showing; not only are we told that Ruadh suffers from PTSD though we are never shown how it actually affects his life, but a large part of the action thread is narrated in the, "and then this happen, and then this other person showed up, and then this other thing happen" style.

Which perhaps is understandable given how much plot and relationships are crammed in just over a hundred pages.

We have Rosalind Ransome volunteering for hospice care duty at a charity hospital for veterans, and the introduction of all her siblings, and their rather entangled family tree; short version: she's an acknowledged yet illegitimate member of an earl's family. The ton gossip about her and cut her when they can, despite her family's support, and she's resigned herself never to marry.

After she formally meets Ruadh, it's all about balls and theater, and nothing about the hospital.

Ruadh hasn't been back to Scotland in fifteen years; first her served in the Napoleonic wars, then he was stationed in Ireland, "keeping the peace" for the King, whatever that actually meant. He's on leave in London, keeping an arbitrary neighborhood safe from gangs of footpads and thieves, when his father inherits a Scottish earldom rather unexpectedly--a bunch of disagreeable men die off suddenly off page--which means that now Ruadh will have to marry, like it or not, and produce at least an heir.

After the rescue teased in the blurb, they meet three more times, and he proposes; interestingly, his vigilante rounds are mentioned in one line, but as he's also attending balls and so forth, one wonders when they happen.

Among the potential obstacles between them--her birth, his melancholy--she's nineteen and he thirty four, and this age gap is raised both by him and Rose's family as a potential obstacle, and immediately offset with "but she's mature for her age".

In the meantime, there's a whole thing about his maternal grandfather, also an earl, who was seduced into marriage by his conniving housekeeper and now, after suffering a debilitating stroke, is being abused and robbed by her and her love, his former valet.

Than Rose gets herself kidnapped and shenanigans ensue; the villains end up dead, and we get a pregnant Rose epilogue.

Beyond the fact that there's too much going on for the page count, no character development to speak off, and far too many characters with complex backstories showing up, the narrative voice was utilitarian at best.

I appreciated that Ruadh actually asks for Rose's consent--to kiss her, to share his concerns about the age difference, to court her--and that we are told that he actually listens to her when they talk, deferring to her knowledge about herbs and medicine. But the problem, again, is that we are told about it, as these conversations aren't in the text.

"Inviting the Wild" gets a 6.00 out of 10.

A lovely sweet and short story of Rose, the illegitimate sister of the Earl of Stancroft. A brief story tied to a series about the family. Rose running into trouble and it saved by Ruadh, He is an experienced soilder determined to help others as he works through his own anger issues. Family conflicts, villains and an old grandfather tie this story to the plot of "Little Red Riding Hood". Well written, fully engaging and very sweet.

Ruadh aka the “Wolf” has come home from being a Captain to fight his own personal demons by rescuing others on the streets of London.
He rescues Rose and then encounters her at her brother’s home and at a ball. Enamoured but dismayed at their age differences, experiences and his own stress and melancholy.
He seeks to see his grandfather who is Rose’s next door neighbor.
They become involved in intrigue and deception while they are falling in love.
A little danger, a few kisses make for a sweet romance.
A lighthearted read with a continuation of a few characters from past stories.

It’s a great storyline and very entertaining. It captured by attention at the beginning and lasted until the end. I love that Rose’s father raised her as a part of his family at a time when society was not very accepting of her. Ruadh and Rose each had their own secrets but when all was revealed they get their HEA. It’s a great story and I would highly recommend it.
I received a free copy of this book via Netgalley and are voluntarily leaving a review.

4.5 stars
Major Ruadh Douglas doesn’t want to go home, years on the battlefields have made him more beast than man and he won’t inflict his wounded mind and soul on his family. So, he wanders the streets of London, performing penance by rescuing those in need. Rosalind Ransome is a misfit in London’s ballrooms, but in visiting the sick of all classes, she has found work she loves and the chance to make a difference. When she is attacked in the streets, she is rescued by the vigilante they call the Wolf. Rose is drawn to Ruadh when he seeks to see his ailing grandfather who happens to live next door
Another lovely novella it’s the seventh book in the series & whilst it can easily be read on its own I was so pleased that Rose whom we met in the first book has her HEA, I hope Viv also has hers! It was also good to catch up with Peter & Ariel. A quick read but it packed a punch, sizzling chemistry, secrets, intrigue meant the pages flew by as I was engrossed from cover to cover & devoured it in a sitting. Wonderful characters, I loved both Ruadh & Rose both felt like misfits but both were caring & loving & perfect for each other. I also liked that the villains did get their comeuppance
I voluntarily read and reviewed a special copy of this book; all thoughts and opinions are my own