I am between 3 and 4 stars as i think this could have used a little more romance. But I FLEW through this book when I got to the end I was shocked at how fast I read this book. It’s has funny parts but also murders and really heavy topics about dv and child abuse. I like how Lysander was like f it let’s just get married from the beginning. He wanted her from the get go and I loved that. It was kind of a mess but a mess I really enjoyed. I think the swiftness that the POV swung back and forth added to that. But I really can’t wait to read the next I e Noah is all grown now I wonder how his Julius will play into it.

Oh and the epilogue didn’t really feel like, it didn’t really show the HEA.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Rounding up from a 2.5 - I liked this book enough to keep me reading til the end, but it was honestly difficult to get through. There was confusing dialogue, wonky plot points, a real lack of character development, and a weird, rushed resolution. As another reviewer pointed out, I couldn't figure out why the main characters even liked each other when they hardly interacted as individuals. Overall, it has good bones but would have been a lot more enjoyable if there was more depth to the story.

Thanks to netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review!

Family, Mystery, Enjoyable Romance
This author is new to me and this story is hard to pin down for my honest opinion.
This is not just a romance story, but it ventures into a complex mystery story that has many elusive twists, family secrets galore, some very unusual characters throughout the pages.
Verda is escaping her father's disgusting plans for her, and she develops a plan to escape along with the help of Sander who is instantly smitten with her. Off to Northumberland to be a governess, but things don't always go as planned.
The first part of the story deals somewhat with the two starting on a new adventure where the attraction is evident.
Soon we meet the rest of the characters, and a new mystery plot emerges.
Many family secrets are exposed along with insights to some of the children that part take in this interesting story.
Their sizzling romance does return close to end which brings much joy to this reader.
Book Rating: 3.7 rounded up 4 Star

Verda needs a husband as her father is a gambler and will marry her to an unacceptable man.
Lysander takes her under his wing to be a governess to his brother’s children/wards.
As they come together to create a family, they fall in love while his difficult brother ignores them and the children.
Good idea for a story and it appears the brother is next up for a story.
Enjoyed the characters.

Verda Fairclough, the strong-willed protagonist, is no damsel waiting for salvation. Instead, she’s a pragmatic woman grappling with the fallout of her father’s gambling debts and her own societal constraints. When faced with the prospect of marrying the appalling Duke of Rathbourne, Verda’s resourcefulness and grit shine through. Her impulsive decision to enlist the help of the dashing Lysander Oshea—posing as her husband—sets the stage for a tale brimming with tension and unexpected twists.

Lysander, or Sander, emerges as a man caught between familial duty and his undeniable attraction to Verda. Their relationship is a slow burn, made all the more poignant by the atmospheric backdrop of a crumbling castle on the Northumberland cliffs. The castle’s occupants, including Sander’s troubled nephew Noah, are at turns creepy and endearing.

However, the book does falter a bit in pacing and character development. The opening chapters feel rushed, offering limited insight into Verda’s backstory or motivations. Meanwhile, the middle sections drag as the plot meanders through repetitive scenarios. Additionally, some supporting characters, such as the Earl of Pender and Verda’s father, are sketched rather than fully fleshed out.

If you’re drawn to stories reminiscent of "Jane Eyre" but with an open-door spice level and a touch of Victorian melodrama, "A Silent Accord" is worth a read. Wheeler’s vision for this trilogy hints at greater depth and development in future installments, leaving readers curious about what’s to come in the "Clandestine Sapphire Society."

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to review a temporary digital ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.

A Silent Accord
Kathy L. Wheeler

Rating: 3/5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️


Thank you to NetGalley, Kathy L. Wheeler, and Dragonblade Publishing for gifting me a copy of A Silent Accord in exchange for an honest review.

Book Summary (No Spoilers):

The year is 1827 and Verda Fairclough, the only child of Baron Krupt, is no stranger to hardships. The baron has a nasty habit of gambling away the family money, which has finally resulted in the possibility of him and Verda being arrested by the debt collectors - that is if she doesn’t marry a wealthy suitor at the grand ball being hosted in a fortnight. With Miss. Fairclough being nine and twenty, she finds it unrealistic that an eligible bachelor will want to pursue her. However, her father tells her to not fear as he has already chosen her future husband - the infamous and horrible Duke of Rathbourne.

Fast forward two weeks and she is at the ball, being courted by the duke in the most un-gentlemanly manner. However, across the room, the illustrious Lysander (Sander) Oshea lays eyes on Verda, whilst being handled in a brutal way, and saves her by pretending the two of them have already wed. Verda goes along with this story, and Sander being so smitten by her, asks if she would travel with him to his brother's home outside of London to become his nephew’s new governess. Sander’s brother has quite the reputation - The Earl of Pender (Damien Oshea) is known for being a womanizer and having many mistresses and affairs while his young son, Noah, is known for being difficult to work with. Despite her doubts and fears, Verda decides to take Sander up on his offer and joins him at the gloomy castle, where she ultimately learns haunting stories about the family, secrets about the lands, and battles falling in love with the second son of Pender.

My Thoughts and Review (Spoiler Warning):

I am a big lover of historical romance so I went into this novel, the first of its trilogy, with excitement. However, I soon had to double-check to make sure this wasn’t the second or third book in the series due to the semi-confusing plotline and lack of character descriptions and growth. I feel as if I didn’t get to know key characters as well as I should have, such as Verda’s father, the Duke of Rathbourne, etc. However, once I began jotting down names and taking notes, I was better able to understand relationships, family trees, and more - which could possibly just be a me problem in all honesty.

Along with this, I found the book to drag. As mentioned before, I found the exposition to be rushed without enough detail, however, the rising action seemed to take forever with too much detail and too many events. The climax of the book doesn’t happen until the last few actions, resulting in a very quick falling action and resolution. Maybe this rushed ending is due to it being the first book in the trilogy, however, I almost DNF’d the novel halfway through due to the lack of interesting topics happening. With that being said, I ended up enjoying the ending and finding out the mystery of who has been the killer, and I wish there was more evidence pointing to the lady's maid.

Lastly, as I brought up briefly before, I felt as if the characters weren’t well-rounded enough. I didn’t feel a connection to any of them in all honesty. I didn’t enjoy Sander very much and didn’t find him remotely romantic - no wonder Verda and him didn’t kiss until the last few chapters of the book. As for Verda, I enjoyed her slightly, but can I say I found her almost “too” strong and independent? It almost doesn’t make sense for her to have fallen in love with Sander due to how much of a strong and independent woman she was. A lot of the reviews mention liking Noah and “My Julian” but I found that plotline kind of odd personally. Maybe it’s because I don’t read a lot of books featuring children in them, I found all of the kids a little annoying and repetitive.

Overall, I gave this book 3 out of 5 stars. I liked the plot line and the female protagonist. I also really enjoyed the thriller/mystery side of the book. The imagery was great as well when describing the castle and the scenery. I would recommend this title to anyone who enjoys Bridgerton. I will be on the lookout for the next two books in this series and am excited to see how the author expands this world.

Thank you again to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for this gifted book in exchange for an honest review. Make sure to purchase your copy of A Silent Accord on January 21, 2025.
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Pub. Date: Jan. 21, 2025 - Dragonblade Publishing

Historical Fiction and Romance

A Victorian Gothic Romance in the Clandestine Sapphire Society Trilogy (Book One)

#netgalley #ASilentAccord

I raced through this book which is a surprise even to me because the pacing admittedly was not great. There were parts that I loved for sure, Verda is the exact type of FMC that I love, especially within this genre. I also enjoyed the children and their banter. But overall the book felt thoroughly disjointed & with the mystery?? As the focus of the book the romance really suffered & I was super disappointed in that. They had a ton of potential to be interesting romantic leads but ultimately fell short.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange for my honest review!

The plotline definitely needs a little bit of work in the middle of the book. But for a series it was a really good start. I liked the characters and their relationship dynamic in the family. I liked Verda's relationship and how she overcame her fears. The trauma that happened in this book felt a bit much but I did like the different perspective in it. While this is targeted towards a historical romance, it's a little bit more than that.

Well done to the author and publishers and thank you for sending this book my way.

This was a strong start to the Clandestine Sapphire Society series, it had that Gothic romance element that I was looking for and enjoyed from this type of book. The characters had that feel that I wanted and enjoyed from the description. I'm excited to read the next entry in this series and from Kathy L Wheeler.

This book was not very well written. To be honest, I was a bit confused by the plotline. It skittered, it rolled it was chaotic.

Disappointed.

Felt like a bunch of random events leading up to an action packed last 25%. That last quarter held the majority of the plot, really. BUT - The characters were nice (The kids especially were pretty funny.) and the domesticity combined with the gothic-like setting still made this enjoyable for me. 3.75 stars.

Alright so here's what worked for me:

I liked Verda a lot, she's a no nonsense kind of woman, pragmatic and sympathetic

I really liked all the kids, Noah and Docia in particular, and I enjoyed their childish bickering.

As much as I hated Damein, I couldn't help but be hopelessly intrigued by him, he was just so interesting! Similarly with the whole "My Julius" stuff with Noah!

Here's what didn't:

The romance is sorely lacking, it felt like the author was just marking items off a check list "First kiss at 40%, second at 55%, sex scene at 75%" - all the scenes felt so stilted and forced because the MCs barely spend any time together as individuals, or have any conversations.... Like yeah they're attracted to each other but... What else? When you're doing the governess trope, you have AMPLE opportunity for some forced probably proximity, which really wasn't taken advantage of.

The pacing is really atrocious at points, there would be absolutely nothing happening in several chapters and then so much happening in the space of a few pages that I have to go back and read it several times over. In the beginning, it sort of felt like the author expected the reader to already have at least some context about who these characters are because we're not so much introduced to them as we are placed in the middle of their story.

Overall - not terrible but certainly not impressive. I am unlikely to pick up another by this author any time soon.

3.5 stars

Verda Fairclough’s father is looking to marry her off to a horrible duke for his financial gain. Lysander Oshea steps in to help, eventually convincing her to be a governess to his nephew, even though she knows nothing about children. She’s trying to figure out how to manage the children and he’s trying to convince her they have a future.

There is a definite gothic vibe to the book – from the “dark and stormy” (not to mention cold and dank) castle on the cliffs and several supporting characters who you can’t quite tell their level of sanity. This certainly adds a different (and welcome) feel from many of the other historical romance books I’ve read.

The plot did feel a bit disjointed at times. There were a few times when the next chapter would jump a week or more in the actual timeline, but the characters seemed in the same place as before. Some of the characters’ emotions seemed a bit unclear and scattered at times.

Overall, this was a good read, especially if you are looking for a historical romance that is a change from the glitz and glam of London or high society.

Oooh, this book is a hard one to rate. This is my first time reading a book by this author. It started off very well. I was very impressed with the writing. This isn't even a Lyon's Den book, but Mrs. Dove-Lyon and the den get a cameo!

But soon the plot became... I don't even know how to describe it - confusing, mad cap, tongue in cheek? I'm not sure. I feel like everyone may get what's going on in this book but me?

What I *DO* know is that all five stars belong to 10 year old Noah and his baby infant brother, "My Julius" . I am not kidding. I may have just read the Most Notable of all of notable children.
What an adorable, PRECIOUS little boy, taking care of My Julius like that. I may have lost the plot but I don't care. I hope one day we get Noah's story because he's gonna be a great, great dad. Oh my heart!!!

Thank you to netgalley for the ARC. Opinions are my own

I really enjoyed this book, the characters and the storyline. There was just enough romance, intrigue and mild suspense to make it interesting and unable to put down. It really packed a punch for being a shorter book. I am looking forward to reading more from this author as I enjoyed the writing style so much!

If you enjoy Gothic romances, you'll devour this. It has great characters, mystery, murder, and a steamy romance.

I also really liked the setting of the old castle. It truly set the ambiance for the Gothic setting.

This is open-door spice so be warmed that this does get rather steamy!

A great historical Gothic romance that will keep you turning the pages.