The Earl Next Door

Very enjoyable start to Ms. Grey's First Comes Love series. Three young noble widows, connected by the loss of their husbands in the same shipwreck, decide to start a trade boarding school for the sisters and daughters of working class men lost in the disaster. One of them, the Dowager Countess Wake, chooses to live in the mansion in front of the school. Rumors of large quantities of beds, coupled with strange women coming and going at odd hours, send the Earl of Lyonwood charging next door to investigate and misunderstandings ensue. The hero and heroine have both felt trapped by the expectations of the Ton. Lady Wake, wounded by her husband's infidelity and scorn over her infertility, is unwilling to risk another marriage and needs to discover her true self within the confines of her widowed status. Lyonwood, under pressure to marry and provide an heir, wants to wait for love and resents constant comparisons with his charming and youthful father.

Ms. Grey does a very good job of introducing each of the widows while retaining focus on Lady Wake, and she makes the love and rivalry between Lyonwood and his father believable. I look forward to seeing how the remaining widows deal with their own relationships. One of the schoolgirls , Fanny Warren, has the potential to steal the show from her patronesses and I have fingers crossed that she and friend Mathilda get a short story or novella of their own as adults looking for HEAs.

The Earl Next Door by Amelia Grey is a spectacular historical romance. Ms. Grey has given readers a book that will have them hooked on this story in the first two pages and keep them glued to their e-readers until the end. Adeline has been a widow for two years. Her husband was abusive so he wasn't a great loss for her, but she saw the families of the sailors that were on the ship with him that also perished and felt that she wanted to do something for those families. Her and two of her friends that lost husbands on the ship decided to open a school for girls to learn sewing so they could support themselves when they were older. Lyon, the Earl of Lyonwood, got his face soundly slapped when he accused Adeline of opening a bordello in the house next door to him. Lyon and Adeline's story is loaded with drama, humor, sizzle and a stellar cast of characters. I loved this book from cover to cover and can't wait to read my next book by Amelia Grey. The Earl Next Door is book 1 of the First Comes Love Series but can be read as a standalone. This is a complete book, not a cliff-hanger.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book that I received from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

It's a winner!
I laughed and I cried at the antics of two little girls, the nosy neighbor and the Earl's frustration with the widow next door. Grey hit the mark with this witty, enchanting love story.
A free copy from Netgalley for an honest review.

This story was a sweet story. I liked the characters and the premise. Have read others and enjoyed them also, we'll keep stocking our store with Grey titles

This is the first book in the series. I loved it! 5 stars. It was a great story and worth reading. I enjoyed the characters and the story-line. The trouble making girls were a fun addition. A must read!

A beautiful cover for a lovely story. When 3 widows open a school for the less fortunate girls the neighbor shows his ugly side. While he is a real humbug one of the widows finds him irresistible. Thus the fun story begins. I like the mixed feelings, the wayward girls and the ending. There is plenty to like in this book. I am glad I read this one.