The third book in Mercedes Lackey’s Tales of the Five Hundred Kingdoms series, Fortune’s Fool is an enjoyable if eclectic remix of a number of fairy tales. Lackey takes a wide assortment of elements drawn from Russian, eastern and northern European, Japanese, and Middle Eastern folk and fairy tales, and mixes them up, higgledy-piggledy… and it works surprisingly well.
I love this gentle romance, which explores how two people, through sheer politeness, respect, and upper-class British reticence, end up in a conventionally distant arranged marriage instead of the affectionate, loving union they both desire… and how they eventually find their way to the real marriage they long for (with a little outside help from an unexpected quarter.)
I enjoyed Hideaway just as much as I did the first time I read it. However, it doesn’t quite rise to the “favorites” level, in part because Hideaway is lighter on both romance and suspense than my favorite NR books.
Gabriel’s Angel is an excellent example of just how good category romance can be when it’s done well, within the strict confines of length and style imposed by the publisher. Gabriel, a reclusive artist on the run from grief, and Laura, a woman trying desperately to protect her unborn child, are both in pain from events in their recent pasts. Each needs something the other can give: inspiration, protection, understanding, healing.
Lingo by Gaston Dorren Published by Audible Studios on Dec. 1, 2015 (Audible); Nov. 1, 2014 (hardcover) Genres: Nonfiction Format: Audiobook Source: my personal collection Purchase: Amazon | Bookshop | Barnes & Noble | Audible Add to Goodreads Welcome to Europe as you’ve never known it before, seen through the… July 20, 2020 Lark_Bookwyrm Book Reviews 4 ★★★★
Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome Illustrator: Helene Carter Series: Swallows & Amazons #1 Published by J. B. Lippincott on 1958 (first published 1930) Genres: MG Books Pages: 343 Format: Hardcover, Kindle or ebook Source: my personal collection Purchase: Amazon | Bookshop | Barnes & Noble | Audible Add to… April 16, 2020 Lark_Bookwyrm Book Reviews 1 ★★★★
The Blue Hills by Elizabeth Goudge Series: Torminster Saga #3 Published by Buccaneer Books on originally published in 1942 Genres: Historical Fiction Pages: 157 Format: Hardcover Source: my personal collection Add to Goodreads Also in this series: A City of Bells Also by this author: The Little White Horse, A… January 31, 2020 Lark_Bookwyrm Book Reviews, Treasures from the Hoard 5 ★★★★★
Hercule Poirot’s Christmas by Agatha Christie Series: Poirot #20 Published by William Morrow on December 15, 2003 (first published December 19, 1938) Genres: British mystery, Christmas Pages: 272 Format: Kindle or ebook Source: my personal collection Purchase: Amazon | Bookshop | Barnes & Noble | Audible Add to Goodreads Also… December 26, 2019 Lark_Bookwyrm Book Reviews 4 ★★★½
The Last Moriarty by Charles Veley Narrator: Edward Petherbridge Series: Sherlock Holmes & Lucy James #1 Published by self-published on April 1, 2016 Genres: Historical Mystery Format: Audiobook Source: my personal collection Purchase: Amazon | Bookshop | Barnes & Noble | Audible Add to Goodreads Also by this author: Watson… November 21, 2019 Lark_Bookwyrm Book Reviews 3 ★★★★
The Liar by Nora Roberts Published by Berkley on April 14, 2015 Genres: Romantic suspense Pages: 501 Format: Hardcover, Kindle or ebook Source: my personal collection Purchase: Amazon | Bookshop | Barnes & Noble | Audible Add to Goodreads Also by this author: Dark Witch, Shadow Spell, The Collector, Night… Read more »
