Monday, November 30, 2015

Review: Lord Dashwood Missed Out

LORD DASHWOOD MISSED OUT
Spindle Cove #4.5
Tessa Dare
Historical Romance
144 pages
Avon
Available December 8th
Source: eARC from publisher for review

THE STORY (from Goodreads)
A snowstorm hath no fury like a spinster scorned!

Miss Elinora Browning grew up yearning for the handsome, intelligent lord-next-door…but he left England without a word of farewell. One night, inspired by a bit too much sherry, Nora poured out her heartbreak on paper. Lord Dashwood Missed Out was a love letter to every young lady who’d been overlooked by gentlemen—and an instant bestseller. Now she’s on her way to speak in Spindle Cove when snowy weather delays her coach. She’s forced to wait out the storm with the worst possible companion: Lord Dashwood himself.

And he finally seems to have noticed her.

George Travers, Lord Dashwood, has traveled the globe as a cartographer. He returned to England with the goal of marrying and creating an heir--only to find his reputation shredded by an audacious, vexingly attractive bluestocking and her poison pen. Lord Dashwood Missed Out, his arse. Since Nora Browning seems to believe he overlooked the passion of a lifetime, Dash challenges her to prove it.

She has one night.


MY THOUGHTS
Lord Dashwood Missed Out is an all-too fleeting return to the Spindle Cove world, one that delights us once again with Ms. Dare’s trademark sense of humor and a cast of characters who never take themselves too seriously.

Nora is a joy of a heroine, a young woman who had a crush on a friend of the family growing up and dreamed of the time when her fantasies of a wedding and children would finally become a reality. What awaited her instead was heartbreak and loneliness as Lord Ashwood took off to travel the world, but not before he made it glaringly obvious that he was aware of her feelings and didn’t return them. While we don’t know all the details until midway through, we can more than relate to Nora’s unrequited crush and the pain that accompanies such a thing, and we can’t help but applaud her for writing an essay encouraging young women like herself to find worth in themselves rather than in a proper marriage as decided by the Ton.

Lord Ashwood has some serious groveling to do from the first page as our solidarity lies firmly with Nora even without knowing the whys behind his actions, but Ms. Dare of course beautifully redeems him (eventually that is, he earns a narrowed eye or two along the way) with warmth, humility and humor. While their romance is unfortunately brief (this is a novella) and Nora forgives a touch too easily, both things are easily overlooked as we glory in characters who always leave us hoping for more time with them.

A review for this series wouldn’t be complete without the mention of Mrs. Highwood, a woman so hilariously unrelenting in the pursuit of an advantageous marriage for her youngest daughter that we can’t help but smile at her every appearance on page. If you’ve yet to experience the Spindle Cove series and are a fan of historical romance, I can’t recommend these books highly enough!

Rating: 4/5
 

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This book was sent to me by the publisher free of charge for the purpose of a review
I received no other compensation and the above is my honest opinion.

19 comments:

  1. I adored this novella, even though I haven't read any of the books from the series. I definitely want to read Colin's now though. Love that guy.

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  2. I am almost always quick to forgive my romance heroes so that part wouldn't bother me at all. I must confess that I've never read anything of Dare's, which seems to be a huge mistake on my part. I don't much read historical romance at all, but humor is such an important part of romance for me and TD seems to have it in spades.

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  3. Just had to pop by in my alter ego to say.


    EEEEEEEEE! TESSA DARE!!!!

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  4. I haven't tried a book by this author yet but I keep hearing great things about her work. I need to try!

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  5. I love the sound of this series - I know you're a Tessa Dare fan, Jenny - I so need to try one of her books. The romance and humor in them are something I think I would enjoy :)

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  6. I'm in desperate need of a romance to curl up with and I haven't ever come across this title by Dare so I'll be picking it up at once for sure! I adore a groveling hero (ha!) and a redemption romance so this is right up my alley. Lovely review, Jenny! :)

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  7. I love those secondary characters like Mrs. Highwood that really stand out and shine. This does sound like a great series!

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  8. I need to pick this one up, Jenny! I adore Tessa Dare's novel. They are always so charming. The hero sounds a bit difficult in this one, but I know I'll love him no matter.
    I can't wait to read it! :)
    Lovely review, Jenny!

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  9. I have this and will be reviewing later this month. I am so happy to see you enjoyed it. I am loving Dare more and more!

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  10. I've read two of Dare's Castles Ever After and loved them, so I really need to get my hands on the Spindle Cove series ASAP! I might start checking out the novellas since they're usually cheaper! ;)
    Great review Jenny!

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  11. I've been reading a few historical YA books and they've really been fitting my mood so maybe this is the perfect time to try an adult one. I've heard this author is great and has some amazing humor. I know I have some historical romances but I can't remember which author so I'll have to go dig them up. I'm sure we have some at the bookstore I work at too so I'll maybe grab one today when I'm at work.

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  12. I think I would totally get a kick out of Mrs. Hightower. I love characters like that.

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  13. This sounds like a fun romance with a lot of humor in it. I love those. I am so needing to pick this one up. I think it is this time of the year I tend to want to read historical romance.

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  14. This looks cute! Historical romance titles always make me chuckle though. :p

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  15. You had me curious as to why Lord Ashwood treated Nora so despicably! Or maybe carelessly is the word I'm looking for here. Anyway, sounds lovely, Jenny!

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  16. This sounds so adorable, Jenny and I think I might just grab a copy for myself to keep me warm one winter night (honestly though, I've been looking for good holiday-themed romance novels to read)!

    Thanks for sharing, Jenny! :)

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  17. i personally cant wait to read this myself, even if short this sounds so delightful

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