Mary Balogh does it again.

I actually wasn't looking forward to this book as much as the previous ones but I was pleasantly surprised. While not my favourite book in the series, it had enough emotion in it that I was drawn in from the beginning. The way Balogh writes a romance is beyond anything and I just love reading her books.

4 stars

As always with a Mary Balogh novel, the writing is sensitive, nuanced and so well done.

I really enjoyed this novel, both the hero, and heroine are really well judged characters with a lot to recommend them to this reader. Colin Handridge, Lord Hodges, is Wren’s (Westcott Book 3) youngest brother. Estranged from his mother and eldest sister since his father died when he was eighteen, he lives at Wren’s estate, as he has ceded occupation of his ancestral home and house in London to his frankly terrifying mother. As the novel opens he is 26, staying with Wren and Alexander to enjoy a Westcott family Christmas., and is resolved to find a way to take control of his inheritance and move back to Roxingley, and also to control,his mother’s whims. He is strongly drawn to Elizabeth Overfield, Alexander’s widowed older sister. She is nine years older than him, and has suffered through a marriage to an abusive alcoholic.

The story covers the start of Colin’s journey to this reclaiming, the first step he has decided, is to find a suitable bride who will be able to stand up to his mother. He has a hidden adoration of Elizabeth, who is serene, kind and lighthearted despite her difficult experiences, he feels a strong connection to her, but feels he is too young and unformed, in contrast to her self possession and composure, and the age gap is a barrier. He vacillates between feeling that she is the wife he wants, or that he should be pursuing a debutante.

Elizabeth is a wonderfully sympathetic character, she has suffered through a difficult marriage and has lost two children. She left her husband and fled to Alexander, and has spent the seven years since her husbands death creating a facade of serenity to cover up her unhappiness and vulnerability. She is keen to marry to have the opportunity to have a child, and is considering marrying Sir Geoffrey who had been a suitor when she met her first husband. He had offered for her last season, and been refused, but had indicated he would offer again. She does not love him, and he is a little dull, but she feels she has no other options. She is also drawn to Colin.

Colin laughingly proposes marriage to Elizabeth at the Christmas house party and is refused, however they dance together and are very compatible, so Colin asks for the first waltz at every ball they both attend, in the coming Season. They both travel to London for the season, and Colin cultivates a series of debutantes, and starts to spend more time with one in particular, a Miss Dunmore. Elizabeth accepts Sir Geoffreys offer, and her family start to plan her wedding.

Stage left, enter the villain and her henchmen! Ms Balogh has created a monster! I really loved this characterisation. Lady Hodges had been a great beauty in her youth, and is hanging on to it with every sinew. She is an awful human being, cruel and vain. She is obsessed with staying youthful, and having a court of admirers fluttering round her, she has the venal Lord Ede as her main admirer and at least four cicisbeo with her most of the time. In addition she keeps her daughter Blanche and her husband with her most of the time, as a foil to her own looks. Lady Hodges who is in her sixties, maintains the fiction that she is very youthful through a series of illusions: cosmetics, sheer pink curtains, wigs, clever lighting, furniture, anything at all! In Someone To Wed (book 3) we learn she had found Wren’s strawberry birthmark repulsive and had been happy to treat her terribly as a child, and was content that her sister in law had taken Wren away to raise her. In fact she has even resented that her sister in law’s money had been wholly settled on Wren and not shared amongst her siblings. She is determined that Colin marry a young beauty that would add to her tableau somshe could continue to control her family. She therefore uses Lord Ede to manipulate events to put Colin into a compromising position with Miss Dunmore, and to blacken Elizabeth’s name.

The rest of the plot deals with how the star crossed lovers navigate the scandal and problems Lady Hodges and Lord Ede manufacture to blacken Elizabeth’s reputation and control Colin.

The way that Mary Balogh handles their emotional development, especially Colin’s, and draws them together is masterly, as always. He learns to see the vulnerability inside Elizabeth and how bravely she masks it, this helps him to feel like he can support her, he also doesn’t want to control her or dominate her in any way which is also beautifully done. The way Elizabeth also trusts in her feelings for Colin, and his for her, is also so beautifully done.

I loved it.

I received an Arc of this novel which I voluntarily reviewed. All opinions are my own.

Lady Elizabeth Overton is a 35 year old widow. Colin Handrich, Lord Hodges is nine years her junior. When they meet at the Westcott Christmas party the age gap is very apparent and yet there is an undeniable pull between them. Both of them are looking for a spouse but at widely different ends of the spectrum. Colin is looking amongst the eighteen year old debutantes whereas Elizabeth is looking for a sensible, dependable man, very different from her husband.

When they meet again in London during the season they rely on each other for sensible conversation and laughter and glorious waltzes but as they both move inexorably towards marriage with other people will they realise they are perfect together before it's too late?

Hoo boy did this start slowly. It was practically halfway in before I got engaged with the storyline and the characters. But when it did ... it pulled me in like a rip tide. From two faceless, characterless mannequins Colin and Elizabeth transformed into living breathing characters, full of hopes and fears and anxieties. There were plotting relatives and sinister Dukes, society balls, fake engagements, fisticuffs in the library and family secrets galore. By the end I was totally invested in Colin and Ellizabeth's May to December romance (although that is a wild exaggeration) and the way in which their love may have been instantaneous but their relationship was built on friendship and trust.

If you like historical romances, if you have liked Mary Balogh's other Westcott romances I recommend sticking with this novel, it pays in the end.

I received a free copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

This was such a good read. Yes, I did find all the characters in the families overwhelming at first but this was probably due to this being the first in the series that I had read. I liked that it concerned a lady older by 9 years than the man and Elizabeth and Colin were such likeable characters. I enjoyed the sense of family and all looking out for each other. Of course, there were other characters that were disliked but that all adds to the story. The day in the snow was described in such a way that I felt I was there. The character of Avery was a particular favourite, he was so laid back and yet he was very astute and his one remark showed how he understood the problem that others failed to grasp. I enjoyed this book so much I’d like to read the series from the beginning. I received a copy and have voluntarily reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Last year I read the first book in the Wescott series by Mary Balogh ‘Someone To Love’. I really loved that book. So when I saw ‘Someone To Trust’ the fifth book in the Wescott series on Netgalley, I immediately requested it. Although this book is part of a series, it can be read as a standalone.

In ‘Someone To Trust’ we meet Elizabeth, Lady Overfield. Elizabeth is a widow, after her abusive husband died a view years ago. This Christmas she meets the much younger Colin, Lord Hodges. Elizabeth is nine years older than Colin, but from the moment they met there is something between them they can’t deny. In the beginning they both just see it as a good friendship. But slowly on they find themselves liking each other more and more. But the age difference is between them, and they can’t possible be together because of that.

I had very high expectations when I started reading this book. Especially after looking at that beautiful cover, and the fact that Mary Balogh is one of my favorite Historical Romance authors. I read several book in her Survivors series and just loved those books. Add the whole Christmas part to this book and it must have been a winner! Unfortunately this book didn’t really work for me at all. For starters I couldn’t really feel the chemistry between Elizabeth and Colin, which was a little disappointing to me and the story was just a little to long if you ask me.

There where a view moments in this book that I enjoyed though. The different Balls where Elizabeth and Colin danced, and the interactions between other characters from the Wescott series. In the end I found this book a little to long, and ending unexpectedly at the same time. It was a nice read but just not one of my favorites. But although this book wasn’t really what I hoped it would be, it still made me want to read the other books in this series. I just need to know what happens to the other characters. Sigh..

During a rare white Christmas at Brambledean Court, the widow Elizabeth, Lady Overfield, defies convention by falling in love with a younger man. After her husband's passing, Elizabeth Overfield decides that she must enter into another suitable marriage. That, however, is the last thing on her mind when she meets Colin Handrich, Lord Hodges, at the Westcott Christmas house party. She simply enjoys his company as they listen to carolers on Christmas Eve, walk home from church together on Christmas morning, and engage in a spirited snowball fight in the afternoon.
The author is a must read for me, I think I’ve read nearly all of her books & I'm thoroughly enjoying the Westcott series. This is the fifth book in the series & I personally feel that it could be read on its own but if like me you love series then I’d definitely recommend reading from the start as it will increase your enjoyment of this book also make the first part of the book easier. This is the second book I’ve read recently where the heroine is older than the hero in fact, she is nine years older than him. I really liked that she was older, the attraction was apparent from the start, I liked both Colin & Elizabeth & their characters had plenty of depth. I'm normally drawn into the author's books from page one but it took some time for me to be captivated by this book but once I was after a good fifteen percent of the book I couldn’t put it down. Whilst I thoroughly enjoyed the book it's not one of favourite Balogh books but still a lot better than a lot of romances
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read

It's the first Mary Balogh book I read and was happy I did it.
It was not hard to get involved into the story even if this is part of a series and there was a lot of characters with stories from the previous instalments.
I loved both Elizabeth, so wise and so human, and Colin. I loved their love story and everything in this book.
This is a very good novel, well written and the characters are well developed.
The plot was engaging and entertaining and it kept me hooked till the last page.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to Little, Brown Book Group UK and Netgalley for this ARC

This was my first Mary Balogh and I absolutely loved it. I am so here for heroines in their thirties and toyboy heroes! I felt a little lost at first, being new to the series, but the friends to lovers trope felt completely fresh, and the characters were drawn with such warmth and affection that they were impossible to resist. Definitely a keeper.

I enjoy reading Mary Balogh's books especially those that are part of a series but I do find her output quite patchy. Elizabeth and Colin's story was an interesting one but it felt quite dragged out. I'd have liked another plot line or more character development to stop it feeling so static. That said, however, I read it quite happily. It's not demanding and it would make an ideal Christmas read.

This is a engaging and wonderful story of second chances in the Westcott series. Elizabeth is enjoying Christmas with her family and yearns for a chance of happiness and children herself but is weary after suffering abuse during her first marriage. She meets Colin Lord Hodges who has also decided it is time to look for a wife. They make a pact to dance the first waltz of each seasons ball together. They have to overcome gossip and spite that is talked about Elizabeth and also the unusually large gap in their ages. It will make you smile to see how family closes rank and rally’s round to protect Elizabeth if she needs it or not. It will be well worth following the other stories of this unusual family.
I was given an ARC by Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC. Mary Balogh always delivers a satisfying read with interesting plots and warm lively characters. This is no exception. If you haven't read her before you might wish to start at the beginning of the series and really get to know the extended family in chronological order. If you just want to dive in that is good too as sufficient background is given to the large cast without spoiling earlier books. Enjoy, I did.

I've always loved Mary Balogh's novel but I always forget just how much I adore them until I have one in my hand. The fifth installment of Balogh's Westcott saga is no exception. Like all her other novels that I've read if left me smiling and feeling warm inside. Someone to Trust tells the story of Elizabeth, Lady Overfield and Colin, Baron Hodges. One of the key obstacles they face is their 9 year age gap and I must say Balogh's dealt with it beautifully. Someone to Trust was utterly enchanting from beginning to end and I would recommend it to all historical romance fans.

I am a big fan of Mary Balogh regency romances and was particularly looking forward to reading Lady Overfield's story, so I was happy to received an ARC from Netgalley. Main character in this particular novel is a widow, who after an unhappy first marriage is looking for trust and stability, rather then feelings of deep love. It is great to have more older heroines in regency romances and it is a relief that not all of them are the stunning, simpering beauties. Also, her love interest is younger then her and this is an interesting twist, which I enjoyed reading about. The story was rather slow burning and did not have a great climax ending, but it was a sweet love story.