This is a duet of two stories which are separate but take place at the same time and the characters do meet.

A LADY'S GIFT FOR SEDUCTION by Jess Michaels: Lady Evangeline doesn't intend to submit to her father's plans for her. If she doesn't find a man to marry quickly, he intends to marry her off to someone "appropriate". Evangeline is having nothing of that and intends to take her future into her own hands by marrying a "biddable" man who will allow her to control her own life. Evangeline sets her eyes on her friend Henry Killam. Henry has his own problems as his father has forbidden him to do his "work" as an astronomer and threatened to cut him off. Marriage to Evangeline might solve his own problems but things become complicated. I enjoyed this book as a reversal of the typical historical romance. Here, the heroine is the aggressive one and the hero is the wallflower. I liked both Evangeline who wanted control of her life and Henry, who was sweet and only wanted to do his scientific work in a world that would have respected him more if he was a drunken womanizer. This story works well in the novella format. Rating: 4 stars.

A LADY'S GIFT FOR SCANDAL by Elizabeth Essex: Tamsin Lesley wants only to be a bluestocking but she fears being married off to her father's heir. She decides to get herself "slightly" ruined in order to avoid an unwanted marriage. And the perfect man to accomplish her goal is wallflower Colonel Simon Cathcart. Simon has his own secrets and the face that he puts on with the public does not fully represent the man. This story wasn't quite as good as the other story, but it was a nice easy read. I liked Tamsin, but never felt that Simon's situation and thoughts were as well developed. This was a story that could have been longer with the themes that were trying to be addressed. It was a nice read. Rating: 3.5 stars.

If you lurk around Romancelandia Twitter, you may have seen Jess Michaels teasing this story since she dreamed it up in February.  And it did not disappoint.

For A Lady's Gift for Seduction Michaels gives us a heroine who, although a Diamond, has seen the negative impact marriage has had on the women in her life and so crafts a scheme to make sure hers is different.  A marriage of convenience with a certain bespectackled male wallflower is just what she thinks will save her from a fate worse than death.  Evangeline is something of a crusader, trying to help other women in the Ton.

I lurve a Beta hero, and Henry is certainly that.  He is a giver in almost all ways (wink, wink).  He is a scholar, devoted to mathematics and astronomy so much that it makes him a pariah with his family.  A fuller length novel would have likely explored those relationships more, but the taste was enough to understand his plight without weighing the story down.

These two already have been friends of a sort, but Evangeline's seduction of her male wallflower is nonetheless surprising to studious Henry.  This makes for some great sexual tension and light hearted comedy which I really appreciate in a holiday story.

Henry has his reasons to wed, too, and so this is pretty true to the marriage of convenience trope.  Michaels skillfully plays with convention, however, in having her heroine be the pursuer.  She plays with gender roles gently, but in a way that I identified with and cherished.

Even though this is novella length, it had all the satisfying feels and action of a full length to keep me entertained, engaged and loving it.

The holiday elements are light, providing more of a setting than being the focus of the story.

There are several sex scenes, although they are fairly vanilla (though hot).

A Lady’s Gift for Scandal by Elizabeth Essex takes on a character introduced in Michael's timeline, who similar to Evangeline, is looking to get out from under the marriage mart pressures.  When Evangeline suggests to Tamsin she might consider being "lightly ruined" they look to the male wallflowers at a ball to be of service.  And Evangeline introduces Tamsin to "Simple" Simon.

Simon reminds me a lot of Freddy (Heyer's Cotillion).  He seems like he is a slow top, but still waters run deep.  He is also intrigued by beautiful Tamsin's proposal for a fake ruination (I love a good holiday fake partner/engagement story) and so they set out to do so for an audience of one (her overbearing mama).

Tamsin is a would-be historian who idolizes intellectual salons and the life of independent women.  Instead she is being pressured to pick a mate from the ding-dongs in the Ton...or face marriage to her horrid cousin who will inherit.  After a chance encounter, she lets Evangeline guide her towards the ruination scheme.

And her meeting with Simon seems fated to bring two likeminded souls together.  And every time they attempt to stage a scene of light ruination, they keep finding themselves edging closer and closer to the real thing.

Lots more here that would be hard to share without spoiling the fun, but like Michaels novella this is fun, sexy, and with enough snow and light holiday setting to make it a Christmas duet.

I can easily see adding this to the winter rotation for favorite holiday historicals, and encourage those looking for a Christmas Regency that plays with the tropes to check it out.

Its release date is October 15th, so preorder to queue up for holiday reading!

A great collection of plans to avoid marring to the wrong man going awry. See what happens when wallflower heroes are paired with popular belles of the ball. They ends up with passion neither expected and marriage to last a lifetime. An excellent stories with wonderful characters I loved and I voluntarily wrote a review.

A madcap plan to avoid marriages they do not desire, leads two women to romance and passion they don’t expect in a duet of novellas by bestselling authors Jess Michaels and Elizabeth Essex.

A Lady’s Gift for Seduction by Jess Michaels:
Lady Evangeline is a Diamond of the First Water, but she fears her father will match her to his own advantage, not hers.

A Lady’s Gift for Scandal by Elizabeth Essex:
Miss Tamsin Lesley desires above all else to be a bluestocking and lead an intellectual life. The only thing standing in her way is her father’s heir, who wants her along with her father’s estate.
I have always enjoyed reading books by both of these authors. This holiday duet of novellas is all that I expect from them both.
This madcap pair of stories are very well written and just the ticket to get you into the mood for the holidays.
I gave this pair of short reads 4.25 of 5.0 stars for story line and characterization.
I received a complimentary copy of this book via Netgalley and am voluntarily leaving this review.

I am a sucker for a holiday regency - especially a novella collection. That being said, although these take place around the holidays - they are definitely NOT holiday books. The holiday stands as more of a deadline than anything else. I did enjoy both stories - and the role reversal of sorts. Both stories relate to a male "wallflower" and a diamond of the first water. The female part of the paring plotting to use the male wallflower to acheive her ends.

A Lady’s Gift for Seduction is the first story by Jess Michaels (whom I usually love). Lady Evangeline is definitely awesome - she is extremely smart and wants to control her own destiny, which includes controlling her would-be husband. She expresses a desire to find a husband who will let her go her own way and control all the finances, while he pursues his own interests. She is in no way interested in an equal partner. Her viewpoint is actually really depressing - but maybe understandable in view of her life to-date. Her parents made each other miserable - particularly because of her fathers infidelity and disinterest in her mother. Evangeline doesn't want to be in her mother's shoes, but doesn't seem to have an issue with her husband being in that position. I enjoyed her management of the relationship with Henry and really wanted to kick him in the butt for most of the book. He doesn't need to be an alpha - but damn did he need to stand up for himself more. Even the big "betrayal" was really frustrating. He broke a promise - yes - but he shouldn't have ever made that promise and Evangeline shouldn't have asked him to make it. Overall - this story was just ok.

A Lady’s Gift for Scandal was a better story for me. I liked Simon immediately from when we first met him in the first story. "Simple" Simon was clearly not really simple - even from the first you could tell he was acting. Simon had been a colonel in the army and played a major role in helping negotiate the treaties that helped end the napoleonic conflict. To give himself the space he needed to recover from war, he adopted a persona. Tamsin doesn't see this at all until at least midway through the story - but she likes Simon anyway. She likes him even more as he reveals his real self - but she accepts him and defends him - even as she seeks to use him to her own ends (albeit with full disclosure of her motives and ends). I liked Tamsin - but she was pretty selfish in some respects. I couldn't help but feel that although she didn't want to be a sacrificial lamb on the altar of matrimony for her family - and she shouldn't have to - she wasted a lot of money while having no plan to actual comply with her mother's wishes. I think I was supposed to find her mother ridiculous - but I actually felt badly for her. She shouldn't have forced Tamsin to go along with her wishes and should have really listened to her daughter before embarking on the plan to marry Tamsin off to a rich man, but Tamsin didn't really treat her mother well either.. The darker part of this story - whether it was intended or not - really highlights the vulnerability of women during this time as a whole.

I enjoyed both stories - but they weren't what I was looking for in a holiday read. If you are looking for well-written regency novellas, with a serious bent - these are good stories for you! If you were looking for a sweet holiday romance - these don't fit that bill.

If you want to read some fun holiday historicals then you will love these stories. In the last few months I have not read historicals so this was a bit different for me. I love Jenna Peterson so I was really excited to read her story. It is a novella and the second story in this set is written by Elizabeth Essex who is a new author for me.

I loved the writing and characters in both. They are both fun historicals with two very strong women who think they are getting weak/wallflowery men but instead they find strong men who just hide their strengths. It was a really wonderful surprise for the heroines and for me as well as a reader.

If you are looking for shorter stories, about 200 pages each and want a holiday historical, you will really enjoy this romance novella duets.

<i>A Lady's Gift for Seduction</i>by Jess Michaels
The daughter of a duke, Lady Evangeline could marry anyone. And her father really wants her to marry someone who can strengthen the family connections. But not more than Henry Killam's social-climbing father. So when Lady Evangeline sets her sights on Henry, the third son of a viscount, Henry's father is at first excited, but then super pissed because Henry has published an astrology paper and that smacks of.... working.

I didn't really connect to either Evangeline nor Henry in this story and I was annoyed by all of the machinations. It was fine but not great.

Three stars

<i>A Lady’s Gift for Scandal</i> by Elizabeth Essex
Tamsin Lesley doesn't want to get married. She just wants to live as a bluestocking and to do that she has to be ruined. Or fake ruined. Because there's no reason to be really ruined. When she runs into Lady Evangeline at a ball, that august young woman suggests Simon Cathcart as the perfect man to be her "ruiner."
Simon went to war and came back different. He just wants a simple life so he pretends to be stupid. No one in his family nor his superiors (he worked for Wellington, for goodness' sake) has told anyone any different so everyone assumes that he's incredibly stupid and ignores him. He's only in town to escort his aunt to various affairs. So when Tamsin suggests a fake ruination, it seems like a good plan to him.

This is a good premise but I wish there had been more to it. I think it would have been better in a longer form but felt unfinished here.

Three stars

This book came out October 15th
ARC kindly provided by The Passionate Pen and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

A breath of fresh winter air, two delightful novellas that are truly worth reading and totally enjoyable. They are stories that are related to each other, with heroines who are friends. Tamsin wants Evangeline to help her find a man to ruin her so she won't have to get married. But she only wants to be “a little ruined” . Simon is the man Evangeline picks out for her and that's when the delight of Jess Michael's novella starts. While Evangeline is picking out Tamsin's object of ruination she is steering her away from Henry Killam because Evangeline has her own feelings for him. Elizabeth Essex brings these characters to life in her novella. I can highly recommend this book. Two 5 star gems.

Betrothed by Christmas features two great stories with a charming twist on the wallflower romance and I enjoyed it quite a bit.

A Lady’s Gift for Seduction by Jess Michaels — 4 Stars

In order to avoid the possibility of a match arranged by her father, Lady Evangeline decides the only thing to do is to pick her own husband first. Hoping to find someone she can easily manage, she settles on her friend Henry Killam only to quickly discover Henry isn’t as biddable as she expected. I loved Evangeline and Henry’s relationship from the start. She’s a social butterfly whereas Henry is more comfortable when he’s alone working on his equations. The two have fantastic chemistry and I thought the scenes where their physical relationship progressed were wonderfully done. The final scene where Henry wins Evangeline over was perfect for the two and I loved how much their relationship progressed over the course of the story. Overall, I highly recommend this story and I will definitely be checking out more from this author in the future.


A Lady’s Gift for Scandal by Elizabeth Essex — 4 Stars

All Miss Tamsin Lesley wants is the ability to lead her own life. Instead she’s trying to find a way to ruin herself to thwart her father’s heir who wants her along with the estate. Wallflower Simon Cathcart is the perfect candidate for her ruination, but he quickly shows Tamsin there’s more pleasure in ruining than she thought. I really enjoyed Tamsin and Simon together. They both understand each other in ways other people don’t and they develop a wonderful friendship over the course of their arrangement. I loved watching them both fall for each other despite their promise not to. Their physical chemistry is fantastic and I loved the scenes where they found ways to be alone. Both Tamsin and Simon have their secrets, but I was happy to see that they weren’t ones that negatively affected their relationship and that they worked through them rationally. I highly recommend this story and I will absolutely be reading more from the author in the future.


Overall Betrothed by Christmas was a fantastic read with two stories that work together wonderfully. I highly recommend this duet for anyone looking for some historical romances set during the holiday season.

Overall average rating — 4 Stars

A wonderful duology of independent women who seek control over their own lives rather than being forced into marriage and being ruled by a husband. Jess Michaels' A Lady's Gift of Seduction is about a Diamond of the First Water, Lady Evangeline, a Duke's daughter, and a scientist. Elizabeth Essex's A Lady's Gift of Scandal is about a bluestocking miss who wants independence and Simple Simon Cathcart, former Lieutenant Colonel under the Duke of Wellington. These stories are closely tied and both heroines pop in and out of each story. It was nice reading such an interlaced book.

The two heroines meet when Lady Evangeline hears Miss Thomasina's muttered comment about the stupidity gentlemen playing Snapdragon at a ball. A plan is made to solve both their problems. They decide they need to be judged ruined by society so they won't be forced to marry who the family arranges. Lady Evangeline introduces her to her friend, Simon Cathcart, one of the male wallflowers hanging out in the library during the ball. He's known in society as Simple Simon since he came home from the war after a saber injury. We later find out he's not really simple but pretends to be so he's left alone.

Meanwhile Lady Evangeline renews her friendship with Henry Killam, an astronomer and son of a Viscount. Henry is a member of The Society of Astronomical Studies an thinks he's discovered a new planet. When his paper is published with his name on it, not a made up name, his father explodes because his son is working. Horror of horrors to his social ambitious father. In the meantime he's agreed to ruin in the eyes of society, his friend Evie . Their love story is so much fun to read.

Thomasina's story of becoming lightly ruined is enchanting. Simon agrees to her proposal of finding them in a suggestive embrace by her mother as something of an entertainment. Each situation doesn't turn out the way Tamsin wanted so situations become more and more heated. Simon on the other hand finds himself becoming enchanted by this pert, intelligent, scheming young woman. Soon the ruination becomes all to real and exciting. This was a delightful story of finding one's true self and the perfect partner to share it with.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced readers copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Two wonderful historical holiday reads. Each read is fast-paced with loads of drama and suspense. The characters have steamy chemistry and the stories have plenty of twists and turns to hold your interest. The characters have lots of layers that really draw you into to both reads. I loved it!

A Lady’s Gift for Seduction by Jess Michael
Lady Evangeline liked to be in control and enjoyed giving her opinion. She didn’t want a marriage like her mother’s or sister’s. Evangeline chose Henry Killam for her husband as she thought she would be in control in their marriage. Henry was such a lovely man, he had many problems with his family but he understood Evangeline. However, Henry was no pushover. I did enjoy how they came to terms with each other and came to understand what was needed. Although this was a good read, it wasn’t one of my favourite Jess Michael stories.
A Lady’s Gift for Scandal by Elizabeth Essex
This was a really entertaining read. Tamsin is aiming to be ‘slightly’ ruined to avoid a marriage and to enable her to continue with her bluestocking tendencies. Simon, although very intelligent, pretends to be lacking in intelligence due to a sabre cut in the war. I enjoyed the interaction between them and I loved the way Simon arranged events just for Tamsin’s enjoyment. Their growing relationship was a joy to read about.
I received a copy and have voluntarily reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Betrothed by Christmas A Holiday Duet by Jess Michaels & Elizabeth Essex.
There are two Christmas Themed Romance stories in the set to put us in the Christmas Romance mode. Both authors are ones that I love so I was excited to read them, but if you are not familiar with these authors then it is a good way to find them. Besides, who doesn't love a Christmas Romance Story. This set has about 400 hundred pages and these are the stories that you will be getting:
1. A Lady’s Gift for Seduction by Jess Michaels
Lady Evangeline is a Diamond of the First Water, but she fears her father will match her to his own advantage, not hers. She decides marrying a biddable groom is the only way to salvage her future and chooses her old friend, astronomer Henry Killam. But she soon realizes Henry isn’t quite as manageable as she first believed and her feelings for him are stronger than she ever imagined.

2. A Lady’s Gift for Scandal by Elizabeth Essex
Miss Tamsin Lesley desires above all else to be a bluestocking and lead an intellectual life. The only thing standing in her way is her father’s heir, who wants her along with her father’s estate. To foil him, Tamsin enlists the services of masculine wallflower Simon Cathcart to ruin her. But the road to ruination leads to far more pleasurable places than Tamsin could ever imagine, and her charming wallflower proves to have secrets of his own.

A Lady's Gift for Seduction- Duke's daughter Lady Evangeline is much sought after and expected to marry well. Fearing her father is preparing to marry her off to his own advantage, she seeks to take matters into her own hands and decides to find herself a biddable husband. Her friend and avid astronomer Henry Killam seems the perfect choice, though she soon finds he's not so easily managed as she believed and her feelings for him are much deeper than she believed herself capable of.

Evangeline drove me crazy with her blatant manipulations, rigid control, and high standards and expectations for forgiveness, though I did understand her need to protect herself from hurt. I really liked Henry and was happy to see him get what he wanted for a change after everyone was so quick to write him off and try to belittle his feelings and his research. It was good to see both characters gain confidence and learn to lean on each other.

A Lady's Gift for Scandal- Tamsin Lesley simply wants the freedom to pursue her intellectual interests away from the pressure to marry. She especially doesn't want to marry her cousin Edward, her father's heir, though that is exactly what will happy if she doesn't find someone else during the little Christmas season. To take control of her own life, Tamsin seeks out a little light ruination from a masculine wallflower and Colonel Simon Cathcart is just the man for the job. But there is more to Simon than meets the eye and he soon has Tamsin rethinking what it is she wants.

I liked Tamsin as a heroine even if she was much more naive than I'd expect from a supposed bluestocking. It was funny to me that Tamsin's mother was so bent on avoiding scandal and yet she ultimately was the one who wound up causing it. Simon was an adorable, almost tragic hero and I'm glad he got to have his happy ending.

Both heroines were desperate to choose their own lives in a time in which women had few options. Overall, I enjoyed these two festive linked stories, but I did find the heroes much more likable than the heroines.

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

Fun Christmas duet!

What a quandary! Two young women know their families want them to marry. Neither wants to be married to an idiotic nobleman with nothing but hunting and other pursuits on their minds. Neither of them want to be relegated to being owned by a husband and the subsequent loss of their freedom. So after a chance meeting at a ball, a few laconic comments about the idiotic gentlemen playing a game where they all but singe their eyebrows off, the two decide to look for wallflower gents to help them out of their predicament.
Where do they look? Why the library of course!
And this is the start of two immeasurably pleasurable, light hearted, Christmas Regency romances that dovetail beautifully.
Think of Ayckbourn's Norman Conquests and how the play happens in three different rooms over three separate plays and you get the idea of how these stories intertwine.
We see each story within the individual's scope but outside the room the other story is going on.
I loved Lady Evangeline's efforts in A Lady’s Gift for Seduction by Jess Michaels, with her scientist Henry Killam and all her fears and the resolution. Full marks to Henry for his patience and determination.
I equally adored Thomasina Lesley's conundrum in A Lady’s Gift for Scandal by Elizabeth Essex . Tamsin of the glasses and managing ways forging ahead with Simon Cathcart who's hiding behind a simplistic outer bearing. Tamsin requires to be 'a little bit ruined' so that she can lead an independent life. Simon is to be the ruiner.
So the fun begins! Ideas hatched at an evening event take on different realities in the fullness of the sunlight.
Christmas cheer indeed. After of course, the requisite struggles for both parties.

A Passionate Pen ARC via NetGalley

Review excerpted from my blog post over at FanSciHist (https://fanscihist.wordpress.com/2019/10/15/betrothed-by-christmas-by-jess-michaels-and-elizabeth-essex/)

My Rating: 4.5 stars

Library recommendation: Recommended for public library holiday-themed historical romance ebook collections.

Warning: Hereafter, you chance spoilers. I will try never to reveal major plot points, but to review any book, you must reveal some parts of the story.


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Number of titles I have read by this author: 2 (Jess Michaels); 1 (Elizabeth Essex)

Love story speed: Medium burn (both novellas)

Relationship dynamics: The Gentleman Scientist (H1) and the Control-Mad Lady (h1) (A Lady’s Gift for Seduction) / The Gentleman Wallflower (H2) and the Determined Bluestocking (h2) (A Lady’s Gift for Scandal)

Sexual content: Some; both “on-screen” and explicit

Triggers: None flagged.

Grammar/Editing: This ARC had a fair number of typos and missed punctuation marks.

Review: This review will be a bit different from my normal format because I am reviewing two novellas within one review. That being said, both novellas in this “holiday duet” set a quick pace, and evidence a good level of research of the time period. Some license is taken with historical events, but this is acknowledged by the authors when it occurs.

Both stories take a familiar trope within the romance genre, and reverse the gender roles. Where typically the heroes are looking for a biddable wife or a marriage of convenience with a wallflower, here it is the heroines who are taking the lead and making the arrangements, and the heroes are the ones following the ladies’ lead. This is a refreshing take on these tropes. We so rarely see Regency romances that show sidelined men and so many that feature sidelined women. Both heroines are “diamonds of the first water” here, with the option to find a typical man in the ton, but the typical men are all essentially described as buffoons. I really liked both of the heroes in these novellas, and I also liked the second heroine (Tamsin). I wasn’t as enamored of Evangeline, the control freak, who withholds forgiveness for very little reason, and seems to expect major concessions to garner her forgiveness, even if she says she does not. I found the other characters far more straight forward and likable. I also thought the overlap between the stories and how they were linked together by the authors was well done.

The supporting characters were sufficiently developed in both stories and I could imagine at least one character from A Lady’s Gift for Seduction deserving their own story. It would be brilliant to have a gentleman wallflower series from these authors because it is an excellent concept that I would like to see more of.

Literary Mashup version: Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland meets a less-bumbling version of Emma. Expect many tropes to be turned on their heads, a sprinkling of nonsense, and a healthy dose of pragmatic matchmaking.



Full disclosure: I received a free advance review copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

As I adore both of these authors, I knew this would be fabulous. Was I right? Oh yes because I could not put it down until I had read both stories. What was a surprise was the different twist of the "male wallflower"! What a great concept and one I'd like to see explored more.
When two ladies get together and decide they need to avoid having their fathers choose a husband for them, their lives change forever!
Lady Evangeline has known Henry for a long time and thinks he will be a husband she can control. He is an astronomer and seems harmless. But Henry surprises her and has her seeing "stars" when she see the other side to him that awakens her feelings! Loved this unexpected romance that was steamy but also sweet.
Our second lady, Miss Tamsin Lesley is a bluestocking and wants nothing more to use her intellect and not be contained by a man. But when she thinks up a scheme and turns to Simon Cathcart, known as "Simple Simon", she is in for a big surprise! He is anything but simple unless you consider Simply marvelous!!
I highly recommend this duo of novellas that will keep you entertained with their humor and romance!! Loved them!

A wonderful pair of novellas where diamonds who haven't met good matches take things into their own hands and create the future THEY want. The tales wouldn't be truly empowering without men worth creating a future with, and both heroes are swoonworthy. They are also the male equivalent of wallflowers, which is a refreshing change from many Regencies. As much as I love reading about wallflower girls meeting bold men, it's a lot of fun to have these novellas show us girls who should have every advantage going after guys that most people would ignore (but who turn out to be every bit as delicious as the rakes). I enjoyed both stories equally. These were my first reads for both authors, and I'll definitely be reading more. Highly recommended.

A Lady’s Gift for Seduction by Jess Michaels
Lady Evangeline is a duke’s daughter & fears her father will match her to his own advantage, not hers. So she sets about trying to seduce her friend, astronomer Henry Killam. Two well matched people who lay down the stipulations for their marriage of convenience, with benefits.
A Lady’s Gift for Scandal by Elizabeth Essex
Miss Tamsin Lesley desires above all else to be a bluestocking and lead an intellectual life. The only thing standing in her way is her father’s heir, who wants her along with her father’s estate. To foil him, Tamsin enlists the services of masculine wallflower Simon Cathcart to ruin her.
Evangeline & Tamsin meet at a social gathering & whilst talking Evangeline tells Tamsin the way to avoid her father’s heir is to be compromised. They head off to the library where Henry & Simon are keeping out of sight. I loved both short stories which shared the same time frame. Well portrayed characters with depth & the pace of each story was very good & didn’t lag in fact I read them each in a sitting. Two lovely novellas that complimented each other
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read

Two delightful, short stories that find their heroines finding passion in unexpected places. These stories are the perfect way to spend an afternoon with a cup of tea and some hot leading men!

For the Jess Michaels story, A Lady's Gift for Seduction, I know and love her work, so I couldn't wait to read this one after reading her tweets about a nerdy hero who likes to pleasure a woman. I truly adored the story of Evangeline and Henry. Nothing like the smart, hot nerd!

Having never read a story by Elizabeth Essex, I'm now going book hunting to find some others after reading A Lady's Gift for Scandal! Tasmin finds Simon asleep in a room waiting for his aunt and she propositions him to ruin her, so she can avoid the marriage mart! It's a delightful turn of events and I couldn't wait to see where it would go.