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the hellions of halstead hall

To Wed A Wild Lord by Sabrina Jeffries

By Barb Drozdowich

Welcome to Sugarbeat’s Books – The Home of the Romance Novel!

sugarbeat's books romance novels romance book reviewsWelcome also to Series Sunday!

Series Sundays is the day when I celebrate books written in series.  For the past few weeks I have been posting reviews for Sabrina Jeffries‘ latest series – The Hellions of Halstead Hall. This series started quite some time ago – don’t we always wish that our favorite authors could write faster – and publishers publish books faster – anyways, it is nearing an end.  Today I’m posting my thoughts on the 4th book in this 5 book series.  I have to admit, I’ve finished the 5 th book – I had to haunt the bookstore on release day – but that’s another story 🙂  The 5th book, as you’ll find out next week is a wonderful conclusion to this latest series.

Today’s topic is Gabe – the youngest male in this interesting group of siblings – and the woman who can challenge him!  Enjoy!

To Wed a Wild Lord by Sabrina Jeffries
ISBN: 978-1-4516-4240-7
Publisher: Pocket Star Books
Release: 2011
Source: I purchased a copy of this book to read and review

sugarbeat's books romance novel romance book reviews interviews guest posts historical contemporary author promotions To Fulfill his grandmother’s ultimatum, Lord Gabriel Sharpe pursues a spitfire he believes desperately need him. Then the tables are turned….

Like everything daredevil Gabe Sharpe does, wooing Virginia Waverly is a high-stakes game. Ever since her brother, Roger died racing Lord Gabriel, Virginia had yearned to take her revenge on the reckless lord by beating him at his own sport. But when she challenges Lord Gabriel to a race, the hellion called the “Angel of Death” counters with a marriage proposal! Gabe knows Virginia is in dire financial straits – so why not marry her and solve both of their problems? She claims to be appalled by his proposal, but her response to his kisses says otherwise. And when the two of them begin to unravel the truth behind Roger’s death, Gabe takes the greatest gamble of all, offering the courageous beauty something more precious than any inheritance: true love.

 

To Wed a Wild Lord is the fourth book in Sabrina Jeffries’s The Hellions of Halstead Hall series. This series is about a group of siblings who lost both of their parents in what was assumed to be a murder/suicide many years ago. These siblings – the Sharpe siblings were brought up by their maternal grandmother – a brewer and a commoner. Hetty Plumtree, the grandmother is getting on in years and none of her grandchildren show any signs of settling down and providing her with grandchildren. She decides to take matters into her own hands and announces that none of her grandchildren will get a penny of her considerable estate if they don’t ALL marry within the year.

To not giveaway any of the details of this delightful series, we have had the pleasure of reading the stories of 3 of the siblings, and there are two more to go. To Wed a Wild Lord is the story of Gabe, the youngest of the boys. He is a hellion in his own right, gambling and horse-racing to keep him in pocket cash. One unfortunate accident several years ago saw the death of his friend, Roger Waverly during one of these races. Since then, Gabe doesn’t seen to care if he lives or dies and races one risky race after another to the extent that he is referred to as the “Angel of Death”. When he is challenged to a race by Virginia Waverly, Roger’s sister, he sees a solution to the ultimatum from his grandmother. He figures if he courts and marries Virginia, he provides for her financially because her brother can no longer, and he makes his grandmother happy. Convincing Virginia to marry the man she holds responsible for her brother’s death is a stretch, but Gabe is up to the task.

I found this book to be another delightful installment in the story of the Sharpe siblings. Starting with the first book, the story of the parent’s supposed murder/suicide starts to be investigated and the information that is uncovered in this book takes us one step closer to finding out the truth. There are alot of the aspects of the story that weave themselves through each part of this series. I’m not certain each book could be read as a stand-alone. Read in order, the books form a cohesive group. I like the different view of the siblings in this book. I found this book somewhat darker than the rest, I think because of Gabe’s fatalistic attitude. Sabrina Jeffries does such a wonderful job of creating characters. Each book of her’s allows us insight into a new set of main characters as well as a continuing look at the characters that have already been talked about. What was particularly interesting is that Hetty gets a potential love interest in this book. I’m looking forward to reading more about that hopefully in Celia’s story which is due in the spring.

Sabrina Jeffries has the ability to create a world in which the reader immerses themselves and just experiences that story as it is unfolded before them. Time passes without notice, and the story is weaved like a tapestry with all the connecting threads.

Although I am a long time lover of Ms. Jeffries work and quite biased, I am really enjoying this latest series, and recommend it highly! I’m looking forward to Celia’s story!

Related articles
  • Series Sunday – How to Woo a Reluctant Lady by Sabrina Jeffries (sugarbeatsbooks.com)
  • Series Sunday – Review of The Truth of Lord Stoneville by Sabrina Jeffries (sugarbeatsbooks.com)
  • Series Sunday – Review – A Hellion in Her Bed by Sabrina Jeffries (sugarbeatsbooks.com)
  • TO WED A WILD LORD by Sabrina Jeffries…review…. (mybookaddictionreviews.wordpress.com)
  • Sabrina Jeffries: The French Maid (anneglover.wordpress.com)
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The Truth of Lord Stoneville by Sabrina Jeffries

By Barb Drozdowich

Welcome to Sugarbeat’s Books – The Home of the Romance Novel!

sugarbeat's books romance novels romance book reviewsWelcome also to Series Sunday – the day of the week where we look at a series of books that I’m reading.  Today we are revisiting a series that is just ending.

Don’t we wish that our favorite authors could write faster?

The Hellions of Halstead Hall is Sabrina Jeffries latest series.  The first book was published in January of 2010 and I’ve just gotten a copy of the last book of this series.  I thought I’d repost the reviews that I’ve already posted, and talk about this series as a group.

The Hellions are a collection of 5 siblings who lost both their parents to what was assumed to be a murder/suicide, but as we work through the books, we find out more about this.  The siblings are raised by their maternal grandmother, Hetty Plumtree, a no nonsense woman who owns a brewery.  The series starts with the story of Oliver, the Marquess of Stoneville.

The Truth About Lord Stoneville by Sabrina Jeffries

ISBN: 978-1-4391-6751-9
Publisher: Pocket Books Romance

Released: January 2010

Source: I purchased this book to read and review

sugarbeats books romance novels romance book reviews

The oldest of the scandalous Sharpes—five hell-raising siblings tainted still by the gossip surrounding the “accidental” deaths of their parents two decades ago-—Oliver Sharpe, the Marquess of Stoneville, like his brothers and sisters, has lived life on his own terms. In his case, as an unrepentant rakehell. Or so life had played out until Grandmother Hetty got a bee in her bonnet. Now the five Sharpe siblings face a daunting ultimatum: Marry by year’s end—or kiss their inheritance good-bye.

Oliver vows to fulfill the bargain in true Sharpe style—by bringing home a fake fiancé from a brothel! But his scheme backfires when he foils a robbery and rescues an American beauty instead. Maria Butterfield came to London to find her missing fiancé, but her prior engagement won’t stop Oliver from getting what he wants: Maria in his bed. His rebellious charade may just call Hetty’s bluff, but not before it become all too real—stirring up a love that tempts him to be a hellion no more.

The Truth About Lord Stoneville is the first book in Sabrina Jeffries’ latest series of books. Being a long time fan of Sabrina Jeffries, I snapped up the first book when it hit the shelves and sat and read it in one (long) afternoon!

Sabrina Jeffries fans may recognize that Lord Stoneville is a character from the School of Heiress series. (Ms. Jeffries talks about how many requests she got to write Lord Stoneville’s story in an interview I’ve read)

Oliver Sharpe, the Marquess of Stoneville is the eldest of 5 siblings who lost their parents early. He and his siblings are raised by their grandmother, Hetty Plumtree. It is now 20 years after the day that the parents died. The death was the great scandal of the time, but the actual details of the day their parents died seems to be somewhat of a question. Oliver, as the eldest, bore much of the scandal. He was sent away to boarding school – and we readers of historical romances know how nasty boys at boarding school can be!

Oliver’s grandmother, Hetty, is tired of waiting for her grandchildren to marry and has decided to issue an ultimatum: If they don’t all marry by the time she dies, none of them will see any of her money. Oliver decides to teach his grandmother a lesson in meddling by choosing his bride from a brothel! He has no real interest in actually getting married as he has learned from the horrible example his parents set.

Maria Butterfield is an American who has come to England to track down her missing fiance. She has a run in with Oliver at a whorehouse and decides to take him up on his offer: his help finding her missing fiance for posing as his wife to be. Really, how hard could it be??

The resulting story is hilarious at times, heart wrenching at times, and overall an excellent read!
The character of Maria’s cousin Freddy is wonderfully written. He is so wanting to be a protector. I can see him like a little puffed up robin trying to protect his chick! He would just blurt out whatever was on his mind. So funny! The various parts that dealt with Oliver’s parents’ deaths were absolutely painful. I found myself hurting for that little boy left in that situation, and cheering for him to recover under the ministrations of Maria.

Although I haven’t met a Sabrina Jeffries book I don’t like, I really enjoyed reading this first look at the Hellions of Halstead Hall series. The characters, whether likable or not so likable are well written and well developed. The love scenes steam my glasses, and I find myself lost in another world a mere few pages after beginning. I am looking forward to the next book in the series!

 

Cruise over to Sabrina Jeffries’ website to read more on this series of books and come back next week for the next book in the series!

 

Related articles
  • Early Review: To Wed a Wild Lord by Sabrina Jeffries (csilibrarian.wordpress.com)
  • TO WED A WILD LORD by Sabrina Jeffries…review…. (mybookaddictionreviews.wordpress.com)
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