Loyally, Luke by Pepper Basham

 

Luke Edgemont doesn't believe in meet-cutes, romance tropes or Hallmark movie moments. So when he finds himself on the island nation of Skymar in the middle of all three...with a princess, no less! ...he's not sure what to do. Because he's just in Skymar temporarily to help renovate an orphanage and then he's going home to America. And there's no way he could ever be with a princess; he's a flannel-wearing carpenter who's a bit of a grumpy introvert, not the suave Prince Charming type. But the more time he spends with Ellie the more danger he's in of falling hopelessly in love with her. And that's just asking for a broken heart.

My thoughts:  I loved Basham's previous novel, Authentically, Izzy, about Luke's cousin, but I love this book even more. Luke's such a great character. I loved the banter between him and Ellie, and his sweet interactions with the orphans. His texts with his sisters are pretty funny, too. And all their movie references from Rambo to The Princess Bride totally made me laugh. This is a delightfully charming romance with humor, heart, a little faith, some fishing, a Cinderella-like ball, and a very cute happy ending. My kind of romance. 

Happy Reading!

On reading Wodehouse...

P.G. Wodehouse is one of those authors I've been meaning to read for years. So many people seem to love his books I always figured I'd probably like them, too, but for some reason I kept putting it off. Bookish procrastination is one of my many faults. But this month, I finally checked out a couple from the library and actually read them. I'm just sorry it took me so long. Because they're as fun and charming and humorous as everyone says.

Lisa @ TBR313, who's a great fan of Wodehouse, recommended two of her favorites:  Leave it to Psmith and The Code of the Woosters.  Sadly, neither was readily available at my library, although I hope to read both soon. Instead, I decided to start with Enter Jeeves which contains the first eight Jeeves short stories, and the funny and delightful comedy of manners, The Adventures of Sally.  

What can I say?  I loved them both. You can now count me a fan of P.G. Wodehouse, too. Here's a taste from each book so you can see what I mean.

From Enter Jeeves:  
Jeeves--my man, you know--is really a most extraordinary chap. So capable. Honestly, I shouldn't know what to do without him...I rely on him at every turn. I'm a bit short of brain myself:  the old bean would appear to have been constructed more for ornament than for use, don't you know; but give me five minutes to talk the thing over with Jeeves and I'm game to advise any one about anything.

 And from The Adventures of Sally:

Sally looked contentedly down the long table. She felt happy at last. Everybody was talking and laughing now, and her party, rallying after an uncertain start, was plainly the success she had hoped it would be....At her end of the table the conversation had turned once more to the great vital topic of Sally's legacy and what she ought to do with it. The next best thing to having money of one's own, is to dictate the spending of somebody else's, and Sally's guests were finding a good deal of satisfaction in arranging a Budget for her.

And up next?

Happy Reading!

Some bookish happiness...

Sometimes I just want a book that not only makes me smile, but that ends with a happy sigh. Drops of Gold does both. Written by Sarah M. Eden, this Regency romance has endearing characters, a nice dose of humor, and a happy ending. Is it perfect? No. Is it predictable? Yes. Do either of those things lessen its enjoyability quotient? Not for me.

Want a brief summary?  Newly orphaned and now penniless, 19-year-old Marion applies for the job of governess at Farland Meadows with a forged letter of recommendation and an assumed name. As Mary Wood, her job is to take care of young Caroline Jonquil, whose widowed father, Layton, is haunted not only by grief, but by guilt. Marion does her best to bring joy to both Caroline and her father, never intending to fall in love with Layton Jonquil--not just because he's her employer, but because she has secrets of her own. Only Layton is a hard man to resist. I bet you can guess the rest. The thing that makes it fun is that Layton's six brothers show up in some of Eden's other novels.

So, there you have it. My happy book of the week. The one that made me smile and sigh at the end. But as much as I liked Drops of Gold, I have to admit that I liked Eden's The Kiss of a Stranger and Seeking Persephone even better. So you might want to start with those.

Happy Reading!

A Hero's Guide...

"There's a lot you don't know about Prince Charming...Some of you may not even realize that there's more than one Prince Charming. And that none of them are actually named Charming. No one is. Charming isn't a name; it's an adjective...(And) if there was anything that Liam, Duncan, Gustav, and Frederic all had in common, it was that none of them were very happy about being a Prince Charming. Their mutual hatred of that name was a big part of what brought them together. Not that teaming up was necessarily the best idea for these guys."

Whatever you do, don't dismiss this book simply because it's shelved in children's fiction. The Hero's Guide to Saving Your Kingdom by Christopher Healey has a lot to offer to readers of all ages. First and foremost, it's funny. (Laugh out loud funny in some places.) I loved getting the princes' perspectives on Cinderella, Rapunzel, Snow White and Sleeping Beauty, especially Prince Liam's. (He's the prince from the Sleeping Beauty story and by far the handsomest and most heroic of all the princes. Unfortunately for him, in this book Briar Rose is much more Briar than Rose--you would have called off the wedding, too.) These four princes are tired of getting short-changed in all the stories. After all, they're the heroes! Each one is uniquely flawed (and not always that heroic), but all of them made me laugh, especially Duncan, Snow White's talkative, eccentric and excitable prince. In fact, the only prince I didn't like quite as much as the others was hardheaded and impulsive Gustav, who charges into every situation without thinking, but even he had his humorous moments. Frederic is the quietest of all the princes and the least like a hero. (Most of the time he just wants to go home.) Their adventures are more like misadventures, and at times it's questionable whether or not they can save themselves let alone save a kingdom. Then there are the princesses. Ella is by far the best; she's adventurous and brave and the kind of girl who doesn't need a prince to rescue her...she'll rescue herself, thank you very much. I also liked Prince Liam's younger sister, Lila; she's daring and smart just like her brother. There are also trolls, dwarfs, a giant, a dragon, and an evil witch. Healy takes these classic fairy tale characters and makes them fresh, surprising, and fun. I loved everything about this book. (And so will you.)

Happy Reading!