Longing For Home by Sarah M. Eden

Longing for Home: Hope Springs by Sarah M. Eden

"Katie Macauley gave up her lifelong dream of returning to Ireland in order to make a home for herself in Hope Springs, Wyoming, but her future has never been so uncertain.

 Katie’s heart still remains sharply divided between playful Tavish and steady Joseph, though she feels ill-prepared to make a decision. Furthermore, the town is more divided than ever with both the Irish and the Reds stealing property, burning buildings, and endangering lives. In the midst of the growing unrest, tem­peratures drop quickly, too quickly, and Irish nightmares of fam­ine and cold resurface as the little Wyoming town struggles to beat the harsh winter.

Katie makes one sacrifice after another to keep the peace and help see her loved ones through the difficult days ahead, but will her efforts be enough? Can the town make amends before their hatred consumes them all? And will Katie find the love she has been searching for as well as a home to call her own?" (summary from publisher's website)

The sequel to Longing for Home, continues the story of Katie McKauley, an Irish immigrant who accepts a housekeeping job in a divided Wyoming town. I felt like Hope Springs was a really satisfying read. After Longing for Home was over I really was annoyed about how the whole love triangle was set up. By the end of the Hope Springs I felt like the author put a unique spin on the whole trope. I felt like Eden took advantage of the triangle to take an honest and comparative look at two different romantic relationships.  This allowed reader to discover along with Katie what a relationship based on true love looks and feels like.  I really enjoyed both the main characters and all the side characters too. I wish Eden would do a book with some of the more prominent minor characters because they all have interesting stories too.

Longing For Home by Sarah M. Eden

Longing For Home by Sarah M. Eden

"Though she was only a child during the darkest days of Ireland’s Great Famine, Katie Macauley feels responsible for the loss of her family’s land and the death of her sister. Now a woman grown, Katie has left Ireland for America and the promise of earning money enough to return home again and plead for her family’s forgiveness. She arrives in Hope Springs, Wyoming Territory, a town sharply divided between the Americans who have settled there, with their deep hatred of the Irish, and the Irish immigrants who have come searching for a place to call home. Her arrival tips the precarious balance, and the feud erupts anew. Even in the midst of hatred and violence, however, Katie finds reason to hope. Two men, as different as they are intriguing, vie for her heart, turning her thoughts for the first time toward a future away from Ireland. Katie must now make the hardest decision of her life: stay and give her heart a chance at love, or return home and give her soul the possibility of peace." (summary from DB website)

When Katie arrives to accept a job in a small Wyoming town she doesn’t expect to be found lacking because she Irish. The fact that she suddenly is responsible to take care of two small children is a deal breaker also. Stranded in a town where the residents have literally split themselves down the middle as Irish and non- Irish there really are no other job openings for someone of her nationality. With a fierce determination she manages to renegotiate the terms of being a housekeeper for Joseph Archer. He reluctantly takes her in on a temporary basis until he can find a replacement. Katie comes to get to know the Irish side of the town, including a ceaseless flirt named Tavish. He and his family help Katie to navigate the unfamiliar waters of the town and become her friends. Though, Tavish slowly comes to mean more to her over time.

One of the best parts of this book is the hilarious banter that the characters toss back and forth between one another. Eden has created a cast of real and interesting characters that are sure to make you chuckle a time or two. Though, I occasionally wondered if Katie’s lack of reserve when it came to snapping comebacks was out of character with her background as a servant who did her best to be quiet and unnoticed. There is also a love triangle that seemed lopsided to me, which left me wondering why it was included as the main conflict for one of the minor characters. I’m kind of hoping it doesn’t randomly come back in the second book and throw everything into chaos.  Otherwise, the setting, characters, and conflicts of this story drew me in and I enjoyed the read.

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Drops of Gold by Sarah M. Eden

Drops of Gold by Sarah M. Eden
"When her father dies and leaves her completely destitute, Marion can think of only one thing to do--make a new life for herself. Commencing a life of duplicity, Marion transforms herself into Mary Wood--governess. In possession of a forged letter of recommendation and cloaked in the anonymity of her new identity, she enters a life of self-imposed servitude as teacher and caretaker of young Miss Caroline Jonquil of Farland Meadows.

Her idyllic daydream vision of life at the Meadows is dashed when she finds a child desperately in need of hope and a cold and sorrowful home haunted by the past. With her characteristic sunny disposition, Marion casts her spell upon the household and slowly brings to life the long-forgotten joy of those within. Layton Jonquil is a man tormented by the lies surrounding the death of his late wife, but he cannot deny his growing attraction for the beautiful governess whose goodness and optimism have touched his dormant heart. Their connection grows ever stronger, and despite the impropriety of harboring feelings for a servant, Layton's heart whispers that this is the woman he's destined to love. But when Layton's fears about the past become too much to bear and the falsehoods in which they are entangled threaten to shatter his and Marion's blossoming attachment, will true love conquer all?" (amazon summary)

As long as I’m on a regency roll I might as well make a full confession. I enjoyed this one too. This one plays on mistaken identity tropes. Marion, a Lady, falls into hard times and has to disguise herself as a governess. Her new master Layton Jonquil holds a dark secret that makes him moody and strict. Marion only sees the more lighthearted side of him emerge when he interacts with his beautiful and charming daughter, Caroline. I really like Eden’s Jonquil family series, as they are a big family of brothers that try to take care of one another. I have to admit that I love how sneaky Layon’s older brother Philip is while he goes about trying to help Layton, staging conversations and dropping hints. It is pretty hilarious and also really sweet. Something I also really liked about this book was that much of the plot hinged on nuances of old English law. That made this book feel unique and stand out for a regency era novel. I found the moral quandaries that Layton faced very compelling and interesting to read about. I’d recommend this one highly.

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Glimmer of Hope by Sarah M. Eden

Glimmer of Hope by Sarah M. Eden
"Stunning Miranda Harford once had the world at her feet. She was young, carefree, and desperately in love. But when her new husband left for London without her, her world fell apart. Devastated by his abandonment, Miranda fled their home, taking residence at her husband’s rarely visited countryside estate. For three years, she lived alone. But now, as the holidays draw near, an unexpected visitor arrives . . .

Carter Alexander Harford, Seventh Viscount Devereaux, is a man driven to succeed. His work is his life, and the position of Prime Minister of England is within reach. But in truth, Carter is a man haunted by lost love. Estranged from his beautiful wife, Carter is shocked to find Miranda—the woman he loved and who he believed left him—in residence at his country home.

As plans for a holiday party move forward, the uneasy couple realizes that to avoid further scandal, they must keep up appearances in a charade of marital happiness. Thrust together by fate, it quickly becomes clear that they have both been living beneath a conspired cloud of misunderstanding. As family, career, and social pressures threaten to keep them apart, can love have even a glimmer of hope?" (summary from Amazon)

Another regency! This one centers around an estranged married couple that meets up again at a house party. I found this one very interesting as both parties think they are the wronged one, but the couple was separated deliberately by deception, and I felt so bad for Carter. Seriously, my heart just broke for him and for Miranda.  It was so interesting to see them build their relationship again after they both distrusted one another. This is a tragic love story that has a hopeful ending. I couldn’t put this one down until I finished it!

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The Kiss of a Stranger by Sarah M. Eden

Kiss of a Stranger by Sarah M. Eden

"Crispin, Lord Cavratt, thoroughly and scandalously kisses a serving woman in the garden of a country inn, he assumes the encounter will be of no consequence. But he could be more mistaken--the maid is not only a lady of birth, she's the niece of a very large, exceptionally angry gentleman, who claims Crispin has compromised his niece beyond redemption. The dismayed young lord has no choice but to marry Miss Catherine Thorndale, who lacks both money and refinement and assumes all men are as vicious as her guardian uncle.
Trapped between an unwanted marriage and a hasty annulment, which would leave his reputation tainted and Catherine's utterly ruined, Crispin begins guiding his wife's transformation from a socially petrified country girl to a lady of society. Their unfolding relationship reveals encouraging surprises for both of them, and privately each of them wonders if theirs may become a true marriage of the heart. But their hopes are dashed when forces conspire to split asunder what fate has granted. As a battle of wits escalates into a life-threatening confrontation, will it be possible for Crispin and Catherine to live happily ever after?" (jacket summary)

After enjoying Friends and Foes so much I decided to pick up another Sarah M. Eden novel. This novel has tie in characters with the previous novel that I read and it was fun to find out more about the characters in this book. Crispin ends up marrying Catherine, but plans to annul the marriage as soon as he can, but finds that the legal issues behind such an action to be more complex than he anticipated. Not being able to bring himself to drag Catherine through a very public and embarrassing trial against her uncle in order to obtain an annulment Crispin decides to hold off until he figures things out. Especially since he has started to enjoy his wife company and wants to learn more about her.

Catherine is at first just grateful to be away from the abuses of her crazy and controlling uncle and finds herself fortunate that Crispin is so kind to her despite the circumstances. Knowing that Crispin is looking for ways to annul their marriage, she must try to find arrangements suitable for a woman with a ruined reputation, which is what she will face one the entire marriage is over. Catherine finds herself depressed about the prospect of annulling the marriage as she grows more attached to Crispin. She fears that he does not feel the same and wonders if it would be better to live life ruined rather than unloved. Then her uncle come back in town, encouraging an annulment to the marriage he forced her into in the first place. This causes great confusion until they discover that Catherine was left a sizable inheritance by a relative.  With such a prize at stake her uncles actions become more desperate and dangerous.  

I really liked this book, but found myself really wanting to know what exactly Catherine’s uncle was after. He kept insisting that he was after more than just the money and I wondered exactly what he meant by that. I wanted to know more of his motivations but that plot line isn’t ever really followed up. Other than that I really liked the rest of the book and the interactions between the characters. I enjoyed Friends and Foes more but this was still an excellent story and a good read.

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Friends and Foes by Sarah M. Eden

Friends and Foes by Sarah M. Eden
"After five years of tracking and capturing spies on English soil, Philip Jonquil, Earl of Lampton, is in pursuit of his last quarry. But at a traveler’s inn, he encounters an unexpected and far more maddening foe: Sorrel Kendrick, a young lady who is strikingly pretty, shockingly outspoken, and entirely unimpressed with him. Indeed, Sorrel cannot believe the nerve of this gentleman, who rudely accuses her of theft and insults her feminine dignity. Doubly annoyed when they both end up at a party hosted by mutual friends, Philip and Sorrel privately declare war on one another. But Philip’s tactics, which range from flirting to indifference, soon backfire as he finds himself reluctantly enjoying Sorrel’s company; and, much to her dismay, Sorrel finds Philip’s odd manner to be increasingly endearing. In the midst of this waning war and growing attraction, Philip catches wind of the French spy he’s been tracking, and Sorrel inadvertently stumbles upon a crucial piece of the puzzle, making her indispensable to the mission. But can two proud hearts negotiate a ceasefire when cooperation matters most?" (dust jacket summary) 

 I am very happy to report that I really loved this novel. I adored the witty and funny dialogue between the characters, and found that I really empathized with both Sorrel and Philip. The novel for the most part takes place at an estate in the countryside in Suffolk, as Philip is invited there for an extended stay over Christmas. This is convenient since the French spy he is looking for tends to do his business in that area.

He quickly makes enemies with Sorrel, as he dreadfully offends her while teasing her that the cane she carries about is not very feminine. It is then revealed that the cane is more than just a fashion choice, but a necessity on account of her lame leg. Horrified to have made such a mistake Philip tries to apologize only to find himself entangled in a war of words.

I thought Eden did really well with showing how the characters came to like one another despite the fact they started their relationship out bickering with one another. I totally wanted the book to keep going after I finished reading it. I loved how Philip’s watched over his big family and the courage Sorrell had when facing her challenges with her lame leg. I would totally recommend this book to those that like a good regency or historical romance. 

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