Sophia Rose Reviews: Her Country Gentleman by Sian Ann Bessey, Sarah M Eden, and Rebecca Connolly

Today Sophia Rose takes us back in time to review a historical romance anthology.
Enjoy!

Her Country Gentleman by Sian Ann Bessey, Sarah M Eden, and Rebecca Connolly

Narration by Kim Bretton

#1 Timeless Georgian Collection

Historical Romance

Publisher: Mirror Press

Published: 2.15.22

Time:  7 hours 31 minutes

Speed: 1.3x

Rating: 4.5 stars

Format: Audible

Source:  AustenProse

Sellers: Amazon

ADD TO: GoodReads

GoodReads Blurb:

London is not the only place to find love....

'Spring at Tribbley Hall'
by Sian Ann Bessey

When Charlotte's grandmother invites her to accompany her to Norfolk, Charlotte jumps at the chance to visit the sea and escape the fuss surrounding her sister's wedding preparations in London. Lord William Cheston, on the other hand, is most unhappy when his mother informs him that her old friend and a granddaughter are coming to stay. Not only is it lambing season, but he's also dealing with the mysterious loss of several sheep. The last thing he needs is a child underfoot.

When Charlotte and William first meet, he does not realize that the lovely young lady is the granddaughter in question, and she assumes that the man dressed in work clothes in the barn is a servant. A dinner party at the house introduces Charlotte to some of the gentry living nearby but cannot compare to her experience the next evening, when she and William battle to save the life of a newborn lamb.

Soon afterward, Charlotte stumbles upon a clue to William's sheep's disappearance. And when her life is placed in jeopardy, William is forced to choose between saving Charlotte and catching the thief.

'Love of My Heart'
by Sarah M. Eden

Cordelia Wakefield has never lived anywhere but London and is not overly happy when her family is forced to retrench to a small estate near Teviotbrae, Scotland. An ill-fated game of battledore and shuttlecock brings her face-to-racquet with Sebastian, who runs the home farm at nearby Teviot Castle. What begins as a clash of personalities, expectations, and preferences, soon leads to a friendship neither had expected.
As the magic of Teviotbrae weaves its spell, the possibility of something more than friendship begins to blossom. But what future is there for a lowly farmer and a London lady?

'Miss Smith Goes to Wiltshire'
by Rebecca Connolly

Martha Smith wants to marry for love, and will not be persuaded otherwise. She is highly sought after in Society for her beauty and status, but refuses to consider any suitor whose only claim is that his prospects meet with her mother's approval. Her widowed mother has had enough of Martha's romantic sensibilities, and is sending her to stay with unfortunate cousins in Wiltshire to show her that marrying for love is a risk that is too great.

Benjamin Steele, Lord Hillier, is working on his new and dilapidated estate when he first catches sight of the striking Martha Smith. Becoming Lord Hillier has only brought him a house that needs significant repairs, tenant farms that had been abandoned, and only the money he'd already possessed. He wants meaning in his life, and he's more than willing to work for it. Though worlds apart in all else, on this point they can agree: a life of meaning would change everything.

 

Sophia Rose's Review:

I’ve enjoyed some of the Timeless Collection anthologies in the past and was particularly jazzed because this was the first Georgian Era set of stories and they were all city girl heads to the countryside romances.  Two of the three authors were already delightfully familiar, but I was equally excited for a new to me author and to have a narrator who I’d not experienced, too.

 

The three novellas were all standalone though they share the same premise of young lady leaving London and into the countryside where they experience the country and a charming romance.

 

In ‘Spring at Tribbley Hall’, I was tickled that the story includes a suspense element when Lord Cheston’s sheep are being stolen, but the first meeting involving a cute puppy and mistaken identity set the tone and the rest of the romance engineered by William’s mama and Charlotte’s grandmamma was a fabulous start.

 

From there, ‘Love of My Heart’ has poor Cordelia Wakefield along with her spendthrift family departing expensive London for Scotland and a fresh start.  An infamous meet cute takes place between her and a certain farmer, Sebastian.  Cordelia won my respect the way she really tried to keep her chin up with such a trying family.  Sebastian was a solid man who is not exactly what she thought at first and they were splendid together as was this story.

 

Finally, ‘Miss Smith Goes to Wiltshire’ has Martha Smith sent off to the country as some sort of punishment that was far from it for Martha who takes to country life like a champ and strikes up a romance with the new Lord Hillier who is working to turn his newly acquired estate around.  A sweet romp!

 

Kim Bretton did a stellar job of matching accent, characters, and the tone of the stories.  I settled right into her storytelling and was able to get lost into the world of the stories so that I was reluctant to stop listening.

 

All in all, I absolutely adored all this love in the country and the time period.  Each story was unique and came to romance a little differently, paced nicely, they were well-developed, and were quick in the telling as novellas.  If someone wants some sweet and charming historical romances with not much angst, I would definitely suggest this first of the Timeless Georgian collections.

 

Author Bio:

Sian Ann Bessey was born in Cambridge, England, but grew up on the island of Anglesey off the coast of North Wales. She left her homeland to attend university in the U.S., where she earned a bachelor's degree in communications with a minor in English.
She began her writing career as a student, publishing several magazine articles while still in college. Since then she has published historical romance and romantic suspense novels, along with a variety of children's books. She is a USA Today best selling author and a Whitney Award finalist.
Although Sian doesn't have the opportunity to speak Welsh very often anymore, she can still wrap her tongue around, "Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch." She loves to travel and experience other cultures, but when she's home, her favorite activities are spending time with her family, cooking, and reading.

 

Sarah M. Eden is a USA Today best-selling author of witty and charming historical romances, including 2020’s Foreword Reviews INDIE Awards Gold Winner for Romance, Forget Me Not, and 2020 Holt Medallion finalist, Healing Hearts. She is a two-time “Best of State” Gold Medal winner for fiction and a three-time Whitney Award winner. Combining her obsession with history and her affinity for tender love stories, Sarah loves crafting deep characters and heartfelt romances set against rich historical backdrops. She holds a bachelor’s degree in research and happily spends hours perusing the reference shelves of her local library. 

 

[Rebecca Connolly] was born once upon a time, and I started making up stories right away. Eventually, I started writing them down, and never stopped! I have a day job, which gets in the way of my writing, but it pays the bills so I CAN write, so I guess that's okay! I am a bookworm, which I think is key to being a writer, and I am always looking for inspiration! I live in Indiana, am obsessed with hot chocolate, and I am on track to be the best aunt in the world.

 

Timeless Romance Anthologies

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 Sophia’s Bio:

Sophia is a quiet though curious gal who dabbles in cooking, book reviewing, and gardening. Encouraged and supported by an incredible man and loving family. A Northern Californian transplant to the Great Lakes Region of the US. Lover of Jane Austen, Baseball, Cats, Scooby Doo, and Chocolate.

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