Tanya Anne Crosby

Thirty years ago, the prince of a small European country promised to marry the daughter of a Scottish earl, and she bore him twins. Then he decided to marry another woman. When they separated, they each took one of their infant sons and told the boys falsehoods about the other parent to protect them from the truth.
Now, in 1831 Scotland, Ian MacEwen is in charge of protecting the people of Glen Abbey, but the area has fallen to poverty and neglect. He moonlights as a highwayman but never expected to rob the carriage of his identical twin brother, a brother he never knew he had. In a spur of the moment decision, he decides to trade places with Merrick to finally find the answers he’s been looking for. Once Ian and Ryo—Merrick’s trusted friend, servant, and carriage driver—return to London, Ian must pretend to be his brother and live a very pampered but confining life as the Crown Prince of Meridian.
Lady Claire Wentworth is in dire need of money to save her kidnapped brother Ben. When a carriage almost runs her over, she finds herself pitted against the most gorgeous man she’s ever seen. It’s too bad he’s also infuriatingly rude, questions her honor, and accuses her of thievery. Time and again Claire and Ian bump into each other around London in the most unseemly of circumstances, but things finally come to a head when he spots her a royal galla. She soon learns Ian (as Merrick) is a prince, and even more shocking, he’s chosen her to be his bride!
I sooooo love this book. Ian and Claire are two very determined, stubborn characters. Their banter and witty sarcasm and criticisms are hilarious. They have great chemistry, but I think they fell in love a little too easily since Ian is often busy looking for her brother and Claire is stuck at his house with his disapproving father.
Ian’s father, Julian, the king, is a troubled man who’s made a lot of mistakes, but he’s not as mean and horrible as he seems.
I love all the scenes that jump to Lady Fiona (the twins’ mom), Merrick, and Chloe (Merrick’s fiancée)—the characters from book one. This book and the first one, The Imposter’s Kiss, tie in together and occur almost simultaneously with both books being fully concluded in this one. The books are complete standalones, however, but you can understand all the characters and their motivations better if you read both stories.
There are a few inconsistencies between the two books, but nothing major. For some reason, in this book, it’s never said that Ian is an earl, Lord Lindale. I find that odd, but the fact that he’s nobility doesn’t factor into the story anyway. I just wouldn’t have known this if I hadn’t read the first book.
The epilogue is super sweet, told in both Julian’s and Fiona’s POV, and I would love to know more about what will happen to the parents and about the future of Meridian. I really wish that would’ve been elaborated more.
Anyway, this is a great story and I highly recommended it.
4.5 Stars

Disclaimer – I bought this book for my own enjoyment. I am not paid or compensated in any way, shape, or form for this honest review. I will not change or alter this review for any reason unless at my discretion.
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Thirty years ago, the prince of a small European country promised to marry the daughter of a Scottish earl, and she bore him twins. Then he decided to marry another woman. When they separated, they each took one of their infant sons and told the boys falsehoods about the other parent to protect them from the truth.
Now, in 1831, Crown Prince Merrick Welbourne IV of Meridian knows something is amiss with his father. The king is miserable, and Merrick goes to the wilds of Scotland to find out why. While en route to Glen Abbey Manor, a group of highwaymen attack his carriage and hold Merrick at knifepoint, but the face of his captor is all too familiar. He’s knocked unconscious, but nothing is the same when he wakes up. The thieves believe Merrick is their leader, Hawk, and Merrick must pretend to be so for his own safety and to get the answers he needs.
Chloe Simon is Lady Fiona’s nurse, and she despises the lady’s pompous son, Ian, the Earl of Lindale. When Ian (Merrick) returns one night, injured and seemingly drunk, she lets him know just how much she despises him. Attraction sizzles between them for the first time, and she knows something isn’t right. Once she realizes the mysterious highwayman, Hawk, a man she idolizes, is also Ian, she finally accepts the love that’s been building in her heart. But Ian (Merrick) has another secret, one she’s desperate to uncover.
This is an amazing story. I love it. There are so many twists and turns. All the characters are lying to one another, but everyone knows that the others are lying, and everyone is just too stubborn to give in and talk about everything they know. Normally, this type of plot would annoy me, but I found it very intriguing. The author wrote in a compelling manner from multiple POVs, so the reader would never be confused and to know all the characters’ motives behind the lying. I enjoyed the banter, the half-truths, the coaxing, and teasing between Merrick and Chloe, as well as with Fiona.
Merrick and Ian’s mother was a wonderful, strong-willed woman who’s trapped in a cage of relentless mistakes. I felt so bad for her and completely despised Julian, her ex-lover the king and the twins’ father. But, at the same time, I feel bad for Julian. Yes, the bad situation was his fault, but he does love Fiona deep down.
Merrick and Chloe are wonderful together. They learn and grow, and realize what’s truly important in life and not to judge others before you get to know them. It’s a beautiful story and my favorite of the two books in this series.
In the sequel, The Imposter Prince, Ian takes on the mantle of “prince” and begins to live Merrick’s life. I’ll be sure to post a review for that story as well.
I definitely recommend this book!
5 Stars

Disclaimer – I bought this book for my own enjoyment. I am not paid or compensated in any way, shape, or form for this honest review. I will not change or alter this review for any reason unless at my discretion.
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I was so excited to read this as it contains 2 of my favorite authors - Ashley and Byrne. The book has 6 novellas in total and the aforementioned authors were my favorites (no surprise), but the other stories too were fun! The stories revolve around a tavern and they range from a ghost story to one filled with action to a missing hero one. The first story was sweet but was more of a set up for the second one which was truly a great novella.

This is a great collection of stories for the holidays and most of them are sprinkled with that little extra holiday cheer.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC

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3.5 stars.
The book was well written and the descriptions were vivid. The relationships were relateable - three sisters whose mother withheld their inheritances unless they lived together in the home they grew up for a period of one year, a chance to reconnect. The romance between Jack and Caroline was palpable, but the part that annoyed me (and this is probably a personal preference) was seeing the killer's POV sporadically in case we didn't know he was out there. I deduced a different ending, but in reading the "bonus material" at the end, I suspect the next book will address the alleged killer's arrest.

This book is recommendable - nice romantic suspense.… (más)