Cover Reveal for Unmask Me if You Can

Dear Reader,

I’m so excited to reveal the cover of the 4th Survivors book, Unmask Me if You Can. From the beginning of the series, readers have been asking for Jasper’s story. It will be available in print and ebook November 16, 2018! Links coming soon, but for now, I hope you enjoy the cover.

A bit about the book:

This masked lord…

Lord Jasper, younger son of a duke, suffered horrible burns fighting in the Napoleonic Wars. He wears a mask to hide his face from the stares and screams and finds comfort in the shadows. Jasper is an exceptional bounty hunter, so when a woman summons him to her deathbed and asks Jasper to find her runaway daughter before she passes away, he doesn’t refuse. Jasper is close to his quarry when he’s knifed by an assailant. Imagine his surprise when he regains consciousness in the arms of the woman he seeks. Except she’s not at all what he expected.

Is not the only one with scars.

On a remote cliff on the sea, Olivia Carlisle calls her four-year-old son in from an approaching storm. But the little boy is more interested in the man he’s found on the trail to their hidden cottage. Olivia fears men and wants nothing more than to leave the injured man where she found him. But his knife wound is severe, and with the approaching storm, she knows leaving him will condemn him to death. As Jasper begins to heal, Olivia acknowledges her attraction to him, even though such emotions terrify her almost as much as returning to London. Jasper must convince her that her only chance at safety is to challenge the man who pursues her. They must travel into the lion’s den—he to face his vulnerability and she to face her worst fears.

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Shana Galen is the bestselling author of fast-paced adventurous Regency historicals, including the RT Reviewers' Choice The Making of a Gentleman. Booklist says, "Galen expertly entwines espionage-flavored intrigue with sizzling passion," and RT Bookreviewscalls her "a grand mistress of the action/adventure subgenre." She taught English at the middle and high school level off and on for eleven years. Most of those years were spent working in Houston's inner city. Now she writes full time. She's happily married and has a daughter who is most definitely a romance heroine in the making. Shana loves to hear from readers, so send her an email or see what she's up to daily on Facebook and Twitter.

Review of What a Difference a Duke Makes

What a Difference a Duke Makes

 by Lenora Bell

About the Book
Wanted: Governess for duke’s unruly children
Edgar Rochester, Duke of Banksford, is one of the wealthiest, most powerful men in England, but when it comes to raising twins alone, he knows he needs help. The only problem is the children have chased away half the governesses in London. Until the clever, bold, and far-too-enticing Miss Mari Perkins arrives.

Lost: One heart to an arrogant duke
Mari knows how to wrap even the most rebellious children around her finger. But their demanding, wickedly handsome father? He won’t be quite so easy to control. And there’s something else she can’t seem to command. Her heart. The foolish thing beats so wildly every time the duke is near.

Found: A forbidden passion neither can deny
As his employee, Mari is strictly off-limits. But what if she’s the one breaking all his rules? In the game of governess versus duke, how can Edgar maintain his defenses when the only thing he wants to do is let the tempting beauty win . . .?

What a Difference a Duke Makes by Lenora Bell is the story of a novice governesses foray into the world of the Banksford household in London. Mari is a young lady with a good head on her shoulders and a strong backbone. She was raised in an oppressive charity school and there is some mystery regarding her parentage. Down to her last chance, Mari boldly seizes an opportunity and finds herself in the household of the Duke of Banksford. The Duke has recently acquired two children who excel at running off governesses. Mari may not be the governess that Edgar wants but she is definitely the governess his family needs.

Edgar and Mari are charming and sympathetic characters. I loved their scenes together as they met, struggled with attraction and fell into something more. They lit up the page with their conversations.The Banksford household is a terrific place to spend time in with excellent secondary characters and interesting insights into the beginning of industrial change in England.

Lenora Bell has written a fun, poignant and truly heartfelt book with nods to Mary Poppins and other literary classics. I highly recommend this book to readers who like clever humor, witty dialogue and a household of lively and unusual folk who seem to leap off the page. What a Difference a Duke Makes is a joy to read. This is the first book I have read written by Lenora Bell, but I know it won't be the last. I'm looking forward to the follow-up in this series For the Duke's Eyes Only.

I received What a Difference a Duke Makes from Lenora Bell as a random winner at Night Owl Romance Chat. I recently started attending the chats at Night Owl Romance after I met some of the featured authors at The Historical Romance Retreat in Spokane. I met Lenora Bell at last years retreat, but we didn't actually talk about books, primarily we had a conversation about her bonnet, which was fabulous! 

Review by Kixcatmom aka Gayle Cochrane

Susan's Review of The Prince by Katharine Ashe

The temptation of her lips…

Libby Shaw refuses to accept society’s dictates. She’s determined to become a member of Edinburgh’s all-male Royal College of Surgeons. Disguising herself as a man, she attends the surgical theater and fools everyone—except the one man who has never forgotten the shape of her exquisitely sensual lips.

…will make a prince say yes to her every desire

Forced to leave his home as a boy, famed portraitist Ziyaeddin is secretly the exiled prince of a distant realm. When he first met Libby, he memorized every detail of her face and drew her. But her perfect lips gave him trouble—the same lips he now longs to kiss. When Libby asks his help to hide her feminine identity from the world, Ziyaeddin agrees on one condition: she must sit for him to paint—as a woman. But what begins as a daring scheme could send them both hurtling toward danger…and an unparalleled love.

Katharine Ashe’s The Prince is an elegantly written historical novel. The mystery surrounding Ziyaeddin Mira and his friendship with Libby Shaw drew me into the story which features fabulous dialogue, unique characters and political intrigue.

I was fascinated that the author chose to have both main characters assume secret identities in the novel. Ibrahim Kent is a talented portrait artist who has many friends and social connections throughout Europe. The mystery surrounding Ibrahim’s true identity is revealed piece by piece in the story. As Prince Ziyaeddin Mira of Tabir, Ibrahim endured hardships and loss before he reinvented himself as an artist to separate himself from the political drama in his homeland. Libby Shaw is determined to be the first female doctor and is presented with an opportunity to study medicine at the Royal College of Surgeons. By day, Libby masquerades as Joe Smart while she attends medical lectures.

Libby and Ibrahim met at Haiknayes Castle and neither has forgotten their meeting. Ziyaeddin sees beauty in Libby’s body and desires to paint her. Libby recognizes that the handsome Ziyaeddin has unnerved her—and she’s not sure how to deal with her feelings. To avoid being caught masquerading as a man, Libby moves in with Ziyaeddin. Loved the poignant, honest conversations between the couple. Although the romance between the couple developed slowly, the sexual chemistry between Libby and Ziyaeddin sizzled during the course of the novel.

The Prince covers many topics in detail; politics, feminism, social conditions and medical training. The attention to detail and history is excellent. I skipped through pages which described the medical procedures and descriptions of Libby removing her whiskers and trousers because they were reiterated throughout the story. The woman disguised as a man storyline is my least favorite trope. I understand why the author chose this technique in the novel but, I feel that the disguise aspect of the story was repetitive and towards the end of the novel it was taken a bit too far. Libby was a unique character—extremely intelligent, determined and strong willed. Adding the OCD element to the storyline was unnecessary. I felt it clouded the reader’s perception of Libby instead of enhancing it.

In an unexpected plot twist, Ziyaeddin and Libby are tested at the end of the novel. Loved that the author portrayed Ziyaeddin as an honest man through the novel. He was tested and never wavered in his beliefs or in his love for Libby. Ms Ashe has created my favorite character-An honorable hero.

Katharine Ashe blends history, feminism and romance in The Prince. Ms. Ashe’s descriptive prose draws the reader into Libby and Ziyaeddin’s unique romance, The character’s passion and their poignant conversations kept me turning the pages.


Reviewed by Susan Gorman


ARC from Author


I purchased The Prince from Amazon.