Review: The Invention of Sarah Cummings by Olivia Newport

My rating: 2 stars

Synopsis from Goodreads.com

Sarah Cummings has one goal in life--to break into Chicago's high society. Desperate to stop serving dinner and to start eating at society tables, Sarah alters cast-off gowns from the wealthy Banning women to create lustrous, flattering dresses of her own. On a whim at a chance meeting, she presents herself as Serena Cuthbert, weaving a fictitious past to go with her fictitious name. But as she gets closer to Simon Tewell, the director of St. Andrew's Orphanage, Sarah finds that she must choose between the life she has and the life she dreams of. Will she sacrifice love to continue her pretense? Or can Simon show her that sometimes you don't have to pretend for dreams to come true?

My Review

The main character Sarah was materialistic, self-absorbed, deceptive, judgmental, and thoughtless. I'm sure we all can be at times, but it didn't make her much of a heroine, since I was rooting the whole time for her to be discovered and wanted to warn Simon away from her. Her change of heart would have been more redemptive had it not happened after her other options ran out. Too little, too late.

(ARC provided via Netgalley for unbiased review)

Review: Swept Up by the Sea by Tracy & Laura Hickman

My rating: 2 stars

Synopsis from Goodreads.com

Determined to seek his fortune, Percival Taylor leaves behind his sleepy hometown and sets out to become a legendary pirate. The only problem is, no one at the rough-and-tumble seaport of Blackshore will allow him anywhere near a ship!

Percival must find other means to win the heart of the beautiful Tuppence Magrathia-Paddock, who has mistaken him for a pirate rogue out of one of her romantic books. She is entirely willing to swoon into his arms if he can prove his buccaneer soul—and she will even arrange her own kidnapping to prove it.

Percival eventually find himself captain of a broken-down ship, complete with a crew of reluctant pirates, a jilted fiancee, a reclusive master shipwright, and an old professor with a magical secret that could kill them all. Join the strangest assortment of characters you'll ever meet on the Nine Seas as they set sail for treasure and romance!

My Review

This book would be probably be enjoyed by fans of The Princess Bride. For me, the descriptions were overwhelmingly wordy and trying so hard to be charming and clever, it detracted from the story and I didn't feel any connection to the characters. It was a struggle to maintain interest.

(ARC provided via Netgalley for unbiased review)

Review: Merry Humbug Christmas by Sandra D. Bricker

My Rating: 2 stars

Synopsis from Goodreads.com

In "Once Upon a Jingle Bell," A Bah! Humbug cruise to the Mexican Riviera is Joss Snow’s answer to this year’s quest to avoid the holidays completely; at least until she’s rebooked on a different kind of cruise altogether. Candy canes, holly wreaths, reindeer and ornaments seem to be stalking her on the 12 Days of Christmas holiday cruise extravaganza. An escape back to land is her only goal . . . until she meets a kindred spirit in rugged Irishman Patrick Brenneman, and then the game is on! Avoid Christmas festivities at all costs . . . except maybe for that one stop under the mistletoe.

In "It Came Upon a Midnight Deer," Reese’s guilt over abandoning best friend Joss on their holiday tradition of avoiding all things Christmas is trumped by the joy of her recent engagement. Meeting Damian’s family for the first time on idyllic Sugarloaf Mountain is about as far from that Bah! Humbug cruise as she can get, and Reese can hardly wait to get there. But from the moment they hit that deer in the road just two miles from the cabin, everything seems to go wrong. There are no drummers drumming or pipers piping this particular year! And once she sets her future in-laws’ family cabin ablaze, she’s pretty sure there won’t be even ONE golden ring in her future.

My Review

I couldn't get into these stories. The main characters came across self-centered and shallow. The plotlines seemed contrived and hokey. The emotion and angst the girls were supposed to be feeling was explained, but never felt. I usually enjoy Christmas novellas but these weren't my cup of tea.

(ARC provided via Netgalley for unbiased review)

Review: A May Bride by Meg Moseley

My rating: 2 stars

Synopsis from Goodreads.com

She’s prepared for her wedding all her life… but she forgot a few things.
Ellie Martin, a country girl in Atlanta, often de-stresses from city life by tending the flower beds of a church near her apartment. She has dreamed of a traditional wedding all her life, a wedding like the one her younger sister is planning back in their hometown. Their single mom will pay for Alexa’s wedding, but Ellie started her own wedding fund years ago. She only needs to find a groom.
She bumps into a man who’s a guest at a wedding on the church grounds. She’s noticed him around the neighborhood, but today he introduces himself as Gray Whitby. They embark on a whirlwind romance, but her mother doesn’t trust freewheeling men like him. Standing up to Mom leads Ellie to stick up for Alexa too. When Ellie risks her own plans for her sister’s sake, Gray feels betrayed. Will he always play second fiddle?
Will Ellie and Gray reconcile their differences so her dream wedding can come true, or will the romance they’ve begun come crashing down?

My Review

This novella started out great, with how the characters meet and start their relationship. However, once the relationship starts to progress, the feelings and chemistry between the characters is non-existent. Any emotion Ellie portrays is about her issues with her mother. I felt there was such potential since the characters were introduced well and likeable, but the connection I felt with them went flat when the author began to tell and not show how they fell in love... and it was brief at that. I don't think the heart of the story needed to be sacrificed because it was a short story, but instead Ellie's issues with her family were the focus and Gray played second-string not only to Ellie's family but also in the plot.

(ARC provided via Netgalley for unbiased review)

Review: A March Bride by Rachel Hauck

My rating: 2 stars

Synopsis from Goodreads.com

Susanna has found her true prince, and their happily ever after is just around the corner. But when Nate asks her to give up something precious to her, Susanna can’t help but wonder if it’s a sign that their love is not meant to be.
Susanna Truitt (Once Upon A Prince) is three weeks from royalty. She’ll soon marry King Nathaniel II of Brighton Kingdom. But when the government insists she renounce her American citizenship before the wedding, coupled with the lack of involvement by family and friends, her heart begins to doubt whether this marriage is God’s plan for her.
Nathaniel would do anything for his bride-to-be. But he knows his position requires that she give up a lot to be with him. Her life will never be her own — right down to her very identity. When she travels home to St. Simon’s Island, Georgia, right before the wedding, Nathaniel fears she won’t return. Gathering his courage, he devises a plan to win his bride all over again, and together they seek out a kingdom to treasure above all.

My Review

This novella would probably be great for someone who had read the full-length novel the characters are from. As a stand-alone, it threw the reader into the chaos of the royal wedding plans and doubts of the characters without establishing any relationship, chemistry, or romance. I felt like an outsider who had walked into the end of a movie, and I didn't have a connection to the characters because I missed 90% of the story.

(ARC provided via Netgalley for unbiased review)

Review: Perfectly Matched by Maggie Brendan

My Rating: 2 stars

Synopsis from Goodreads.com

Anna Olsen knows it's time to leave her sister's increasingly crowded house and start a life of her own. Following her sisters' examples, she becomes a mail-order bride, and after a short correspondence with clock maker and jeweler Edward Parker, she moves to Denver to become his wife. Almost immediately it's painfully apparent that Anna and Edward are very different. Anna is a free spirit who would rather be painting and enjoying the company of friends than cleaning house. Edward is a consummate perfectionist who, on their wedding day, hands Anna a list of chores that need to be done around the house daily.
Can this mismatched couple see past their differences to a harmonious future? Or will their disparate passions create obstacles neither is willing to surmount?

My review

I usually enjoy mail-order bride stories, but this one didn't keep my interest. The pacing was slow, bogged down by boring details. The plot was not compelling and the characters seemed two dimensional.

(ARC was provided via Netgalley for unbiased review)