Tea & Strumpets: A Regency Romance Review

In our eighth installment of Julie Anne Long’s Pennyroyal Green series, we finally get to dig a little deeper into the life of the youngest Redmond sibling. Jonathan may act like the devil-may-care younger son, but this dude has plans. Tommy also has plans and while they did not initially include a Redmond, she’ll take him anyway. She’s spent her life doing things out of necessity, so she’s not about to stare a gift horse in the mouth. Together these two just ooze chemistry and as their goals align, these two may just be unstoppable. It Happened One Midnight is a diamond hidden amongst gems. **Spoilers & extra spoiler: it’s a perfect score!**

A Duke: Has been named the guardian of his cousin’s son. To get to him he needs to chase down his cousin’s uncle and figure out what happened to the boy’s mother.

The Lady: Was locked in Bedlam by her husband’s uncle to keep her from her child. Now she’s a desperate mother with trust issues trying to find a way to leave England behind.

A Baby: Lionel Jordan is the catalyst that brings together his mother Patience Jordan and Busick Strathmore, Duke of Reppington. In sharing their love of Lionel these two must learn to trust in order to vanquish their foe in A Duke, the Lady, and a Baby by Vanessa Riley.  **As always, SPOILERS**

In this book our hero meets our heroine, fights a duel, has a stroke, loses his speech, re-meets our heroine, and escapes from a Sanitarium. AND WE’RE NOT EVEN HALFWAY THROUGH!! Laura Kinsale with her fantastic command of the English language really shows us a different side of love. Christian Langland, Duke of Jervaulx, has to deal with relearning his words and Archimedea Timms, has to figure out how to love someone outside Quaker Society. Flowers from the Storm took us on a wild adventure and we cannot wait to tell you all about it. **Thou shalt find SPOILERS**

Olivia Waite is a delight! She is funny, outgoing, and man does she like romance! She tells us about her journey to discovering her own sexuality and how she's used that discovery to fuel her own books. She is the author of Avon's first F/F historical romance and honestly we had so much fun we lost track of time. We laughed, we got serious, and we are so excited for you to listen to our interview with Olivia Waite!

Violetta Beauchamps may enter Bertrice Martin's life under false pretenses but quickly something more develops. Nothing brings people closer than a common goal. That goal being to oust Mrs. Martin's terrible nephew from his lodgings. And man, is this dude terrible! Just when you think he cannot get worse, he does. However his existence helps these ladies get to know each other. In today's read we're finding love in their twilight years in Mrs. Martin's Incomparable Adventure by Courtney Milan! **a hallelujah chorus of Spoilers**

To continue our Pride month episodes, we were lucky enough to get to sit down with Cat Sebastian, author of many LQBTQ novels, including Avon's first published MM historical romance. We spoke about her journey to being an author, what drew her to the genre and time period, and how she discovered queer romance as a reader and as an author. We also talked about how she gives voice to her very diverse cast of characters who challenge the status quo. We hope you enjoy this fabulous conversation with Cat Sebastian....because we most certainly did!

Lucy Mulcheney just watched her lover marry a man. And she didn’t even spare her a glance during the entire ceremony. Now her brother is threatening to sell their father’s telescope because it’s not like people hire female astronomers. Just when she’s not sure what to do with her life, she notices a letter from the Countess of Moth who needs assistance. Lucy takes her chances in London, finding Catherine St. Day is not only an attractive woman but also a staunch supporter of Lucy and her work. Working on a new astronomy translation though is not all that’s in the cards. They need to fight the misogyny of the scientific community and explore the attraction that arises between them. Come explore the world through the eyes of Olivia Waite in “ The Lady’s Guide to Celestial Mechanics.” **A constellation of SPOILERS**

This week we're replaying one of our favorite episodes as we prepare for a jam-packed June where we'll be celebrating Pride Month on Tea & Strumpets! But for today, we do hope you'll enjoy this second chance at loving our first-ever novella on the show, The Governess Affair! Now, on to the synopsis!

This episode we have a couple of firsts! Our first novella! Our first hotel room recording! Join us as we chat about The Governess Affair by Courtney Milan, a novella that, let’s be honest, sets the bar for all novellas. Courtney Milan truly played upon all of our emotions in a short amount of pages. We were brought to our metaphorical knees by a twig! A TWIG! And don’t get us started on hairpins as a currency to build trust. *SWOON!* We’ve got a fantastic heroine on a transformative journey who finds her voice and it’s funny and fierce as hell. Oh, and one of the best marriage proposals (and rejections) ever. **Spoilers. We get into allllll the details!** TW: Rape

A torrid affair with an abrupt ending is what divided Diane Benchley, Countess of Cameron, and Oliver Warren, Marquis of Haybury. Now Diane is back in London and needs a favor from the man she loathes most. Oliver is happy to help Diane, since she does have some blackmail handy, but he’s going to name a price of his own. With his help, Diane sets the ton on its ear by starting a club for men staffed entirely by women. However, Diane’s success is immediately threatened by her greedy former brother-in-law. Can these two stop fighting long enough to save The Tantalus Club and actually admit their feelings towards one another? Will Diane ever actually give her consent to...anything? A Beginners Guide to Rakes by Suzanne Enoch is well-written and full of Suzanne’s expected whit but it gave your hosts A LOT to talk about. **Don't leave over the SPOILERS**

TW: Consent

Michael Stirling was living his own personal hell since he friend-zoned himself by falling in love with his cousin's wife. Francesca Bridgerton Stirling was living her best life until the untimely death of her husband, John. She tried to lean on Michael for support in her grief but Michael, who is to become the Earl in John's stead, just cannot handle being her rock. He's loved her too long and now he has to replace John in so many ways, the idea of taking his place at Francesca's side is just too much. Four years later the pair are reunited and while Michael's secret feelings are unchanged, Francesca is on the hunt for a new husband and somehow just realized Michael is a man and is making her feel things she only ever expected to feel with her first husband. Our sixth Bridgerton installment features the elusive Francesca as she learns to reconcile the loss of her first husband with that of her new feelings of love for Michael, the man who was only ever supposed to be her friend. This week we're reading When He Was Wicked by Julia Quinn and man y'all....Who knew Francesca's book was going to be so steamy? **Spoilers. Were you really surprised?**