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Mrs Martin's Incomparable Adventure doesn't seem to be in the database yet. But the second I saw the blurb I smashed the PreOrder button.

"Mrs. Bertrice Martin—a widow, some seventy-three years young—has kept her youthful-ish appearance with the most powerful of home remedies: daily doses of spite, regular baths in man-tears, and refusing to give so much as a single damn about her Terrible Nephew...."

I adored this! Both the protagonists desperately long for love, and see their expectations shift when they're forced to marry at gunpoint. I love how their friendship develops; how they help each other clarify the world; the family issues they confront as their story unfolds. It's a tearjerker in so many ways.

ATW stands alone, but it does reference ONCE UPON A MARQUESS and THE PURSUIT OF..., with further clues to the series-wide mystery.

I woke up sad and tried to combat it with tasty fruit, coffee, and Courtney Milan. No luck so far, but maybe it just needs some time to kick in?

From the Novella “In Pursuit of...”, which is same author but not in the database.

“John was beginning to suspect that Latham was something of a puppy—earnest, exuberant, and utterly devoid of house-training. John sighed.”

Courtney Milan is such a historical romance rock star. This is the story of an two strangers, a black man and a white woman, forced to marry at gunpoint. They have to work together to obtain an annulment, but meanwhile are growing a little closer. Read it despite the terrible cover. (That veil, it kills me.)

#historicalromance #consent #interracialromance #feminist #lovely #ReadHarder

This one is GOOD.

Finally got around to reading this and just like other Courtney Milan books, I read it in a day! ❤️❤️😄📖 #JuneBooks #Romance

So good. I really enjoyed this. This is a novel about choice and having the ability to chose. I liked the hero and the heroine and really enjoyed watching them work out how to get their happily ever after. I haven‘t read the first in this series - yet. Book one was on offer on kindle this week and it‘s near the top of my tbr now.

1. My sister is visiting so we‘re having a picnic tomorrow. The 2 year old is on day two of a fever and terrible cough though, so hopefully he starts feeling better and can enjoy it
2. Don‘t think I‘ve ever had a cake pop, but I love donuts!
3. After the Wedding by Courtney Milan - tagged
4. Nina started smiling!
5. Anyone who wants to play along
#friyayintro @jesshowbooks

I loved this! I always enjoy Courtney Milan‘s characters, but I particularly appreciated that Adrian was not the pushy alpha male hero. They were kind and considerate of each other. I loved the younger sister side character and look forward to more of her story! #netgalley

💕💕💕 this book was amazing! Black son of a Duke‘s daughter married at gunpoint to the daughter of a disgraced earl who was working as a housemaid. The respect, caring and consideration the couple showed to each other, coupled with the inclusiveness of the characters and the very real way issues were dealt with head on, makes this a #romantsy for those who think they don‘t like Romance.

Seriously. #romantsy

So excited to be a starting a new Courtney Milan! #romantsy

Historical romance with characters that are not white! Strangers get married at gunpoint, seek annulment, have adventures. So good! Full review on my blog. TL;DR 4 stars, a bit slow, PG-13, you'll enjoy it if you love Milan and need some historical romance where the people are not jerks and the H is upstanding, sweet, & not a Duke.

Out today, I had somehow missed that Courtney Milan was self publishing a new historical series. Starting out with book two was not an issue at all. I loved this book. Adrian and Camilla are forced to marry at gunpoint and must stay together long enough to get the marriage annulled. They are both smart characters with really touching pasts. I loved the diversity in this book and would have read entire books about some of the supporting characters.

This book raised my expectations not just for the romance genre, but for historical fiction writers on the whole. Courtney Milan has always focused on stories of unheard or silenced people, casting narratives to provide justice and compassion. This one is no different. It goes beyond, demonstrating how people who care for each other should lift each other up and use their privilege for others' benefit. I loved it.

Home from holiday and spent a fair proportion of the flight home reading this and I think it might be my favourite historical romance of the year so far. But 75 pages still to go...