Castles Ever After Book 1
I tried to read this a few months ago but stopped, and I can’t remember why. Time to try again.
Isolde Goodnight is a celebrity to the fans of her father’s medieval fantasy romance stories. However, her father’s death left her impoverished, and when she learns of a small inheritance she turns up at a derelict castle that could be plucked from her father’s tales. Unfortunately, the castle she inherits is already occupied by a blind, and very grumpy, duke who only wants to hide away from the world.
Ransom is the beastly and horrid duke who wants to be left alone, and does everything possible to encourage Izzy to leave, from setting her up in a room full of bats to verbal derision.
Izzy, however, will not be deterred and is determined to fight for what is now her property. Of course, as time goes by, they learn more about each other and fall in love.
There’s a high degree of absurdity, as often demonstrated by this author, and makes this book extremely quirky. When I say quirky, I mean devoted fans of her father’s writing running around dressed as their cos-play characters. If you like stuff like that then you will love this book.
The author pokes fun at several things including historical romance, and Star Wars. I loved the way Ransom kept saying the name of the fantasy kingdom incorrectly, just to annoy Izzy.
Despite these fun elements, I was not as engrossed in this book as I was in others by this author. The characters have depth and both have a meaningful character arc, and there’s e perfect blend of spice and emotions, but I think it’s the plot. It felt disjointed in places as though the author tried too hard to incorporate a silly scene, but it didn’t fit or contribute to the narrative.
Plot: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Feels:⭐️⭐️⭐️
Heat: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
