Otherwise Engaged by Joanna Barker book review

 

Otherwise Engaged

by

Joanna Barker

 

She’s never been afraid of breaking the rules—until she risks breaking her heart

Constantly stifled by the rules of Society, spirited Rebecca Rowley enjoys finding ways to quietly—or not so quietly—rebel. But riding bareback and avoiding nosy neighbors are nothing compared to the thrilling secret she is keeping from her family.
When Rebecca’s quick thinking saves the life of a young girl, she unwittingly attracts the attention of the child’s dashing brother, Lieutenant Nicholas Avery. As that attention turns flirtatious, Rebecca is forced to tell him the truth: she is secretly engaged—to the one man her family would never approve of. Fortunately, Lieutenant Avery is a navy man with no wish to marry, or so they both assume as they enter into a friendship. Rebecca hopes to change her family’s mind about her betrothed, but the more she comes to know the handsome lieutenant, the more she wonders if she promised her hand too hastily.

After all her carefully laid plans are shattered during a family crisis, Rebecca must force her heart to decide. Should she stay true to the promise she made or fight for the future she’s only just begun to imagine?

 

 

 

My Review: 6.5 /10

I had very strong mixed feelings on this one. Beware SPOILERS.

I loved the first 85% of this book. But then the two main characters crossed some lines. I lost some respect for Nicholas in the process - she had been straight with him from the beginning. Though I loved what he said, he shouldn't have kissed her. Afterward, she needed to get her head straight and decide what she wanted. And if she wanted to continue to pursue Edward, then she needed to be honest with him about what happened. The story was still redeemable to me at this point.

Then she meets him at the meadow and loses her mind, and integrity, completely. What happened there was 1000% not okay. And Nicholas tells her it's okay because the vows haven't been said yet?! Um, I think your fiance would disagree. So disappointing. I was pretty much done at this point.

Then Rebecca did something unexpected. She admitted she was wrong, declared she was committed and went home. She spent the night sorting out her thoughts and examining her feelings and she discovered that she was fickle, selfish, foolish and lacking in integrity. She said she didn't deserve either one of them and should cut them both loose. And I thought, " YES GIRL. Yes." It doesn't feel good to learn these things about yourself, but it's only then that you can change them. There is power and freedom and growth in that. I thought, "I never saw that coming. She's going to break it off with them both and develop some character in herself, spend her time rebuilding her relationships with her family. She might even look after his sister for the next several months that he is gone, growing a relationship with her and being a good role model for a change. And maybe when he returns, she will be ready. Wow. I am so impressed."

But then I turned the page. She breaks things off with Edward, who laughs and says, hey it's fine, I fell in love with someone else too! Don't beat yourself up over it. Um...? I think he would have had some different words for her if he hadn't also been unfaithful. And the fact that he was doesn't suddenly make her virtuous. Yikes.

Then she leaves, confused, and her mother comes over to drive the final nail in the coffin with some worldly wisdom: real love is strong and conquers all, and that should be a) the sign and b) enough. Ugh, . I was so disappointed. This book started so strong. I LOVED Rebecca's flawed, relatable person. I loved her and Nicholas together. And there were tons of laugh out loud moments. But that ending left me feeling robbed. I will have to try another one by this author ASAP because I had such high hopes. And this couldn't possibly happen again, right?

Georgana's Secret by Arlem Hawks book review

Georgana's Secret

by

Arlem Hawks 

1811, HMS Deborah

A Regency romance on the high seas.

As a young girl, Georgana Woodall dreamed of beautiful dresses, fancy balls, and falling in love. However, when her mother dies, she cannot face a future under the guardianship of her abusive grandmother and instead chooses to join her father on his ship disguised as his cabin boy, “George.”

Lieutenant Dominic Peyton has no time in his life for love, not with his dedication to His Majesty’s Royal Navy claiming his full attention. Determined to prove himself to his new captain, he strives to be an exemplary officer and leader. When he sees the captain’s cabin boy being harassed by the crew, he immediately puts a stop to it and takes the “boy” under his wing. After discovering a number of clues, Dominic deduces that George is really a woman. Knowing that revealing the cabin boy’s secret would put her in serious danger from the rowdy crew, Dominic keeps silent and hides his growing affection for her.

Georgana is quickly losing her heart to Dominic’s compassion and care but is convinced nothing can come of her affection. She cannot continue to live her life on the sea, and having already missed too many seasons in London, her chances of being welcomed back into polite society and finding a suitable husband have slipped away.

Georgana’s Secret is about two hearts yearning to find a safe harbor, and possibly, a lasting love.

 

 

 

 

My Review: 5/10

I appreciated some of the unique aspects of this story, but struggled to find others believable. Abuse makes people react in different ways; some retreat within themselves, some learn to fight. But from the very beginning of the story, I didn't really understand why this was the best situation they could think up for Georgana. Her father couldn't actually send her away to a school, concealing the name and location? Lying about it outright seemed to work just fine. So everything built on that seemed unnecessary.

I liked that the book didn't pull any punches about the realities of life at sea during that time - the roughness, the threats, the motivations. But it was also frustrating to see certain characters turning a blind eye toward mounting tension and dangerous insubordination. I struggled to respect them. I did like Georgana's kill-em-with-kindness attitude toward certain individuals and the way that things played out - that particular story line was pretty cool. But on the whole, this book was a mixed bag for me.