I’m not sure there’s anything Valerie Bowman could write that I wouldn’t like. Kiss me at Christmas is the tenth novel in her Playful Brides series and I adore it. What do I adore about it? The characters and how vibrant they become. How I feel like I’m a fly on the wall witnessing all of their interactions. And I am zapped repeatedly by the chemistry.
So, let’s meet these characters. First we have Daffin Oakleaf, a Bow Street Runner. He’s a commoner, though lately he’s been heralded for his ability to track down criminals and bring them to justice. If he lived today, he’d be on the cover of every gossip magazine as Man of the Year. Because not only is he brilliant at sleuthing, a champion for the underdog, he’s also a beautiful specimen of a man.

Enter our heroine, Lady Regina Haversham. She has one goal in her life. To lose her virginity before she’s forced to marry. And even more special, her thirtieth birthday is a month away. And what would be the best birthday present? To be with the one man she can’t have forever, Daffin Oakleaf.

<blockquote>Lady Regina Haversham’s thirtieth birthday was precisely one month away, which didn’t leave her much time to lose her virginity. Not that she wanted it lost. She wanted to know where it went and choose to whom she gave the dratted thing. </<blockquote>

Well, suffice to say, as this is a romance, Lady Regina and Daffin will have their Happily Ever After. Though it’s not so quick and easy. Lady Regina will have to work to peel away Daffin’s layers, and Daffin will have to realize his worth is more than he thought.

It’s a feel-good Christmas historical romance with medium steam. One I highly recommend for the holidays.

I am on a huge historical romance kick. As we near the holidays, there is something about reading love during this time period that makes my heart warm. And Valerie Bowman's latest, Kiss Me at Christmas is an exceptional example of that warm love.

I haven't read the Playful Bride series since the first two books: The Unexpected Duchess and The Accidental Countess. Before I began reading Kiss Me at Christmas, I couldn't remember much of this world, (older brain) but I did remember the characters, the writing style, and the feeling that I enjoyed it.

Lady Regina's time for finding true love, and now her uncle has set a match. But before the year of freedom is over, she wants to approach a man of her choosing to ignite the sparks for a once-in-a-lifetime, and a one-night-only, deal. She has chosen her champion of this passionate night, and it's none other than Bow Street Runner, Daffin Oakleaf.

I thoroughly enjoyed Lady Regina! She is such a fun character, all with romanticized ideas of true love. Given her upbringing and her past, I yearn for her passions and desires. But beyond that, I love how she views Daffin. The one scene that made me fall in love with this story is her indecent, and very awkward, proposal! Daffin is a good and stable character. He is a good balance of stoic and enigmatic, but he goes well with Regina.

This was not exactly an opposites attract trope, but more fitting as a friends-to-lovers trope. Their relationship is fun and flirty. I also appreciate seeing past characters in this book, even for brief moments at a time.

This world is filled with action, spies, mystery, intrigue, with lovely romance. The overall world stayed true to the theme of the other books in this series. And while there are hints of the previous characters of the series,  there was a very specific goal evident in this story. 

Overall, I enjoyed the story, and I want to read more in this world. Did I just buy all the other books in this series? I sure did.

Thank you to St. Martin's Paperbacks for providing me an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Title: Kiss Me At Christmas
Author: Valerie Bowman
Series: Playful Brides #10
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Price: $7.99 (e-book) $5.98 (mass market paperback)
Rating: ❄️❄️❄️❄️
Christmas Rating: 🎅🎅 1/2

I guess it is that time of year again--it is finally acceptable to listen to Christmas music on repeat! Yes! Unfortunately, I read this book in October and was getting a lot of weird looks when people heard snippets of Shake Up Christmas. Honestly, this wasn't the earliest I've listened to Christmas music. That honor goes to my review of Snowfall on Haven Point for the Smart Bitches, which I wrote in the middle of one of the worst heat waves in Northern California back in June of 2017. But you're not here for a recitation of my Christmas music woes, so let's do this thing.

Excerpt

CHAPTER ONE

London, December 1818

Lady Regina Haversham’s thirtieth birthday was precisely one month away, which didn’t leave her much time to lose her virginity. Not that she wanted it lost. She wanted to know where it went and choose to whom she gave the dratted thing.

Her coach came to a stop in front of the offices of the Bow Street Runners in central London, and she drew in a deep, unsteady breath. She pressed her hands deeper into the white fur muff that sat atop her lap and willed her pounding heart to slow its nervous beat. Christmastide was her favorite time of year. She was in high spirits, but she was also as nervous as a young lady making her debut on her way to see the queen. This particular outing had every chance to end in disaster.

She glanced out the window. She probably should have hired a hackney. It would have been less conspicuous than her uncle’s resplendent coach. There were already several onlookers staring up at the black-lacquered conveyance with the Duke of Colchester’s seal on the side. She glanced down at her clothing. No doubt her ensemble was too elegant for marching into the offices of the best private investigative team in London, but she had no other clothing to wear, and this particular message was best delivered in person. She didn’t know Daffin Oakleaf’s home address, and she hardly thought a note to him for what she had in mind would be appropriate. No. Regardless of the stares, she had to see him in person.

Regina had settled on the perfect birthday gift to herself. She would spend the night with a man. Not just any man. The finest candidate. One who had the face and body of a Greek god. Thirty years old. Tall, fit, and handsome. Blond hair and green eyes that held a twinkle she found irresistible. She’d met him last summer at her uncle’s estate. Her family had been gathered there for the unfortunate purpose of her cousin, the marquess’s, funeral. John had been murdered, and inappropriate or not, the man Regina had come to covet was the Bow Street Runner who’d helped investigate his murder.

She hadn’t seen Daffin since he’d left the estate that hot July day taking away the two murderers in shackles. Rarely a day passed since that Regina didn’t think of him. She’d read about him in the paper, too. Lately, there’d been a series of articles in the Times focusing on his exploits. He’d caught criminal after criminal and, according to her cousin Nicole, made hefty bounties doing it. Now that Regina’s period of mourning was over and her uncle was forcing the issue of her marriage, Regina was here to ask Daffin Oakleaf, legendary Bow Street Runner, to make mad, passionate love to her.

Her stomach performed a somersault. Could nerves make one physically ill? She suspected they could. Suspected hers would. She winced. It wouldn’t do to cast up her accounts in front of the man.

That certainly wouldn’t attract him.

She glanced at her maid, who sat on the seat facing her, back ramrod straight. If the proper young woman knew what Regina was thinking, no doubt she’d be scandalized. Precisely why Regina had said as little as possible about their outing today. Genevieve hadn’t asked many questions. Thank heavens.

The coachman opened the door and Regina took one more deep breath. “Wait here,” she said to Genevieve. “I shouldn’t belong.”

After all, how long could an indecent proposal possibly take?

CHAPTER TWO

Daffin Oakleaf pushed himself away from his office desk and scrubbed both hands across his face. He was tired. Bone tired. He hated Christmastide. He’d been running himself ragged chasing a particularly nasty thief across London for the last fortnight. Daffin had nearly had him, or so he thought, when a clue he’d been pursuing had turned to nothing. He was back to the start of his investigation, and severely out of sorts.

Daffin loved his work. It was perfect for him, and it had made him a wealthy man, but days like this were frustrating as hell. He much preferred to be taking down criminals and delivering them to gaol, instead of pacing his office with little to go on while they roamed free.He was obsessed with each one of his cases, but this one kept him up at night. This case made his blood boil. A child had been injured by the bloody thief, and if there was one thing Daffin couldn’t countenance, it was a grown man being violent with a child. He would track down this monster if it was the last thing he did.

Most of Daffin’s investigations were done with the promise of a hefty purse at the end, but he was doing this one for free. He always took on a case or two for charity at Christmastide. It was the least he could do. Not to mention it kept his mind from the blasted season. Focusing on his cases made the holiday easier to ignore. Easier to forget.

He pulled a notebook from his inner coat pocket and scanned the words he’d written on the case so far. Perhaps he’d missed something, some detail that would finally lead him down the right path to Henry Vickery.

“Oakleaf!” came the voice of Paul, the secretary, who sat out in the offices’ main room and fielded inquiries from people who came in off the street.

“I’m busy,” Daffin called back, not in any mood to be taken away from his case. It was probably someone else who’d read about him in the paper and wanted to make his acquaintance. The papers hounded him of late. One reporter in particular. Mr. H. J. Hancock.

The man seemed obsessed with following Daffin’s cases. Week after week, for months now Daffin had been mentioned in his articles. The stories made him sound like a bloody hero. They described how he chased down bad men in the dark of night, vaulting over walls, climbing up to rooftops, and taking more than one bullet. He’d never have answered the reporter’s bloody questions if he’d known the man would go and write things like that. Being a hero wasn’t Daffin’s purpose. Never had been. He did his work to put the scum of society behind bars. To get evil people off the street. To spare their future victims.

❄️ ❄️ ❄️ ❄️ ❄️ ❄️ ❄️

Review

If you noticed at the top of this page, I gave Kiss Me at Christmas two separate ratings--the first is my standard rating, representing my overall feelings about the book, and the second is a Christmasy rating, which is basically a representation of how much it put me in the Christmas Mood. One Santa (🎅) is the standard non-Christmas book (because let's face it, even regular books require a dash of Andy Williams or Bing Crosby crooning about how wonderful and white (snow, not tiki carrying neo-Nazi white) Christmas is. Five Santas on the other hand, has me picturing a crackling fire, a giant tree, and carolers ringing my doorbell (if my doorbell worked). My overall rating for this book is 4 snowflakes because it was just so good. However, it only got 2 1/2 Santas because despite having Christmas in its title, it didn't make me want to roast some chestnuts on an open fire, which as everyone knows is a standard for how Christmasy something is.

I really enjoyed my time reading this book--so much so that after finishing it I posted on Twitter that it was exactly the book I needed to read that week, which considering how awful that week was (transiting from a full-time job with a globally recognized commercial real estate brokerage to a part-time job with a small property management company and all the stress that went along with that change) is really saying something. What makes me happy about signing up to do this Blog Tour in the middle of all that was that I would never have chosen this book on my own. As long-time readers know, I don't typically pick up books by new to me authors (especially when the hero's name is Daffin), and while I've definitely heard of Valerie Bowman, I've never read anything by her before. After reading this book, that will change.

Before I talk about what I loved about this book, I feel like I need to justify giving a book that made me so happy only 4 snowflakes rather than the full five I normally would give a book that was as good as this one was. My main issue was the fact that the heroine was determined to lose her virginity by her 30th birthday. Even though I understand her reasons for this, it just didn't seem very realistic to me. I seriously doubt that any Regency-era noblewoman would be willing to just give her virtue away, especially when she was still planning to marry. I would have had less trouble with this if she was trying to ruin herself so she wouldn't be forced to marry the man her uncle had chosen for her (who was absolutely awful, btw).

The other thing that bugged me was just how awful the man she was supposed to marry was. This man was more or less a caricature of the worst Social Darwinist ever born. He looked down his nose at anyone who wasn't born into the aristocracy, including the hero, who was a Bow Street Runner. He was also exceedingly egotistical--at one point, he pouted because he wasn't the only "honored guest" at Christmas Dinner. The fact that the other honored guest was the hero probably really chafed him. I did, however, enjoy the heroine and her cousin (cousin-in-law?) finding things that the Earl would dislike about the heroine in hopes of him not proposing to her. Apparently, he doesn't like dogs, which automatically takes him out of the running with this dog-lover. Even if he wasn't odious, this would have been enough to have me rooting against him.

Now that we've covered what didn't work for me, let's get to the good stuff. I absolutely loved Daffin and Regina's chemistry. It was just so natural and easy. As I'm writing my NaNo Novel, I can attest to how hard it is to reach that perfect level of chemistry/flirting. I also thought it was great how no one told Regina she couldn't do something just because she was a woman. The fact that she didn't wait around for Daffin and the other men to come and save her made me so very happy. Not only did she come up with a plan to get herself out of danger, but she also managed to execute an escape and make it home to her friends and family before they could walk into the villain's trap.

The thing that made me happiest, though was that despite being the 10th book in the Playful Brides Series it absolutely works as a standalone novel. Not having read the other nine books in the series, I didn't feel like I was missing anything. As I said earlier, I am going to track down the other books, especially the one right before this one, but one doesn't need to have read them to understand the character relationships and the plot points of this book. For a book so far into a series, this is not easy to do.

If you're looking for a fun Regency Romance with a little bit of holiday flair definitely check out Kiss Me At Christmas--and if you're looking for some Christmas music to binge as you read, I've got you covered.

For the most part, I enjoyed this title. I found Daffin and Regina to be very enjoyable characters. I really enjoyed having a hero that wasn’t a typical member of the aristocracy but actually had an occupation.

Probably my biggest “issues” with the book were the fact I hadn’t really read the previous 9 books in the series. While this book works as a stand-alone, there were several mentions of characters and plot from previous books and it could be distracting at times. Also, I was much more interested in the romance between Daffin and Regina than I was the big mystery plot.

I really enjoyed the writing style of this book and I did fly through it fairly quickly but I really need to read the other Playful Brides books to know what's going on in this series. I did enjoy the relationship between Regina and Daffin but I wasn't really invested in the story at all. I probably would have enjoyed it more if I hadn't felt like I've read this story numerous times before by different authors. I know it's not the first time I've read a story where the heroine tries to get rid of her virginity before getting married. I've also read stories where the hero is a Bow Street Runner. I did like this story and I will read the next book in the series after I read all the other Playful Brides books.

Regina offers Daffin an indecent proposal which he, as a gentleman, refuses. But she's in danger, and her cousin hires Daffin, a Bow Street Runner, to guard her and find the culprit. Spending time together makes their passions ignite, but they fight the desire.

They have similar pasts in losing parents young and this seems to unite their interest and trust in one another. Daffin knows her family will never allow a marriage between them--he holds a secret about his past which prevents the match--he was born on the wrong side of the blanket. Knowing this, he gives her a special night.

Regina is kidnapped and Daffin will do anything to save her. But saving her won't be enough to overcome the obstacles between them. Will they find a way to ignore society and find a love that's true before it's too late?

Another wonderful book in the series. A delightful Christmas story I highly recommend!

**received an ARC from NetGalley**

Regina and Daffin were a wonderful, hot couple. She accepted the fact that she would have a loveless marriage dictated by family. I loved her determination to find some control to her life and to help end the danger she was in. Daffin was a man who wanted to protect Regina and resist her as best he could. Secrets could keep them apart, but their honesty with each other led the way to love. I recommend this story.

I received an ARC of this story through Netgalley, and this is my unsolicited review.

I first read about these two in the previous book in this series and was very intrigued by what their story was going to be like, and I was not disappointed.

Lady Regina is coming up on her thirtieth birthday as well as an engagement that that she is not looking forward to. So she takes a risk and offers her virginity to Daffin, a man she is very attracted to but feels like she can not marry as she has promised her Uncle she would marry a man with a title.

After this encounter (I won`t say how that turns out), Daffin is tasked with being a body guard for Regina and her cousin as they are pretty sure they are in danger.

I found this to be a really romantic and interesting read. I loved that Regina was so bad ass and Daffin had a really great back story. I very much enjoyed this book.

Kiss Me At Christmas is a story full of action, mystery, danger, romance and humor. Regina and Daffin are wonderful characters and make a great couple. Regina Haversham, a feisty lady approaching her thirtieth birthday, wishes to have one night of passion (lose her virginity) before she faces spinsterhood or worse, a forced arranged marriage. She has chosen Daffin OakLeaf, a handsome and brilliant Bow Street Runner who helped to solve her cousin’s murder, to fulfill her wish. For a number of reasons, he declines the honor. When he is hired to guard Regina against attempts on her life, the attraction between them becomes increasingly harder to fight. The danger to Regina and the villains involved are quite a surprise. The stories, the mystery and the romance, capture and keep your attention from the beginning to an ending you will absolutely love. I enjoyed this one and recommend it. If you like some mystery and danger with your romance, you’ll love it.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley and volunteered to review it.

Lady Regina is fast approaching 30 years of age and decides to choose her own man to lose her virginity to. I Liked that Regina and Daffin had met before so it wasn't "insta-love". They had good chemistry but unfortunately in order to move the story along, Ms. Bowman once again, gives us a lame threat. She herself said this was hard to write and it's not hard to see why. This story needs more meat to it to really make it shine.

**Thank you to the publisher and Net Galley in exchange of an honest review.**

3.5 rounded up to 4 stars

I was introduced both to Lady Regina Haversham and Bow Street Runner Daffin Oakleaf in the previous book of this series, so I was curious to read how their romance plays out. Both characters have some baggage to deal with.

In Lady Regina's case, her uncle (who is her guardian) is dying and wants to see her married and settled while he's still alive. She's not fully resigned to the match he's promoting with the Earl of Dryden. Dryden's a nice enough gentleman, but he doesn't set her soul on fire the way Daffin does. If she has to live unhappily wed, she at least wants to experience some passion first. This story begins as she nervously approaches Daffin's office with an indecent proposal. He's just as attracted to Regina as she is to him, but her cousin Mark Grimaldi is his best friend and would kill him if he agreed.

The story moves on to the Grimaldi's town home, where Regina is staying in order to be with Mark's wife Nicole during her confinement--and Regina is also hoping to fall in love and offer her uncle a better alternative than Dryden. With her elevated social position, her uncle would never allow her to marry a Bow Street Runner like Daffin. She doesn't believe he has any interest in her anyway.

Daffin re-enters the story when it appears someone in Mark's household is the target of a killer. Mark engages Daffin's professional services to protect the ladies. It takes a while to narrow down who the target might be and even longer to flush out the killer. During that time, Daffin and Regina are often in company with each other, and the tug of attraction between them continues to grow. Nicole is unreservedly angling to get them together, even though Mark has cautioned Daffin to keep things professional with Regina. Also, Daffin holds a closely-guarded secret and is certain Regina would be disgusted if she knew the truth about him. It's the Christmas season, but he has personal reasons to hate Christmas.

I like the characters, but the execution of the plot doesn't always make sense. Considering that a number of these murder attempts have been when a carriage has tried to force theirs off the road, how would Daffin being inside the carriage with the ladies serve as "protection?" All he does is scan and watch out the carriage window. How would that stop a marauding vehicle from hitting them? Wouldn't it make more sense for him to be riding a horse or driving another vehicle nearby? His protection is pretty wimpy for a supposedly great Bow Street Runner.

Also, the resolution of the romance is very anticlimactic. Very much-ado-about-nuthin'.

Nicely written. Interesting characters and story. A bit loose with plot details.

Received an ARC from netgalley. Opinions are my own.

Loved this book. It showed a different perspective of the genre. The lady starts everything off, gets rejected, embarrassed and then is thrown together with our hero. Yes, it's a story we have all seen before, but a refreshing angle. Enjoyed it immensely.

A fun story for the upcoming holiday season, Kiss Me at Christmas left me filled with laughter and good cheer! Valerie Bowman created such genuine characters that left me with the feeling that true love will always find a way. I loved how she created two characters who were flawed yet charming, and I found their bumbling method of courtship to be both entertaining and endearing. This is definitely a story to pick up if you get the holiday blues or if you just need a book to curl up with alongside a cup of hot cocoa.

Lady Regina Haversham is through with being a virgin and she knows just the man to help her with the issue. The problem is that she has no idea how one goes about propositioning a man to take her virginity, so when she tries, things go horribly awry. Daffin Oakleaf is a highly successful Bow Street Runner who helped Regina's family in the past, so when Regina comes to his office asking for help, he assumes it's of the same nature as before. Thrown for a loop by her indecent yet intriguing proposal, he sends her away, but soon finds himself in her company anyway when her life is threatened. Suddenly in the role of bodyguard, Daffin must try to resist Regina's charms and keep her safe. But the close proximity has them barely resisting temptation, and it might just be the thing that brings them their happily ever after.

Regina...oh my gosh, I felt so sorry for her. She has such a hard time of it in the beginning of the book. I found myself gaping when she made her proposal to Daffin, and then her dealing with the aftermath was the stuff of comedy. Daffin, poor fellow, was so flabbergasted by her out-of-the-blue decision to have him be her cherry popper, his internal dialogue was hysterical. Once they found themselves thrown together, their initial awkwardness made for entertaining scenes. At one point Daffin is injured and drunk, and he removes his shirt. Their banter during this time is the best! I love when the two main characters flirt for an extended time before eventually coming together - it makes for a much stronger relationship and one I enjoy all the more.

Definitely Valerie Bowman's best in the Playful Brides series and one that has given me renewed interest in seeing where things go from here. If there are more in this series, hopefully they follow the same vein as this one!

Such a great and enjoyable read.Regina is a rich socialite , and the niece of a Duke. Nicole her cousin is married to Gram, a dear friend of Daffin. Daffin He’s a good man, with a troubled past, which does not stop him from helping others – on the contrary. Regina and Daffin are great together and I really loved their flirting .

Lady Regina Haversham is turning 30 and with the prospect of an unwanted marriage looming, she decides that she wants to make her own choice of who she gives her virginity to and she has selected the perfect man for the job, Bow Street Runner, Daffin Oakleaf. She met him over the summer when he helped her cousin Mark investigate the murder of their cousin John. They flirted and she has not been able to forget him and has been following his exploits in the Times. Her mind made up, she goes to see him at Bow Street.


Daffin Oakleaf hates Christmas, he keeps busy during the season to ward off the bad memories Christmas brings. He is shocked to learn that Lady Regina is calling on him and agrees to see her. He is floored by her bumbling proposal and refuses. She is horrified, she not only did she embarrass herself, she inadvertently insulted him. Humiliated, she returns home, grateful that their paths will not cross again. But as she leaves her carriage is almost run off the road - this is the second incident and she knows she has to tell Mark and Nicole.


She tells Nicole about her meeting and the incident with the carriage - Nicole hatches a plan. When Mark learns of the threats, he says he will cancel his trip, but Nicole suggests that he hire Daffin to protect them. Mark thinks this is a wonderful idea and rushes out to hire him.

After a briefly awkward reunion, Regina apologizes and Daffin is gracious and perhaps a bit flirty. They talk and start to get to know each other better, some kisses ensue and they grow closer, even while trying to uncover the threat that is clearly against Regina. When Daffin is shot while with Regina, they decide they will return to the country estate with her uncle to wait for Mark's return,

The more time they spend together, the more they share and the more they realize all they have in common and all that stands between them. Daffin doesn't tell Regina everything about his past and that past comes back to torment them.

This was a nice story with likable leads, characters from the previous books, secrets, relatives with good intentions, unwanted suitors, kidnapping, steamy love scenes, a baffling mystery and finally a hard won HEA. So why not 5 stars? Well, the threat against Regina was a bit far fetched and ultimately the person responsible gets away with no punishment at all, there were also some title errors and way too many "Merry Christmases" for a book set in England. But this was a really good read and I am eagerly awaiting the next installment!

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that was provided to me by NetGalley and the publisher.*

Valerie Bowman’s Kiss Me at Christmas is a fascinating and lovable mix of sweet and spicy, with a heroine who on one hand, blushes frequently and is a model lady, and who on the other, propositions a Bow Street Runner of her acquaintance and offers herself as bait in order to find a potential murderer.

But let’s not get ahead ourselves.

Kiss Me at Christmas opens in London, December 1818, with the aforementioned heroine, Lady Regina Haversham, contemplating her impending engagement to the respectable—but boring—Earl of Dryden. Lady Regina won’t marry for love, but she decides she can decide who she wants to lose her virginity to, and the answer is the handsome and virile Bow Street Runner, Daffin Oakleaf.

Daffin is taken aback by Regina’s awkwardly forward offer, and says no. But he can’t deny his attraction to Regina, despite the fact that she is related to one of his closest friends and also of a higher class. Then a mysterious series of attacks against Regina’s family brings Daffin closely into her orbit as her bodyguard (sigh).

Who is behind the attacks and why? And more important for the romance-minded, will Regina and Daffin act on the chemistry between them, even if it won’t—can’t—be anything more?

There were times when I wished that Regina wouldn’t make her infatuation with Daffin quite so obvious—particularly when he was doing such a fine job of keeping his own feelings contained. But that is part of Regina’s appeal: she’s honest and open, and willing to make herself vulnerable in pursuit of a greater purpose (like losing her virginity before she’s 30 *wink) . She’s also resourceful and brave, and more than one scene had me cheering for her.

Regina is one of several characters in Kiss Me at Christmas who is largely unconventional, even though those characters also navigate through elite society with aplomb. This balance between convention and rebellion kept me engaged in Regina and Daffin’s story and invested in the outcome of their romance: whether it would lead to a HEA, or whether the social chasm between them—and Daffin’s insecurity over it—was too great to overcome.

Also keeping me invested was the action-filled plot, specifically the nefarious attacks against someone in Regina’s family, and Regina and Daffin’s subsequent investigation, which reveals their best qualities and the lengths they’ll go to keep others safe.

Kiss Me at Christmas is a delight—a steamy romance that reminds readers of the joys of the season and of chasing happiness—and one person who enters the giveaway below will win a copy for their very own. Lucky you.

**I received an ARC of this book via NetGalley but all opinions provided are my own.

Valerie Bowman continues her captivating Playful Brides series with her latest spellbinding installment, Kiss Me at Christmas. Sensuous, romantic, suspenseful and absolutely enchanting, readers who like their historical romances laced with action, passion and danger are simply going to love this book!

Lady Regina Haversham had resigned herself to the fact that love was simply not on the cards for her. With her thirtieth birthday fast approaching and a permanent fixture on the shelf, spinisterhood is looking like a very likely prospect. Yet, Regina is not about to let such a miserable fate befall her. She does not want to spend the rest of her life never knowing what passion truly feels like nor does she want to get to her deathbed never having known desire or the touch of a man’s hands upon her body. She is absolutely determined to spend a night of love in the arms of a gentleman and she has found the perfect candidate for the job: Bow Street Runner, Daffin Oakleaf. But there is a catch: Daffin has no idea that the beautiful Lady Regina is about to make him such a scandalous and outrageous proposition!

When Lady Regina tells him about her shocking offer, Daffin’s first instinct is to refuse outright. After all, while Regina is an aristocratic lady, Daffin is a mere Bow Street Runner without a single drop of blue blood in his entire body. And besides, if someone were to discover that he had consented to take Regina into his bed, the shock-waves that would ripple across all of polite society could have some serious repercussions on the pair of them. Yet, saying no to Regina might be the hardest thing Daffin has ever had to do. He would much rather face a dangerous enemy with murder on his mind then someone as breathtaking as Regina. What will Daffin do? Will he listen to his head and keep Regina at arm’s length? Or will he end up giving into temptation and succumbing to the red-hot flame of desire that sizzles between the two of them?

An inconvenient attraction to Lady Regina is the last thing Daffin needs at the moment. With the challenging nature of his job giving him plenty to think about, he hopes that immersing himself in his work might keep his mind off Regina. However, when he realises that Regina is the one in danger and he becomes her bodyguard, he realizes that he is going to have to get up close and personal with her in order to keep her safe from harm.

Sparks soon begin to fly between the two of them, but will Daffin and Regina end up finding their way to one another? Or are there too many obstacles standing in their way?

Valerie Bowman does it again! A first class historical romance that hooked me from the very first page, Kiss Me at Christmas is an outstanding tale that once I started reading, I found myself unable to put down. With its cast of beguiling characters, nail-biting suspense, wicked humor, searing emotion, powerful sensuality and uplifting romance, Kiss Me at Christmas is a stellar read I absolutely adored.

I fell in love with Regina from the very first paragraph. She was a bold, gutsy and believable heroine readers will adore and sexy Daffin is a gorgeous and charismatic hero who is sure to make them swoon.

An engrossing tale historical romance fans are going to devour, Kiss Me at Christmas is another winner by Valerie Bowman!

This is an amazing Regency holiday read that immediately grabbed my attention and kept me entertained and intrigued from the first page to the last with strong characters, mystery, adventure, humor, suspense and heartwarming romance. I loved unique and original Lady Regina Haversham who is still single as she nears her thirtieth birthday and her dynamic with the other characters especially Bow Street Runner Daffin Oakleaf. Ms. Bowman has given us another winner and I look forward to the next book from this talented author. I received an advance reader copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley and this is my voluntary and honest review.

This was the most delightful book I've read in a while! Kiss Me at Christmas by Valerie Bowman had me grinning from start to finish with the cutest heroine and a sweet, dashing hero. I didn't even know this was the tenth book in a series until a friend pointed it out to me! It stands alone that well. There are characters from the other books mentioned but, if you're a first time Bowman reader like I was, you won't have any problems picking this one up.

Picture me giving a standing ovation to all the sexual agency our heroine Lady Regina has. She is willing to marry a man she doesn't love for the sake of her family's peace of mind, but she doesn't want everything decided for her. What's a girl to do in that situation? How about proposition the hottie Bow Street Runner you met the previous summer. That's precisely what she does, and I applauded her all the way. Did I mention that Regina is thirty? I love a mature heroine who knows not only what she wants but goes after it.

Daffin was a fabulous hero, even if his name brought to mind the much less sexy Daffy Duck. I don't know what it is, but historical self-made men are really working for me right now (maybe it's the handcuffs). Daffin was so sexy (just ask our heroine) and sweet to boot, I enjoyed the fact that he had a troubled past but wasn't all dark and broody.

The chemistry between Daffin and Regina was perfect. Their banter was adorable and Regina's awkwardness kept me laughing. She was so relatable. I honestly didn't know who the villain was until they were revealed and it was just the right amount of action and angst.

I do wish there had been just a little bit more of the promised sexiness. Regina and Daffin were so great together, and I wanted them to explore it more than they did. I also feel like the character's motivations changed about mid-book. This combined with a few dangling plotlines kept it from being a five star read.

Overall, this is the perfect Christmas read, or really, anytime read. The plot isn't over the top Christmassy so I think it would be great all year round. This was my first Valerie Bowen novel, but it absolutely won't be my last.

**I received an ARC of this book in order to provide an honest review**

This was super fun! I've read a previous book in this series so it was fun to see those characters come back. I really liked this romance and I loved how supportive her family was. The plot of the murder stuff was kinda weak though.