More like much ado about nothing, really.

Lady Georgiana Kirkpatrick is on her way to an unwanted second marriage when she is kidnapped, along with her maid Clara and cocker spaniel Lulu. She finds rescue in the person of Robin, Lord St Just, a friend of her brother who whisks her away to his estate on board his ship. From there, her brother, father, and betrothed converge on Cornwell to create a lot of conflict and get in the way of their undying love.

I'm not a fan of insta-lust, especially when it is consummated in such a short space of time and accompanied by a lot of hand-wringing about her reputation. Georgie is deathly precious about her reputation (which as a widow who eloped with a vicar's son years before, probably isn't in the best of shape already) right until twu wuv with a man she despised about a week ago for reasons not well articulated. If Rob was any sort of gentleman, he'd keep his hands off , but no.

I found the characterisation sloppy - I couldn't get a handle on Georgie despite her being main POV, I found Rob ignoble and juvenile, Clara showed incredible loyalty for a maid of two months who barely knew Georgie at the start of the book. I couldn't even enjoy Lulu the dog as she seemed more a plot device and a relationship barometer than a character.

Also, the side-effect of the insta-love was that more and more ridiculous complications had to become involved to keep the two apart. Potential treason, attempted sexual assault, and an honest to goodness duel crop up, none of which make sense or are brought to a satisfying conclusion.

I was glad to be done with this book.

Disclaimer: I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley; all opinions are my own.

Much Ado about a Widow by Jenna Jaxon is book 4 in The Widow's Club Series. This is the story of Robin Kerr, Marquess of St. Just and Georgina 'Georgie' Kirkpatrick. I have read the previous books but feel you can make this a standalone book if you wish to do so. Georgie has escaped her father's marriage agreement once when she left and married the man she loved. But now she is a widower being forced back into her father life and to his awful plans. But she ends up getting away again and saved by St. Just. St. Just agrees to take her with him and of course some adventures start.

A delightul fast paced story full of great characters, intrigue, humor, engaging banter and the journey to an unexpected romance. Georgie had married for love against her father's wishes, but then her husband was killed in battle and she became a widow. Now she is again to be married to the the man her father originally wanted. But it seems not to be when she is kidnapped and then rescued by Robin Kerr, one of her brother's good friends.
It seems a bumpy ride to the road to happiness, but is an adventure along the way you do not want to miss! I have really enjoyed this series so much!

She's a widow. With no viable way to support herself, she's been living with relatives. But that's coming to an end. And the only way her father will let her come home is if she will agree to marry his choice. She's not enthused but she has no choice.

It is being published today by Kensington Books.

When she is kidnapped by thugs, she does her best to get away. The men are after her and her maid and there is no place to hide when she runs into St Just, a friend of her brother's. She implores him for help and he takes to his boat and hides her on board. He sends his men out to find the carriage because she has two trunks on it. Find it they do and they create a ploy to get rid of the guards so they can steal the trunks.

They leave on the morning tide and go to his home. It doesn't take long for her contract husband to show up. They remove him from the castle. He sneaks back at night and tries to rape her but she stops him and screams. He's removed even more forcefully.

Then her father shows up. Even though she and St Just have fallen in love with each other, he won't listen. They try to go to Scotland to marry but they are stopped. Her father intends to force her to honor the marriage contract. But some new facts are brought out that change the circumstances. Will her father change his mind? Will her beloved win the duel?

I really wanted to like this book, but it was way too Old Skool for my taste.

My full review of this book will appear on Smart Bitches Trashy Books on a date to be determined.

"Lady Georgina Kirkpatrick defied her family, jilted her fiancé, and married the man she loved. But when her husband died at Waterloo, she was delivered right back into her father’s power...

Victory is sweet - but England’s triumph was Georgie’s rout. Now that she’s widowed, the loathsome marriage her father first arranged has simply been renegotiated. With neither money nor rights, and nowhere to flee, all she can do is cherish her last weeks of freedom.... Until a band of ruffians overtake her carriage and kidnap her. When she escapes in seaside Brighton and encounters her brother’s rather wild friend, Lord St. Just - whom she suspects aspires to be a pirate - she’s prepared to entertain more of his adventurous suggestions than usual...

St. Just knows his mind and his duty, and he loves a challenge. Helping a fair lady make her farewells to hoodlums suits his talents well. Within the hour he has Georgie, her lady’s maid - and her little dog too - sailing for his castle in Cornwall. Meanwhile, the lady’s entire family, her kidnappers, and her scheming intended are in pursuit. But as he and the indomitable Georgie grow closer, he begins to suspect that together they will prove a match for them all..."

Because sometimes, after reading about all the bleakness and death, you need a nice romance to lighten the load.

This book was received from the Author, and Publisher, in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own

Much Ado About a Widow by Jenna Jaxon is the fourth installment book in the Widow’s Club series. A lovely historical romance series, that can be read as a stand alone, or enjoyed in order within the series..

Our heroine, Lady Georgina Kirkpatrick, A sassy redhead with stunning green eyes, has recently become a widow. After losing her beloved husband, Issac she has evidently agreed to the marriage her father has arranged for her in order to get back into his good graces after he he disowned her for running off to marry for love.
Georgina and her maid are kidnapped by villains, who are working with her diabolical betrothed as they journey to her fathers estate.
In a series of events they escape and seeking help, she runs into her brother’s good friend Robin Kerr, Marquess of St. Just. This lively book takes off from here with twist escapes that made for a non stop read. A lively tale, that is a captivating romantic comedy adventure, that shows the reader just how vulnerable a woman was in this particular time in history. The romance and character development spot on, along with engaging dialogue keeps the reader invested all the way through.
Jenna Jaxon’s Much Ado About a Widow, is full of kidnappings, hooligans, escapes, is a perfect regency romance. I am hoping that the author continues this creative book series, as there is still an unmarried widow.

2 common stars

I don't really expect much from this genre and even this one let me down.
There wasn't anything that irk me per se (apart from the insta love declaration, even for a historical romance, this came too fast IMO), it was just that nothing really captured my thought.
At first, I really like Georgie before she was reduced into your usual protagonist. I don't really fond of Rob either so.

I had a hard time getting into this story. It started out okay but it didn't really draw me in all that well.
No one should be forced to marry someone they don't want to of course. And I understood why Georgina was going to go along with marrying Lord Travers. HOWEVER, I had a problem with Georgina's thinking. She is repulsed by Travers, he's a leering creep, with a horrible reputation that she has heard about. But more than once she thought she had already married the love of her life so how bad could it be? Yes, I know the alternative is to be tossed out on the street without anything and no one to help her. Come on...and she's been married before and she doesn't think it couldn't be that bad? Ah, someone slap that chick on the side of her head! Okay, I've calmed down now and realize that Georgina has been doing a whole lot of lying to herself in order to force herself to marry The Creep. And speaking of force, her father is one arrogant, my-way or the highway kind of guy. And nothing is below him when it comes to forcing people to do things his way. Sorry never going to like that guy.
Georgina's brother Jemmy and his wife Elizabeth add to the story although there really isn't much they can do to help her. They want to but daddy dearest holds the purse strings and there is no give at all on that. Georgina's maid, Clara and Georgina's beloved dog, Lulu are on her side. But once again not much they could do either.
Things speed up rather rapidly around Chapter Twenty as one time after another the main characters are pursued. Not to worry though, not only is there danger but also some humor and a H.E.A. It wouldn't say that it's a favorite but it did have some good points.

“I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

This was a hard story to get into. To begin with, it was very hard to like or even understand Georgianna, our heroine. Instead of coming across as a strong woman, she came across a stupid and whiny. Which was a complete disappointment when you consider the fact that she had just managed to escape her kidnappers.

In fact, I could not understand why knowing what kind of danger awaited her (not only the threat that her kidnappers posed to her, but the threat of her father and marriage to a loathsome man), she still demanded at every turn to be taken home, or allowed to try and make her way by herself. If I was Rob, I would have wished her well, and left her on the shore.

Speaking of Rob, I had a hard time believing in their "insta-love". In a matter of days, she went from not liking him at all (including accusing him of kidnapping her when he was saving her), to liking him for saving her dog, to being in love with him. Honestly, the way this sudden 180 in her feelings seemed to happen just after he saved the dog, it was more believable that what she was feeling was gratitude instead of any genuine love to the man himself.

As for the story, it went from dragging in parts, to having too much going on at once. The "siege" on Rob's home by Georgianna's father seemed a bit too farfetched, and her father was just ridiculous. It is never fully explained why he is so set on her marriage to Travers. Nor did it make any sense why when Rob, a peer of higher rank than both Travers and himself, made his intentions known, her father still would not relent. His rantings and threats frankly made him look insane. And I absolutely hated the way he was forgiven at the end.

In the end, I am sure this novel will appeal to fans of this author and this series. Just as I'm sure there will be people who pick this story up and immediately fall in love with it. But at the end of the day, it just was not for me. I would read more from this author however, as I have read other stories by her and enjoyed them much more than this one.

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.

This is the first novel I've read from this author and I received an advanced reader's copy to review.

Georgie has been kidnapped by the man her father told her to marry. Only she never quite gets there because Rob appears in the picture.

Theirs is a fun story with many interesting twists and turns.

I had a little trouble with characters' personalities - they seemed to swing back and forth between too much backbone and too little. I found it a little difficult to find a comfortable path with them though this book.

However I will look for other books Jenna Jaxon has written and check them out because overall it was a lot of fun.

I believe there are Historical/Regency Romance readers who will enjoy Much Ado About A Widow – unfortunately, I simply liked parts of it as I found it to be a basically good book with far too many parts that simply frustrated me to no end. Georgie is now widowed but she won’t come into an inheritance in time to save her from her evil father’s scheme in insisting that if she wants back into the family fold then she’ll marry the man she jilted in order to marry for love. While returning to her father she, her maid and her dog are attacked and kidnapped. Rob St. Just will come to her rescue and sweep them all away to his estate where she should be protected… but trouble and determined men follow.

This story feels overtaken by secondary characters and their voices often added to the chaos instead of making things clearer. I liked Rob, have mixed feelings about Georgie’s brother, Jemmy and loathed the betrothed and her father. Georgie… well, I think I’ll let you discover her for yourself. She had her moments for me but I could not connect – that may be just me so you’ll discover Georgie on your own. Much Ado About A Widow is a good book, it simply wasn’t a book that was for me. You should make up your own mind on this story for there is an audience that will love Rob and Georgie and their unusual, crazy romance.

*I received an e-ARC of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley. That does not change what I think of this story. It is my choice to leave a review giving my personal opinion about this book.*

This is a fun read with lots of action, adventure and sexual tension. Georgie has resigned herself to this arranged marriage thinking that she will never love again. But the longer she is with Rob the more her heart begins to beat again. Now it is up to Rob and Georgie to find a way to be together. No small fete, since Lord Travers, her betrothed, and Georgie's father are closing in.

I enjoyed this romp on land and sea. It was a fun read and kept me turning pages into the night. I liked the twists and turns of the story. There are references to other characters in the series but I can recommend this standalone in the series to all historical romance fans. The other books in the series are also worth a look.

I received an ARC of this book to read through NetGalley in exchange for a fair review. Much Ado About a Widow by Jenna Jaxon is the 4th book in her enjoyable series The Widow’s Club.
It can be read as a standalone, but I enjoyed the previous books in the series and recommend reading them as well. Widowed Lady Georgina Kirkpatrick having no where else to turn has agreed to the marriage her father has arranged for her in order to get back into his good graces after he he disowned her for running off to marry for love. She and her maid are kidnapped while on the journey to her fathers estate and after escaping she runs into her brother’s good friend Robin Kerr, Marquess of St. Just who more or less kidnaps her once again and takes her on his ship to his estate in Cornwall. Georgie never that impressed by Rob as she feels he has aspirations to be a pirate is not pleased, and Rob had not thought he was quite ready to settle down with a wife, but after Rob risks his life to save her dog their feelings begin to change and a lovely romance develops.However there is that betrothal contract to another standing in their way. The story has comedy, adventure, nasty villains, secret passages and the aforementioned romance. Medium Steam. Publishing Date December 31, 2019
#NetGalley #MuchAdoAboutAWidow #JennaJaxon #HistoricalRomance #KensingtonBooks #ZebraRomanceNovels #Bookstagram @kensingtonbooks

I have loved most of the books in this series but this one was just blah for me. There really was not anything wrong with the story, just not very interesting. No conflicts and no action. I tell you who will love this book, people who like to read sweet, nice, no angst books. It was just so different than the other books in this series. I did love St. Just and Georgie as characters, along with St. Just’s mother and Lulu the dog.

3.5 of 5 stars

Robin Kerr, Marquess of St. Just, sails into Portsmouth for supplies for his mining company. Little does he know his life is about to upended by Lady Georgina Kirkpatrick who literally runs into him and claims she has escaped kidnappers and needs safe haven. Without any resources in Portsmouth to help her, Robin does the only thing available to him--he brings Georgina, her maid and her dog Lulu onto his ship and sails back to Cornwall.

I have read the other books in this series and I was hoping that this book would be a page-turner. While the beginning was captivating and had me eagerly turning the pages, my interest started to wane about half way through the book. The romance between Georgina and Robin seemed rushed. After only a few days in each other's company, love blossoms. Georgina's tyrannical father's behavior becomes quite unbelievable in how far he would go to make Georgina marry his choice of husband for her. He seems quite mad and very one dimensional. A bright spot in the book was Rob's mother, Lady St. Just. She added much to the book and I enjoyed her scenes.

This is my voluntary review for this ARC and it is in my own words. Who would have thought that a widow would come with this much drama?!? Definitely not a slow day in her company.

Thank you netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I couldn't get into this historical romance. The protagonist Georgina although portrayed as strong and witty appears instead whinny and spoiled. She tries to run around from her fiance who attempts to kidnap her only to be rescued by Rob, her brother's friend. Rob attempts to help her and falls for her charm. The writing is long-winded and slows the plot. Did not find this romance interesting.

Georgie believes that she will have to accept her father’s proposed marriage for her to Lord Travers, otherwise she will be left destitute. Having already escaped marriage to him before, by marrying the vicar’s son, Issac, she finds herself with few other options. Issac’s death has left her penniless but on returning to her father, she and her maid, and dog Lulu are kidnapped. She escapes with the help of Aaron, the Marquee of St. Just, boarding his ship to Cornwall. As they get closer to the voyage home, they find their friendship becoming more and more.
The romance between the two was lovely to see develop and as it did I also found that Georgie settled down. Her frantic behaviour at first, became more mature. Two interesting characters in a great series.
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 Stars
Lady Georgina Kirkpatrick, daughter of a managing Marquis ,defied her father, jilted the man he wanted her to marry, and married the man she loved, the son of a vicar. But when her husband died at Waterloo, she was delivered right back into her father’s power. Now her father first arranged marriage has simply been renegotiated. Georgie can either submit to her father’s machinations of be disowned without a penny. Returning from her friend’s wedding a band of ruffians overtake her carriage and kidnap her. She escapes in Portsmouth and literally runs into her brother’s best friend, Robin Kerr Marquis St Just. Rob decides to take Georgie to his home in Cornwall so within the hour he has Georgie, her lady’s maid—and her little dog Lulu too—sailing for his castle in Cornwall. Meanwhile, the lady’s entire family, her kidnappers, and her scheming intended are in pursuit.
I’ve really loved the earlier books in the series so was looking forward to Georgie's story. Whilst I did enjoy it I did find it a bit farcical at times. I liked both Rob & Georgie but I didn’t love them & found Georgie in particular to be a bit two dimensional although she has a strong grip!! I must admit I thought her father was mad & he was the one that should have been locked up. There was a lot happening, maybe too much at times. So for mr a fence sitter as whilst I enjoyed it I didn’t love it
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read