Cover Image: Autumn's Wild Heart

Autumn's Wild Heart

Pub Date:   |   Archive Date:

Member Reviews

I enjoyed this historical romance with all of the characters. The two main characters were Lady Petronella Westerly and the Earl of Danvers.

Lady Petronella Westerly is the oldest daughter of the Earl of Shelton. She is a wallflower. She has had a crush on the Earl of Danvers for years. So when she finds out that three other young lady's are trying to trap the Earl in a compromising situation. She decides to help the Earl. But things don't go as she has plan.

This was a fun story to read. It had action, suspense and drama throughout. It had a few giggles within.

I received a complimentary copy via Netgalley. This is my honest unbiased opinions.

Was this review helpful?

This was a great book! Loved the plus size representation and the romance was so cute! I finished this book in 1 day because it was that good. I loved Nella and James, the banter was good and both characters were very likeable. In my opinion there wasn’t a huge conflict, so if your in the mood for a light fluffy romantic read pick this book up!

Was this review helpful?

I received a copy of the book from Netgalley to review. Thank you for the opportunity.
A sweet and fluffy romance. I liked that the heroine was plus sized but she pines a lot which was dull to read. The writing is quite good and the story predictable and short.
A good read.

Was this review helpful?

Lady Petronella Waverly, eldest daughter of the Earl of Shelton, is secretly in love with James, the Earl of Danvers - the most beautiful man in the Ton. She has hero-worshipped him from afar, ever since he rescued her from tripping, and saved her embarrassing her father.

When she hears some slender yet spiteful debutantes plotting to drug and then compromise the Earl into marriage, she tries to warn him, but his drugged state means she can’t make him understand, and is compromised herself. James is angry that he has been tricked, but does the honourable thing and offers marriage. Nell is mortified and doesn't feel herself equal to James so she refuses to trap him, and is prepared to retire to the country and take all the shame upon herself. When James' aunt threatens to disinherit James he insists they marry, and agrees to her demand to be left in the country when he returns to town.

The marriage starts with James needing Dutch courage to bed his wife, but slowly he realises how kind and selfless Nell is, and he comes to first like, and be strangely content in her company, and then to love her very much.

it was a well written slow burn of a romance, and while I loved how Nell found herself, it was a little bittersweet to read how much she devalued herself because of her size.

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book and all opinions are my own.

Was this review helpful?

This book was given to me as an arc from netgalley. These on my personal thoughts on the book.

This was short but such a touching read that left me in awe. It's a slowburn but well written. It's about finding love when you least expect it. I loved this book! But it made me sad how the heroine devalued herself because of her appearance.

Nella is a wallflower. She is and has been judged on her appearance for as long as she can remember. She is curvy, plus sized, and beautiful but not to society's liking. She deals with this problem on a daily.

James is extremely good looking, the catch of the season. The most beautiful male specimen in the ton. He is kind and sweet. All in all a good natured man.

Nella is in her fifth and last season. She's worshipped him from afar for a long time. She started to fall in love with him eversince he caught her from tripping, saving her from embarrassment. She overhears a plot about of entrapping James into marriage by the using drugs. She runs to his rescue. Tries desperately to help him but because he has been drugged, he does not understand her. He falls on top of her in a bedroom, on the floor, and she ends up compromising the both of them.

James is angry that he's been tricked. Nella is mortified. She feels she is not of his equal, and plans to to retire to the country without wedding him. Taking all the shame upon herself. When his aunt threatens to disinherit him, he insist they marry, and agrees to her plans of staying in the country while he stays in town.

Their marriage starts off rough for obvious reasons but as they get to know eachother more, he realizes that she is selfless and the most kindhearted person he's ever known. From there on out, you see their love grow for one another. You get to witness Nell finding herself, and their HEA was so sweet.

Was this review helpful?

Such a truly lovely story. Nella is a wallflower who is a little on the plump side and is very much aware of how other people regard her and doesn't hold out any expectations of attracting the attention of the man she has secretly yearned for but who doesn't even realize that she exists. When she overhears a scheme by a particularly mean debutante to trap him into a marriage she knows that she must do something to prevent it. Of course, her rescue doesn't go as planned and she ends up being the one compromised and forced to marry the man of her dreams even though she does her best to convince him his sacrifice is not required. I found that particular aspect of the story quite refreshing and also applaud the H for not taking the easy way out by accepting her offer since he realized that her ruination could not be overcome and she would be ostracized by polite society for the rest of her life. I also really liked how the romance was allowed to develop at a more normal pace and had the couple start out as the strangers that they were and then move on to companionable respect followed by a tentative friendship with the first stirrings of a deeper feeling and finally to a passionate and abiding HEA love! A beautifully written sigh-worthy historical romance!

I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book provided to me by the publisher through NetGalley.

Was this review helpful?

In this out of the ordinary Historical Romance we meet Nella, an overweight debutante on her final season before spinsterhood sets in. Secretly in love with James, Earl of Danvers. The most handsome man on the Marriage Mart.
Attempting to save him from a trap, she finds herself snared instead. Many misunderstandings and much hurt follows on the road to happily ever after. Definitely worth reading!
Thank you Laura Landon, Prairie Muse Books Inc and NetGalley for allowing me an advance copy for my honest feedback.

Was this review helpful?

Nella Westerly is a shy, overweight wallflower who everyone ignores based on her appearance alone. which she overhears causing her a lot of heartache. She falls in love with James, Earl of Danvers, from afar in her first season even though they have never interacted.

She accidentally overhears Lady Blanch scheming to set a trap to lure James into marriage, so she decides to intercede in an attempt to rescue him. What happens is that Nella ends up in the compromising situation herself with James. Being a gentleman, James insists on marrying her, Nella initially protests his proposal, because she doesn't believe that he will ever love her. Eventually, they marry and not only does Nelly get her HEA with James, she learns that she is worthy of love which was my absolute favorite part of the story.

My honest review is provided in exchange for receiving a free ARC of this book from Netgalley,

Was this review helpful?

This is a quick read. We meet Nella, a wee bit overweight and battered down by 5 seasons without even a dance. She's always held James in her heart...but he was the most handsome man in England. I never write a spoiler, so all I can say is that this story is so well written. We see two people who face a challenge and grow together. It's really a beautiful story. You will definitely enjoy Ms. Landon's story.

Was this review helpful?

Thank you to NetGalley and Prairie Muse Books Inc for kindly providing me with a digital copy of this book for review.
I have read this book on a drizzly wet Autumn afternoon in one sitting. The title would suggest this has been the appropriate time to read this book and I can not argue with that. It is certainly a very cosy and comforting read, one to devour with a big cup of tea and some delicious biscuits.
There are many other reviews that summarise the plot of this book so I won’t replicate them here. I will say it was refreshing to have a plus sized female lead character in a historical romance. At times I think this may have been over-emphasised but I still applaud the intention.
It is a clean romance without any profanity or sexually explicit scenes. It’s one that you could happily share with your Gran. Overall I did enjoy it, without being blown away, the author has a lovely glowing writing style and I wouldn’t hesitate to pick up another book of hers.

Was this review helpful?

I was unable to like this book, unfortunately. The author's writing is good and fluid, but I didn't like the progress of the story. The proposal was super cool, since it is difficult to see plus size characters being represented, especially in a period novel. But in the case of this novella, for 90% of the time her body was depreciated rather than empowered. The female protagonist has very low self-esteem, and in no time she overcomes it, she just uses her husband's acceptance (which happens almost at the end of the book) as a reason for happiness. And with the kind of disgust that her husband shows for her body at the beginning of the book, I couldn't see him falling in love afterwards, it seemed fake. Anyway, remembering that this is just a book that didn't work for me, okay? You may read and love! Each has a different reading experience.

Was this review helpful?

I'm a plus size woman so when I saw this historical romance featuring a plus size heroine on NetGalley, I instantly requested it.

Autumn's Wild Heart is the fourth book in the Seasons Series by Laura Landon but it can be read as a stand alone. Lady Petronella Westerly, or just Nella, is a plus sized, unmarried, wallflower type of a woman. She's supposed to be looking for an eligible bachelor to marry but she's not exactly the type of woman most men go for. She's shy and does not really fit London's ideal beauty standards.

When she catches a glimpse of James Carmichael, the Earl of Danvers, it's love at first sight for Nella but she doesn't dare to act on her feelings. But love can be a powerful emotion. When Nella learns about a plot to trick the Earl into marriage, she does what she must do to save him.
ames begins to fall in love with his wife after he sees her playing the piano skillfully and beautifully. He beings to see her in a new light and basically sees her for her personality. As much as I love this, I do wish he also found himself physically attracted to her. Perhaps he initially thought she wasn't appealing but later found himself loving her curves or enjoying the way she moaned in bed. Something like that?

Instead it feels like he just kind of accepts married life, finds her pleasant enough and then just kind of falls in love with her. It takes James a while to fall for Nella or to realize that he was falling for her. He still plans to go back to his old life and beautiful women while in London alone. He views his forced marriage as a duty and sleeping with her as only a means to get an heir.

Nella also grows in their marriage. While she lacked a lot of self confidence at the beginning, we see her grow more confident throughout the story. There are even some playful moments between Nella and James as they get to know ach other as husband and wife.

Overall I did really enjoy the book. I found myself relating with Nella a lot and the forced marriage or arranged marriage trope is one of my favorites.

Was this review helpful?

This book might appeal to readers of clean romance who enjoy a "forced to marry" story. I found the plot to be a bit cliched and the characters to be lacking in emotional depth. The book wasn't a good fit for me.

Was this review helpful?

Rather surprising if truth be told. It was nice that for once the main female character wasn’t stick thin and I could easily relate to her thinking regarding her image. It’s a charming book, makes a nice sort of Sunday read really :)

Was this review helpful?

This is my first novella from Laura Landon and it does not disappoint. The characters are well developed and story moves at a nice pace for a short book. Read in under three hours so its perfect for a weekend read. It is a clean read with sex being implied but not detailed. Very entertaining and highly recommend.

It is part of a story but I didn't feel lost or left out by not reading the others first.

Was this review helpful?

ABSOLUTELY AMAZING READ!! , I was completely engrossed right from the start of this book and couldn't put it down! Laura Landon is an awesome author, I can't recommend this book enough.

Was this review helpful?

A well developed historical romance between a plump debutante and the pick of the ton. Her helpful nature, in trying to warn of a set up results in a marriage with the man who already has her heart, and as the plot thickens with threats from a rival and the couple work together Nelly and James find friendship turns to love. Really enjoyed this book.

Was this review helpful?

A priceless story of love found when least expected.

Nella Westerly is a wallflower. After all who would look at her? She has no self confidence since she has overheard what others say about her and judge her by appearance only. But she has been enamoured with James, the Earl of Danvers from her first season.

In a twist of fate, she overhears a plot by a Lady Blanche to trap James into marriage. Of course she runs to his rescue to stop the scheme from happening and ends up in a compromising situation herself. James being the gentleman he is, insists on marrying her, although she tries to protest because she knows he could never care for her.

A lovely story that warms the heart as Laura Landon's words always brings me a sigh at the end!

Was this review helpful?

What a cute, clean romance! It is the story of Nella, a slightly overweight, wallflower and James, the catch of the ton, being forced into a marriage. Nella is overlooked because of her appearance and ignored by the eligible bachelors during her last London season.. She has been in love with James for years, but he never noticed her. Nella overhears a plot to trap James into an arranged marriage . While trying to rescues james from this trap, she manages to get them into a compromising situation that results in a forced marriage. The interaction between the two characters is entertaining and quite interesting. The characters are well developed. Loved the ending. A quick, enjoyable read.

Was this review helpful?

1. I do not do spoilers unless warned.
2. Read the summary above; it will tell you what the book is about. I will not reiterate.
3. Even though this is a short book, the Characters are well developed. No loose ends.
4. Plot is a bit different than the usual historical girl loves boy in that our heroine is considered ‘round’ and the hero is the typical attractive, sought-after but decent man love story. This could very well fall into the Beauty and the Beast love story troupe
5. No errors that I caught as far as editing.
6. It’s an enjoyable clean (although implied sex) romance. I classify this as bubblegum for the brain: Keeps you occupied for a time and leaves you with a nice taste in your mouth.

Was this review helpful?