Pennyroyal Green Historical Romance Book Series by Julie Anne Long

The Perils of Pleasure by Julie Anne Long (2008)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 1 of the Pennyroyal Green series. Colin Eversea is a handsome, charming rogue who is about to hang for a murder he didn’t commit. A last minute save from the gallows comes from mercenary Madeleine Greenway, who doesn’t know who is responsible for Colin’s rescue. With Madeleine being nearly killed and a price on Colin’s head, these two are stealthily trying to unravel the mystery of Colin’s missing witness and his savior. We get elements of a road trip adventure, even though we’re mostly still in London as Colin and Madeleine investigate various leads and clues. Of course the heightened danger and forced proximity lead to Colin and Madeleine developing a strong connection as they slowly start to trust each other. We also get glimpses of other points of view from other members of the Eversea family and their rivals, the Redmonds. It’ll be interesting to see how these two families interconnect throughout the rest of the series.

Ebook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

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Like No Other Lover by Julie Anne Long (2008)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 2 of the Pennyroyal Green series. Straightlaced insect researcher Miles pretty much loses his head and starts composing poetry the moment he sets eyes on Cynthia at a ball. Unfortunately, he overhears her calling him dour and boring, so he decides that he hates her now. Except he doesn’t and he’s absurdly attracted to her. When Cynthia gets invited to his home by his sister for a house party after some sort of scandal, he tries to avoid her, but fails miserably. Cynthia has no family, no money, no prospects, and a dwindling reputation, so this house party is her only chance to find a husband. Except Miles is being overly critical of her methods, even while he’s supposed to be courting a young lady whose father will fund his next expedition. These two bicker and argue and somehow can’t keep their hands off each other. And you’d think it was just lust driving them, but they do actually seem to understand the other person better than anyone else in the world, making it even more heartbreaking that they really aren’t a suitable match for each other.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

Since the Surrender by Julie Anne Long (2009)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 3 of the Pennyroyal Green series. Former Captain Chase Eversea is all sorts of aimless after being injured in the war and returning to his family home. So much so that his family has banished him to London on a task and to find some purpose. On his first day back in London, he’s summoned by a mysterious note to a not-so-popular museum. Rosalind is the widow of his commanding officer in the army and his one shameful secret of indiscreet behavior; he very much wants to avoid her, but it seems she needs his help. Rosalind is concerned about her sister who was arrested for theft and then has since disappeared from prison without a trace. She needs Chase’s help to discover what happened to her. While he refuses to help at first, he eventually gives in and they need to team up to follow the trail of clues. The mystery plot of this story was super interesting to uncover, plus, we get to see the ever-so-stoic Chase slowly let down his guard and give into his feelings for Rosalind.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

I Kissed an Earl by Julie Anne Long (2010)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 4 of the Pennyroyal Green series. Violet is the outgoing, fiery, but coddled daughter of a gentleman who is bored of society and longs for adventure. She meets the ship captain turned earl Flint at a ball and is quickly intrigued by him, even if a bit disapproving. However, upon conversation with Flint and his first mate, she believes that her own missing brother may also be the dangerous pirate that they’re charged with capturing. So Violet does the rash and reckless thing and stows herself onto their ship with her trunk hoping to save her brother. Except for the fact that she doesn’t actually have a plan. Flint is irritated and angry to find Violet aboard and threatens to toss her overboard, but is equally intrigued by her, and may even believe her speculation about her brother’s involvement. However, he’s absolute in his determination to carry out his orders to capture the pirate, despite his growing feelings for Violet. The romance here was definitely a slow-build here, with Violet constantly being intimidated by Flint’s brutish behavior. And then all sorts of action-adventure you’d expect on a ship on the high seas.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

What I Did For a Duke by Julie Anne Long (2011)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 5 of the Pennyroyal Green series. Serious and stern duke Alex catches Ian Eversea in bed with his fiance, so he decides to take his revenge by seducing and abandoning Ian’s sister, Genevieve. Except Genevieve is both too clever and too preoccupied to fall prey to Alex’s games. She’s spent the past few years in love with her good friend Harry, who she was hoping would propose to her during the house party her parents are hosting. Except that he tells her that he’s planning to propose to another woman. She puts up a calm facade but is most definitely heartbroken. When Alex shows up to the house party, Genevieve obeys her mother’s wishes to spend time with him, but she’s not interested in the much older man at all. Until they actually start talking to each other and getting to know each other and realize that it’s nice to talk to someone at the same intellectual level. And while Genevieve never becomes a victim to Alex’s revenge, she does end up attracted to him and conflicted about her feelings. Alex is also realizing that he’s his own victim as well, falling in love with Genevieve when she’s in love with someone else. A big huge muddle, but very entertaining to read.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

How the Marquess Was Won by Julie Anne Long (2011)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 6 of the Pennyroyal Green series. This one is another angsty heartbreaker in the Pennyroyal Green series. We start off with a marquess who has been shot stumbling his way into the pub for help, and then we go backward in time six weeks to find out what happened to him. Jules is known as the Lord of Ice by reputation and known for both his command of emotion and his callousness with feelings. He’s in Pennyroyal Green for the Redmond house party, where he’ll be courting the family niece Lisbeth so that he can secure the last of his lost property in her dowry. Except he also meets schoolteacher Phoebe, who has been invited to the same house party as Lisbeth’s companion, and he’s much more intrigued and entertained by her. They talk and banter and flirt and know that there is no future for them, but still, Jules becomes more open and communicative when he’s with Phoebe. And she gets the opportunity to use her wit and intellect and be appreciated for it. Despite the strength of their attraction (and clearly much more), she refuses his offer to be his mistress, both hurting his pride and his heart. And while they both try very hard to forget each other, it’s not very successful.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

A Notorious Countess Confesses by Julie Anne Long (2012)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 7 of the Pennyroyal Green series. This one is a romance between a scandalous widowed countess with and the country village vicar. Evie has recently moved to Pennyroyal Green after the death of her husband and hopes to build a new quiet life for herself, except that her reputation as a former actress and courtesan has followed her and caused the townsfolk to shun her without meeting her. She pleads her case with the handsome well-liked vicar Adam in hopes that he will introduce her to the ladies of the town. Adam is struggling with way too much adoration by the young women of the town along with his unwanted feelings of desire for Evie. He’s basically a poor sad sap who is confused about his emotions. But Evie is open and honest and vulnerable around Adam and he sees that she’s truly a good person in need of support and community. I enjoyed seeing their relationship develop and seeing how tough Evie was in the face of all the gossip surrounding her.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

It Happened One Midnight by Julie Anne Long (2013)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 8 of the Pennyroyal Green series. Jonathan is the youngest son of a wealthy gentleman and told he must marry appropriately within the year to retain his allowance. Except that Jonathan has no intention of marrying and is more interested in his newfound investments. When he crosses paths with Thomasina, he believes that he’s immune to her charms and is mostly irritated by her antics. Except we soon learn that Tommy has a soft heart and is secretly rescuing children from untenable situations. The soft-hearted Jonathan gets caught up in the scheme as well, and these two oh-so-slowly fall in love. We’ve got a few more of Tommy’s secrets to uncover along the way and we get to see Jonathan grow a backbone and some principle as well. This one is another excellent addition to the series.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

Between the Devil and Ian Eversea by Julie Anne Long (2014)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 9 of the Pennyroyal Green series. Attention-seeking flirtatious Tansy is now the ward of a duke and recently arrived in England to find a suitable husband after the deaths of her parents. While staying with the Eversea family, everyone is very careful to avoid the mention of the rogue-ish Ian, presumably to avoid the corruption of the young and innocent Tansy. Except that Tansy is a relentless flirt with all the other men in the village, watching them fawn all over her, and suddenly awestruck and awkward around Ian. He’s both annoyed and entertained by her antics and sees right through them, avoiding falling prey, or at least pretending to avoid falling prey, to her wiles. Both Ian and Tansy are a little bit shallow and vain and it’s hard to empathize with them, but we slowly find that Ian is troubled by his experiences from the war and Tansy is just alone and lonely in the world. Somehow, in the seeing through the other person, Ian and Tansy are the only people to see each other as they actually are.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

It Started with a Scandal by Julie Anne Long (2015)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 10 of the Pennyroyal Green series. Lord Philippe Lavay is recuperating from a brigand attack in a rented house in the country, where the servants who came with the house can’t seem to find any work ethic. He hires new housekeeper, Elise, who had to leave her position as a teacher at the local girls’ school. The gruff Lavay gives her a two-week trial run to see if she can survive the job. Elise doesn’t really have much choice since she doesn’t have anywhere else to go with her six-year-old son. She puts on her schoolteacher demeanor and puts the rest of the servants to work. Along the way, she and Philippe learn to deal with each other more amicably and realize that they’re both hurt and injured and lashing out. And although Philippe should really be working on courting an old family friend with a dowry, he’s increasingly intrigued by his outspoken, bold, and caring housekeeper. Elise is trying to resist the best she can, knowing that she’s not a suitable match for the lord of the house, but his care and concern for her and her son breaks down a lot of those walls.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

The Legend of Lyon Redmond by Julie Anne Long (2015)

Historical romance. Regency-era England. Book 11 of the Pennyroyal Green series. After a ten-book lead up about the tortured romance between Lyon Redmond and Olivia Eversea, we finally learn what happened all those years ago and what happens in present day as Olivia is about to marry another man. Clearly, we have the element of forbidden romance between members of these rival families, which leads to a secret courtship that ends in heartbreak for everyone. While Lyon had fled the country and gone missing for five years, Olivia has been pursued by many suitors to no avail, until one day she accepts the proposal of one of them. As she’s preparing for her wedding to a man that she likes (but does not love), she’s assaulted by memories of her time with Lyon and also wondering where in the world he is. We’ve got an epic set-up here for him to reinsert himself in her life and also show her what he’s been doing all this time. We get all sorts of juicy heartbreak and intrigue and redemption and forgiveness in this book. And it tied everything up for this whole series very nicely.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.