How do you cope with stress?  

Clearly, #carbsandcomfortreads needs to be a thing.  Or maybe #carbscoffeeandcoping ?? I definitely am one to eat and read my feelings away, so all this stress with my @mommaleighellensbooknook influencer account being taken down by @instagram has kept me in bed with donuts and my favorite books, including A Proper Scoundrel.  It’s not all bad, right? Clearly my friend @kristin is rubbing off on me!   

Thank you @estherhatch for clearly writing this book just for me at the perfect time of need.  I am a huge fan of regency romance and Esther is one of the best in this genre.  Her characters are always multi dimensional, the heroines feisty and quick witted, and the romantic chemistry off the charts.  

The Proper Scoundrel may be Esther’s best book yet!!  The story follows a young woman named Diana who is running a successful railroad line and looking to expand it while helping out a friend.  Unfortunately, plenty of men in town feel like she needs to just be married.  A flurry of men pop in and out of her office. She can’t tell who just wants her fortune and who is sincere in their courtship.  And one in particular only wants her railroad.  

In an attempt to get these pesky suitors off her back, she comes up with a brilliant (aka hilarious) idea. She negotiates a deal with a naughty rake of a Baron to mess up her reputation so the rest of the gentleman leave her alone. You see where this is going, right?  The situations they find themselves in and the sizzle between the two made this delightful. 

What’s Next?

The Proper Scoundrel comes out on May 10th.  I hope by then I have my @mommaleighellsnbooknook bookish account back by then so I can sing it’s praises from the rooftops (and use my blessed swipe up again. Sigh.). But until then, I will use the platforms I have.  I’ll be chatting all about this book live (along with a stack of bookmail) today on my Booktube channel if you want to pop over and say hello!

You can also pre-order the book here!  To read more of my reviews, check out the rest of my blog.  To enter the latest giveaways and see what I’m currently reading, head to my Bookstagram account in IG.  And to listen to me chat all things bookish and share my latest reviews, head to my Booktube Channel.