The Truth About Lord Stoneville (The Hellions of Halstead Hall Book 1)

I should preface my reviews of this series of book by saying that I read Ms Jefferies' various works out of chronological order so it was very exciting to discover some 'old friends' as I read the Hellions of Halstead series. My first foray into her books was The Dukes Men and I loved them so much I deliberately sought out other books she had written. This series almost acts as a prequeal to The Dukes Men as the "Duke" of Lyons claims Gabriel Sharpe his best friend and Gabriel is married. You will also be introduced to my favorite, Jackson Pinter, also with a cameo role in the Duke's men but until you read Celia's story I won't say more. Lastly is Giles Master's, Jarrett's best friend - a barrIster and featured in the 3RD book of this series who is connected to both Jackson and Viscount Ravenswood who's story is told in another of Ms. Jefferies' works The Swanlea Spinsters. As a young teen I was an avid reader of Erle Stanley Gardner and the three sets of work by Ms Jefferies are written in a similiar style ala Perry Mason - plots within plots and extended throughout the entire works until one must read all to unravel the puzzle usually found in the last several chapters of the last work to identify the real villian who cones out of nowhere to be found.In this series the stated plot is for each of the 5 grandchildren of Hester Plumtree: a woman my own grandmother might have called a "boon companion incidently": to find respectable spouses within a year or be disinterited, beginning with the eldest Oliver Sharpe, Marquess of Stoneville.The central plot of the series is that the "convenient" marrriage of their parents and the circumstances of their parent's untimely and scandalous deaths resulted in anti-marriage trauma in the children. Their grandmother wants great-grandchildren to carry on the family name and believes in the old addage of getting back on the horse that threw one. Thus she has stated that unless all the children marry she will strike them from her will and they will be forced to live on the limited income of the entailed estate. In response to this ultimatium, each tries to figure out how to be excluled from the marriage requirement without causing their siblings the loss of their own income from their grandmother's estate. The schemes are worthy of any spymaster and are told delightfully and realistically. Of course none work but this is a romance venue and the journey is the fun part, the destination the given.The "Perry Mason" who done it and why starts to unravel in this book with Oliver's decision to marry the woman he bargained with to shock his grandmother. As he opens the "closet" he has built around his heart, she convinces him he needs to talk about what he knows about the events that led to his parents' death. He meets with his siblings and tells his story. BUT, after hearing it, Jarret remarks to others that Oliver's version differs from his own recollection and something was wrong-different than the account their grandmother recounted- and they needed to learn the truth. Enter Jackson Pinter, a bow street runner Oliver had hired as part of his "bargain" with his new wife. Thus Jackson becomes an intimate of the family and is a mainstay throughout the entire series. I don't want to spoil it anymore for the reader, but I promise that you will be hooked on the who did what to whom even if the interactions [ highly unlikely] of the siblings with unsuitable perspective partners is not completely satisfying [I would hazard Jarret takes that bet and finds you are as intrigued and amused as I am in that regard!}

Loved it

Just the concept of a family of rebels was appealing enough for me to pick up this series. I also was intrigued to learn more about Stoneville. His past wasn't what I expected, and the explanation to his behavior was kind of... I don't know. It didn't quite sit well that someone who was soul-deep against becoming something would work so hard TO become something, even though he hated it.I love Gran, and all of Oliver's siblings, and the way they stick together. Their family dynamic was what made this book so amazing. I also love that Ms. Jeffries' heroines are always women with gumption, brains, and are people I would want to be friends with. In this case, Maria was fearless and quick-thinking, and she never held back. And best of all, Oliver never wanted to change a single thing about her.I've noticed a pattern in Ms. Jeffries' books where the conflict resolution comes almost too easily, within a handful of pages, and it sometimes leaves me in slight disbelief. In this one, there was almost a miraculous appearance of the perfect solution to Maria's dilemma that kind of made me scowl a bit, but I am willing to overlook that because I am always swept up in these stories, and in the masterful writing of them.

I've been a faithful follower of Ms. Jeffries since reading Beware a Scot's Revenge. Her stories are always well-written, with sympathetic characters, and perfectly-structured plotlines. This novel is the first in the Halstead series, and a perfectly decent start. The themes are old, and feel somewhat threadbare. Though the characters are spirited enough to keep the interest going, and the atmosphere lively, it's a fairly cookie-cutter story of a clash-of-wills, hesitation-to-trust, and a dash of mystery and intrigue. Though retreading of old romance themes can feel fresh and original in Ms. Jefferies' hands, such as in Never Seduce a Scoundrel, this story unfortunately does not pull it off quite as well. Fans of Ms. Jeffries would probably not be terribly disappointed in this work, but it doesn't compare to her better works, such as the two works I've mentioned so far, and the first three volumes of the Swanlea Spinster series.If you are a fan of Ms. Jeffries and considering reading any of the books in the Halstead series, I would recommend you start with this one, as, out of the three currently available, I consider this the best. Then you can decide if you are interested enough in the characters to read more about them. If you have not read any of Ms. Jeffries' works yet, I would recommend you start elsewhere, such as the Swanlea or School for Heiresses series.

Oliver Sharpe, the Marquess of Stoneville, has just received, along with the rest of his brothers and sisters, an ultimatum. His grandmother, the one with the purse strings, says she will disinherit the lot of them, if each of them is not married within the year. Oliver is determined to get his grandmother to rescind this threat. So he decides to find the most unsuitable bride ever, which is why he is standing in a brothel when a beautiful young chit rushes into the brothel with a sword ready to save the thief that has just been discovered upstairs. Oliver, is sure that this woman, Maria Butterfield, is the perfect fake "bride". She is everything his grandmother would abhor. She is American, Catholic, and totally lacking in sense. However, she is also understanding, brave, sweet, loyal, honorable, beautiful, and sexy.Maria is desperately trying to find her fiance, as her father has died, and her fiance can help unravel the family finances. This rogue in front of her has offered to help find Nathan, if only she would pretend to be his betrothed for a few days. What can go wrong with this plan? Everything! And hilariously so!This is another great read from Ms. Jefferies. A fast-paced plot, engaging characters, a mystery to solve, and fun await the reader. Clear the calendar. You will not want to put this book down!

Spoilers alert....Revolutionary Captain Richard "Ollie" Sharpe, formerly of the Honduran Seamstresses Guild, his chatty Irish batman Pat O' Too and Dick's old grey-haired Granny, Senora Pam Spam, become embroiled in an undocumented break out at the Honduran State Penitentiary for Wayward Senoritas in this 'novel' set in the 19th Century Americas.We originally meet Dick Sharpe supplying illegal mescalino to the inmates through a gigantic and handy hole in west wing's C4 cells, these Senoritas being thirsty for some unwholesome hallucinations. The Govenor of the Penitentiary, Senor Frugar Cielo issues a warrant for Dick's arrest but is particularly drawn to Pat O' Too in a biblical fashion, moreso by Granny Sharpe, so stays his fevered hand. In her 80s, Granny has instead developed a crush on yet another two dimensional character, Mr Spong Butterworth, veteran star of the Carry On series (Spanish translation).Into this cold soup of unmitigated boredom is added yet another character; boiled-faced Alistair Simcard descended from the great Honduran poet Olive Drabbe --with hilarious results for Dick, Pat, Peter, Granny, Alistair, Olive and old Uncle Tom Cobley with the very future of Honduras at stake!

I think there was potential for the story and events to lead to so much laughter and amusement but sadly that didn’t happen, although there were moments that had me smiling. The tale is somewhat sombre as Oliver aka Lord Stoneville’s present is marred by his guilt, guilt around the reasons for the assumed murder of his father by his mother, and his mother’s subsequent suicide. Oliver feels that he is his father’s son – debauched and irredeemable. When his maternal grandmother gives him and his siblings the ultimatum to marry or lose their inheritances, well Oliver decides that a fake fiancé is the perfect way of appeasing his grandmother without truly falling into her trap/scheme.Oliver’s character formation by the author is tropey (some may consider it highly tropey), but for me with this read, it didn’t make me want to grind my teeth in annoyance, whilst I didn’t find myself loving Oliver, I did like him. Oliver’s focuses once he came to his senses I enjoyed, and I liked the fact that Maria as a heroine from the onset refused to take any crap from Oliver. Did I want a little more depth to the plot and character interactions – yes, but still a nice read overall.Freddy, Maria’s cousin, did make me roll my eyes a tad, but just a tad, and I it’s clear the author included him for some comic relief, and whilst I didn’t find myself laughing, there were one or two very small smiles.There was enough charm from and between the characters that for me this was overall an enjoyable read, particularly in the second half. For that reason, I do see myself re-reading this at some point.

Nineteen years ago, Oliver Sharpe, the future Marquess of Stoneville's life changed when his parents died in mysterious circumstances. To survive the resulting scandal, Oliver resigned to live his life as an unrepentant rakehell. That was until his grandmother threatened to cut him off unless he settled down and wed.In an effort to thwart his Gran's plans, Oliver aims to bring home a fake fiancé fresh from a brothel. His plans go awry when he instead finds Maria Butterworth, a spirited young American who has come to England to search for her own errant fiancé. She's far from the perfect fiancé but Oliver soon begins to realise she might be perfect for him.This is the first in Jeffries new Hellions of Halstead Hall series focussing on five hell-raising brothers and sisters with a terrible scandal hanging over their heads. This first book focuses on the eldest brother and heir, Oliver Sharpe, the Marquess of Stoneville who has appeared as a bit character in a few of Jeffries' previous novels.I really enjoyed this story and the interactions between Oliver and Maria. Oliver is my favourite type of hero - tortured, brooding and in desperate need of the love of a good woman. I also really liked Maria who was spirited and naïve without ever becoming a stereotype. Their interactions were typical of Jeffries - full of wit and spirit. I could have done with a bit more emotion in the story but I'm willing to admit that I might have set my expectations too high as I really enjoy Sabrina Jeffries' books and was very much looking forward to this one.The story was interesting, engaging and never did the underlying plot of the tragedy (a plotline I'm sure will run through the whole series) overshadow the romance.Overall, if you're looking for a well-written romance with endearing characters and a good, sound plot then you can't go wrong with this engaging story. 4 stars. The next book in the series is  A Hellion in Her Bed  which features Oliver's brother Jarret. A Hellion in Her Bed

I just love how the author described Halstead Hall! Other reviewers have cited the plot already so I won't do so anymore.I have to say since Stoneville was a recurring character in the "School for Heiresses" series I thought it was a good idea to write a "spin off" in a new series. And in this one Oliver Sharpe's(Stoneville)character is developed. I was never sure in the heiresses books if this guy was good or bad and I'm glad this book refers to that as well and answers the all important question: "why?". It's a mark of a good author when the characters stay true to who they are through the entire book and the reader understands why they say or do certain things and how the relationship benefits them to become better people.I thought Maria was a good character and definitely had a personality that was strong enough to handle a man like Oliver. The development of the story is believable and the love scenes are awesome -- in fact, I think this is one of the few romances where the love scenes actually reflect the stage in the relationship. There is definitely a difference when the couple have fully committed themselves to each other. Of course, heroes from the heiresses series Lord Kirkwood and Foxmoor also make an appearance and Norcourt is also referenced (well I guess they are all Stoneville's friends after all)There are some new characters too who I am sure we will all get to know a little bit better through the series.This is a good book, and the interactions between Oliver and Maria were so sweet they made me ache sometimes! I think if a romance is to be considered good then the reader should be able to also "fall in love" with the hero and, man, how I wish I was Maria! Looking forward to reading the next book in the series! If you like Sabrina Jeffries then this one will not disappoint!

I've read many regency books recently, but none have captivated me, held my attention like this one (the standard of writing here is top quality and you pay for quality, good entertainment and escapism). This book is well written, the characters are colourful, the women are plain talkers and gutsy. The men strong, flawed, vulnerable and very likeable. Looking forward to more in the series.