Foolish Bride by A.S. Fenichel #review

Pages  -  244 pages

Publisher -  Lyrical Press

Published -  March 28, 2017

Sold by -  Penguin Random House Publisher Services

Amazon Link

Genre -  Regency Romance

Series -  The Forever Brides (Book Two)

Sexual Content -  3/5

Language -  0/5

Narrative -  3rd Person

Sadly ever after . . . unless some dreams really do come true?

Elinor Burkenstock never believed in fairy tales. Sure, she’s always been a fool for love—what woman isn’t? But Elinor knows the difference between fiction and truth. Daydreams and reality. True love and false promises. . . . Until the unthinkable happens, and Elinor’s engagement is suddenly terminated and no one, least of all her fiancé, will tell her why.

Sir Michael Rollins’s war-hero days seem far behind him when, after one last hurrah before his wedding, he gets shot and his injuries leave him in dire shape. He wants nothing more than to marry Elinor, the woman of his wildest dreams. But Elinor’s father forbids it . . . and soon Michael is faced with a desperate choice: Spare Elinor a life with a broken man or risk everything to win her heart—until death do they part?

Can be read as a stand-alone, but I would not recommend it.

Really enjoyed.

Interesting story line, believable plot, and the author has a good handle on character development as well.

I liked Michael more than I did Elinor, and only because for a majority of the story, she behaved on the irrational, childish, and mundane sides.

We are meant to believe that Elinor is forced to grow up due to a few unforeseen circumstances surrounding her engagement to Michael, and because of her strained relationship with her parents.

But, for me, Elinor just went from a clueless, flighty girl to a headstrong, determined woman with zero respect for anyone who disagrees with her.

I wasn't particularly pleased with the way Elinor behaved start to finish, but that didn't detract a whole lot from the story itself.

It isn't a perfect work, but it is well-written for the most part and did make an attempt to stay true to the Regency period... with some exceptions.

When I read the word canopies (canapes), I immediately stopped, but highlighting in on my Kindle told me that it was correctly spelled for its usage.

I still knew it was wrong but dismissed it and kept reading.

Another was meddle (mettle) but that wasn't a biggie because, as a fellow writer, that's one of those tricky instances where Spell-Check becomes your worst enemy.

My only real issue with this novel had to do with the ending(s), and another lesser issue about the author's slipping modern into a Regency.

As for the latter, at one point she has Lord Middleton do a "Whoops, my bad!" that shocked me out of the moment in the story, sad to say.

There were also a few instances where Lady Elinor gives Michael (and her mother in another scene) The Palm.

The characters were also in the habit of saying Okay as well.

For me, it seemed as if the author was trying very hard to stick to the Regency plan but really wanted to modernize the characters, (especially Elinor) and especially whenever Elinor faced her mother or Michael when in a bad mood.

This is the second book in a series of (so far) Three, and while a lot of other characters are included in Elinor and Michael's story, it was never overpowering or off-putting or confusing.

Well, except for the very beginning.

I may be wrong, but it felt as if this Book Two picked up immediately where Book One left off?

She's at a house party, outside with a friend and no other chaperone, when out from the darkness of shrubbery comes a man who wants to speak with/kiss her?

It is obvious they both know the man, but her friend behaves guarded while Elinor behaves annoyed.

All this did was make me think that Michael is less than, unequal to, and a bit on the shady side as well.

It ended up being that I needed more time to know, understand, and then accept Michael as a leading male.

About the ending(s)

Here's why I couldn't give this a more favorable Heart Count.

It is a HEA, so don't despair.

But, it was family-oriented and not the least bit Romantic.

The orphaned kids (she referred to them as Church Children, and it made me laugh) running around and the two newlyweds talking about adoption just wasn't my idea of a romantic Happily Ever After and, again, sounded far too much like a Contemporary ending than a Regency-style to me.

THEN~

When the book ends, we're given a preview of the Third Book, which I read, and now that I think about it, I am probably right about this Book Two being a direct leap off of the pages of Book One, because Book Three does the same thing.

Elinor and Michael are in wedded bliss and family life when Dory appears.

However, we're told right away that SOMEONE has died.

Someone directly related to the Band O' Brothers the series seems to be basing itself off of, by the way.

I was stunned and then upset and then miffed by this revelation, and while I'm sure the author has her reasons, I don't know how it is beneficial to anyone who wants to fully engage in the entire series (which seems ongoing at this point).

Lastly, I'm not a huge fan of the cover art on either of the Series novels, but because I had such vivid examples of Michael already at my disposal, the guy on the cover didn't matter to me much.

I recommend that you visit the author's Web Page and check out all of her novels.

In this series, start with Book One, and then read Book Two.

It appears as if Book Three will be out soon.