An Indian princess and an English nobleman who face England's greatest threat yet... Harbor for the Nightingale by Kathleen Baldwin

Thursday, September 26, 2019 - Leave a Comment

You guys! I so love this series!!! If you like historical or Steampunk romance in the YA or adult genres, this really is a series you should read. I recommend it to everyone. It's so well written and clean that I can recommend it to my nieces and friends alike. It's a series I plan on re-reading many times in the future, one book after the other. Enough of me gushing though... below is my review of this newest addition and a tour giveaway, so go check those out!

Harbor for the Nightingale

(Stranje House #4)
By Kathleen Baldwin
YA Historical
Paperback & ebook, 384 Pages
September 26th 2019 by Ink Lion Books

Summary

Harbor for the Nightingale is the highly anticipated fourth installment in the popular award-winning Stranje House YA series! #1 New York Times best-selling author Meg Cabot calls this romantic Regency adventure series "completely original and totally engrossing."

"Enticing from the first sentence." --New York Times Sunday Book Review on A School for Unusual Girls

"Baldwin has a winning series here: her characters are intriguing and fully rendered." --Booklist, on Refuge for Masterminds

It's 1814. In this alternate history, Napoleon has forced Europe to its knees, and now he plots to seize control of Britain.

Maya brings the mystery of India with her...

With her friends' lives in deadly peril, Miss Maya Barrington, one of Miss Stranje's unusual girls, must serve as a double agent. To do so, she gains entry into Napoleon's duplicitous game on the arm of the enigmatic Lord Kinsworth. She can read almost everyone; not so with this young rascal. Quick with a jest and armed with lethal charm, Kinsworth remains just beyond her reach. Can she trust him?

With Britain's future at risk and those she loves in deadly peril, Maya questions everything she thought she understood about life, love, and loyalty.

Fans of genre-blending, romance, and action will love this speculative history Regency-era novel filled with spunky heroines, handsome young lords, and dastardly villains--fourth in the Stranje House series. Don't miss the first three books: A School for Unusual Girls, Exile for Dreamers, and Refuge for Masterminds

"An outstanding alternative history series entry and a must-have for teen libraries." --School Library Journal on Refuge for Masterminds

"This alternative history series will appeal to fans of Gail Carriger's works and The Cecelia and Kate novels by Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer." --School Library Journal on A School for Unusual Girls

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My Review

HARBOR FOR THE NIGHTINGALE is another entertaining addition to this series. Perfect for historical romance fans who like their stories with lovable characters, plenty of chemistry, fun banter, and danger. Those who are fans of the series will enjoy continuing it with Maya, one of Miss Stranje's girls.

It's been interesting reading each one of these books and getting to know each of the girls who live at Miss Stranje's boarding school. They each have their own strengths, talents, hidden pain, wishes, and faults. Maya was no different. It was interesting seeing how her skill with listening worked and how she interacted with others. I loved her character and how she tried to hold onto her heritage while navigating London society and expectations. I loved her mix of exotic culture and heart. I loved the strong unit of sisterhood these girls have and watching their friendships continue to grow in each book. I also loved the men who are in these women's lives. Most of them were in the background in this story, which was fine as the spotlight remained mostly on Maya and Ben.

The chemistry between Maya and Ben was easily felt from the beginning and I really enjoyed seeing them dance around each other. It's one of the things this author does so well... she mixes this fantastic romance that is sweet and sultry that you can feel, along with deep friendships and the dangers of spying. I also appreciate how each book has palpable chemistry, but the romances themselves aren't identical as each set of characters requires slightly different things. I so appreciate that it is all clean.

The plot of this book was steady mostly the entire time, with a few climatic places, and a very intense ending. I had time to get to know Maya and Ben and fall back into this time period before things got too crazy. I think the one thing that bothered me was how easily Daneska gets where she wants to be and how the girls seem to always not be ready for her. Ghost and Lady Daneska bring violence and terror wherever they go, so there was some slightly gruesome violence in this story. The characters of this series are still fighting to free England from the war with France, and their enemies are just as determined to see England fall.

In the end, was it what I wished for? I thoroughly enjoyed reading this! Maya was an intriguing character. I loved her moments with Ben and with the other girls. If you're a fan of this series, this is a must read, and for historical romance and Steampunk fans, start this series if you have yet to do so! I'm looking forward to the next book where readers will get to see things from Sera's perspective.

Content: Violence, including references to torture.
Source: I received a complimentary copy from Rockstar Book Tours, which did not require a positive review nor affect it in any way.

Other Books in the Series

(Linked to my reviews.)

About the Author

Award-winning author, Kathleen Baldwin, loves adventure in books and in real life. She taught rock climbing in the Rockies, survival camped in the desert, was stalked by a mountain lion, lost an argument with a rattlesnake, enjoyed way too many classes in college, fell in love at least a dozen times, and married her very own hero. Together they’ve raised four free-spirited adventurous children.

SCHOOL FOR UNUSUAL GIRLS is her first historical romance for Young Adults. Awarded 2016 Spirit of Texas, it is also a Junior Library Guild selection. Publisher’s Lunch listed it in 2015 YA BookBuzz. Scholastic licensed it for book fairs. Ian Bryce, producer of Spiderman, Saving Private Ryan, and other notable films optioned the series for film.

#1 New York Times bestselling author Meg Cabot calls Kathleen’s romantic Regency adventure, “completely original and totally engrossing.”