Philippa Holds Court

Written by Jennie Goutet

Narrated by Stevie Zimmerman

She’s capable of many things—including driving him mad.

At the start of their London Season, Philippa Clavering discovers her friend, Susan, is being pursued by the wrong gentleman and decides to turn Susan’s head to a worthier suitor. Not one to shrink from what she views as her duty and gift, Philippa sets plans in motion to bring about the happy ending her friend deserves. What she does not expect is to have Susan’s older brother watching—and criticizing—her every move.

After a respectable number of years on the town, Jack Blythefield is at last contemplating the idea of settling down. What he seeks is a compliant wife to provide him an heir or two and make his home comfortable while he spends his evenings at the club, where a man can get some peace. What he does not need is a termagant who sets his life on end with madcap schemes, which invariably involve his unwilling assistance.

However, when the reputation of Jack’s family is threatened, Philippa is the one he turns to. And as her most determined suitor grows assured of his conquest, Jack must decide if a comfortable and docile wife is truly what he seeks, or if he should throw down the gauntlet of his heart before Philippa closes court.

Philippa Holds Court is the second in the Clavering Chronicles series, after A Fall from Grace, and it is a clean & wholesome Regency romance, written in the traditional style. ♥

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jennie Goutet
• Release date: Mar 1, 2021
• ISBN: 9781662241796

Jennie Goutet

Jennie Goutet is the best-selling author of twelve Regency romances, including the Clavering Chronicles, Memorable Proposals, and Daughters of the Gentry series. Her books have received first place in historical romance for the New England Reader’s Choice Awards and have hit the number one spot in Regency Romance on Amazon. They have been featured on BookBub and Hoopla, and are translated into five languages. Jennie is an American-born Anglophile who lives with her French husband and their three children in a small town outside of Paris. Her imagination resides in Regency England, where her proper Regency romances are set. You can learn more about Jennie’s books and sign up for her newsletter on her author website: jenniegoutet.com or purchase her books at jenniegoutetbooks.com.

Reviews for Philippa Holds Court

[Sam Ashish · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Another great book from this author. Really enjoyable. I recommend this author.

[Berly · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Did not like the story. It was all about politics. Did not like the characters either.

[Kathy Bennion · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Phillips Holds Court by Jennie Goutet

Story: 5 stars

Phillipa is entering her second season and is stuck living with her bossy older sister and her sister’s husband. Not only is her sister pushy and insensitive, but she’s trying to marry Phillipa off to a suitor whom she dislikes vehemently; all in order to promote her own husband’s political career.

Jack is determined to hide his family’s eccentricities in order to appear all that is proper so that his political career will prosper. He plans to marry someone who will host good political dinners and not expect love or tender feelings from him.

Phillipa is best friends with Jack’s sister and is trying to match her with a childhood friend who fell in love with her a the end of last season and has asked Phillipa to help push forward his suit.

Fun times await as the mischievous Phillipa upends Jack’s staid existence and yet shows kindness and compassion toward his slightly strange family.

This is a delightful story and of course, Ms. Goutet provides a wonderful character arc for Jack and and HEA for Phillipa. (Although this book refers to an earlier book in the series, it is just fine as a stand-alone.)

Narrator: 5 stars

Stevie Zimmerman is an excellent narrator whose men sound like men, who has numerous voices and accents in her arsenal and who reads with just the right amount of emotion and expression!

*poor, **ok, ***good, ****very good, *****something special

[Cheryl Prettyjohns · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Philippa Clavering is in London for the Season and her sister Maria is determined to get her married. Philippa would also like to be married but to someone of her choice. Philippa is intelligent and quite forthright in her opinions. Philippa befriends Sophie Blythefield and meets her brother, Jack. Jack is an M.P. and is concerned with the repeal of the Corn Laws. He is a skilled orator in Parliament and he wants a wife to host his political dinners, so he wants a quiet wife. Jack’s family is rather dysfunctional and he is often left to pick up the pieces when things go wrong. Philippa and Jack don’t have a good first meeting but the more they get to know each other so their feelings change. However, Philippa is the exact opposite to what Jack believes he wants in a wife. I enjoyed catching up with Selina and Lucius. Hopefully, George (Philippa’s brother ) will have his own story. An excellent narration by Stevie Zimmerman made these a most enjoyable way to spend time. She really brought the characters to life by using different voices.



Philippa Clavering is in London for the Season and her sister Maria is determined to get her married. Philippa would also like to be married but to someone of her choice. Philippa is intelligent and quite forthright in her opinions. Philippa befriends Sophie Blythefield and meets her brother, Jack. Jack is an M.P. and is concerned with the repeal of the Corn Laws. He is a skilled orator in Parliament and he wants a wife to host his political dinners, so he wants a quiet wife. Jack’s family is rather dysfunctional and he is often left to pick up the pieces when things go wrong. Philippa and Jack don’t have a good first meeting but the more they get to know each other so their feelings change. However, Philippa is the exact opposite to what Jack believes he wants in a wife. I enjoyed catching up with Selina and Lucius. Hopefully, George (Philippa’s brother ) will have his own story. An excellent narration by Stevie Zimmerman made these a most enjoyable way to spend time. She really brought the characters to life by using different voices.

[Shaylin Sermon Maxwell · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Another amazing book by Jennie Goutet! I loved Philippa’s spunk- she was so much fun to get to know. I loved all the playful banter and witty comments from her. Jack was fun as well and it was exciting to see how his personality changed while spending time with Philippa.
I will admit I was a little worried when It started to get into the the politics side of things- I’m completely ignorant when it comes to the British parliament. I needn’t have worried. The author gave a great description of things that the reader needed to know to understand what was going on.
I’ve read the other books in this series so it was fun to see characters from previous books, but had I not read them I wouldn’t have had any trouble understanding and enjoying this book as a stand alone.
The narrator was amazing. Her voice wasn’t annoying and she changed the way she spoke for each character. Her male voices were great as well.

[Suslyn · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Exactly the kind of book I was looking for. Ty JG. Hope there are more of your books here soon

[orhedricks · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is the second book in this series and I love it! Not only does it tell Jack and Philippa's story but it continues Lucius and Selena's too. I really like how Jennie Goutet writes. The narrator really brings the characters to life!