Wickedly Ever After

Written by Jackie Barbosa

Narrated by Stacey Holmes

Eleanor Palmer is relieved when her fiancé cries off the marry another woman but horrified when he suggests the dissolute Marquess of Grenville as a replacement. Eleanor may claim descent from the lusty King Charles II, but this proper English lady has no interest in the pleasures of the flesh. She'd rather read the Classics.

Nathaniel St. Clair is infamous for his wicked ways--drinking, gambling, and fornicating--but he's willing to give up all but one of his vices to initiate the lovely Miss Palmer into the joys of lust. Maybe a little dirty Latin poetry will aid his cause.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bryant Street Publishing
• Release date: Aug 17, 2021
• ISBN: 9781094423395

Jackie Barbosa

I can’t remember a time when I didn’t want to be a writer when I grew up, but there were plenty of times when I wasn’t sure I ever would be. As it turns out, it just took me about twenty years longer to grow up than I expected! On the road to publication, I took a few detours, including a stint in academia (I hold an MA in Classics from the University of Chicago and was a recipient of a Mellon Fellowship in the Humanities) and many years as a technical writer/instructional designer for a data processing company. I still hold my day job, but my true vocation has always been writing fiction and romance in particular. To stay informed of my release schedule, you can sign up for my newsletter (which I only send out when I actually release a book) or follow me on Twitter or Facebook. As a matter of public record, I tend to be a lot more active on Twitter, but also a lot more political. I am represented by Kevan Lyon of the Marsal Lyon Literary Agency. I’m a firm believer that love is the most powerful force in the world, which that makes romance the most powerful genre in the world. Don’t ever let anyone tell you otherwise!

Reviews for Wickedly Ever After

[claire · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Loved it. Liked it better than the first one. The narrator was good. Will definitely continue the series. So now on to the next one.

[K · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I'm just trying to enjoy a short historical romance and then the hero is apologizing to his horrible father who beat him for not being a better son?? What the actual hell. Nathaniel can make a decision to be a better person without apologizing to his abuser for his reaction to being abused.

Also, Eleanor's reaction to Nathaniel's secret is utterly nonsensical. She's finding out a good thing, she doesn't have to choose, and it includes the bonus info that he's telling his friend he thinks highly of her. He hasn't told her before for extremely obvious reasons. (Starting with the fact that she'd never believe him and moving on from there.)

It should've been so easy to wrap up this short story satisfactorily, and yet.

[Mariah · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is exactly what I expected for a book that short. For me it ticked all the boxes given what it is. They gave me the build up any with the passionate climax that I enjoyed thoroughly. The backstory could use some work, I really just don’t get the point of expecting her to fall in love with the worst of you or just be so horny that she sleeps with you because she needs a relief; even though you’re offering to introduce her to the man of her dreams at least intellectually.