This was a wonderful conclusion to the series. I loved finally getting the story of Nancy's unexplained antagonism toward James "Jem" Redbourne. The first chapter takes us back to when fourteen-year-old Nancy first encountered fifteen-year-old Jem. That meeting set the tone for their acquaintance, mainly because Nancy was ashamed about the embarrassing circumstances of that meeting. What Jem saw as kindness, Nancy saw as pity, causing her to lash out at him. She hopes never to see him again, but Fate has other plans.

Nancy is red-haired, freckled, and short-tempered with those who cross her. She is also sweet, loving, and loyal to those she cares about. Thanks to watching her mother change into a cowed and brow-beaten woman at the hands of her stepfather, Nancy believes that all men are like that and will never let one convince her otherwise.

Over the next eight years, Jem and Nancy encounter each other once or twice a year. Jem has never forgotten her and is completely smitten, even though she is always angry about something. Underneath her antagonism is an attraction she refuses to acknowledge. Jem is an all-around nice man, honorable and hard-working. Sometimes he'll get past her walls for a short time, but she always pushes him away. There was that one time they shared an amazing kiss, but again, she ran. When he asked to court her, and she flat-out refused, saying there would never be anything between them, he finally gave up. Instead, he gave into his mother's matchmaking and proposed to her choice for him, even though there was no love between them. Imagine his horror when Nancy showed up the next day, saying she'd changed her mind. Jem is too honorable to back out of the engagement, so he's stuck.

I ached for Jem. The pretty woman he settled on turns out to be only pretty on the surface. It doesn't take long for Jem to realize he's in trouble. Emily is deceitful, manipulative, and out to change Jem into what she wants, whether he likes it or not. When an invitation to visit Beatrix and her duke arrives, Jem has no intention of going until Emily tricks him into taking along her and her mother. Nice guy that he is, he talks Nancy into going too (with the help of her mother). I felt so sorry for him during the three-day carriage journey. The arrival at Beatrix's home was both hilarious and heartbreaking.

I loved the visit and seeing the couples from the previous books together again. It's obvious that this group of friends has a great deal of love and respect for each other. I loved their interactions, and the cricket game had me laughing out loud. However, it isn't all fun and games. The tension between Nancy and Jem continues to grow. Jem's misery over his predicament is evident to his friends, but there is nothing they can do. An unexpected twist pits Emily's manipulations against Nancy's love for Jem and her determination to save him. I loved the involvement of the other couples and the genius of their plan. The confrontation between Nancy and Emily was terrific, and the following scene with Jem was great.

There are still a few little hurdles to overcome, such as Nancy's insecurity about their different stations, but they were handled believably. I loved the epilogue and the look into the future. I'd love to see a "Belles: The Next Generation." ( )

FINALLY! I’ve been watching the interactions between Nancy MacQueen and James (Jem) Redbourne in the previous books and just couldn’t wait for their HEA. It is finally here and it definitely didn’t disappoint. I loved how the author took us back in time to their initial meeting when they were young and then showed us what was going on behind the scenes in some of the interactions we’d witnessed in those earlier books. I absolutely adored Jem and loathed how Nancy treated him, so it was nice to get some background on her and learn why she reacted the way she did. To be honest, though, I thought her reaction to her background circumstances was a bit over-the-top, but I could see why it would make her wary. Jem was every bit as perfect and honorable as we thought he would be.

The last woman standing – yep – that is Nancy. With all of her former baking partners married and off living their HEAs, Nancy is the lone remaining baker at Belle’s Biscuit Shop. She misses her friends, but she loves baking the biscuits, running the shop, and having the upstairs living quarters all to herself. At least Henrietta and Sebastian (Unexpectedly Wed to the Officer) have chosen to stay in Bath, so Nancy isn’t completely without friends.

Nancy is a red-haired, freckle-faced, short-tempered, termagant. Her temper is legendary and only the bravest would cross her. Yet, with the people she lets in, she is sweet, gentle, loyal, and loving. Nancy was raised in the slum area of Bath by a downtrodden mother and drunken, gambling stepfather. From the age of six, she watched her beautiful, loving mother change into someone she didn’t even recognize. She went from a loving mother to someone who did nothing but find fault with Nancy. Her step-father totally cowed and dominated her mother and Nancy will never, ever allow that to happen to herself. She lumps all men into the same category as her step-father and will never, ever let one get near her in any way. The only person who MIGHT be different is Jem and no matter how nice he is or how much her pulse races when he’s near, she’ll not let him get close either.

Jem first met Nancy when she was fourteen – and he never forgot her. They’d cross paths every few months or years and the attractions were still there – at least on his part. He was quite sure there was no attraction on her part because she always rang a peal over his head any time they got near each other. She said hateful, mean, awful things to him. Finally, he knew he had to give up on her – she told him flat-out there would never, ever be anything between them. With his parents wanting him to marry, he decided to go with his mother’s choice for a wife. So, he proposed and was accepted. But … then … the very next day he learned that Nancy had changed her mind. GROOOOAN – why hadn’t he waited one more day?

The tale is lovely and Jem is so honorable he’ll give up his own happiness to keep his word. Is his betrothed as honorable as Jem is? Maybe not? Maybe so? You’ll just have to read it to see. It is an excellent read, very well written and the character growth is outstanding. I loved that all of the previous couples played roles in this story, but they didn’t take over and overpower it.

I believe this is the last book in the series, and it did a very nice wrap-up for the series. The epilogue takes place 8 years later (in 1815) and shows the couples and their children. It was a very nice wrap-up and I felt I knew the ‘whole story’ for all of them and could rest easy that their HEA was a lasting one.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. ( )