Low 3- she seemed ashamed of him ( )

Dare's Spindle Cove series is the whip cream and cherries on top of an ice cream sundae. It's cute and fluffy, but there's rarely any body to it. This novella of the oldest Highwood daughter is no exception. From the very first novel, it's obvious Diana and the town blacksmith are infatuated with one another. If this were a regency romance novel - and not a fairy tale - there would be no way this pairing would ever work out. For those saying that a blacksmith was a well-respected, highly skilled, and much sought-after townsperson, you would be correct, but could you honestly see Elizabeth Bennet marrying a blacksmith? Of course not! The idea is ludicrous! It simply wasn't done. With that in mind, I knew this story was going to be fluffier than normal, and I prepared for the fluffiest ride of all.

Honestly, Diana and Aaron were pretty cute together, and I didn't really have any problem with them, per se. There were just other aspects of the novel that didn't make sense. For example, Diana's asthma just clears up. Apparently, she's been healed for the past couple years, but she's been hiding it to avoid going back to town. Maybe that's a real thing, but it sucked all the tension out of the novel. I was hoping Diana would have an asthmatic attack while she was with Aaron, making her and him question their decision and if she really was cut out to be a laborer's wife. Alas, no life-threatening situations here.

The biggest conflict they have is the fact they want to alternately hide/reveal their relationship. Which, makes sense because these people would never have gotten together in real life, and if they had, there's no way in hell the bride's mother would get over it, at least not as easily as Mrs. Highwood did. Honestly, I was beginning to respect the woman for doggedly pursuing bachelors on her daughters' behalf. The fact that she does a 180 and "just wants her daughter to be happy" was not only unbelievable but also disappointing. If we're going full-on cliche with the over-bearing mother, embrace it!

Overall, you could enjoy this book if you know absolutely nothing about the regency era. Everyone else will probably have a difficult time swallowing this one. ( )

Cute book. Glad she got married off though. Maybe we'll have less of Mrs. Highwood. ( )

*5 stars*
( )

Spindle Cove is a haven for women. A haven which is led by Susanna Finch with the goal of providing a safe place for those with delicate constitutions, overbearing family members, scandalous secrets or outlandish hobbies. There are few year round residents and even fewer male ones. Until Bram and his men turn up and are tasked with starting a militia. Although these books could be read by themselves, the plot makes much more sense having read the preceding books.

I adored this. It's the best book so far. I loved Diana. I loved Aaron. And together they were adorable. I was swooning the whole way through. And when I wasn't swooning - I was laughing. It was hilarious. Diana was so stubborn but such a total disaster and it was perfect.

After hanging the kettle on a hook and swiveling it over the fire to boil, she could no longer postpone the inevitable. Time to gut the fish. She went to the table and lifted the cover from the basin. “Ah!” With a muted shriek, she dropped the cover. It felt back with a bang. Oh Lord, oh Lord.

Several moments passed before she could bear to lift the cover again and peer inside. She hoped to see something different this time. But no. There it was. It wasn’t a fish. It was an eel. And it was still alive. Just angrily alive and now agitated, weaving slick, dark-green figure eights in its basin of murky water.

With a shudder, Diana covered it again. Then she drew out a chair and decided to sit and think for a while, about just how much she truly wanted this. She closed her eyes and thought of Aaron’s kiss. The strength of his arms around her. The heat of his body, and the tender mastery of his tongue coaxing hers. She remembered their driving lesson. The joy of racing down a country lane, as fast as the spring mud would allow, with the top of the curricle down. Then she pictured that eel, filling the basin with its writhing, slippery will to live. She just couldn’t. Could she?

Diana opened her eyes and steeled her resolve. Some days, she decided, freedom meant the wind in your hair and the sun on your face and lips swollen with forbidden kisses. And other days, freedom meant killing an eel.

Dare, Tessa. Beauty and the Blacksmith: A Spindle Cove Novella (p. 37). HarperCollins. Kindle Edition.

I do wish Charlotte had a larger role but I did enjoy her sense of adventure and her wit.

“If you do mean to propose, you will have to confront my mother.”
“I . . .” Aaron didn’t know how to refute the idea. So he didn’t. “I know I will.”
“Do you have a plan of attack?”
“Attack?”
Charlotte’s bow-shaped mouth quirked. “This is my mother you’re dealing with. She’s a dragon. Arm yourself. Gird your loins. Gather your courage and your best steel. And yes, formulate a plan of attack.”

Dare, Tessa. Beauty and the Blacksmith: A Spindle Cove Novella (p. 67). HarperCollins. Kindle Edition. There were so many parts I liked. Mrs Highwood being her usual dramatic and ridiculous self (even if she does really love her children and only wants the best for them), Diana finding her voice and firing up and of course Aaron who was so thoughtful and appreciative and absolutely perfect.

“How can you expect me to allow this?” Mama glared at him. “How dare you impugn my Diana’s honor in this fashion! Grasping, awful man. Of course you’d leap at the opportunity to rescue her from these silly thieving suspicions, hoping she’ll marry you in gratitude. It’s not as though a man like you would have a chance at her otherwise. But I tell you, your scheme won’t work.”

“It’s not a scheme,” Diana said. “And he has more than ‘a chance’ with me, Mama. I love Aaron. And I am going to marry him.” Diana reached for the ring he’d laid on the table. Her mother smacked her hand away. Smacked it, as though Diana were a three-year-old child. Diana simmered with anger. She was not a child. She was all grown up, and her mother was about to learn the truth of it.

“Mama,” she said coolly, “listen to me closely. I am in love with Mr. Dawes. I have been for some time. I collected his pieces from the All Things shop because I admired him. We shared our first kiss in the vicar’s curricle. He introduced me to his sister on our excursion to Hastings. I tried to kill an eel for him. I shot at a robber who threatened him. And last night . . . ?” She lifted her voice. “We. Were. Making. Love. In a bed. All night long. It was hot and sweaty and glorious. I left scratches on his back. He has a freckle just to the right of his navel. And if you don’t believe all that . . .” She ripped her cloak open and threw it aside, exposing Aaron’s black, sooty handprint on her breast. “Here. See for yourself.” Several moments passed, during which the only sound was the mad thump of her heartbeat in her ears.

Dare, Tessa. Beauty and the Blacksmith: A Spindle Cove Novella (p. 98). HarperCollins. Kindle Edition.

And when he kissed her, the world went away. “Wh- . . . Oh, where am I? Oh, my nerves.” Diana winced, suddenly conscious of their surroundings. Her mother had revived just in time to see them embracing atop the bar counter, coated in flour and mud and soot, and locked in a deep, passionate kiss. “Wonderful news, Mama.” Diana held up her left hand and waggled her ring finger. “I’m finally engaged.” Her mother blinked at the ring. Blinked at Aaron. And promptly fainted once again.

Dare, Tessa. Beauty and the Blacksmith: A Spindle Cove Novella (p. 100). HarperCollins. Kindle Edition.

“You are radiant,” he murmured. “And you look like a woman with a secret.” “Just a little wedding present for you,” she whispered. “You’ll find out later.” “Good. Because I have a present for us both.”
“Oh?” He leaned and spoke in her ear.
“I hired a cook.” She had to clap her hand over her mouth to keep from laughing aloud. Oh, she loved him so.

Dare, Tessa. Beauty and the Blacksmith: A Spindle Cove Novella (pp. 101-102). HarperCollins. Kindle Edition.

This has definitely made my favourites shelf. Diana and Aaron are perfection apart and perfection together. Total #relationshipgoals. 5 stars. ( )