From the blurb:

How To Tame A Willful Wife: 1. Forbid her from riding astride 2. Hide her dueling sword 3. Burn all her breeches and buy her silk drawers 4. Frisk her for hidden daggers 5. Don’t get distracted while frisking her for hidden daggers…

Anthony Carrington, Earl of Ravensbrook, expects a biddable bride. A man of fiery passion tempted by the rigors of war into steely self-control, he demands obedience from his troops and his future wife. Regardless of how fetching she looks in breeches. Promised to the Earl of Plump Pockets by her impoverished father, Caroline Montague is no simpering miss. She rides a war stallion named Hercules, fights with a blade, and can best most men with both bow and rifle. She finds Anthony autocratic, domineering, and…ridiculously handsome.

It’s a duel of wit and wills in this charming retelling of The Taming of the Shrew. But the question is…who’s taming whom?

This book was a real breath of fresh air for me. I was intrigued, I was amused, I was moved, I was enchanted, I was gripped.

I’ve had a soft spot for Christy’s novels for a long time, because her book To Be Queen was the very first I reviewed, and it cemented in me a love for reading and reviewing. Then along came her Shakespeare in Love series, and I was smitten.

This is a brilliant addition to the series. Hats off to Christy: The Taming of the Shrew is not an easy play to turn into a compelling romance, but she achieves it beautifully.

The Regency setting is wonderfully executed, and the character spring from the pages as real and believable. And what characters!

Caroline is a very easy heroine to like. I am quick to enjoy books in which the heroine is feisty – and courageous and independent within the restrictions with which she must live – and Caroline delivers at every turn. I loved her fencing in particular, and her determination not to give up all she is, all she dreams of, just because she is told to do so.

Anthony is a fascinating hero: multi-faceted. At times I could quite happily have shouted at him; other times I could quite happily have hugged him. I love the author’s use of the dual point of view, which allows us to get right inside his head and understand him – essential, I think, otherwise it may be harder to forgive him some of his flaws.

The passion between them is just what the reader wants from such a book: at times it takes them over, forcing them out of their roles and to a place of equality and pure bliss.

Above all, I loved the story. Plenty of mystery and tension to keep me turning the pages, a couple of dangerous and emotive spanners in the works, and an ending that had me closing the book with a satisfied smile.

To sum up in a single word: Bravo!

How to Tame a Willful Wife is available now from Amazon; click on the book cover below to visit the store.