She wants him back. He’ll have anyone but her.Mercy Marcotte doesn’t deserve a second chance at love. At least, that’s what she’s believed since jilting Solomon Kennett, the man she loved, when his fortunes took a turn for the worse. But Solomon is back from the West Indies, rich, aloof, and about to offer for Mercy’s best friend. Mercy resolves to stay out of it—until her friend runs off with … it—until her friend runs off with another man. She can’t stand by while Solomon is humiliated yet again.
Whatever the past, Solomon Kennett is taking control of the future. He is certain he will get what he wants now that he has proven himself worthy of consideration by even the most fastidious of fathers. When the woman he is supposed to propose to is kidnapped by another man, he feels honor-bound to go after them—only to be followed by Mercy, the woman who spurned him years ago. With end goals, loyalties, and history at odds for all involved, nothing is as it seems. The last thing anyone needs is a love potion to further entangle things. Skeptical in the highest degree and determined not to surrender control to his heart, Solomon finds himself wondering if there isn’t perhaps something to the potion after all.
A Foolish Heart is a sweet Regency retelling of Shakespeare’s timeless classic A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
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This is a lovely retelling of Shakespeare’s a Midsummer nights dream. I have loved all of Martha Keyes books and this is no exception. I have not had the privilege of reading this Shakespearean play, but I loved the story that the author told. This is a clean romance with great characters. Solomon and Mercy we’re both strong characters, but their pride kept getting in the way. I also enjoyed and hope to learn more about some of the other characters in the story, in future books. The twists and turns, kept me engaged and quickly turning the pages. I now have a desire to read A midsummer nights dream.
Martha Keyes created an updated, realistically hilarious version of Shakespeare’s, ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream.’ I laughed, teared up occasionally, and rolled my eyes some, as I read through the story. I think I like it more than the original!
I loved the idea of a Shakespeare and Regency smash up/retelling! I love Shakespeare but to be honest – I’m not an expert but I enjoy the plays I’ve seen. So I was happy with this retelling because there were subtle nods of Shakespeare so if you’re expecting it to be just like “A Midsummer’s Night” you may be disappointed.
This story follows Mercy, her cousin Viola and Mercy’s scorned lover Solomon. It’s all twisted and tangled like Shakespeare comedies are Mercy’s cousin Deborah wants to elope with Mr. Coburn but Mercy tries to stop them knowing her uncle wouldn’t approve and would cut Deborah off without her dowry. While Mercy was looking out for her cousin’s best interest, little did she know that her uncle would scheme to wed Deborah to Mercy’s once love Solomon. But Mercy rejected Solomon.
This was a second and third chance love story with a magical love elixir gone awry. I had to read to the end to see how it would all play out but of course “All’s well that ends well” I can’t wait to read the next book in the series which is based off of “Much Ado About Nothing”
Martha Keyes writes beautifully.
Mercy and Solomon have a history which they must overcome. But it’s not an easy road, and with the help of friends, they managed to find their HEA. A good story.
Another thoroughly enjoyable read by Martha Keyes. For some reason I read book 2 of the Shakespeare series before reading book one so it was fun to go back and read Solomon and Mercy’s Love story. There was a lot of humor in this story that definitely add it to its enjoyment. As the book began, I found the interaction between Solomon and Mercy to be a bit shocking — that she would release him and believe that she would find another love. She hardly seem the type to be the heroine of her own story. However, I grew to love Mercy as well as Solomon, and was delighted with the HEA. I again look forward to Viola’s story. I think I’m now going to take a quick journey back through “my wild heart“ to see the continuation again of Solomon and Mercy!
This is a sweet combination of a Shakespearean tale and a Regency romance. I fell in love with this story from the start. It had me captivated from the beginning and I was anxious to see how it ended. The storyline was interesting and the writing flowed nicely.
I enjoyed Mercy and Solomon’s interactions which showed the warmth and connection that they once had. This definitely pulls on your heartstrings by touching on matters of heartbreak, forgiveness, and trust. Forgiveness is the key to healing a broken heart, and this story surely captures that. This was my first time reading something Ms. Keyes, and I truly enjoyed it. I am looking forward to reading more of her books.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Great retelling of a Shakespeare comedy!
When I heard this author was going to do a regency series with a Shakespeare spin, I was really excited. This one was a spin on a Midsummer Night’s Dream. I confess, I wasn’t familiar with that one, so I had to look it up before reading A Foolish Heart. There are definitely some non-realistic, fantastical elements to the play. I think Ms. Keyes did a great job capturing some of that feel while still making the plot work for regency England. I really liked the aunt and all the ridiculous fall out of the “love potion.” Such a fun story. I’m curious now what plays the other books will be spins on. Clean story–PG.
I am quite certain this is the first Shakespeare retelling I’ve read. I don’t remember much about A Midsummer Night’s Dream so I don’t really know how closely this book followed it but I do remember Shakespeare’s ability to write a quirky story full of outlandish missteps and misunderstandings. And we certainly got that in this retelling. You get two romances in the story with a good amount of angst. And poison. And the spouting of poetry. And two happily ever afters. And since this retelling is set in Regency England there are elements of the story that reminded me of Jane Austen’s Persuasion as well. I don’t know if that was on purpose or not. This story is fun to read though it has anguished moments. And perhaps some elements of the story seem outlandish in Regency England but remember it was Shakespeare’s idea first. Slightly outlandish was the goal.
No sex, language or violence
*I received an ARC of this book and voluntarily chose to review it.
What a wonderful idea by Martha Keyes to write a beautiful retelling of Shakespeare’s play set in Regency time! I absolutely loved this book, A Foolish Heart, and the way that Keyes gave each character such a fitting personality and voice. They were so well-written! I loved the ending, the sweet and clean love stories, and the wonderful twists and turns of the story. If you love Shakespeare and Regency, this is the book for you!
I received a complimentary copy of the book. All opinions are my own and are expressed voluntarily.
What a cute book! I’ve never read A Midsummer Night’s Dream, but I did like this book. The characters were all so unique and so different from each other- it was fun to ready. I liked the part about the Elixir and the different names for the pansy. It kept me interested the whole time. And of course the ending was perfect and the kiss was wonderful. Makes me want to go check out A Midsummer Night’s Dream and see what it’s all about.
This is a lovely retelling of Shakespeare’s a Midsummer nights dream. I have loved all of Martha Keyes books and this is no exception. I have not had the privilege of reading this Shakespearean play, but I loved the story that the author told. This is a clean romance with great characters. Solomon and Mercy we’re both strong characters, but their pride kept getting in the way. I also enjoyed and hope to learn more about some of the other characters in the story, in future books. The twists and turns, kept me engaged and quickly turning the pages. I now have a desire to read A midsummer nights dream.
Admittedly, I am unfamiliar with Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, so I couldn’t help but feel that perhaps I was missing out on elements of that original story that were present in this Regency retelling. Even so, I still enjoyed a well-written tale that stands solidly on its own for those of us lacking knowledge of Shakespeare. If I hadn’t known this was intended to be a retelling, I would not have noticed anything amiss, and I can only imagine that those who are acquainted with the original play will find an entertaining reimagining here. This was a more somber romance story than I typically prefer, but it was most definitely realistic and relatable in the way it captures the heartbreaking uncertainty of broken love. The inner angst, the yearning, the unwillingness to honestly communicate, the self-recrimination and feelings of failure and disappointment…it’s all here. I did have some difficulty believing the undying love between the characters, both primary and secondary, as so much of the story was focused on how it was gone and unrecoverable. I did not get a true sense of the depth of the love between the hero and heroine until much later when I suddenly recognized parallels with Jane Austen’s Persuasion. Oh, that love letter! The mentions of it kept me curious, and it was certainly worth the wait!
This was one of the most fun regency romances I have ever read! The author successfully pulls elements from Shakespeare’s comedy A Midsummer Night’s Dream and turns them into a laugh-out-loud delightful regency. Broken hearts, elopements, carriage accidents, love potions, a poet turned cupid, an eccentric hostess, and of course, sweet forgiveness and swoon worthy romance, left me unable to put the book down. I enjoyed every page from first to last!
This a retelling of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream with a touch of Jane Austen set during regency times in England. Although I see similarities in the Shakespeare and this story I would say it’s more loosely based on the play than a retelling. The characters are great but could benefit for a little more development or at least a better understanding of how they are linked. I enjoyed this book and would read another in the series if there is one. I received a free copy and am leaving my honest review.
I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I have enjoyed all of Martha Keyes’ books but I wasn’t sure how she would make a Midsummer Nights Dream into a regency romance, but she did and she did it beautifully! Loved Mercy and Solomon’s story and also Viola and Aunt Priscilla were such wonderful characters. I can’t wait for more from this series.
I’m not a Shakespeare fan. I struggle with the language and meaning. I have actually seen Midsummer Nights Dream, but couldn’t follow it. I was curious how that would all work out in a Regency retelling. I loved this story. There were definitely moments of ridiculousness, which I remembered from the play, but overall I fell in love with the characters and wanted to know more about them. I’m excited to read their stories in the future. Mercy and Solomon were so great together. It was fun to read their story.
Mercy broke her engagement to Solomon two years ago at her family’s urgings after his father gambled away the family fortune. She thought her heart could find another one to love, but it didn’t. Now he’s back after gaining a fortune in the West Indies and practically engaged to her cousin Deborah who is in love with another man who is poor. There is an elopement, a broken arm, and another cousin who quotes playwright lines for every occasion, who made them a love potion. I’m surprised that they were willing to drink a potion she made up without having a lot of knowledge about it and it’s potential side effects.
This is a great second chance at love with Mercy and Soloman. It was not easy going through all that they had to in order to get their second chance and enjoyed some of the crazy funny parts to their story. Very entertaining with just the right amount of suspense and romance.
Can I admit that in real life Viola would drive me to drink? I did enjoy this book and the dance between Mercy and Solomon. I think Mercy did what most young ladies of the time would have done and erred on the side of security, especially when coming from a background of wealth and facing possible poverty. Solomon reacted like most young men, with hurt feelings and vows to “show her”. The distance between Jamaica and England allowed the hurt to fester. This story is funny, educational (guess which play the quotes are from, the answers are in the back), and romantic. I loved Aunt Almira/Priscilla, Deborah and even Viola. This was a very fun book to read.