At twenty-seven years old, Mariah Travers has become what she most feared—a spinster and a perpetual adolescent in the eyes of her family and the law. But her fortunes change when her father announces that he has promised her hand in marriage to an old friend and colleague in the House of Lords. Lord Peter deVere, Earl of Dunsford, is not at all who Mariah imagined marrying, but she is willing to … to take a chance on the older man in order to gain the freedom that only married women are allowed.
After a tragic marriage that stretched on for two decades, Peter is hesitant to marry again. But he needs an heir, or else his dastardly nephew, Lord William, will inherit everything he’s worked his entire life to build. But when he meets Mariah, sparks fly that neither of them expected. Their unlikely match stands a chance of giving each of them all the things they never realized they needed.
But trouble abounds when the mine that has provided Peter with his fortune is exhausted and the search for new veins of copper begins. On top of that, Lord William isn’t about to stand by and watch his inheritance disappear. His efforts to drive a wedge between Peter and Mariah cause havoc and heartbreak at Starcross Castle, which will take an act of heroic devotion to overcome as Peter sets out to prove that true love is ageless.
PLEASE BE ADVISED – Steam Level – Very Hot!
If you would like to read about events leading up to December Heart, check out A NEW LIFE, part of the West Meets East series, available now.
And be sure to pick up the two accompanying novellas to December Heart, STARCROSS LOVERS and STARCROSS DREAMS. The rest of the series is coming soon!
The Silver Foxes of Westminster Series consists of:
DECEMBER HEART (and its accompanying novellas)
–Starcross Lovers
–Starcross Dreams
AUGUST SUNRISE (and its accompanying novellas)
–Winterberry Spark
–Winterberry Fire
MAY MISTAKES (and its accompanying novellas)
–Brynthwaite Promise
–Brynthwaite Summer
more
Enjoyed this delightful story that is refreshingly different. A May-December romance that will sweep you off your feet!
December Heart has all the qualities I love about a good romance — humor, heat and a happily ever after. Bravo!
Fabulous start to a series I’ve fallen in love with! I adore Peter as our honorable, sexy older hero. Mariah is an intelligent and caring heroine, and together, they bring the sparks and the sighs. Don’t miss this heartwarming and sexy read!
I likes this book because it was original. The author dared to show a relationship with a large age difference. The love scenes were authentic not just meant to be steamy. I really enjoyed it. I would like to read more by this author.
I absolutely enjoyed this book. The situation that led to the May-December marriage was entertaining and the characters were more compassionate to each other than you sometimes find early in a regency romance. That doesn’t mean there weren’t misunderstandings and plenty left unsaid as the story moved along. There is a great cast of secondary characters so I will be indulging in the corresponding novellas as well as the next books in this series. Fingers crossed that the subsequent stories will as well done.
Characters came to life for me.
I just could not put this book down! A wonderful beginning of Ms. Farmers newest series!
At twenty-seven Mariah has given up having a husband and children. She’s given up on love. A total surprise is her father’s announcement that he’s arranged a marriage with a colleague, Lord Peter de Vere, Earl of Lunsford, a widower about twenty years older than she is. Peter wants a wife and children, his nephew will do everything thing to prevent it. Funny, sweet and romantic, but with the most vicious and vile nephew you will love to hate. This book gets pretty intense on the scary side with the nephew.
Be assured there’s an HEA. Very hot steamy sex!
He’s her December – all things nice and exciting.
Mariah was previously jilted and then her ex goes and dies on her and she mourns this double loss. Her father chooses a man roughly her mother’s age, a widower, for her to marry and only tells her a few days before the wedding is to take place.
Well, they marry and slowly learn about each other, becoming friends and lovers, respecting and caring for each other.
One of the very funny characters was Mariah’s younger sister. She is quite a handful and is not afraid to open her mouth and let the words spill out.
I loved that Mariah and Peter were able to communicate, both verbally and physically and that they were willing to make a go of of their marriage.
Lovely story with many great moments and the entertainment level is ‘high’!
Mariah was doomed to be a spinster. As well as gossip of the village. Until the day her father announces she is to be married. But the person she is to marry is her father’s friend and his age. Peter comes to meet and merry her. As they go back to Starcross Castle they are met with many trials. But out of all the problems each find love and able to move on from their past.
A gorgeous story with a great pairing between an older hero and youngish heroine. Just delightful. I loved the way they interacted. It’s so refreshing to come upon a book like this!
What I didn’t like about this book: trite, predictable, despicable characters, sex, sex and more sex, and vulgar.
This was the first book I picked up by Merry Farmer , and I loved it so much I went out and read several more! I loved the fact it was Victorian (I know, I know, but I’ve always preferred Victorian to Regency) and showcased a couple with a significant age gap. That’s a touchy topic for a lot of people, so I wanted to support Merry’s creative courage.
I absolutely adored December Heart ! The characters were realistic and I could relate to them both. The story line brought in some action and adventure, but at heart it was two people getting to know and accept each other, which is definitely a topic worth discussing.
The book was a bit longer than I anticipated, every time I thought the end was near a new twist cropped up. Not that I’m complaining, I lost an entire night’s sleep to this book! And that, of course, is the sign of good writing. Looking forward to reading more in this series!
Meh. The book was ok. The premise was original as I’ve never read a storyline similar to this. It took some effort to read and I skimmed some sections of the book but do admit it was better than some other books I’ve read.
Couldn’t get halfway through, no less finish it, as I did not like the writing style…or where the story was going.
Though you saw the ending coming a mile away, this was still a good read. Lovely main characters and supporting cast!
I loved the characters. Couldn’t put it down.
Steamy romance and also a nice story. You can definitely feel for Peter. The mother-daughter talk was refreshing!
Great book!
It was OK, but just did not grab my attention like other books have done.