A Night to Surrender by Tessa Dare

Lt Colonel Victor Bramwell, The Earl of Rycliff "Bram" and Susanna Finch's book



A Night to Surrender (Spindle Cove #1)

by Tessa Dare 

Book Blurb: Welcome to Spindle Cove, where the ladies with delicate constitutions come for the sea air, and men in their prime are... nowhere to be found. Or are they?

Spindle Cove is the destination of choice for certain types of well-bred young ladies: the painfully shy, young wives disenchanted with matrimony, and young girls too enchanted with the wrong men; it is a haven for those who live there.

Victor Bramwell, the new Earl of Rycliff, knows he doesn't belong here. So far as he can tell, there's nothing in this place but spinsters... and sheep. But he has no choice, he has orders to gather a militia. It's a simple mission, made complicated by the spirited, exquisite Susanna Finch—a woman who is determined to save her personal utopia from the invasion of Bram's makeshift army. 

Susanna has no use for aggravating men; Bram has sworn off interfering women. The scene is set for an epic battle... but who can be named the winner when both have so much to lose?

A Night to Surrender has some really great moments and then there were times where the story was really dragging for me. A Night to Surrender was missing a climax and a solid conflict for me. Other than that, the characters and the idea of Spindle Cove was great. 

Bram came across as a man starved for affection. He used a lot of flowery words and phrases that were a bit over the top for me. Susanna on the other hand definitely gave off the vibe as if it would not have mattered to her either way if a man came in to sweep her off her feet or if she lived in Spindle Cover forever unmarried. I kind of liked that. She was a very self sufficient woman.  

I loved the idea of a safe haven for women who didn't fit into society. A place where they could build confidences or escape medieval doctors with their quack cures. The ladies never had to worry about prying eyes of gossipy ton. The town was primarily made up of women and with out a doubt, they had a pretty good thing going on. 

When Bram and his two comrades visit Spindle Cover, the order and perfectly planned schedules of the women get ruffled. Bram enters the scene with a boom (literally) and the men bring chaos. I really liked the secondary character Colin, Lord Payne a lot. He helped fill in some comic relief and was the noted scene stealer of the book. I will definitely carry on in the series as it is his book next, A Week To Be Wicked. 

Bram was trying to leave Spindle Cove just as hard as he was trying to stay. The conflict of his constant threat of departing back to the military didn't really come across as all that believable. He fell in love too fast with Susanna and I just didn't feel it was a strong enough reason to keep them separated. He wasn't really torn about the decision to leave or stay.

Awesome quote from Susanna:
"I'll say this. I claim sole possession of my body, my heart, and my soul. And tonight, I choose to share them all with you."

Great premise for a story and the couple was sweet. I just wasn't as captivated as I normally am with historical romances. 

Teasers: sheep-bomber, withered appendage, Rutting Bull, "Dinner" the adorable lamb