Thawing the Viscount's Heart

by Mindy Burbidge Strunk

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In the chill of Christmastide, two wounded hearts must thaw.

After her father’s death, Gabriella Babineaux leaves France to live under the protection of a family friend in England. The Frost Fair on the Thames seems the perfect place to begin her introduction into society—until she collides with a viscount who dismisses her simply for being French. Suddenly she wonders if she will ever fit in, let alone find love.

Viscount Aaron Campbell returned from the Napoleonic wars to claim a title never meant for him—a fact his mother never lets him forget. Hoping to escape his burdens for a few hours, he visits the Frost Fair and meets a Frenchwoman whose voice stirs memories of betrayal. Yet when she arrives as a guest at his estate for Christmastide, he discovers that the woman before him might be the one to heal his heart.

A heart-warming Regency holiday romance of forgiveness, courage, and second chances

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Book Details

Genre

Historical Romance

Subgenre

Action/Adventure, General Historical, Georgian (1714–1837)

Series

Belles of Christmas: Frost Fair

Audience

Adult

Bell Peppers

🫑

Profanity

1 None

Violence

2 Mild

Drugs, Alcohol, Tobacco

2 Mild

Publication Date

November 7, 2020

Language Versions

English

Narration Type

Human

Fiction Form

Novel

Sensitive Themes

Historical discrimination, Kidnapping or abduction

Love it

The transition from hostile to besotted is delicately done, even if the time frame is compressed. Highly recommended. As is the rest of this series so far.

Wonderful Regency

I loved Mindy Burbidge Strunk’s book, Thawing the Viscount’s Heart, book 3 in the Belles of Christmas: Frost Fair Series. I like how each book in the series starts in the same place, and you can see a bit of other books in the beginning. From the start this book had a great premise. Aaron’s hatred toward the French, the way Gabrielle reminds him very specifically of that, and the way they are thrown together are all very compelling parts of this story. I really enjoyed how their time together and feelings progress in such a sweet and lovely way that leads to a clean and wonderful happy ending. I definitely recommend this book and the series!

Unexpected love.

The story of Aaron and Gabby. Gabby is French and living in London with family friends. When they attend the Frost Fair, she accidentally runs into Aaron on the ice. His demeanor changes as soon as he hears her French accent. He had recently returned from the war to take over management of his family estate after the death of his older brother. Gabby is offended by his response but assumes she will never see him again. When her caretakers travel to their country estate and are caught in a snowstorm and have trouble with the carriage, they stop at an estate nearby for lodging. You guessed it, this is Aaron’s home. Despite his prejudice of the French, Aaron is more and more drawn to Gabby and she feels the same. Their journey to love is an interesting one and worth reading.

A Really Sweet, Really Good Christmas Regency Romance! I Highly Recommend!

Thawing the Viscount’s Heart by Mindy Burbidge Strunk is a lovely Historical Romance. The plot is engaging and kept me turning pages well into the night. The characters are unique and endearing. I found Aaron and Gabby to be well-developed protagonists, and I loved getting to see each character’s unique perspectives throughout the story. The chemistry between Aaron and Gabby is spectacular. Electric sparks fly whenever they’re in the same room, which made the swoony moments seriously breathtaking. Overall, Thawing the Viscount’s Heart is a wonderful read that got me into quite a happy, smiley, Christmas mood!One aspect to this story that really made me take note is how Gabby is treated by others. Gabby is French, born and raised, but is in Britain awaiting her first London Season. Her guardian is a British Lord who brought her from France to England so she could find herself a husband. At the time of this story, Britain is at war with France so tensions run high as soon as Gabby opens her mouth to speak. Because she is French and cannot hide her accent very well, many of the British people she comes into contact with spurn her immediately. Many refuse to see Gabby as Gabby and choose to see her as France. Painted with a broad stroke, Gabby is THE enemy on Britain’s soil. My heart hurt for Gabby. Of course, once people get to know her they mostly love her, but it’s the hate she always encounters, the ugliness spewed at her, that hurt me deeply. What struck me the most is how some characters hate just to hate. What a horrific, dark, sad life to choose to live when one hates just because. Imagine all one is missing out on. But Gabby is amazing. She never really lets anything get her down. She always extends an olive branch. When it is accepted, she is grateful and gives her whole heart to the relationship, but when it is not she just moves on. In this, I found Gabby to be quite a remarkable heroine!Thawing the Viscount’s Heart is a really sweet read that I thoroughly enjoyed and highly recommend. If you are looking for a well-written, heartfelt Regency Romance that will also get you into a holiday spirit then Thawing the Viscount’s Heart is the book for you.I purchased a copy of this novel in eBook form from Amazon.com on November 6, 2020, in order to review. In no way has this influenced my review. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Sweet story of prejudice & forgiveness

Gabriella Babineaux’s father died, and she leaves France to live with her guardian in England. She faces many challenges, including a different language and culture, and prejudice against herself and her native country. Aaron Campbell, Lord Brinton, left the war in France to take over his new title at the death of his brother. He and his men were betrayed by a female French spy, so when he hears Gabriella’s accent, he is immediately prejudiced against her. I enjoyed watching Aaron’s growth as he learned that not all French people were like the one who betrayed him and his men. I enjoyed watching Aaron become more humble himself as he fell for Gabriella because of her sweetness, humility, and kindness towards others. I was pleased that Gabriella made efforts to turn enemies into friends, even though she didn’t always succeed.