Join the virtual book tour of THE MATCHMAKER’S LONELY HEART, Nancy Campbell Allen’s highly acclaimed historical novel, September 6-19, 2021. Thirty popular on-line influencers specializing in historical romance, mystery/suspense, and inspirational fiction will join in the celebration of its release with a spotlights, exclusive excerpts, and reviews of this new Victorian-era novel set in London, England.
Nancy Campbell Allen tells a daring story of love, life, and murder in her newest novel, The Matchmaker’s Lonely Heart. It contains strong female characters that make you fall in love with them. Plus, there is danger and intrigue around every corner. What’s not to love?
- Title: The Matchmaker’s Lonely Heart
- Author: Nancy Campbell Allen
- Publisher: Shadow Mountain on September 7, 2021
- Genre: Historical Mystery/Historical Romance
- Pages: 313
- Formats Available: Paperback, Audiobook, & Digital
- Rating: 5/5
Trigger Warnings: Murder, Violence, Kidnapping
Many thanks to Nancy Campbell Allen, Shadow Mountain, and Netgalley for providing me with a digital copy of The Matchmaker’s Lonely Heart with a request for an honest review. I also wish to thank Laurel Ann from austenprose for allowing me to participate in this tour and for providing me with all the materials needed to make this post.
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Order The Matchmaker’s Lonely Heart Now: Amazon US | Amazon UK | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Bookshop
About The Matchmaker’s Lonely Heart
Amelie Hampton is a hopeless romantic, which makes her the perfect columnist to answer lonely heart letters in The Marriage Gazette. When Amelie plays matchmaker with two anonymous lonely hearts, she also decides to secretly observe the couple’s blind date. To her surprise, the man who appears for the rendezvous is Harold Radcliffe―a grieving widower and a member of Amelie’s book club.
Police detective Michael Baker has been struggling ever since his best friend and brother-in-law died in the line of fire. Because he knows the dangers of his job, he has vowed never to marry and subject a wife and family to the uncertainty of his profession. But when he meets Miss Hampton, he is captured by her innocence, beauty, and her quick mind.
When a woman’s body is pulled from the river, Michael suspects the woman’s husband―Harold Radcliffe―of foul play. Amelie refuses to believe that Harold is capable of such violence but agrees to help, imagining it will be like one of her favorite mystery novels. Her social connections and clever observations prove an asset to the case, and Amelie is determined to prove Mr. Radcliffe’s innocence. But the more time Amelie and Michael spend together, the more they trust each other, and the more they realize they are a good team, maybe the perfect match.
They also realize that Mr. Radcliffe is hiding more than one secret, and when his attention turns toward Amelie, Michael knows he must put an end to this case before the woman he loves comes to harm.
Provided by austenprose for Tour Use
My Review
Nancy Campbell Allen tells a daring story of love, life, and murder in her newest novel. The Matchmaker’s Lonely Heart contains strong female characters that make you fall in love with them. Plus, there is danger and intrigue around every corner. What’s not to love?
Amelie Hampton is a woman of independent means living in London. She works as a columnist at her aunt’s newspaper, The Marriage Gazette. Amelie always knew what she wanted in a husband and had lofty, romantic ideals. Ideals that Amelie freely shared with her readers. She knew that love would hit her one day like a lightning bolt. But when a certain detective runs her aground in the park, Amelie feels nothing but ire. However, Detective Baker needs her help with an investigation. Not long after, Amelie begins to doubt her thoughts on the subject of love.
Amelie, Charlotte, Eva, and Sally are a quartet of the strongest females I’ve come across in quite some time. Usually, there is one bold woman in a novel. But these women take independence to new heights. I loved each of them desperately. Each woman wants a different life apart from the Gazette. All three fear the fallout from their chosen professions. They are about to make waves in male-dominated fields, but none of them are looking for glory. They only want to do what makes them happy.
Then we have Harold Radcliffe and Detective Michael Baker. Harold is a handsome charmer, and Michael is a down-to-earth regular guy. Both have interesting pasts, but one is horrendous and the other tragic. My loathing of Harold started from the beginning. He was a royal jerk, but the detective had my heart early on. Michael is a bit gruff, but he’s a big teddy bear inside, and he has met his match in Amelie. Their story made me laugh and cry with joy.
Alexander is a complete delight. He isn’t a prominent character, but I loved him so much. I wanted to ruffle his hair and hug him. Clarissa and Mae are also adorable. This family is the one I want to belong to. They are sweet, and I felt right at home in their quaint abode.
I award The Matchmaker’s Lonely Heart a full 5 out of 5 stars. There wasn’t a single thing I didn’t like about this novel. The writing is clear and easy to read, which is not always the case in historical London, at least for this American. This story will stick with me for quite some time. I recommend this book to all my historical romance fans. The mystery mixed with romance will leave you breathless.
About the Author – Nancy Campbell Allen
Nancy Campbell Allen is the author of fifteen published novels and numerous novellas, which span genres from contemporary romantic suspense to historical fiction. In 2005, her work won the Utah Best of State award, and she received a Whitney Award for My Fair Gentleman. She has presented at numerous writing conferences and events since her first book was released in 1999. Nancy received a BS in Elementary Education from Weber State University. She loves to read, write, travel, and research and enjoys spending time laughing with family and friends. She is married and the mother of three children.
Author’s Contact Links: Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads | Bookbub
Tour Schedule
- Sept 06 Timeless Novels (Review)
- Sept 07 The Book Diva Reads (Excerpt)
- Sept 07 Wishful Endings (Review)
- Sept 08 Robin Loves Reading (Review)
- Sept 08 A Darn Good Read (Review)
- Sept 08 Storeybook Reviews (Spotlight)
- Sept 08 Austenesque Reviews (Review)
- Sept 09 Bookfoolery (Review)
- Sept 09 The Lit Bitch (Excerpt)
- Sept 10 The Bluestocking (Review)
- Sept 10 Bookworm Lisa (Review)
- Sept 10 The Silver Petticoat Review (Review)
- Sept 11 Book Confessions of an Ex-Ballerina (Review)
- Sept 11 My Bookish Bliss (Review)
- Sept 11 Nurse Bookie (Review)
- Sept 12 The Bibliophile Files (Review)
- Sept 12 My Jane Austen Book Club (Spotlight)
- Sept 13 Heidi Reads (Excerpt)
- Sept 13 Reading with Emily (Review)
- Sept 13 Our Book Confessions (Review)
- Sept 14 Rosanne E. Lortz (Review)
- Sept 14 Laura’s Reviews (Review)
- Sept 14 Beauty in the Binding (Spotlight)
- Sept 15 All-of-a-Kind Mom (Review)
- Sept 15 Gwendalyn’s Books (Review)
- Sept 15 Life of Literature (Review)
- Sept 16 From Pemberley to Milton (Review)
- Sept 16 Probably at the Library (Spotlight)
- Sept 17 Greenish Bookshelf (Review)
- Sept 17 Relz Reviewz (Review)
- Sept 18 Novel Kicks (Review)
- Sept 19 Historical Fiction with Spirit (Excerpt)
Lovely review. I love the way you describe the characters in the book, makes me want to read it.
Thank you so much Wendy. ?❤️