I just have to say it: This one shot its load a little too early and left me unfulfilled at the finish.

I know I know, that was terrible, but it was too good to pass up.

I don't really have the juice to write a full blown review right now. Full review (maybe) will follow.

For now, let me work on a stream of consciousness "review"ish thing...

1) It's a m/m historical set in the Regency. Ding ding ding! Sold!
2) There's lots of emo stuff from both Hs at different points in the story.
3) The relationship More...

this is 2.5*, but I can't bring myself to give this a full 3, and thus I guess I am one of the odd ones out. I decided to be honest and hope this won't end in some retribution-fest again either.

The 2.5 stars are for the--mostly--good to very good research effort which went into this book. I appreciate that, though there were niggles, like for instance the anachronisms in some of the medical information.

But excellent research isn't enough to outbalance everything. There were simply far too many More...

A truly enjoyable read. I don’t often choose historical romances. Nothing against them, I just usually pick something else. I purchased Kindred Hearts because of the author. Rowan Speedwell tells a good tale. This book is no exception. Tristan Northwood is a rich, spoiled man who lacks purpose in his life. He married because he has to get married. Then along comes his brother in law, Charles Mountjoy, and Tristan slowly becomes the person he was meant to be. Of course there is still a lot of dra More...

SlashReaders: Tristan Northwood is a true gentleman and an aristocrat who hasn't found anything to truly give his life purpose. Over the first part of the novel we go from childhood to the point where Tristan realizes just how empty his life is. Then Charles comes into the picture and things only get more complicated as Tristan realizes what he's really wanted over the course of his drinking, playboy years. For his part Charles is equally taken with Tristan though he has since gotten over many o More...

If you enjoy a historical story and prefer it to be slash romance, Kindred Hearts is a good pick - mainly because there aren't many books of the same genres that manage to deliver that same authentic historical feel as this one has.
One minor complaint I have is that the majority of the book actually focus on Tristan, the protagonist, to the point that it almost feels like a memoir of Tristan Northwood of his adult life rather than a romantic story. But the good thing is that he's a likable chara More...

Definitely a good Regency romance, maybe a little too much focused on the war and diplomatic issue of the time (but that is probably justified by one of the hero being an officer) but nevertheless very romantic.

What is probably the best achievement of the author is to make me like Charlotte “Lottie”, a supporting character that I was ready to hate even before starting the book; true, in the blurb they presented her like a supporter of Charlie and Tristan’s relationship, she is Charlie’s sister a More...

I was in the mood for a good historical, and this one really delivered. In some ways, it's a traditional Regency, with a rakish hero and the associated angst involving fancy parties and rich peerage problems. There's even a clever woman. Our hero Tristan has pissed off his father one time too many and the consequence is that his father forces him to marry a spinster named Charlotte, who turns out to be quite delightful. Tristan isn't actually a particularly good rake; he never deflowers the inno More...

Kindred Hearts by Rowan Speedwell is a sweeping novel; it follows the main character Tristan Northwood, an aristocratic young wastrel from his childhood to his marriage to his awakening realization that he is attracted to his wife's brother, war hero Major Charles Mountjoy.

To everyone he meets Tristan is the epitome of a fine young lord, he's wealthy, he's handsome, and the world is his. In reality, Tristan has come to a tipping point in his life. He's set certain things into motion that will ch More...

Tristan's only goal in life is to annoy his Father. As much as possible. Easily done by excessive drinking, womanizing, and crazy life threatening dares. He and his wife Lottie are much happier as friends, only coming together long enough to create the required two children before she can retire to the country and he can stay in town and continue his dangerous ways.

As the years go by, Tristan sinks deeper and deeper into unhappiness, his only joy being his son. Then, Lottie's brother, the hands More...

I liked Finding Zach by this author, but I loved this book and enjoyed every word of it. It is a very well-researched historical as far as I can tell, and has two heroes who are likeable and wonderfully flawed. Moreover both Charles and Tristan — especially Tristan — have real character arcs; they grow and change for the better over the course of the story. (I know it should be a given, but I do not see it in this genre often enough for my taste, so when I do see it I always praise it.)

I also li More...

Childhood trauma makes for a damaged adult, I don't know any adults that aren't damaged, but we all try to limit the childhood crap so that we can try for happiness. Unfortunately Tristan Northwood has yet to move past his childhood losses, but at least he has made a good choice for a wife, Lottie (Charlotte) is an understanding but cold wife who has become great friends with Tristan and there is a second child on the way, but sure to be the last because she doesn't like marital duties (wink, wi More...

I don't know what to say. This book is brilliant, perfect, wonderful. I was not sure about reading it because one hero is married with children and the other hero is his wife's twin brother! It is not a threesome, so I thought it would be some disgusting cheating and I will not like the characters.
I was sooooo wrong! It is a wonderful book, full of love, and nothing disgusting about the heroes or their love at all. Their love and love story is of the purest kind. Ah, my romantic heart! Money ve More...

This book was just fine writing from beginning to end...perfect historical fiction, well researched, the vernacular was just right, and the love story was beyond moving.

It's 1810 and Tristan Northwood is going through life as the stereotypical spoiled young English aristocrat having fun, womanizing, drinking too much and indulging as much as he can.

In an effort to sober him up (in more ways then one) his father marries him off to Charlotte Mountjoy, a young woman from a good family with financia More...

This has the feeling of a "proper" Regency, and as a comparison, if you liked the Regency work of Lee Rowan, G.S Wiley, or Bonnie Dee and Summer Devon you'll definitely like this. It has all the elements in place for a "nice" traditional Regency - an arranged marriage, a brooding rake, clubs and ballrooms etc etc--but it doesn't stick to the rules for too long thank goodness!

That's not to say it isn't flawed, but in this case the good definitely outweighs any faults--I can't go so far to say "th More...

When I started to read this story, I didn't expect it to be such an epic. Not that it spans over a particularly long period of time, but the transformation of the characters, the war, the drama they go through, all in epic level.

The story is historical in every sense - the romance itself and the background it sets against, vivid details that captures the time and mood.

At times, I was a bit impatient with the main protagonist, he's too stubborn for his own good, but in the end, he won me over an More...

What a nice surprise it was to actually download a full-sized book from the kindle store (when will Amazon start standardising the listed length of kindle books by word count?????). As I prefer a longer read, I was already humming in pleasure as I started to read & I wasn't disappointed either. This was a lovely romance. Lots of time spent laying the foundation story lines. Lots of time spent on character development. As far as I could tell, the author actually spent some time to ensure hist More...

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It is a sad fact that many m/m fictions seem like someone went into a het romance, and changed pronouns and fashion-choices, and then published it. The historicals seem particularly plagued with this faux pas. That was not the case with Kindred Hearts. Ms. Speedwell has managed to created vivid, likeable characters, who face the not only the prejudices of their time, but their personal battles, head on.

In an attempt to keep spoilers to a minimum, I will only say More...

Rich in depth, character, and realism. This novel swept me up so casually I barely knew it happened. I particularly liked the lack of "polarization" in character, relationships, and events. Evident throughout are the multiple paths available. I abhor easy fixes, and you won't find them here. Speedwell shows no laziness in allowing things to unfold in a natural state. She never forces resolution (which often feels artificial).

I loved the characters,... Tristan is not a butterfly personality or fe More...

4.5 stars

Good, solid historical with lots of nice details. Nice romance between Charles and Tristan, when they finally manage to get together. I liked both of them as characters and I also really liked Tristan's wife, Lottie (Charles' twin sister).

This book did suffer from what I call Story I/Story II syndrome (common in historicals). Story I was the first half where Charles and Tristan are working to get together. Story II is the second story that starts once they do get together. Story II usu More...

Such a gorgeous book! The writing is outstanding, and the characterizations are rich and three-dimensional. Set at the time of the Napoleonic Wars, the historical details are vivid and well-researched. I've added this to my "to re-read" shelf, knowing that I will come back to it again and again. Just a stunning story, and so well-executed.

MILD SPOILERS FOLLOW: (view spoiler)[ The first 20% or so of the book is devoted to the painful life of Tristan Northwood, a seeming bon-vivant who lost his mother at an earl (hide spoiler)] More...

I think this was well rounded. It wasn't just a love story where you have almost the impression the main couple live in a "deserted island" place. I really enjoyed the characters especially Charlotte, the wife of Tristan and sister of Charles (the couple in question). I also liked the place in history this novel is set in, I like historical dramas or books written at the time too. I've read a review saying this book continued past the moment it should've have ended, I disagree... Yes, it you are More...

4.5 stars. Complex and endearing characters coupled with an obviously well researched Napoleonic setting puts this M/M historical romance a cut above the rest.

This was a fabulous read and since I don't usually get so hooked on historicals, that's saying a lot. I love the author's writing style and her characters always just pop for me and stay with me for a long time. Tristan was no different, whether portrayed as a sexually-heartless rogue or the sweet, needy man he was on the inside, I absolutely fell for him right off the bat.

The story worked well, the descriptions taking me right into the characters' heads and scenes and the characters themselves More...

- My major pet peeve: MCs = grown men often weepy and sobbing
- Charles is too perfect, Tristan too self-deprecating all the time
- Lenghty (500 pages): I understand the need to embed the plot in the historical time, but I would have appreciated less... history ;-). But maybe this is because although I do read historicals, they are not my favorite genre.

It will be a satisfying read if you don't mind points like the ones I've listed above. I liked Charlotte (her first meeting with Tristan! LOL!) an More...

The first half of this book gets a 5+++. A realistic look at how it must have felt in early 19th century to realize that you are gay, and the impact it has on your life and the lives of those around you. Loved every second of it. Fantastic characters.

Second half gets a 3. Never truly understood Charlotte, and though I didn't think I was supposed to, her easy acceptance of her husband & brother still detracted from the story. Also? These heroes cried too much. Love that they are emotional and More...

3.5
I liked the book. It is a good historical romance and the author seems quite knowledgeable in the field, but I guess I wouldn't know even if she were completely faking it. It made me cry a little bit in parts.

It was too long for my taste. It could have benefited from some editing to tighten the plot, as there were parts I found unnecessary. The most interesting parts happened between the arrival of Lottie's brother and him getting together with Tris. As well as seeing Tris interesting in some More...

If I could award 6 stars to this novel I would. Kindred Hearts is a beautiful story. If you like historicals, this rich and impeccably researched novel will give you many hours of reading pleasure. It pushed every one of my damn buttons. Ms. Speedwell's characters are wonderfully complex and multi-faceted. I fell for Tristen and Charlie instantly, but I was very surprised at how much I loved Charlotte. What a unique and lovely character she turned out to be. I don't want to spoil this for anyone More...

This book did not leave me completely cold, but I certainly can't say it gripped me or made me feel like I was there or any of the other signs of a really great period romance. It read like a pretty predictable genre romance.

I think when authors have their characters make major personality changes, they kind of have to let the reader see some of the introspection involved to make it work. Otherwise, it feels a little like the character is just conveniently making himself over for plot purposes a More...