The Rake

The Rake is a ridiculous romp. Lord Jasper is a rich, spoiled but importantly extremely charming rake who spends his time living large and seducing who ever takes his fancy but he goes too far when he charms and deflowers Laura Ludgrove the teenage beauty of the season. His sister tells him to leave until the furore dies down but on his journey he comes across a beautiful but deadly woman who shoots him for no apparent reason. After his brush with death Jasper is back in town and back in society only to find his femme fatale across a crowed ballroom. This is completely ridiculous but throughly enjoyable. What I like about these books is that they don't try to shoehorn modern values into history, they are in a weird way of their time. Jasper's behaviour is despicable and should in no way be condoned or unpunished which makes his happy ending somewhat questionable especially as Laura's character is denigrated later in the book to sort of make it ok. It isn't. All of it is completely outrageous and soapy anyway that is the least of the drama. It is a lot of fun. Original review: https://www.netgalley.co.uk/book/241713/review/658503

I am a sucker for a good Duke romance and this one was lovely. I highly recommend all the books by this author which I have enjoyed immensely. Original review: https://www.netgalley.co.uk/book/241713/review/692769

I liked this story though I didn't really like the hero. He treats women badly and comes across as entitled, probably typical of his time. It is novel that we don't meet the heroine until much later in the story. The other aspect of the book that harks back to Heyer is the inclusion of historical characters and the sheer number of people in the book. Modern novela seems to put a spotlight on perhaps 4 protaganists in a narrative, whereas this one joyfully adds the other debutantes, Jaspers friends, Grizelda's godmother, his and her sisters and other couples that get their HEA. (I think Grizelda isn't a particularily flattering name but IMO is evocative of her anger towards the hero). I will look out for more novels by this author it's a great start as a debut novel. For those to whom such things matter it's a clean story. Original review: https://www.netgalley.co.uk/book/241713/review/416034

Terrific regency romance, with which Georgette Heyer would not be unhappy. A must read for any fan of romance, Regency or Heyer, this book has it all in spades. It is reminiscent of the more serious of the Heyer romances, and the reader has to suspend belief for a short while, but ultimately a gripping story with intrigue and derring do aplenty. Try it. I doubt you'll regret it. Original review: https://www.netgalley.co.uk/book/241713/review/675144

Thank you to NetGalley for enabling review copies of The Arranged Marriage and The Rake. Gillian Hawser is a new author for me and I'll certainly look out for books written by her in the future. The books are in the regency romance genre and are written in a unique traditional yet modern way. They are good clean tales of romance with many twists and turns on the way. At some points, I found myself laughing out loud. Definitely excellent reads for fans of this genre. Original review: https://www.netgalley.co.uk/book/241713/review/269090