Reviews

THE BELLE OF BELGRAVE SQUARE is ...

A love letter to romance & fantasy
A mystery with secrets and soulbearing
A fairytale retelling complete with a Beast's library

I'm so enchanted with the relationship of Captain Blunt & Miss Julia Wychwood. They are a tangent to the most common Grumpy and Sunshine pairing dynamic. Captain Blunt surely is Grumpy but Julia is rather a dewy sunrise morning. She is temperate and softly glowing. It takes a timing and patience to bask in her love.

I. Am. Swooning! For Captain Blunt. Gruff and straight forward, but attentive and kind. All the while his military history sends shivers down your spine. His estate may be haunted. And there is gossip regarding a brood of illegitimate children. The truth is both a relief and a test of epathy and ethics.

This book is also perfect for us readers who have spent a great deal of our lives escaping to fantasies and romances and thrillers. Julia hasn't been anywhere but London under the pall of family's perceived infermity. But shes dreamed of the possibilities & thrills of life as shes known through fiction novels, romances, and penny dreadfuls. She is those of us looking for the seculded library (preferably with a cat to pet) set apart from the crowded ballroom. She is contentedly alone but not lonely. She can sit in companionable silence reading and lean over and gasp and swoon with her buddy reader.

Drama. Romance. Mystery. This book (And Series!) is not to be slept on. You won't find explicit scenes, but the passion burns and the affection warms your heart. I. Am. Obsessed.

sararm's review against another edition

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3.0

Mimi Matthews has written one of my favourite historical romances of all time, A Holiday by Gaslight. Her other works tends to be hit or miss for me in the sense that though they are always sweet, carefully researched, low-angst, and gothic, I don't always connect with the couple.

This one, I don't know, it was aggressively okay. The heroine was so silly though - never mind that she could not recognise a hint if it walked all over her, even when the truth was shouted at her she'd leap to nonsensical conclusions to manufacture a bit more conflict in the plot.

Also I appreciate the attempts at being time-appropriate but sentences like these make me gag:

His sweet, vulnerable—and quite virginal—romantic-minded little wife.

aoife98's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful lighthearted mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

This is one of my new favorite historical romance books. I adored it. It’s a story full of love, family, mystery and facing the past.

Julia Wychwood, an heiress with severe social anxiety and two hypochondriac parents, has already completely 3 London seasons and seems to be no closer to finding a match. Captain Jasper Blunt, a cold war hero with numerous scandals to his name, is in desperate need of a wealthy wife. He needs the funds to restore his crumbling estate Goldfinch Hall to its former glory and support his three (illegitimate) children.

Blunt sets his sights on Julia and right from the outset they are comfortable with each other. They discuss topics they probably shouldn’t and Blunt is pretty outspoken about the fact this would not be as love match and he needs her money. This was nicely refreshing as both parties went into the relationship with their eyes open. For the most part.

I swooned a little when Jasper took Julia from the house because she no longer felt safe there. In that moment, he believes if he marries her there will be no money/dowry and yet that’s exactly what he wants to do. His love for Julia outweighs his desire and need for money.

Aside from the central romance, I also loved the relationship between Blunt, Julia and the children — especially Grace. I did think the middle child was a bit superfluous and he wasn’t nearly as dimensional as other two.

There are three big “reveals” in this story.

The MMC is the author of the J. Marshfield novels
The MMC is not the father of the three illegitimate children
Jasper Blunt is actually James Marshfield. James was mistaken for Blunt and subsequently assumed his identity when Blunt was killed in Crimea and James was critically wounded.

I have to say, I guessed the first two but I didn’t see the third twist coming. I really should have, and in hindsight it was so obvious, but I didn’t expect it. I really enjoyed the mystery in this book and every time we’d get a new clue and indication that something wasn’t right I kept trying to reconcile it with my own theories and I’m glad I got most of it right!