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connerme's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Sexism, Sexual content, and Classism
Moderate: Blood, Child death, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, and Alcohol
Minor: Physical abuse, Kidnapping, Confinement, Infidelity, Grief, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, and Pregnancy
annick's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
š¤Æššš». This exceeded expectation. I rarely give 5.0. And I already gave 4.75 for the previous two books in this series.
This book trumps my feelings and favour for the other books of the series. I canāt think of anything Iād want to edit in this book that detracts from the delight I had in reading it.
I love the nonlinear progression of intimacy on cognitive, sensual, sexual and emotional levels
šthe multiple layers of discussion on social justice really felt nuanced and Considered. The authors note at the end gives further information on how they grounded the plot in real experiences 1880s England and Scotland.
šŗļødiversity rep is rather good by the standards of this subgenre of period romances. The FMC shows neurodivergent traits similar to dyslexia and adhd. The MMC shows signs of ptsd. Secondary character is in a stable lesbian relationship, and none of the characters indicate judgment or negative views on this.
āļø the Scottish sections has really improved on the London sections earlier on. I sense the writer hesitate to write about classist stuff in London society. And instead prefer to move the plot to Scotland and the main pairing. Good choice to break the mold and not include a fashion episode for the fmc. (Instead it is only passingly mentioned in the epilogue)
š«¦The awakening of her desire to a mix of erotic, endearing, and woven into the plot. It was tasteful and sweet to enjoy as character development as well as spice.
šļøThe plot and ending were not as cliched as most contemporary romances. I particularly liked the effort to not tie up loose ends. It just needs more time for it to be less rushed . The third act separation in two parts makes sense.
This book trumps my feelings and favour for the other books of the series. I canāt think of anything Iād want to edit in this book that detracts from the delight I had in reading it.
I love the nonlinear progression of intimacy on cognitive, sensual, sexual and emotional levels
šthe multiple layers of discussion on social justice really felt nuanced and Considered. The authors note at the end gives further information on how they grounded the plot in real experiences 1880s England and Scotland.
šŗļødiversity rep is rather good by the standards of this subgenre of period romances. The FMC shows neurodivergent traits similar to dyslexia and adhd. The MMC shows signs of ptsd. Secondary character is in a stable lesbian relationship, and none of the characters indicate judgment or negative views on this.
āļø the Scottish sections has really improved on the London sections earlier on. I sense the writer hesitate to write about classist stuff in London society. And instead prefer to move the plot to Scotland and the main pairing. Good choice to break the mold and not include a fashion episode for the fmc. (Instead it is only passingly mentioned in the epilogue)
š«¦The awakening of her desire to a mix of erotic, endearing, and woven into the plot. It was tasteful and sweet to enjoy as character development as well as spice.
šļøThe plot and ending were not as cliched as most contemporary romances. I particularly liked the effort to not tie up loose ends. It just needs more time for it to be less rushed . The third act separation in two parts makes sense.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Gun violence, and Classism
Moderate: Mental illness, Sexism, Panic attacks/disorders, Misogyny, and Alcohol
cepbreed's review
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
First read of 2024! I read 90% of this on the plane to London but have been so busy I only had time to read the last couple pages 5 days later. I was right when I thought that reading a good histrom would put me in the perfect mood for the beginning of my study abroad experience. Itās so lovely to know exactly where the areas of London they mention are in real life. Obviously everything looks so different but itās still fun. Though this book had a really weak start and end the middle was quite good. If it werenāt for being stuck on a plane with no service and only this book downloaded I probably wouldāve stopped reading and picked up something else. Both characters annoyed me a lot and though I appreciate the sentiment this book managed to lean too heavily into the social justice aspect. Like be self aware this is a histrom. A lot of the social justice parts were actually what made Harriet so annoying. Like she was so naive and so shy-washy, yet felt so much better than everyone for being a suffragette? Condescension at its finest. Lucien was no better. His whole character was an over exaggerated caricature of the dark-and-brooding male lead trope. His whole thing is aggression and violence and Iām meant to find that compelling? Though Iām venting my complaints I seriously did enjoy this but thatās because I read histroms for the steamy romance not the literally technicalities.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism, Sexism, Gun violence, Misogyny, and Sexual content
Moderate: Gun violence
Minor: Alcohol, Addiction, Death, Death of parent, and Grief
haley49's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
So, so good. Everything about this story was well paced and earned. I loved the discussion about womenās rights, class rights, and economics. It was refreshing to have Hattie care so much for her cause while also having hobbies and interests outside of it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Death
Moderate: Child death, Misogyny, Ableism, Alcoholism, Classism, Alcohol, Death of parent, Gun violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual assault, Violence, Domestic abuse, and Suicide
phippa's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent and Suicide
Minor: Pedophilia, Grief, Alcohol, and Addiction
bexi's review against another edition
emotional
funny
informative
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism, Sexism, Sexual harassment, and Misogyny
Moderate: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Sexual content, Death, and Grief
Minor: Death of parent, Suicide, Ableism, Blood, Child death, Confinement, and Panic attacks/disorders
kimmag92's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Portrait of a Scotsman is my absolute favourite of the League of Extraordinary Women so far. I loved Hattie and Lucien's relationship and how they both grew as people. I also really loved Lucien's acknowledgement of Hattie's need for space and to be herself. I did not anticipate the socialist turn in the last third of the book and I was here for it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Death of parent, and Gun violence
baearles's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Classism, Death, Misogyny, and Sexism
Moderate: Child abuse, Grief, Death of parent, Gun violence, and Child death
Minor: Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Body shaming, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Emotional abuse, Alcohol, and Suicide
_alyssar_'s review
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Sexual content, Classism, Death of parent, and Violence
Moderate: Death
Minor: Blood, Alcohol, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, and Sexism
saeruh's review against another edition
emotional
- Strong character development? Yes
4.75
This book was very close to being perfect. I felt like all of the characters were so complex and it was lovely to see them develop. The suffrage part that was so prevalent in the first two books took a bit of a backseat (although it was still a major function of the book!), instead what was focused more on as the political history of this one was poor workerās rights in the late 1800s and specifically the poor working and living conditions of Scottish coal miners. It was interesting to me to read this take on that sad part of history since Dunmore seemed to really breathe live into the coal minersā community.
The love story within this had amazing chemistry and was filled with tropes (forced proximity, strangers to enemies to lovers, love at first sight, grumpy/sunshine, probably more im forgetting) but also was such an original story. It was also both quite steamy and spicy which was a great bonus. I do think this is the best book and romance in the series (although I guess Iāll see how the fourth one coming out next year will change that). I loved the representation of living with a learning/comprehension disability in the 1800s that came with Hattieās character. I thought it was incredibly well done. I also just loved Hattie in general, I have since the beginning of this series, sheās such a sweetheart and the sad way that sheās treated by her family that affects her own self esteem broke my heart. I also loved Lucian! He was so complex but so besotted with Hattie. There was an accurate portrayal of PTSD within his character as well. They were so great together even when they sort of hated each other. Lucian went through the Darcy-character-development and by the end of the story, he was changing his ways that Hattie had previously told him were his faults (aka actually listening to her concerns and actively changing his ways to make a lasting difference).
I quite liked the side characters, I thought they were all interesting and had enough time in the story for me to actually care about them/their futures. I wished we saw more of the friend group and all of them being together like in the previous books. I didnāt like beginning or the last few chapters before the epilogue. The former because I felt like Dunmore did not ease the reader into the story at all (i mean the first kiss is in the freaking first chapter) and instead just kind of threw you into the midst. The latter becausewhile I understood why Hattie wanted to leave/separate from Lucian due to the beginning of their relationship, i also majorly felt like it erased a lot of their emotional development. I mean like hell they just admitted to each other that they loved one another and suddenly theyāre separating?? It was hard to read and that last 5% took me much longer to read that the rest because I was so disappointed .
Anyways I do recommend this book, it was quite a bit of fun and informative, it had spice that made me blush quite hard, and I listened to the full audiobook in two days šš
The love story within this had amazing chemistry and was filled with tropes (forced proximity, strangers to enemies to lovers, love at first sight, grumpy/sunshine, probably more im forgetting) but also was such an original story. It was also both quite steamy and spicy which was a great bonus. I do think this is the best book and romance in the series (although I guess Iāll see how the fourth one coming out next year will change that). I loved the representation of living with a learning/comprehension disability in the 1800s that came with Hattieās character. I thought it was incredibly well done. I also just loved Hattie in general, I have since the beginning of this series, sheās such a sweetheart and the sad way that sheās treated by her family that affects her own self esteem broke my heart. I also loved Lucian! He was so complex but so besotted with Hattie. There was an accurate portrayal of PTSD within his character as well. They were so great together even when they sort of hated each other. Lucian went through the Darcy-character-development and by the end of the story, he was changing his ways that Hattie had previously told him were his faults (aka actually listening to her concerns and actively changing his ways to make a lasting difference).
I quite liked the side characters, I thought they were all interesting and had enough time in the story for me to actually care about them/their futures. I wished we saw more of the friend group and all of them being together like in the previous books. I didnāt like beginning or the last few chapters before the epilogue. The former because I felt like Dunmore did not ease the reader into the story at all (i mean the first kiss is in the freaking first chapter) and instead just kind of threw you into the midst. The latter because
Anyways I do recommend this book, it was quite a bit of fun and informative, it had spice that made me blush quite hard, and I listened to the full audiobook in two days šš
Content Warnings
Minor: Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Cursing, Fatphobia, Grief, Sexual content, Body shaming, Child death, Classism, Death of parent, and Infidelity