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theportalmaster's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This was actually… so different from other books of the sort! I’m positively surprised. I needed something light and without much thinking needed after all the finals stress.
Also what a breath of fresh air to see a heroine be unapologetically herself and not a shy, annoying damsel in distress. Loved that part! Also a little less “I love you so much XY” towards the end would have been wonderful in my opinion. I know it’s a romance book but one and done would suffice.
Also what a breath of fresh air to see a heroine be unapologetically herself and not a shy, annoying damsel in distress. Loved that part! Also a little less “I love you so much XY” towards the end would have been wonderful in my opinion. I know it’s a romance book but one and done would suffice.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Addiction, Self harm, and Sexual content
maeverose's review against another edition
Despite the interesting plot, this could not keep my attention. It was very slow and repetitive. Every time Kitty and Alexander interact they have the same thoughts about each other over and over: Kitty is horny for him but convinces herself she isn’t, Alexander is bewildered by how unique and unlike other girls Kitty is.
I feel unsure about the disability rep. As far as I read (39%) there was nothing outright offensive, but some things gave me pause. I am disabled but not in the way that Alexander is so I’m no authority on this, but it annoyed me somewhat that (even though I know plenty of wheelchair users can walk) he seemed to be able to do pretty much anything an able bodied person could (walk almost whenever he wanted, dance,swim in rushing water to rescue two people plus horses ), even if it was always clearly accompanied by pain. I’m not sure how I feel about that. I don’t want to discredit his pain, but it feels like his disability was at least partially written away when convenient. He was described as having muscular legs despite supposedly needing a wheelchair for the past seven years (though considering he seems to rarely use it, maybe that does make sense). It feels like he was written to be ‘palatably disabled’. He’s very stubborn about not using the wheelchair despite how it would help him and I assume that is addressed later in the book, but I never got that far.
There was one scene in particular that bothered me as well. (Mild spoilers) In chapter seven after the dance when Kitty goes to find him on the bench, instead of strictly being concerned for him, Kitty’s mostly thinking about how sweet he was to endure the pain to dance with her, how attractive he is, how her reputation could be affected if anyone found them alone, and how ‘admirable’ he is for being able to hide his pain so well (why is that admirable? Hiding his pain to ‘appear normal’? He shouldn’t have to grin and bear it). I felt like that scene would’ve been great if she had just wanted to make sure he was okay, then helped him, then they had the romantic moment. Rather than her clearly seeing him in pain and distress but being horny for him in that moment. It felt so off.
Also, in the book it says the left side of his face/body is scarred, but on the front cover it isn’t at all…. 🤨
I feel unsure about the disability rep. As far as I read (39%) there was nothing outright offensive, but some things gave me pause. I am disabled but not in the way that Alexander is so I’m no authority on this, but it annoyed me somewhat that (even though I know plenty of wheelchair users can walk) he seemed to be able to do pretty much anything an able bodied person could (walk almost whenever he wanted, dance,
There was one scene in particular that bothered me as well. (Mild spoilers) In chapter seven after the dance when Kitty goes to find him on the bench, instead of strictly being concerned for him, Kitty’s mostly thinking about how sweet he was to endure the pain to dance with her, how attractive he is, how her reputation could be affected if anyone found them alone, and how ‘admirable’ he is for being able to hide his pain so well (why is that admirable? Hiding his pain to ‘appear normal’? He shouldn’t have to grin and bear it). I felt like that scene would’ve been great if she had just wanted to make sure he was okay, then helped him, then they had the romantic moment. Rather than her clearly seeing him in pain and distress but being horny for him in that moment. It felt so off.
Also, in the book it says the left side of his face/body is scarred, but on the front cover it isn’t at all…. 🤨
I don’t know if any of these things are corrected later in the book, they could be, but it’s not holding my attention enough to read the rest of it to find out.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Body shaming, Death, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Infertility and Colonisation
Minor: Rape and Sexual assault
Ableist slurs, near drowningcepbreed's review
emotional
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
3.0
The first half of this book give or take had me in a chokehold. I loved Kitty's brash actions, her devotion to her family, but I also had many complaints. There was a lot of unnecessary exposition, like, I get it's the first book in a series but all the descriptions of her friends felt out of place. It was weird to mention so many names when readers would have absolutely no recall when they were mentioned again. I was like "who tf is Ophelia?" Also the duke's personality in the beginning felt so far removed from who he was at the end, not even, at the 3/4 mark. I understand he is hurt and too prideful to allow others to perceive his hurt or even help him, but how did that manifest so differently so quickly? Character development is a thing, but the key word here is development, which Alexander was evidently lacking. His indecisiveness was so frustrating, I did really end up liking Kitty though. She embarrassed me a bit, but she felt like a friend almost. At the end of the day this is a histrom so I can't expect something revolutionary, but somethings really ruined the reading experience, the immersion, for me....(I get it was supposed to be an unexpected moment but him literally collapsing mid stroke???? I was so cringed out I had to detox on TikTok for a couple minutes).
Song:
Song:
- cowboy like me - Taylor Swift
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Infertility, Sexual content, Medical content, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail
chrisljm's review against another edition
emotional
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Sexual content, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Drug abuse, Infertility, Misogyny, Medical content, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Colonisation
Minor: Sexual assault, Grief, and Pregnancy
emilyharmonica's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
“You are the only person I’ve ever wanted to share my silence.”
There’s little I love more than a quality Beauty and the Beast retelling, and this one was just… *swoon*
In a desperate attempt to save her family from poverty, Katherine Danvers announces her engagement to Alexander Masters, Duke of Thornton, a man she has never met and who hasn’t been seen in society circles for nearly a decade. The duke, meanwhile, has shut himself away in his Scotland estate after a tragic accident left him brutally scarred and confined to a wheelchair. When he gets wind of rumors that a young lady has announced their engagement to the society pages, he travels to London to get to the bottom of her deception. And the rest, as they say, is history.
I’m a sucker for stories where the love interests find healing and redemption in one another. I loved how self-aware these characters were, how honest they were with themselves and each other in spite of their stubborn resistance to their chemistry. The strongest moments of the book were in the protagonists’ quiet moments together, sharing bites of an apple alone in an abandoned cottage, or spending time in the Duke’s library, or admiring the Scottish countryside from high up in a tree. It’s not the spiciest romance novel out there, but the sexual tension and romantic angst were off the charts.
I’d recommend this book to all readers of historical romance, as well as any reader who enjoys leaning into a tad bit of melodrama. I’m looking forward to reading more books in this series, as well as others from Stacy Reid’s backlist!
Bonus quote just because:
“You make me hope,” he snarled low and dangerous. “Like a goddamn idiot, you make me pray, you make my throat burn with the need to scream and beg God to give you to me, to treasure, to worship…to love until the end of my days.” He had to close his eyes to control his ragged breathing.
Overall rating: 4/5
Spice level: 2/5
There’s little I love more than a quality Beauty and the Beast retelling, and this one was just… *swoon*
In a desperate attempt to save her family from poverty, Katherine Danvers announces her engagement to Alexander Masters, Duke of Thornton, a man she has never met and who hasn’t been seen in society circles for nearly a decade. The duke, meanwhile, has shut himself away in his Scotland estate after a tragic accident left him brutally scarred and confined to a wheelchair. When he gets wind of rumors that a young lady has announced their engagement to the society pages, he travels to London to get to the bottom of her deception. And the rest, as they say, is history.
I’m a sucker for stories where the love interests find healing and redemption in one another. I loved how self-aware these characters were, how honest they were with themselves and each other in spite of their stubborn resistance to their chemistry. The strongest moments of the book were in the protagonists’ quiet moments together, sharing bites of an apple alone in an abandoned cottage, or spending time in the Duke’s library, or admiring the Scottish countryside from high up in a tree. It’s not the spiciest romance novel out there, but the sexual tension and romantic angst were off the charts.
I’d recommend this book to all readers of historical romance, as well as any reader who enjoys leaning into a tad bit of melodrama. I’m looking forward to reading more books in this series, as well as others from Stacy Reid’s backlist!
Bonus quote just because:
“You make me hope,” he snarled low and dangerous. “Like a goddamn idiot, you make me pray, you make my throat burn with the need to scream and beg God to give you to me, to treasure, to worship…to love until the end of my days.” He had to close his eyes to control his ragged breathing.
Overall rating: 4/5
Spice level: 2/5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infertility and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Ableism
ellie_murdock's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
sad
tense
slow-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
4.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infertility, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury
daisycantread24's review
hopeful
lighthearted
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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Sexual content, and Fire/Fire injury
kim03's review against another edition
3.5
My thoughts.
Positive:
Positive:
- Truly adored the writing style.
- The characters. Even side characters were well fleshed out and felt like their own people instead of just a means to an end for the plot and main characters.
- The portrayal of chronic illness. Also the insecurities that come with it.
- The development of the relationship. Well paced, though I wasn't quite d'accord with everything. (Meaning I would've made different choices)
Negative:
- What in the everliving shit was the main man thinking. I do not support a lot of his choices.
The things he said in anger were inexcusable for me and the fact that the main woman's friends encouraged her to go back to him??? She deserves better (was my opinion after he behaved like the typical proud douchebag). Still happy for their happy end tho. - His pride (and that is what I identify this as) was my main problem. It stops him from true intimacy, from trusting her and himself, and though I can understand the origin of his insecurities, I still find his reactions... Questionable.
Case in point: why would anyone insult the woman they love? That made it so hard for me to believe that he actually loved her. This was me during the Fallout scene: 🤨
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Sexual content, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Drug abuse and Sexual assault
the_vegan_bookworm's review
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.75
I found the text to be overly wordy and flowery, which made it tough to get through. The plot was also very reminiscent to "The Duchess Deal" by Tessa Dare, though this book was less polished and the plot was much slower.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Infertility, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Sexual content and Grief
Minor: Addiction, Drug use, Medical trauma, and Death of parent
aqtbenz's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury