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smuttymcbookface's review
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
The love story between Cecilia and Ramsey was an enthralling read, with fun twists and enjoyable developments. Although I hadn't read the first book in the series, the references to the previous plot made it easy to follow.
The MMC, Ramsey, Lord Chief of Justice and the "Vicar of Vice", is a middle-aged man who's denied himself any of the 'vices' (women, gambling, addiction) due to an upbringing where he saw men die from them, and due to a similar instance in his past where he fell prey to one of them. He's cold, standoffish, and detests that he can't stop sexualising the FMC in everything she does.
Cecilia, the FMC, is an educated mathematician from an awful background where her father figure, Vicar Teague, punished her for being too large, too smart, too anything, as well as punishing her for his own faults and the faults of others. Saved from this upbringing by a mysterious benefactor, later disclosed to be her aunt, she went to schools and honed her impressive mind. Sweet and selfless, to a fault, it's easy to see why the hard Ramsey would fall for her.
I enjoyed the light craziness of the plot, from the scene where Cecilia pretended to be the Scarlet Woman, to the unfolding of the larger over-arching villain. I also enjoyed the time in the cabin, where Cecilia and Raymond grew closer together.
However, I did not enjoy that the only "flaws" of Cecelia were that she was larger, smart, and too nice. I liked reading about a curvy FMC, and a MMC (amongst others) that enjoyed her appearance, but her depiction was flawlessly inhuman.
In addition, Ramsey's inability to think of her in anyway but sexual, and the derogatory narrative that him being Scottish meant he was "closer to wild animals than most men" were quite hard to read without the balance of something else. Cecilia was not viewed as a woman but as a desirable body; something the narrative of her being clever and independent was supposed to protect her from. It was almost disappointing that his appreciation of this amazing woman never moved past her sweetness and her body.
The MMC, Ramsey, Lord Chief of Justice and the "Vicar of Vice", is a middle-aged man who's denied himself any of the 'vices' (women, gambling, addiction) due to an upbringing where he saw men die from them, and due to a similar instance in his past where he fell prey to one of them. He's cold, standoffish, and detests that he can't stop sexualising the FMC in everything she does.
Cecilia, the FMC, is an educated mathematician from an awful background where her father figure, Vicar Teague, punished her for being too large, too smart, too anything, as well as punishing her for his own faults and the faults of others. Saved from this upbringing by a mysterious benefactor, later disclosed to be her aunt, she went to schools and honed her impressive mind. Sweet and selfless, to a fault, it's easy to see why the hard Ramsey would fall for her.
I enjoyed the light craziness of the plot, from the scene where Cecilia pretended to be the Scarlet Woman, to the unfolding of the larger over-arching villain. I also enjoyed the time in the cabin, where Cecilia and Raymond grew closer together.
However, I did not enjoy that the only "flaws" of Cecelia were that she was larger, smart, and too nice. I liked reading about a curvy FMC, and a MMC (amongst others) that enjoyed her appearance, but her depiction was flawlessly inhuman.
In addition, Ramsey's inability to think of her in anyway but sexual, and the derogatory narrative that him being Scottish meant he was "closer to wild animals than most men" were quite hard to read without the balance of something else. Cecilia was not viewed as a woman but as a desirable body; something the narrative of her being clever and independent was supposed to protect her from. It was almost disappointing that his appreciation of this amazing woman never moved past her sweetness and her body.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Sexual content, and Fatphobia
Moderate: Pedophilia
Minor: Suicide
katluna's review against another edition
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse and Trafficking
serenaasora's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment
Moderate: Death of parent and Child abuse
happily_after_heas's review against another edition
dark
emotional
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
5.0
If you're a fan of Kerrigan Byrne, this book will not disappoint! Once again she delivers in an emotional, sometimes dark, sometimes funny, book of love and finding someone who gets you and loves you for you.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, and Trafficking
Minor: Death
procrastinatewithreading's review against another edition
dark
emotional
fast-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? It's complicated
4.0
This was my first Kerrigan Byrne book and my second Scottish historical romance. The content is dark (definitely check for CWs, but be aware that kidnapping and selling children into sexual slavery is a major plot point) and the plot moves quickly. Cecilia meets Ramsey, the Vicar of Vice (Lord Chief Justice) and they have chemistry, however, her inheritance of a gambling hell/school for women comes between them. The issues I had with this book are a few:
-the comparison of Ramsey to an animal- it is stated often and frequently and it seems to be a correlation to his being Scottish. I found it distracting and possibly offensive.
-the traveling from London to Scotland, which can apparently happen quickly/easily at this time?
-the pacing is so fast that it feels like nothing gets fully developed, it is just wrapped up or left to be handled in another book
The things I loved about this book:
-Positive female friendships
-Fully formed female MC who is enhanced by circumstances but not formed by them (her inheritance did not make her re-evaluate her life or give up anything)
-Found family, especially Jean-Yves and Phoebe
Overall this book will definitely be loved by some and disliked by others. Perhaps reading all 3 books in the series would help me connect better with the characters and understand the fast pace of the story line.
-the comparison of Ramsey to an animal- it is stated often and frequently and it seems to be a correlation to his being Scottish. I found it distracting and possibly offensive.
-the traveling from London to Scotland, which can apparently happen quickly/easily at this time?
-the pacing is so fast that it feels like nothing gets fully developed, it is just wrapped up or left to be handled in another book
The things I loved about this book:
-Positive female friendships
-Fully formed female MC who is enhanced by circumstances but not formed by them (her inheritance did not make her re-evaluate her life or give up anything)
-Found family, especially Jean-Yves and Phoebe
Overall this book will definitely be loved by some and disliked by others. Perhaps reading all 3 books in the series would help me connect better with the characters and understand the fast pace of the story line.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Moderate: Body shaming and Child abuse
Minor: Alcoholism and Rape
dgrachel's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-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? It's complicated
4.0
Kerrigan Byrne knows how to write a love story. No matter how her H/h are thrown together, no matter how damaged they are, she brings them to their HEA in a way that is completely believable. This second book in the series that features the Red Rogues is just as good as the first. While the prologue here is heartbreaking, it isn't quite as devastating as that in the first book. For that, I am grateful, but I still think content warnings wouldn't be amiss.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse
The prologue contains the worst of the child abuse scenes and could be skipped without losing too much of the story. It does introduce a character who is important to the narrative, but I think the reader could figure out enough without the prologue, if they are really sensitive to abuse scenes.roomforbooks's review
3.0
3.5
CWs: parental abuse, fat-shaming, slut-shaming
Rep: fat heroine, poc side character, Indian side character
I received an early copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
When I saw this was in the Read now section on NetGalley, I clicked on it in half a second, I adore historical romance books but I especially love their sequels.
This one was overall an easy read but it wasn't always an enjoyable one.
When you write a hero that doesn't trust women, you have to thread carefully because you risk making him sound like a plain misogynist which is what happened with this book unfortunately.
The hero had mommy issues if that is even a thing, basically he grew up with a careless mother who wasn't fit for that role and that's how he grew to resent her and in the end, all women. Now I could understand him being mad with his parent but I could absolutely not understand why he'd spend the entire book calling her a "whore" and shaming other women for being... women and using their bodies the way they saw fit. That's a very certain way to make the hero unlikable and it's a pity because he started to redeem himself towards the end of the book but his behavior before that was just unacceptable so I couldn't overlook it.
The general plot was what I liked the most about this novel, it was interesting and the book could be read fast because of that, moreover there was more than one plot twist I did not see coming and that's definitely a point in its favor. The romance had great potential as the hero and heroine started out as enemies but it felt like they skipped some of the stages in their relationship: they went from hating each other to loving with no in between.
I'm definitely gonna read the next book because I like this author's writing style but I really hope the hero in it is nicer than this one.
CWs: parental abuse, fat-shaming, slut-shaming
Rep: fat heroine, poc side character, Indian side character
I received an early copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
When I saw this was in the Read now section on NetGalley, I clicked on it in half a second, I adore historical romance books but I especially love their sequels.
This one was overall an easy read but it wasn't always an enjoyable one.
When you write a hero that doesn't trust women, you have to thread carefully because you risk making him sound like a plain misogynist which is what happened with this book unfortunately.
The hero had mommy issues if that is even a thing, basically he grew up with a careless mother who wasn't fit for that role and that's how he grew to resent her and in the end, all women. Now I could understand him being mad with his parent but I could absolutely not understand why he'd spend the entire book calling her a "whore" and shaming other women for being... women and using their bodies the way they saw fit. That's a very certain way to make the hero unlikable and it's a pity because he started to redeem himself towards the end of the book but his behavior before that was just unacceptable so I couldn't overlook it.
The general plot was what I liked the most about this novel, it was interesting and the book could be read fast because of that, moreover there was more than one plot twist I did not see coming and that's definitely a point in its favor. The romance had great potential as the hero and heroine started out as enemies but it felt like they skipped some of the stages in their relationship: they went from hating each other to loving with no in between.
I'm definitely gonna read the next book because I like this author's writing style but I really hope the hero in it is nicer than this one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Fatphobia, and Child abuse
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