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420blazeit's review against another edition
2.0
this was SIGNIFICANTALLY better than the previous book. like miles ahead. it had the classic Loretta Chase banter and meet-cute/reconnection that was missing in leonie's book. i will have to say that upon them getting married the book #draggedddd i mean after the 80% mark i started skipping pages, and in the end, jacob freame ended up being the least scary villain there was. the ambush started and ended so fast it seemed like it could've been condensed into a couple paragraphs. so two stars only for clara and raven being such a great match, and then minus three for the unnecessary drama that dragged on the last 100 pages. so while chase's writing has redeemed itself (partly), im going to take a break from her for a little.
indecisivesailorscout's review against another edition
4.0
This was such a fun and delightful romp of a book. I absolutely adored the chemistry and banter between Clara and Raven. I also had the immense pleasure of meeting Loretta Chase at KissCon New England yesterday, and can confirm she is just as wonderful in person as all of her excellent writing and passion for romance suggests.
cassandra67b07's review against another edition
5.0
Finished my audible reread. I’d forgotten much of the plot but not Raven’s trial or the way he and Lady Clara matched wits through. Delightful book and Kate Reading’s narration was
chandlerainsley's review against another edition
4.0
i think i have a new fav historical romance author!
while i adore the popular historical romance authors of the moment (tessa dare etc), i really have to say how much i appreciate some of the older authors. they really take the time to set up place, plot, and characters in a way that makes me fall even more deeply in love with character relationships.
i really don't think loretta chase has an equal in writing banter between heroine & hero. i always find myself grinning like a big idiot at the jabs and insults the characters throw at each other. and i always swoon at the end when everything is tied up in a pretty bow.
the only real complaint i have and i anticipate other readers will have as well is how long this book is. i think it's necessary in creating convincing relationships but if you're used to a quick fall in love plot and then "the end" this might not be for you. chase usually has the characters married at the 60-70% mark with more plot after that.
overall, 4/5 bodice ripping stars
while i adore the popular historical romance authors of the moment (tessa dare etc), i really have to say how much i appreciate some of the older authors. they really take the time to set up place, plot, and characters in a way that makes me fall even more deeply in love with character relationships.
i really don't think loretta chase has an equal in writing banter between heroine & hero. i always find myself grinning like a big idiot at the jabs and insults the characters throw at each other. and i always swoon at the end when everything is tied up in a pretty bow.
the only real complaint i have and i anticipate other readers will have as well is how long this book is. i think it's necessary in creating convincing relationships but if you're used to a quick fall in love plot and then "the end" this might not be for you. chase usually has the characters married at the 60-70% mark with more plot after that.
overall, 4/5 bodice ripping stars
nellesnightstand1's review against another edition
3.0
This review was originally posted on Nelle's NightStandClara Fairfax
A wonderful woman pressured to be the "perfect' lady. She was a hellion when she was younger but now is the darling of the ton. She receives biweekly marriage proposals and is exceedingly gorgeous. She is entirely bored with society life
Oliver Radford
A brilliant Barrister who finds fashionable society a bore. He's in line for a Dukedom though which is not at all to his liking. He enjoys his life arguing trials in the courtroom. He's a very stiff character.
What I liked
The prologue! I love that they have just a little bit of a backstory. The barter between them is delightful. The fake "trial" for her hand in marriage. Radford's being in costume during it was grand. The fact that they marry halfway throw the book so we get to see what married life between them is like.
What I didn't like
Oliver's constant thinking that women weren't smart in general. Oliver was just a bit too stiff. The lack of closure with Oliver's cousin Bernard didn't sit well with me.
It was a quite enjoyable book. A nice spin-off of the Dressmaker books. Although it's listed as Dressmakers #4 because Clara was jilted in a prior Dressmaker book.
tessisreading2's review against another edition
4.0
Historical romance with the emphasis on "historical." Chase has done her research and it shows. The book itself was fun and felt educational/accurate in a way that a lot of historical romance novels - which place the emphasis on the romance rather than the historical - do not. I learned a lot about typhus but did not feel the usual sense of "oh, come ON" that one gets when the regency-era hero somehow mysteriously knows about modern hygienic practices and maybe utilizes some moldy bread for its healing properties. There was a real sense of period which there often isn't in a regency - the clothing and hair descriptions made me realize that it was 1830s almost immediately, and ditto the nice mentions of e.g. "the Duchess of Kent and Princess Victoria." The chemistry between the hero and heroine was great, the way the hero wins over the heroine's parents was super cute and well-done, and Chase really addressed the whole issue of class and money in regency-era marriage, which was nice to see.
However, the book felt too long; there was a lot of attention devoted to a not-very-suspenseful suspense plot involving the criminal underworld and, like, pre-Victorian street urchins. The romance resolved and I was very confused to see there was a considerable amount of the book left. The book is kind of a hybrid of historical fiction and historical romance; I liked it, but I tend to prefer my books to be one or the other. I enjoyed the book a great deal, but it's probably not a re-read for me.
However, the book felt too long; there was a lot of attention devoted to a not-very-suspenseful suspense plot involving the criminal underworld and, like, pre-Victorian street urchins. The romance resolved and I was very confused to see there was a considerable amount of the book left. The book is kind of a hybrid of historical fiction and historical romance; I liked it, but I tend to prefer my books to be one or the other.
Spoiler
Additionally, I get that it's a regency romance so in the end the dude has to become the duke, but really? Couldn't he NOT have become the duke? It just felt tacked-on and unnecessary.sharonwb's review against another edition
3.0
This book was a little boring, not much steam. Enjoyed some of the legal banter but not enough angst and the bad guys were a bit lame. On to another series to determine if this author can write steam or just using lots of euphemisms.
samanatha's review against another edition
I wanted something sweet and funny. I searched for something like the Duchess Deal by Tessa Dare and found this book/author. Loretta Chase was a new author for me and the reviews and description all seemed promising. My disappointment when listening to the ‘girls have no brains’ and (essentially) she isn’t like other girls claptrap for 3 hours was so great. While the FMC carried quite a heavy load proving how smart and worthy she was to be considered an equal human, I could not listen to this poor Raven man be torn in half between liking her despite her being a woman and noticing how perfectly beautiful she is. I am quite sad because some of the bantering was fun and the FMC was intriguing.
nevclue's review against another edition
2.0
I never got into this. I read it haphazardly, almost skimming at times. There was nothing wrong, per se, with either Clara or Raven, but nothing about them jumped off the page either. It's been twelve hours since I finished the book and I can barely remember a single plot point.
nellesnightstand's review against another edition
3.0
This review was originally posted on Nelle's NightStandClara Fairfax
A wonderful woman pressured to be the "perfect' lady. She was a hellion when she was younger but now is the darling of the ton. She receives biweekly marriage proposals and is exceedingly gorgeous. She is entirely bored with society life
Oliver Radford
A brilliant Barrister who finds fashionable society a bore. He's in line for a Dukedom though which is not at all to his liking. He enjoys his life arguing trials in the courtroom. He's a very stiff character.
What I liked
The prologue! I love that they have just a little bit of a backstory. The barter between them is delightful. The fake "trial" for her hand in marriage. Radford's being in costume during it was grand. The fact that they marry halfway throw the book so we get to see what married life between them is like.
What I didn't like
Oliver's constant thinking that women weren't smart in general. Oliver was just a bit too stiff. The lack of closure with Oliver's cousin Bernard didn't sit well with me.
It was a quite enjoyable book. A nice spin-off of the Dressmaker books. Although it's listed as Dressmakers #4 because Clara was jilted in a prior Dressmaker book.