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3.16 AVERAGE
3.16 AVERAGE
2.5 stars - The dialogue was quite good, and it proved a refreshingly clean romance, but the characterization of everyone except the female protagonist changes almost every chapter. It makes it hard to see any of them as real people, particularly the titular Mr. Malcom, who begins as a pretentious snob and ends as a complete ass. (His repentances are short-lived on multiple occasions, and he has few redeeming qualities beyond being rich and handsome.)
funny
lighthearted
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:
Yes
Rom-com style historical fiction regency romance - does one ever need anything else from life?
Selina Dalton, a vicar's daughter, receives a rather unexpected invitation from her school friend Julia Thistlewaite. Introduction to London society and her chance at marriage if she helps Julia play a little revenge trick on a certain Mr. Malcolm who had spurned Julia merely because she had not met a list of requirements his future wife is supposed to fulfill. Selina is to seduce and then refuse him. Only... do these things ever go according to plan?
"Mr. Malcolm's List" was a fairly enjoyable read that unfortunately left me wanting more.
While the story wasn't bad and the premise was certainly alluring enough to pique my interest the execution fell flat. I expected drama to run deeper and wit to be more pronounced and perhaps it was all there but it didn't feel like that for me. I am not sure if it was the characters that were underdeveloped but something felt definitely felt off. Therefore I couldn't connect to them on a higher level that would help me find their journey to be believable and engrossing. The writing style was one of the book's advantages because the dialogue was often sharp and the exchanges entertaining. I didn't find myself caring much though and I wasn't waiting for the next turn of events with bated breath. I had expected there to be lots of 'bated breath' moments before going into this.
My main issue with the story was the overuse of the 'miscommunication' trope. Jeremy falls victim to assuming a variety of things about Selina and while at first it was awkward enough in a cute way, with time it became annoying. How many more times can one man make the same mistake? Perhaps it is my personal pet peeve still though, it diminished my enjoyment of the story. I also didn't think the stakes were all that high to begin with. Sure, failure in making a match, the societal drama of it all but I should have still been on the edge of my seat! My recent favourite of the genre "Bringing Down the Duke" made the stakes seem impossibly high, the story so important that I could feel goosebumps rising on my arms when drama struck. I didn't feel like that reading "Mr. Malcolm's List". I felt like either way it would be just fine. The funny, purely rom-com parts of the story did bring the desirable comic relief but with the overall story falling somewhat flat I didn't care much. The drama wasn't stressed enough for me to feel the need of a comic relief in the first place.
All in all it wasn't an entirely bad book. It just seemed underdeveloped and forgettable. My rating of 2.5 stars seems fair enough.
**massive thank you to the publishers and Edelweiss+ for providing an arc in exchange for a fair and honest review**
Selina Dalton, a vicar's daughter, receives a rather unexpected invitation from her school friend Julia Thistlewaite. Introduction to London society and her chance at marriage if she helps Julia play a little revenge trick on a certain Mr. Malcolm who had spurned Julia merely because she had not met a list of requirements his future wife is supposed to fulfill. Selina is to seduce and then refuse him. Only... do these things ever go according to plan?
"Mr. Malcolm's List" was a fairly enjoyable read that unfortunately left me wanting more.
While the story wasn't bad and the premise was certainly alluring enough to pique my interest the execution fell flat. I expected drama to run deeper and wit to be more pronounced and perhaps it was all there but it didn't feel like that for me. I am not sure if it was the characters that were underdeveloped but something felt definitely felt off. Therefore I couldn't connect to them on a higher level that would help me find their journey to be believable and engrossing. The writing style was one of the book's advantages because the dialogue was often sharp and the exchanges entertaining. I didn't find myself caring much though and I wasn't waiting for the next turn of events with bated breath. I had expected there to be lots of 'bated breath' moments before going into this.
My main issue with the story was the overuse of the 'miscommunication' trope. Jeremy falls victim to assuming a variety of things about Selina and while at first it was awkward enough in a cute way, with time it became annoying. How many more times can one man make the same mistake? Perhaps it is my personal pet peeve still though, it diminished my enjoyment of the story. I also didn't think the stakes were all that high to begin with. Sure, failure in making a match, the societal drama of it all but I should have still been on the edge of my seat! My recent favourite of the genre "Bringing Down the Duke" made the stakes seem impossibly high, the story so important that I could feel goosebumps rising on my arms when drama struck. I didn't feel like that reading "Mr. Malcolm's List". I felt like either way it would be just fine. The funny, purely rom-com parts of the story did bring the desirable comic relief but with the overall story falling somewhat flat I didn't care much. The drama wasn't stressed enough for me to feel the need of a comic relief in the first place.
All in all it wasn't an entirely bad book. It just seemed underdeveloped and forgettable. My rating of 2.5 stars seems fair enough.
**massive thank you to the publishers and Edelweiss+ for providing an arc in exchange for a fair and honest review**
Love It
I stumbled upon this book after seeing the trailer for the movie. I was not quick to read it because I was wondering if it was a Bridgerton knockoff but boy was I wrong! This is a hilariously fantastically written story with some pearls of wisdom to be had! The characters are very entertaining and you'll fall in love with them. I wish there were a part 2 to see what becomes of their marriage!
I stumbled upon this book after seeing the trailer for the movie. I was not quick to read it because I was wondering if it was a Bridgerton knockoff but boy was I wrong! This is a hilariously fantastically written story with some pearls of wisdom to be had! The characters are very entertaining and you'll fall in love with them. I wish there were a part 2 to see what becomes of their marriage!
Fun, funny, and cute. Would (and have) recommend to others.
funny
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
3.5 I saw the preview for the upcoming movie and thought I’d read the book. It was cute and an easy read. There were several times I laughed out loud. It was a mix of pride and prejudice and a bit of much ado about nothing. I’m glad I read it and will go see the movie. But there were too many things that were unrealistic to the time period and everyone seemed far too flippant about the rules of the time and culture. It was definitely a fun cheesy read.
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
funny
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
This whole book is nothing but vague vibes. There is zero character development — everything is tell tell tell (no show), and characters actions don’t make sense with what we’ve been told. The male lead literally unprompted trauma dumps his entire rationale during the proposal scene, with ZERO hints ahead of time.
The plot is insanely contrived, which I would forgive if the characters were actually interesting and fun, but they’re not. There is literally nothing here. I finished the whole thing in one night ONLY because I could not bear the thought of DNFing such a short book and also couldn't bear the thought of having to return to it on a different day.
The plot is insanely contrived, which I would forgive if the characters were actually interesting and fun, but they’re not. There is literally nothing here. I finished the whole thing in one night ONLY because I could not bear the thought of DNFing such a short book and also couldn't bear the thought of having to return to it on a different day.