Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.85 AVERAGE
3.85 AVERAGE
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Dearest Rogue brings to fans of the series like myself the much awaited story of Lady Phoebe Batten, younger sister of the Duke of Wakefield and Captain James Trevillion, the man who is charged with being her bodyguard, a man who should know better than to want after a woman who he never should.
It is impossible to read the Maiden Lane series without falling, and falling hard for Phoebe. From the book Notorious Pleasures onward, Phoebe has featured prominently as a secondary character, fact that she was slowly going blind and would be completely so in a couple of years the reason behind the Duke, her brother, keeping her under such tight lock and control.
It is the sort of control that stifles the 21 year old Phoebe, who has given up her dreams of leading a life of the kind that ladies of her age and ilk take for granted. In that regard, James coming into her life is just one more notch that tightens the noose around her neck, and 6 months of having him tail after her every time she is to go out and about has meant that Phoebe has gotten more or less resigned to having him around.
James is a man whose life of servitude to the King in his occupation as a soldier is all the life that he knows how to live. Keeping his past under lock and key is how he deals with the memories that he tries to leave undisturbed, and if in innocent Phoebe he finds a respite from it all, that is all on him. In James once again, readers find a character they have come across multiple times in the series, especially when it comes to his pursuit of the Ghost of St. Giles. James is a character who has more than proven his mettle as one who is honest, honorable and someone who takes his duty very, very seriously.
James keeps his burgeoning feelings towards Phoebe close to his heart, and projects an image of stoic indifference because he knows that there is no future to be had with a woman like her when it comes to someone of his ilk and status. But when danger comes calling and Phoebe’s life is thrown into peril, James has to deal with his past as well as confront his feelings when it comes to Phoebe, who turns his heart inside out with want and love.
Dearest Rogue totes one of the prettiest covers in the series for me. I spent quite a while gazing at the beauty of the cover because it demanded to be looked and even caressed a time or two. James being the kind of character who does the silent and reluctant hero to boot was one whose story I had been anticipating for quite sometime, especially when in Darling Beast, his and Phoebe’s role as secondary characters were quite prominent.
Dearest Rogue also brings to the forefront, THE most emotional scene in all the books I have read in the series. There was this moment that takes place in the gardens that Phoebe looks after, where she comes to the realization of the fact that she has gone entirely blind, her valiant efforts at keeping a strong face in spite of everything crumbling at that very moment. My throat locked down and I felt like I couldn’t breathe, and tears sprang into my eyes during that moment. For someone who rarely gets choked up with emotion like that, it is a moment that I would remember for a long time. James turned out to be the perfect shoulder to cry on at that moment and I wouldn’t have had the scene play out any other way!
Phoebe’s discovery of James as a man whom she could be attracted to and fall in love with was an aspect that I adored. Being sheltered in her upbringing, not to mention the fact that her brother had practically caged her since her blindness had started affecting her daily life and moving about, Phoebe had never been exposed to the kind of life that other ladies of the society get to live and lead. In James, Phoebe finds for the first time, a man who stirs her senses in a way that entices her into giving in, and the heady desire that a woman finds in the arms of a strong and virile man who would see to her needs.
Though James fights himself to not give in where Phoebe is concerned, it is a losing battle that he fights with his emotions, needs and desires, and the moment they leave London behind in an attempt to throw off those in pursuit of Phoebe, the feelings that James has been keeping at bay comes to the forefront, refusing to be denied. Phoebe herself makes the denying it all that much more difficult, and I reveled and loved every single minute of it. The facet that I loved most about James was how he let Phoebe be free of the shackles that bound and confined her to her home, making her die a slow death by being denied all that she wanted to do and experience in life. For James to understand that and step aside, even when it means going against his basic instincts of protectiveness, especially when it comes to Phoebe was something I admired in him.
It is a testament to Elizabeth Hoyt’s incredible talent and ability that she has managed to pen stories that continues to woo and move readers, even when it comes to the 8th book in a series. James and Phoebe’s story made for a delightful addition and I recommend it wholeheartedly!
Rating = 4.25/5
For more reviews and quotes, please visit, www.maldivianbookreviewer.com
It is impossible to read the Maiden Lane series without falling, and falling hard for Phoebe. From the book Notorious Pleasures onward, Phoebe has featured prominently as a secondary character, fact that she was slowly going blind and would be completely so in a couple of years the reason behind the Duke, her brother, keeping her under such tight lock and control.
It is the sort of control that stifles the 21 year old Phoebe, who has given up her dreams of leading a life of the kind that ladies of her age and ilk take for granted. In that regard, James coming into her life is just one more notch that tightens the noose around her neck, and 6 months of having him tail after her every time she is to go out and about has meant that Phoebe has gotten more or less resigned to having him around.
James is a man whose life of servitude to the King in his occupation as a soldier is all the life that he knows how to live. Keeping his past under lock and key is how he deals with the memories that he tries to leave undisturbed, and if in innocent Phoebe he finds a respite from it all, that is all on him. In James once again, readers find a character they have come across multiple times in the series, especially when it comes to his pursuit of the Ghost of St. Giles. James is a character who has more than proven his mettle as one who is honest, honorable and someone who takes his duty very, very seriously.
James keeps his burgeoning feelings towards Phoebe close to his heart, and projects an image of stoic indifference because he knows that there is no future to be had with a woman like her when it comes to someone of his ilk and status. But when danger comes calling and Phoebe’s life is thrown into peril, James has to deal with his past as well as confront his feelings when it comes to Phoebe, who turns his heart inside out with want and love.
Dearest Rogue totes one of the prettiest covers in the series for me. I spent quite a while gazing at the beauty of the cover because it demanded to be looked and even caressed a time or two. James being the kind of character who does the silent and reluctant hero to boot was one whose story I had been anticipating for quite sometime, especially when in Darling Beast, his and Phoebe’s role as secondary characters were quite prominent.
Dearest Rogue also brings to the forefront, THE most emotional scene in all the books I have read in the series. There was this moment that takes place in the gardens that Phoebe looks after, where she comes to the realization of the fact that she has gone entirely blind, her valiant efforts at keeping a strong face in spite of everything crumbling at that very moment. My throat locked down and I felt like I couldn’t breathe, and tears sprang into my eyes during that moment. For someone who rarely gets choked up with emotion like that, it is a moment that I would remember for a long time. James turned out to be the perfect shoulder to cry on at that moment and I wouldn’t have had the scene play out any other way!
Phoebe’s discovery of James as a man whom she could be attracted to and fall in love with was an aspect that I adored. Being sheltered in her upbringing, not to mention the fact that her brother had practically caged her since her blindness had started affecting her daily life and moving about, Phoebe had never been exposed to the kind of life that other ladies of the society get to live and lead. In James, Phoebe finds for the first time, a man who stirs her senses in a way that entices her into giving in, and the heady desire that a woman finds in the arms of a strong and virile man who would see to her needs.
Though James fights himself to not give in where Phoebe is concerned, it is a losing battle that he fights with his emotions, needs and desires, and the moment they leave London behind in an attempt to throw off those in pursuit of Phoebe, the feelings that James has been keeping at bay comes to the forefront, refusing to be denied. Phoebe herself makes the denying it all that much more difficult, and I reveled and loved every single minute of it. The facet that I loved most about James was how he let Phoebe be free of the shackles that bound and confined her to her home, making her die a slow death by being denied all that she wanted to do and experience in life. For James to understand that and step aside, even when it means going against his basic instincts of protectiveness, especially when it comes to Phoebe was something I admired in him.
It is a testament to Elizabeth Hoyt’s incredible talent and ability that she has managed to pen stories that continues to woo and move readers, even when it comes to the 8th book in a series. James and Phoebe’s story made for a delightful addition and I recommend it wholeheartedly!
Rating = 4.25/5
For more reviews and quotes, please visit, www.maldivianbookreviewer.com
I started this series last year and got side tracked. I adored Phoebe in the earlier books and loved getting her story.
adventurous
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This was so perfect. The perfect grumpy bodyguard hero and sunshine heroine romance. The heroine is blind so she identifies a lot of things and people via scent and makes it all more primal, much like the way the hero feels about her. His obsession is superb and Hoyt always delivers on the most based, most obsessive heroes and I am ecstatic.
repetitive plot, bland characters, kinda weird descriptions of the sole character of color :/
Hoyt is good. I enjoyed Phoebe previously in the series and only liked her more in her own book. What resonates the most for me is her gaining freedom even when she stumbles and makes mistakes. Phoebe is blind and has an overprotective brother. That's the outline readers got from the previous books. In this one, she rallies against the establishment in order to have adventures and do what she wants. Good stuff.
I was throughly enjoying the whole story and thought it was all amazingly written up until the last 10% or so. I thought the reasons behind Phoebe's kidnapping were so random and petty and it was all resolved far to quickly. The ending was really unsatisfactory which is a shame because the rest of the book was so good. I loved Phoebe and Trevillion so much and thought their romance was lovely, and his family was very sweet if a little sad. But the ending just ruined things for me, it was too rushed and the reasons behind everything were just rubbish and a bit stupid.
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
SIIIIIIGH. I really wanted to like this better than I did. I loved Phoebe - she was fun and funny and sharp and while her boundless optimism got a little annoying after a while (mostly in that her optimism seemed to run counter to literally any self-preservation instinct she might have), I appreciated her overall outlook on life.
Trevillion, I guess, was everything a middle-class Boy Scout honorable man should be. Heroic and full of integrity and grit and handsome self-loathing and guilt.
I really really loved that this was a sort of dual-disabled romance. Phoebe’s blindness and James’s bad leg made for some very interesting conversations and accommodations both of them needed in order to succeed in their various tasks. The romance itself was a sweet, satisfying slow burn that was grounded in trust and friendship, which I always like.
But goddamn, that PLOT. Let me give you a rundown:
1) she almost gets kidnapped
2) she almost gets kidnapped again
3) she DOES get kidnapped and James saves her
4) James’s NIECE gets kidnapped but it was just a misunderstanding
5) Phoebe gets kidnapped AGAIN
6) Phoebe gets kidnapped FROM HER KIDNAPPERS and James saves her
Meanwhile, during the entire book, Phoebe’s endless joy-seeking and zen-like zest for life seems to completely ignore the fact that she was VERY MUCH in danger the whole book, likening her (clearly MUCH-NEEDED) protection to being jailed and not allowed to stumble and fall?
Like? Ma’am? I think we’re having two different conversations here.
It was just so absurd and the fact that she genuinely seems to feel no fear whatsoever made the stakes feel silly rather than tense.
And this whole B-plot with the other Duke, the smarmy, sneering, mustache-twirling, cartoonishly villainous puppeteer who seems to be concocting some super-complex, multi-phased plan to rule England or some shit, and then it turns out it was justsome petty bullshit grudge he held against Phoebe’s brother for some reason and also wasn’t even that complex or diabolical? Maybe it’s because this is the only book in the series I’ve read, but I honestly didn’t care even a tiny bit about his bullshit, or Eve’s for that matter.
Anyway. Cute romance, very hot spice scenes, and nice main characters who are just nice and never do anything wrong or make any mistakes. The plot, for me, bordered on ridiculous.
Trevillion, I guess, was everything a middle-class Boy Scout honorable man should be. Heroic and full of integrity and grit and handsome self-loathing and guilt.
I really really loved that this was a sort of dual-disabled romance. Phoebe’s blindness and James’s bad leg made for some very interesting conversations and accommodations both of them needed in order to succeed in their various tasks. The romance itself was a sweet, satisfying slow burn that was grounded in trust and friendship, which I always like.
But goddamn, that PLOT. Let me give you a rundown:
1) she almost gets kidnapped
2) she almost gets kidnapped again
3) she DOES get kidnapped and James saves her
4) James’s NIECE gets kidnapped but it was just a misunderstanding
5) Phoebe gets kidnapped AGAIN
6) Phoebe gets kidnapped FROM HER KIDNAPPERS and James saves her
Meanwhile, during the entire book, Phoebe’s endless joy-seeking and zen-like zest for life seems to completely ignore the fact that she was VERY MUCH in danger the whole book, likening her (clearly MUCH-NEEDED) protection to being jailed and not allowed to stumble and fall?
Like? Ma’am? I think we’re having two different conversations here.
It was just so absurd and the fact that she genuinely seems to feel no fear whatsoever made the stakes feel silly rather than tense.
And this whole B-plot with the other Duke, the smarmy, sneering, mustache-twirling, cartoonishly villainous puppeteer who seems to be concocting some super-complex, multi-phased plan to rule England or some shit, and then it turns out it was just
Anyway. Cute romance, very hot spice scenes, and nice main characters who are just nice and never do anything wrong or make any mistakes. The plot, for me, bordered on ridiculous.
I didn't like:
- "The kelpie" side story (the snippets at the beginning of each chapter). It was pointless, and didn't need to be included in the book. Also, I hated it. This guy caught and chained a magical creature, and after using it for his own gain, it turned into a woman and they made love (and fell in love I guess? Though I wasn't convinced). Disgusting. Sorry not sorry.
- The sex scenes. Weird descriptions in that it wasn't romanticised but felt rather true to life which took me out of the story. It was overall very unattractive. Also, why was that man so godforsaken hairy???
- Parts of the plot felt a bit too pointed (as in, they were used to make a point but weren't really necessary).
- Content warning for disability. I'm not the right person to judge wether this was properly handled, but just know that ppl say some insensitive things.
What I liked:
- Parts of the disability representation
- The beginning was quite charming and funny (until the actual love story started. My bad).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Minor: Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Death of parent, War
Not even sure if I'm enjoying these or just too preoccupied to read anything else at this point, feels more like the latter with this one at least.