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A review by rjordan19
The Earl's Gamble by Stevie Sparks
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Readability: 📖📖📖📖
Feels: 🦋🦋🦋
Emotional Depth: 💔💔💔💔
Sexual Tension: ⚡⚡⚡
Romance: 💞💞💞💞
Sensuality: 💋💋💋💋
Sex Scene Length: 🍑🍑🍑🍑
Steam Scale (Number of Sex Scenes): 🔥🔥🔥
Humor: Just a bit
Perspective: third person from both hero and heroine (alternating chapters)
More character focused or plot focused? character
How did the speed of the story feel? medium
When mains are first on page together: very soon in
Cliffhanger: No, this ends with a happily ever after
Epilogue: Yes, about 3 years later
Format: voluntarily read an advanced reader copy from the author in e-book format
Why I chose this book: I have really liked Stevie Sparks and want to read all her books!
Mains: This is a M/F relationship between a cishet hero and heroine
Should I read in order?
This is readable alone. It falls within Sparks’ Lords of Desire world but there’s only some brief scenes with characters from former books as side characters.
Basic plot:
Rose is mourning her deceased brother’s birthday in solitude when she meets Griff. As they talk, they find connections that lead to him rescuing her from the workhouse.
Give this a try if you want:
- Interwar Years (no date listed but would guess mid 1920s)
- get slightly out of London – this story takes place mostly at Harpenden which is a small village
- Earl hero
- widow heroine
- silver fox hero - If anything, he was rather handsome. His salt-and-pepper hair would have been respectable, but for the curled leaf lodged in the wavy locks.
- class difference – hero is an Earl and heroine was impoverished in a workhouse
- he nurses her back to health
- celibate heroine
- disability rep – heroine walks with a cane after suffering from Polio
- former seamstress heroine
- brother’s friend – heroine’s brother served in the war with the hero and he spoke of his sister to him (and her brother wrote to her of the hero)
- light other woman uncertainty
- 1900s advances – cars, elevators, and phones
- older mains – hero is 45 and heroine is 36
- higher steam – 3 full scenes within a shorter page count and FemDom, praise for him
Ages:
- hero is 45, heroine is 36
First line:
Hyde Park swam in the burnished ochres of late summer.
My thoughts:
This book is so sweet. I enjoyed both mains – they bond over the loss of a brother and friend and the way it brings them together is just heart melting. I love how gentle and nurturing Griff is with Rose until she is feeling confident and recovered and secure. So confident she can explore her more dominant desires that Griff craves.
I had fun with this novel but it was maybe a touch too ‘easy’ for me? I think I was craving a bit more angst. But it’s still adorable and cozy and fun. And it introduced a side character, Jilly, that I will be anxiously awaiting her story because she was a delight!
Few random reading stats for this author
# of books read: 5
Average rating: 4.4 stars
Favorite book: Despising the Duke
Content warnings: These should be taken as a minimum of what to expect. It’s very possible I have missed some.
- hero was abandoned by his fiance at the alter
- brief remembrances of war
- family/friend loss and grief
- workhouse conditions and abuse are mentioned
- possible infertility mentioned
- heroine has recovered from polio with life long effects (she walks with a cane and has leg weakness)
- there is an evil manservant that makes suggestions harmful to the heroine (like taking too much laudanum)
Locations of kisses/intimate scenes, safe sex aspects, consent, pregnancy/child in the story:
Safe sex: I don’t believe so
How’s the consent? It’s good
Pregnancy/children in story? Slight plot point of hero thinking of future heirs for the Earldom, heroine mentions she never had children with her spouse – in the epilogue they adopt children
47% - 🔥 kisses, fingering for her
“Are you always this authoritative in bed? Because I have to admit it’s quite beguiling.”
//
“I would serve you on my knees if you allow me, my lady.”
70% - 🔥 oral for her, her on top
”You need me?” Rose bit her lip. “Or you need to serve me?”
There was a desperate rasp from his throat. “I need you, and I need to serve you, my lady.”
Her eyelids fluttered, a tide of arousal threatening to carry her away. “Then kneel for me.”
85% - 🔥 oral for her, missionary
Sitting in front of him on the bed, her eyes flicked downwards. “So I see. Be a good boy and serve me, Griff.”
Readability: 📖📖📖📖
Feels: 🦋🦋🦋
Emotional Depth: 💔💔💔💔
Sexual Tension: ⚡⚡⚡
Romance: 💞💞💞💞
Sensuality: 💋💋💋💋
Sex Scene Length: 🍑🍑🍑🍑
Steam Scale (Number of Sex Scenes): 🔥🔥🔥
Humor: Just a bit
Perspective: third person from both hero and heroine (alternating chapters)
More character focused or plot focused? character
How did the speed of the story feel? medium
When mains are first on page together: very soon in
Cliffhanger: No, this ends with a happily ever after
Epilogue: Yes, about 3 years later
Format: voluntarily read an advanced reader copy from the author in e-book format
Why I chose this book: I have really liked Stevie Sparks and want to read all her books!
Mains: This is a M/F relationship between a cishet hero and heroine
Should I read in order?
This is readable alone. It falls within Sparks’ Lords of Desire world but there’s only some brief scenes with characters from former books as side characters.
Basic plot:
Rose is mourning her deceased brother’s birthday in solitude when she meets Griff. As they talk, they find connections that lead to him rescuing her from the workhouse.
Give this a try if you want:
- Interwar Years (no date listed but would guess mid 1920s)
- get slightly out of London – this story takes place mostly at Harpenden which is a small village
- Earl hero
- widow heroine
- silver fox hero - If anything, he was rather handsome. His salt-and-pepper hair would have been respectable, but for the curled leaf lodged in the wavy locks.
- class difference – hero is an Earl and heroine was impoverished in a workhouse
- he nurses her back to health
- celibate heroine
- disability rep – heroine walks with a cane after suffering from Polio
- former seamstress heroine
- brother’s friend – heroine’s brother served in the war with the hero and he spoke of his sister to him (and her brother wrote to her of the hero)
- light other woman uncertainty
- 1900s advances – cars, elevators, and phones
- older mains – hero is 45 and heroine is 36
- higher steam – 3 full scenes within a shorter page count and FemDom, praise for him
Ages:
- hero is 45, heroine is 36
First line:
Hyde Park swam in the burnished ochres of late summer.
My thoughts:
This book is so sweet. I enjoyed both mains – they bond over the loss of a brother and friend and the way it brings them together is just heart melting. I love how gentle and nurturing Griff is with Rose until she is feeling confident and recovered and secure. So confident she can explore her more dominant desires that Griff craves.
I had fun with this novel but it was maybe a touch too ‘easy’ for me? I think I was craving a bit more angst. But it’s still adorable and cozy and fun. And it introduced a side character, Jilly, that I will be anxiously awaiting her story because she was a delight!
Few random reading stats for this author
# of books read: 5
Average rating: 4.4 stars
Favorite book: Despising the Duke
Content warnings: These should be taken as a minimum of what to expect. It’s very possible I have missed some.
- hero was abandoned by his fiance at the alter
- brief remembrances of war
- family/friend loss and grief
- workhouse conditions and abuse are mentioned
- possible infertility mentioned
- heroine has recovered from polio with life long effects (she walks with a cane and has leg weakness)
- there is an evil manservant that makes suggestions harmful to the heroine (like taking too much laudanum)
Locations of kisses/intimate scenes, safe sex aspects, consent, pregnancy/child in the story:
Safe sex:
How’s the consent?
Pregnancy/children in story?
47% - 🔥 kisses, fingering for her
“Are you always this authoritative in bed? Because I have to admit it’s quite beguiling.”
//
“I would serve you on my knees if you allow me, my lady.”
70% - 🔥 oral for her, her on top
”You need me?” Rose bit her lip. “Or you need to serve me?”
There was a desperate rasp from his throat. “I need you, and I need to serve you, my lady.”
Her eyelids fluttered, a tide of arousal threatening to carry her away. “Then kneel for me.”
85% - 🔥 oral for her, missionary
Sitting in front of him on the bed, her eyes flicked downwards. “So I see. Be a good boy and serve me, Griff.”