Scan barcode
A review by rebeccacider
Temptations of a Wallflower by Eva Leigh
Jeremy is a hunky small-town vicar chafing under society's rules. Sarah is a mild-mannered noblewoman who secretly writes erotic fiction under a pen name. What follows is some very engaging slow burn romance.
Leigh knows her genre. This book EXUDES chemistry and has all the contrived meetings, tense will-they-won't-theys, and steamy interludes you could ask for from a Regency romance. I also really liked Sarah, an isolated young woman who throws herself into escapist fiction in order to carve out an identity for herself.
I wasn't as compelled by the plot, which involves Jeremy attempting to unmask the mysterious author of Sarah's novels on the orders of his clergyman father. Jeremy's father is bananapants, but the book doesn't really lean into how ridiculous the situation is. As a result, Jeremy doesn't come off well and there's some inconsistency in tone.
Just as Jeremy's motivations are fuzzy, I wasn't sold on Sarah as a loner. She's not shy and seems at ease in social situations. Her lack of social success is pinned on the fact that she doesn't fit in with other young women, but at times this becomes a "Sarah's not like the other girls" vibe that I didn't care for.
That said, I am a choosy connoisseur of romance fiction, and I read this one to the end. Also, Leigh's most recent book is a friends-to-lovers Regency romance with a lady scientist and an anthropologist, which sounds entirely like my thing.
Leigh knows her genre. This book EXUDES chemistry and has all the contrived meetings, tense will-they-won't-theys, and steamy interludes you could ask for from a Regency romance. I also really liked Sarah, an isolated young woman who throws herself into escapist fiction in order to carve out an identity for herself.
I wasn't as compelled by the plot, which involves Jeremy attempting to unmask the mysterious author of Sarah's novels on the orders of his clergyman father. Jeremy's father is bananapants, but the book doesn't really lean into how ridiculous the situation is. As a result, Jeremy doesn't come off well and there's some inconsistency in tone.
Just as Jeremy's motivations are fuzzy, I wasn't sold on Sarah as a loner. She's not shy and seems at ease in social situations. Her lack of social success is pinned on the fact that she doesn't fit in with other young women, but at times this becomes a "Sarah's not like the other girls" vibe that I didn't care for.
That said, I am a choosy connoisseur of romance fiction, and I read this one to the end. Also, Leigh's most recent book is a friends-to-lovers Regency romance with a lady scientist and an anthropologist, which sounds entirely like my thing.