by Jade Lee
Series: Rakes and Rogues #2
Pub. Date: Dec. 1, 2015
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca / Tantor Audio
Narrator: Carmen Rose
Length: 10 hrs 38 min
Pages: 384
Format: eARC / Audiobook
Source: NetGalley / Hoopla
My Rating:
Sultry Scale:
USA Today bestselling author Jade Lee continues her saucy, vibrant Rakes and Rogues Regency romance series with a high-society outsider who may have met his match…
A brown-eyed bastard with nothing to lose
As the illegitimate son of a duke, Bramwell Wesley Hallowsby grew up tough, on the fringes of society, learning to hide his hurt and cynicism with charm and Town polish. He’s carved out a place for himself as a mercenary, serving as bodyguard and general strong arm for the peerage. Bram has nothing to lose… and he’s exactly what Maybelle “Bluebell” Ballenger needs.
Meets his match in a blue-eyed beauty with everything to hide
Maybelle needs a mentor to teach her to speak and act like a lady, so she can claim the place in society she was denied. As they team up to take on the ton, Bram knows she’s hiding something even from him. Despite the deception he sees behind those sparkling blue eyes, Bram wants to believe that Maybelle’s love is no lie. But it seems fate has served him up his just desserts in the likes of this determined damsel.
This is my second book from Jade Lee, and I think she will be on my auto-buy list for historical romances in the future. Her characters are really engaging and I get lost in the story easily.
Our hero in this installment is Bramwell Hallowsby, the bastard son of a duke. Bram is the half-brother of Elinor, who you may remember as the horrible snob from 50 Ways to Ruin a Rake. Bram is a historical bad boy. The circumstances of his birth have forced him to live on the edges of the Ton, and he has taken to protecting others. Stories of his heroic deeds abound, yet he is still not accepted in the inner circles of society. I really didn't like Bram at first - he was so cynical and it seemed like he was really only looking out for his wants and needs. At one point he performs a such a masterful seduction of our heroine using Bible references and feet washing of all things, that I felt sorry for her. But by the end Bram had totally won me over and even made me shed a tear or two.
Similar to 50 Ways to Ruin a Rake, our heroine in this installment is also a country girl. Maybelle Ballenger is granddaughter to an earl, but has been hidden away in the country because her mother was a simple housemaid. Growing up in the small town of Hull has been very hard on Maybelle because everyone speculates about her birth and assumes she is a bastard. She has tried her whole life to prove that she is just as good as everyone else in town. And now that her mother has passed and she is a female all alone, she also has to fend off lecherous advances from every man she passes. I admired Maybelle's determination to right the wrong done to her mother, and prove herself a lady. I was frustrated right along with her when Bram was being a dunderhead, but was so happy when they got their HEA. And that proposal - OMG super romantic and caused a few happy tears.
As far as secondary characters, Bram has a few annoying ones to deal with. Then we have Elinor in this story again, and she was not as bad this time as she was in the first book. If you remember from that book, she was always putting Mellie down and I just really didn't like her. But maybe Elinor's snobbishness is tempering a little because she didn't deliver as many cutting remarks this time. It will be really interesting to see if Elinor herself falls for someone who is not considered "good ton."
I received an advanced copy of this book from Sourcebooks Casablanca via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Although I received the free copy, I ran across the audiobook on Hoopla and decided to listen while I was cleaning the house today. This series has translated well to audio and the narrators have done a really good job keeping my attention from wandering. I am looking forward to the next book, The Richer the Rogue.
Our hero in this installment is Bramwell Hallowsby, the bastard son of a duke. Bram is the half-brother of Elinor, who you may remember as the horrible snob from 50 Ways to Ruin a Rake. Bram is a historical bad boy. The circumstances of his birth have forced him to live on the edges of the Ton, and he has taken to protecting others. Stories of his heroic deeds abound, yet he is still not accepted in the inner circles of society. I really didn't like Bram at first - he was so cynical and it seemed like he was really only looking out for his wants and needs. At one point he performs a such a masterful seduction of our heroine using Bible references and feet washing of all things, that I felt sorry for her. But by the end Bram had totally won me over and even made me shed a tear or two.
Similar to 50 Ways to Ruin a Rake, our heroine in this installment is also a country girl. Maybelle Ballenger is granddaughter to an earl, but has been hidden away in the country because her mother was a simple housemaid. Growing up in the small town of Hull has been very hard on Maybelle because everyone speculates about her birth and assumes she is a bastard. She has tried her whole life to prove that she is just as good as everyone else in town. And now that her mother has passed and she is a female all alone, she also has to fend off lecherous advances from every man she passes. I admired Maybelle's determination to right the wrong done to her mother, and prove herself a lady. I was frustrated right along with her when Bram was being a dunderhead, but was so happy when they got their HEA. And that proposal - OMG super romantic and caused a few happy tears.
As far as secondary characters, Bram has a few annoying ones to deal with. Then we have Elinor in this story again, and she was not as bad this time as she was in the first book. If you remember from that book, she was always putting Mellie down and I just really didn't like her. But maybe Elinor's snobbishness is tempering a little because she didn't deliver as many cutting remarks this time. It will be really interesting to see if Elinor herself falls for someone who is not considered "good ton."
I received an advanced copy of this book from Sourcebooks Casablanca via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Although I received the free copy, I ran across the audiobook on Hoopla and decided to listen while I was cleaning the house today. This series has translated well to audio and the narrators have done a really good job keeping my attention from wandering. I am looking forward to the next book, The Richer the Rogue.
Rakes and Rogues
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