This is the first book by Erin Satie that I had the pleasure of reading and the second in the series Sweetness and Light Series. When I started reading this book I hadn't noticed that is book number two in the series, but as the books are considered "standalone", I decided to proceed.
It's a historical romance set in Victorian London where a young and independent woman tries to make a living through her bookbinding business. Cordelia who is in her early 20s is the daughter of a country gentry whom she had renounced in order to live an independent life away from his scrutiny and "failed" values.
She's an educated and well-mannered young lady, quite level-headed with clear ambitions and dreams. By accident, she comes across the infamous Duke of Stroud, also known as Rip, and from there their romance blossoms.
Cordelia and Rip are quite the opposites, Cordelia is a realist while Rip due to his station and background sees everything like a big prank. He is actually the most feared prankster in the whole of London!
Although Satie created a very believable Cordelia. A young feminist woman eager to make a place for herself in this men's world. The only flaw that actually kind of annoyed me was that she was really judgemental and mean with many people around her, especially those she didn't like. She had this "superiority" thing going on that I found too tiring. And if I was the male hero, I would have probably avoided her.
Now, my main issue was actually with the Duke. In all the historical romances that I have read so far, I have never seen a caricature of Duke such as this. Don't misunderstand me, I found Rip very lovely and sweet, quite the contrary to the classical Duke figure that we usually see in all the historical romances. You know all those brooding, rakish Dukes ready to turn all Alpha on you.
However, Rip's character was a bit too much. I mean the whole "pranks" theme was too exaggerated. He really didn't give a damn about his title, his properties, his position in the house of Lords, he was just a "gigantic" man-child, with the mentality of a 10-year-old. And, I say "gigantic" because we are repeatedly told by Cordelia about his huge size.
The two characters had quite the chemistry, their banter was cute and funny, but I found lacking all the intimate scene descriptions. Their kisses or their sex scenes were flat and dull. No passion or intensity whatsoever!
I liked the overall story, the historical setting, and the info we get about what was happening in that era in London. And I believe it would have made an incredible Clean Romance, which I usually avoid reading, but in this case, I would have preferred it as the moment the two characters became intimate, the chemistry was lost.
I would recommend this book to all of you that would like a light and warm romance to pass your day! Don't forget to have some coffee and some cake!
Until next time!
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