Devil in Disguise by Lisa Kleypas

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It's time for one the biggest historical romance releases of the year, Devil in Disguise by Lisa Kleypas. This is the 7th, and I think final, book in her Ravenels series. Not only was this one of my most anticipated releases of the year, it is also the August book for the Rake Appreciation Society. The club is hosted by Crystal and Jen and the live show [Link is now up!] is this Thursday. Update: I applied this to the prompt of plants on cover for the 3rd board of Summer of Swoon.

I've mentioned this before, but my favorite hero of Lisa Kleypas (so far) is Marcus, Lord Westcliff. His books is It Happened One Autumn and both him and his estate Stony Cross Park are seen in so many of Lisa's books. This heroine is Merritt, his eldest daughter. She is now widowed and running her late husband's shipping company. She meets Scottish whiskey maker Keir and there's an immediate attraction. Things happen and soon Merritt and Keir are sequestered away while he recovers from some injuries.

I absolutely adored this book and it's one of my top reads of the year, and most likely will stay near the top of the list at the end of the year. This was such a good book and I loved almost every moment. Even though this felt a little more insta-love than usual from Lisa, the way the story progresses and they way that they are able to naturally open up to each other and connect in multiple ways was so beautiful. I could rant and rave about this, but if you enjoy Lisa Kleypas or historical romance, you need to read this book. Even more so with a good chunk of the newer historicals just quite not doing it for me. Also, there is a connection to Sebastian so the devil in the title does match the previous books. I don't want to spoil it, but the way Lisa Kleypas handles the situation and how both Sebastian and Evie react to who Keir is is just so heartwarming.

The only downside I would say for this book is that it's not really a Ravenels. Yes we see characters that we've met in the previous books, the we mostly just interact with Phoebe and a little bit of Garrett and Ransom. Now, here's my crazy take on where this fits. After Chasing Cassandra it would've been fun to have a holiday novella. There we can learn about Merritt becoming a widow. Since the St. Vincents and Marsdens are known to be close and the kids raised as if cousins, we could've have a huge family holiday celebration. That would then lead into a new series, of which this would be book 1, and focusing on either just the Marsden kids, or the wallflower 2nd generation. That's the only thing I would change. This just doesn't fit in with Ravenels to me. That's it, the only thing I didn't like about the book. Well, that and there could've been more Marcus and Lillian, but they are my favorite couple from the wallflowers.

This was such a great read and really made me feel good and had everything that I love in a Lisa Kleypas and just historical romance in general. After my contemporary binge a couple weekends ago, I've been able to come out of a book slump and this book really helped me climb more out of the grips of the slump. I can't wait to gush about the book with everyone else on Thursday at the Rake Appreciation live show!

Have you read Devil in Disguise?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Devil in Disguise, Lisa Kleypas, 5-stars, 1 day, paperback, 384 pages, published in 2021

Chasing Cassandra by Lisa Kleypas

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I have a confession to make. Do I want to make this confession? Not really. Let's be honest; I am a bad historical romance reader. Put me in the dungeon, with the crankiest of dowagers, or whatever historical romance horribleness you can think of. Okay, here it goes. I have never read Chasing Cassandra. Waits for historical romance meteor to strike me down. I know, how could I miss getting to this. Part of the reason is this is book 6 of Lisa Kleypas's Ravenels series. At the time, it was considered to be the last Ravenel book since all of the Ravenels were married off. Of course later we were surprised with the announcement of Devil in Disguise. But I didn't want the series to end. I still have a couple other series that I absolutely adore that I never read the last book in. I have a problem. Send help. Now I have to read Chasing Cassandra. Update: I applied this to the prompt of white on cover for the 3rd board of Summer of Swoon.

Cassandra is the last Ravenel to be married, the twin to Pandora. She's a sweet and pretty girl that always wanted to be married and start a family. She's feeling down though because she's the only one that hasn't found a husband. During the timeline before West and Phoebe (from Devil's Daughter) got together, she asks him if they can get married. West kindly shuts her down. Unbeknownst to them, Tom Severin, who we've seen in the previous books, overhears their conversation and offers to marry Cassandra. She declines, because she wants to marry for love (despite propositioning West).

First off, I knew most of the storyline and know that a lot of people really love Tom. My favorite podcast, Smart Women Read Romance, did an episode last year that made me want to finally read it. Oh boy did this book put me through the ringer. We kind of have a few fast forwards in time, which I'm not always a fan of, especially with how many there were in here. I absolutely loved this book. I connected so much to Cassandra and the struggle with feeling left behind and wanting something so much and it just not coming to you. I really loved that what Cassandra really wanted was to be a mom and have a loving relationship and be a good a wife. I feel like a lot of historicals released recently overly focus on the feminism aspects and women wanting to be more than expected during that time. Which is okay, except a lot of the way that they're executed is disparaging those that don't want those same things. I loved that none of the side characters, including her forward thinking twin Pandora, thought less of Cassandra for basically wanting to be a regency housewife. It just blows me away that it only came out last year and didn't fall into that trend.

I also love how into Cassandra Tom is. While he is drawn to her by her beauty same as everyone else, he quickly sees beyond the surface to who she is as a person. I loved how everything he did was for her and it definitely gave "I'll burn the world for you" vibes, which I absolutely love. This book had me tearing up and laughing. I just love the way that Lisa Kleypas books make me feel and really can't recommend her more.  I loved this book and it's tied for my favorite of the series with Marrying Winterborne, just maybe a smidge ahead. I'm both super excited but also nervous on how Devil is Disguise is going to go. I've heard amazing things and have been trying not to listen to the hype too much, but I'm really hoping it lives up to my expectations. Cross your fingers for me!

Have you read Chasing Cassandra?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Chasing Cassandra, Lisa Kleypas, 5-stars, 1 day, eBook, 374 pages, published in 2020

Devil's Daughter by Lisa Kleypas

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After my contemporary binge this past weekend, I needed to get back to my planned tbr. I have the last two books in my Ravenels reread before getting to Devil in Disguise for the Rake Appreciation Society hosted by Crystal and Jen. I put off my reread a little bit since I was getting slumpy, but I am back and ready to go. Plus I have the Dark Romance Readathon this weekend, so my normal weekend time is going to be allocated to that. So book 5 of the Ravenels series by Lisa Kleypas is Devil's Daughter. As I've mentioned in my previous reviews, any title with Devil in it is related to Sebastian. He's the popular Kleypas hero from Devil in Winter, in case you didn't know. Update: I applied this to the prompt of set outside the USA for the 3rd board of Summer of Swoon.

Here is a couple where we've previously met both. West is the younger brother to Devon (from Cold-Hearted Rake) and has been in the background working on restoring the Ravenel estate. Even over the first four books we've seen him grow and change as person peripherally. Our heroine is Phoebe, the widowed daughter of St. Vincent and older sister of Gabriel (from Devil in Spring). West was a bully to Phoebe's late husband in school. She has hatred towards him because of this and when they meet at Gabriel and Pandora's wedding, they are thrust together. West of course doesn't quite recognize who Phoebe is.

I forgot how much I loved this book. We get so much of Sebastian and Evie. I also love how Phoebe and her boys are portrayed. I've been reading a lot of single parent romances lately, so this was perfect to bridge the gap back into historical romance for me. There's so much good about this book. The only thing I would gripe about is the 3rd act conflict. It happens so late that I wish they would've discussed what their issues was and we got to see a little bit more of them happy in the end. There's not even an epilogue. We also get a few parallels between West and Sebastian and to Devil in Winter. I've mentioned this before, but my favorite wallflower book was It Happened One Autumn and my favorite Lisa Kleypas hero (so far) is Marcus Westcliff. I don't know, he just does it for me. We do get to see him a little bit in passing, and also learn that his older daughter Merritt is best friends with Phoebe.

When Lisa Kleypas announced there was going to be a book 7, everyone was intrigued on who the couple would be. When the blurb was finally announced, I was super happy to see the heroine would be Merritt, although that also means she became a widow between this book and hers. But back to Devil's Daughter. One thing that I've been really noticing lately and featured in this book was reaching out for help. When Phoebe went back to Essex and the Clare estate she could've not asked for help with the ledgers and just struggled. In so many books I've read, it would've happened that way so she could prove how strong and independent she was. Then the hero would hear through the grapevine or randomly show up to help out. Not here. Phoebe takes one look, realizes she's in over her head and immediately asks West for help. I loved that choice so much, and I feel like it really hit me more now than when I first read this book a couple years ago. I also loved how West was with Justin and Stephen and naturally had those father instincts that warmed my heart. Plus we get a cute kitty. I just love this book so much. I had previously rated this 4-stars, but upon reread this is a 5-star book. If I really want to split hairs, maybe like 4.90-stars, but let's not do that.

I can't wait to get to the last two books in the series and continue on. I feel like moving forward I need to have a Lisa Kleypas book in my tbr every month; at least one. Her books just give me the swoony, feel-good vibes that I love. If you haven't tried Lisa Kleypas yet, I couldn't recommend her more. She's widely considered one of the queens of historical romance and such a great place to start!

Have you read Devil's Daughter?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Devil's Daughter, Lisa Kleypas, 5-stars, 0 days, paperback, 375 pages, published in 2019

Hello Stranger by Lisa Kelypas

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Continuing with my Ravenels reread, the next book I had was number four, Hello Stranger. In case this is your first post of mine that you're reading, I've been rereading Lisa Kleypas's Ravenels series in preparation for the 7th book to come out later this month. When I first mentioned doing my rereads, I couldn't quite remember where I left off (and didn't mark them on my goodreads for some reason). I wasn't sure if I had read Hello Stranger or not, but the verdict is in! This was reread for me. I believe that the books I have left will be new reads for me. Don't ask me why I stopped reading the series. I'm sure it was me waiting for the next book to be released and then just never getting to it. Anyways, I was able to apply this book to the Summer of Swoon prompt part of a series on board 2 and the Ripped Bodice Summer Bingo prompt of construction.

We get teasers of this romance starting in book 2, Marrying Winterborne. We have the first female doctor in England Garret that became friends with Helen and started working at Winterborne's (the department store). The former Scotland Yard detective Ethan has been attracted to her from the start. However he's not kind of a spy/assassin for a secret part of the home office and tries to stay away from her. He's been following her on her weekly Tuesday visits for charity services. She ends up being accosted and Ethan leaves the shadows and they meet once again. Now however there is a spark between them that really starts to grow.

I really enjoyed this reread. I remember not being as into this book before and didn't rate it as high. I do think if I were to be strict it'd be more of a 4.5-star rating instead of a full 5-stars. I could definitely appreciate this more now than when I read it a few years ago. I feel like sometimes the feminism can be pushed a little too much and a lot of newer historical romances kind of suffer from that. Here there is quite a bit of the individualism of Garrett and her being her own woman, but it was done really naturally and didn't feel like we, the reader, were getting beat over the head with Garrett's independence. It was done so well and it wasn't really part of the big conflict between them. She did make a point that she didn't want to marry and be forced to become the stay-at-home wife, but she never really felt that Ethan would do that to her. It was more society and "men" as a whole.

If you haven't read the Ravenels I couldn't recommend the series more, especially if you prefer the more modern historicals. Lisa Kleypas writes so well and really pulls you into her world and makes you want to be apart of one of her families. I'm super excited to get to the last two books and the new release. There are more people starting to read their arcs or received/found early copies of The Devil in Disguise and have been saying it's one of their favorite reads of the year and/or of all Lisa Kleypas's works. I just hope I'm not too hyped when I finally get to it. If anyone can live up to the hype, Lisa Kleypas is definitely on the short list.

Have you read Hello Stranger?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Hello Stranger, Lisa Kleypas, 5-stars, 0 days, eBook, 405 pages, published in 2018

Devil in Spring by Lisa Kleypas

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After finishing my new releases and having a little bit of time before needing to get to some book club books, I decided to finally get back to my Ravenels series reread. I had meant to read book 3, Devil in Spring, and book 4, Hello Stranger, last month (in June), but ran out of time. Now I have 4 to read by the end of the month. In case you're new around here, I am rereading Lisa Kelypas's Ravenels series since book 7, Devil in Disguise, comes out later this month on the 27th. It's also the August book for the Rake Appreciation Society hosted by Crystal and Jen. But back to Devil in Spring. I was able to apply this read to the travel or vacation prompt for the Summer of Swoon board 2.

So a little bit of a preface here. If you didn't know, one of Lisa Kleypas's biggest series is the Wallflowers. Book 3, Devil in Winter, has a hero, Sebastian St. Vincent, that is redeemed (he kidnaps the heroine in the previous book) and is a fan favorite (between him and Derek Craven). Personally I prefer Westcliff, the hero of It Happened One Autumn. But back to Sebastian, he and his wife Evie are the prologue of this book. It's such a great intro, even more so to touch base with them years later and just brings that nostalgic feeling that sets this book up so well. A fun note, there are a couple books in this series that have "devil" in the title. If it does there is some sort of connection to Sebastian and Evie. This is also why there's a lot of speculation about Devil in Disguise because fans can't quite figure out the connection beforehand. Back to Devil in Spring. 

Gabriel, our hero of this book is Sebastian and Evie's eldest son. He's in line for the dukedom and is the current Lord St. Vincent. Our heroine is the dark haired twin Pandora. As we know from the first two books, she's more the eccentric and energetic twin. She assists a friend in getting an earring and just so happens to get caught in the wood filigree on the back of a settee. Gabriel happens upon her and rescues her. However they are in a carriage house and get caught by Westcliff and the host of the ball. Of course this leads to Pandora being "ruined" and starts their connection. Pandora is dead set against getting married and her board game designs are starting to take off. Gabriel doesn't think, at first, she's the best personality to be his wife, but is super drawn to her and wants to do the right thing. Sebastian and Evie decide to invite the Ravenels to a house party for the families to get to know each other better.

It's never quite spelled out directly, but it's pretty much assumed by a lot of readers that Pandora has some sort of behavioral disorder like ADHD. She gets sidetracked very easily and has her habits to reset her mind. I love the way she portrayed without it being constantly shoved in your face that she's different. Gabriel also seems to be able to understand her more than others and know how to bring her back to the present. He's so good and starting conversations that are more engaging for her brain and really keeps her more present. I also loved getting to see more of the twin dynamic from Pandora and Cassandra. I also love seeing sibling relationships, but even more when there's that twin connection. It always fascinates me. I've heard that twins tend to skip generations, so if that's true there's a change that myself and/or my siblings will have twins. My grandmother had twin boys, but unfortunately they passed not long after birth.

I'm really excited to get back to my reread and am a little mad at myself for not getting back to it sooner. Lisa Kleypas is such a great writer and her books always sweep me away. She is known as the historical romance queen among romance readers and for good reason. If you haven't tried historical romance or Lisa Kleypas yet, the Wallflowers series is a great place to start (and is a shorter series). I can't wait to continue my reread and eventually get to her new release. I've seen some reviewers that received arcs for review really rave about it. There hasn't really much been said about plot (outside of the blurb), but they all have really enjoyed it.

Have you read Devil in Spring?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Devil in Spring, Lisa Kleypas, 5-stars, 1 day, paperback, 370 pages, published in 2017

Marrying Winterborne by Lisa Kleypas

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After finishing Fires of Winter, I had time to squeeze in one more book before the Love in the Night Readathon! I went back to Lisa Kleypas's Ravenels series. The 2nd book is Marrying Winterborne and picks up immediately after the end of Cold-Hearted Rake.

This is one of my favorite Ravenel books. I absolutely adore Helen and love how she's the quiet and calm sister of the group. Rhys is a big Welshman that is completely besotted with Helen. After Kathleen breaks up the engagement in book 1, we start out with Helen forcing a meeting with Rhys. She convinces him that she didn't want to break the engagement and they get re-engaged. What I love about this is she doesn't allow him to take complete control this time. She understands him so well, but knows that she needs to push back in some ways and to be a more active party. He sees her get comfortable and open up, and he is that final percent absolutely gone for Helen. This book had me tearing up, laughing and smiling like a loon.

I don't know how long this review will be because I feel like I don't have much to say outside of I absolutely loved it. Their connection is so visceral and I love how Rhys is willing to do anything and everything to make Helen happy. Yes there is a little bit of drama about the class difference, but it's not the main conflict. And even though Rhys does feel inferior to Helen's aristocratic status at times, he wants her more. I absolutely loved that it wasn't an issue. Now what was the issue did bother me a touch, but only because Helen didn't confide in Rhys earlier. Had this been done any other way, it would've bothered me. Rhys knows and sees Helen so well that he knows something is wrong and keeps an eye on her. He knows she won't confide in him, but he doesn't push and tries to assist and take care of her behind the scenes. When she finally breaks and says she doesn't think he wants her anymore now that he knows her big secret, he immediately proves her thinking is wrong. I loved it! I love Rhys! I love Helen! I love Lisa Kleypas!

I am very happy I chose to fit this in before the readathon starts since I was feeling kind of torn about Fires of Winter. This was perfect to get me back into a good reading mood. I can't wait to get to more of the Ravenels and continue my reread of the next couple books! This review is short, but sweet. If I continue it'd just be reiterations of how much I love this book. If you haven't read Lisa Kleypas, please do. She is such a great romance writer!

Have you read Marrying Winterborne?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Marrying Winterborne, Lisa Kleypas, 5-stars, 0 days, paperback, 400 pages, published in 2016

Cold-Hearted Rake by Lisa Kleypas

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Having some time before needing to start my last book club book of the month, I wanted to continue reading Lisa Kleypas and start my reread of the Ravenels series. The first book in the series is Cold-Hearted Rake. In case you haven't read any of my previous posts, I'm planning on rereading this series leading up to the release of book 7, Devil in Disguise, July 27th. Also a fun note, this was book 100 of the year! 🎉🎉 Update: I have applied this book to the Romancing Summer Challenge for the teal on the cover prompt.

This book kicks off the Ravenels series wonderfully and is a really good 1st book of a series. We get decent introductions for all the Ravenel siblings and cousins (so far) and get enough moments to feel connected to everyone without losing too much focus on our main characters. This book focuses on the new Earl of Trenear, Devon and his cousin's widow Kathleen. For those that don't read historical too often, this might feel a little cringe worthy. Lisa Kleypas however is a master and we see that Kathleen was only married to the former Earl Theo for 3 days before his passing. Also good to note, they got into an argument on their wedding night, so technically it was never consummated. 

I really love Lisa Kleypas's writing and the way she pulls you in. It took 3 days for me to reread this book, but I started it late on a Monday and I don't get too much time to read during the week. Plus we have playoff hockey happening. While I'll read and watch at the same time during the normal season, I'll only read during intermission and commercials now. But back to the book! Despite loving most everything about this book, it is a 4-star read, maybe closer to a 4.25 if I'm super picky. While I loved the connection built between Devon and Kathleen and how they are one of those super passionate couples that bicker all the time, I wish Kathleen wasn't so forceful in her decision to follow all of the mourning rules, even those that are unnecessary and/or ridiculous. The first about third of the book has Devon back in London, after the initial meeting, and we get a little bit of an epistolary romance between them, as they both really come to respect and understand the other through their letters. While I enjoyed that part, I just wish that once Devon was back at the estate it didn't take as long for them to get together and really open up. Especially with the big train crash and Devon being injured. I also wish that we saw more caretaking from Kathleen's end. 

Another thing that bothered me about Kathleen, was her almost deliberate blindness to reality. While I understood that the former Earl left her in the dark about how bad the finances really were, I feel like she should've notice the house falling down around her. There were many mentions of walls starting to buckle and water damage that led to mold and other issues with house. It needed a complete remodel on top of adding updated plumbing and such. If she was supposed to be the lady of the house, she should've taken charge more, even if it was only for 3 days. It just felt like she was in control of the servants and had the relationship with the household that seemed like it was a lot further developed, but that was the only way she was the head outside of taking care of the sisters. 

The biggest thing about their relationship that bothered me was the mis- or lack of communication. There were too many assumptions made from both, but especially Kathleen. Plus she was too set in her belief of Devon as a complete rake. From what I understood she really only had gossip from society and the former Earl to go off of though. She knew that Devon and Theo did not get along at all, but had come to learn that some of the things Theo told her about Devon were misjudged or flat out wrong. I don't know, she's just not my favorite Lisa Kleypas heroine. It constantly felt like Devon had to push her for any sort of growth both personally and together.

I still really loved this book and if anything, Lisa Kleypas's writing style always sweeps you in. I've heard a lot of historical romance readers mention how sometimes it feels like a fantasy, and I feel like Lisa Kleypas really fits that vibe. I also love the families she centers her various series around. They are all unique, but there's always the strong sense of family. Since this is a reread, I can't wait to get to my favorites and can hopefully squeeze Marrying Winterborne (book 2) before the Love in the Night Readathon! I can't wait until July for Devil in Disguise either!

Have you read Cold-Hearted Rake?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Cold-Hearted Rake, Lisa Kleypas, 4-stars, 3 days, paperback, 419 pages, published in 2015

Then Came You by Lisa Kleypas

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The May book for the Historical Hellions book club is Lisa Kleypas's Then Came You. This is the first book in her Gamblers of Craven's series. Now, I have a confession to make. Despite me having read most of Lisa Kleypas's books, this series is one of the few I haven't read yet. Now, if you are at all in the online historical romance community this is a huge faux paus due to book 2, Dreaming of You being one of her most famous books and the hero, Derek Craven, having his own fan club. Now is the time to start to change that. We also get to meet Derek in this book. Update: I have applied this book to the Romancing Summer Challenge for the favorite trope prompt.

First off, I absolutely adore Lisa Klepyas and she is one of the best historical romance writers, ever. A lot of romance readers call her the Queen and I couldn't agree more. This book was written in the early 1990s and didn't really have any problematic content outside of one kind-of forced kiss and Derek's nickname for our main heroine, Gypsy. Even then, the forced kiss didn't bother me at all. This is a little more angstier than I usually prefer, but I still loved it. This also features my favorite trope, wrong sibling!

We meet our heroine Lily (which is also one of my favorite names for a girl). She was left at the alter several years prior and has since received an inheritance from her Aunt and been ostracized from her family. In her freedom she enjoys the more masculine pursuits of gambling, hunting, shooting, etc. She hears from a childhood friend that the man her sister is set to marry is not good for her, but she's following their parents wishes. Lily decides to meet this fiancé for herself and decide if she needs to step in. She meets Alex, Lord Wolverton, on a hunt and their rocky relationship starts.

This book was so good. I loved how complex Lily and Alex where and the layers they both had. Lily has been through some trauma and is currently being black-mailed by her former lover that kidnapped their daughter. Alex is still coming to terms with his grief of his former fiancé Caroline. Caroline and Lily are similar in ways, so he decides he needs a wife that is the complete opposite, like Lily's sister. However he finds himself constantly thinking and worrying about Lily. Of course she's very defensive and perpetrates everyone thinking the worst of her so they don't see past the surface. Despite enemies to lovers being one of my least favorite tropes, I really liked how even though they were antagonistic to each other it really wasn't hate deep down. It felt almost more "I hate you because I want you but can't have you." And once Alex found out that Lily's wandering around the house at night was her sleep-walking and not having trysts with his servants, everything changed.

I did wish that Lily trusted Alex a little more and that we dealt with the plot-line with her daughter a little sooner in the book. I just wanted more family time with the three of them. I liked how realistic it was though, that when she was upset about her daughter, she would cling to other things to bury her grief. For example, being absolutely adamant to save an old circus bear from the dog fighting pits (which I hate was a thing). Alex, having experienced his own grief, recognizes this and knows just how to help her deal with her emotions. He was so patient and understanding with her and I absolutely loved him. Like I mentioned above, Derek Craven has a fan club and there are a lot of people that are obsessed with him and Sebastian (from Devil in Winter). I have to say though, Alex is one of my favorite Lisa Kleypas heroes so far and I'm so happy to find another gem in her backlist. 

I'll definitely be adding Dreaming of You to my summer tbr along with my Ravenels series reread. It'll be a summer of Lisa Kleypas! If you haven't read Lisa Kleypas, I couldn't recommend her more, she's one of my favorites. If you've read my previous reviews, you'd know I just did a reread of my favorite series, the Hathaways. Her writing is just so captivating and I really enjoy the depth of her characters. I always seem to read her books in one setting (if possible) and struggle putting them down for any reason. I'm super excited for the live show later tonight and can't wait to see what everyone else thought! If you haven't followed Jess or Samantha (who host the Historical Hellions) definitely give them a follow and join in the club! They both have fantastic videos!

Have you read Then Came You?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Then Came You, Lisa Kleypas, 5-stars, 0 days, eBook, 371 pages, published in 1993

Love In The Afternoon by Lisa Klepyas

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2022 Update: I reread Love in the Afternoon July of 2022. I used it for the published in June prompt for Summer of Swoon and animal shelter prompt for the Ripped Bodice Summer Bingo. Still one of my favorites and still 5-stars!

My reread of the Hathaways has come to an end. We've reached the final book, Love in the Afternoon by Lisa Kleypas. This is the youngest daughter Beatrix's book and my absolute favorite in the series.

Oh this book just gets me in the heart from the prologue. Captain Christopher Phelan (I call him my my "One True Chris") is our hero. He's been a man about town, but then buys a commission (as most second sons do) and ends up having to fight in the Crimean war. Chris and Bea have met before a couple of society events and he ended up saying some not flattering things about Bea. However, a "friend" of hers, Prudence, is attracted to Chris and how he looks in a uniform. They aren't ever a love match and Prudence is written as a superficial person. Christopher ends up writing a letter to Prudence, hoping for a connection to home. 

In his first letter, he mentions getting a dog Albert, a rough terrier and taking him in after his owner, a fellow soldier, passes. Hearing about the dog and being such an animal lover, Bea wants to offer some advice. Prudence doesn't want anything to deal with it and finds his letter "boring." She passes the letter off to Bea and lets her write it. So starts this heartfelt and beautiful epistolary romance. It comes to a point where Christopher makes it known that he's falling in love with her. However, this breaks Bea's heart as she knows that he thinks he's writing with Prudence. Bea accidentally sends a letter saying she's not who he thinks she is, she loves him and wants him to find her. This is the last letter she sends. 

Christopher ends up becoming a war hero and upon his return comes across Bea in the forest. Despite his previous belief in her "oddness," he still finds himself wanting to be near her and finds a measure of calm. He suffers greatly from what we know today to be PTSD and the way that Bea understands what he needs and so hyper-aware of him really helps put him at ease. This is more angsty than I usually prefer with Bea pining after Christopher but not sharing who she really is. Christopher ends up pursuing Prudence once again, but just can't seem to find what he felt from the letters. 

This book, has so many lovely and heart-wrenching moments. This is my most favorite book in this series and my favorite Lisa Kleypas. I have enjoyed epistolary romances before, but this book is so much more than that. Just the way that Christopher is constantly drawn to her and feels at ease. One of my favorite moments is when Bea forces him to join for dinner and he makes it clear he doesn't want to be social. Bea drags him in anyways and announces to the family that he doesn't want to talk. The Hathaways take this in stride and continue on as normal, eventually having him join them in the revelry. I love every minute of this book and it just makes me smile and laugh, but also cry.

Usually when I hear people talk about this series they mention the other books more, but I have reread this book at least 4 times and usually read it at least once a year, especially lately as I've felt more okay rereading books. As with the rest of the series, I really couldn't recommend it more, especially this book. It's not quite as steamy as the others, but I absolutely adore everything about it and love the connection that Bea and Christopher form via letters and then reform in person. I almost want to read it again right away! Plus Albert doesn't die and there the entire book as well as Bea's entire menagerie of rescue animals.

Have you read Love In The Afternoon?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Love In The Afternoon, Lisa Kleypas, 5-stars, 1 day, paperback, 332 pages, published in 2010

2022 STATS: Love in the Afternoon, Lisa Kley-as, 5-stars, 0 days, Paperback, 332 pages, published in 2010, traditionally published

Married By Morning by Lisa Kleypas

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Moving right along with my reread, the next book is book 4 of the Hathaways by Lisa Kleypas, Married by Morning. This book focuses on our only brother Leo, the Viscount and his romance with Catherine Marks. 

I absolutely love getting this as book 4 in the series. It's just so gratifying to see Leo grow and come to terms with his grief and figure out who he is as the Viscount. He's still a little bit of a rogue and ladies' man, but he also plays up the rumors. Leo is very charming and even when Cat and him where fighting in the other books, you could feel the tension between them. Cat, as we find out in book 3, is actually the half-sister of Harry and had a pretty traumatic life growing up. Once Harry rescues her she ends up with the Hathaways, almost as a way to experience a true family. 

I loved the push and pull between Leo and Cat, and even though he teases and goads her a lot, Leo is really attracted to Cat and enjoys seeing her get all worked up. It's kind of mentioned in other books, but Leo is really drawn to Cat and wants to know ALL of her secrets. Cat ends up being confronted by someone from her past and runs. However Dodge the ferret stows away in her bag and she ends up getting left half-way to London at a tavern. Leo quickly comes upon her and this forced proximity between them really starts to force Cat to start coming to terms with her feelings for Leo.

I love that there is no scene or big issue made of their class difference. While Leo is now the Viscount, he didn't start out that way so it's not something that he even thinks of. A lot of time there is more angst made of the class difference and I have to say, I'm not that big of a fan of it. It also lends itself to some other tropes that I don't like. The issues were mostly more internal between them and Cat coming to terms with herself and, similarly with Harry, allowing herself to both fall in love and be loved. Leo was all in for her and there was nobody else once he made up his mind. Leo does have some internal issues though, knowing that when he loves and loses, the grief really destroys him. He's worried that if something were to happen to Cat, it would completely destroy him even more than when Laura passed. 

While this is my least favorite of the series, I still absolutely adore Leo and Cat and feel like their story actually starts in Win's book and we can see the start of their foreplay in the background. As I have mentioned in all of my reviews so far, I really recommend this series. Lisa Kelypas is not only a great writer, but just really knows how to form a family and characters that see so real and grounded.

Have you read Married By Morning?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Married By Morning, Lisa Kleypas, 5-stars, 0 days, paperback, 342 pages, published in 2010

Tempt Me At Twilight by Lisa Kleypas

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I am really enjoying my reread of the Hathaways series by Lisa Kleypas. The third book in the series is Tempt Me At Twilight. This book focuses on the 3rd Poppy and her romance with the enigmatic hotel owner Harry Rutledge.

Harry and Poppy's meet-cute is probably my favorite of the series. She's chasing Dodger, Beatrix's (the youngest daughter) ferret and the love letter he stole. Poppy has formed an attachment with a young gentleman, however nothing has been announced or even done in public since he's worried about his father's approval. Even though Poppy seems to be the most "normal" Hathaway, there's still a stigma against her family. She ends up in a secret passage in the manager's office and runs into Harry. They end up in his curios room, which she's the only person that he's allowed in there that didn't work for him directly. He ends up obsessed with Poppy's wit and kind of has some villain tendencies. 

Harry knows what he wants and he ends up with the love letter. He does manipulate things since he wants Poppy so much and ends up "ruining" her at a ball. They end up married for at least half of the book and it's such a different feel than the others. Poppy ends up living with Harry at the hotel so we don't get as much of the family since they went back to Hampshire. 

Harry is very mysterious and has a pretty traumatic back story. We also see that there's some sort of connection between  him and Poppy and Bea's companion Catherine Marks. So this book is almost a marriage in trouble trope. Although it's more Poppy wanting a real marriage with Harry. He believes he is unlovable and doesn't need love, but Poppy really forces him to break down those walls and form a real relationship with her. I loved how strong Poppy was and that she would submit to him, but she wouldn't necessary enjoy it. That really bothers Harry and they actually end up waiting for a bit before consummating their marriage.

I also love that when Harry messes up a little and runs instead of staying to talk with Poppy, she "runs." She's really doing it to get him to follow her to Hampshire and get some alone time with him to really connect. He falls right into her plan and it's just perfect. This is my 3rd favorite book in the series and I really enjoy how Poppy pushes for more than just a physical relationship with Harry. And yes the manipulation causes issues, but I also love that Harry is just like "I don't care." If he really wanted you he would've fought for you. I wanted you and did what I needed to to get you. It's a little bit of a villain move, but I absolutely loved how it played out. Plus the relationship he forms with his new brother-in-laws is wonderful. We also find out about his connection with Cat, but I'll go more into that in the next book. I know I keep saying this, but if you haven't read the Hathaways and like or are interested in reading historical romance, you NEED to read this series. It's just so good from start to end.

Have you read Tempt Me At Twilight?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Tempt Me At Twilight, Lisa Kleypas, 5-stars, 0 days, paperback, 2736 pages, published in 2009

Seduce Me At Sunrise by Lisa Kleypas

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Continuing my reread of the Hathaways series by Lisa Kelypas, I jumped into Seduce Me At Sunrise immediately after finishing the first book. I have to say, even though this is only book 2 in the series, I'm really enjoying my reread of my favorite Lisa Kelypas series!

This book focuses on Winnifred and Merripen's romance. It was teased a lot during the first book. After surviving her bout with Scarlet Fever, Win has been really frail and considered an "invalid" since. She is very weak and loses her energy really quickly. This is definitely the angstiest book in the series for me, but it's done so well. Since Win has been sick a lot lately, Merripen really tries to stay away from her. Win (with Leo as escort) end up going to a special medical facility in France for healing. We see her try to connect with Merripen before she leaves, but he pushes her away. There is a small time jump in the beginning and we come to almost two-years later with Win and Leo's return. It was also hoped for, but it seems that Leo has also done some healing himself. During the time gone, Merripen has pretty much taken over the running and restoration of Ramsay House. That's one thing I love about this series. Even though Leo is the aristocrat of the bunch, the household is really run relying on the strengths of Leo, Cam and Merripen equally. Their first meeting is a little angsty as Win is cloaked and Merripen thinks she's a prostitute. Eventually he comes to realize who it actually is and so starts their actual romance. 

I'm not the biggest angst reader, but I do enjoy it more in historicals. What's nice about this book is it's mutual pining. Now that Win is strong though, she's over it. There is a lot of pushing on her part and pulling away from Merripen, but I love that when he does crack a little towards their chemistry is on fire. The doctor that treats Win comes back to London for a bit with her and Leo, and wants to try to form a romantic attachment with her. Even though I wasn't a big fan of him or how he treated Win, I understand that there needed to be a bigger push for Merripen to give in to his feelings. 

It's talked about in the first book when discussing traditions about the Romany, and one of their courting rituals(?) is to "kidnap" the lady. And guys, spoiler, but Merripen kidnaps Win. She knows immediately what's going on and is so happy that he's finally making his move, but the entire scene and subsequent moments between them are so great. I love that once Merripen goes 100% into the relationship, he's in it 100%, forever. Another fun subplot is we find out Merripen and Cam are actually brothers and Merripen is the next in line for an Irish earldom. It's a fun twist in his storyline and it was so fun to see more of the connection between Cam and Merripen form. I do want to mention though that the "third act" villian is a little more dramatic in this book that usual. I really didn't like the doctor, but it just felt out of character. However we see Win get absolutely bamf and stand up for her man (and brother-in-law). 

I loved this book, and even though it's great I would have to list it as book 4 in enjoyment for me. Mostly because it's angstier than I usually enjoy. It is still a 5-star read and I really can't recommend this series more. It's got a little something for everyone. Plus it's nice that the series is only 5 books long, it makes it a little more bingeable and easier I feel like for new readers to handle.

Have you read Seduce Me At Sunrise?

Bookishly Yours, 

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Seduce Me At Sunrise, Lisa Kleypas, 5-stars, 1 day, paperback, 360 pages, published in 2008

Mine Till Midnight by Lisa Kleypas

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So during the Rake Appreciation Society's recent live for Texas Destiny, Crystal and Jen announced the next few books through August 2021! What's fun about it is, the August book will be book 7 of Lisa Kleypas' Ravenels series Duke in Disguise (out July 27th, 2021). In preparation, I wanted to reread the Hathaways and Ravenels! Now, before I go too much farther, I have a confessions to make. I have not read all of the Ravenels. I started reading them as they came out, but didn't keep track on GoodReads at that time. I honestly can't remember the last one that I read, but I think it was around book 4.

If you are unaware, a lot Lisa's series kind of "spin-off" of each other and are set in the same world. It's starts with the Wallflowers (which I decided not to reread), moves to the Hathaways, then moves to the Ravenels. The Hathaways are my favorite Lisa Kleypas series, the top 3 of my favorite of her books (so far) are in this series, and it's one of my favorite historical romance series ever. I own all 5 books, with their stepbacks and just absolutely adore it. I wanted to wait until later in the year since I'll know I'll blow through them quickly, but I had a killer sinus infection/head cold last week that moved into my ears. I've never had ear issues before and let me tell you, it sucks. I don't get sick very often, but that was so bad. I just can't. So once things started to decrease swelling, I was finally able to read and wanted something comforting. I decided to start my reread and immediately grabbed the first book the series, Mine Till Midnight.

Our hero is Cam Rohan, a half-Romany half-Irish manager of a big gambling den. If you've read the Wallflowers series, he's the young man that was psuedo-raised alongside Evie and is now good friends with her husband Sebastian St. James. If you haven't read their book, it's a favorite among historical readers. They also pop up in the Ravenels series with a couple of their kids being featured. But back to Cam and Amelia. Amelia is the eldest sister of the Hathaways and has become the mother figure after their parents passed away. The were raised as more middle-class, but after several Lord Ramsay's die in a row, Leo (the brother) ends up the new Viscount and they "enter" society. The Hathaways don't fit into society and just kind of do their own thing. Another big plot point for the series is after their parents passed, Leo and Winnifred (the 2nd eldest daughter) were infected with scarlet fever. Leo's fiancé actually ended up passing away from the disease. Since then, he's been on a grief-ridden rampage and set on destroying himself.

The book starts out with Amelia tracking him down to move the family out to the seat in Hampshire. She comes to Rohan's club and actually watches him deal with some fighting men in the alley. It's also important to note that they have a family friend Merripen that's also Romany. Cam ends up helping them track Leo down, and thinking he'll never see her again, kisses her before she leaves. A bit of time later, the Hathaways have moved into the run-down estate and are starting to turn it into a home. On a walk to town, her neighbor Westcliff (another hero from the Wallflowers & is my favorite book of that series) is shooting off rockets. Surprise, Cam is there and ends up "saving" Amelia. So begins their push and pull. I absolutely adore how into Amelia Cam is and that he's very alpha about it. He's constantly thinking of her as his fate and his and it's just so lovely.

He ends up compromising her fairly early in the book and the way that they fall in love just gives me all of the feelings. Cam is the perfect patriarch of the family and as you see throughout the series really knows to handle the Hathaways the best to help them thrive without completely ruining the family. I also love that when he's feeling restless in the beginning and thinking maybe he should go back to being nomadic, it's really him searching for his place and his person. Now, there is a lot of the word gypsy used and there is hatred towards Cam (and Merripen) from those outside of their family and friend group. I just want to warn in case that's something you are sensitive about. This book was written in late 2000s though before it was really discussed as a slur. I do want to say as well, that even though there are secondary characters that treat Cam and Merripen disrespectfully, I don't believe that Lisa wrote about it disrespectfully outside of just using the words that are now not politically correct. I also should mention that I've heard that the Audiobooks were redone, but not well. Not only did they remove a lot of the issues with Cam and Merripen's race, but I guess they also made Cam less alpha and changed a lot of other things as well. I can't say personally since I don't read audiobooks, but I trust those I've heard about it from. If you want to listen to this series, maybe see if you could try to find the original versions?

Anyways, overall this is my 2nd favorite book of the series and it's such a great set-up for the rest. All of the siblings are made clear in their characters and you can see (as I'm rereading) a lot of fun threads that will show up throughout. If you haven't read Lisa Kleypas and/or the Hathaway series, I couldn't recommend them more. I'm really excited to start my reread of the series and can't wait to get through them once again! These are more along the lighter side of historical romance and there is a reason Lisa Kleypas is referred to as "The Queen" by many.

Have you read Mine Till Midnight?

Bookishly Yours,

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Mine Till Midnight, Lisa Kleypas, 5-stars, 2 days, paperback, 376 pages, published in 2007

Stranger in My Arms by Lisa Kleypas

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This read was March's book for the Rake Appreciation Society hosted by Crystal and Jen on YouTube. This is one of those rare and elusive Lisa Kleypas standalones. I'm a fan of Lisa Kleypas and was excited to try a new book from her, Stranger in My Arms.

I really struggled with my rating on this book. If I went of enjoyment it would be closer to a 3 or 3.5-star read for me. But if I look at it critically it's more of a 4.5-star rating. I went with 4-stars. While I did love the romance between Hunter and Larissa (a.k.a. Lara), there were some times were I wasn't quite sure why it was going the direction it was. So brief summary, Lara has been living as a widow for a few months (and years alone) after her husband Hunter goes to India. He passes away in a shipwreck. A few months later he's back, but there's something off and his treatment of her has changed. Is he really her husband?

Spoiler Alert! (Although most of my posts are spoilery.) Okay, so I'm going to call our hero Hunter 2 and Hunter will just refer to Lara's original husband. I guessed pretty early on that Hunter 2 was his brother. It was just kind of wayward thought, and we got hints that he wasn't Hunter pretty early on. They looked so similar though that even Lara was confused. Granted I wasn't expecting quite how his backstory was laid out, but I was correct! Yay me! One thing that really bothered me about this book was the child-like references. I didn't like that either of them would refer to Lara's skin as soft as a child's or similar metaphors. It was just really odd, especially when describing a 24-year-old woman. Another plot line I didn't like was the entire story with her sister Rachel. I felt like Rachel could've had a bad relationship with her husband, but did it really need to go into the beatings and miscarriages? I know that that was part of what the book was trying to point out and the ownership of women at that time, but it felt too much. It just made me uncomfortable on top of all of the other goings on with Hunter 2. I feel like Rachel deserves her own book and HEA.

The ending was weird for me too. I didn't like that Lara caused everything to hit the fan, but then at the last minute change her mind. She was so staid in her ways on what was "right" but wasn't actually looking at the larger picture of what was "good." Once again, I understand what Lisa Kleypas was trying to show, but it just felt like too much whiplash emotionally for the last couple chapters. Then we had Lara's and Rachel's lives threatened and Hunter 2 had to save them. Just too much. That's why if I would go with an emotional response, this book would be closer to 3-stars. 

I love Lisa Kleypas's writing though and even at the parts where I was getting frustrated and just wanting the characters to move on, it was still engaging. Usually I have more fun with the late 1990s and early 2000s historicals. They just seem to hit the sweet spot for me of being feminist without going overboard and too unbelievable for the time period (like a lot  of the modern day historicals). I'm definitely going to continue to read Lisa Kleypas and may or may not pick up this book to own since it has a gorgeous stepback. 

Have you read Stranger in My Arms?

Bookishly Yours, 

Stasi🍎

STATISTICS: Stranger in My Arms, Lisa Kleypas, 4-stars, 1 day, eBook, 368 pages, published in 1998