Review: Romancing the Rake by Nichole Van

My rating: 5 stars / It was amazing

Synopsis

Lady Sophronia Sorrow considers herself an unlikely heroine. Why, just her name alone proves this. Sophronia Sorrow sounds like a girl from a gothic penny novel—the foolish miss who falls prey to a rake and becomes an object lesson for the true heroine to avoid. No, despite her mawkish name, Sophie refuses to spend her life invisible and unwanted, relegated to the margin of the text. Despite her eccentric, bluestocking ways, there must be a place where she is wanted. If only she could uncover the identity of her natural father, perhaps she would belong there?

But one thing Sophie knows for sure—unlike that foolhardy miss in a novel, she will not succumb to a rake. No matter how thoroughly the rakish Lord Rafe Gilbert may tempt her.

Lord Rafe Gilbert longs for freedom—freedom from his controlling father, freedom to live his life as he chooses. He knows playing the rake keeps his autocratic father in check, but Rafe longs to determine his own destiny. Case in point, he fell in love with Lady Sophie years ago, but his father’s threats and his mother’s health prevent him from pursuing Lady Sophie in earnest. So when Fate thrusts Sophie into his path, Rafe knows he must turn her away and distance himself. But doing the right thing has never been so impossibly difficult.

Sophie and Rafe soon find themselves on a journey together from London to a castle in the Scottish Highlands. Along the way, can two kindred souls heal from past hurts and seize a second chance to write a love story of their own?

My Review

I thoroughly enjoyed Sophie and her frank bluestocking mannerisms! Her scientific categorization of members of society and the way she studies and interprets their behavior was hilarious. She and Rafe have amazing chemistry, and he adores her eccentricities. The unfairness and injustice that keeps them apart is difficult to swallow, but important lessons are learned as they each passed through their own refiner's fire. Sophie especially had wisdom for Rafe that helped him finally overcome his anger and find inner peace. Their journey together was exciting as they came to know each other again, but this time at a much deeper level, and long-held family secrets are finally revealed. The sense of mystery and suspense propelled the plot forward and the way history wove their two families together was surprising. There is also an overarching mystery of the shipwreck in Rafe's past that connects all the books together. I'm loving this series and can't wait for more!

(I received a complimentary copy of the book; all opinions in this review are my own)

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Don't miss the first book in the Brotherhood of the Black Tartan series . . .