A Nobleman's Guide to Seducing a Scoundrel

3.5 and rounding up.
I didn't like this one nearly as much as the first, but it was still a great mix of a English manor house story and queer romance. I have found that my favorite type of romance books, are actually just regular fiction that has a compelling story with the relationship sprinkled in. This duology delivers on it.

If you are a fan of Jane Austen, I feel like you'll like these.
I would also HIGHLY recommend the audiobook. Martyn Swain was chef's kiss perfect.

I'd happily pickup a 3rd Doomsday book...perhaps featuring Emily and Barry? (Pretty please!)

***Thank you to Dreamscape Media for providing me with the Audiobook for free via NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

Overall rating: 4.3⭐

I read The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen just last month, and as soon as I was done, I requested this audiobook on NetGalley. K.J. Charles writes MLM historical romance deliciously. The romance, the intrigue, the tension, the chemistry... Her writing pulls you in with great descriptions of its settings, loveable characters, just kiss already vibes, and soon you lose herself in her story.

I highly recommend reading both of the books, even if you don't usually read historical romances. I don't read much histrom either, but these two were some of the top romances of the year for me. I read both in one sitting.

ANGTSAS is set in the same world as TSLOCG, only 13 years later, with Luke Doomsday as one of the two main characters. Both of the books involve a person whose life suddenly changes thanks to an inheritance, and a member of the Doomsdays, a family of smugglers in Kent. Despite having a similar premise on the surface, ANGTSAS has a completely different feel and dynamic, while keeping the adorable-ness and spiciness the same.

I loved the relationship between Rufus and Luke. I loved how they cared for each other, all the tension and chemistry between them, how they both change and grow. Luke's emotional journey was especially well done. Their relationship starts so unsure but over time really grows to be strong where they can trust and rely on each other. And the spice..!

It's always a pleasure to meet a new K.J. Charles couple. It's a given that their dynamics will be complex and nuanced, and not easily distilled into tropes such as “grumpy vs. sunshine” or “enemies-to-lovers.” [b:The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen 57102663 The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen (The Doomsday Books, #1) K.J. Charles https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1663091244l/57102663.SX50.jpg 89360006], the first half of The Doomsday Books duology, featured insecure, intellectual Gareth and outgoing but overburdened smuggler king Jess. There are similarities between the situations confronting Gareth and Nobleman's Guide's Rufus; both are unexpectedly thrust into elevated roles, but the two men's personalities couldn't be more different. While Gareth was a timid law clerk when his story began, Rufus is a former soldier - big, blunt and quick to anger. Luke, whom we met as a boy in Secret Lives, is now an organized, smooth-tongued secretary, with a carefree attitude that obscures layers of hurt and anger.Readers of Secret Lives will be aware that Luke is hiding a Big Secret. The suspenseful first half of Nobleman's Guide is shadowed by the knowledge that there will be fallout when the truth is inevitably revealed, even as the two MCs become friends and then lovers. The second half of the book truly rips your heart out as they gingerly start over, Luke determined to make amends and Rufus determined to uncover and address the reasons behind Luke's deceptive behavior. For readers who have ached for “Goldie” ever since he appeared in Secret Lives, the catharsis and closure is long-awaited and beautifully executed. As always, the found family aspect that Charles does so well enriches the story. Rufus starts out as the unexpected heir to an earldom, with his tenants, servants, and new family all resenting him. But thanks to his innate goodness and the assistance of his charming secretary, he slowly wins over most of them, with a few notable exceptions. Luke already has a large family, but he needs to resolve painful issues that have kept him at a distance from them for many years. For those of you who like to categorize KJC's work by the number of corpses, I'd say this one is definitely on the low end of the scale. Unlike Secret Lives, there is less external danger but more internal conflict, making the relationship between the MCs feel even more intimate. Two books into KJC's traditional publishing career and she has lost none of the sharpness that make her “romance with a body count” novels so uniquely satisfying.ARC gratefully received from Net Galley in exchange for objective review.