An Unusual Courtship

A fairly bog standard historical romance - except where it tries so hard to not be.

Pros

+ Both boys are so likable and awkward and sweet and fumbling and they get an extra star for not being all dark brooding alpha male.

+ Lovely trio (soon to be quartet) of friends. (Possibly a...quintet(?) Whatever the five is.)

+ The boys do not suffer from internalized homophobia.

Cons

- To such a degree that they dance a waltz at a party and kiss hands in public. (While it is possible, I'll admit, it is improbable to such a degree that they would be unaware/indifferent to the danger to them that...it kind of took me out of the story and made me wonder if the author had wanted to write a straight romance.)

- One of the boys was in an abusive relationship at that was the impetus for the late story misunderstanding/separation. It was, however, neatly swept under the rug in favor of wrapping up the romance instead of actually, you know, dealing with it.

- Some information seems contradictory. Miss Bolton says about Mr. Everett: ‘I would be very surprised of it, he has been careful to keep it from the knowledge of his friends.' And then, later the same page, says: ‘Mr. Everett has spoken to us frankly before about his ... inclinations, and that has set us on the watch for any time that such inclinations might be reciprocated.'

- (I would have been happier without the sex scene as it really added nothing to the narrative that couldn't be conveyed with a fade to black.)


Not bad, not great. Honestly, gets worse the more I think about it. Pretty standard romance with an above average couple and several nitpicks for me.

This book had everything I look for in a Regency romance. The slow burn of the courtship was perfect and all the characters felt realistic and integral. Unlike the previous book I read by Marlowe, this plot made more sense and the reveal at the end wasn't obvious to me so it was a fun twist. Definitely recommend if you're in the mood for a light yet fiery MM historical romance.