My review of this book was published at All About Romance on March 27, 2020. You can see the complete review here: https://allaboutromance.com/book-review/the-earl-not-taken-by-a-s-fenichel/

Also on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3249350669?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

Do you like steamy historical fiction? If your answer is yes, I suggest picking up this book! I didn’t realize how much I liked that genre until I got into the romance of this book and I couldn’t put it down. I gave this book 3.5 out of 5 stars but overall it was a fun read!

This book follows Penelope “Poppy” Arrington and her three friends who call themselves the Wallflowers of West Lane, four girls who bonded when they met at a finishing school they were sent to when their families felt they needed to learn how to be “proper ladies.” They vow to protect each other in a world that sees women as the lesser, weaker sex and parents that see them as property to sell to the highest bidder.

While there isn’t a whole lot of plot in this, The Earl Not Taken is more of a focus on these characters and their lives in this time period, which reminds me very much of Jane Austen’s world. It’s a time of dowries, Earls and reputations and one I love reading about. One of the Wallflowers’ mother has arranged her marriage to a duke, and Poppy and her friends take it upon themselves to look into who this duke is and if he’ll treat their friend right. She reluctantly accepts the help of Rhys Draper, a friend of a Wallflower and a man she’s known for a long time.

Rhys has a reputation as a womanizer and Poppy is set on never getting married. She refuses to be seen as a husband’s property and has seen terrible examples of marriage and men in her life. As they spend more time together, they realize the things they assumed about one another aren’t right and they begin to have feelings for one another. What follows is a steamy romance filled with lots of angst and talks of marriage and reputations.

Overall I had a lot of fun reading story. I found Poppy to be frustrating at times, but that I think is a product of the time period. She constantly talks about how much she hates marriage and men and everything in between, it was a bit exhausting at times. But I enjoyed watching her open up to Rhys as she realizes she’s not the womanizer she thinks he is and them slowly falling in love. The side characters were fun to read about and I will definitely be continuing with this series and it follows the other three Wallflowers of West Lane.

A delightful enemy to lover romance. Poppy is set in her ways and unwilling to change her views even as her heart becomes engaged. The story has some interesting moments, but some questions are left unanswered, to whet your appetite for the next book in the series, and I detect hints at the following romance for this intriguing group of wallflowers.

I fell in love with The Wallflower of West Lane. They each have their strengths, which compliments the others. Penelope or affectionately called Poppy, is the one who believes all men are cads and not worth marrying. She is fiercely protective of her friends. She is smart and funny. Rhys Draper, The Duke of Marsden and Aurora's brother, is a handsome and engaging person. He is protective of his sister. It seems as if Faith has now been matched and The Wallflowers are worried he will not be a good match. He is to secretive. Poppy and Rhys have teamed up to see what the can find out about hi,. Along the way, Rhys has discovered why Poppy hates him. In the weeks that follow, Rhys and Poppy become friends but he is in love. He wants it all. How do you change a way of life? It was so romantic! I can't wait to read the next book in this series.

This take on a familiar theme, a hero and a heroine with a history between them, nevertheless succeeds in providing an entertaining romance. Our heroine, Poppy, is a complex character, and her initial antipathy towards marriage and our hero is credibly portrayed. Poppy’s close friend, Aurora, has finally been freed from her abusive marriage by the death of her husband. Based on Aurora’s sad history, Poppy is determined to learn more about the duke that her friend Faith has been betrothed to by Faith’s parents. Will Aurora’s brother, Rhys, clueless about his sister’s bad marriage, help Poppy investigate the duke? Secondary characters, particularly Poppy’s friends, are generally convincingly presented and are potential stars of their own dramas in future books. Strong writing makes this a good first book in a new series.

Poppy, of our four young women who have been friends since finishing school, and even before that, find themselves, attempting to look out for one of their own. After Aurora was abused by her husband, Poppy is determined that the same will not happen with Faith, who appears to be in line for marriage with an unknown duke. Poppy enlists the help of Rhys, Aurora’s brother, whom she has fought with over the years.
What transpires is an entertaining read, as two enemies find themselves drawn to each other, as they endeavour to discover the mystery behind Faith’s soon to be partner. Poppy is a strong-minded character who objects to the notion of marriage, from her past experiences. Rhys is a more likable character who tries to do his best to win over Poppy. At times, I wondered whether this relationship would succeed with only Rhys appearing to be the mature one of the two. Whilst I enjoyed his character, I struggled to warm to Poppy. However, I must admit that I really enjoyed the character of Faith and Nicholas and look forward to reading their story.
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

I received an ARC of this book to read through NetGalley in exchange for a fair review. The Earl Not Taken by A.S. Fenichel is the first book in The Wallflowers of West Lane series. The series is about four young women who met as girls at a finishing school in Switzerland and formed a lifelong bond. This book involves Penelope Arrington (Poppy) and Rhys Draper, Earl of Marsden, the older brother of one of the wallflowers. Rhys and Poppy have been at odds since they were children, always sniping at each other, with each taking delight in finding ways to annoy the other. A trip to the country and a storm forcing them to take shelter at someone’s house causes them to spend time together, and sparks of a different type fly between them. Poppy is damaged from her lousy upbringing and her parents' nasty marriage, and she has sworn never to marry. I did enjoy this story of true friendship but was not particularly fond of Poppy, as I felt she took too long to let the past go and remained angry and bitter for most of the book. Medium Steam. Publishing Date March 17, 2020. #NetGalley #KensingtonBooks #ASFenichal #HistoricalRomance #bookstagram

When Poppy and her friends find out that one of them is to be married to an unknown duke, they decide that they need to learn everything possible about him. Against Poppy's wishes, one of her friend's brother, decides she needs his help. The two have been at odds since they had a run in years earlier.

Rhys feels guilty that he couldn't save her sister from a horrible marriage and sees helping Poppy as a way to make sure that non of his sister's friends have the same fate she did. While he doesn't know why Poppy seems to hate him, he has always enjoyed sparing with her.

As these two spend more and more time together, they realize that what they feel for one another is not dislike. Can they get over their past to find a happily ever after?

I absolutely adored Poppy and Rhys's story!! The bantering between these two had me laughing out loud. I loved watching Poppy realize that Rhys wasn't the wastrel that she had thought he was. I also loved Poppy's group of friends and can't wait to read each of their stories!!

Unfortunately, this book was just not for me.

The Earl Not Taken is an enemies-to-lovers romance novel that follows a free-spirited woman named Poppy as she navigates the strict gender roles of her society. When one of her three closest friends announces her engagement to a man she’s never met, Poppy and her friends make it their mission to uncover the secrets of the husband-to-be. In their efforts, they are joined by Poppy’s best friend Aurora’s rakish brother, Rhys, who Poppy despises. As the search progresses, Poppy and Rhys are thrown together in all matters and must overcome their differences in order to help a friend.

Firstly, I wasn’t particularly keen on the fact that this was a romance romance - in that, I prefer a story that has a romantic subplot, one that is equal to or lesser than the plot that plays a skeletal role to the story. In The Earl Not Taken, there was zero plot aside from the romance.

My real problem was this novel was the backhanded, often vulgar comments made regarding Faith’s - one of Poppy’s friends - body. Not only does Poppy refer to her own friend’s body shape in cruel terms, comparing her to the friend group in a way that makes my skin crawl, but you also cannot get through the first few chapters of Rhys’ perspective without reading him refer to her body in overtly sexual terms. Yuck.

Overall, the concept didn’t make a lot of sense to me. Poppy was extremely wishy-washy in her values. She constantly alternated between modern ideas and traditional, conservative values - it seemed that her “values” constituted what worked best for her. And the modern ideas were significantly out of bounds for the time period of this novel - which, although it wasn’t explicitly stated, appears to be the Regency Era. The contemporary concept mixed with a historical setting, as well as the roundabout romantic plot, lost my interest more than a couple times.

All around, I didn’t enjoy this novel. I’m not sure if romance is a genre suited for me, or maybe this particular book just didn’t work for me!

The Earl Not Taken by A.S. Fenichel is the first book in The Wallflowers of West Lane Series. This is the story of Rhys Draper, Earl of Marsden and Penelope 'Poppy' Arrington. Poppy had been sent away to Miss Agatha Wormbattle’s School for Young Ladies in Lucerne, Switzerland for punishment but really it was the best thing because became close to friends that are more like sisters to her. Now in their present day they women have form a group called the Wallflowers of West Lane to help each other and to protect each other. This is what leads Poppy to start to investigate a man that her friend may have to marry. Poppy and Rhys had know each other when they were younger and before she was sent off to school. They have been butting heads from the first and still doing so now. But Rhys knows that he needs to help Poppy which ends up bring them together. Enjoyed their story and the start to this new series.

A good, entertaining start to a new series by A.S. Fenichel.



The 'wallflowers' are a bunch of young ladies who have just finished school and whose views about marriage have been clouded by their friend's experiences in an abusive marriage. Seeing how Poppy's parents behave is another good reason as to why she, in particular, is so dead against getting married. Having this in mind when waiting for her and Rhys to finally come to an agreement is required as Poppy really does drag her feet an awful lot and it slows the pace of the novel somewhat especially as there isn't much else happening in the book.



A lot of time is spent setting up backstories for various characters and this is done very well. there is plenty to look forwatd to in the rest of the series. I can't wait for Aurora and Garrett's story. Aurora has a tragic past and it would be nice to see her happy. I am intrigued by Breckenridge's mysterious past and whether or not he and Faith manage to sort things out between them. His friend Geb is an unusual secondary character who was also quite charming. Mercy's story is not as well defined yet but it will be interesting to see what lies in store for her too.

When I see a new book by this author, I can never wait to read it. I know it will be simply wonderful and this one proved delightful!
Four girls who are friends (they call themselves the Wallflowers of West Lane) are sent to Switzerland to become proper young ladies. Each has been a trial to their parents and they look at it as an adventure! Once they are back this story picks up a few years later.
One of the four, Aurora had married an Earl who had just passed away and all were together. Aurora's brother Rhys was with them and when he heard how horrible a person the Earl had been to his sister he was furious.
Now their friend Faith announced her mother had arranged for her to marry a Duke, neither had met. That put our heroine and one of the four, Poppy, determined to find out about the man so that Faith would not get into a situation like Aurora. Rhys agreed to help her since she could not be snooping around on her own. Oh, but they had a history....
For years Rhys had tried to determine why Poppy held him in disdain. She just seemed to dislike him, even when he tried to be agreeable to her. "Poppy Arrington was a mess. She always said the wrong thing, had no sense of fashion, and was far too headstrong and opinionated." "She made him want to kiss her senseless!"
I loved this story! Humor, intrigue, a headstrong heroine who spoke her mind and a hero who I loved. A delightful journey to their happy ever after and just had to sigh as I turned the last page! Cannot wait for more!!!

This was a short romance with a twist. Four young ladies sent off to finishing school in Switzerland because they are rebels at home and their parents hope to drum some "sense and most importantly decorum" into them. Plainly to accept marriage as their main goal in life and preferably to someone in the aristocracy, the higher the better. When one of them accepts and marries someone who turns out to be a bounder and a abuser which of course remains hidden until his thank god death in a hunting accident, the others are determined to vet thoroughly any future suitors for any of their hands.

This is the story of the intricacies of vetting someone whose past is determinedly hidden. He does not want it to be found for very valid reasons which the girls cannot fathom. At the same time love and attraction finds its way to the heart of one of the girls who is determined not to marry at all. How all these balance out is told in this delightful period romance.

Not soppy, yet very good reading.

I enjoyed this first book in the Wallflowers of West Lane. Poppy was quite a fun character. Her doubts about her self-worth almost broke my heart but the way she flaunted the rules of society made this story worth reading. I did feel sorry for Rhys as he tried to navigate Poppy's world. I loved his tenderness with her and his willingness to help out the ladies. I recommend this story.

I received an ARC of this story through Netgalley, and this is my unsolicited review.

A delightful story! Poppy and Rhys are wonderfully developed characters. I enjoyed Rhys always calling Poppy by her formal name, Penelope, and his patience with her headstrong personality. I look forward to the next Wallflower of West Lane.

I was provided with an advance readers copy of this book. This review is my honest opinion voluntarily given.

I recieved a free copy from netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Spring break followed by social isolation and school closure due to coronavirus, I have had had plenty of time to read and this book has been one the better ones. I really like the hero in this book, he was sweet and sincere. The heroine on the other hand was a little irritating, I get the whole not having a good example of a marriage can make a woman hesitant to enter into a marriage of her own but Rhys was so sweet and caring. There was a conversation that was extremely repetitive. They covered the same issue 4 separate times. I can't wait to read the other Wallflowers of West Lanes stories. Garret and the Duke were both introduced and they seem as perfect as Rhys.

The Earl Not Taken was a quick easy read, however I found it a bit cliche and predictable. I also found myself irritated by how many times we were reminded that the main female characters were the “Wallflowers of West Lane”. It was an alright period romance, but not a standout.

I seized on this book as a distraction from the flood of bad news we’ve been dealing with lately, and as a distraction it worked just fine! It is a light and inconsequential story of Rhys and Penelope, long-time acquaintances via Rhys’ sister/Penelope’s friend Aurora. Penelope and her best friends from boarding school call themselves the Wallflowers, and they are committed to protecting each other from being forced to marry disreputable men. They have their hands full as their families seem bound and determined to make eligible matches for them with men who are wrong for them.

My one issue with the story is that it leaned too heavily on my least favorite trope.. misunderstanding between the H&H due to lack of communication. Penelope seems pretty immature to me; she is always going off in a huff, and is unwilling to actually listen to what people are telling her.

I got past my issues, though, and happily engrossed myself for a few hours in another time and place!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

While I enjoyed the story, I didn't feel the passion or desire that a strong good romance should have. In fact the "sexy time" scenes felt almost clinical. When I read a historical romance such as this, I want to feel the passion they have for each other. I want to weep during any sad parts of the book. I just didn't feel that emotional pull to this book.

Having said that however I did love the Wallflowers as a group. I love a strong female friendship and these women had that. They loved each other and yet saw each others faults. I started to grow irritated with Poppy rehashing the same mantra over and over. However I loved Rhys.

I look forward to reading the next book in the series when it comes out.

Mercy, Faith, Aurora, and Poppy have been friends for years. Hoping they would receive a good education in manners and such, their parents sent the group of girls to Miss Wormbattle’s School for Young Ladies in Lucerne for 3 years. There they had a wonderful time and became even closer. Now, they called themselves the Wallflowers of West Lane.

Six Years Later

Aurora was married to the Earl of Radcliff for 3 years. He has just died and Aurora is so relieved. The man had treated her dreadfully and even beat her. She and her friends are so glad he is dead.

Now, Faith is to be married off to the Duke of Breckenridge by her family and so Poppy and their old friend, Rhys Draper, the Earl of Marsden, have decided that they want to investigate Breckenridge to be sure he is not like Aurora’s deceased husband. They are especially suspicious when they see Breckenridge receive some papers from a foreigner at a soiree. So, off they go.

Poppy is a bit of a klutz, isn’t really interested in the latest fashions, and does not having any interest in getting married. But Rhys thinks she is just beautiful and would like to marry her. What does he need to do to woo her?

Well, this book didn’t have the spark that comes with a story of two people discovering an attraction to one another. It seemed rushed and without those scenes where "petals fall from the skies”. However, there are some nice bits of humor and I really liked Rhys. Poppy is a bit of an airhead, but I think she has potential. The idea of a group of Wallflowers is intriguing, however, I hope the girls show a bit more maturity in future books in this series.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.