I couldn't get past the first 9%. The whole stuck-in-the-tree incident was cringe-worthy and Garrett and Lady Kitson getting all hot and bothered while trying to get down was as unromantic and far-fetched as any plotline I've ever read. If you can't capture your reader at the introduction you are sunk, unfortunately.

While this is billed as book number two in a series, you do not need to have read the prior one in order for this one to make sense. In fact, aside from a brief mention of the characters from the first novel, this one focuses on the two remaining widows, both with life-altering choices ahead of them.

One of the things that felt completely off and unrealistic to me was Julia's reactions to Garrett. We are told time and again that she is utterly under the thumb of her father-in-law. His word is the law and any deviation to that will result in a swift punishment (namely he will take her son away from her). And yet, she not only kisses Garrett where any nosy neighbor could see them, but she also has sex with him in her father-in-law's house? On the floor? Granted the man isn't there yet, but that is hardly the point. Time and again, she throws all caution to the wind to be with him even knowing what that will mean if she is caught. I just wasn't buying that.

I enjoyed Garrett's character only slightly more. He seemed to jump into wanting her/loving her pretty darn quickly (within a week if that), but I did enjoy the selfless way he was willing to do anything he could to help her (even if it came to doing something he was adamant that he didn't want to do).

Together, they had their moments, but I much preferred reading about Julia's friend Brina. I felt like her character's story at times overshadowed the main story. She had her own choices to face, and I'm curious as to how the author is going to choose to resolve them.

In talking about the characters, I feel like I have given away enough of the plot that people can decide for themselves whether or not they want to read this one (although I have to add if you are familiar with the term hurry up and wait you will see a lot of that in the plot as far as getting things done).

Overall, I think the author has potential, and a lot of people will enjoy this story, it just wasn't a favorite for me.

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.

This is my first Amelia Grey. This book reads fine as a standalone having not read book #1.

This book started out absolutely amazing. I was totally in love with everything. It starts with the heroine, Julia, playing in the park with her 4 year old son and getting stuck in a tree while trying to get his butterfly net out. She meets the hero, Garret, this way while waiting for her son and maid to go get help. I adored that scene. It was such a wonderful meeting, a bit silly and somehow built this beautiful tension between the characters. Established their personalities enough that you knew being a mother was important to Julia, as well as her reputation, yet she longed for more freedom and how Garret has been searching for something to help him settle down (he has been a sailor for many years) and thinks he finds it in Julia.

I really think you should try this book if you like
~not overly explicit sex scenes. There were 2 scenes I believe and while I prefer a lot more detail and explicitness, I couldn't deny some beautiful prose in them. Very focused on the feeling and emotions and not the mechanics of it. If you like sweet books or fade to black this might work for you as well, they were well done in that aspect.
~A solid hero. Not sure what word would be best to describe him. Devoted? He is wholeheartedly there for his heroine, no matter what. He's not casting off marriage for some awful reason we all roll our eyes at, he's not trying to dupe his dad with a sham marriage, he is just infatuated with Julia and it never wavers until it becomes a full love.
~The hero rescues heroine trope. While she's not totally defenseless, her sex and time period have left her little options to help herself. The hero helps save her from her troubles.
~You like a widow or a mother as a heroine. Julia was also a vegetarian and I found that unique.

If that is enough to intrigue you, I suggest you give it a try. I, however, am extremely picky and the book kept losing it's steam and my interest as I read on. Specific spoilers ahead regarding my dislikes, please avoid if you don't want to know!
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After all the tension and build up I was a little disappointed in the scenes. They were short and not descriptive, but I know that works better for some people.

The main problem is that Julia wants her freedom from the duke, her father in law. He is very controlling and won't give her any freedom unless she relinquishes her son to be raised by him. It was a good plot...at first. But it took over the whole book for me, it was always about the duke, worrying about the duke, talking about the duke, hypothesizing about the duke, plotting against the duke, planning to fight the duke, and the duke doesn't enter the book until the end. And the conflict is resolve in one short conversation. I was not expecting that and after all of that emotional drama it was rather a let down.

Julia bothered me quite a bit towards the end. I thought one of her choices with her son was ridiculous especially after all of her drama with the way her sons tutor acted. Not that she did the same things, but it all came down to the same logic – he was too young to be treated like that. I really disagreed with one of her decisions. I also felt like she truly didn't understand the hero's love by the end of the book. The fact that she assumed he was trying to take her away from her son after everything he had said and down to protect them made me feel like she knew him not at all. I will say I liked the epilogue and it made them seem like they really were having a happy ever after so that made me feel a bit better.

This book was laugh out loud funny with the various situations Julia found herself in and with her young son. The sensuality between her and Garrett brought passion to the story and made you cheer for them and that Julia would be able to free herself from her father-in-law’s control so she could be with Garrett. I also loved the scenes with Chatwyn, Julia’s son, as it provided some entertaining moments and he acted like the four-year-old he was. I would have loved to read more scenes with him but know he wasn’t the focus of the book. The book was well written and intrigued me enough that I will definitely be reading more Ameila Grey books in the future who was introduced to me with this book.

Amelia has a awesome way of keeping the reader engaged. I really like her strong female characters. Garrett is a good match for Sophie. The continuation of the story was flawless from the first two books.

This was a good read. The two leads were engaging. The author describes perfectly their instant attraction from the start. The fact that they have sex early didn't bother me. It was in line with the story. It was told in a way that was not offending but still relaying the amount of passion between them. The next protagonist for the next book was introduced and I can't wait to read her story.

This is the second book in the First Comes Love series. You do not need to read the first book in order to enjoy this story.

Julia Fairbright had lost her husband when the Salty Dove sank and she was newly with child. Now four years later Julia and her two friends, Adeline and Brina have started a school for young girls who were affected by the sinking of the Salty Dove. While trying to raise her young son, Chatwyn, Julia has to abide by her late husband's father, the Duke of Sprogsfield, or risk having the child taken away from her. These rules include not having any other men involved in her life.

Enter Garrett Stockton. After a fun and entertaining way of meeting, Garrett and Julia are both very attracted to each other, but Julia keeps him at arms length because of her father-in-law. As Garrett and Julia spend more time together, Garrett vows to do whatever he can to help make Julia his....even if he has to go up against a duke because for the first time in a long time Garrett has found a woman who speaks to him more than the open wide seas. It will take a little nerve and a lot of luck for these two to find the answers they need in order to be together but in the end love wins out!

I just adored Garrett and Julia. They are both stubborn but very emotion filled people and together they just worked. I loved how Garrett took such a shine to Chatwyn and together they found something that neither of them was really looking for.

This is the first book I have read by this author and I realised early on that it wasn’t the first in the series. I wish I had read the first as it would have given me a better insight into the 3 women the series is about. The story was very lightweight and easy to read with the predictable happy ever after. I wish there had been more character development of Julia and Garrett as both seemed interesting characters.
Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy. It was a nice relief to escape in this story for a while in these horrible times

These stories by Amelia Grey are so light and fun and perfect for this time in life. However, I really wanted more relationship development between Julia and Garrett. They had chemistry from the first moment, but I didn't feel their emotions deeply like I wanted to. I love the connections between the three friends, but did miss Adeline and Lyon from the first book. It was warm and fun and light, but I think I wanted MORE.

This did not seem like the typical Amelia Grey book. I love the premise of the widows being brought together by the loss of their husbands due to the sinking of a ship. It is a sweet, yet sad one for the First Comes Love series as three women use their loss and connection of the sinking of the Salty Dove to create a school for the sisters and daughters the men lost on the ship.

Don’t take me wrong, I love Amelia Grey’s writing and loved The Earl Next Door. Gone With the Rogue just did not have the same ‘feel’ to it. The characters were kind, caring and loving toward each other and those around them, even toward the overbearing father-in-law of a duke. Julia and Garrett did not have the same character development and depth as normal for Ms. Grey. Julia’s situation was correct historically as characterized by her having to live with the duke.

Julia and Garrett wanted the same things. He was completely patient with Julia and loved her son Chatwyn. The both cared about animals, about helping others, about treating others fairly and kindly. They seemed to have sex at the oddest time and place, especially the first time.

The third widow, Brina, seems to be going through a terribly difficult time. Loved the scene in the kitchen! I am looking forward to seeing how Brina’s HEA plays out in the final book of the series.

I don't know maybe it was just me but I didn't care for this book. The beginning and ending were great, especially the tree scene. But... it sounded like a bodice ripper from the 80s for the bulk of book. After knowing each other (which are short meetings) a few days, they have sex, then if they aren't having sex they are thinking about it for whole book. There was no substance to Garrett and Julia. And repetition repetition repetition. Strangely, I really liked both characters for the little we learn about them which says to me so much more could have been done with them.

Julia has lived under the dictatorial thumb of her father-in-law (The Duke) since the tragic death of her husband but after several years in this gilded cage along come the rogue of this story Garrett and everything starts to change.

The underlying plot that the success of which our romance depends on is to show that the the Duke who has impressed upon all of society that he is a religious and pious man is instead a conniving man with fingers in all types of less than savory endeavors. The problem is that he has everything under false names and she needs to find the actual deeds and his accounts book or she can prove nothing. The knife he holds over her head is that he has such a place in society that he can easily take her son away from her and so that is what holds her in this situation.

Obvious, Garrett has no intention of giving up and the two of them make an excellent pair although I thought she showed a couple of minor moments of TSTL concerning animals but it was minor but it did make me feel much better with the 4 Star rating so bottom line: Very entertaining, just enough drama and mystery to keep the reader involved at all times and memorable characters and a scene of her and one of her society friends trying to cook was hilarious. Definitely an enjoyable reading experience .

This was a very short historical romance. It was well written but sadly it wasn't for me. I'm sure there are people out there that will like this; if you like short, sweet historical romances you should give this one a go. Besides, you can tell the author did her research and liked her finished work,

This book was wonderful. Right from the start, you could tell that it was going to be that little bit of "unique" that captured your interest and wanting to read more. Julia is a young, single mother who is controlled by an angry, unkind father-in-law. Garrett is a shipping tycoon who doesn't own a home because he is never in one place long enough. While back in London for a stay, Garrett meets Julia by accident and it's one of those instant attractions. As the two come to know one another, it is Julia who resists their being together and speaking of anything long-term. She has secrets that keep her from wanting or able to form any sort of attachments. This puts Garrett in the unusual position of being the one to want more and want it long-term. Watching the two come together is fun and full of the tension that makes everything just that much more enticing. I really liked that Grey writes about a young, single mother who resists love...instead of it being the normal bachelor type. I like that Garrett does have a softer side...even when he doesn't realize it himself. I enjoyed the backstory to Julia and her friends and am interested in reading more of the series. I gave this book 4 stars as I'm not the biggest fan of the instant love/attraction story but I do think that Grey does this well and even the characters admit that the speed of their relationship and intimacy seems crazy. There is a bit of intrigue with Julia's secret and story with her father-in-law that keeps the reader guessing and on edge just a bit which make the story that much more engaging. A really great book and one I would recommend to any fan of historical romance.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martins Press for priding us with a copy of this book so that we could bring you this review.

I know this will be an odd place to start this review, but here it goes... I HATE the Duke. I hate the fact that he is so close minded and ugly in the way that he treats his daughter in law. It was not her fault that her son died in the sinking of a ship. Its not her fault that the Duke was trying to force his son into a marriage that he didn't want so he went off and married another, but he treats her like it is. This makes me love and appreciate the fact that Julia is doing anything and everything to get out from under his clutches. The way that Julia accepts Garretts help is so cute, she gets herself in so may pickles it made me giggle, but behind it all is Julia's amazing heart. Her desire to help not just herself but so many. It takes Garrett some time to be able to show her that he is genuine in his feelings for her and what he wants for them in the future, but the best thing was watching him help her take her freedom back. There are secondary characters that I want to know what happens with them, and how their future forms. I can't wait for the next book.

I give this book 5 kisses...

Happy reading.. Adri

Gone With the Rogue
Series: Book 2 in the First Comes Love Series
Rating: 4 stars

Thank you to the publisher for the ARC given through NetGalley for review.

I really liked this story. It was very sweet and Garrett and Julia were great characters. For four years she has struggled with her father in law's choices for her. It is not until she learns something nefarious about him that she decides to do something about her and her son's life.
Garrett had been in search of that one thing to make his life complete. It is not until he meets Julia in a very sweet meet-cute that he is determined to be part of her life even if she is a little reluctant at first. I did like that he always respected her choices but always found a way to see a better life for them if they are together. He wanted to play the role of protector, but what she wanted was to be independent and finally live the life she's desired ever since she became a widow. It is not until Julia succeeds in her plans that she is able to open up her heart completely and not have a HEA until she was ready.

Can you take a risk to be free? Lady Julia Kitson Fairbright just wants to free of her father in law. She has mourned her dead husband for long enough, she wants to be able to live her own life with her young son. So when she meets Garrett Stockton everything changes, they are both deeply attracted to each other. But can she take a chance with him as she has so much too lose? Garrett knows that he needs to help her get free from her father in law and he will do whatever he needs to. He can’t see himself leaving her behind he wants them to be a family but can they beat the old man at his own game? Will Julia be free at long last? A great easy read. I was lucky enough to receive a copy from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

I had the privilege of being able to read the uncorrected digital galley of the first book in this series (The Earl Next Door) and now I have had this privilege once again. I truly enjoy Ms Grey's writing style and her characters come to life, off the pages, for me. This second book, in the First Comes Love series, was decidedly different from the somewhat typical Regency romances one might expect. I love Ms grey's heroines and the heros that fall in love with them.

This is Julia (Lady Kitson) Fairbright's story; after her husband perished in the sinking of the vessel The Salty Dove. Julia and her husband had a marriage of convenience. She mourned the loss of her husband and the father of her son, Chatwyn. Unfortunately for her, her father-in-law, the Duke of Sprogsfield is not a doting man. "Society ... kowtowed to him and agreed there was no other man more fair-minded than or respectable of others than the revered Duke of Sprogsfield." Julia knew the real man, the one behind the mask that he wore in polite society. She was determined to find a way out from under his rule.

Next, we meet Garrett Stockton, a gentleman and a tradesman. He is often the subject of many in the Ton as the adventurer and sojourner. He didn't want to sit by and be beholden to his relatives for the roof over his head, the clothes on his back, or the food on his table. He couldn't be complacent as his father had been; he decided to take his father's ship and try to make his own way. Garrett is back in London and feeling unsettled when he is in the park and finds a woman dangling from a branch, in a tree he and his horse decided to stop at. The first meeting of Lady Kitson and Garrett Stockton is unique to say the least. Julia is not like any other woman Garrett has known and Garrett isn't at all what Lady Kitson imagined an adventuresome "pirate" would behave like.

I enjoyed this story. It is well written, flows well, and keeps the reader wanting to see what happens next. I didn't feel as if the story lagged at all.

Gone With the Rogue is the second book in the First Comes Love series by Amelia Grey. A beautifully written historical romance that is sure to sweep you off your feet. Gone With the Rogue is a well-written romance that is full of family, drama, forbidden love, and lots of romance. A must-read for anyone who likes historical romance.

I loved Julia and Garrett's charming story. The reader can feel the chemistry coming off the page. The author writes so that the reader is right there with the characters.