It's official - I'm a huge Evie Dunmore fan and will read everything she publishes until the end of time.

A Rogue of One's Own focuses on Lucie's story, who we were first introduced to in Bringing Down the Duke. Lucie is deeply committed to the Suffragette Cause and works tirelessly day and night to advance it. To help spread awareness, Lucie and an investment consortium of well-to-do suffragette ladies purchase the majority shares to London Print - or so they think. Unbeknownst to them, notorious rake and acquaintance from Lucie's childhood, Lord Ballentine, has purchased the other 50% of the shares. What will Lucie do to gain back control of the publishing house and it's content for the Cause?
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I have been struggling lately with romance/ woman's lit, which is unfortunate given it's what I've been most in the mood for during quarantine. In my past three reads, I've found the characters lacking, the romance forced, or frustrated by the plot mechanisms. But this book? Dunmore's brand of romance? *CHEF'S KISS* I always find her characters compelling, the setting atmospheric, and the motivations make sense. Her second novel was a huge success for me, just like her first.

This book was a slow start for me as it opens with Lucie and Tristan's childhood interactions, which has never been a trope I've cared for. However, once I was 100 pages in I found that I couldn't devour it fast enough. I actually enjoyed this novel even more than the first; finding more depth and interest to the main romantic couple than the previous one as this book focuses much more on the family secrets, drama, and relationships than BDTD did. However, this book is also quite a bit darker in themes within the backstories it explores, so I would caution readers to be prepared for that. Warnings for some content listed below.

I can see why some other previous reviewers may have trouble with Tristan's character - he is a morally gray character at first. However, I personally really enjoy morally gray, anti-hero stories; they're some of my favorites to read. The author also notes he is based on the British Decadent Movement which I thought was really well done. Readers who may not enjoy that should avoid this book, but I found that the story plays the line of hedonistic 'London Lothario' who is attempting to do the right thing by Lucie fairly well. I also personally felt it made our lead couple really great foils for one another.

I'm so wildly excited for the third installment! 2021 feels like lightyears away, but it will be worth it to read about Hattie next. Though, I have to say I'm really holding out for a Catriona story - fingers crossed!

Content warnings for themes of abuse (emotional, physical, one extremely brief description of animal).

A Rogue of One's Own is the followup to Evie Dunmore's popular Taking Down the Duke. In this installment of the series we follow Lady Lucie the leader of the suffragette movement from the previous book. She's finally got the money to take control of a publishing house so she can continue her mission, however her old nemesis Tristan Lord Ballentine is standing in her way. When he offers a solution to her problem, will she accept his terms?
This book has been highly anticipated ever since the release of it's predecessor and it's not hard to see why. Evie Dunmore is a very competent and engaging author with plots that feel fresh and interesting to historical romance. That being said I just did not connect with this story. I think part of that is because I personally am not a fan of romance novels that spend too much time focusing on anything other than the romantic plot between main characters. I'm especially not a fan these days of too much politics in my fun romance reading. I also did not care for Tristain, he was the Victorian equivalent of a "fuck boy" and he had very few redeeming qualities. I found it hard to believe that a successful intelligent woman like Lucie would ever waste her time on him. Tirstian's only redeeming quality for much of the novel is his commitment to helping his mother.
I'm all for a novel where the idiot man gets his ass handed to him by the smart woman. I can see what Dunmore was trying to accomplish with this enemies to lovers plot, but she just never gave me enough of a reason to root for these two together. I think Lucie deserved a hell of a lot better than Tristan, but that's just my two cents. I still think a lot of people will enjoy this book because of Lucie and her suffragettes and that's why I'm marking this up just slightly more than okay, Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC, all opinions are my own.

I adored Dunmore's debut, Bringing Down the Duke, and was anxious to get my hands on the latest installment. I wasn't disappointed. A ROGUE OF ONE'S OWN is just as wonderful, perhaps better.

She is a smart, gutsy suffragette who demands attention and refuses to compromise. He is a logical, charming, seducing scoundrel who is also a bit misunderstood. They knew each other as children and I loved how that history was woven throughout the story. Plus- there is a charming cat that plays a humorous and sweet role.

I loved how Dunmore blended romance, history and business. The writing was fierce and compulsively readable- full of wit and banter. So much so that I keep rereading my favorite sections- the juicy bits and the snappy, swoon worthy conversations. I only wish I could have read it slower because now I have to wait for the next in the series.

There's honestly nothing better than a good historical fiction romance. I couldn't love Evie Dunmore's books more than I do! If I could get a new book from her every month I would reach true happiness. I love Tristan and Lucie, I love that they have a past. There were times I GASPED and times I cackled, and this story was so enjoyable and the drama was so juicy.

Well, I was all over the place with this book. I loved, loved, loved Bringing Down the Duke so I was so excited to read this. That may have led me to judge it unfairly but I really liked the beginning and then somewhere along the way it took a turn where I just started to hate the male lead so much that I honestly did not think he would be able to be redeemed by the end of the book. He was just infuriating with no redeeming qualities whatsoever for soooo much of this book! Usually when you have the point of view of both characters it allows the reader to overlook the shortcomings that each character sees in the other because for the most part they come down to misunderstandings and when we are inside the head of the other we can see that it is in fact, a misunderstanding and not a true character flaw. That was not the case with Tristan! His pov did not redeem him because being a war hero who loved his mother was not enough to overcome the way he treated Lucie and that is really all we had to go on to get us to like him. I'll admit that the author did give us more in the end, but it was literally in the end! It is just very difficult to get the bad taste out of my mouth that I had through so much of this book with a few throw away lines in the last 10% of the book. If this had been the first of the series I don't think I would've read the second.

Fantastic sophomore entry in the series! Strong connection to the previous book BUT you can read this one without having read the first one... although you'd be missing out :P And oh my.... the wait for the next one? Too damn long....

Evie Dunmore has done it again! A Rogue of One's Own is sweet, sexy, and smart. An unlikely enemies to lovers historical romance centered around a foursome of English suffragettes. Lucie, a lady of quality disowned by her family for her radical, embarrassing involvement in the suffragist movement, finds her world entwined with a knee-buckling, handsome rogue that appears just as irksome as he was in childhood. When the co-ownership opportunity of a publishing house arises, conflicting battles of necessity and emotion wrap Lucie and Tristan in knots. With a HEA that will not disappoint, A Rogue of One's Own is a delightful addition to the League of Extraordinary Ladies series.

Even better than the first!

That's right. I didn't think my love for Bringing Down the Duke would be topped but Dunmore has done something, few in my opinion, manage to do. She wrote an even better sequel. I loved everything about this book.

Once again, Dunmore takes us deep into the British Women's Suffrage movement and gives us a glimpse of what our favorite lady suffragists (Annabelle, Hattie, Lucie, and Catriona) have been up to in their fight for women's equal rights. This time, we follow Lucie the strong, independent, complex leader of the group in her journey to further the cause, help the abused and oppressed, and amend the Marriage Property Act. She's got some brilliant plans beginning to unfold when an unexpected handsome rogue gets in her way. What's a lady to do?

"When a woman happens to acquire a rogue of her own, she might as well make good use of him"

This book has it all. Intrigue, twists, fight for rights, fashion, poetry, and let us not forget some amazing steam. But all that said, I think what struck me most about this book and I mean deep down in my little feminist soul - was the writing - such wonderful writing. Dunmore brilliantly handles the topics of love and equality. All is fair in love and war, right?

Contra mundum

This series is so darn cute. I like the sassy (and only occasionally silly) heroines, and I like the feminist forward scrapes they get into. I could do without the love story (I know, why am I even in this genre?), really, but it doesn't take away from the overall charm.

When we met Lucie in the first book of "A League of Extraordinary Women", I knew she was going to be a firecracker. She did not disappoint. I loved watching her fall in love with Tristan without compromising who she was, her morals, or her goals for herself. Those who enjoyed the first book because of the history of the suffragist movement in the UK, will find joy in the continued history that is shared. Dunmore has done her homework with the particulars of this historical movement and history buffs will be enthralled.

This is shaping up to be a great series and every book is standing on it's own. I am already anxious to have the next book in my hands.

Thank you so much for my copy of this series! I cannot get enough of this series by @eviedunmore. We are back with our favorite group of influential women, this time honing in the life of Lucy Wycliffe, a hardcore suffragist working tirelessly to amend the Marriage Property Act and change the law so that men and women are equal. She believes she doesn’t need a man to take care of her, marriage translates to ownership, and that having a “lover” is too distracting. That is, until longtime loathed friend Tristan Ballentine comes back to Oxford to shake things up. He comes with is own family drama and a reputation that follows him wherever he goes. When the two meet in the middle after taking over a publishing house for their own agendas, their chemistry and passion for their own beliefs is a powerful combination and the characters realize they may have more in common than they think. I loved having old friends Annabelle and Montgomery back in the picture and folded into the story, it connects the two novels and I enjoyed getting background on a character that was introduced in the first one. This one was a lot more facts and history heavy, but that’s only because this was SUCH big deal and all the facts were necessary. Also, as usual, the chemistry and tension between Lucy and Tristan was 🔥 and I’m already aching for the next one! To sum it up: history, maaajor family drama, big sexual tension, marriage exploration, romance, women empowerment, would definitely recommend and hell yes I would reread.

Lucie is not like other Victorian women. At 17, she was kicked out of her earl of a father's home because of her involvement in the suffragette movement. In the ten years since, she has 1000% dedicated herself to the Suffragette Cause, especially the Married Property Act. She has refused to look at men or even contemplate marriage because she refuses to become the property of her husband. But when Tristan, her mother's friend's son who spent his teen years summering at Lucie's family's manor, returns from war in India and Afghanistan, now a veritable rake, he is hell-bent on making trouble for her. At every turn, he seems to be blocking Lucie and the suffragettes' strategies and moves to accomplish their goals. But is he doing it to be a cad and a bother... or for other reasons...? Soon, Lucie agrees to his transaction and finds out about the pleasures of the flesh... and perhaps love. But what's a proto-feminist to do when love stares into her soul?

Just as excellent as the first book in the series!!! Many romances are feminist in nature, but Dunmore takes it a step further by placing her characters in the suffragette movement and as the movers and shakers of the movement. I love that they don't have to back down from their proto-feminism to get the lasting love and affection of a man. I can't wait for Hattie's story in the third installment!

Really fun, enjoyable read! This is the 2nd in the series, but stands alone if you haven't read the 1st. But if you have read the first, there are a lot of familiar faces. The world is so fleshed out, it's so much fun to delve into it.

Wow! I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review and I can honestly say that this is the best fiction book I've read in a while. I'm an avid reader/librarian and lover of historical romance, so that's saying something.

Don't be fooled by the cover. The cover will make you think you are picking up a lighthearted, fluffy novel, but that is not the case. This is a character driven fictional account of a suffragette in 1880, Lucie, and a mischievous hero, Tristan Ballantine. When they are together, the tension is fierce!

I don't want to spoil it for anyone, but I love the slightly unconventional ending! It fit the characters, especially Lucie, and felt so real and authentic.

A delicious read - I gobbled it up in one day!

When Tristan mentioned Lucie to Annabelle in Bringing Down the Duke I just knew I wanted to read their story, and that I would love it. In fact, when I finished it, I wanted to go back to the beginning and read it all over again. I loved the history between the two characters and how this was more of a slow burn, that really made it feel authentic. The end also stayed true to the characters. And the depth of Tristan's long-suffering affection for Lucie revealed at the end had me in tears. I thought this was perfect. 5 stars.

I adore this author. Infact, her first book was my fav read last year. I recommended it over and over, so I am very pleased she has written another, with more to come...hint hint.
This novel starts a bit slow, and awkward not unlike the main female character. I believe it is intentionally written that way just like the "Midwives Apprentice" by Cushman, at least I hope it is...
I relished how the characters evolved as the book progressed.
We got to experience mellowing, them learning to trust and love, and development for passion!
I loved it. I didn't want it to end. 😍

The level of detail in this book, about the daily life of the heroine, who is very involved in the women's suffrage movement, will appeal to fans of historical fiction. Even more than book 1 in the series ([book:Bringing Down the Duke|43521785], how the movement operates is a major part of the story.

The HEA makes sense for the heroine and is an unconventional but fitting choice.

Two stars from me personally, though, because I could not get behind the hero or the romance. I never really buy the enemies-to-lovers trope, which in this case was one-sided anyway. I also cannot get behind redemption story lines, where the hero is a willful drunken fuckboy until love spangles in his heart. In this case, although he encourages exaggerated gossip about himself, the love interest does an assortment of distasteful things for no other reason than because he's bored. That makes a pretty petty and uninteresting character, for me. If he drank to excess and visited orgies as a distraction from his memories of the war, that's maaaaybe a backstory I could get behind. But just because he can't think of anything else to do with himself or his money? Not someone worth redeming.

I was fearful Evie Dunmore's second book in her A League of Extraordinary Women series wouldn't live up to her amazing debut novel, but I was happily proved wrong.

I didn’t know how I’d feel about this one given how the love interest was portrayed in book one but I must say I do think this is my favorite so far in the series!

“A Rogue of One’s Own” finds Lucie eager to manage her role in the cause to help her fellow women when her plans go awry at the hands of Lord Ballantine her longtime foe who is recently back from India and not shy about living up to his scandalous reputation and with a bargain struck to have sole control over the publishing company it is unclear which of the two will come out on top.

This book has every kind of trope I adore and I loved every second.

Lucie is headstrong and not shy about fighting for the right for women to have a voice and embracing the “spinster” title she has been given by abandoning all roles women are expected to fall in to as wife and mothers and I saw a lot of myself in her as the plot moved along and I think that’s another reason I loved her so much. She talks a big game and is very much the warrior she needs to be when taking on this fight and at the same time she is very awkward and shy but that doesn’t stop her from going after what she wants even if the circumstance is less than ideal.

Ballantine is another character who is easy to love and it was no surprise they allude to him being the inspiration for another character I adore from classic literature. With all the makings of a swoon worthy love interest I never felt like I was seeing a repeat of a character design though the similarities were certainly there. Where this book works best is the back and forth between these two who manage to harmonize and their soft moments are some of my favorite especially when you start to piece together the smaller details that lay in their shared histories and the resolution to those feelings that have been buried behind war and a duty to women’s suffrage and I couldn’t think of a better ally for Lucie.

If each book follows this pattern of being better than the last I dare say I may have a new favorite series and the fact that it is a contemporary is a shock to us all!

**special thanks to the publishers and netgalley for providing an arc in exchange for a fair and honest review**

As much as I liked Bringing Down the Duke, I was more quickly engaged when reading A Rogue of One’s Own. Perhaps it is Evie Dunmore’s growth as a writer or that Tristan and Lucie’s characters, with their past history, grabbed me from the start.

Tristan is a world weary rogue with a poetic heart.
Lucie is determined and brave, she not only talks the talk of women’s rights but she walks the walk. She wants to create a big “mic drop” moment to tell the world about her research into women’s lives of quiet desperation, but comes to realize she needs to be more subtle, if she is going to be able to make real changes to the Married Women’s Property Act.

Tristan and Lucie are both seeking freedom from societal expectations and constraints. He wishes to get out from under a tyrannical father and she wants to have power over herself, like men are able to in 1880’s England.

As the “London Lothario” and the “Suffragist Shrew” begin to fall in love during their clandestine meetings, both begin to trust each other both emotionally and politically.

This Victorian Age romance reminds us of just how much things have changed for women in almost 150 years…and just how much things are still the same.

I liked this quote from the author’s notes attributed to Anne Brown Adams, “The struggle for {married} women’s rights will be a longer and a harder fought battle than any other that the world has known.”

There is an idea floated to Lucie about wearing prettier and more fashionable dresses that suggest a woman "grasping for power" needs to be attractive while doing it. That will sound familiar to any woman who wants to move up any ladder toward any ceiling.

Thank you NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for the ARC