I absolutely fell in love with Olivia Waite's writing in her first novel in this series, "The Lady's Guide to Celestial Mechanics," so I was so excited to read this new release in the series! I ended up not enjoying this one as much as the first, primarily because it added a lot of what seemed to me to be unnecessary historical events. I did still thoroughly enjoy the story, however, and I look forward to the next book in the series.

Thank you to Avon Impulse and NetGalley for providing me with a free e-copy for review.

This is the second in the Feminine Pursuits series by Olivia Waite. When widow Agatha Griffin comes across a bee hive in the back corner of her warehouse she's sent to bee keeper Penelope Flood. They are each attracted to each other but are very slow to act on their feelings. When the inevitable happens the passion and romance is sensitive and believeable. Along the way we are treated to some fascinating bits of information about bees, beehives and honey. The political climate of the time also is an important part of the story.
This is a very well written and enjoyable f/f romance.
Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Olivia Waite writes beautifully, and her characters are very real and interesting people. This book, though, is a SUPER slow burn. There isn't even a kiss until more than 70% into the book. And there was so much additional plot around the social and political turmoil that the romance kind of got lost in it all. It felt like a book about characters fighting for social change that happened to have a romance, when it should have been the other way around.

I will be writing a more in depth review soon, but what I will say is that The Care and Feeding of Waspish Widows exceeded all of my expectations. While I enjoyed the first book in the Feminine Pursuits series and gave it 4 stars, this was a definite 5 star read for me.

I absolutely loved the two leads, and it was fun to get to know Eliza better. An adorable romance that I will be recommending to so many friends! I already pre-ordered my own physical copy.

Since I really enjoyed the first book in the Feminine Pursuits series - A Lady’s Guide to Celestial Mechanics - I bumped this book up in my to be read queue, even though I had a fourteen day library loan clock ticking on another book. I was looking forward to finding a similarly enjoyable journey in the new book.

This book was much lighter in tone than its predecessor, befitting two female characters of roughly equal standing. One was printer running a demanding printshop in London, as well as a satellite print works in the small town of Melliton. The other was Melliton’s only female beekeeper, the only daughter in a merchant family of seven siblings, still living in the family’s ancestral hall on the outskirts of Melliton. Both women were essentially single: the printer was four years a widow; the beekeeper married her brother’s best friend, who was the Purser on the whaling ship that her brother captained.

This was undoubtedly a slow burn romance. Although the beekeeper’s marriage of convenience was the primary obstacle that her relationship with the printer had to overcome, there were so many small misunderstandings between the two women that they didn’t profess love and start kissing until around 72-75 percent through the book. Before the kiss, we watched both the printer and the beekeeper become increasingly frustrated by their growing seemingly unrequited feelings and desires for each other. Had they just a mite more open communication, the tension between the two would have been nonexistent because the misunderstandings that kept them apart could have been resolved by two or three somewhat embarrassing questions. But where would have the fun in that have been?

The descriptions of gardens, bees, and beekeeping, as well as of the print shop and printing, were beautifully rendered and evocative of the sights, smells, and noises of the locations and the activities.

There really can be no comparison between this novel and its predecessor, so Waspish Widows can definitely be read as a stand alone. If I had to choose just one of the two, I would probably go with Waspish Widows over A Lady’s Guide because I tend to prefer slow burn romances.

Overall, I appreciated this novel taking me on its journey. To me, not having read much straight Regency romance, I don’t know if it is traditional enough to appeal to fans of the genre. But if you have the slightest warm feeling toward (or curiosity about) sapphic romance, I would definitely give this novel a space on the TBR list.

*3.5 stars*

So. Many. Plotlines.

sigh

I really, really like Olivia Waite, and I LOVE how she is writing the smart F/F historical romances that we all want to read. I adore historical romance, and I love nerds, so I'm always dying when I read about each upcoming book from this author. However, I think this author gets in her own way a lot of the time.

The good news is that we have two older MCs, a lovely slow-burn romance, and some explicit sex on page, though we have to wait ages to get it. Also, I could have read about the bee-keeping stuff all day long. Very interesting and a lot to delve into there. I also felt like Penelope's family dynamics and marriage had a lot of meaty plot elements that really fleshed out the story.

But the author just couldn't stop there.

We get endless chapters about the King and Queen and their marital issues, sedition laws, religious and puritanical power movements, relationship complications with side characters, and it goes on and on. There are details that are introduced and focused on and then seem to fade in importance. There is just so much there, so much that could have been spread out with another story, that it really muddled the romance for me. The book is very long, and a lot of it felt like extraneous information. I would have been happy with just the bee-keeping stuff alone with maybe a little family drama thrown in. As it was written, I found myself zoning out during the endless pages about the royal scandals.

The romance was very slow to develop, and though I like a slow burn, I wish more of the book had these two women in an actual relationship, not just pining for one. I understand that open communication was very risky during those times, but they basically hinted at each other for over 300 pages until they got their act together. But when they got together finally, whew, lots of chemistry and heat! Thank you, Olivia Waite!

I appreciated all of the research that went into this story, and I think the author did a very good job writing it, but I wish it had been paired down some to make the romance take center stage. Still, I can't wait to read more from this author and see where else she can take me.

*Copy provided in exchange for an honest review*

This is a sweet set-up: Penelope, a beekeeper, and Agatha, the widowed owner of a printing press, meet when Agatha finds a bee colony in her warehouse. The two women are middle-aged and work for their living, although finances aren't an issue in the book. They connect over bees, and their friendship grows as they tend to hive and engage in political discourse - the to-be queen is in the press, as her husband seeks to sully her name to get a divorce before his coronation. Penelope and Agatha's interests take center stage in the story, so there are lots of details about beekeeping and running a printing press (much like in A Lady's Guide to Celestial Mechanic, which I loved).

This is a sloooow burn (first kiss is 3/4 of the way into the book, which is just much later than I like in my romance). The last fourth of the book has some explicitly steamy scenes, which feels like such a departure in tone from the rest of the book.

While politics are a major topic in this book, it feels like Agatha isn't really emotionally invested in politics - she is cautious at all turns, until reactionaries threaten people close to Penelope. She makes choices that help her avoid trouble, even if it means acquiescing and not printing materials she believes in. This just feels... off the mark these days, with larger conversations going on about how we must all engage rather than staying silent. Agatha chooses her comfort over the cause, and that's just accepted in the book, which I think immediately dates the story and weakens the characters.

I didn’t think Olivia Waite could top her first f/f historical, The Lady’s Guide To Celestial Mechanics. I was wrong. SO wrong. I adored Lucy and Lady Moth from Celestial Mechanics – but I LOVE Agatha and Penelope with a fierce passion I haven’t felt for historical romance characters in a long time. Things I love about this book:

Big The Grumpy One/The Sunshine One energy. My absolute favorite trope-y pairing is the unutterable grump who is utterly baffled by their own tendency to fall wildly in love with somebody who has a tendency to flit happily around in meadows – in Penelope’s case, LITERALLY MEADOWS, because she tends bees! This pairing is basically written for me. Agatha’s utter confusion at the way she wants to be AROUND SOMEBODY? All the time??? And doesn’t resent them being so dang happy???? UGH, FEELINGS.

Bees. Frankly the bees are a beloved minor character here, as they should be, and the care that has gone into the description of tending bees at a period when science and natural history was undergoing leaps and bounds of knowledge is breathtaking and deeply rewarding. Plus there is a great deal of tromping down country paths, which is essentially my favorite wildly unrealistic personal fantasy. Also, BEE WEAPONRY.

Historical setting. I’m so used to dukes swanning gaily around ignoring what’s going on in the lower classes even while they marry housemaids and prostitutes with absolutely no thought to their peers that finding a historical romance firmly settled in the middle class is beyond delightful. And even better, this particular one is set during a time of serious civil unrest, which forms a central part of the storyline without seeming like set dressing. Watching the characters navigate the way their world is changing is all the more powerful because their world really IS changing; everything from Penelope’s beekeeping to Agatha’s printing press is deeply impacted by the way that their society is shifting in ways both social and scientific, which makes the civil change central to their storyline. But the characters are so strong, and the romance so well-crafted, that this resists the urge to turn into a historical novel and stays firmly a romance, with the love developing between the protagonists the central storyline.

Parenthood – specifically, parenting in a time of intense social change. This one hits close to home for me. Agatha undergoes her own personal shift; her character arc encompasses growing into herself as a reluctant agent of revolution, then a willing activist for change. But she’s hit hard by the realization that as she’s tried to demonstrate doing what is right to the young people for whom she is responsible, they have – believe it or not – actually listened. And believed what she was saying, to the point that it takes them in a different direction than she ever anticipated, and she then has to sit down with herself and figure out if she’s really walking her own talk, so to speak. This is something that so many of us who are parenting during this time of significant cultural change are facing; if we’re doing it right, we’re raising our kids to be better. And then when they demonstrate it, we’re hit by our own inherited bias, still crawling along in our hindbrains influencing our reflexive reactions. It’s the double whammy of realizing that you can be as well-meaning as you want, but without some self-awareness, you might not be reaching your full potential.

Queer community. This is probably the best thing about this book, and what makes me clutch it to my bosom in weepy delight. The genuine queer community that Agatha finds with Penelope is so perfect, so warm, so quiet, and so REAL. I can’t offer spoilers here, because the community they find features in a lot of important plot points, but I just want to dive in and roll around in the realness of Agatha’s startlement when she discovers that in addition to falling in love, she’s managed to find a community that she’s always longed for without knowing it was possible. People who understand her, who realize what it means to be queer in the context of their society – in more than one way, and in ways that include hiding, openness, and even allyship, and who will do anything to support their community. I JUST LOVE IT OK.

Creative – and realistic – HEAs. Another thing that has given me joy in both this book and the first in the series is the way the characters find ways to bind themselves together with permanence in a society that doesn’t allow them to legally marry. It is a delightfully technical detail that really makes the happily-ever-after feel real, and I’m so glad the author took the time to weave it in. (And I really love the way that this book’s ending builds on the choices that were made in this vein in the previous book, but I can’t elaborate without spoilers!)

I loved it, you’ll love it, go read it. I can’t wait for more.

This was my first time reading a romance book so I didn't really know what to expect going in but I really did enjoy this book a lot. Agatha and Penelope are fantastic characters and it was a pleasure to follow their relationship throughout the story. I think this book appealed to me because the book isn't completely focused on the romance, it's very much focused on politics and the place of women in society during this time period. I think this is a good book for anyone who just wants to dip their toes into the genre for the first time or for anyone who's not looking for a lot of heavy romance.

This is a slow-burn romance that focuses on two working class women in a time where most romances focus on ballrooms. I found all of the details about beehives and publishing fascinating. And the letters between the heroines were fun and interesting. But it definitely felt more like a story about overcoming challenges in a difficult historical moment than a love story for most of the novel.

The author does an amazing job with the historical details and the everyday moments of life. I really liked both main characters and thought the subplot with Agatha’s son interesting too. It is rare to read romances about older women, and Waite does this well.

I received an advanced readers copy of this book from the publisher and Net Galley in return for a fair review.

I loved this book. For me, it hit so many things that I am interested in: I love historical fiction. I love books about queer folks with children. I am a hobbyist bee-keeper.

This was such a good book with such a terrible cover. Here are a few modest image ideas to consider instead: Since Agatha runs a printing press in 1820, having a cover in the style of the etchings she made is a no-brainer. Penelope is a bee-keeper using the skep style of hive. Well, I'm a modern bee-keeper and I still had to look up what a skep beehive looked like. (Did you know straw skeps are illegal in the US because of sulphur method of harvesting honey is considered inhumane!) Perhaps a skyline view of contemporary London where Agatha with the castle where King George and Caroline lived in the background. Or, maybe the small village where Penelope lives, with the pub, the church, or the cemetery included. Maybe a boat far out at sea indicating Penelope's absent husband. A wall of skep beehives with the garden surrounding it. Perhaps some scandalous sculptures are just visible around a corner. Two women walking a path with a wheelbarrow full of bee-keeping supplies between them. The sketch Agatha does of Penelope during the protests that is then printed and sold.

Please don't be put off by this cover that seems to have no relationship to the contents of this book.

I didn't think it was possible to love a book more than the Ladies Guide to Celestial Mechanics, but Olivia Waite managed to write an even better book for her second in this series. This is such a beautiful friends to lovers story and the fact that it's a middle-age romance makes it even better. I can't wait to recommend this book to everyone.

I have to admit that I only requested this book because of the ridiculously over the top cover. This is not the sort of book I ordinarily read and I expected something totally campy because the cover is so cringe-worthy. Perhaps I'm especially harsh because my family and I do a lot of period reenactment so I know a bit more than most what clothes and hairstyles should look like in 1800's England, but come on. The cover shows what looks like two young women with one in a tacky prom dress and one in a 90's tuxedo jacket and blouse out of the disco era, with modern hairstyles. The book itself is a period piece about two middle aged English women in the early 1800's. The real characters are in their 40's and one is plump while the other has gray hair. Why not show this sort of women, and why not spring for anything remotely like realistic clothes and hairstyles (you can see examples of Georgian fashions at the time here: http://wemakehistory.com/Fashion/Geor...)?

Far from being campy, the book itself actually quite feminist, historic and serious. One of the heroines is a beekeeper who's in a marriage in name only (her husband and her brother are the true couple, who spend their time at sea so they can be together) and the other is a widow who runs a printing press. The women's friendship develops over time into a deep love and lust, but neither thinks the other feels the same.

Along the way, there is a ton of historic information about what was going on at the time with the king who tried to charge his wife with adultery to obtain a divorce, women's rights and specifically wives' rights, and also beekeeping and things like how printing presses worked. There is a ton about how Penelope cares for the bees. The author either raises bees herself or really did her research on historic beekeeping practices. As an American, I didn't know any of this history about the Queen Caroline and it was somewhat interesting but I also felt a bit like I was trying to keep up with someone else's family history after jumping into it.

It's a very slow moving romance, and it's as much a period novel and a novel about bees, women's rights and British history as it is a romance. The characters are likeable but I didn't really feel the passion as much as it was described. And while you get through 2/3 of the book before there's any sex, when there is some there really is some. I never really thought I'd learn the name for vintage British wooden sex toys or their rather endearing names for lady parts, but now I know. :)

All in all it's a very well done period novel but it's hard to pin down who it would be best for. The story is sweet and the characters are likeable. If you like period romances (and bees and British history!), it will likely be a great fit.

I read a digital ARC of this book for review.

I wasn’t expecting to like this book as much as I did. I expected it to be overly floral and reminiscent of the boddice rippers that you may have found your mother hiding away from prying eyes. Despite the cover, this was an elegant historical romance that made me want to go back and find the first novel in the series.

Agatha Griffin never expected to find a colony of bees in her warehouse, but the woman who would come to her rescue was just as surprising of a discovery. Penelope Flood, bee-keeper extraordinaire spends most of her time taking care of the beehives around town. She floats between the wealthy and the tradesmen.
Through beekeeping, Agatha and Penelope form a bond. Penelope’s letters originally intended to keep Agatha updated on her relocated bees, shifted into companionship. I love when authors include letters between characters. You get a clear picture of their voice, their sarcasm and sense of humor. It feels intimate and genuine.

I melted once they finally gave in to their feelings. I’ll say this, I was not expecting the romance scenes to be written how they were. They weren’t cheesy or unbelievable. These women together were passionate, insatiable, and exciting.

While they were finding themselves as a couple, they found themselves as individual women. Agatha had to be strong, business-minded, and needed to take care of everything around her, found her match with Penelope. Penelope, who had grown used to loneliness found a true companionship with Agatha.

*insert wistful sigh here*

This was a great read, despite the cover, and I hope to read more from Olivia Waite.

I enjoyed this book. I liked learning more about bees and beekeeping and life for women in the early 1800's. This was a slow burn romance so, that did make me want this book pick up the pace. Also felt a little too long and felt like some scenes could've been cut.

I adored The Lady's Guide to Celestial Mechanics earlier this year so I was so excited to read this follow up. Unfortunately, although I was absolutely entranced by the beginning, I felt like it really dragged in the middle half, and finally picked up again around the 75% mark. Unfortunately, picked up in the last chunk meant, for me, getting completely outraged by sedition and libel law and becoming more grateful than probably ever before for the First Amendment in the United States. That said, this book is slow and beautiful and if you're in the mood for slow and beautiful, I would definitely recommend.

This follows Agatha Griffin, a widow, and Penelope Flood, a married beekeeper. Agatha finds in the Melliton office of her print shop a swarm of bees and freaks out and Penelope is sent to fix things. The two slowly develop a really great friendship centered around bees, which even more slowly develops into a romantic relationship. In the background, there's a lot going on with Queen Catherine and King George and sedition and libel laws. From a historical perspective, it's really interesting, but I kind of wish that the focus had been kept tighter to the relationship between Penelope and Agatha. I say all that, but am also forced to acknowledge that I really liked the secondary characters in this book and felt like they were real people too. So I do recommend this one, but I just want to make sure people are prepared for this one to move very slowly.

There's just so much to love in this book! Historical women loving women, beekeeping, printing, and the sedition you always know accompanies historical printing! The writing is rich and detailed, and the burn is slow but when it gets there, it's really there. I didn't love this quite as much as her previous work, but I'm so excited to keep reading her writing.

***Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for my honest review.***

I quite enjoyed this story. When I first started reading it, I was a little worried that the main romance would be between Agatha and Eliza, and I'm glad I was proven wrong. (It had been a while since I had read the description). I really liked how Agatha and Penelope met, and became friends and eventually fell in love. It felt very organic. I disliked the villains quite a bit (as I was supposed to) and I was glad with how that plot line ended. I also appreciated the frank conversations between Agatha and her son about security in your business and revolution. Wanting to stay safe, so that you will still be able to print anything, wanting to participate in protests because that's how you feel. That was great to see that played out in the book. I wonder what the next book will be about?

Penelope Flood is a beekeeper whose husband is away at sea. Agatha Griffin is a widow who runs a print shop with her adult son. One day, Agatha finds a swarm of bees has infested her storage shelves and her mother-in-law advises her to enlist Mrs. Flood’s help. From there, they begin a friendship which turns into something more.

I feel like for the first half of the book, there wasn’t really anything going on. Agatha and Penelope were interacting, but it felt more like we were told that they had chemistry rather than seeing the chemistry. After that, there were quite a few subplots involving the king and queen, a lyricist who’s trapped in a bad marriage, a conflict with a Lady. It felt like there were all these plot lines, but it didn’t really… add to the story in my opinion. There are also a lot of things that kept coming up, but nothing ever happened with it. For example, there was a snuff box that was supposed to be given to Joanna Molesey from someone’s will, but Lady Summerville said she never found it. This kept coming up at least 3-4 times, but I don’t recall it ever being resolved? They never found it and they just stopped talking about it in the end, even though Joanna was pretty adamant about owning it.

However, the romance between Agatha and Penelope does have its cute moments. I liked the fact that it was slow burn and not much happened until way past half of the book lol. I don’t think I ever expected to read a romance between a beekeeper and a print shop owner, but honestly I’m not surprised haha.

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review of the story.

I LOVE THIS BOOK.

Great world building for a time long gone, a look into politics of the time that mirror today's concerns for women owning their destinies, , a life changing friendship , that fills you with hope.

Mrs. Griffin is a widow, past her prime at 45 years old. She is, running a print business in London and Melliton . The print shop is doing well, they have steady work in an uncertain political climate.

Mrs. Flood is a woman of comfortable means in small town Melliton - her absentee husband and brother are whalers. Mrs. Flood is the local bee expert.

The two women meet when a bee swarm is discovered in Mrs. Griffin's Melliton print shop.

They begin their relationship via correspondence - a series of letters that changes Mrs. Griffins outlook - about bee keeping, politics, friendship, relationships.

If you enjoy a bit of history loosely woven through stories, seeing how politics of a few hundred years ago shaped our lives today, how gay people found a way to live and love - this book is for you!