I was super excited to read another installment of this Evie Dunmore series. I love the wit and sass in the first two books and I always love a "spin off" kind of story. Even though this is the same series, I love that each installment follows a different main character.

This was actually my least favorite of the three. Unfortunately, I didn't really love either of these characters. I also hate the miscommunication trope and I feel like that's all this book was. Them not understanding each other because they were facing some sort of misunderstanding.

The appearances from familiar side characters were welcome and I feel like the second half of the story (when the miscommunication actually stopped), was much better than the first.

Overall, this book didn't have a great start but it did pick up in the end.

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I enjoy the League of Extraordinary Women series very much, but this one was hard for me to get through. I love the political angle of the series, and the historical events/atmosphere worked in, but this one just didn’t do it for me. I really struggled to like Hattie, and the character development I was hoping for just didn’t happen. That bit at the end was a lot for me, but I did like Lucian quite a bit.

I was given an advanced reader's copy via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own

This is my favorite series to recommend post Bridgerton, this was probably my favorite one thus far because of the dyslexia representation

I love Evie Dunmore's writing, so immersive, and her characters are super relatable. But the romance is always what I love the most about her books, can't help but love all the pairings. Hattie is my least favourite of the protagonists in the series but I still loved her innocence in contrast to Lucian's street smarts.

I've noticed some people are not fans of the political emphasis in these books, but I find them quite enlightening and interesting to read about.

Can't wait for Catriona's book!

A delightful book full of adventure, action, and thrills. Fun to read, engrossing world building, and very descriptive imagery made it feel like it was cinematic. It's hard to resist the story as it drives forward. Would recommend.

I have to start of by saying that I love the marriage of convenience trope. Hattie and Lucian have so much chemistry together and I loved every scene that they had together. And although their marriage started off rocky and not on the right foot, I was rooting for them to fall in love the entire time.

Portrait of a Scotsman was such a romantic book, I was often swooning at these two beautiful characters who had so much love to give but often stopped themselves for fear of being hurt. Lucian and Hattie had a lot of obstacles to overcome, including their socioeconomic upbringings. Where Lucian was poor growing up, Hattie was born with a silver spoon in her mouth. Evie Dunmore did a wonderful job showcasing the differences between both characters. And I often found myself agreeing with both sides of the story.

This historical romance series is definitely not for me because first, I didn'y like the 1st one and this one is probably the worst.

I don't' know why but the main characters, especially the heroine in this series is just straight up dumb and annoying.

Long story short, the heroine is the reason why I didn't like this and of couse the writing.

I requested this title prior to reading the second Evie Dunmore book. In A Rogue of One's Own there was a completely unnecessary abuse of an animal, resulting in that animals death. When reading a romance, I do not anticipate content such as this and was incredibly disappointed in the author. I will not be reading any other books from Evie.

Evie Dunmore does it again! A witty, fun, romp through Victorian England. With each installment of this series readers are bound to find a character worth loving! Dunmore has mastered the art of the historical romance where the reader feels the world is 'authentic' and the characters realistic. I cannot wait to see who will be featured in future books and what ills of the Victorian era will be explored!

✨ PORTRAIT OF A SCOTSMAN by Evie Dunmore ✨⁣
Thank you @berkleyromance for a gifted copy!⁣
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In the final wrap-up in The League of Extraordinary Women series, we meet Hattie Greenfield, the last and final woman of the series. She finds herself involved with Lucian Blackstone, whose dark and murky past threaten to bring her down with him.⁣
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I enjoyed this book a lot, with the Scottish landscape scenes, Hattie and Lucian’s discussion on class differences, and each of them meeting each other in the middle. The end had me 🥰🥺💖⁣
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As the finale to this romance “trilogy,” I’d say this was my second favorite of the three, with BRINGING DOWN THE DUKE still being my favorite. Each book was entertaining and had me swooning, so if you’re a fan of regency romances, definitely check this series out ✨

I have enjoyed this series especially the empowerment of women and the caring men who fall in love with these women. However, this was my least favorite book of the three. For some reason the story line fell flat for me where I could not connect with the characters.

Thank you Netgalley for this advance copy.

Another great historical for people who typically don't love historical romance. Strong heroine, swoony hero, and everything else you want!

The "female character is compromised and must marry" trope is in full effect with this book. Neither of these characters were particularly likeable for me. The ending. Ugh. I haven't much enjoyed this series overall.

Unfortunately, PORTRAIT OF A SCOTSMAN wasn't for me. Since I am a huge fan of historical romances, I thought this would be a good fit. However, I couldn't finish this one.

It's been a while since I've read a romance. My first romance novels were from the 70's and early 80's, and rape-to-love was such a common trope back then that it was pretty much standard. That's what I grew up thinking was romance, and I suppose that explains some things. One thing I found incredibly refreshing in this book was how important consent was.

This idea of consent extended to Hattie needing something from Lucian so that she could choose him freely, instead of having to marry him because she was found with him in a "compromising" position. I don't know how realistic it would be that any Victorian woman would think of such a thing, but I understood what the book was trying to get at.

I liked both the main characters. Hattie, although she was naive and spoiled, also had struggled with living up to expectations. She was left-handed, likely dyslexic, and had managed to get permission to attend university for her passion for art. She liked to eat more than her mother approved of, ran with suffragettes. Hattie definitely did live up to the idea that Victorian women were supposed to be the moral voice of the family, inspiring the best behavior of others. It was Lucian's willingness to listen to her despite his own needs that went far to redeeming him in Hattie's eyes.

Lucian was a great take on the smoldering angry Heathcliff. Lucian was motivated by revenge to achieve great financial success (how he became Quality is something I never quite figured out). But underneath that rage was someone who was fiercely protective of those he loved, someone to whom it would never occur to force a woman sexually, someone who could perceive the value of his wife and work to live up to her hopes for him. He might have been angry, but he was never angry at Hattie.

I liked both of these characters and was rooting for both of them. The standard misunderstanding, rescue, rapprochement plotline was there, but it was interesting and didn't feel forced. I liked that Hattie was unabashedly female (she wasn't the Not Like Other Girls trope) and that I got to read about her outfits- I like that kind of thing in a romance! I liked that Hattie found a new passion and used her past knowledge and skills to find success in it. I liked that she spoke her mind courageously, even when she was being sort of self-righteous. I liked that the two of them could talk about sex. It's amazing how much romance heroines have changed!

I think I'll go back and read the other two books that came before in this series. I'm hoping that Catriona (who I liked very much in this book) will also get a book of her own. I liked that this band of suffragette friends was there for each other.

I loved a lot about this books, but I felt that it went a little off the rails at the end. The plot development was out of character (in my opinion) and I thought the attempted murder was a bit much.

I love historical romance and I loved this! Now this was the first one I read in the seres, A League of Extraordinary Women Series, but I quickly went back and dived into the first two books--and this one happens to be my favorite. I love when there is something misleading or some type of misunderstanding in the beginning of a story causing the story and plot line to unfold and Love it it in here. Lucian is awesome and I loved getting to know him. Overall I enjoyed it and I can't wait on the next book.

Evie Dunmore knows how to give you exactly what you are looking for in a historical romance. Popping off the page characters, new-to-you historical circumstances, lovely banter. It has it all.

I was expecting so much more from Evie Dunmore because I loved Bringing Down the Duke. I did not enjoy this one. Where was the chemistry? Where was the witty dialogue?

Review excerpted from my blog post over at Titillated Termagant Romance Reviews (https://titillatedtermagant.wordpress.com/2022/01/28/portrait-of-a-scotsman-by-evie-dunmore/)

My Rating: 4.5 stars

Library recommendation: Recommended for public library historical romance collections.

Warning: Hereafter, you chance spoilers. I will try never to reveal major plot points, but to review any book, you must reveal some parts of the story.

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Number of titles I have read by this author: 3

Love story speed: Medium burn

Relationship dynamics: The Underworld Businessman (H) / The Bluestocking Suffragette (h)

Physical descriptions: Hattie is described as being slightly shorter than average, plump, and having curly red hair, and brown eyes. Lucian is described as being slightly taller than average, with black hair, slate grey eyes, and a crooked nose.

Sexual content: Some, on-page and semi-explicit

Triggers: PTSD; flashbacks; child abuse; forced proximity; misunderstood learning difference

Grammar/Editing: My ARC had some typos.

Review: This medium-paced novel is set in 1880 London and Scotland. It takes place after the events in the earlier books in the series (see my reviews here (https://titillatedtermagant.wordpress.com/2019/08/02/bringing-down-the-duke-by-evie-dunmore/), and here (https://titillatedtermagant.wordpress.com/2020/10/05/a-rogue-of-ones-own-by-evie-dunmore/). As with previous installments, this book features meticulous research and the story is seamlessly placed within the historical context. Once again, Dunmore acknowledges and describes artistic license used within the story in her author’s note. While you don’t have to read the other books in this series before delving into this one, having done so will definitely enrich the reading experience.

The main characters in this installment in the series are Hattie and Lucien. Hattie fights within and against the expectations of her upbringing, but her thought process can be disordered and she cannot write well, which can cause issues for her. She shows steady growth as a character within the narrative, although how this growth happens may not be to every reader’s taste, as she has to overcome indoctrinated class prejudices and this is significant in the plot. Lucien similarly needs to overcome events of his past to grow as a character and to be a successful partner in their relationship. While they both grow while together, there is, as with other books in this series, a requirement for the hero to acknowledge the heroine as a person separate from himself (both before and after marriage) who is entitled to freedom and choice – a true suffragette’s goal. In terms of supporting characters, there are appearances made by characters from the previous books as well as assorted new characters. Regardless of their nature, they support the plot but don’t nab the spotlight unless necessary, which was quite effective in the context of the plot. The villain is fairly typical, though, and thus their motives and actions were quite predictable.

Full disclosure: I received a free advance review copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.