The Palace of Rogues, more optimistically named The Palace on the Thames by its proprietors, is truly a magnificent place, and You Were Made to be Mine is a perfect chapter in its ongoing saga. Ms. Long instantly captures the reader’s affection for Christian Hawkes and Lady Aurelie Capet and keeps us spellbound with their attempts to escape and out-maneuver an evil villain intent on bringing them down. All the palace’s distinctly quirky inhabitants are in place, (it’s really a boarding house, but palace is so much nicer a term) but I believe a reader stumbling upon this volume would have no problem feeling at home in the palace’s nominally regulated yet always chaotic environment. While I normally enjoy historical romance, it is rare that I truly wish to visit a novel’s locale and spend time with its characters. But I’d truly love to knock on the door and know that Dot was evaluating the timbre of my knock and wondering if I might be tall enough to help clean the wall sconces. Ms. Long has created a uniquely welcoming world, and each couple’s tale is more engrossing and rewarding than the last. I cannot wait for the next one.

In this fifth installment of the Palace of Rogues series, Long continues to shine and prove why she is my favorite historical romance author. Aurelie is a lonely, disillusioned young woman who believes she has found her happily-ever-after in her fiancé (an earl) only to discover too late what a cruel, evil man he really is. She runs away and ends up at The Grand Palace on the Thames hotel, intent on hiding there until she can secure passage to travel to her brother in Boston. Hawkes, a former spymaster who was wrongly accused of treason by the earl and spent 3 years in prison, is hired to find her. However, he also has plans to gather evidence of the earl’s treason. When they meet at the hotel, they are drawn to the vulnerability that they sense in the other. As they fall in love, they must elude capture while bringing down the earl.

While this may sound fairly standard for an historical romance plot (two vulnerable leads drawn to each other, an evil villain, and a triumphant denouement), in the hands of Long, it is anything but. Long is a wonderful writer, but she is a master at two elements in her books: character development and dialogue/humor. She is so adept at development and authenticity that her characters are ALWAYS living, breathing persons to me…and not only the leads. The reader is fully immersed and engaged with the various lovers, friends and families that make up her stories. I literally hate when her stories end. Her dialogue (especially her humor) is spot on and perfectly nuanced, while her descriptions of emotions and feelings are often beautifully poetic. She never fails to pull every emotion from me, and I am fully convinced that she could conquer any genre that she chose to explore. I highly recommend ANY book that she writes.

My thanks to the author, NetGalley, Avon and Harper Voyager for providing the free early arc of You Were Made to be Mine for review. The opinions are strictly my own.

If you, like me, are a consistent HR reader, do not go into this expecting a traditional historical romance. This is more historical fiction with a romance subplot.
There are a couple of reasons for this: being the fifth in a series, there were many secondary characters that featured much more heavily than I would have expected. The hero and heroine did not even meet until 36% of the way through the book, and although there was tension and flirting, they did not officially get together until a little after the 80% mark, and the remaining conflict was unrelated to romance--which in general I prefer.
Aurelie and Christian both have their own, somewhat parallel goals, and both work together and independently to achieve these.
Ultimately, I found this to be a fun book, if more quirky than I originally expected.

This was a well-written book in the Palace of Rogues series, but should come with a trigger warning for sexual assault in the heroine's past, as this (combined with the hero's past of betrayal and imprisonment) create a decidedly darker tone than in previous books in the series. In the end, it is a romance, and our hero and heroine's journey to their HEA may be all the sweeter for the darkness they have overcome, but it is not a book to pick up if one only wants sweetness and light.

The Palace of Rogues by Julie Anne Long is currently one of my favorite ongoing historical romance series, so I was beyond excited to find out there would be another new release coming out this year.

I feel like this book gives off that same cozy, found family feeling as the previous installments while at the same time having darker content and themes. When the book opens the male main character, Christian Hawkes, is just released from prison after three years when the Earl of Brundage summons him. These men are alike because they move in the same dangerous social circles and work for the Crown. Brundage as a diplomat and Hawkes as a spymaster. But Christian suspects the earl of being a traitor to the Crown and believes him to be the reason he was arrested by the French government and jailed. Brundage did keep him from being executed, so he has called in this favor and tasks Hawks with finding his missing fiance and the expensive piece of jewelry he gave her before she disappeared.

The female main character is Aurelie, Lady Capet. A French noblewoman whose family was killed during the uprising, and has since lived under guardianship and raised by her nanny. She flees France and her fiance when something terrible happens between them. She ends up at The Grand Palace on the Thames under an assumed name, with the plan of selling off the single piece of jewelry she still possesses in hopes of traveling to Boston and finding sanctuary with her last remaining family member, her older brother.

I knew right from the beginning that this would be a much darker book than its predecessors. I also had an idea of why Aurelie fled France and her fiance. In my gut, I knew what the terrible thing that happened between them was. I just knew. And yet, I kept on reading because I love this author and her voice.

Hawkes and Aurelie are an odd match, with a huge difference in age, life experience, and social standing. He is the older, world-weary man and she is the much younger, sheltered woman who is running from an awful situation. It’s not until about 30% in that they actually meet, when Hawkes is stabbed and kind of falls into the Palace injured and bleeding. She doesn’t really know who he is, other than suspecting he is too handsome and charming, he on the other hand knows exactly who she is when he wakes up.

Aurelie is a lovely woman and I wanted to reach into this book and give her a big, warm hug. She was brave and endearing. I believe the author did a good job of handling her and her trauma with the care it deserved. Christian Hawkes has his own tragic backstory to deal with, but despite his history with the villain, I don’t think it played as big of a part in the overall plot. I’m still not exactly sure if I believe their rush into love and commitment. Hawke’s instalove felt weird and I wondered if Aurelie loved him because of HIM or because he became her protector when she needed one so much. The chemistry was there, but the connection felt off.

The secondary characters once again play a huge part in the story. There are quite a lot of light, fun moments amidst the somber themes. I felt like I was bouncing back and forth between the two, not sure if I should smile or cry.

While not my favorite in the series, I was glad to catch up with this wonderful group of characters. I look forward to seeing them again in the future.

Content warnings- mentions of off-page rape and sexual assault

I can not believe I have missed four prior books! This ladies who have found courage, independence, and safety in their new life are marvelous. The Grand Palace on the Thames is where our story is set but begins in Paris.

Christian Hawks is released from a French prison to find a missing fiancee. He will get back what was taken from him when he was arrested, mostly. While he agrees to this he has alternative motives. He wants to find the prof of a trader. He can search for the missing fiancee and prof at the same time.

Lady Aurelie Carpet is all that is sweet, kind, sheltered, and lonely. She wants to belong and thought she found it until it was British taken against her will. Know she only wants to get to get brother in Boston.

The two find themselves at the Grand Palace on the Thames boarding house for different reasons and arriving in two different fashions. While she is hiding under an assumed name he is hiding as himself. As he gathers information to confirm her identity and the other prof he needs, things start to fall into place.

Aurelie finds herself getting into one misadventure after another with Hawked being the one to rescue her. She starts to think he is there to bring her back to Paris, which she doesn't want. When her suspension is confirmed she flees again in the night. Which makes Hawked go after her for safety sake.

Now with all the prof he needs found will he get justice for being imprisoned? Will he find Aurelie in time to protect her and tell her what he needs to? Will Aurelie be able to travel to Boston to her brother? Will they find the proper Goodman for the Palace?

Join the family that resides at the Palace for this chapter in mystery, espionage, treason, and justice. With gregarious characters that will warm your heart and defend you against any evil. Wonderful world building that pulls you into and along side. You will be entertained and amazed throughout this beautifully thrilling story.

When 21-year-old Lady Aurelie Capet flees her titled fiancée, her temporary safe haven is The Grand Palace on the Thames boardinghouse embedded in the rough docks of London. Having lost her parents and a brother brutally in the French Revolution, she is determined to reach her remaining brother in Boston. Unbeknownst to her, shortly after her arrival, a stabbed man who collapses in the foyer of the boardinghouse is Christian Hawkes, recently released from a French prison for espionage and in search of another’s vanished fiancée -- Aurelie. Wounded and feverish, superspy Hawkes is on a quest to bring down the English traitor, Lord Brundage, responsible for those three horrific years as well as his diminished physical state. Both Aurelie and Hawkes have endured trauma due to this one man. Aurelie under the disguise as a widowed Mrs. Gallagher tenderly watches over the wounded Hawkes, even though she presumes he is an expected boardinghouse guest, the vicar Mr. Bellingham. Then begins the deliciously sensual and emotional pull and tension between Aurelie and Hawkes. The dangers close in on both of them as the writer expertly weaves the detailed web of their histories, personalities and vulnerabilities, the wider history of those times, and their intensifying passion.

Julie Anne Long’s fifth book in The Palace of Rogues series is a work that showcases her ever-increasing talent at exquisite character development, superb storytelling, and silken prose. Often the dialogue is unexpected in sensitivity and brims with hidden depths of the characters, especially with Aurelie. This fifth book envelopes Aurelie and Hawkes with impending and increasing danger for both. But with Long’s magical touch, a needed sigh of relief can be found at times with interlaced humorous moments or stage-worthy events at the Grand Palace, despite danger getting nearer and nearer.

While You Were Made to Be Mine can easily stand alone, much would be lost without having read the four previous books to flesh out the wealth of how, why, who of the Grand Palace and what makes it memorable, enticing, and treasured to a reader. Long brings back beloved Grand Palace characters at the right time and in the right measure, even ones no longer residing at the Grand Palace. It is a warm and welcomed reunion to find Duke Valkirk, Mr. Delacourt (“an egg with two legs” and a silence breaker), stoic Hardy and dashing Lord Bolt (the two under-clad husbands thundering down the stairs to rescue respective wives), and others not as mere décor but as essential to the story. Long takes chances with her writing. The final dénouement with the traitor is a nearly bloodless, verbal perfection of taking down evil.

Long’s ability to create rich series, such as the marvelous Pennyroyal Green series, continues with these five books of The Palace of Rogues series. From the first book, I’ve waited with delicious anticipation for the next book, each worth the wait and often well beyond my expectations. You Were Made to Be Mine is no exception, and one to be reread. The five books give the reader a hand with a rich full house. As I neared the last pages of You Were Made to be Mine, my fears arose that this might be the last book of the series. Thankfully, the writer was kind enough to dampen those fears, and now my anticipation grows greedily for the next book even as I barely finish this one! The Grand Palace on the Thames feels like home, and I want more of it.

I appreciate this generous opportunity to read this book early and to provide my thoughts. I am grateful to Avon Books (Harper Collins Publishers), NetGalley, and Julie Anne Long for giving me this opportunity.

4 star read, but be ready for slow slow burn.

I enjoyed seeing characters pop up through the story from other books. There is the fun mistaken identity between Aurelle and Hawkes, but the pacing of this book is odd. I love a slow burn read, but this slow then random fast, was messing me.

In the fifth installment of USA Today bestselling author Julie Anne Long’s charming Palace of Rogues series, a rakish spy finds more than he bargained for in his pursuit of an earl’s enchanting runaway fiancée.
She ran away to avoid her fiancee's cruelty. He has been injured by men hired by that same fiancee.
The mission: Find the Earl of Brundage’s runaway fiancée in exchange for a fortune. Child’s play for legendary British former spymaster, Christian Hawkes. The catch? Hawkes knows in his bones that Brundage is the traitor to England who landed him in a brutal French prison. Hawkes is destitute, the earl is desperate, and a bargain is struck.
Fleeing a savagely shattered dream, the sheltered Lady Aurelie Capet finds refuge in an alias and the warmth and kindness of the Grand Palace on the Thames—until a gorgeous, mysterious disturbance to her peace literally topples through the door.
An unexpected, fierce desire that feels destined, dangerous—and devastatingly sweet—ignites between the sheltered beauty and the jaded spy, and as they slowly unravel each other's shocking secrets Hawkes closes in on the truth about the earl. Soon it’s clear they can have no future without vanquishing the past: Hawkes knows that loving her means avenging her. Aurelie knows that loving Hawkes means freeing him to do that, no matter the cost.
Julie Anne Long has written another good book.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley. This in no way affects my opinion of this book which I read and reviewed voluntarily.

I haven't read the others in this series, but I have read many of Julie Anne Long's other books--specifically, her Pennyroyal Green series. This book absolutely works as a standalone, but given the context of her other books, I'm sure it references many of the earlier ones in the series, and I'm definitely intrigued enough that I'll be reading the first few to catch up.

This is also my first time reading one of her books in print, because all the others were audiobooks. I enjoyed it just as much, which was honestly a bit of a surprise to me.

My only critiques of this book would be things that are forgivable and an understandable part of a lot of romances; it's basically love at first sight, and some of the explanations of the characterizations were a bit on-the-nose. Overall though, I really enjoyed this book, as I do all of Long's period romances. I'd recommend this book to anyone who likes the genre.

(Spoilers below:
I also think she handled the sexual assault plot line well, and that it hopefully shouldn't be too triggering to anyone who's worried about it. It mostly deals with the aftermath of it, without having a very graphic scene.)

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the chance to read and review this ARC.

I think this will be another well-loved addition to the Julie Anne Long lexicon. And, indeed, it checks all the boxes with leads worth rooting for and a rewarding conclusion. I just don’t think it stands out when in comparison to some of my favorites by JAL, which admittedly are a tough act to follow.

The first chapter was really solid. Christian Hawkes quickly conveyed an intriguing, highly skilled and charismatic character. It also showed that this story was set to spend less time at the Grand Palace on the Thames than its predecessors did. I thought this was a good move, because while familiar characters that have featured in each of the previous books in the series are featured again, they do not overwhelm. Hawkes, fresh out of a French prison, after serving time for espionage, is hired to track down the Earl of Brundage’s fiancé. Brundage is a figure of Hawkes past, who Hawkes suspects has criminal dealings, while fashioning himself a friend and hero.

Aurelie is on the run. She is traveling as a widow and is trying to find her way to her brother in Boston. She has found refuge at the Grand Palace, while getting her passage secured. She has planned her flight well, but her amateur subterfuge is no match to a seasoned spy. Hawkes tracks her to the palace and suffers a life-threatening attack before passing out as he enters the palace. Uproar ensues and a bit of mistaken identity has Aurelie helping to nurse Hawkes back to health.

The romantic connection was believable. It did take a while for the romance to progress, but it fit the story. The characters were built up and the plot made sense. It ultimately is a very solid romance. I think it might be that solidness that made this one not work quite so well as some of her others. JAL has convinced me of second chances, that flawed characters are worthy of love, love triangles can lead to convincing love stories, and of pairings that don’t work on paper. This one just felt safer in that respect, less messy. It’s not that this was without trauma or drama (content warning: <spoiler>rape</spoiler>), but it did feel glossed over and easier. I would say that was also my hesitation with the much-loved book 4 in the series. Too solid. Not much of a complaint, is it?

In conclusion, this was an enjoyable read with a convincing romance. JAL continues to prove she’s among the best out there. I am certainly looking forward to what she does next.

<I> Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a chance to read and review this book. Views are my own.

Julie Anne Long brilliantly displays her craft as she whisks us back to the Grand Palace on the Thames. Reuniting us with old and new characters, Long's writing continues to mesmerize with its wealth of metaphors and descriptions that get to the heart of her characters.

This story is one in which we meet Christian Hawkes and Aurelie Capet. Hawke is a formidable spymaster, a consummate charmer, overly confident, and unsurprisingly cynical. Aurelie has had a lonely existence and seeks “to be necessary to someone”. Aurelie is immensely sweet and charming, and so strong in light of her life thus far.

The passion, emotion, and connection between Aurelie and Hawke was beautifully done. This is the most believable insta-love that I have ever read. The economy of the exposition and dialogue continually built the development of both characters as they made discoveries about themselves and one another. Once they connect and exposed their feelings, Long had already carried me along and convinced me that these two did indeed belong to one another.

I highly recommend reading this story if you are a fan of the series. All of the characters that reside at the Grand Palace on the Thames make an appearance and play an important role in the plot. All of them continue to be charming and convivial-especially Dot and Delacourt. There is so much more I want to say about what happens in this story-I highlighted about a third of the book after all-but I cannot and will not spoil all the tender moments and the laughter that these fantastic characters evoked in this reader.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this eARC thanks to Avon and Harper Voyager via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

#YouWereMadetoBeMine #NetGalley


***Content Warning ***

Aurelie shares her experience of having been raped by her fiancée in this story. There are no graphic descriptions or details, but enough for the reader to understand her experience during this traumatic event. The story pivots around this trauma and may be triggering for some readers.

In this installment of the Grand Palace on the Thames series, a princess and a spy fall in love.
I felt this story line was much more action packed, which was indicative of a spy novel. We caught up with the residents of the palace, and I wanted there to be more scenes with them. The two main characters do overcome all the obstacles in their journey to each other and the epilogue was satisfying and sets up perhaps another installment.

Thank you to Avon Books, Harper Voyager and NetGalley for the ARC, for an honest review. I give this book 2.5 stars. Aurlie, Lady Capet escapes her abusive fiancé in France, a Lord an English Ambassador to travel to America and live with her brother. On her journey, she travels to London and stays at the Grand Palace on the Thames. She stays there and hopes to meet her brothers friend to help her secure passage. Our Hero is Christian Hawke an English ex-spymaster who was recently imprisoned in France, is hired by Aurlie ex-fiancé to find her and bring her back to him. There is some mysterious treasonous activities/actions and I found that to be more interesting than the romance. The romance was a bit of fated mates/love at first sight and insta love. Also our heroine tells our hero about her trauma when she first meets him (in his death bed) but still, she didn’t tell anyone before. I like seeing the character from previous books and the figuring out the mystery with Mr. Hawkes but I couldn’t keep my eyes from rolling whenever I read about their romance.

TW: Rape/SA

This wasn’t just regular fun to read, it was sparklingly fun and I found myself being amused and charmed during my reading of this title.

This was my first book by the author and I really enjoyed the humor in this story, the swoony lines that really charmed me, and the downright heat in the scenes that comprised this story were so well put together and I utterly adored the end result.

I wasn’t aware that this was part of a series when I requested it but it read well as a standalone, but I am still planning on taking the time to read this series, especially if it’s as entertaining as this title was. If only for the opportunity to hopefully visit the charming establishment of The Grand Palace on the Thames again.

Everything about this one worked so well together. Recommended for historical romance fans, who like humor, awesome heroines and heroes.

A couple of my favorite quotes from this -

All in a room containing a woman who made him feel as though he were not subject to the laws of time when she was near. As though he was weightless and entirely new. That nothing of consequence mattered apart from the fact that he was alive and so was she, at the same time. He was the world’s most brutally pragmatic man, but it felt as though he finally understood what the word “destiny’ meant. And destiny, ironically, felt not like a misty fantasy but like a cold hard fact:
She was meant for him. And that was why he was here.”

“He recalled sitting across from Brundage and holding that miniature of her so tightly it had pressed a groove into his palm. As if his future was already imprinted upon him. As if he’d known even then.”

I devoured an ARC of Julie Anne Long's You Were Made to Be Mine & as always, Long's love interests truly revel in their wonder of one another & their love & passion in the best, swooniest way. I could not put this book down. A+ characters, chemistry, and glorious prose.

The Grand Palace on the Thames (aka the Palace of Rogues) always promises adventure, and this time is no exception. Fleeing her dastardly fiancé, Aurelie crosses the Channel and, using the alias Mary Gallagher, takes up residence at the Grand Palace. Meanwhile, ex-spymaster Christian Hawkes has been hired by the same-said fiancé to find Aurelie; Christian agrees, but--having been imprisoned for the past three years thanks to that man's treasonous actions--has ulterior motives for agreeing to this assignment.

Aurelie and Christian are sweet together and interesting apart, which is good because they don't actually meet until a quarter of the way into the story. This is one example of where the pacing feels a bit off. Once they are on the page together, it's enjoyable to watch them feel each other out; as readers, we know what they are trying to protect about themselves and their motives, and because we trust them both, we can enjoy the interplay. This is especially important because Aurelie and Christian each recently experienced trauma, and it's important to see the ways that they try to help each other heal.

Note: Aurelie's trauma is hinted at for most of the novel, although the clues are so clear that most readers will know immediately what has happened--and may themselves be triggered by the descriptions.

When they leave the Grand Palace in the latter third of the novel, the plot goes a bit haywire. The pace feels off, as does the logic of why certain characters take certain actions and how others come to understand what has previously been hidden. Overall, the plot seemed at times more complicated than it needed to be (as it pertains to money-laundering, for instance) and more simplistic than it should be (the resolution of a key part of the plot hinges on a duke waiting behind a door). The epilogue was unnecessary.

This is a nice historical romance for anyone who is up for a little intrigue, enjoys a background cast of much-loved and somewhat eccentric characters, and doesn't mind a few plot holes or pacing problems when the romance works.

I *adore* The Grand Palace on the Thames. Julie Anne Long's heroes and heroines continue to be compelling and complex. The established relationships are so comforting to revisit, the boardinghouse itself is so homey and lovely, and Julie's writing is so clever and insightful and lovely. This is another excellent installment in a stellar series.

Oh, what a good book! I've loved every one of the Palace Of Rogues books and this one is especially good. I loved the action, adventure, tortured (literally) hero, sweet naïve heroine, evil villain, and of course, the fabulous owners and tenants of the Grand Palace on the Themes. This is a standalone book but I think that reading the series from the beginning enhances the experience of this book. You get to know the side characters so much better. There is instant attraction but slow to develop romance between Aurelie and Hawke. There is suspense and heart pounding action as Hawke works his spying to free Aurelie and capture the traitor, the Earl of Brundage. I highly recommend this book and the entire series.

A new twist on Regency Romances. Interesting involvement of spies and traitors involved between England and France. Also had a leading lady who fought against the rules of polite society.