Eddie had quite the road to self-discovery, didn’t she? Especially impressive because, wow, she could be so dense and naive. But she got there eventually. I love that Rose knew who she was from the start, and what she wanted in life, even if she hadn’t yet voiced them aloud. And so much of this book has me literally laughing out loud - excellent.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.

I love this regency-era novel. The author’s prose is so authentic and the characters are neatly developed. I saw and judged the characters through my own eyes, but also through the eyes of Eddie, the female protagonist, resulting in my attachment to all of them. I like how I could envision being there even though it was hundreds of years ago and thousands of miles away. Both Reputation and Infamous, similar books by the same author, are refreshing and intriguing. I hope Lex Croucher keeps churning out books like these!

I was given the chance to read an ARC through NetGalley.
I read Lex Croucher's book Reputation last year and loved it, so I was hoping for something similar. Infamous was alright, not my favorite story, it seemed like a lot of things were just being repeated through the chapters, but the character development was absolutely amazing. I fell in love with Eddie and Rose and was just as infatuated with Nash as Eddie was. Overall, not my favorite way to start the new year, but I've definitely read much worse.

I really enjoyed this. It was a bit more scandalous than I expected, but the characters were really likeable and believable. The ending snuck up on me but the story had a satisfying conclusion, and even the parts that made me want to scream were enjoyable. My suspicions about the plot came true and it was fun to see how those played out.

Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for this eArc of <i>Infamous</i>. All opinions are my own.

Let me just say that every time I get an email saying I've been invited to read one of Lex Croucher's new books, I'm ecstatic. I adored <i>Reputation</i> and was very much looking forward to <i>Infamous</i> as well. I think this book is a little less serious than <i>Reputation</i>, but I mean that in the best way possible. If you have any knowledge of the Romantic poets, you will absolutely love this lovingly crafted satirical piece of historical fiction. One of our main characters, the "infamous" poet Nash Nicholson, is clearly a facsimile of our boy Lord Byron (mad, bad, and dangerous to know), but Croucher manages to humanize him and let us all in on a little secret—celebrities are just human beings like us.

At the same time, through Eddie and her best friend Rose, Croucher shows the perils of getting into any industry as a young, inexperienced woman, the complications of friendships, and what it takes to stay independent and forge your own path.

The only part that had me going "hmmmm" is that Rose, Eddie's best friend, is of Chinese descent, and I do have to wonder—would she have faced prejudice in this Regency world, or are we pulling a <i>Bridgerton</i> here and acknowledging that yes, other races besides white people resided in Great Britain, even if this wasn't likely how they were treated in society?

Either way, <i>Infamous</i> is a fun way to spend a few days getting lost in some queer historical romance, which at the end of the day is a good enough reason for me to keep reading.

Thought this book was funny!
I loved Eddie’, he was a great great character!
Overall i thought it was clever and brilliantly written and funny!

I received an ARC of this book by the publisher via Netgalley in an exchange for an honest review.

Earlier this year, I read Lex Croucher's Reputation. It blended the current craze for regency romances (guilty as charged) with more modern dialogue and humor. It was a regency Mean Girls (literally even the famous line, "Get in loser..." made an appearance). I loved it for all its irreverent charm.

Fast forward to when I was granted an ARC of Croucher's newest novel, Infamous. I was over the moon and jumped straight into it. And then a month went by followed by another one. And then another month trudging along trying to get through it. Even with all the excitement in the world I still struggled to finish Infamous. It starts off slow, like molasses slow. For the first 55% of this book I'd describe it by saying "a group of immature people spend too long out in the woods partying." I feel like Infamous could've improved with 100 pages getting cut by the editor.

I think it can be a tricky balancing act determining which scenes are conducive to moving the plot along versus empty exposition which sets the scene. However, Infamous leans heavily into the latter category. And that quickly turns into me being bored. That factored with Croucher's neverending sarcastic Millennial era dialogue makes you end up hating everyone. What I found charming in Reputation has become a monster in Infamous.

One big positive is that I liked the representation in the book. Many different people from different walks of life are featured in this book, and that's great to see in a book set in the regency period set in England. It doesn't feel forced and that's to be celebrated.

My last qualm is that I feel like the ending was rushed (ironic considering that I felt like the story was going nowhere for 75% of the book. There's a scene towards the end that unfolds when the protagonist is tripping on mushrooms and a scene plays out. We never find out if it actually happened or was it a figment of her imagination. It reveals some important tidbits but we're left hanging as to whether anything occurred. It doesn't seem like Croucher meant to intentionally leave it open to interpretation. And so I was left coming up to end the book and feeling that loose ends hadn't been tied up.

I give Infamous 3 out 5 stars. I think the story had good bones, but could've benefited greatly with some refining from an editor.

I really enjoyed this. It was a bit more scandalous than I expected, but the characters were really likeable and believable.

With their first novel, Reputation, Lex Croucher wrote a regency rom com that was as much about friendship as romance and told a historically detailed story with a modern voice. Infamous is a sort of spiritual sequel, with the same mood of twenty-first-century-sensibility-meets-Regency-style. In this work, however, the scope is broader and the story feels bigger than a young woman's misadventures (even though, on a literal level, that's more or less what it is). Infamous is primarily about love rather than friendship, and it's about the world: art and its importance, power and who wields it, the rules society makes and who is allowed to bend or break them.

And it's an excellent read. The main character, Eddie (short for Edith), is a sort of British Jo March - a fiery and talented writer who cares little about the opinions of others. Her best friend, Rose, is a delightful foil, and her crush, Nash, is charmingly awful; watching these two secondary characters draw out different sides of Eddie's personality is so engrossing and emotionally grounded that the Gothic background of the story feels almost comedic. It's not until we near the story's climax that we fully see what Eddie has been missing, about the world and the people she loves most, all this time.

I hate to skip to the end, but I live for a good epilogue, and this one was the perfect bow on top of a wonderful gift of a book. It will leave you with a wide smile and a sense of justice.
Now, going back, if I had to live during a time of rolling bathtubs and building fires to stay warm, I hope I'd still be as feisty as Eddie, and as loveable as Rose. This story of childhood friends discovering themselves and each other will leave you breathless.

Solid 3.5 stars. You know how the book will end but the ride was a fun one along the way. Thanks to NetGalley and St Martins Griffin for the arc.

I loved the concept of this book, I loved the premise of this book, and I loved the books and characters this book was based off; however I did not love this book. I don’t know how a book that is about women somehow manages to have 85% of the book be about a man. I felt like in setting up the plot and the antagonist, we lost the main characters and their story. That said, I did love the main characters. They’re idiots and I love them. But I don’t think I will get over a promising wlw book being about a very annoying man.

Very solid read but with an insufferably stupid heroine. I know she was young and needed to learn some lessons about life, but it was almost painful to read how stupid she was about the world around her. Despite her being insufferable and stupid, I really enjoyed this coming of age story that is mixed with a healthy dose of cynicism about art and artists and people who are selfishly blind to the needs of people around them in the name of “art.” The ending was shocking but ultimately satisfying, even though in the immediate I wished for revenge I ultimately after some thought found their maturity refreshing.

I’m going to be honest here. I did not like the book until maybe the last 30 percent of the book This is mainly because of Eddie. She’s rude and selfish treats everyone around her awful.

I do want to thank NetGalley & St. Martin’s Press for an ARC of this book.

Infamous is a historical romance that follows Eddie who is a writer and who is also trying to focus on her writing career while wanting to working with her idol, as well as her best friend rose who is wanting to settle down and get married (which you could probably guess that Eddie is not happy about) being that she has very confusing feelings towards rose.

I really enjoyed this, the main characters were easy to like although Eddie was a bit annoying at parts but the banter and romance in here surprised me in a good way lol. It is definitely bridgeton meets book smart. I wish I would have read this in the autumn because it would have made the vibes while reading fun and warm<3

I look forward of reading more from this author!

Eddie is an aspiring writer grappling with change when her longtime best friend, Rose, starts talking about settling down. Why can’t things stay the way they are?

Enter Nash, a handsome published poet who offers help with Eddie’s novel, and entry into his debaucherous world. Will Eddie have to choose between her friendship with Rose and her literary aspirations?

Lex Croucher’s latest Regency romp is delightfully queer and packed with a lot of heart. It is a refreshing yet grounded reflection of the era. Highly recommend!

5⭐️

This story focuses on two best friends Eddie Miller and Rose Li and how their relationship is changing as they become older and have to make their own lives. Rose insists on the traditional way, Eddie refuses to interact with "polite" society and wants for focus on her writing.

I struggled to finish this one mostly because I could not connect with Eddie. I immediately knew where things were going when a certain character was introduced and therefore Eddie's behavior became increasingly irritating.

The family dynamics among the Miller's was fantastic. I loved the fact that the parents didn't push normal societal expectations of the time on their children, never discouraged Eddie's writing or uninterest in marrying.

My wanting to see how Rose and Eddie's relationship would end up kept me reading. I also enjoyed the interactions between Rose and Albert, once he was introduced. I found him to be very sweet.

Shout-out to Dayo, Kitty, and Valentine (woo! woo! for they/them pronouns) who are all artists introduced to Eddie through Mr. Nash Nicholson, a published poet. Those three made Nash slightly more tolerable.

There were some events towards the end of the book that I would have liked explained better, as I still have some questions but overall I was happy with the ending.

Would definitely recommend for those who would enjoy a feminist, queer, regency romance - even includes the one bed trope!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing an egalley copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Twenty-two-year-old aspiring writer Edith (“Eddie”) Miller and her best friend Rose have always done everything together—from climbing trees and sneaking bottles of wine, to extensive kissing practice. But Rose has started talking about marriage, and Eddie is horrified. Why can’t they continue as they always have?
Then Eddie meets charming, renowned poet Nash Nicholson––a rival of Lord Byron, if he does say so himself––and he welcomes her into his world of eccentric artists and boundary-breaking visionaries. The pure hedonism and debauchery that ensues isn’t exactly what she had in mind, and Eddie soon finds herself torn between her complicated feelings for Rose and her equally complicated dynamic with Nash, whose increasingly bad behavior doesn’t match up to her vision for her literary hero. Will Eddie be forced to choose between her friendship with Rose and her literary dreams––or will she be able to write her own happily ever after?
I was hesitant to read Infamous only because Regency is not my favorite subgenre, but the tagline had me sold in an instant. I can’t resist a book about an aspiring writer and, as a bisexual woman, I love a story about a character grappling with their sexuality. Infamous ticked all of these boxes for me. The characters were beautifully written and even Nash had his lovable moments, though they were few and far between.

Rep: bi mc, British Chinese lesbian li, Black side character, gay side character, agender side character

This was such a fun read. The characters were beautifully written. Delightfully diverse and queer as heck. Bridgerton meets Booksmart in the best way. I look forward to reading more from this author! 4 stars.

“To everybody else, your writing will be… a commodity, or a passing curiosity. A horror. A punchline. You must love it fiercely, and take pride in it regardless.”

I absolutely loved this story. The characters were all interesting (even the unlikeable ones), the dialogue was witty, the parties were so much fun, and the whole thing was hilarious. Jane Austen would have loved these characters, and there have been FEW times I've thought that was true.

There's diversity, debauchery, the best kinds of love (romantic, friend, family), sarcasm, wit, character growth, and shenanigans. I also loved Reputation, so I'm excited to see what Lex Croucher comes up with next!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for my Kindle copy in exchange for an honest review.