This was super cute! Once you get over how unfair the system is/was to women, it’s a very enjoyable read. No epic plot, but fun storyline. A little bit of spice, 18+. Some witty lines.
Easy read, decent characters, by the end I was rooting for everyone- I definitely wouldn’t have said that at the beginning. It’s set in the 1880’s but the writing is really easy to read and understand- no ‘Jane Austen’ phrasing.
Complete story with more than one HEA.

Check content warnings.

Special thanks to Netgalley and Julia Bennet for this digital ARC.

I really enjoyed this book. I was sucked in from the very beginning. I enjoyed reading about Fran’s story.

This was my first historical romance and sadly this book didn't do it for me. The book in secondary characters pov is what bothered me the most and the story was nice but it was difficult to get into it.

"A defiant Victorian wife fights to escape a bad marriage, but her love for a forbidden man jeopardizes her chance of freedom."

The book blurb hooked me instantly and I was not disappointed. I haven't read much historical romance, and this is my first Julia Bennet book, but I enjoyed this book immensely. The thing that stood out to me almost immediately is the writing and language the author used. I found the writing to flow well' and the language! The book takes place in 19th century England, and the language the characters use is very much what would have been used during that time. I did need to google certain words/phrases that I was unfamiliar with, but I loved how authentic it made the story feel.

Seeking a divorce during this time was damn near impossible, but Francesca pushed and pushed because she desperately wanted her freedom. It made her a pariah in society and she lost her good name/standing, and many connections, and while we saw moments of weakness due to the stress of everything, Fran had no regrets and made her choices with both eyes open. She was determined and strong and I loved her so dang much. Edward was a typical man for his time and I did not like him one bit. He was petty and childish. However, James was such an interesting character. I wasn't always his biggest fan, but seeing his growth throughout the book and how his feelings for Fran continued to grow, was beautiful.

There are a lot of other characters in the book that add to our main character's story, and while sometimes I had to remind myself who was who, it was fairly easy to keep it all straight. The plot of the book being centered around a woman's divorce, the ins and outs of securing a divorce, and the consequences of pursuing a divorce, is something I haven't really seen before and I thought it was very well done. While many of the beliefs tied to women and marriage mentioned in the book are pretty gross, they are unfortunately historically accurate.

Overall, this was a wonderful book. Well written characters, interesting plot, and some spice to boot! I definitely recommend.

This was my first book by Julia Bennett and I really enjoyed it. The subject matter, divorce in Victorian England, was different from most Historical Romance books I have read. Francesca Thorne has been unhappily married to a blatant philanderer for ten years, and has made the difficult decision to file for divorce, despite the social condemnation it brings her. Her husband, Edward, is determined to prevent the divorce, totally for societal reasons. Into this equation comes James Standish, Edward's best friend, who starts off trying to help Edward, but ends up admiring Francesca.

I enjoyed the way the author showed the growth and change of the characters, while pointing out the horrible injustice suffered by women in this time period. Although I wasn't in favor of Edward not getting what he deserved, I still, thoroughly, enjoyed the book. 4-1/2 stars

Thank you to Xpresso Book Tours and NetGalley for giving me this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Engaging romance sparked by the controversial pursuit of freedom...
There was a wonderful, beguiling subtlety to the chemistry between Francesca (Fran) and James (Jemmy) in this forbidden romance that sees Jemmy fall hard for his bestfriend's estranged wife. A connection laced with an honesty that hooked me in as it radiated with a tenderness that swam beneath the humour and teasing nature of their budding friendship and blossomed, so delightfully, with deeper understanding and admiration, into something so much more. In all its steamy intimacy and seductively forbidden temptation.
Centred around a refreshingly rare theme for this time period: divorce, two (Francesca and Edward) delve blindly into marriage for it to disastrously unravel. As wrongful perceptions and character assumptions quickly shatter to reveal opposing ideals and incompatibility. That erects fences so insurmountable they are forced to live apart as bitterness, indifference and contempt festers to leave Francesca with only two options. One, seek a chance at escape in a high stakes navigation of the battlefield of divorce and be shunned and cast aside in the process as the rebelliously ungrateful, scandalous wife. Or, two, if her egotistical husband and her heartless family have their way, bow down to duty as society dictates by putting up with his constant infidelity, as afterall it's his right and accept his generous allowance bribery in exchange for continuous loneliness, disrespect and misery.
Fran's situation, horrendous - though at the time I'm sure sadly typical - really pulled at my heart strings and had me in tears as it made me love her more with each breath and her estranged husband with a greater degree of loathing and contempt. Cementing me firming in her precarious corner.
I loved Fran, her strength and determination to go against the grain and seek her freedom, despite her slim chance at victory, took guts and extreme courage. Especially, when abandoned by her family to face a solid wall of scorn and hate alone. So, thank goodness for her breathe of fresh air, straight talking, and supportive best friend, Caroline and her hardworking husband.
Similarly, Jemmy was an interesting character to see unravel and grow as despite wanting to remain impartial was pushed into the middle. I loved how his nonchalance dissolved into sympathy and anger on Fran's behalf as he was pulled in by her wit, charm and quiet beauty. Allowing a love to bloom that seeded and provided an intriguing and satisfying spark of inspiration as he became determined to improve himself and seek a bigger purpose beyond the heir leached by his aunt's whims.
Shaping into a couple who embarked on a journey, thwarted from the start, but together grew and developed, for me, into two truly lovable, believable characters who made mistakes lured by temptation but valliantly fought, despite their vulnerabilities and uncertainties, to grasp at that desperate slither of hope.
On an aside note, I had mixed feelings about the need to include a secondary love thread. To see Edward change from the happy go lucky youth of the beginning to the hateful, bitter man he devolved into was both sad and maddening in many ways.  As contempt escalated into outrage with very little time left in my opinion to see any glimmer of remorse offset his entitled sense of arrogance, for me to feel anything more than indifference at his Interwoven love interest in Sylvia - an intelligent young woman so surprisingly like Fran in many ways who was just as stifled, unseen beyond her appearance and imprisoned by circumstance and society - as I rather felt she deserved so much more that she got.
That said I really did enjoy being entangled in the build of friendship to love between Fran and Jemmy as they fought against the double standards and hypocrisy women faced at the time. As a result, I admired Bennet's writing style immensely as well as the twists and entertaining and eye opening turns the plot took.
A first for me by Bennet but certainly won't be my last!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc! Despite the pretty cover and enticing title, this unfortunately was such a slog to get through. The characters were quite bland with little to no chemistry and the plot was a little too convoluted with all the of the side characters. I think the narrative was unfocused at times and the central love story just didn't have me kicking my feet or feeling invested at all.

The Worst Woman in London was just not for me.

I think I kind of got the ick at the very first chapter, which felt abrupt in tone compared to the rest of the novel. We are introduced to Francesca and Mr. Thorne, who are soon to be wed, and James–Mr. Thorne's besty. We learn pretty quickly that all men in this novel are nasty, misogynistic pigs, but also...sexy. This will satisfy some romance novel readers, but as for me...not so much. Meanwhile, Francesca is caught in a loveless marriage with a sexist philanderer, wants a divorce, and while pursuing a divorce gets caught in a love affair with sexy besty James who is decidedly better than Mr. Thorne but also, still pretty not great at times.

After the first chapter, things started to get a bit better and I had HOPE. But that was dashed in the later parts of the novel when the character of young, beautiful, unique, and secretly headstrong Sylvia enters the chat. I don't want to spoil anything, but I felt that the way things ended felt a bit (a lot) unlikely to happen, and a bit (a lot) like throwing a very young woman to the wolves just to make sure that our love interests can smooch in public. Not my cup of tea.

That being said, I feel like The Worst Woman in London could be a good fit for the right reader. Maybe someone who just likes a lot of smut set in a historical setting with some cute banter—someone who doesn't mind not looking at the male characters too closely or analyzing the health of the romantic relationships.

2/5 stars—I gave it a cute extra star because of the bits in the middle that I enjoyed. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review <3

For when you're vibing with: friends to lovers, an experienced, jaded heroine, a softer hero, complicated friend group issues, and two romances for the price of one.

Ten years after marrying Edward Thorne--and eight years after they separated--Francesca is determined to get a divorce. Thorne, conversely, is determined to avoid giving her one. That's why he employs the help of his best friend, James Standish, to persuade Francesca into staying the course. The problem? James and Francesca's friendship rapidly gives way to a sizzling sexual tension...

I have mixed feelings on this one. I really like Julia Bennet's writing style, overall, I like Francesca a lot as a heroine, and I admire the way this story takes on some complicated, adult social bonds and relationship issues.

However, I feel that the author may have bitten off a bit more than I personally would advise chewing. This book isn't that long--but there's a lot of character development packed into it, and I don't think I could really... fully believe it, even if I believed in Francesca and James's relationship in essence.

Quick Takes:
--Again, I really like the complexity of James being Thorne's longtime friend, while falling in love with his wife. I wouldn't say that Fran and James are friends when the book begins--they aren't enemies, but with James being Thorne's friend and Thorne and Fran being separated for so long, they just haven't had reason to spend time together. Their chemistry felt really natural, and I think it would've been even better had Bennet leaned into James's guilt and the tension of him wanting his friend's wife a bit more. Yes, Thorne doesn't want Francesca at this point. But I feel that Bennet sidestepped some of that guilt by making James and Thorne basically near on the outs shortly after the book begins. Which just! Doesn't make sense, for one thing; is Thorne so stupid that he'd send a friend who doesn't even really like him to handle something so delicate? But for another thing, you're just losing a lot of emotional value and angst when you have the men at odds so early.

--Here's the other thing. There is a secondary romance, and it is between Thorne and Sylvia, a young woman originally intended to be matched with James. Cool, I don't have an issue with this in theory. But Thorne is such a jackass (and not in a fun way) and Sylvia is eighteen to his thirty-six. Which, in theory, in a historical, I could potentially get behind. I've read similar age gaps and loved them, I won't lie. But here, I see a guy who's an asshole, and I see a fresh, young girl who really deserves better, and I see her being paired up with him after he couldn't make it work with his thirty-year-old wife... It just didn't work for me, and it especially didn't work when contrasted to Francesca's fertility issues, and it especially didn't work when it was taking time away from James and Fran's romantic development.

--Like I said, there's just a lot going on, even though I would say this book is more character-centric than plot-centric. But if you do enjoy the idea of a story in which everyone ends up with their own HEA, and you get a couple different romances, I can see this working. For me, secondary romances can be excellent... Or they can feel like distractions from the main event. Here, it felt like a distraction. For me.

--James is definitely a softer hero, but here I think it worked well because that was what Francesca needed. In many ways, I think this book was kind of a deconstruction of what you see a lot in historical romance--it's looking into what happens after the couple that is really superficially unsuited gets together. And what happens when the heroine grows up, and needs someone who's more suited to the person she's grown and become. It's very realistic, in that sense.

So yes--mixed feelings here, but I see the talent, and I see the value. I'd love to read more from Julia Bennet that perhaps has a bit less going on, and a bit more focus on the core love story, but I appreciate her realistic look at adults with adult problems.

Thanks to Julia Bennet for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

When his friend marries Francesca, James knows they are all wrong for each other. His friend ignores her and proceeds to have many public affairs. Miserable, Francesca demands a divorce. James sympathizes with Francesca’s case and knows she will be ostracized if she gets the divorce. Spending time together, they discover an attraction they can not deny. I received an ARC from NetGalley and the author for my honest review.

An interesting book focusing on how regency (and so many other cultures) treat the behaviours of men and women so differently. Set as a historical novel and the scandal of divorce.

This was a really interesting read for me! I thought it was going to be a quick read for me, but I took my time with this one and put it down a few times. I haven't read a historical fiction with divorce as that was rather rare within that time period - unhappy marriages, sure, but divorce. That made it interesting. I thought the characters were well written, some maybe didn't need to be there in my opinion, but I thought it all arced well with the plot. Would recommend!

A defiant Victorian wife fights to escape a bad marriage but her love for a forbidden man jeopardizes her chance at freedom.

James Standish knows how to play society’s game. He’ll follow the rules, marry a virginal debutante, and inherit a massive fortune. At least, that’s the plan until he meets Francesca Thorne. She’s not the sort of woman a respectable gentleman like James could ever marry—not least because, strictly speaking, she’s married already.

Francesca is determined to flout convention and divorce her philandering husband. When James sweet talks his way into her life tasked with convincing her to abandon her dream of freedom, she’s unprepared for the passion that flares between them.

Torn apart by conflicting desires, James and Francesca must choose whether to keep chasing the lives they’ve always wanted or take a chance on a new and forbidden love.

Sadly, this did not do it for me. First of I was annoyed by the inclusion of chapters written in the POVs of some of the secondary characters - it took me out of the flow of the story and I didn't care about the secondary relationship developing. Secondly, I was not a fan of the ending either. Especially not the ending of one of the secondary characters, who didn't get as they deserved. It was an underwhelming and at times even frustrating reading experience.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of "The Worst Woman in London" in exchange for an honest review. I loved this book. It was not your typical regency romance which made it exciting and refreshing. I also appreciate that the author tackled divorce independence, and freedom from a woman's perspective during this period. All of the characters were well written and had a greater depth to them than I expected. This was a very enjoyable read and I can't wait for the author's next book.

My first historical romance not written by Julia Quinn, Bennet captures the charms of London and the scandals surrounding falling in love and heaven forbid, divorce. A friends to lovers tale with great banter. I loved that the heroine demanded independence and wouldn’t bend to the will of her influential peers. The secondary couple confused me as I absolutely could not care less what happened to Francesca’s ex-husband other than not getting any morsel of a happy ending.
Definitely spicier than other historical romances I’ve read!

My main takeaway from this book is that I’m grateful for living in the 21st century. So happy I’m free to make my own terrible decisions!

Francesca and Edward Thorne got married after a short engagement ten years ago, but soon realized that they could never be happy together. He moved out shortly afterwards, but despite having been living separate lives for years, by law they are still married. Edward won’t agree to a divorce because of the scandal it would bring to both their families. Shunned by her family and the society, Francesca finds an unlikely ally in Edward’s friend James Standish.

I absolutely adored Francesca. She was not heroic and far from perfect, but that made her even more inspiring. It takes guts to fight for your freedom if you risk losing everything.

James is an excellent example of a character development. I loved his growth throughout the story and I loved that the change, even though inspired by Francesca, wasn’t for her sake.

It’s a book about many things; about the social injustices, hypocrisy and women’s (lack of) rights in the 19th century England. But most of all, it’s a beautiful, forbidden love story, with lovable characters and good spice!

Highly recommended!!!

4.5 stars

Thank you so much NetGalley and Xpresso Book Tours for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book and this is my freely given opinion.

This was a book about love, marriage, and divorce in high society in Victorian England. Francesca Thorne is rebelling against the societal norm when she decides she is not going to continue with her marriage to philandering husband, Edward. After two years together, and 8 years living apart, with her living in the country with his mother, and him living it up with his various dalliances in London, Francesca seeks out Edward and petitions for a divorce. Edward, despite not even liking his wife anymore, and wanting to continue his rakish ways living apart from her, balks at divorce because it would be such a scandal... much more a blight than his behaviour, including installing his latest mistress in his London home and his publicly known philandering.

He offers Francesca different incentives and he and her family try various ways to manipulate her from her choice, including her own blood relations shunning her. He turns to his good friend James Standish to try to persuade Francesca to staying within the marriage as well. However, Francesca wishes to stay the course as she would rather have her freedom, independence, and probably reestablishing her sense of self and dignity, than maintain the facade of her broken marriage. Even if it means being shunned by society.

James, the bachelor best friend of Edward, is a typical society dilettante, raised with wealth and privilege by his wealthy aunt, who pulls his leash whichever way she wants as he is the heir to her estate. Edward uses him to relay and try to manipulate Francesca into accepting his terms for the marriage. But James finds himself attracted to her and feeling empathy for what Francesca is going through.

This was a very interesting novel in some aspects such as it's focus on the hypocrisy of the period where divorce is such a taboo thing, and it is much more acceptable for couples to be unhappy and break their vows to seek happiness outside of their marriages. Also the double standards considering how cheating men are treated versus cheating wives. That the fake appearance of marriage is preferable, even when everyone knows it is a broken marriage and a lie, to the scandal of divorce. That the fault always lies with the woman. Damn Francesca for not toeing the line and living according to the expected norms of the time...

The relationship between Francesca, James, and Edward was interesting as well. Through his relationship with Francesca, James developed his own sense of self, and desire for independence, from his aunt, and her wealth. It also lead to his breakdown in his relationship with his so-called best friend - another divorce in a sense too. But then, James matured and grew as a person, whereas Edward stayed a selfish pleasure seeker who did not care for how it hurt others - even his friend. So a break in that friendship was probably in the offing anyways.

I did find some of the courtroom/judicial aspects rather dry, though informative, but skimmed through them after a time.

3.5 stars out of 5

Edward's secondary relationship (or would it really be tertiary... or so? Well, let's call it his end-romance) was more than he deserved and rather ironic considering he sought in the end what he damned Francesca for in the beginning.

I love a good Victorian romance and this one hit hard. I hadn’t read one with a divorce in it so this really captured my attention! Love James and Francesca and their chemistry.

This is one of my favorite historical romances I've read this year. In this story, Fran is trying to divorce James' longtime friend, and both main characters are feeling weighed down by social norms and expectations. Fran is fighting for her own freedom, and James is questioning whether society's rules should be able to dictate his future. As their friendship—and later, their relationship—develops, their characters develop so much as well.

This is a great friends-to-lovers historical romance with a hefty dose of social criticism mixed in, and I really enjoyed it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me this ARC in exchange for an honest review!