LOVED this book! It's an absolute must read for any romance lover. The writing is spectacular, and the characters leap off the page. The premise pulls you in but the heart (and heat) will hold you. This is a spectacular debut and I cannot wait to read more from this author. Highly recommend!

I was given this book by NetGalley for an honest review-
I devoured this book- it raised so many emotions- love, anger, pride, sympathy, desire, etc.
Rachel a black woman who comes from being a poor art student, raising a daughter to becoming a politicians wife. She gave up her life to create his Champaign and his political career.
She throws him a 40 birthday party and unexpectedly receives a shocking text from her husband,- knowing it is not meant for her. She wants out. He wants her to be the trophy wife till the election but can she do this knowing she’s not happy. In tears she meets Nathan and the sparks fly but how can they have a relationship with her married . How can they avoid a scandal. How can she stay in an unhappy relationship till the election.

Mood: You’re looking for a trophy wife as she remembers she’s made of solid goal.

I think this is my first 5-star read of 2023 and it has ruined books for me. For a while.

Rachel is a Black woman who married the eldest son of a Kennedy-esque dynasty in a picturesque, mostly elite Virginia town. Only her Prince Charming, Matt, is a floppy wang sharing jackass who lives his life based on entitlement and focus groups.

He thinks he’s entitled to DM a photo of his wang to his mistress while his wife is decorating, by hand, a cake for his frat-style 40th birthday party. Only, instead of sending it to his mistress, he sends it to his wife.

Instead of immediately burning him to the ground, they make an arrangement to keep his numbers up in the polls and give her a safety net that the prenup doesn’t allow.

So Rachel starts unmasking. She’s stops playing nice with her wasteman of a husband, stops dressing for her conservative elite neighbors, and falsifies her resume into hosting & curating the town’s annual art gala.

Necessary backstory, Rachel was a teenage mother who was able to attend college (Howard, HBCU 🖤) because her father raised her daughter while she attended school. When he suddenly passed, she left school to be a full time mom. Eventually she fell into hard times that didn’t disappear until she met Matt. So the idea of leaving him, with almost nothing, makes her afraid for the kind of future she and her college aged daughter Faith will have. (Sidenote: we don’t spend a lot of time with Faith but the children really are our future.)

So she decides to play the long game and go along with Matt’s political schemes/dreams. But she doesn’t do it alone. Thirty-seven year old Rachel meets 26 year old Nathan and they almost immediately cling to one another. He has a complicated relationship with the town’s ruling parties and an even more complicated relationship with his self-worth and mental health.

They spend most of the book dancing around each other in a special kind of forbidden dance. Dancing around her husband, his family, their growing feelings for one another, and their art.

They’re both sort of non-practicing artists and circumstances force them to face their creative expressions. Like everything else in this story, of course it’s not easy. It is however, incredibly rewarding.

There are an incredibly messy cast of side characters. No six degrees of separation, more like 1.5. I see so many opportunities for follow ups with this group.

This is a beautiful coming of age story with a hard fought HEA. I love the story of Rachel, Nathan, their healing, and their love.

Lastly, I’m trying to avoid spoilers but one thing I love love is petty revenge. I don’t want the injured party to take the high road. I want her to get hers, with interest. Mission accomplished!

CW: microaggressions, death of a parent, cheating (not by MC), lying liars that lie (really Matt sucks)

Thank you so much to Grand Central for an early copy!

I think I’ve found a new favorite romance author! If that’s even possible after just one book. What Regina Black does with Rachel and Nathan’s love story makes me trust her to tell love stories over and over again. This book is grown and sexy and messy and everything I look for in adult romance. In it, Rachel is the scorned wife of a rising political star who decides to live a little recklessly while still in the confines of rigid expectations after her husband’s affair tips her world on its head. She meets Nathan by chance, a younger man who is passionate, a talented artist, and who becomes a soft place for her to land while she’s reeling. These are two beautifully flawed characters with real wounds and authentic chemistry. And for anyone concerned, the book’s political backdrop is engaging enough to raise the stakes but never overbearing. Reading this book felt like watching Scandal for the first time - if only Olivia and Fitz were less toxic to each other. I’ll be thinking about this one for a long time, and patiently waiting for Regina Black’s sophomore novel!

The Art of Scandal was a wild ride. This debut was sexy and honest and I loved every moment. The book explores heavy topics like parental death on and off page and infidelity so read with care. Regina handled these topics with care. The Art of Scandal sucked me in from the first page and kept me captive up until I read the last page. I loved this sexy story of self discovery, rediscovering your passions and falling in love after betrayal. I would love to see this book transformed into a tv series and I look forward to a sequel.
Side characters Joe and Mia deserves a happily ever after. The only downside of this book was the missing Epilogue. After what both characters went through to get their happily ever after I wanted to see more of their happily ever after.

How Stella got her groove back meets Scandal.

I absolutely love this book! “The Art of Scandal” has it all; secrets, indiscretions, family drama and an undeniable attraction between Rachel and Nathan. Their meet-cute at the local drive-in was emotional and it was the beginning of a secret relationship that could ruin both of their lives, but one they couldn’t live without. I love Rachel’s determination to find the woman she once was before she sold her soul to her husband Matt and his power-hungry family. She has a good life, her daughter has been well taken care of but something was missing, and she found it with a man who reminded her that she was worthy and deserving of the dreams she left behind.

The storyline was intriguing and fast paced as we watched Rachel deal with her new life and the “arrangement” she made with her unscrupulous husband. Nathan’s family dynamic was tailor-made for a reality series and he just wanted to live his life on his own terms, while losing himself in his artwork and with his growing feelings for Rachel, the woman who made him feel whole. I was captivated by all the characters from the moment I began reading and I stayed up late one night to finish, because I never knew what drama they would throw at each other next. I was pleasantly surprised by the ending and I am glad I had the opportunity to read this amazing book.