Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced review copy of this book. Thank you as well to Libro.fm for an advanced listening copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Of all the books in this series, I think this one might be my least favorite. I'm not sure why I had such a hard time getting into this one since the story was interesting and the characters are likable and fun, but it really took me much longer than it should have to finish this.

I loved the continuing battle for women's rights, as well as the side plot of stolen artifacts. Catriona also has a lot of neurodiverse characteristics, while not being called that. She also discusses LGBTQ+ (bisexual? biromantic?) aspects of her past, which I really loved and connected with, especially the neurodiversity (it takes one to know one 😉).

Evie Dumore’s “A League of Extraordinary Women” might be my favorite romance series. The four heroines meet through campaigning for women’s suffrage and property rights.

In 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘎𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘯‘𝘴 𝘎𝘢𝘮𝘣𝘪𝘵, Lady Catriona Campbell plans a summer at the family’s Scottish estate—one that is in need of attention that its cash poor, bookish residents are unable to provide. Catriona plans to research and write, if only she can get over her writer’s block, while her father intends to host the young scholar Elias Khoury who has arrived from the Middle East to catalog Oxford’s holdings of artifacts.

When Catriona and Elias first meet, she has just emerged, naked, from a pond after an afternoon swim thinking the grounds were free of visitors. Her only solace is that soon, Elias and her father will be leaving for Oxford and she won’t have to see him again. Alas, her father is required to stay in place to attend to urgent business and he charges Catriona with responsibility for Elias.

With failed love affairs behind her, pressure to work on the suffragettes’ latest campaign, and the need to complete her own research, Catriona has little interest in romance, but Elias can’t forget the ethereal vision that captured his imagination the moment he saw Catriona emerge from the water. However, he’s come to Oxford on a secret mission, and has been misrepresenting himself, something he doubts Catriona will ever forgive.

What I loved about this book:

▪️The feminist perspective
▪️Elias’s patient wooing of Catriona
▪️The implications of cross-cultural romance during this period
▪️Neurodivergent representation
▪️The repatriation of stolen artifacts
▪️The epilogue that gives a fitting ending to the series

I was lucky to be given an ARC of this book to review, though I’m behind and just not getting to it. This is not my first time reading something by this author, nor in this series. ​​I was able to read the first three books in this series, and really enjoyed them.

This was such a bizarre reading experience for me. I have loved this series so much, but I found myself not really being interested in this book or this romance. It wasn’t DNF worthy so I kept reading because the plot itself was interesting. But for some reason I was pretty ambivalent towards this story as a whole.

With that being said, I loved the plot of collecting art back that was taken by colonizers. It’s definitely something that is based in history, and I enjoyed the mystery nature of that plot line. I also really appreciate the author’s note that is added to every book in the series. It gives a little more context to the story, but also shows where the author’s brain is at while writing.

This was so cute, I love Evie's writing and love the way she writes regency romance. The characters are always so bold and fresh.

This book is an opposites attract, forced proximity romance with a neurodivergent heroine. I loved that the heroine was focused on activism in a historical era (much like the other books in this series), but I wish the book was shorter and tightened. There were a copious amount of subplots that I didn't feel like were resolved fully. This one was heavier on the history than her other books, which I didn't mind, but at times it took away from the romance.

Evie Dunmore is back! These suffragettes are delightful, I hope she's planning more books in this series!

I have loved this series since the beginning, so it saddens me to say that this one didn't live up to the others. I can't put my finger on why, but I didn't become as invested in Catriona and Elias's love story like I have with the previous installations. As with the others though, I loved the strength and grit Catriona had during a time when women were meant to be seen and not heard. The best part of this series are the brilliant women who fought for women's rights and didn't take no for an answer. They are inspiring.

I really really love Evie Dunmore but this book was just okay compared to the others in the series. It was much slower paced and the romance took a backseat to the politics. This is totally fine it's just not what I'm here for.

I couldn't get into this story. I tried desperately, but the action was much slower than other books in the series and I found myself caring very little for the main protagonists. My favorite parts of the novel were seeing the other ladies from previous books.

I love THE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY WOMEN and I am so sad to see this series ending, I hope Evie Dunmore writes more books about strong-willed, independent women in England. I love how she intersects romance with political, social justice and gender equality issues. I must admit this is my least favourite book in the trilogy -- it was enjoyable but at times felt a bit lackluster and I also felt the romance moved too fast in the beginning, But I am a fan of slow burn, so that's probably why, I loved seeing the couples from the previous novels make an appearance again! Overall, a satisfying romance read.

For Evie Dunmore's finale to her "League of Extraordinary Women" series, I rather quite enjoyed myself. From reading the reviews, it appears as this book was not everyone's cup of tea and a disappointing end to the series. However, I want to share why you should give it a chance and look a little closer.

This book read like a love letter. A love letter to Lebanon, a love letter to her characters, a love letter to the period. Every sentence had such beautiful weight to it, and if I hadn't been told by the cover (and common sense) that this book would be housed in the romance section, I would almost peg it as more Literary Fiction. Evie Dunmore wrote in almost a prose-like fashion that just made the contemplative experience for the reader so enjoyable. I also loved how she wrapped up everyone's story in such a succinct and satisfying way. It didn't feel rushed or purely for the little neat bow aesthetic, but instead a proper send off. A way to convey to readers the joy that each couple is still experiencing.

However, there are some things here as to why many readers didn't love this book. For one, there are way too many details/story lines happening. It really should have been primarily focused on women's suffrage OR Lebanese conflicts of the time. Each topic is so weighty and required a lot of details, that often times the politics felt like such a slog to get through. Because there was so much to convey, the romance at times felt a little flat- but flat in the way that this genre makes readers expect the juicy coupling, the instant-gratification. Instead our romance here serves as the vehicle to tell the love story of a distant homeland, a love story of goodbye.

As a finale it was perfect. As a literature novel it was wonderful. As an easy pick-upable romance it was just okay. However, if you've been a fan of this series since the beginning, I think it will leave you with a satisfying end.

This did feel like the weakest Dunmore's League of Extraordinary Women series. I put this done about halfway and didn't pick it up for a long time. I didn't feel a lot of tension or chemistry between the main characters and wished for a little more spark between them.

Insta-love is my least favorite trope, so I immediately was less interested in this book compared to the other books in the series. Catriona is a bit harder to connect with that the other leads, but I loved learning more about her and the experiences someone with her sensitivities would have had in that time period. The romance was fine after the insta-love.

I've loved the entire League of Extraordinary Women series, the 3rd one being my absolute favorite, but Gentleman's Gambit is a close second. I loved the chemistry between Catriona and Elias, and the way they met was perfection. Some have said the historical information in this book were too much but I found it fascinating and well-researched. I thought it made sense considering the motivations behind both characters. I'm sad this is the last in the series but I look forward to whatever Evie Dunmore does next!

this is the fourth (and I believe final?) book in the League of Extraordinary Women series, focusing on Catriona. this has been my favorite romance series for years, but unfortunately this one just didn’t do it for me and was easily my least favorite of the four. it felt like the main focus of this was history and politics while the romance was more secondary. I never felt as invested in Elias as I would have liked, and it took me some time to warm up to Cat, though I did get there. the spice was kind of just fine. overall, I absolutely recommend the first 3 books in this series but this one can probably be skipped.

Evie Dunmore whips out banger after banger of historical romances. This was passionate, horny, hilarious, emotional, adorable, and a great time to read. Can't wait for more !!

I have thoroughly enjoyed Evie Dunmore's League of Extraordinary Women series and I found Elias and Catriona’s story in The Gentlemen's Gambit to be a delightful conclusion.

Many author's have tried to write historical romances with modern sensibilities and it can sometimes come off as awkward with characters who just don’t seem to fit into the time period. Setting her stories amongst a group of suffragettes already pushing against the boundaries of society for the time, allows for a much more realistic exploration of issues we still grapple with today. As modern readers we understand when the characters are discussing bisexuality and neurodiversity even if they don’t yet have the terms for that.

Although people tend to dismiss romance as a guilty pleasure genre where else can you read a happily ever after where the romantic lead is trying to recover stolen Lebanese works of art from a British museum? Romance contains multitudes.

I received an ARC from NetGalley.

Love Evie Dunmore's series, and this was a solid read of Catriona and Elias' story. Though I didn't enjoy this one as much as I did Bringing Down the Duke, this was still a worthy read for fans of historical romance, more specifically the suffragettes.

I’ve really enjoyed this series, Portrait of a Scotsman being one of my absolute favorite historical romances, so I was eagerly anticipating this one. And while I enjoyed it, it didn’t quite meet my expectations after the high of Portrait.

I liked Elias and the plot line of reclaiming artifacts that had been stolen from the Middle East and taken to England, either in a private home or a museum. I liked that Catroina was willing to help him, but I feel like at that point the story got a little convoluted with her trying to protect him and vice versa.

I did really love the epilogue, with the characters from all four books, and am sad that this series is at an end. I just wish I would’ve loved this one!

Loved it! My second favorite of the series! It started a bit slow for me but definitely picked up. Great story line.