I was extremely fortunate to receive an ARC of It Takes A Rake by the wonderful Anna Bennett via Netgalley, and all thoughts and opinions are my own. Miss Kitty Beckett wants to be a recognized architect but women are considered less than men and not as qualified as their male counterparts. Leo Lockland has spent his life in love with Kitty but has never been able to express himself because every time they meet, they clash like enemies rather than friends. I loved reading their change in relationship and their recognizing the electricity and magnetism between them.

Warm and charming romance

After meeting Kitty in the first book, as a young teen, I expected nothing less than for her to give her eventual suitor a real run for his money! Leo is her match in every way, even though he's her complete opposite, and the antithesis of what she's looking for. Once he finds out she's looking for a rake, he knows he needs to present a different side of himself to get her attention.

I loved his patient devotion to her, how he balanced her cynicism with his own hopeful longing. This was a romance built on a solid friendship, and it worked perfectly to break down the obstacles in Kitty's heart. If it weren't for the astonishingly predictable way their misunderstandings were eventually resolved, it would be a five-star read for me.

I enjoyed how the HEA and epilogue tied up all the loose ends for all three couples in the series. If you've read either of the earlier books, you owe it to yourself to read this one and see how it all comes together for the Bellehaven Belles. I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.

Ms. Bennett's tale of former childhood best friends/antagonists turned lovers is a treat. They loved each other as youngsters, but were afraid to let the other one know. His sudden departure to London soured her outlook because he never told her why.
His return both thrilled and dismayed her and he was determined to find a way to let her know how he felt. Life interfered until they hashed it out, and still life interfered.
Ms. Bennett pens some steamy passages between the couple. I recommend to any lover that loves steamy historicals.
I requested and received a NetGalley arc to peruse gratis and offer my opinion in the same.

Holy moly I love these two! This is like the best parts of enemies to lovers plus an instalove as the story opens with Leo already being madly in love with her for years. I absolutely love a cinnamon roll and Leo is one in spades 🥰🥹 The bickering, the banter, the longing looks, I ate this up with a spoon, and quickly. Leo trying to be a rake for her was beyond adorable.

The set up is funny and cute, I couldn’t put this book down. Lots of returning characters from previous books and lots of steamy sex scenes on the beach.

This is my favorite of the series, although the third act breakup was a little silly and overwrought and VERY quickly quashed. But that's what we want, right? Moving right along to the HEA, which was lovely.

Thank you so much to St Martin's and netgalley for the ebook in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Leo returns home after being gone for a few years. He meets a Kitty who he has known for years. This was a quick and enjoyable read.

3.5 stars — a sweet conclusion to this series. Though once again, I feel like this author does such a good job writing badass heroines that the male love interests can’t help but pale in comparison.

I love Kitty and the glimpses of her strong & sassy personality we got throughout this book were the most entertaining parts. I kind of felt like Leo was a little bland next to her, especially because their relationship progressed so quickly from “enemies” to colleagues to friends to lovers. All of their interactions felt driven by Kitty’s honesty and boldness.

The architectural contest was also an interesting and fun element to this book, loved how the result was revealed at the ball.

Thanks to NetGalley & the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Leo has been away for years and now comes back to his home town. He always hid his romantic interest in his childhood rival. He never could stop thinking about her and now that he is back he is doing anything to get to spend more time with her.
I somehow missed the second book in the series, but that is okay. You could read this even as a standalone. What I liked most in this book were the characters. The relationship was believable and you could feel the tension between Kitty and Leo. It was a fun quick read. The book was not very historical accurate. They didn't seem to care overly about Kitty's reputation and the two of them spend a lot of time together.

I received this book from NetGalley in return for a honest review

I feel like I enjoyed the first two books in this series better than this one. I was admittedly underwhelmed by Kitty and Leo, the romantic protagonists in this story. My biggest problem with Leo was that he felt like such an incredible sap over Kitty, willing to do anything to win her over. And while Kitty is admirable for her independence and her desire to be an architect, she's a little too stuck in her presumptions that she can only depend on herself, and she's an incredible hypocrite for getting mad at Leo for anything she deems on the rakish side (even if he has good reasons for his choices) despite the fact that she tells him that's exactly the type of man she's interested in. While the book explores an event in Leo's past the explains why he leaves Kitty and Bellehaven behind to go to London, it never delves into what happened with Kitty's parents and why she has abandonment issues. Bennett does incorporate a character that seems intended to create competition with Leo for Kitty's attention, but it feels half-hearted, and I struggled to see why Leo even liked Kitty that much in the first place. Even the secondary storyline climax, about an architectural contest that Kitty, Leo and Leo's friend are competing in feels awkward, underwhelming and with an outcome that somehow doesn't seem to fit the story. I've enjoyed other books by Bennett but this one didn't do much for me. A complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Miss Kitty Becket plans on pursuing her dreams of becoming an architect. Bellehaven Bay’s first architectural design contest may be her chance to accomplish it. Kitty knows she needs her childhood rival’s expertise with numbers to win. In exchange for his help, she agrees to turn him into a rake. Kitty never expected Leo to take to his lessons so well… Or the way her heart behaves around him. Can Kitty entrust Leo with all her hopes and dreams? Or will he ultimately betray her trust?
Leo Lockland is a strait-laced architect with a knack for numbers and calculations. He leaves behind a promising architectural practice in London to help his widowed mother. Leo has never forgotten his childhood nemesis nor his feelings for her. He intends to pursue her at any cost, even become a rake. Leo’s deeply guarded secrets may destroy any possibility he has of winning her. Can Leo convince Kitty to take a chance with him? Or will he lose his chance with her?
Leo and Kitty are great examples of opposites attract. Not only in their personalities but in their architectural interests. Kitty likes decorative and whimsical designs, whereas Leo prefers clean lines and aesthetics. It is nice to see Kitty’s growth in the background of the first two books. I admire her determination in following her dreams, despite public’s restrictions on women. Kitty even knows her strengths and weaknesses in that regard. Leo is a love. I like how he believes in and recognizes Kitty’s talent.
IT TAKES A RAKE is the third book in Anna Bennett’s historical romance series, ROGUES TO LOVERS. This story can stand alone, but it is better to read the prior ones before this. The first book, GIRLS BEFORE EARLS, introduces the setting – a charming yet picturesque seaside town called Bellehaven Bay. We also meet Kitty and learn about her circumstances.
I love how the couples from the previous books make appearances throughout the story. It is great to see how Poppy and Kean and Blade and Hazel’s lives are progressing. I do hope this is not the end of this entertaining series. I can see the author continuing with Clara and Lucy – Blade and Hazel’s adoptive daughters. They deserve their own happily-ever-after.

I wanted to be charmed by this but Leo, the MC was frustrating as hell. He kept missing golden opportunities to tell her how he felt and the whole drama felt a little forced. It seemed like there were a lot of good elements to this book but none of them were explored enough. Her emotional issues, their rivalry, his father problems, the rival, the rake lessons. None of those issues was fully fleshed out and so the novel feels incomplete.

This was a cute historical romance and the third installment of a series. I read the last book and was looking forward to seeing the final “Belle” in her book.

Kitty is an amateur architect hoping to find a local contest to design a new building for the town. Leo, the man who apprenticed alongside her, returns to town an is entering the contest as well. Leo left abruptly years ago and his reasons for that are a subplot. A rival architect from London arrives to participate in the contest.

The main plot has Kitty giving Leo lessons in being a rake. The trope is somewhat common in historical romance, though it requires some suspension of disbelief that inexperienced Kitty would be the one teaching Leo, who has been in London for the last four years. He’s just hoping to spend time with Kitty, who he’s loved for years.

There were moments where dialogue or actions seemed a bit modern and I had a hard time figuring out the setting, time wise, of the story. Kitty having been an architect’s apprentice seems to take this into the 1900s, but the use of horses and references to a duel is more 1800s.

It Takes a Rake by Anna Bennett is the captivating and delightful conclusion to the Rogues to Lovers series. Anna Bennett possesses a remarkable talent for crafting tension within her writing. I found myself utterly engrossed in this novel, unable to tear myself away until I reached the final page. One aspect that particularly resonated with me was Bennett's portrayal of her heroes, particularly the intelligent and charismatic Leo. From the very beginning, Leo's captivating personality and unwavering affection for Kitty completely enthralled me.

This showed up on NetGalley just in time, as I was really craving a nice, comforting historical romance. I've enjoyed the other books in this series, but was especially excited for this once because it feels like closing the loop. Main character Kitty (now Kat) Beckett was an angry, grieving teenaged girl in the first book (Girls before Earls), but now she's grown up, about to come into her inheritance, and ready to leave Bellehaven for London so that she can set up shop as an architect. Just before she plans to do that, her nemesis Leo Lockland, another architect with whom Kitty trained early on, returns to town to take over his grandfather's architectural firm (the same firm at which they both apprenticed and found themselves constantly butting heads). Leo, who has been in love with Kitty for years, decides to take his chances with winning her over before she leaves town, and asks for her help to become more of a rake to attract the attention of the woman he loves (he conveniently doesn't mention that it's her). Meanwhile, they compete in an architectural design contest and Leo tries to win Kitty over. This is an enemies to friends to lovers romance, with just enough intrigue to keep things interesting. Anna Bennett is definitely on my must-read list.

It Takes A Rake by Anna Bennett is a very good book! It gives you romance, humor, heartbreak, mystery, and a happy ending! This book is the third book in the Rogues to Lovers series and some of the characters from the other books are in this book. I like to read books where you are already familiar with the characters. Even though this book is part of a series it is a stand alone book. The main character, Miss Kitty Beckett, wants to be an architect. She has been studying for years with Leo Lockland's grandfather along with him. She and Leo are arch-enemies until he just up and leaves and goes to London. Now he is back. Kitty agrees to help turn him into a rake if he will help her with the local architectural contest. And the games begin! I definitely recommend this book!

I would like to thank St. Martin's Paperbacks for the advanced reader copy. It in no way influenced by opinion of the book.

I've been waiting for this book for months! I love a story of unrequited pining especially when it's the guy who's pined for the girl for years and she's oblivious. Leo has been in love with Kitty forever but Kitty, because of all her abandonment issues, is determined to never fall in love. I loved how these characters pushed and pulled and the conflict of their story was their respective internal struggles as they dealt with the loss of their families.
At times, this story felt a little too modern, but I think it takes place during the Victorian era so I will give it a pass because I'm sure it was historically accurate; it just didn't really have the FEEL that a historical romance does. I love Anna Bennett's writing, and how she writes pining and angst and this book had a lot of it with some really delicious pay off. I will always recommend Anna Bennett's books!

It is finely Kitty’s turn, and her story is magical. Her childhood nemesis and fellow architectural apprentice Leo is the ideal companion for her, if only she is able to take the risk and overcome her fears about giving away her heart. But before that happens, she will get to know Leo intimately, as she teaches him how to be a rake. I enjoyed their banter and how they were able to mesh their different styles and talents to create something even better. The intimacy was quite good, especially as Leo was getting an unexpected opportunity at something he long wanted, and Kitty, trusting him but also not realizing his true feelings, was open and expressive in a way she might not otherwise have been.

Such a sweet story. Kitty and Leo have grown up together and apprenticed at his grandfather’s architectural firm. They were always at odds with eachother. Leo left suddenly without saying goodbye. Now it is five years later, and he has returned- a successful architect from London. Kitty is determined not to love as she is always hurt and left behind when she does. The road to an HEA is bumpy but a good ride!

Anna Bennett really knows how to write sexual tension! I couldn't put this one down and finished it in a day. I love how she writes her heroes, especially when they are brainy men like Leo. His personality and love for Kitty captured me from the start.

You do not need to read the other books in this series to enjoy this one, but if you're following along, Kitty, the niece of the couple in "Girls Before Earls" is now all grown up and an aspiring architect. Her love interest is her former apprenticeship frenemy, Leo Lockwood, who has come back to town after leaving without a word four years before. Kitty is reluctant to forgive him for not keeping in touch and to give her heart to anyone. Girl has serious abandonment issues. Guy has serious daddy issues. It's a match made in heaven!

In an attempt to woo his secret crush, Leo agrees to help her with her calculations for an architecture competition if she'll give him lessons on how to be a rake. Many cute liaisons ensue.

As I said there was plenty of sexual tension, angst and steamy love scenes to keep me turning pages instead of adulting. Bennett writes great escapist historical romance. It's not epic, but it's always fun. You get to check in on HEAs of the characters from the first two books in this one as well. Bonus!

Big Thanks to St. Martin's for the ARC and chance to review!