From beginning to end, this book is about two people who are lusting after and longing for each other. They spend the entire book contemplating how horny they are for each other with some smut sprinkled in. The smut is well written, and there is a plot mixed in the middle that ends up being pretty good, but this is a straightforward bodice ripper. A simple, quick read.

I highly recommend this book for those searching for an easy, positive romance with a historical setting and well written spicy scenes.

There is so much to love about this book. Nora is interesting, smart and unafraid of her desires. She's logical. Johnny (we're friends now) is button up, funny and ridiculous in his self suffering but it's for a good reason. He fears being his horrible father and she fears lack of independence. They are well matched and low drama which I thought would bore me but nope. There was enough drama outside of their coupling and I was satisfied.
Also, finding out more about the writing machine made this five stars for me.
Also also, I HAVE to go back to the Trewlove books because I know they exist.

This book had a lot going for it and ultimately ended up being a heartwarming, steamy and female-empowering story.

In this book, Leonora and her family come to London to look for investors in their company that is working on an early version of the typewriter. She doesn't realize that her family is actually planning to marry her off so that her brother and mother can live an easier life, while Leonora thinks they're all there to continue her father's legacy and business.

Leonora was considered an "odd" woman in New York because of her interest in how mechanical things work and introverted nature. During her trip she ends up at a "woman's club" and asks for a kiss (this sort of thing is provided at the club). While she is waiting, Rook comes by to visit his brother Aiden, the club's owner, who asks him to step in and give the kiss to the American woman. They kiss and Leonora thinks he's an employee of the club.mLater when she is working on finding investors, she meets Rook again and realizes he's one of the people they came to demonstrate their product to.

Meanwhile, Rook is the only acknowledged child of the Earl of Elverton, who was a horrible philanderer that sired many children and had taken most of them from their mothers and given them to 'baby farmers" to be raised without knowing who they are. He's worked most of his life to be the opposite of his father, which includes not wanting to marry or have a serious relationship.

Along the way, Rook and Leonora start to fall in love, she's trying to get investors, and her mother is trying to marry her off.

I really liked the characters and story in this book. Leonora was a strong woman who wanted to create and run her own business, and didn't want to marry to lose her independence. Rook was a very caring man, who ends up helping out his "bastard" brothers and sisters, and in the epilogue there is a very touching story with his mother and one of the other siblings.

Overall the story was enjoyable, the characters are lovable and a lot of people are helped. I don't know if there is another book in this series, but I'd read it if there was.

Tropes: tall woman, virgin characters, strong female main character, neurodivergent main character, STEM theme

I received a promotional copy and am giving an honest review.

Lorraine Heath has quickly become a go-to historical romance writer for me. I can't believe I hadn't read her books before last year. I always fall back on this genre, the one that got me reading so many year ago. I love a good happily ever after love story with a bit of scandal between two people from different backgrounds. Rook, an English peer, and Nora, an American looking for financing for her family's factory fit this bill perfectly. Ms. Heath's female characters are strong independent women, yet vulnerable when faced with passion. Her male characters are just as vulnerable when they meet these women. The third in The Chessmen series, In Want of a Viscount loosely ties in with a previous series although can definitely be read on its own. I recommend this series. Thanks to Netgalley for an advanced copy in return for an honest review.

Leonora Garrison arrives in London from New York City with a need to find investors to keep her family business going after the death of her father. She finds surprising pleasure when kissing a stranger in an exclusive ladies’ club. What she doesn't know is that stranger is Rook, one of the Chessman who was there to talk with his illegitimate, half-brother who owns the club.

Rook, a moniker from his friends, is more commonly known as Viscount Wyeth whose libertine father left more illegitimate children around London than he can count. He has vowed to live his life outside of the scandal sheets and he does this with ease until the night, he kisses a mysterious American beauty.

I won't spoil how fate intervenes to unite them, but it is very cleverly done. Once reacquainted, they are caught between desire and duty. Leonora may want the man, but she needs him to invest in her family's business or it could go under. After getting caught in a compromising position, there is even more at stake.

I loved this one!! Lorraine Heath is an auto-buy author for me, but this romance shot straight to the top of hers and I have read 30+ of hers. I loved the banter between Nora and Rook, how much he admired how her brain works, and how hard he works to fight for their HEA.

Thank you so much to the publisher and Netgalley for letting me read this ARC. I will definitely be buying this romance when it release!

I just reviewed In Want of a Viscount by Lorraine Heath. #InWantofaViscount #NetGalley

Dear Avon, Thank you for approving this request.

In Want of a Viscount is the conclusion of Lorraine Heath's The Chessman: Masters of Seduction series. As someone that has read most of Heath's authored works, that first page had me hooked, and wondering if I hadn't been paying attention, or if it's a closely guarded secret. Luckily for me, I plan on doing a deep dive into Heath's backlist this year, but first her upcoming release.

Heath is one of my historical romance auto-read authors, if she writes it, I will read it, I did not read the synopsis prior to starting the book. So imagine my delight when the book once again opens at a sex club with the FMC (currently an American, name unknown) requesting a kiss. It reminded me of one of my favorite Heath novels, Falling Into Bed With a Duke.

Where the other Chessman novels have left me wanting more, In Want of a Viscount seemed to have everything I needed. There was just enough angst throughout the book to keep me satisfied. Plus characters from previous series dropping in (There was a mention of Alice, could she be getting her book soon?)

As much as I enjoyed the novel, it isn't without it's critiques. The book seems to be very focused on Rook's journey - overcoming a lot of parental/father trauma, making amends, being open. He had friends he could turn to if he needed a sounding board or advice. Whereas, Lenora is essentially alone in London. Sure it's explained away as her being American with a shrewish mother, but her focus on the invention and returning to America makes her very "not like other girls". I had hoped that once she met the other Chessmen and their wives, she would be taken into their fold.

Content Notes: death of parent from illness, spousal abuse (secondary character, past, off page), grief, toxic parental relationships, financial instability

4.5/5. Releases 2/20/2024.

Vibes: a genuine good guy hero, Business Bitches, sex beyond p -> v, and a mind for business with a bod for sin!!!!!

The Viscount of Wyeth--AKA Rook, because Chessmen: MASTERS OF SEDUCTION!!!, the greatest series title of all time--is known for having a keen eye for investments. What he isn't known for is raking about town, because he's determined to be different from his horrible father, a man more known for the illegitimate children he abandoned (or worse) than anything else. But a chance, anonymous encounter with a mysterious young woman has his strict sense of self-control shaken... until he realizes that she's the American Leonora Garrison, a secret businesswoman who's accompanied her less-talented brother on a hunt for investors. Like Rook! They try to keep it strictly professional--but their attraction to each other could ruin Leonora's dreams before they come to fruition.

Look man, it's Lorraine Heath. She knows what the fuck she's doing, always. This is one of her less dramatic romances, I would say, but the character beats and the swoony "oh my god we're falling in love" of it all is unmatched. It's not so much about twists and tricks as it is about Rook and Leonora falling deeply in love, with a pitch-perfect ramp up of sexual tension that culminates in the best way possible. I can be persnickety about a slow burn--but Lorraine proves that when the author is talented, it works HARD.

Quick Takes:

--You absolutely can read this as a standalone, but I am glad that I went back and read Lorraine's Sins for All Seasons series first. For one thing, that series is just great, and everyone should read it. For another, Rook is technically introduced in The Duchess in His Bed, starring his illegitimate brother Aiden Trewlove (his other illegitimate brother, Finn Trewlove, is the hero of The Scoundrel in Her Bed, one of my most recent Lorraine favorites). There is a good bit of layering of Rook's backstory related to their father, and if you're intrigued by that after reading this--you probably will be, it's fascinating--absolutely check that series out.

In a lot of ways, this felt like an emotional culmination. You really see how Rook has matured here, and is so valiantly trying to reach his own impossible standards. He's very literally atoning for the sins of his father, and it kind of breaks your heart. On the bright side, however, this brings in not only the Trewloves but some cameos from Lorraine's Stanwick books... and I'm never mad at that!

--Going back to Rook, though... He really is a good dude. And I'm a tough sell on a good guy hero. I feel like a lot of authors write them simply to keep stories uncomplicated, and not because they actually care about the characterization. The thing is--Lorraine has always been one of the only authors who nails a good guy hero every time. Because characterization? It's her thing.

You feel that Rook is deeply good, and you feel exactly how deeply he believes in his efforts to be morally upright and restrained. He's taken responsibility for a lot of things that really have nothing to do with him. However, it's also clear that a part of growing up that he hasn't quite confronted is like... admitting that he's human. He wants things. He wants sex. And it's honestly really fun to see him become this horny mess over Leonora.

--Leonora is the kind of heroine we really don't get enough of in historicals. She's kind of nerdy, but it's really most of a "business bitch" kind of nerdy. And I think that gels really well with where she's coming from--this bustling Gilded Age America where there's a lot of risk and a lot of (potential) reward. But this is about more than just gambling on a dream--it's about keeping her father's memory alive. That alone really ups the stakes here.

I also loved how geeky she was about taking things apart (literally) and how much that amused Rook.

--Lorraine Heath watches The Gilded Age (although literally anything she's written ever in her life blows that show out of the water). You can absolutely tell. Leonora's mother is right out of the Bertha Russell playbook. She wants to get into Mrs. Astor's ballroom!!! And yes, she will be a total asshole to get there if necessary!!!

I actually really loved that Rook and Leonora could subtly bond over having shitty parents, even if Leonora's mother wasn't on the level of Rook's father. It was one of those moments of commiseration.

--Okay, so... the scene where Rook caresses Leonora's foot while "inspecting her shoe for pebbles" is everything it's cracked up to be, and it is further evidence that deep within every Lorraine Heath hero is a Thing for Feet.

The Sex:

I loved how sex was approached in this one. Because Rook is so worried about fathering bastards like his father did, he's very reluctant to sleep around, and when he does, he places a HUGE emphasis on non-penetrative sex. In other words, as he amazingly put it to Leonora in one of my favorite scenes in the book:"fucking without fucking".

In romance in general, but perhaps especially in het books, and especially in historicals, penetrative sex is seen as the end-all be-all. I loved having a historical romance hero who really was more about.... other things. Especially things centering Leonora's pleasure. Like, it does drag out the sexual tension. And I really do love it when a hero who thinks he's Got It Together finds out he Most Definitely Doesn't (... which.... a rude awakening for our boy Rook).

While this is definitely one of Lorraine's softer books, it's also one of her more character-focused ones. It's sweepingly romantic, it's about breaking cycles and recovering from emotional trauma, and it's definitely for the "ridiculous amount of sexual tension in the best possible way" girlies.

Thanks to Netgalley and Avon for providing me with a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

In Want of a Viscount is the 3rd book in the Chessmen series by my historical romance queen, Lorraine Heath. This book was so beautiful and definitely has its quieter, lovely moments but I loved it to pieces. These characters, seeing familiar characters from past series, the epilogue, don’t even get me started, I’m still teary-eyed.

John, Viscount Wyeth, of more commonly known
as Rook finally gets his story! Rook’s father was/is an awful Earl, he had multiple mistresses plus his wife and cheated on them all constantly. He also got rid of countless of his by-blows and if you’ve read the Sins for All Seasons series then you will know how truly awful this man was. So Rook grew up loathing the idea of ever being compared to his father and went the opposite direction of his father in life—never engaging in any shenanigans and treating women with respect, and most importantly from a distance.

The story kicks off with Rook making a trip to Elysium, his brother’s private club for making ladies’ fantasies come to life. He’s there to visit his brother but gets roped in to helping out when he’s asked to do a favor and go kiss an American woman who is in the kissing room waiting. Leonora Garrison is 27, in London to find investors for her family business, and has never been kissed. After a few too many drinks of absinthe she finds herself sharing a kiss with Rook at Elysium!

I just loved Rook and Leonora. She’s an inventor and a tinkerer who loves to build things and see how things work. She’s in London with her brother and overbearing mother to try and get investors for her father’s late business and her typewriting machine she’s created. She’s often been thought of as odd and I loved seeing Rook love her for her and even taking her to places he knew she’d love (seeing the inner workings of the clock tower, etc). Rook’s backstory is so complex and seeing his relationship with his mother, his feelings towards his father, and his feelings for his siblings/his father’s by-blows was just everything. Rook is just so good and I love him. I love that he and Leonora found one another and they’re honestly perfect together.

While this book does have quieter, slower moments with the story and plot, I feel like it was needed for this story. Of course, a Lorraine Heath read isn’t complete without seeing some of our favorite places and faces from her ever-expanding Heath-verse: Twin Dragons, The Fair and Spare, Elysium, King, Knight, Bishop, Aiden Trewlove, and then just pretty much all characters from both the Sins for All Seasons and Once Upon a Dukedom series!

I received an ARC from the publisher, all thoughts in this review are my own! In Want of a Viscount is out February 20, 2024.

American Lenora is London bound looking for investors in her family’s invention. Her mother is looking for a member of the nobility to marry her daughter. Lenora rather have the money from an investor then a husband, but what she does want is a kiss. What starts as a mystery kiss can only end one way…

This book was cute. I like Lenora and Rook. Their chemistry was white hot right away. I liked how there wasn’t really anything BIG in their way. The stakes seemed low and I had no problem with that. I enjoined reading this book.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the ARC.

The Chessman series was my first introduction to Lorraine Heath and I'm eternally grateful. After reading The Counterfeit Scoundrel last year, I've already completed 25 books from her catalog. Her writing is so addictive and her characters are incredibly well written. Her books are inviting and I get lost in them so easily. In Want of a Viscount is a spinoff of the Once Upon a Dukedom featuring the Chessman. Each rugged member is named after a chess piece and they all treat life like one big chessboard. I personally don't know anything about the game, but Lorraine Heath heroes always pique my interest.

Leonora and Rook had a darling courtship, but my attention was fully magnetized to the Trewlove cameos. Our main couple were well suited with their intelligence and deep hearted kindness, but I couldn't help waiting for that dreamy family to pop back up again. One of my favorite aspects of Lorraine Heath's books is that they're all so wonderfully interwoven. Characters from different series intermarry or are born on the wrong side of the blanket. It's fun to watch them appear in the background of various romances. Leonora found Rook through anonymous kisses at a gentlemen's club owned by the Trewloves, but it could have easily belonged to the Stanwicks or the Dodgers. The Lorraine Heath universe is one I would gladly dive into as long as it featured my necessary modern conveniences not found in the Victorian age.

In Want of a Viscount was lovely but I will always have a special place in my heart for the Trewloves, even when they're not center stage. Leonora and Rook's romance was a perfect end to the Chessman series. I'm pleased there wasn't a member named Pawn because that would just be humiliating. I can't thank NetGalley enough for introducing me to Lorraine Heath's work and I have found a lifelong favorite author. I'm so excited to see what other series she has planned for the future. You know I'm anxiously waiting for the release because when it comes to this author, I'm always In Want of a Viscount.

4.5 stars. This was a surprisingly sweet and romantic story compared to some of the more dramatic and angsty books in this series and other recent ones by the author. Unlike the other Chessman (with the exception of King), Rook is much more reserved and stays away from scandals to distance himself from his own scandalous father. He is instantly smitten with Nora, an American heiress to a manufacturing business who is in London seeking investors in her family company's latest venture. Nora mistakes Rook for an employee at Aiden Trewlove's women's club (with good reason), and although their first encounter is only a kiss, in Heath's typical fashion, it is described with such detail that it is hotter than many full-on sex scenes. Rook and Nora keep their encounters hidden from everyone around them to keep both of their reputations clear, but their growing attraction and the sexual tension between them is incredibly well done. There is of course some drama with Nora's mother scheming to land a titled husband for Nora (for the mother's own selfish reasons), her brother threatening to ruin their father's legacy, and with Rook dealing with the fallout of his father's misconduct. However, on the Lorraine Heath scale, it's pretty low level angst.

There are some overlapping plot points here with other Chessmen and related stories -- Rook's father is cut from the same cloth as King's, and the initial encounter between Rook/Nora echoed others with mistaken or hidden identities -- but it was still very enjoyable. Nora and Rook make a really cute couple, and having the pairings from so many past stories woven in here organically (the family trees from past series are all intertwined at this point) really added to that dynamic. I also liked that Nora's business and engineering skills were demonstrated believably compared to some other recent (non-Lorraine Heath) stories where the reader is just supposed to accept the insistence that the heroine is gifted without ever seeing any evidence of it.

Thank you to Avon and Netgalley for providing an ARC for review!

Not my favorite Heath.

It's a fine romance novel but I expect more than 'fine' from her. There weren't the complex emotions and relationships that I love in her writing, and while not a totally predictable ending, it wasn't the nail-biting, seemingly-impossible road to an HEA that I normally eat up from her.
Plus, the non-stop references to Leonora's machinist mind and how it's "so like her to take things apart and study them and put them back together" etc etc. We get it!
I did not buy the chemistry.

Otherwise it is a totally fine novel. Unproblematic. Readable depiction of a woman in business.

Whoo boy, this was my favorite of the Chessmen series by far. I loved Johnny and his relationship with his brothers and mother. I adored how he fell for Nora, how he uplifted her and made her feel special. His empathy towards his father's other children was amazing.

Nora was so strong in her conviction of her talents but faltered in her knowledge that she was an attractive woman. I did like how she decided to take her fate and future in her own hands. She was strong and was just the right person for Johnny.

Lorraine Heath has my heart. I really enjoyed this final book about the Chessmen. I love a good friend story and these 4 friends who overlap in a world from her previous series is so good. This is the story of Rook and Nora. Nora is a businesswoman and inventor from America. She is seeking investors for her family's company in London. Her mom, however, is seeking a titled husband for Nora. Rook is interested in neither, but can't stop his attraction to Nora. It's so instalust and swoony that I loved seeing them on page. Nora's mom was the perfect contrast to Nora in her ambition and awfulness. It made the ending and their HEA even better.

I believe out of all the Chessmen’s books this one is my absolute favourite.
There was something absolutely special and sweet about Rook and Nora that I can’t explain because no matter the fact that their story was full of yearning, longing and intense moments it was also incredibly sweet.
I want to also say that Rook absolutely nailed the love declaration like my girl Nora deserved it absolutely she was absolutely the smartest person ever and she deserves to have someone next to her that appreciates her for the smart business woman that she is.

He had a lot of cheesy lines, more than the rest of them, talking about the moon the sun and we love a man obsessed to be honest but the crown goes to the most perfect line [spoilers ahead]:

“But what I love most about you are all the things that aren’t visible.”

The sigh that left my body? INEXPLICABLE.

Makes a bit sad though that we didn’t see the Chessmen that much in this book, but I did love to see them in the small scenes.

London - 1875

John Castleton, Viscount Wyeth, known as Rook, has made a vow to never marry. His father, being a notorious rogue, has proven that this part of their line should end with Rook. Rook avoids scandal, and, as a Chessman, pursues business endeavors. One night he visits his half-brother Aiden's club, the Elysian, to give him news on their father. Once told, Aiden asks a favor of Rook. He's short-staffed this night, and an American woman is waiting in a private room for one of Aiden's men to give her her first kiss! Horrified, Rook eventually reluctantly agrees.

Leonora Garrison has had a few too many sips of the "green fairy", commonly known as absinthe as she impatiently awaits her first kiss. Finally, the door opens and a well-dressed, rather handsome gentleman enters. She makes it clear they're not to exchange names, all she wants is a kiss. The man obliges and both are obviously affected by the encounter.

Leonora is in England with her mother and brother to find investors for their business. Although their company is advertised as a gun manufacturer, their new product is far from being a weapon. It's a mechanical writing machine developed by Leonora. And she has other ideas for more modern products. However her mother has decided that it is her duty to find her daughter a rich lord, and she constantly embarrasses Leonora with her aggressiveness in social situations. Then, one night at a potential investor's house, she realizes that the man who just came in is the one who gave her that memorable kiss!

Despite Rook's plans to avoid commitments, he and Leonora begin spending more and more time together. Neither wants to marry, however the attraction between them is getting difficult to deny. But one moment of indiscretion could cost them both.

IN WANT OF A VISCOUNT sets into motion a growing love story that neither Leonora nor Rook had planned on. How they handle it all is enjoyable, and, at times, poignant. Book 3 of the Chessmen is a great read.

4.5/5 - Women in STEM, Tall girl romance and forced proximity? Sign. Me. Up. I loved the premise of Leonora and Rook's story from start to finish!

The idea that a woman would be the brains behind an operation and be looking to carve out a place for herself in the industrial world isn't necessarily new to history - but I love how fiercely determined our heroine is to pursue her dreams and help the people around her!

Rook is also such a fun character because he was never a bad boy. Not a reformed rake.. just always someone trying to do right by the people his family had cast aside. I don't think that probably happened often - so it's fun to read about!!

NOTES:
- 🌶️🌶️/5 - The scenes aren't particularly crazy, but I really enjoyed the more Darcy-esque moments of lingering looks and kisses!
- Will be snagging the rest of this series on my kindle!

**Thank you to Forever & NetGalley for the advanced reader copy. I received this book for free, but all thoughts are my own. – SLR 🖤

In Want of a Viscount was another winner from Lorraine Heath! The chemistry between Leonora and Rook was delicious and I couldn’t wait for them to finally be together.

In Want of a Viscount. My fellow readers. With a mother like Lenora has, who needs enemies. Lenora God bless her soul only wanted to live her life right by societies standard, but a particular family member just couldn’t stop gnawing on that bone. What was it that Laura could do.
The poor woman was at wits end. Thank God there was Rook. His moments of persuasion was a real ease of passion Lenora needed only if she didn’t fall drunk on him at first site. What a naughty story Rook and Lenora enjoyed playing with one another. I found the book to the most fun of 2024 seasons.
The humor that drives some of the entertainment is some of the fun moments that had me enjoying the book the most. Rook and his friends Knight, Bishop, Blackwood and King are the most interesting characters to read. With the description of the characters you could imagine the power and seduction that exudes from their almost God like bodies. The plot is exciting for the die hard readers, but it’s the romance that fan the flames of fire across the pages. I love this book a lot.
It’s always the writers who do not squawk a lot who has the most enjoyable books to remember them by. I give this book two snaps and a twist. Until next time my fellow readers. Read on! I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Lorraine Heath is always great, and this newest installment in her The Chessmen Series hit all the right notes while still providing enough variation on the form to keep things interesting. I'll always pick up a Heath release.