Hannah Moses is not a good person. She’s a fence, the daughter of two convicted thieves, and she lives her life at odds with both the Jewish and gentile communities. She’s stubborn and sharp-tongued and wary and has no business even talking to our hero, Solomon Weiss.

Solomon is the sheltered but saucy scion of a once-wealthy Jewish family trying to brush off the cobwebs of debt and disgrace. Raised by his strict older brother, Frederick, who has been baptized and is courting a non-Jewish woman, Sol knows he’s supposed to be on his best behavior at this critical moment. He’s meant to marry whomever Frederick chooses for him, but he can’t stop chasing the dark-haired, velvet-voiced pawnshop owner he has no business speaking to, let alone falling for.

Based on “Snow White,” a fairy tale all about trust and betrayal, “Wake Me Most Wickedly” thrives in the space between what people hide and what they reveal. Threats and circumstances force both Hannah and Solomon to guard their tongues, to tamp down their riotous hearts and put others’ needs before their own. It’s difficult for Hannah to trust that Sol means what he says when he confesses his love. Meanwhile, Sol has to learn the hard way that people who insist they mean well — people he’s close to, people he depends on — may, in fact, be lying to him. Rich and complex and a little discomfiting, this book prefers difficult questions and nuanced truths to comfortable reductions. Grossman will be writing two more books in this series, and I cannot wait to see what else her world will bring us.

Wake Me Most Wickedly is book two in the Once Upon the East End series. This was a new to me author and felt this could be read as a standalone.

This was an enjoyable story that had me enthralled to find out how Sol and Hannah could have a HEA. The MC were full of grit and perseverance as they fought to make it through each day and remain hopeful that what they were going through had purpose. I liked that this was a different HR, characters aren’t part of the aristocracy (for the most part) but were mainly Jewish. I liked getting to read about diverse characters in this time period but also how much grit they had.

Both MC were likable and were similar in that they felt they owed their siblings. Sol was endearing in his positive outlook and steadfastness in pursuing Hannah. It was nice to see his frustrations on their relationship at one point to show him with varying emotions. Sol is clever but was also too trusting. I don’t think there’s ever been a more resigned FMC to her lot in life than Hannah. It was understandable given what she’d experienced but it was a bit frustrating that we didn’t see a transformation sooner. I enjoy a forbidden romance and felt like this one delivered.

I also enjoyed the author’s note at the end. There were three detailed encounters that were steamy.

Content warning for the book is offered in the beginning.

I received an advance ecopy of this book from Forever publishing via Net Galley. All opinions are my own.

I found this installment in Grossman's ONCE UPON THE EAST END series more engrossing than the first. The really brilliant thing she does here is destabilize the assumptions of the regency genre by making these things framed as a certain subset of society, not it's standard. I do, however, wish her characters spent more time together earlier in the books!

Historic romance set in a run down East End Jewish neighborhood between two unlikely protagonists divided by criminality and cash flow. He is wealthy and well dressed. She is in rags and arranging a crime when the reader first meets her. He is divinely handsome and she is plain and a spinster. Still, he is intrigued when she saves from an attack by ruffians so when they become accidentally entangled the next time they meet, he is unwilling to let her vanish from his life. An interesting premise for a historical period that normally focuses on an entirely different population.

A social and reverse age gap tale in a Jewish community dealing with racism, surviving being outcasts, etc. And how “birth is not destiny” and the bottom line is, they are enough for each other. Beautiful, steamy, inspiring as well as informative read.

I received an ARC of this book and leaving my review voluntarily.

Love the Jewish community representation in a historical romance. Sol and Hannah were too hot for their own good. The class division between them and how Sol acknowledges that Hannah deserves more than just being hidden away was filled with tension.

I loved the premise of Wake Me Most Wickedly and the fact that it was all about Jewish culture and featured Jewish characters. I also loved that the main characters were an older woman and younger man. However, I found it slow and repetitive. I want to know what happens and how they overcome the obstacles before them but I'm really struggling with the pacing which is why I'm dnfing at 31%.

It was really hard to get Into. It felt slow and like the plot really wasn’t progressing much. I would of loved more romance, but I’ll give it a solid 3 stars.

Wake Me Most Wickedly was such a fun read! Given the diverse perspective of a Jewish romance (which I haven't read much of), my interest was peaked as I dove headfirst into 19th-century life for the Jews amongst Gentiles in London!

THOUGHTS:
- Our heroine, Hannah, is the type of girl you want to be friends with!! She would do anything for those she loves and works so stinking hard!!
- There's a lot I don't know about Jewish culture, but that didn't take away from my reading at all. I think it made me more interested because religious groups with their own insular cultures are still alive and well today, so it felt familiar. However, it was still something new and a break from traditional regency/Victorian Era romances.

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

Wake Me Most Wickedly by Felicia Grossman is a romantic, clever, and irresistibly charming novel. I was captivated by the fiercely feminist heroine and her sweet cinnamon roll of a hero as they navigate the complexities of family, community, loyalty, and love. Prepare to be swept off your feet by this enchanting tale.

Last year I read the first book in the “Once Upon an East End” series by Felicia Grossman; I enjoyed the Jewish historical romance, thought about it a lot, and I was pleased to receive an ARC of “Wake Me Most Wickedly”, which will be published April 9, 2024.

The series re-imagines fairy tale stories – Cinderella in the first, and Snow White in the second. I love how Grossman gender swaps the traditional damsels in these books. Solomon Weiss does fall “asleep” like Snow White and is helped by strangers, but the ode to the original story does not strain credibility.

Instead of fairy tales, “Wake Me Most Wickedly” owes more to the caricature of the villainous Jew of historical tales. Grossman’s excelled note at the end of the story discusses Fagin in “Oliver Twist” and the pawnbroker in “The Grand Sophy” as two such examples.
Grossman also highlights the biography of Isaac Solomon, a pawnbroker and ‘fence’ in regency England, who is often cited as the inspiration behind Fagin. More importantly, Grossman notes the easy scapegoating of Jewish people during a period of great social change in England rather than focusing inward to the real sources of such change and unease.

Hannah Moses runs a pawn shop with her sister, Tamar, after her parents are convicted of handling stolen goods. Hannah was also convicted of lesser crimes and continues to take less than honest work to secure a dowry for her sister. The family is ostracized for being “bad Jews” and bringing negative attention to London’s Jewish community; the fact that the family is Ashkenazi rather than Sephardi is another source of tension to navigate.

Hannah protects Sol one fateful night and the two are drawn to each other even as Sol is tasked with making an advantageous marriage by his older, half-brother who raised him since childhood.

I thought this was an excellent sophomore entry into this series. By exploring goyishe stereotypes and the racist tension Jews faced in 1832 (the lack of legal protections, voting rights, etc.), a nuanced portrait of English society emerges. Hannah and Sol each face pressure to either conform with and stand equal to community’s expectations and the scrutiny of the peerage or potentially be ostracized. The villain and HEA are the stuff of a perfect fairy tale.

An engaging historical romance, unique in scope and near flawless in execution. 4.5/5

This is a different type of historical romance.
Set in the Jewish community in London in the 1830's, Hannah has taken over her parents' pawn shop and the care of her sister. She lives on the fringes of society and will do almost anything to keep her, and her sister fed and housed.
When she rescues Sol from attackers, there is an instant attraction, but both know that they are from different classes within the community and that it will never work.
This story has a lot of twists and turns and is somewhat violent.
I found it an interesting story.

This is an entertaining, fun read. Sol and Hannah are interesting, complex, intriguing, relatable, entertaining characters. I enjoyed them as individuals and a couple. Their romance, with all its twists and turns is entertaining to read. The mystery subplot is intriguing and entertaining. I wish there had been more consequences but what we got was good. The secondary characters added to the fabric of the story and my enjoyment. There was one subplot that I wish had been wrapped up, but being a subplot, it didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the story. The story is easy to read and get into.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

At the behest of his older brother who raised him, Solomon attempts to live a respectable life. That is until he encounters Hannah, who is doing everything to raise her sister's station and ensure she is tainted as little as possible by her family's scandal. It proves very difficult for Solomon to stay away from Hannah while grappling with his feelings while Hannah cannot stand to watch Solomon's reputation become muddled by her own.

This is honestly the first historical romance I have ever encountered where faith is at the epicenter of the story. Solomon and Hannah are both Jewish and grapple and both grapple with very different aspects of religion. Hannah has been ostracized by her community as a result of her parents actions and has faith but perhaps not as strong as Solomonès. Solomon is struggling how to continue with his faith while the stigma of doing so endangers his, and more importantly his brothers, acceptance by the gentiles. Its a fascinating take from the perspective of a romance for Jews in the regency era.

I did find some of the early interactions between the two to be sort of contrived. They lived in separate worlds with very separate outlooks so I'm not sure how much I believed in their attempts to stay away from each other yet also ended up on each other's doorstep. Hannah is a streetsmart, no nonsense character. She saves Soloman, and perhaps he needs her more than she needs him. It was a refreshing take on gender roles in a relationship.

Thank you to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for an ARC. All opinions are my own.

I have a lot of thoughts about this book.

I thought it was interesting, fun and I just don't know what else to say about this book.

I got an e-arc of this book on NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
Wake Me Most Wickedly is the second installment in Felicia Grossman’s fairytale inspired series, Once Upon the East End. It can be read as a standalone, but it’s one of those cases where if you enjoy one, you’ll absolutely enjoy the other, as both books reimagine classic fairytales through a creative lens with a lot of nuance. While the Snow White aspects are not as pronounced, they are still present in rather creative ways. Grossman further unpacks the common stereotypes of Jewish people, this time tackling the caricature of the villainous, con-artist type, as depicted through characters like Fagin in Oliver Twist and (more relevant for historical romance readers) the pawnbroker from The Grand Sophy.
She digs into the roots of this archetype, and subverts it poignantly with Hannah. Her parents were accused of a crime by antisemitic people, and ran away, Hannah is left with no clue of her parents’ whereabouts, trying to pick up the pieces and protect her sister from the stigma of what occurred, and the general seedy environment of the East End, even as they’re shunned from the Jewish community. I truly felt for her and how all this impacted her, with the shame manifesting in self-loathing, and being forced to take on her parents’ pawnshop and being asked to hunt down all manner of things puts her in danger.
Sol is also Jewish, albeit from very different circumstances than Hannah. He was raised by his half-brother, who has distanced himself from the Jewish community, and wants Sol to aspire to success as he has done. Sol, feeling he owes his brother, is determined to follow his brother’s example, but soon finds himself tested when Hannah saves him.
In some ways, this is very similar to a lot of other cross-class romances, but the politics of the Jewish community (Ashkenazi/Sephardic Jewish relations, for example) and how antisemitism and the struggle to survive in a gentiles’ world adds a lot of flavor to the narrative. Their clashing problems feel so rich and nuanced, and I couldn’t help but wonder how it would all work out, especially as the love between them grew.
This was another delightful read, and I’d recommend it to readers interested in historical romance with Jewish leads.

Tropes: grumpy MFC/sunshine MMC; older MFC/younger MMC; class difference
Steam level: 3
Part of a series, but works fine as a standalone.

4.5 stars. This is my first time reading a book by this author, and its strength for me lies less in the romance and more in way it presents insights into Jewish culture during the Regency period, as well as the sheer likability of the MC's. I'm not Jewish myself, so the excellent world-building and period details opened my eyes to the different "tiers" of social acceptance in mainstream society in 1800's England. Not only is tough, streetwise MFC Hannah eking out a dangerous living with her younger sister on the margins of East London, but she has also been shunned by her own people for being the epitome of the "bad Jew." The author does a terrific job of drawing the reader into this world. In contrast, happy-go-lucky MMC Sol lives closer to the upper echelons of Jewish society--yet he still knows that acceptance into the top reaches of the Ton may never be a possibility. The struggles that Hannah faces are dire, but you also feel for Sol, who has been pressured by his older brother since he was a boy to fit into a vicious straightjacket of conformity so they can attain monetary and social success.

Not that this book is overly dark in tone. Despite some harrowing and frankly heartbreaking scenes, there is plenty of humor and the banter between the MC's is witty. The steam is also well-written (although the timing was a bit awkward and unrealistic during one scene). For the most part, there is a nice balance between reality and escapism, with the author pulling off a loose homage to "Snow White and the Seven Dwarves" .

Quibbles: although there is strong tension in the later chapters, I felt that the pacing in the first 60% was occasionally uneven, and there is some repetitive "interior monologue-ing". One of my pet peeves is when the fears a character keeps ruminating over aren't reflected in their actions, and Sol jumped into the relationship with Hannah quite suddenly, after spending so long worrying about how this would negatively impact his and his brother's social standing. I felt that a few pages were needed to bridge his decision to avoid her and then his sudden appearance in her store.

One other issue I had was that "the baddie" is morally bankrupt to the point of being evil, yet the comeuppance was relatively mild. I appreciate that Sol is a sweetheart and that he and Hannah needed to be very careful to preserve their future, but I really wanted fate to be less kind (a true "Grim"-style fairytale ending).

Overall, however, this was a book that keep me reading and at times transcended the standard HR. I highly recommend it.

I read an advanced reader copy of this book and this is my voluntary review. Thanks to the author, publisher, and Net Galley for this opportunity. This book is expected to be published April 9.

I was really looking forward to this book mainly for the Jewish angle. Though not Jewish myself, I wanted to learn more about their struggles in the 19th century. I ldid learn a lot from the book and found Grossman's characters enlightening.

We've got the regency characters, the Jewish characters and Sol's brother who is Jewish but has converted so he can fit in better in business and society and to marry a gentile woman. I struggled with Sol. He was an odd mix of a gadfly and a very serious, hardworking young man. I did enjoy his attraction and dedication to Hannah. While he often seems flightly, he's anything but with Hannah. She's not just a conquest to him. She's the one. Beyond their difficult courtship, she really doesn't want to be courted, is a much deeper story involving violence, attempted murder and unsavory business deals. I always like a strong intrigue plot and this book delivered that. Hannah's struggles as a convicted criminal, head of household, older sister and business owner are many and intense. To have been a woman, basically alone, in that time is so scary and add to that being a member of an often reviled group. Hannah's life is not easy. She's so strong and determined to not only take care of her sister but to provide her the future she's been denied, namely a good marriage. Hannah's been forced to do things she doesn't like and she's unapologetic about it. She'll do whatever it takes to survive and provide for her sister.

The story was intriguing while both touching and emotionally difficult. It was definitely worth the read.

Thanks to the authors publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

Hannah Moses, her sister Tamar, are ostersized for a past mistake. Hannah works hard to get enough money for a dowry for Tamar. She does odd jobs to get the money on top of running the family pawn shop.

Ned Phyppers, bad man, gives Hannah the odd jobs.

Solomon "Sol" Weiss, his brother Frederick, own and run a bank. Frederick raised Solomon from the time he was eight which robbed Frederick of his wild youth. This was not a problem until recently.
Lady Drucilla, her brother Lord Viscount Penrose, Frederick is trying to court.

Aaron Ellenberg and his wife Isabelle, friend/companion Rebecca Adler, look out for Solomon. Aaron is also one of his employers.

Isabelle’s grandmother, Mrs Lira, Roger Berab, Minor characters.


While the plot theory is good and the suspense is very well done, the execution of the book is lacking. The first 12 chapters are boring and repetitive. You get some excitement for a few chapters then another dull 4, but the last 6-8 are what I thoroughly enjoyed.

So the pretense is Hannah and her parents were convicted of a crime, being Jewish didn't help. Her parents got deported, Hannah spent some time in jail, when she got out she took Tamar from the orphanage to raisr. However, both were shunned by the community.


Sol is trying to help his brother working at the bank, as well as, trying to make a life outside his brother working at the securities with Aaron. Sol is set upon by thugs while running an errand for Frederick. As he runs away, Hannah grabs him and they tumble into the cellar she was aiming for.

Once Sol learns who she is, he finally gets to thank her. However, Hannah will not accept the thanks graciously. As sparks fly between them, Hannah tries to maintain a distance. As more danger be falls Sol, Hannah tries to break things off. When Sol goes missing, Hannah tracks him down, but they piece together that someone wants to end Sol's life.

This is where it gets good, who, why, and the justice are what grabs you in the last part. This will make it worth reading. I was surprised as to the who, disappointed in the why, but the satisfaction in the justice was awesome.

There are some surprises with these two. The age difference was not an issue for me, but the banter they shared is comical.

What a wonderful love story set in a complicated world! "Good" Jew versus "bad" Jew. Gentile versus Jew. Upper class versus lower class. Older woman and younger man. Sol aims to become a better member of the Jewish community to improve the family business while his older brother Frederick cuts himself off from that community to be part of the Gentile society. It does not help brotherly relations when Sol falls for a woman of dubious past who runs a pawn shop. Hannah does whatever she can to set money aside for her younger sister's dowry. She wants her sister to have the life that Hannah cannot have. Sol's attentions are really complicating her life!