I love, love, love it! Loretta Chase has done it again, and this series has officially become my favorite historical romance. I’m so intrigued by the timeline—it seems to take place between Ashmont first meeting Olympia (right after nearly running her over) and the latter half of the second book.

Alice is such a strong character, always ready to stand up for the underdogs. Blackwood, on the other hand, is the epitome of the brooding, dark-corner type, wielding all the influence imaginable as a duke. Their banter is sharp, the sexual tension is ever-growing, and Alice is a heroine with a purpose—her drive to help the less fortunate adds depth to her character. She volunteers to assist those in debtors’ prisons, particularly The Marshalsea, a famous institution that once held Charles Dickens' father in 1824 for a debt to a baker. As a Dickens fan, I loved seeing this historical detail, especially since Little Dorrit is my favorite of his works.

Alice’s main fear is that her horrid cousin will inherit the dukedom and control her fate—a seemingly inevitable outcome given her brother’s reckless, self-destructive behavior. Her cousin is a despicable little vermin of a man; as a child, Alice once assaulted him after catching him drowning a kitten, and their relationship has not improved since. She refuses to be at his mercy, so the only solution is marriage—quickly.

Alice is no wallflower. She’s a striking woman who knows how to use her charm, but her strong will and commitment to aiding the poor (which often requires disguising herself as a commoner) mean she must find a husband who will allow her to continue her work. Enter Blackwood. Their chemistry is undeniable, and their love story is compelling. While I wish the third act packed a bit more of a punch, I truly enjoyed this book!

Alice and Blackwood are both excellent characters and their banter and chemistry is evident from the start. What is missing for me in this book is why their relationship/marriage wasn't working (as we see in the previous two books in this series)--it felt like Loretta couldn't quite bring herself to let these two be miserable, however the end result was a book that felt disjointed and like it stopped and started over and over again. Loretta has a gift for writing witty, compelling characters, and that felt like the true saving grace of this novel. I'll obviously read Loretta forever and Kate Reading absolutely nailed the narration, but despite the fact that the first two books of this series will remain my favorites, this was a bit of a disappointment for me.