Rating: 4 out of 5.

This is a cute, flirty historical fiction romance set in Regency England. This is book 4 in the series but can be read as a stand-alone. There is enough back story to give you context regarding the side characters that support the main characters and story.

Viscount Penvale has been working for years to buy back his ancestral home, to the exclusion of almost everything else. Jane Spencer is Penvale’s uncle’s ward. The uncle agrees to sell Penvale the home if Penvale marries Jane. Penvale agrees, but he gets more than he expected in the deal. Jane, having no choice but to go along with the agreement, is set on pushing Penvale out of the home so she can live there peacefully by herself.

I liked the back and forth between Penvale and Jane. They see a challenge in each other and I liked the way they slowly got to know each other. This is a very slow burn love story, and the story did seem to drag on a bit in the middle. There weren’t as many sparks or funny moments in this book as in past books. Those moments mainly came from Penvales friend and families. This book was more about dealing with grief and healing old wounds than a witty, funny rom com. It was a nice change of pace in the series, but I must admit, I did miss having more witty moments.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley and Atria Books. All opinions are my own.