Extra Romantic Historicals
Move over book boyfriends, these heroes are my book HUSBANDS
So this curation framework is a little abstract, but ultimately, I got impatient wanting to talk about these three exceptionally swoon-worthy romances but didn’t have a more concrete way to organize them separately. They’re just… they’re very good. They give me tummy acrobats just thinking about them and looking at their shared graphic. So forgive me for my lackluster archival labeling and just go read these books, ok?
Marrying Winterborne by Lisa Kleypas. “You’re not ruined. You’re perfect.”
The first quarter or so of this book is Rhys Winterborne, poor Welshman turned captain of industry (he owns a big ass department store) thoroughly taking Helen Ravenel’s virginity so it’s undeniable they can get married. Just one long seduction/negotiation over the course of an afternoon.
See, in book one of this series (this is book 2 of my fave Kleypas series), Rhys is immediately smitten with the sheltered Helen, and is a little too dramatic and forward with his wooing. To the point that Helen appears deeply distressed and the rest of the family closes ranks and is like “begone, pervert!” Except Helen, while surprised and overwhelmed, didn’t hate it, but everyone sees her as this precious sweetheart who Must Be Protected so they make assumptions about how she wants to deal with all this and try to keep them apart. So in her mind, once she decides she really does want to marry Rhys, the only way to get her overprotective family to accept her decision is to get herself ruined and force their hand. So she does. And it’s great.
The rest of this book has a lot going on, involving secrets from the past that bleed into the present, but all you need to know is that it’s a book about a man who loves his wife to distraction even if he’s super awkward and intense about it. Basically every line out of this man’s mouth would make even the most asexual amongst us (*raises hand*) hot under the collar. It’s great. It’s ridiculous. It’s a classic for a reason.
How hot? 🔥🔥🔥🔥
How To Tame a Wild Rogue by Julie Anne Long. Lady Daphne Worth is desperate to escape her current circumstances (a horrible and also, separately, loveless potential marriage), so she does the only thing she can: climbs out a window in the middle of a massive storm. Luckily, the only witness to her escape is criminal and pirate Lorcan St. Leger, who isn’t as dangerous as he appears with his little gold earring and facial scar. At least, not to Daphne. Needing to get away from the people seeking Daphne and also the wild storm, they head to the nearest respite; The Grand Palace of the Thames. Unfortunately, there’s only one room, so they have to pretend to be married in order to gain shelter from the storm.
While this book is light on plot, it’s heavy on a ravenously emotional love story between two seeming opposites while they’re rained in and forced to share a space. As Lorraine Heath described last week, “[Julie Anne Long’s] so poetic. There’s a beautiful rhythm to her stories.” And this one might be her most poetic yet, in my opinion! It’s just absolutely lovely.
How hot? 🔥🔥🔥
After The Wedding by Courtney Milan. The as-of-yet-unfinished Worth Saga by Courtney Milan keeps me up at night. Seriously. Screaming crying throwing up etc, when will be get relief!! This is my favorite of the three that are currently out, and it had me absolutely losing my mind every other sentence. If you’re looking for ROMANCE and also a really nuanced historical (and modern) exploration of the ways in which marginalized people will participate in their own marginalization for the comfort and acceptance of those in power and how to take BACK that power… plus a shotgun wedding/divorce road trip from hell… this is your book.
Adrian Hunter is the son of a duke's daughter and a black abolitionist (his older brother is the hero from the third book in the series), and he’s gone undercover as a valet at the insistence of his white uncle’s approval and support. If he brings back the info said wuncle needs, he might finally be acknowledged by that side of the family, which has uses personally and politically. Unfortunately, before he can get said info (it doesn’t really matter what the info is for the purposes of this recap), he gets set up, in the form of being found in a compromising position with Camilla Worth, a kinda maid, kinda ward of the household he’s undercover in. So they’re forced to marry at gunpoint, then kicked out.
Camilla is the perfect kind of heartbreaking for a heroine in her particular archetype; her only dream is to be cared about by one person. Just one. So while she kinda likes this Adrian hottie she’s hitched to, he’s so distraught she’s willing to follow him to hell to ensure he can get the annulment he so craves. You really gotta read book 1 of this series to understand how much extra heartbreaking Camilla’s whole deal is. What I think I like best about her is how she could so easily be a simpering passive idiot, but instead of being frustrating to read, you spend the whole book slowly bleeding out on her behalf in a way that’s super compelling and ultimately fulfilling!
Also, this book has my favorite microtrope for a marriage of convenience/forced/ruined into marriage plot, but it’s a climax/end of book microtrope and I don’t want to spoil anything. Very Day of the Duchess coded IYKWIM. I just fucking love this book, y’all. Writing this review has prompted me to put it on hold at the library again.
How hot? 🔥🔥🔥
Next week, I’ll be recommending books set at theme parks!
What should I be reading next? Let me know in the comments!
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Available now: my debut marriage of convenience romance Rehabbing the Billionaire! Buy your copy on Amazon, or snag it on Kindle Unlimited! Then, rate it on Goodreads to help more people discover it!