Title: The Luckiest Lady in London Author: Sherry Thomas
Published: November 5, 2013
Genre(s): Romance: Historical
Page Count: 276
Rating:
Summary from Goodreads:Felix Rivendale, the Marquess of Wrenworth, is The Ideal Gentleman, a man all men want to be and all women want to possess. Felix himself almost believes this golden image. But underneath is a damaged soul soothed only by public adulation.
Louisa Cantwell needs to marry well to support her sisters. She does not, however, want Lord Wrenworth—though he seems inexplicably interested in her. She mistrusts his outward perfection and the praise he garners everywhere he goes. But when he is the only man to propose at the end of the London season, she reluctantly accepts.
Louisa does not understand her husband's mysterious purposes, but she cannot deny the pleasure her body takes in his touch. Nor can she deny the pull this magnetic man exerts upon her. But does she dare to fall in love with a man so full of dark secrets, anyone of which could devastate her, if she were to get any closer?
I’m not sure that I have all that much to say about The Luckiest Lady in London. Though there were parts of the story I found very enjoyable, my overall impression is one that’s somewhat bland. There weren’t any definite negative factors, but at the same time, there weren’t any definite positive ones either. I enjoyed this book and think it’s good, but that’s possibly all I have to say.
This novel is more unique than romance I’ve tended to read in that, for at least half the text, the romantic couple are already married. Of course, any declarations of love and resolutions to their particular tensions don’t come until the end, as always, but that aspects of The Luckiest Lady in London was a bit different for me. I didn’t necessarily like it or dislike it, though.
Though I liked both the male and female lead, I wouldn’t say that they were particularly special to me. There were some facets of their personalities that I enjoyed a great deal—particularly concerning Louisa, the female lead. I hadn’t many major complaints, but as romance is generally a character-driven genre, I didn’t find that I was completely swept off my feet by this couple as I would have liked to be. The characters didn’t stand out, essentially.
That being said, one thing I was very pleased with was the way The Luckiest Lady in London approached female sexuality. At one point, Felix remarks that by marrying Louisa, he must have married “the horniest girl in all of England” without judgment, and Louisa responds without shame. It would have been so, so easy for Sherry Thomas to slut-shame Louisa, to make her vocal enjoyment of sex to be something embarrassing or awkward, but she never did. I’ve read contemporary romances where a woman thinks of herself as a whore for enjoying sex, so finding such an accepting, honest perspective in historical romance was exceedingly refreshing. (However, though Louisa enjoys sex a great deal and demands it of her husband, there is a distinct lack of sexytimes in this book. It’s all very tame.)
The story itself was okay, and was probably the book’s weakest point. I liked the characters and the perspective on sex, but sometimes the plot kind of put me off. This is the traditional romance conflict created by two grown-ass adults who absolutely fail to communicate. As frustrating as this plot device is, I’m not sure why it continues to be so popular. Authors have proven that it’s more than possible to write a successful, enjoyable romance novel and also have characters who partake in actual, meaningful conversation. A shame Thomas didn’t take the lead from one of those authors.
I liked The Luckiest Lady in London to a certain point—I do think it’s good historical fiction, at any rate. It would be unfair to say anything different. Sherry Thomas didn’t exactly blow me out of the water here, but this book doesn’t have any major failings, and is certainly readable. Not the highest praise, sure, but neither am I complaining in a big way.
