Romantic Parvenu

Book Reviews

Book Review: Summer of Scandal by Syrie James

There is slow-burn romance, and then there’s no-burn romance. Guess which one Summer of Scandal is? In this second installment in a series about American heiresses taking Victorian England by storm, Syrie James tells a solid story that ...
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Book Review: Dirty Laundry by Heidi Cullinan

Dirty Laundry was one of the first—if not the first—romance novel I’ve ever read. It’s adorable and sweet and fluffy (and also has some tame BDSM if you’re into that). The representation is amazing and intersectional. Overall, this book just ...
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Book Review: The Ideal Wife by Mary Balogh

The Ideal Wife is splendid! It’s lighthearted but also realistic, and I think that’s something that’s difficult to find in Regency romances. Most novels in this genre are either dark and realistic or fluffy and somewhat lacking in substance. ...
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Book Review: Make Me Want by Katee Robert

Make Me Want wasn’t a book that gave me much beyond a pleasant mental escape, but I can’t really say there’s much wrong with it either. For readers who like books about wealthy workaholics in the big city boinking each other silly, I bet this ...
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Book Review: Diary of a War Bride by Lauri Robinson

Lauri Robinson’s Diary of a War Bride is an excellent WWII romance that is both sweet and well-researched. This book was a delight to read. Overall, this was a pretty satisfying love story. It certainly didn’t rock my world, but it didn’t need ...
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Book Review: A Scandalous Scot by Karen Ranney

In order to properly appreciate A Scandalous Scot, readers will have to willfully suspend their disbelief and buy into the premise that a wealthy earl would ever marry a scullery maid just because he was concerned about her reputation. I am ...
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