Series: Clandestine Affairs, #2
Traits & Tropes: forbidden romance; mystery; class difference; maligned hero; former soldier
Publication Date: 07.27.21
Genre/Setting: Historical; Regency; London, England, 1816
Heat Level: 2
Rating: 5 stars
Hanna Zaydan works hard for every scrap of respect she’s offered as a skilled bonesetter, but her attraction to her newest patient threatens to derail everything she’s worked to build. As she treats his injuries, she finds herself increasingly drawn to the former soldier even though she knows she should stay away. She can tell that Griff has secrets, but she can also see that he desires her too and she may just be willing to give in.
Thomas Ellis, Viscount Griffin, has been plagued by awful rumors that he murdered his own parents even since their tragic deaths when he was just 13. Now, more than ten years later, Griff finds a clue that could lead him to his parents’ killer, and which brings him into the orbit of the lovely bonesetter. Influenced by his cousin and former guardian, Dr. Pratt, Griff fully believes Hanna to be a fraud, but she awakens feelings he thought long dead. When her treatment is truly effective, it seems like she could mend more than just Griff’s broken body, if he’ll let her.
This has to be a five-star read for me, hands down. There’s relatively low angst, especially given the premise of the plot. We have engrossing intrigue, MCs who are adults and openly communicate as such without playing games. It was a bit low on steam, but I loved these two so much that I didn’t even mind, in fact, I was so engrossed in the story that I didn’t really notice their lack of alone time together all that much. We have both an unconventional hero and an unconventional heroine and a mystery for them to solve together. Of course, they fall in love along the way, face adversity and fight to be together, and heal each other as they go. I couldn’t not love this book. Griff was such a genuinely good man who had been hurt so badly by others and just needed some love in his life. Hanna was the perfect match for him, no matter how reluctant she was at first, and she needed someone to believe in her as Griff did, even if she didn’t realize it. It was great to see Hanna get some support to realize her dreams and to see Griff take his life back and finally heal from the grief and guilt he lived with for so long. I loved this book and it left me so satisfied and full of warm fuzzies that I wasn’t even bothered by wrong forms of address, which are usually a huge pet peeve of mine. I enjoyed this book much more than the first book in the series and I’m looking forward to what’s next and especially hoping we find out what’s going on between Selina and Rafi.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3479330715
https://www.bookbub.com/reviews/2750389001
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