Series: Ravenswood, #1
Traits & Tropes: mutual pining; childhood crush; titled hero; second chance; brother's best friend; soldier
Publication Date: 07.12.22
Genre/Setting: Historical; Regency; Hampshire, England, 1808/1814
Heat Level: 1
Rating: 3/5
Lord Devlin Ware always believed he had the perfect family, pleasant and willing to share their beautiful estate, Ravenswood, with the entire surrounding countryside. But at age 22, during one of their elaborate parties, Devlin had his illusions shattered and thought to publicly take his family to task, only to find himself the one being sent away.
Devlin took his banishment with determination, enlisting in the army to fight Napoleon and only returning six years later, after his father’s passing, when he was forced to assume the title of Earl. Upon his return, Devlin finds the woman he loved and subsequently lost when he left, Gwyneth Rhys, is still unmarried and paradoxically, willing to help him make sense of the broken family he left behind. Devlin obviously needs Gwyneth’s patience and love, but his ability to offer the same to her in return is questionable at best.
The writing of this book was beautiful, but the pacing was incredibly slow, especially in the second half. I may get a bit spoilery as I get my thoughts out. With all the mutual childhood pining in this setup, I was anticipating a devoted, celibate hero and was sadly disappointed as Devlin becomes just as loose as any other rake there for a while as he adjusts to life as a soldier. I hated the fact that he returned with all this experience while Gwyneth still had none. I loved him at first and was so hopeful about him and instead, we just got another bitter rake hero. Devlin certainly wasn’t the one in the wrong, and his family treated him abominably, but he also acted like a spoiled child and was very unforgiving in his own views. I just felt like he did Gwyneth so wrong that he really didn’t deserve her, so she definitely shines as an incredibly patient and loving heroine for slowly making him see sense and realize he did in fact still possess feelings. Though I must say I did find it rather tiresomely trite to see yet another hero who’s afraid of his emotions. He may have returned from war a bit more mature, but he was still a bit of a prig. On the plus side, I loved Gwyneth’s parents and her brother and found myself very envious of her whole familial situation and there were also some really profound examinations here about what love really is.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
https://www.bookbub.com/reviews/3652354014
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4813976421
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