My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Category: Adult
Genre: Romance, Historical Romance
Content: Clean
LONDON 1865
From the moment Hollis Darby meets Ana Newport,
he’s smitten. Even though he’s from a wealthy, established family and
she isn’t, he wishes he could have a life with her by his side. But
Hollis has a secret: the deep coffers that have kept his family afloat
for generations are bare, so he supports himself by writing penny
dreadfuls under a pseudonym. If not for the income from his novels, he
would be broke.
Ana Newport also has a secret. Though she once
had a place in society thanks to her father’s successful business,
bankruptcy and scandal reduced his fortune to nothing more than a
crumbling town house. So Ana teaches music during the day, and at night
she assumes the identity of the “Phantom Fox.” She breaks into the homes
of the wealthy to reclaim trinkets and treasures she feels were
unjustly stolen from her family when they were struggling.
When
Hollis’s brother needs to hire a music tutor for his daughter, Hollis
recommends Ana, giving him a chance to spend time with her. Ana needs
the income and is eager for the opportunity to get to know the enigmatic
gentleman. What neither of them expects is how difficult it will be to
keep their respective secrets from each other.
When a spree of
robberies rocks the city, Ana and Hollis join forces to solve the
crimes, discovering that working together deepens the affection between
them. After all, who better to save the day than a gentleman and a
thief?
I've enjoyed the Jonquil Brothers series by Sarah M.
Eden, and I thought this one sounded interesting, but this book ended up
not holding my interest the way I thought it would. The characters were
likable enough, but it was just a little dull at times. I will admit
that I read this out of order. This is the second book in the series,
but it's a companion series, so I don't think it mattered all that much
story-wise.
I thought the way the book cut back and forth
between what was currently happening and the penny dreadful stories felt
choppy. I wasn't a fan of the placement of those stories in the book,
and I didn't feel invested in those stories the way I did with the main
story line. But even with those things I view as flaws, I liked the characters and the overall plot, and I want to read more about them. I enjoyed this
enough to give the other books in the series a try, and I do plan on
reading book one soon.
Thanks to NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for providing me with an ARC of this book.
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