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Lots of Spice but no Substance

Revisado: 02-04-25

I really wanted to like this book, it had an interesting premise and I find that Grace can write nuanced characters, however this was a miss. I found the main character Xenia's backstory to be far fetched at best and completely unbelievable at worst. Grace also uses one of the worst tropes in romance, "I can't tell you about my horrid past that's actually not that bad but I'm going to run away to protect you without your consent." This trope is so irritating, especially when sex scenes are used to "distract" the MMC or as attempted character development. The ghost aspect of this book felt shoe horned in, as did some of the interactions with Ethan's friends. I thought the spice level in this book was a little excessive, but if that's what you're looking for I'd recommend this book. If you want a historical romance with good character development this is not it. I would like to see Grace focus a little more on character development and a little less on pearls and shafts.

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Excellent Character Development

Revisado: 12-16-24

Stella Riley's writing has improved dramatically over the years, and this is probably my favorite story she's written. There's tons of good character development, no cliche internal or external conflicts, and the pacing is excellent. I look forward to more stories in this series.

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Great Narration, Frustrating Story

Revisado: 10-29-24

This is the 7th Stella Riley book I've listened to and it's by far my least favorite. Rockcliffe is such an interesting character that is ruined by being pared with a tepid and deceptive FMC. This whole story could've been solved by one conversation 3 hours into the book, but it's not and the lack of communication makes you want to tear your hair out. Miscommunication tropes feel very overdone and lazy, although this is an early book of hers, and her writing and plot points have improved dramatically, I would probably skip this one. The book is saved by Alex Wyndham's excellent Narration and characters.

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Great story, brutal narration

Revisado: 11-03-23

The story is great, but the narration makes it nearly unlistenable. The narrator uses a really bad Irish accent while sounding like Kermit the frog. She also has weird inflection points. Overall, I wish this was read by Mary Jane Wells or Rosalyn Lindor because it's one of my favorite Lisa Kleypas books.

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