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Duke Undone #4
A Shore Thing
Listening Length: 13 hours and 13 minutes
A delightful queer Victorian love story, featuring a boldly brash trans hero, the beguiling botanist who captures his heart, and a buoyant bicycle race by the British seaside -- from the author of The Duke Undone.
Former painter and unreformed rake Kit Griffith is forging a new life in Cornwall, choosing freedom over an identity that didn't fit. He knew that leaving his Sisterhood of women artists might mean forfeiting artistic community forever. He didn't realize he would lose his ability to paint altogether. Luckily, he has other talents. Why not devote himself to selling bicycles and trysting with the holidaymakers?
Enter Muriel Pendrake, the feisty New-York-bound botanist who has come to St. Ives to commission Kit for illustrations of British seaweeds. Kit shouldn't accept Muriel's offer, but he must enlist her help to prove to an all-male cycling club that women can ride as well as men. And she won't agree unless he gives her what she wants. Maybe that's exactly the challenge he needs.
As Kit and Muriel spend their days cycling together, their desire begins to burn with the heat of the summer sun. But are they pedaling toward something impossible? The past is bound to catch up to them, and at the season's end, their paths will diverge. With only their hearts as guides, Kit and Muriel must decide if they're willing to race into the unknown for the adventure of a lifetime.
A delightful queer Victorian love story, featuring a boldly brash trans hero, the beguiling botanist who captures his heart, and a buoyant bicycle race by the British seaside -- from the author of The Duke Undone.
Former painter and unreformed rake Kit Griffith is forging a new life in Cornwall, choosing freedom over an identity that didn't fit. He knew that leaving his Sisterhood of women artists might mean forfeiting artistic community forever. He didn't realize he would lose his ability to paint altogether. Luckily, he has other talents. Why not devote himself to selling bicycles and trysting with the holidaymakers?
Enter Muriel Pendrake, the feisty New-York-bound botanist who has come to St. Ives to commission Kit for illustrations of British seaweeds. Kit shouldn't accept Muriel's offer, but he must enlist her help to prove to an all-male cycling club that women can ride as well as men. And she won't agree unless he gives her what she wants. Maybe that's exactly the challenge he needs.
As Kit and Muriel spend their days cycling together, their desire begins to burn with the heat of the summer sun. But are they pedaling toward something impossible? The past is bound to catch up to them, and at the season's end, their paths will diverge. With only their hearts as guides, Kit and Muriel must decide if they're willing to race into the unknown for the adventure of a lifetime.
14 pages, Audible Audio
First published June 18, 2024
148 people are currently reading
13347 people want to read
About the author
Joanna Lowell
8 books455 followersJoanna Lowell lives among the fig trees in North Carolina, where she teaches in the English department at Wake Forest University. When she’s not writing historical romance, she writes collections and novels as Joanna Ruocco. Those books include Dan, Another Governess / The Least Blacksmith, The Week, and Field Glass, co-authored with Joanna Howard.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 430 reviews
November 11, 2024
All kinds of love stories are possible in any and every era.
I didn’t always believe that, or was quite skeptical until recently. But reading queer historical romances that are rooted in historical accuracy but also in hope and compassion, like this one, have done so much to open my mind to this.
Also, I love reading a passion project. When an author really mines their heart for a story, it can be so deeply meaningful, emotional and contains so much humanity.
This book spoke to so many things, but never lectured on any of them. It presented its case with empathy and amazing story telling. There was hope but no erasure or rewriting history. I can’t quite describe how well done this was, I just highly recommend it.
All I can say in critique of this is that this really needs an epilogue. Maybe I just don’t have enough vision to get there for myself, but I’d have loved to be given this rather than to speculate.
Note on the narration: this was single narrator done with a lovely Cornish accent. It added a soothing, cozy quality to this book. It was very nice to listen to.
I didn’t always believe that, or was quite skeptical until recently. But reading queer historical romances that are rooted in historical accuracy but also in hope and compassion, like this one, have done so much to open my mind to this.
Also, I love reading a passion project. When an author really mines their heart for a story, it can be so deeply meaningful, emotional and contains so much humanity.
This book spoke to so many things, but never lectured on any of them. It presented its case with empathy and amazing story telling. There was hope but no erasure or rewriting history. I can’t quite describe how well done this was, I just highly recommend it.
All I can say in critique of this is that this really needs an epilogue. Maybe I just don’t have enough vision to get there for myself, but I’d have loved to be given this rather than to speculate.
Note on the narration: this was single narrator done with a lovely Cornish accent. It added a soothing, cozy quality to this book. It was very nice to listen to.
May 31, 2024
A Shore Thing is a slow-burn historical romance between a widowed naturalist and a trans man bicyclist and former painter. And when I say slow-burn, it's less that it takes a long time for them to fall for each other in terms of days, and more that the book is slower paced and mostly takes place over the course of two weeks.
Muriel is preparing to deliver a presentation to a scientific society on seaweed and wants to hire Kit to create illustrations. Kit is grieving a separation with the sapphic women friends he had before more fully transitioning and has been unable to paint. Instead he runs a bicycle shop and ends up taking a bet that a woman could complete a grueling ten day ride. Muriel volunteers to prove its possible in exchange for him trying to create illustrations. But from the beginning there is a spark between them and it only grows.
This was a really lovely, often sweet romance (though it does have spicier scenes as well). I also appreciate the author's note at the end on how Victorians thought about gender and sexuality and what being queer at that time might look like. Sometimes I think the book is a bit too slow and could have been shortened, but overall I quite liked it. I received a copy of this book for review via NetGalley, all opinions are my own.
Muriel is preparing to deliver a presentation to a scientific society on seaweed and wants to hire Kit to create illustrations. Kit is grieving a separation with the sapphic women friends he had before more fully transitioning and has been unable to paint. Instead he runs a bicycle shop and ends up taking a bet that a woman could complete a grueling ten day ride. Muriel volunteers to prove its possible in exchange for him trying to create illustrations. But from the beginning there is a spark between them and it only grows.
This was a really lovely, often sweet romance (though it does have spicier scenes as well). I also appreciate the author's note at the end on how Victorians thought about gender and sexuality and what being queer at that time might look like. Sometimes I think the book is a bit too slow and could have been shortened, but overall I quite liked it. I received a copy of this book for review via NetGalley, all opinions are my own.
August 27, 2024
3.5 stars
A really sweet low-stakes historical romance between a botanist and a bicyclist. I thought this was a really great and necessary romance with fun characters and an interesting plot, I just felt it was easy to tune out of while listening and didn't do a great job of grabbing my attention.
A really sweet low-stakes historical romance between a botanist and a bicyclist. I thought this was a really great and necessary romance with fun characters and an interesting plot, I just felt it was easy to tune out of while listening and didn't do a great job of grabbing my attention.
July 10, 2024
A historical romance about identity, seaweed, the evolution of friendships, and how male bicycle enthusiasts have always been absolutely insufferable. Kit is a trans man in a time when there was no word for it (he says he’s a man who had a girlhood, which I can’t argue with), and Muriel just wants to be a plant nerd but not the kind of plant nerd society will let her be. Can these two reach an accord and help each other with their respective goals? Will Kit find inspiration to paint again? Did the author’s note at the end make me cry? Yes to all.
June 22, 2024
It took me a while to get into, but once we were rolling I was hooked. I loved the romance and there was even a cute little secondary one! My favorite part was how the feminist women’s groups we see a LOT of in histroms were still really narrow minded in certain ways. (That plotline also resolved in a very lovely way.) Also the sex scenes >>>
My least favorite part was the biking, like I really didn’t care about any of that, but it was actually a smaller part of the plot than I expected. Maybe I’m just salty that I can only ride a bike in a straight line for very short distances before I fall over…
The narrator was okay, but maybe not my favorite? I was just wishing that Mary Jane Wells was back.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 🌶️🌶️/5
I received an ALC from PRHaudio. All opinions are honest and my own.
My least favorite part was the biking, like I really didn’t care about any of that, but it was actually a smaller part of the plot than I expected. Maybe I’m just salty that I can only ride a bike in a straight line for very short distances before I fall over…
The narrator was okay, but maybe not my favorite? I was just wishing that Mary Jane Wells was back.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 🌶️🌶️/5
I received an ALC from PRHaudio. All opinions are honest and my own.
November 28, 2024
Just could not have loved this more. So much of this was fresh, pure delight—the banter, the bicycles!!—while the serious edges of it all were so nuanced, thoughtful, and so so beautifully written. I was also Emotional about the way Joanna and Mir collaborated on this. What a special book.
May 22, 2024
“Loving you is exhilarating and all I most desire.”
This was absolutely remarkable. Kit is a trans man & artist who moves to Cornwall to forge a new life for himself, selling bicycles. This is where he meets Muriel, a botanist from New York who wants to commission Kit for illustrations of British seaweeds. This is overall low angst, but I especially loved how this was so much more than a love story.
Joanna worked with her partner Mir, who is a trans man and a gender & sexuality historian. Together they really made this a wonderful, well rounded love story, with important historical context and politics. I mean the dedication and historical note alone made me SOB.
“We don't think fiction and romance will save the world, but we do believe that imagination is vital to personal and social change. When things are hard, art can provide a place of dreaming new possibilities, and be a source of strength in making them real. History can also show us that people pushed to the margins have always fought for justice, and sometimes won.”
*huge thanks to the publisher for the free arc in exchange for my honest review*
This was absolutely remarkable. Kit is a trans man & artist who moves to Cornwall to forge a new life for himself, selling bicycles. This is where he meets Muriel, a botanist from New York who wants to commission Kit for illustrations of British seaweeds. This is overall low angst, but I especially loved how this was so much more than a love story.
Joanna worked with her partner Mir, who is a trans man and a gender & sexuality historian. Together they really made this a wonderful, well rounded love story, with important historical context and politics. I mean the dedication and historical note alone made me SOB.
“We don't think fiction and romance will save the world, but we do believe that imagination is vital to personal and social change. When things are hard, art can provide a place of dreaming new possibilities, and be a source of strength in making them real. History can also show us that people pushed to the margins have always fought for justice, and sometimes won.”
*huge thanks to the publisher for the free arc in exchange for my honest review*
June 19, 2024
This is such a delightful slow burn queer Victorian romance! I hadn't read any historical romances with a trans main character before; I think I was expecting more drama and conflict over gender during that time frame but this was such a pleasant surprise.
Artist and rake Kit Griffith is forging a new identity for himself as a bicycle seller in Cornwall. Feisty botanist Muriel has come there seeking out the illustrator of her dreams, only to find herself deeply attracted to this man who has made a habit of seducing countless women. Muriel finds herself spontaneously agreeing to participate in a ten-day cycling event across the countryside with an all-male club to prove that women can ride as well as men, and help Kit win a bet, in exchange for his agreement to produce the illustrations she needs.
This story has so much wonderful chemistry and banter; it just had an overall healing quality to it for the characters which I loved. There was also a lot of historical context for the challenges faced by those who dared to escape their expected roles in life, and informative author end notes that I appreciated very much.
Thank you so much to Berkley for this copy to review!
Artist and rake Kit Griffith is forging a new identity for himself as a bicycle seller in Cornwall. Feisty botanist Muriel has come there seeking out the illustrator of her dreams, only to find herself deeply attracted to this man who has made a habit of seducing countless women. Muriel finds herself spontaneously agreeing to participate in a ten-day cycling event across the countryside with an all-male club to prove that women can ride as well as men, and help Kit win a bet, in exchange for his agreement to produce the illustrations she needs.
This story has so much wonderful chemistry and banter; it just had an overall healing quality to it for the characters which I loved. There was also a lot of historical context for the challenges faced by those who dared to escape their expected roles in life, and informative author end notes that I appreciated very much.
Thank you so much to Berkley for this copy to review!
August 9, 2025
This is one of the best queer historical romances I've ever read, definitely the best trans historical romance I've come across. For all you queer history nerds who like real historical details and a strong sense of the time period but also adorable queer love and a wonderfully drawn trans man and cis woman character, this is for you. Those sex scenes!! 🔥🔥🔥 Plus, late 19th century bicycles, botany, and painting! Just lovely lovely lovely. 😍
April 13, 2024
What a lovely, delightful read! Kit and Muriel were perfect and their road trip brought me so much joy. I needed a low(ish) angst, kissyface queer book that dropped me into an uncommon setting and setup.
June 15, 2024
Genre: historical romance
Cornwall, 1888
Muriel Pendrake is a botanist, in need of illustrations of seaweed for her upcoming lecture in New York. Her closest friend, Dr James Raleigh, convinces her to commission the artist Kit Griffith after they see his paintings of Columbine flowers. Kit moved to Cornwall for a fresh start to fully embrace his identity as a man after living his early life as a girl, and while the painting may not be going as well as he’d like, his bicycle sales to seaside holidayers is a smashing success. When Muriel meets Kit, she’s stunned by his impish rakishness and flirtatiousness. Kit - who hasn’t painted much in a year - agrees to the commission, but only because Muriel has also agreed to participate in a bicycle race with him, competing against another local cycling club.
A Shore Thing is a stunning historical romance, well-researched and incredibly thoughtful, that never once skimps on chemistry or swoon. Every page was a delight to read, with layers of relationships (romantic and platonic) for each Muriel and Kit in their pasts and side characters who amplify both the plot and the love story. Sometimes for the sake of simplicity, an author might essentialize a character, particularly in a queer love story making their queerness their whole identity. Lowell does the opposite: Kit and Muriel are slightly older main characters and the richness of their interests and complexity of character makes them fully queer and also fully invested in other aspects of their identity. Some of the conversations about sexual desire occur on page between Muriel and Kit, but some of them also happen with Raleigh and with Kit’s sapphic salon friends.
I love the way Muriel and Kit’s romance unfolds. There is immediate attraction followed by misunderstanding that leads to enmity, but Muriel’s determination to prove others wrong through the bicycle race leads to close proximity and the spark of mutual attraction that develops into deeper conversations and eventually a blossoming romance. Lowell paces this development comfortably, which sets up an HEA I’m convinced will last.
One of the fun components for me as a cyclist is imagining these older types of bicycles as they travel across the countryside. They are riding safeties - the term for the late 1880s bicycles that we now recognize as more common with the two wheels the same size - and they aren’t just casual tourists out for a ride. They have panniers packed with their gear, and while they stop at inns for the nights, this touring group is full of sportsmen for whom cycling is an important social function. There are references to the high-wheelers (with one very big wheel and one very little wheel) and to two-person tricycles called sociables, where the riders sit side-by-side rather than the more familiar tandem two-person cycle.
I’m excited for this book to hit the shelves for everyone to read. It’s a lovingly written book about Victorian queer joy by a queer author, and at the same time is also a delightful historical romance that avoids essentializing experiences. DO NOT skip the author’s note in this one: the note and the discussion questions are co-written by Joanna Lowell and her partner, Mir Yarfitz, a trans man and historian of gender and sexuality in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Their combined research and iterative discussions through Lowell’s writing led to this incredibly strong love story.
Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for an eARC for review. A Shore Thing is out 6/18/24.
Cornwall, 1888
Muriel Pendrake is a botanist, in need of illustrations of seaweed for her upcoming lecture in New York. Her closest friend, Dr James Raleigh, convinces her to commission the artist Kit Griffith after they see his paintings of Columbine flowers. Kit moved to Cornwall for a fresh start to fully embrace his identity as a man after living his early life as a girl, and while the painting may not be going as well as he’d like, his bicycle sales to seaside holidayers is a smashing success. When Muriel meets Kit, she’s stunned by his impish rakishness and flirtatiousness. Kit - who hasn’t painted much in a year - agrees to the commission, but only because Muriel has also agreed to participate in a bicycle race with him, competing against another local cycling club.
A Shore Thing is a stunning historical romance, well-researched and incredibly thoughtful, that never once skimps on chemistry or swoon. Every page was a delight to read, with layers of relationships (romantic and platonic) for each Muriel and Kit in their pasts and side characters who amplify both the plot and the love story. Sometimes for the sake of simplicity, an author might essentialize a character, particularly in a queer love story making their queerness their whole identity. Lowell does the opposite: Kit and Muriel are slightly older main characters and the richness of their interests and complexity of character makes them fully queer and also fully invested in other aspects of their identity. Some of the conversations about sexual desire occur on page between Muriel and Kit, but some of them also happen with Raleigh and with Kit’s sapphic salon friends.
I love the way Muriel and Kit’s romance unfolds. There is immediate attraction followed by misunderstanding that leads to enmity, but Muriel’s determination to prove others wrong through the bicycle race leads to close proximity and the spark of mutual attraction that develops into deeper conversations and eventually a blossoming romance. Lowell paces this development comfortably, which sets up an HEA I’m convinced will last.
One of the fun components for me as a cyclist is imagining these older types of bicycles as they travel across the countryside. They are riding safeties - the term for the late 1880s bicycles that we now recognize as more common with the two wheels the same size - and they aren’t just casual tourists out for a ride. They have panniers packed with their gear, and while they stop at inns for the nights, this touring group is full of sportsmen for whom cycling is an important social function. There are references to the high-wheelers (with one very big wheel and one very little wheel) and to two-person tricycles called sociables, where the riders sit side-by-side rather than the more familiar tandem two-person cycle.
I’m excited for this book to hit the shelves for everyone to read. It’s a lovingly written book about Victorian queer joy by a queer author, and at the same time is also a delightful historical romance that avoids essentializing experiences. DO NOT skip the author’s note in this one: the note and the discussion questions are co-written by Joanna Lowell and her partner, Mir Yarfitz, a trans man and historian of gender and sexuality in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Their combined research and iterative discussions through Lowell’s writing led to this incredibly strong love story.
Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for an eARC for review. A Shore Thing is out 6/18/24.
April 24, 2024
4 / 5 stars !!
gosh this book was truly an experience to say the least. i have always wanted to find historical romance books that include characters that are like me, but it's so far and in between, as most people won't write such a story because of the complexities of trans and queer identities in history. this book not only gave me that, but handled it so beautifully.
lowell's writing truly captivated me very early on and drew me into this characters and their growing relationship. and to find out that she wrote it with her transmasc partner only made it that much better. i adored the way it handled everyone's identities and how those things interconnect, how transmasculine individuals still do have connections to that femininity they once lived as and how that interconnects itself. it truly was so well written, kit was so well written and i adored him, his annoying teasing charm to the complexities of him as a trans man in a world that just wasn't necessarily made for someone like him. i adored muriel and her growth to letting someone in again, and it showing how she learned about kit and his life. just a really beautiful book, truly. my heart swells.
thank you to netgalley and the publishers for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!
gosh this book was truly an experience to say the least. i have always wanted to find historical romance books that include characters that are like me, but it's so far and in between, as most people won't write such a story because of the complexities of trans and queer identities in history. this book not only gave me that, but handled it so beautifully.
lowell's writing truly captivated me very early on and drew me into this characters and their growing relationship. and to find out that she wrote it with her transmasc partner only made it that much better. i adored the way it handled everyone's identities and how those things interconnect, how transmasculine individuals still do have connections to that femininity they once lived as and how that interconnects itself. it truly was so well written, kit was so well written and i adored him, his annoying teasing charm to the complexities of him as a trans man in a world that just wasn't necessarily made for someone like him. i adored muriel and her growth to letting someone in again, and it showing how she learned about kit and his life. just a really beautiful book, truly. my heart swells.
thank you to netgalley and the publishers for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!
December 19, 2024
Historical fiction ✅️
Queer love ✅️
Ambitious women ✅️
Annoying men being put in their place ✅️
=⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Queer love ✅️
Ambitious women ✅️
Annoying men being put in their place ✅️
=⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
July 25, 2024
I liked this book, but there was so much going on that the romance almost felt overshadowed at times. The writing and the characters were wonderful, and the chemistry between Muriel and Kit was amazing! They were seriously perfect together! It did start off slow, but once it got going, I enjoyed it immensely.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are my own.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are my own.
October 25, 2024
Oh my goodness I loved this so much!!!! Muriel and Kit are the sweetest. The tension was so good and I fully believed their romance. I loved how they supported each other's work. And the spicy scenes were hot while remaining true and respectful to Kit's complicated feelings about his own body. I really really appreciate the care with which the author approached the representation of trans/nb folks in this time period.
I enjoyed the previous in this series as well and will absolutely be continuing as I love this world Joanna Lowell has built!
I enjoyed the previous in this series as well and will absolutely be continuing as I love this world Joanna Lowell has built!
December 19, 2024
A gentle little sunbeam of a book. Whatever you may think of the romance, I dare you to read this and not immediately daydream of running away for a cycling tour of the English countryside. :)
I will say that this was a difficult one to rate. I was ready to give it 6 stars because it’s got so many good little moments. You learn a little about cycling history (I had no idea about “safety” bikes’ controversial history, or their connection to women’s suffrage!) And the cycling scenes are pitch-perfect: The shifts between descriptions of soaring natural beauty and all the mundane frustrations (and mud) along the way — I smiled so many times because it’s all just such a lovely (and familiar!) portrayal of grudgingly coming to love a sport. But plot-wise, it was much less satisfying:
I will say that this was a difficult one to rate. I was ready to give it 6 stars because it’s got so many good little moments. You learn a little about cycling history (I had no idea about “safety” bikes’ controversial history, or their connection to women’s suffrage!) And the cycling scenes are pitch-perfect: The shifts between descriptions of soaring natural beauty and all the mundane frustrations (and mud) along the way — I smiled so many times because it’s all just such a lovely (and familiar!) portrayal of grudgingly coming to love a sport. But plot-wise, it was much less satisfying:
December 17, 2024
Dec 2024 update: one thing about me is that I've now read this book four times in a year and I will never stop shouting about it.
-----
Edit: I bought the physical book and read it again, a week after finishing it. This book is *that* powerful. Absolutely phenomenal characterisation and chemistry. I cried even the second time around. Sexy as hell too. Best historical romance I've read in a looooong time.
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I am taken aback but how much I loved this!! Devastating.
It was such a fresh, funny romance with layers upon layers of conflict and delicious amounts of banter. A romance with properly rounded characters! Who'd have thought.
Muriel is a young widow botanist who feels oppression keenly. She is sheltered, naive, and has been made to feel like female pleasure is unnatural; simultaneously, she's unbelievably self-assured, sharp, and brave.
Kit is a trans man (though those words do not exist quite yet) who used to paint and is now a lycra man (jokes, I don't think they even had lycra back then): full of swagger, gorgeous, funny, and yet filled with a fear that his relationship with art is broken.
This is such a complex novel beyond its frothy facade that I struggle to write about it. The way it lets its characters be really vulnerable and yet cocky was just wonderful. The many, many layers of conflict (there are Kit's ex sapphic friends who struggle with his identity; his best friend Lucy, her of book 1, who sees his living as a man as a betrayal; the fear of how he will be perceived by Muriel; the fear of loving fully; the fact that Muriel is bound back to NY; Muriel's trauma from her first marriage; Muriel's panic attacks; Kit's inability to paint) and each get resolved in a satisfying way.
The slice of life moments are also really lovely, and an unbelievable amount of stuff happens, but most of it is quite low-stakes and provides emotional texture. I loved James!!
The banter is genuinely riveting, between all characters. The intimacy gave me tingles, and the sex scenes are fantastic and do so much for the character development.
In the writer's note, Joanna Lowell says that she, herself, loves a trans man, and wanted to see their reflected against the backdrop of the past. This showed so much - this book has an unbelievable amount of heart.
The drawback of writing this with her partner, a professor, is that there were moments which were, yes, didactic. Brace for that - I agree that blamelessness is not a prerequisite for fighting the system, maybe I don't really believe it out of the mouth of Muriel.
But it's fine. It's an absolutely wonderful romance. I hope Joanna writes more queer stories <3
-----
Edit: I bought the physical book and read it again, a week after finishing it. This book is *that* powerful. Absolutely phenomenal characterisation and chemistry. I cried even the second time around. Sexy as hell too. Best historical romance I've read in a looooong time.
-----
I am taken aback but how much I loved this!! Devastating.
It was such a fresh, funny romance with layers upon layers of conflict and delicious amounts of banter. A romance with properly rounded characters! Who'd have thought.
Muriel is a young widow botanist who feels oppression keenly. She is sheltered, naive, and has been made to feel like female pleasure is unnatural; simultaneously, she's unbelievably self-assured, sharp, and brave.
Kit is a trans man (though those words do not exist quite yet) who used to paint and is now a lycra man (jokes, I don't think they even had lycra back then): full of swagger, gorgeous, funny, and yet filled with a fear that his relationship with art is broken.
This is such a complex novel beyond its frothy facade that I struggle to write about it. The way it lets its characters be really vulnerable and yet cocky was just wonderful. The many, many layers of conflict (there are Kit's ex sapphic friends who struggle with his identity; his best friend Lucy, her of book 1, who sees his living as a man as a betrayal; the fear of how he will be perceived by Muriel; the fear of loving fully; the fact that Muriel is bound back to NY; Muriel's trauma from her first marriage; Muriel's panic attacks; Kit's inability to paint) and each get resolved in a satisfying way.
The slice of life moments are also really lovely, and an unbelievable amount of stuff happens, but most of it is quite low-stakes and provides emotional texture. I loved James!!
The banter is genuinely riveting, between all characters. The intimacy gave me tingles, and the sex scenes are fantastic and do so much for the character development.
In the writer's note, Joanna Lowell says that she, herself, loves a trans man, and wanted to see their reflected against the backdrop of the past. This showed so much - this book has an unbelievable amount of heart.
The drawback of writing this with her partner, a professor, is that there were moments which were, yes, didactic. Brace for that - I agree that blamelessness is not a prerequisite for fighting the system, maybe I don't really believe it out of the mouth of Muriel.
But it's fine. It's an absolutely wonderful romance. I hope Joanna writes more queer stories <3
March 28, 2025
After a case of stolen identity, Miss Muriel Pendrake has earned a story of her very own. She’s landed in St. Ives determined to prove even seaweed isn’t beneath her (it is, in fact, beneath her), and happens to fall into the actual path of a truly handsome cyclist/illustrator who would be a perfect project partner for her work.
He also happens to be the best friend of the infamous Lucy Coover (from A Duke Undone).
A bicycle trip ensues, with lots of opportunities for scandalous bathing machines and only-one-bed scenarios and true love.
He also happens to be the best friend of the infamous Lucy Coover (from A Duke Undone).
A bicycle trip ensues, with lots of opportunities for scandalous bathing machines and only-one-bed scenarios and true love.
October 1, 2024
I loved A Shore Thing. It was fun, funny, and romantic, as Muriel and Kit met, fell in love, and overcame some of their personal hurdles while supporting each other. There are bicycle tours, seaweed collections, shenanigans, and general mayhem. Our leads break their era's gender norms and defy expectations in different ways.
Lowell says she wrote this book to reflect her real-life marriage to a trans man. She collaborated with him on his own experiences and his expertise as a sexuality and gender historian. That genuine care and love are on full display throughout the prose.
As a nonbinary trans guy, a lot of Kit's story felt too relatable. Like Kit, I worked extensively with organizations dedicated to furthering women's rights and displaying women's talents, creativity, and contributions. I'm very proud of my work (in collaboration with others) and its continuing legacy. However, like Kit, I feel at odds with the (mostly) women I know through that work and find myself anxious about their reactions to me now.
Lowell draws very sharp characters and takes them all on a wild adventure together. Like many of the best historical authors, she employs random events in the story to propel the characters with external pressures while they work out their interior struggles.
I adored Kit as a rake. Even if, at first, before he told Muriel about being trans, I questioned if his many ladies weren't just him mentioning his pre-transition life where he could've gone into women's bedrooms just as friends. Though I guess Kit did pack his dick on a bicycle tour/race around the English coast. It was downright joyous to have a brash trans character.
As a plant nerd, I did want a little more plants. But it turned out it wasn't botany that Muriel needed to face, but her fear of dogs from a major childhood trauma.
Overall, this was a delightful read, and I will certainly pick up other romances by Lowell.
Lowell says she wrote this book to reflect her real-life marriage to a trans man. She collaborated with him on his own experiences and his expertise as a sexuality and gender historian. That genuine care and love are on full display throughout the prose.
As a nonbinary trans guy, a lot of Kit's story felt too relatable. Like Kit, I worked extensively with organizations dedicated to furthering women's rights and displaying women's talents, creativity, and contributions. I'm very proud of my work (in collaboration with others) and its continuing legacy. However, like Kit, I feel at odds with the (mostly) women I know through that work and find myself anxious about their reactions to me now.
Lowell draws very sharp characters and takes them all on a wild adventure together. Like many of the best historical authors, she employs random events in the story to propel the characters with external pressures while they work out their interior struggles.
I adored Kit as a rake. Even if, at first, before he told Muriel about being trans, I questioned if his many ladies weren't just him mentioning his pre-transition life where he could've gone into women's bedrooms just as friends. Though I guess Kit did pack his dick on a bicycle tour/race around the English coast. It was downright joyous to have a brash trans character.
As a plant nerd, I did want a little more plants. But it turned out it wasn't botany that Muriel needed to face, but her fear of dogs from a major childhood trauma.
Overall, this was a delightful read, and I will certainly pick up other romances by Lowell.
June 27, 2025
Lovely queer victorian romance about a man, a woman, and a bike race. There's lots of delightful side characters, and friend groups from previous books (which I haven't read, but it's evident).
There's a lot to enjoy about this book. The dialogue is laugh out loud funny, and it's well plotted. The side characters are well fleshed out and interesting, there's art, and science, and the role of bicycles in women's economic freedom, all set in an area so lovingly described I immediately started following the tourist office on instagram.
Unfortunately I just didn't buy into the romance part of it at all. I was super frustrated at the sort of careless approach Muriel took at times (there's a misunderstanding that leads to several days of coldness because she just wasn't paying close attention to a conversation), There's her poor reaction to a shared vulnerability that naturally leads to hurt feelings. I was even more frustrated with the constant barriers to intimacy the Kit puts up, reminding Muriel of his rake status and how that will never change, refusing to be truly intimate with her (instead making it solely about her pleasure), and keeping up a barrier between them throughout the book. All the truly revelatory or intimate moments in the book (the losing and finding of art, self-reflection, belonging) are between Kit and his friends, not Kit and Muriel. By the end the "oh god I love her" realization and Grand Gesture just ended up annoying me.
I recognize that mine is a minority view - most people whose bookish opinions I respect, and whose taste I usually vibe, with really loved this book. I'm definitely in the minority (of one?) over at the Ungovernables where we are talking about the book this week. I've read and loved other trans romances, rake-realizing-nearly-too-late-he's-lost-his-heart romances, other madcap fun and adventure romances, this just didn't do it for me at all. I was frustrated with her, I was frustrated with him more, oh well. I'm giving it four stars because I liked everything but the central couple. No that doesn't make sense, but that's my rating.
There's a lot to enjoy about this book. The dialogue is laugh out loud funny, and it's well plotted. The side characters are well fleshed out and interesting, there's art, and science, and the role of bicycles in women's economic freedom, all set in an area so lovingly described I immediately started following the tourist office on instagram.
Unfortunately I just didn't buy into the romance part of it at all. I was super frustrated at the sort of careless approach Muriel took at times (there's a misunderstanding that leads to several days of coldness because she just wasn't paying close attention to a conversation), There's her poor reaction to a shared vulnerability that naturally leads to hurt feelings. I was even more frustrated with the constant barriers to intimacy the Kit puts up, reminding Muriel of his rake status and how that will never change, refusing to be truly intimate with her (instead making it solely about her pleasure), and keeping up a barrier between them throughout the book. All the truly revelatory or intimate moments in the book (the losing and finding of art, self-reflection, belonging) are between Kit and his friends, not Kit and Muriel. By the end the "oh god I love her" realization and Grand Gesture just ended up annoying me.
I recognize that mine is a minority view - most people whose bookish opinions I respect, and whose taste I usually vibe, with really loved this book. I'm definitely in the minority (of one?) over at the Ungovernables where we are talking about the book this week. I've read and loved other trans romances, rake-realizing-nearly-too-late-he's-lost-his-heart romances, other madcap fun and adventure romances, this just didn't do it for me at all. I was frustrated with her, I was frustrated with him more, oh well. I'm giving it four stars because I liked everything but the central couple. No that doesn't make sense, but that's my rating.
February 9, 2025
Queer happiness makes me giddy! This book was just so sweet but also a little steamy, important but not heavy-handed, low angst but still had me yearning. I just loved how Lowell didn’t stress over Kit’s identity as being a “problem” and the main conflict bc it made room for a story that focused on love and just queer happiness.
And that’s the whole point right? Not every book has to be a human rights crusade. And I understand in historical fiction it’s much harder to write a book where one can normalize a queer romance without touching on how the social backdrop doesn’t affect it but this book is a great example where historical context is organically woven in without upstaging what’s simply just a sweet, fun and delightful romance book.
And that’s the whole point right? Not every book has to be a human rights crusade. And I understand in historical fiction it’s much harder to write a book where one can normalize a queer romance without touching on how the social backdrop doesn’t affect it but this book is a great example where historical context is organically woven in without upstaging what’s simply just a sweet, fun and delightful romance book.
August 26, 2024
a great end-of-summer read with a wonderful queer love story that's much-needed in the world of historical romance
June 1, 2025
3.5/5
I've been bopping all over the queer rom(com) spectrum in my reading of late. Cis gay men, cis women loving women, T4T, poly, ace, and now here, a cis woman with a trans man. One thing I've come to recognize is the physical components of the relationship matter less to me than the credibility of the emotional entanglement and denouement, which likely has as much to do with my demisexuality as it does with my literary preference for the slow and the meditative. Of course, there is a point when a meditative turns into a whole lot of telling, but such is the exercise in reading: taking in grit by not quite right grit until, finally, one comes up a pearl. In terms of this work, I deeply appreciated its exercise in casual historiography, planting and cultivating lives and relationships into the 19th century that proto-fascists would insist could never exist alongside their steampunk alternate timelines and magic spitting samurai. Indeed, the moment when a gay man meets a trans man and start to talk intersectional shop is one of, if not my favorite, parts of the book. Unfortunately, what didn't jive was the whole 'lust' business that smoothed over more than one rough plot/characterization/resolution edge, and after dealing with folks at work taking more than a year to start properly using my pronouns, I reeeeally find any sort of rehabilitation of respect that takes less than, I don't know, a month? to come about highly suspect. So, admittedly some personal bitterness interfering my rating of this, but also some fairness, especially with amatonormativity running rampant amongst even the queerest of reads. In any case, if you're deathly curious as to how a 'female husband' of the historical record would be a trans man of today without forsaking the chronologically accurate jargon or straightwashing the kinds of parties that would be raided by the cops of yester 19th century year, this isn't a bad place to start. I appreciated the dash of postcolonialism but not so much the faceless menace of impoverished folks who never had the capital necessary to acquire a profession, so all in all, a three and a half star is rather fair.
I've been bopping all over the queer rom(com) spectrum in my reading of late. Cis gay men, cis women loving women, T4T, poly, ace, and now here, a cis woman with a trans man. One thing I've come to recognize is the physical components of the relationship matter less to me than the credibility of the emotional entanglement and denouement, which likely has as much to do with my demisexuality as it does with my literary preference for the slow and the meditative. Of course, there is a point when a meditative turns into a whole lot of telling, but such is the exercise in reading: taking in grit by not quite right grit until, finally, one comes up a pearl. In terms of this work, I deeply appreciated its exercise in casual historiography, planting and cultivating lives and relationships into the 19th century that proto-fascists would insist could never exist alongside their steampunk alternate timelines and magic spitting samurai. Indeed, the moment when a gay man meets a trans man and start to talk intersectional shop is one of, if not my favorite, parts of the book. Unfortunately, what didn't jive was the whole 'lust' business that smoothed over more than one rough plot/characterization/resolution edge, and after dealing with folks at work taking more than a year to start properly using my pronouns, I reeeeally find any sort of rehabilitation of respect that takes less than, I don't know, a month? to come about highly suspect. So, admittedly some personal bitterness interfering my rating of this, but also some fairness, especially with amatonormativity running rampant amongst even the queerest of reads. In any case, if you're deathly curious as to how a 'female husband' of the historical record would be a trans man of today without forsaking the chronologically accurate jargon or straightwashing the kinds of parties that would be raided by the cops of yester 19th century year, this isn't a bad place to start. I appreciated the dash of postcolonialism but not so much the faceless menace of impoverished folks who never had the capital necessary to acquire a profession, so all in all, a three and a half star is rather fair.
February 13, 2025
I really really wanted to love this. I'm pretty obsessed with the cover and I'm super obsessed with the idea that the author wrote it with her trans historian partner. That's awesome and I think that the accuracy and the realisticness of it really came through.
This is a very solid romance book. It feels like a slow burn because it takes the whole length of the novel for them to really do anything/act on their own individual feelings but the actual plot is only like 10 days. It's all centered around them doing this bicycle race and proving that women can ride too. I'm going to be honest, I am not up to date with historical bicycles so it was interesting to see that aspect of it.
I didn't realize this was part of a series until I started it and I'm curious if there are details and the prior books about these characters that would give me some of what I feel like I'm missing. I really would have liked more POV points from kit with his friends and the painting group and all of that aspect of it. I really would have liked to see more of his fall from painting and into running and owning a bicycle shop. I also really wanted more about Muriel. I wanted more about her husband (who I guess is dead and I definitely didn't process that dicorces weren't really a thing back then and of course he died) and also her lecture and the result of it and I feel like the epilogue could have used more. Maybe just more in general. I was trying to think of a word of what it needed more of but I think I just needed more.
I'm also trying to figure out if I'm struggling because I listened to this audiobook over the period of a couple days and took a two-day break in between and maybe it hurt my dedication to it. I did enjoy it. It's a cute book. It's not my favorite but I did enjoy it and I think that there are a lot of people who will love this.
Trans MC, queer questioning MC, secondary gay and sapphic characters
This is a very solid romance book. It feels like a slow burn because it takes the whole length of the novel for them to really do anything/act on their own individual feelings but the actual plot is only like 10 days. It's all centered around them doing this bicycle race and proving that women can ride too. I'm going to be honest, I am not up to date with historical bicycles so it was interesting to see that aspect of it.
I didn't realize this was part of a series until I started it and I'm curious if there are details and the prior books about these characters that would give me some of what I feel like I'm missing. I really would have liked more POV points from kit with his friends and the painting group and all of that aspect of it. I really would have liked to see more of his fall from painting and into running and owning a bicycle shop. I also really wanted more about Muriel. I wanted more about her husband (who I guess is dead and I definitely didn't process that dicorces weren't really a thing back then and of course he died) and also her lecture and the result of it and I feel like the epilogue could have used more. Maybe just more in general. I was trying to think of a word of what it needed more of but I think I just needed more.
I'm also trying to figure out if I'm struggling because I listened to this audiobook over the period of a couple days and took a two-day break in between and maybe it hurt my dedication to it. I did enjoy it. It's a cute book. It's not my favorite but I did enjoy it and I think that there are a lot of people who will love this.
Trans MC, queer questioning MC, secondary gay and sapphic characters
April 11, 2025
All kinds of love have always existed and will continue to exist. No book ban or laws can erase the very reality of their existence.
This book was a true delight. Slow to start but gripping once the wheels of the bicycles were rolling. Vulnerability is the heart of this novel sharing and being seen for who you are regardless of what comes next. Being embraced, cherished, and celebrated by the ones you love is affirming for so many. The world could do with more love and I'm happy to have lived in this one for a little while.
small side note: I wish we had a map with the bike route! I'm not familiar with Cornwall but I did a fair bit of Googling. Speaking of Google, this book desperately needs a glossary of Victorian terms & items including definitions and images!
This book was a true delight. Slow to start but gripping once the wheels of the bicycles were rolling. Vulnerability is the heart of this novel sharing and being seen for who you are regardless of what comes next. Being embraced, cherished, and celebrated by the ones you love is affirming for so many. The world could do with more love and I'm happy to have lived in this one for a little while.
small side note: I wish we had a map with the bike route! I'm not familiar with Cornwall but I did a fair bit of Googling. Speaking of Google, this book desperately needs a glossary of Victorian terms & items including definitions and images!
December 20, 2024
4.5⭐️
Abundantly cozy and heartwarming and an all around delight!! I was utterly charmed by Kit and Muriel’s banter and loved witnessing that blossomed from their friendship, trust, and understanding.
Abundantly cozy and heartwarming and an all around delight!! I was utterly charmed by Kit and Muriel’s banter and loved witnessing that blossomed from their friendship, trust, and understanding.
June 11, 2025
A Shore Thing was such a fun read. I’m so sad historical romances aren’t desirable for publishers. Where else am I going to read about sex in a bathing machine (had to look this one up), men losing it over the idea of a woman riding a bicycle (or having legs), and fancy sappho parties? I don’t usually read author’s notes but I highly recommend the one at the start and the historical one at the end of this book. Joanna and her partner are pretty freakin’ cool.
MF, rakish trans mmc, bicycle competition, only one bed, forced proximity, nerdy fmc (botanist)
“Penny,” he interrupted. “If we’re going to stand here in the rain, I’d rather not argue.”
“That’s a ridiculous statement. Arguing is why we’re standing here in the rain. If we weren’t arguing, we wouldn’t be standing here in the rain.”
“We could do something else.”
“While standing here in the rain?” She scoffed. “And what’s that? Play cat’s cradle with a bootlace? Look for frogs?”
He pushed his bicycle away, took her face in his hands, and kissed her.
MF, rakish trans mmc, bicycle competition, only one bed, forced proximity, nerdy fmc (botanist)
“Penny,” he interrupted. “If we’re going to stand here in the rain, I’d rather not argue.”
“That’s a ridiculous statement. Arguing is why we’re standing here in the rain. If we weren’t arguing, we wouldn’t be standing here in the rain.”
“We could do something else.”
“While standing here in the rain?” She scoffed. “And what’s that? Play cat’s cradle with a bootlace? Look for frogs?”
He pushed his bicycle away, took her face in his hands, and kissed her.
May 18, 2025
A very cute nerdy historical romance! Botanist FMC and MMC who's into bikes and formerly into painting. Plot of biking around St. Ives, some fun chemistry of flirty MMC, FMC who continues to assume incorrect things about him, enjoyable friend shenanigans and lots of plants.
The bathtub scene was super swoony! Great narration, loved the author's note at the beginning and end of the book explaining the research going into the historical elements and language used for trans identities and queerness.
The bathtub scene was super swoony! Great narration, loved the author's note at the beginning and end of the book explaining the research going into the historical elements and language used for trans identities and queerness.
June 12, 2025
Not an amazing start to my pride month lgbt book goal. This was so clunky written to me, many logistics that didn’t make sense and some real cringe lines. Why is it so hard for people to write a romance that isn’t eye roll worthy??
The characters were interesting, just not written with dialogue that that seemed natural. The whole book seemed very well researched, however.
The characters were interesting, just not written with dialogue that that seemed natural. The whole book seemed very well researched, however.
July 16, 2025
3.5/5
I really wish I liked this more! I think I just didn’t connect to it because I listened to it as an audiobook. There were some really interesting topics and themes in this book that made it worth reading. I did really like each of the main characters and some of the supporting characters. I think the plot just didn’t feel important enough to drive the story, which can be okay but I struggled with as an audiobook.
I really wish I liked this more! I think I just didn’t connect to it because I listened to it as an audiobook. There were some really interesting topics and themes in this book that made it worth reading. I did really like each of the main characters and some of the supporting characters. I think the plot just didn’t feel important enough to drive the story, which can be okay but I struggled with as an audiobook.
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