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Rival Rogues #3
The Best of Both Rogues
Lady Eve Thorne was devastated when Mr. Benjamin Hillary left her at the altar. She’s no longer that starry-eyed young woman, and now that he’s back, he can go hang... At least that’s what she keeps telling herself. Eve has a new man in her life, and Ben is nothing but trouble.
The worst thing Benjamin Hillary ever did was abandon his bride-to-be on their wedding day. The hardest thing he will ever have to do is watch her marry another man. But once Ben realizes he might have a chance, he’ll do just about anything to win back Eve’s heart—anything.
The worst thing Benjamin Hillary ever did was abandon his bride-to-be on their wedding day. The hardest thing he will ever have to do is watch her marry another man. But once Ben realizes he might have a chance, he’ll do just about anything to win back Eve’s heart—anything.
352 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published July 7, 2015
25 people are currently reading
719 people want to read
About the author
Samantha Grace
47 books261 followersHistorical romance author Samantha Grace discovered the appeal of a great love story when she was just a young girl, thanks to Disney's Robin Hood. She didn't care that Robin Hood and Maid Marian were cartoon animals. It was her first happily-ever-after experience and she didn't want the warm fuzzies to end. Now Samantha enjoys creating her own happy-endings for characters that spring from her imagination. Publisher's Weekly describes her stories as "fresh and romantic" with subtle humor and charm. Samantha describes romance writing as the best job ever.
Part-time medical social worker, moonlighting author, and pilates nut, she enjoys a happy and hectic life with her real life hero and two kids in the Midwest.
FREE READ:
A Beau Monde Bachelor Christmas (extended epilogue)
Join newlywed couples Lord and Lady Norwick, Jake and Amelia Hillary, Daniel and Lisette Hillary, and Isaac and Serafine Tucker for their first Christmas together.
Bibi, the Countess of Norwick, would love to give her husband the one thing he really wants for Christmas: a ceasefire between her and his intractable sister. Facing Lady Troll during the holidays without reinforcements, however, would be foolish, and Bibi is no fool. She calls upon her dearest friends, Amelia and Jake Hillary, and a few more familiar faces to spend Christmas in Kent to help make the season a little brighter. Unfortunately, her guests are distracted by their own challenges this holiday season, and Bibi must find a way to connect with her sister-in-law without their help if she hopes to make Jasper's Christmas wishes come true.
To access A Beau Monde Bachelor Christmas, sign up for Samantha's newsletter group. www.samanthagraceauthor.com.
Part-time medical social worker, moonlighting author, and pilates nut, she enjoys a happy and hectic life with her real life hero and two kids in the Midwest.
FREE READ:
A Beau Monde Bachelor Christmas (extended epilogue)
Join newlywed couples Lord and Lady Norwick, Jake and Amelia Hillary, Daniel and Lisette Hillary, and Isaac and Serafine Tucker for their first Christmas together.
Bibi, the Countess of Norwick, would love to give her husband the one thing he really wants for Christmas: a ceasefire between her and his intractable sister. Facing Lady Troll during the holidays without reinforcements, however, would be foolish, and Bibi is no fool. She calls upon her dearest friends, Amelia and Jake Hillary, and a few more familiar faces to spend Christmas in Kent to help make the season a little brighter. Unfortunately, her guests are distracted by their own challenges this holiday season, and Bibi must find a way to connect with her sister-in-law without their help if she hopes to make Jasper's Christmas wishes come true.
To access A Beau Monde Bachelor Christmas, sign up for Samantha's newsletter group. www.samanthagraceauthor.com.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 56 reviews
September 13, 2016
I gave this a D+ at AAR, but am leaving it at 2 stars.
The Best of Both Rogues is one of those books that took a while to get started, and which I found myself compelled to finish simply in the hopes that at some point, something would actually happen. I reached the end of the book still waiting.
The story is highly insubstantial, and while I am certainly not averse to light-hearted fluff, there has to be something engaging about other aspects of such a book to balance out a thin plotline. The best of those types of romances are witty and peopled with engaging characters while still having something to say about the nature of love and romance.
Unfortunately, this book has no such redeeming features; the plot is paper thin and has so many dropped threads that if it were a piece of knitting it would be full of holes, there is little wit or humour and the two principals are … nice, but bland to the point of dullness.
The book opens as Eve Thorne has just been ignominiously left at the altar by her fiancé, Benjamin Hillary. No explanation is given – all we discover is that Ben has boarded ship for India, leaving Eve nothing but a beautiful necklace meant to symbolise fidelity.
Two years later, Eve is about to become engaged to a very worthy, scholarly gentleman, Sir Jonathan Hackberry, although her feelings have become confused upon learning that Ben has returned to England. He has apparently restored her previously ruined reputation (it wasn’t the done thing for a gentleman to jilt a lady as society would automatically assume the worst of her) by engaging in a ridiculous duel with her brother, and keeps trying to see her, despite her repeated refusals.
Needless to say, he finds a way to speak to her and it’s obvious that even though Eve was badly hurt by his abandonment, she still loves him, and he makes it clear that he loves her as much as ever and wants her back. But the only way they can be together is if Eve will cry off from her betrothal – and given her past experience with Ben, she is reluctant to do so. She is faced with prospect of marriage to a man for whom she feels a mild affection, and who is often distracted by his academic studies, or of dumping him in favour of Ben, whom she fears may run off again. At no point during his renewed courtship does Ben offer an explanation for his actions two years ago, and oddly, Eve doesn’t ask for one.
Eventually, the decision is more or less taken out of Eve’s hands when Ben and Jonathan team up, the latter having realised that Eve still loves Ben, and ready to step aside in his favour. There is a weak sub-plot concerning Sir Jonathan, who is not the bumbling, absent-minded academic he seems to be, which is dropped in at random and then abandoned, having provided a reason for there to be a (purposeless) threat against Eve’s safety.
The author’s style is light and readable, although littered with the usual Americanisms (in British English, the past tense of “get” is “got”, and “jackass” is American slang), but the story makes little sense and the characterisation never gets beyond the two-dimensional. We’re told that Eve grew up with a father who was mentally unstable and that her childhood wasn’t always very pleasant as a result; but I couldn’t see that it had any relevance or any effect on her as an adult and it seemed to have been thrown in in an attempt to make her more interesting.
Ben runs a successful shipping company with one of his brothers, he’s a decent chap, likes babies and has a good sense of fun. He’s kind and sweet and still desperately in love with Eve; and I suppose one could argue that it makes a nice change to have a hero who is so open about his feelings for the heroine. However, as with Eve, Ms Grace tries to inject an element of darkness into his backstory by giving him a past love-affair that ended in tragedy, and about which he is still plagued by guilt. But it’s a case of too much telling rather than showing, and it’s completely unconvincing.
We are given no reason for Ben’s abrupt departure until far too late into the story. And when it comes… well, to say it’s an anti-climax is an understatement of huge proportions. Usually in stories in which such an event takes place, the hero has been pressured into it for some reason, or he’s suddenly called away on a sooper-sekrit spying mission – but all Ben had was a massive case of cold feet occasioned by the fact that his one youthful love affair had ended badly and he had a sudden panic attack at the thought how painful it would be were he to lose Eve.
Basically, he legged it, ruined his fiancée’s reputation and stayed away for two years because of a bad case of pre-wedding jitters, rendering the premise – and thus the entire book – completely pointless.
The Best of Both Rogues is the third book in a series, so a number of characters from previous books turn up, and it took me a minute or two to work out who was who. But if you want to subject yourself to it, can be read as a standalone.
The Best of Both Rogues is one of those books that took a while to get started, and which I found myself compelled to finish simply in the hopes that at some point, something would actually happen. I reached the end of the book still waiting.
The story is highly insubstantial, and while I am certainly not averse to light-hearted fluff, there has to be something engaging about other aspects of such a book to balance out a thin plotline. The best of those types of romances are witty and peopled with engaging characters while still having something to say about the nature of love and romance.
Unfortunately, this book has no such redeeming features; the plot is paper thin and has so many dropped threads that if it were a piece of knitting it would be full of holes, there is little wit or humour and the two principals are … nice, but bland to the point of dullness.
The book opens as Eve Thorne has just been ignominiously left at the altar by her fiancé, Benjamin Hillary. No explanation is given – all we discover is that Ben has boarded ship for India, leaving Eve nothing but a beautiful necklace meant to symbolise fidelity.
Two years later, Eve is about to become engaged to a very worthy, scholarly gentleman, Sir Jonathan Hackberry, although her feelings have become confused upon learning that Ben has returned to England. He has apparently restored her previously ruined reputation (it wasn’t the done thing for a gentleman to jilt a lady as society would automatically assume the worst of her) by engaging in a ridiculous duel with her brother, and keeps trying to see her, despite her repeated refusals.
Needless to say, he finds a way to speak to her and it’s obvious that even though Eve was badly hurt by his abandonment, she still loves him, and he makes it clear that he loves her as much as ever and wants her back. But the only way they can be together is if Eve will cry off from her betrothal – and given her past experience with Ben, she is reluctant to do so. She is faced with prospect of marriage to a man for whom she feels a mild affection, and who is often distracted by his academic studies, or of dumping him in favour of Ben, whom she fears may run off again. At no point during his renewed courtship does Ben offer an explanation for his actions two years ago, and oddly, Eve doesn’t ask for one.
Eventually, the decision is more or less taken out of Eve’s hands when Ben and Jonathan team up, the latter having realised that Eve still loves Ben, and ready to step aside in his favour. There is a weak sub-plot concerning Sir Jonathan, who is not the bumbling, absent-minded academic he seems to be, which is dropped in at random and then abandoned, having provided a reason for there to be a (purposeless) threat against Eve’s safety.
The author’s style is light and readable, although littered with the usual Americanisms (in British English, the past tense of “get” is “got”, and “jackass” is American slang), but the story makes little sense and the characterisation never gets beyond the two-dimensional. We’re told that Eve grew up with a father who was mentally unstable and that her childhood wasn’t always very pleasant as a result; but I couldn’t see that it had any relevance or any effect on her as an adult and it seemed to have been thrown in in an attempt to make her more interesting.
Ben runs a successful shipping company with one of his brothers, he’s a decent chap, likes babies and has a good sense of fun. He’s kind and sweet and still desperately in love with Eve; and I suppose one could argue that it makes a nice change to have a hero who is so open about his feelings for the heroine. However, as with Eve, Ms Grace tries to inject an element of darkness into his backstory by giving him a past love-affair that ended in tragedy, and about which he is still plagued by guilt. But it’s a case of too much telling rather than showing, and it’s completely unconvincing.
We are given no reason for Ben’s abrupt departure until far too late into the story. And when it comes… well, to say it’s an anti-climax is an understatement of huge proportions. Usually in stories in which such an event takes place, the hero has been pressured into it for some reason, or he’s suddenly called away on a sooper-sekrit spying mission – but all Ben had was a massive case of cold feet occasioned by the fact that his one youthful love affair had ended badly and he had a sudden panic attack at the thought how painful it would be were he to lose Eve.
Basically, he legged it, ruined his fiancée’s reputation and stayed away for two years because of a bad case of pre-wedding jitters, rendering the premise – and thus the entire book – completely pointless.
The Best of Both Rogues is the third book in a series, so a number of characters from previous books turn up, and it took me a minute or two to work out who was who. But if you want to subject yourself to it, can be read as a standalone.
April 14, 2015
I loved Evie she had a strong will and dominant personality, "I am not a weak-minded twit in need of smelling salts every time there is a crisis." Ben is learning that when he upsets his woman he needs to squash that s*** fast, "Ben caught her around the waist and pulled her onto his lap. Her lips parted and her eyes flared wide. Her fingers splayed on his chest, but she didn’t push him away. “You are right, Kitten. I didn’t act with integrity, but I will not make the same mistake twice. Forgive me?" He's always wanting his woman no matter where they are or if it's appropriate, "good day,” Ben called back to him, but he sounded distracted. His gaze was locked on her. Once the outer door slammed shut, he cupped Eve’s bottom and pulled her flush against him." I quite liked this book and Ben.
August 19, 2015
This was a very sweet romance that was happily balanced with some sexuality.
September 20, 2015
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This was my first foray into the writing world of Samantha Grace and to be honest, it might be my last. Initially, I was really intrigued by the blurb on this one. I thought that it would be an interesting push and pull between two men that Eve are attached to ... one from the past and one from the present. And I thought that both dudes would be a bit sketchy because hey, the book is called The Best of Both Rogues. But that is not what I encountered. At all.
I guess I'll just start with the title ... which was a little misleading, in my opinion. In these historical romance novels, when I see the word 'rogue', it leads me to believe that the man in question is sketchy or naughty or has some deplorable quality that (I will find endearing) will make him unappealing to a lady in the book. The two men involved in this novel aren't rogues. Hell, I even had to look up the definition because I thought that maybe what I thought was a rogue wasn't a rogue and I have been totally wrong all these years. But rogue means dishonest or unprincipled ... a villain, scoundrel, rascal, miscreant. I just didn't see one of these male characters as that and maybe I could see the other one as a scoundrel but it was only if I pulled a Mona Lisa ... you know ... when you squint and look away really quickly ... anyhow. The title was misleading.
I didn't have a problem with any of the characters, I generally liked all of them. I enjoyed getting to know Eve and Ben. I thought that Ben was a nicely tortured character (my favorite) and Eve was a sweet, yet strong female lead but other than just a general and flat feeling of being okay with these characters, I really had no other feelings toward them. None of them knocked my socks off or made me wish that I could have just one more sentence, paragraph or chapter with them because the thought of the book being over and the character's stories being done was close to crushing my soul. I was just okay with it being done.
The story itself was interesting but it felt pushed along. The plot didn't go just buzzing along at an interesting place, I found myself having to push through paragraphs just to get to the next part of the book. That is never a good feeling to have. Especially when it is a book in one of my favorite genres. I should be left wondering how the characters are doing or wishing that I could see just a few more instances where sparks are flying between the to leads. I wasn't to the point of wishing for my death rather than having to finish this book but I didn't seek the book out in my free time, either.
All in all, I might pick up another book by this author and I might not. I don't know. I do know that this book has received a pretty high rating, so I might be super wrong about what I'm feeling and my thoughts on this one. Maybe I missed something. Maybe there is an outside reason why I didn't connect and maybe I would change my mind on my rating if I read it again. At this point, I stand completely behind my rating and I hope that the experience is different for other readers.
* I received this novel in exchange for an honest review *
July 17, 2015
The Best of Both Rogues by Samantha Grace is a 2015 Sourcebooks Casablanca publication I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
This book is a very light historical romp,laced with humor and sharp wit. Two years ago, Ben left his fiance, Eve, on their wedding day, ruining her reputation and never explaining why he left.
Now he has returned to London with every intention of winning Eve back one day, but is stunned to discover she is about to marry another man. Can Ben intervene and right the wrongs he committed two years ago? Perhaps, and as it turns out, he will have the most unlikely ally.
This story does get off to a very slow start and while I did like most of the characters, they could be rather bland. Ben’s back story is the most compelling and the author lightly addresses a malady that back in regency days went undiagnosed and had no real official name for it. I liked Ben, his character had more depth than most rakish heroes we find in regency romance.
Eve is a strong character as well, given she is not in the most loving family environment and has had to laboriously reestablish her reputation after Ben’s flight, and we find her initially giving in to what she feels is her duty, despite the rather lukewarm feelings she has for Josh. She has a spine and is not the silly, spoiled, immature type, but her character is a little tepid and her initial response upon seeing Ben again didn't ring true.
Josh, believe it not, was not a guy I disliked. He did take Ben up on his offer, which didn’t make him all that impressive at the time, but he did do the right thing by everyone in the end, which makes me wonder if maybe he will show up again sometime in the future.
Once the story got moving, it was enjoyable enough and did have some poignant moments, but overall there wasn’t all that much going on and I fought to stay interested in it. The last quarter of the book made up for the dull spots, saving the book from being a total bore.
If you are looking for a book that will not require a great deal of heavy concentration, that is mostly light and easy, without heavy angst or drama, which is sometimes just what you're in the mood for, then this book will fit the bill.
Not great by any means, but mostly entertaining and fun. 3 stars
This book is a very light historical romp,laced with humor and sharp wit. Two years ago, Ben left his fiance, Eve, on their wedding day, ruining her reputation and never explaining why he left.
Now he has returned to London with every intention of winning Eve back one day, but is stunned to discover she is about to marry another man. Can Ben intervene and right the wrongs he committed two years ago? Perhaps, and as it turns out, he will have the most unlikely ally.
This story does get off to a very slow start and while I did like most of the characters, they could be rather bland. Ben’s back story is the most compelling and the author lightly addresses a malady that back in regency days went undiagnosed and had no real official name for it. I liked Ben, his character had more depth than most rakish heroes we find in regency romance.
Eve is a strong character as well, given she is not in the most loving family environment and has had to laboriously reestablish her reputation after Ben’s flight, and we find her initially giving in to what she feels is her duty, despite the rather lukewarm feelings she has for Josh. She has a spine and is not the silly, spoiled, immature type, but her character is a little tepid and her initial response upon seeing Ben again didn't ring true.
Josh, believe it not, was not a guy I disliked. He did take Ben up on his offer, which didn’t make him all that impressive at the time, but he did do the right thing by everyone in the end, which makes me wonder if maybe he will show up again sometime in the future.
Once the story got moving, it was enjoyable enough and did have some poignant moments, but overall there wasn’t all that much going on and I fought to stay interested in it. The last quarter of the book made up for the dull spots, saving the book from being a total bore.
If you are looking for a book that will not require a great deal of heavy concentration, that is mostly light and easy, without heavy angst or drama, which is sometimes just what you're in the mood for, then this book will fit the bill.
Not great by any means, but mostly entertaining and fun. 3 stars
August 7, 2015
This is the third story in Rival Rogues series from Samantha Grace and it’s Eve’s story, Sebastian’s jilted sister from ‘In Bed with a Rogue’, book two.
Lady Eve Thorn’s fiancé left her without a word of explanation and it took her two years to come to terms of that abandonment, finally finding a man that she might like, if not love, and make a future for herself.
Benjamin Hillary, Viscount Margrave had abandoned a woman that he loves with not so much as a word about why he had done so, and after two years out of the country, he’s ready to face the consequences and the woman he loves.
I had a very hard time with both of these characters and with the plot itself. I had no respect for the hero from the start. Abandoning her meant a huge scandal for her and no amount of groveling on his part ever redeemed him in my eyes.
Eve just baffled me to no end. If I was jilted, and I see the man who this to me, my first question would be, WHY?! No, that’s not Eve’s question, and that’s when I got pissed.
Samantha Grace can write fun, entertaining and complex characters, yet this is the second book that she wrote characters that are perplexing and unsympathetic.
I’m not giving up on this series or the author because I’m her fan so I’m hoping that the next one will have me laugh out loud as her first series did.
Melanie for b2b
Complimentary copy provided by the publisher
Lady Eve Thorn’s fiancé left her without a word of explanation and it took her two years to come to terms of that abandonment, finally finding a man that she might like, if not love, and make a future for herself.
Benjamin Hillary, Viscount Margrave had abandoned a woman that he loves with not so much as a word about why he had done so, and after two years out of the country, he’s ready to face the consequences and the woman he loves.
I had a very hard time with both of these characters and with the plot itself. I had no respect for the hero from the start. Abandoning her meant a huge scandal for her and no amount of groveling on his part ever redeemed him in my eyes.
Eve just baffled me to no end. If I was jilted, and I see the man who this to me, my first question would be, WHY?! No, that’s not Eve’s question, and that’s when I got pissed.
Samantha Grace can write fun, entertaining and complex characters, yet this is the second book that she wrote characters that are perplexing and unsympathetic.
I’m not giving up on this series or the author because I’m her fan so I’m hoping that the next one will have me laugh out loud as her first series did.
Melanie for b2b
Complimentary copy provided by the publisher
June 24, 2015
The Best of Both Rogue started really good, the plot seemed great, the characters were funny and witty.
The hero was so fun and mischievous trying to win the heart of the woman he loved and abandoned at the wedding. Then there was a twist and a danger that I kept wondering why there should be any threat from that particular side.
The story became slow paced and the charterers weren't as funny and interesting as they were in the beginning of the book.
Of course toward the end the story became interesting again, still I think the author should have stayed with the same plot and make it more challenging for them.
The hero was so fun and mischievous trying to win the heart of the woman he loved and abandoned at the wedding. Then there was a twist and a danger that I kept wondering why there should be any threat from that particular side.
The story became slow paced and the charterers weren't as funny and interesting as they were in the beginning of the book.
Of course toward the end the story became interesting again, still I think the author should have stayed with the same plot and make it more challenging for them.
July 14, 2015
Favorite Quote: “I’m not a bloody Bedlamite,” he said through gritted teeth. “Gather your wits before I beat your arse.”
Love triangles do not usually do it for me, but this was enjoyable. I am chalking it up to the fact that though there are two suitors, the two blokes are actually working together to allow Lady Eve the man her heart truly desires. “Unconventional for 100 Alex!”
Reputation in tatters, embarrassed and left jilted at the altar, Lady Eve personifies girl power 1800’s style. Though brokenhearted, she pulls herself up and evolves into a strong and independent young woman. She holds all the cards and she knows it. Abandoned by her beloved without a clue to the rhyme or reason why, she compartmentalizes her love for Ben and moves on with her life and finds companionship with another. I adored Ben. He was charismatic and really, really charming and sweet. I won’t spoil the why’s behind his wedding day dramatic flake out but lets just say all is forgiven as I rooted for him to win Eve’s heart once and for all.
Lively and fast paced, I could not stand to put it down and raced back to it when I had to do so. The plots and schemes cooked up by Eve’s newly betrothed, Sir Hackberry and Ben were humorous, though laced with a little danger as we learn that Sir Hackberry is not as innocuous as he initially appears. Eve is in a spot of danger via her engagement to the mysterious Hackberry and Ben intends to save her, win her, wed her and bed here all in one fell swoop! Quite honestly, I could have done without the subterfuge surrounding the nefarious element threatening Eve. I believe the second chance love story was strong enough on its own without it and it slowed the pace down some. Pithy danger clogging up the mix aside, The Best of Both Rogues shines when the focus is on the faux love triangle and Ben’s attempts (along with a little help from Hackberry) to influence Eve to break off the engagement and marry him instead. The humor and entertainment in Eve’s showing her grit and Ben getting up to speed on how to truly please his lady were my most enjoyed moments.
After living with their father’s mercurial mood and being treated like a leper over the last two years, Eve possessed more inner strength than many ladies her age. And more than some of her elders too. “I am not a weak-minded twit in need of smelling salts every time there is a crisis…”
“Men and their honor,” she said with a huff. “I think you use it as an excuse to behave like fools.”
And it isn’t romance unless there is some hanky panky and copious amounts of spanky going on…
He entered her from behind, his body cradling hers. With a hand on her hip and another holding her breast, he thrust into her as if desperate to have her, to make her his. She was his and had been from the moment she’d laid eyes on him. His mouth grazed her ear, his breath ragged and hot…
Holding tightly he filled her, and when he came, his pleasure seemed to hit him just as hard, and he released a satisfying moan. His arms cradled him her against him as his chest rose and fell. He kissed her shoulder, then the back of her neck before he released her long enough to turn her within his arms.
Neither of them spoke as they held each other’s gazes.
Words were inadequate anyway.
The Best of Both Rogues is a gem. What I loved about this novel is that it is not just Eve’s story, where all the other characters are bit players in the road to her HEA. The family ties and bonds are humorous and add really good balance to the novel. I was not solely invested in Eve’s journey as Ben’s background and journey was well fleshed out as well. Quite frankly this was stimulating for me as I did not realize just how much I missed having a strong hero perspective in these historical romance novels. The hero’s are the expected rake-rogue-dastardly Dukeish kind of men whom our fair ladies have come to fall for. We know the heroines inside out, however, aside from their rakish good looks and firm, sexy builds, not to mention their predetermined quotient of high-handed behavior, the heroes are not typically so well fleshed out with their own drive. In Ben we see his mistakes and flaws and even an exceptionally well handled PTSD condition. Ben and Eve both have high stakes in this novel and we receive a really good story because of the clever work put into this novel. I could infer from some context clues that this is a series book, even without knowing it is number three in the series, however, I have no qualms recommending it as a stand alone. Samantha Grace is a new author for me and I am wholly interested in checking out what else she has to offer!
Love triangles do not usually do it for me, but this was enjoyable. I am chalking it up to the fact that though there are two suitors, the two blokes are actually working together to allow Lady Eve the man her heart truly desires. “Unconventional for 100 Alex!”
Reputation in tatters, embarrassed and left jilted at the altar, Lady Eve personifies girl power 1800’s style. Though brokenhearted, she pulls herself up and evolves into a strong and independent young woman. She holds all the cards and she knows it. Abandoned by her beloved without a clue to the rhyme or reason why, she compartmentalizes her love for Ben and moves on with her life and finds companionship with another. I adored Ben. He was charismatic and really, really charming and sweet. I won’t spoil the why’s behind his wedding day dramatic flake out but lets just say all is forgiven as I rooted for him to win Eve’s heart once and for all.
Lively and fast paced, I could not stand to put it down and raced back to it when I had to do so. The plots and schemes cooked up by Eve’s newly betrothed, Sir Hackberry and Ben were humorous, though laced with a little danger as we learn that Sir Hackberry is not as innocuous as he initially appears. Eve is in a spot of danger via her engagement to the mysterious Hackberry and Ben intends to save her, win her, wed her and bed here all in one fell swoop! Quite honestly, I could have done without the subterfuge surrounding the nefarious element threatening Eve. I believe the second chance love story was strong enough on its own without it and it slowed the pace down some. Pithy danger clogging up the mix aside, The Best of Both Rogues shines when the focus is on the faux love triangle and Ben’s attempts (along with a little help from Hackberry) to influence Eve to break off the engagement and marry him instead. The humor and entertainment in Eve’s showing her grit and Ben getting up to speed on how to truly please his lady were my most enjoyed moments.
After living with their father’s mercurial mood and being treated like a leper over the last two years, Eve possessed more inner strength than many ladies her age. And more than some of her elders too. “I am not a weak-minded twit in need of smelling salts every time there is a crisis…”
“Men and their honor,” she said with a huff. “I think you use it as an excuse to behave like fools.”
And it isn’t romance unless there is some hanky panky and copious amounts of spanky going on…
He entered her from behind, his body cradling hers. With a hand on her hip and another holding her breast, he thrust into her as if desperate to have her, to make her his. She was his and had been from the moment she’d laid eyes on him. His mouth grazed her ear, his breath ragged and hot…
Holding tightly he filled her, and when he came, his pleasure seemed to hit him just as hard, and he released a satisfying moan. His arms cradled him her against him as his chest rose and fell. He kissed her shoulder, then the back of her neck before he released her long enough to turn her within his arms.
Neither of them spoke as they held each other’s gazes.
Words were inadequate anyway.
The Best of Both Rogues is a gem. What I loved about this novel is that it is not just Eve’s story, where all the other characters are bit players in the road to her HEA. The family ties and bonds are humorous and add really good balance to the novel. I was not solely invested in Eve’s journey as Ben’s background and journey was well fleshed out as well. Quite frankly this was stimulating for me as I did not realize just how much I missed having a strong hero perspective in these historical romance novels. The hero’s are the expected rake-rogue-dastardly Dukeish kind of men whom our fair ladies have come to fall for. We know the heroines inside out, however, aside from their rakish good looks and firm, sexy builds, not to mention their predetermined quotient of high-handed behavior, the heroes are not typically so well fleshed out with their own drive. In Ben we see his mistakes and flaws and even an exceptionally well handled PTSD condition. Ben and Eve both have high stakes in this novel and we receive a really good story because of the clever work put into this novel. I could infer from some context clues that this is a series book, even without knowing it is number three in the series, however, I have no qualms recommending it as a stand alone. Samantha Grace is a new author for me and I am wholly interested in checking out what else she has to offer!
July 8, 2015
While I enjoyed this fun Regency read I have to admit I had a few problems with it. Firstly, I know this book is part of a series, but since Ben’s return is still so recent, why not show the first time he and Eve cross paths again? I haven’t read any other books in this series, so I’m assuming it was in the last one (the brief references imply that) – but this is Eve and Ben’s book, so surely such an important scene should have been included? Instead it starts with Ben sneaking into a ball, but not to meet Eve. No, although he does meet Eve there, his main focus is instead on dealing with something completely different that doesn’t get cleared up for the majority of the book.
Which goes along quite neatly with the fact that it takes ages for Eve to actually ask Ben why he left, and she never once asks why he didn’t contact her for the two years he was gone. In fact she forgives him far too easily, because his explanation is weak at best. The reader gets much more of an insight into what happened to Ben, but Eve just accepts the fact he abandoned her for Reasons! and is fine with it all. Meh.
Thankfully there is one thing in this book that I absolutely loved – Sir Jonathan. He’s wonderful. He’s sweet and funny and a really good man. The dance lesson scene was brilliant and, since there’s far more to him than meets the eye, he’s also a whole lot more interesting than Ben. And Eve. In fact I would happily have dumped them mid-book to follow Jonathan instead.
And that’s the trouble with this book. Nothing happens, and once Jonathan leaves the picture most of the fun goes out of it too. Ben clearly loves Eve, Eve clearly loves Ben, so there’s no suspense in the romance – when in truth Ben should have done a whole lot more grovelling. After the marriage there’s a bit about PTSD, but to be honest I was too busy waiting for something interesting to happen that I didn’t care about that side of the plot at all.
Which all makes it sound as though I didn’t like it, which isn’t true. The first half of the book was great fun and I thoroughly enjoyed seeing what would happen next. The second half is okay. I certainly read it easily enough, but I wasn’t as interested in Ben and Eve’s romance as I’d hoped. Perhaps if I’d read the last book I would have cared more, but on it’s own this book didn’t quite work for me. It’s well written and fun in places and the characters certainly have potential, however the secondary ones are often more interesting than the main two.
Overall I recommend reading the series in order to get the best out of it. Which is what I will probably do sometime soon.
(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.)
Which goes along quite neatly with the fact that it takes ages for Eve to actually ask Ben why he left, and she never once asks why he didn’t contact her for the two years he was gone. In fact she forgives him far too easily, because his explanation is weak at best. The reader gets much more of an insight into what happened to Ben, but Eve just accepts the fact he abandoned her for Reasons! and is fine with it all. Meh.
Thankfully there is one thing in this book that I absolutely loved – Sir Jonathan. He’s wonderful. He’s sweet and funny and a really good man. The dance lesson scene was brilliant and, since there’s far more to him than meets the eye, he’s also a whole lot more interesting than Ben. And Eve. In fact I would happily have dumped them mid-book to follow Jonathan instead.
And that’s the trouble with this book. Nothing happens, and once Jonathan leaves the picture most of the fun goes out of it too. Ben clearly loves Eve, Eve clearly loves Ben, so there’s no suspense in the romance – when in truth Ben should have done a whole lot more grovelling. After the marriage there’s a bit about PTSD, but to be honest I was too busy waiting for something interesting to happen that I didn’t care about that side of the plot at all.
Which all makes it sound as though I didn’t like it, which isn’t true. The first half of the book was great fun and I thoroughly enjoyed seeing what would happen next. The second half is okay. I certainly read it easily enough, but I wasn’t as interested in Ben and Eve’s romance as I’d hoped. Perhaps if I’d read the last book I would have cared more, but on it’s own this book didn’t quite work for me. It’s well written and fun in places and the characters certainly have potential, however the secondary ones are often more interesting than the main two.
Overall I recommend reading the series in order to get the best out of it. Which is what I will probably do sometime soon.
(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.)
July 12, 2015
The Best of Both Rogues by Samantha Grace is a second chance at love romance with a few unusual twists. It's a sensuous story of love and forgiveness infused with lots of humor and romance.
The story begins as our hero, Ben Hillary has returned home to London two years after leaving Lady Eve Thorne at the altar. Ben climbs over a fence, walks in the back door and crashes Lady Eve's engagement ball.
Samantha Grace has created a flawed hero in Ben Hillary. He's the epitome of the charming, sexy regency rogue hero. He's fabulous! The bad boy that you know you shouldn't like but you do anyway! I wasn't prepared to like Ben as he jilted ;Eve (one of my favorite characters from In Bed With A Rogue). Ms. Grace drew me into this character driven novel by showing how determined Ben was in his pursuit of Eve. Loved, loved Ben's visit to the Woodmere Foundling Home , especially the time he spent with Baby Toby! These scenes are laugh-out loud funny! Ben and Eve have an honest conversation and he confides some of the events that led to his decision to leave Eve. Can Ben win Eve's heart?
Eve Thorne has matured in the past two years. She is more self confident and stronger because she persevered and got through the humiliation of being left at the altar. She has her family and her volunteer work and is newly engaged to an interesting man, Sir Jonathan Hackberry. She is torn between her duty to Sir Jonathan and her desire for Ben.
Who will Eve choose?
Enjoyed the scenes where Sir Jonathan Hackberry is center stage. He appears to be a forgetful academic who studies the use of drums in ceremonies and is preoccupied with the Goddess Althena. Loved the scenes with Sir Jonathan, Eve and Grace as they enjoy a walk. It's apparent that Jonathan is clueless about Eve's needs and desires. All of the scenes with our charming hero and the absent minded scholar are fabulously written.
Does Sir Jonathan fight for Eve's heart?
The well paced storyline has several interesting subplots. Kudos to Samantha Grace for including characters who suffer from PSTD and presenting how it can manifest in an individual over a period of time. Loved that many of the characters from the earlier Rival rogues books were included in this novel. Enjoyed seeing Sebastian, Helena and Fergus. Enjoyed meeting Ben's friend Crispin Locke, Viscount Margrave and the elements of suspense and intrigue he provided to the story. Am hoping to see more of Margrave in the future! Enjoyed reading every word of this charming novel and I look forward to Ms. Grace's next book!
The story begins as our hero, Ben Hillary has returned home to London two years after leaving Lady Eve Thorne at the altar. Ben climbs over a fence, walks in the back door and crashes Lady Eve's engagement ball.
Samantha Grace has created a flawed hero in Ben Hillary. He's the epitome of the charming, sexy regency rogue hero. He's fabulous! The bad boy that you know you shouldn't like but you do anyway! I wasn't prepared to like Ben as he jilted ;Eve (one of my favorite characters from In Bed With A Rogue). Ms. Grace drew me into this character driven novel by showing how determined Ben was in his pursuit of Eve. Loved, loved Ben's visit to the Woodmere Foundling Home , especially the time he spent with Baby Toby! These scenes are laugh-out loud funny! Ben and Eve have an honest conversation and he confides some of the events that led to his decision to leave Eve. Can Ben win Eve's heart?
Eve Thorne has matured in the past two years. She is more self confident and stronger because she persevered and got through the humiliation of being left at the altar. She has her family and her volunteer work and is newly engaged to an interesting man, Sir Jonathan Hackberry. She is torn between her duty to Sir Jonathan and her desire for Ben.
Who will Eve choose?
Enjoyed the scenes where Sir Jonathan Hackberry is center stage. He appears to be a forgetful academic who studies the use of drums in ceremonies and is preoccupied with the Goddess Althena. Loved the scenes with Sir Jonathan, Eve and Grace as they enjoy a walk. It's apparent that Jonathan is clueless about Eve's needs and desires. All of the scenes with our charming hero and the absent minded scholar are fabulously written.
Does Sir Jonathan fight for Eve's heart?
The well paced storyline has several interesting subplots. Kudos to Samantha Grace for including characters who suffer from PSTD and presenting how it can manifest in an individual over a period of time. Loved that many of the characters from the earlier Rival rogues books were included in this novel. Enjoyed seeing Sebastian, Helena and Fergus. Enjoyed meeting Ben's friend Crispin Locke, Viscount Margrave and the elements of suspense and intrigue he provided to the story. Am hoping to see more of Margrave in the future! Enjoyed reading every word of this charming novel and I look forward to Ms. Grace's next book!
July 8, 2015
Samantha Grace is a new to me author. The Best of Both Rogues is the first book I have had a chance to read her work. Let me tell you it certainly will not be my last. My goodness this lady can write a historical romance full of sweet romance, steam, a little mystery and twist or two. I found myself completely engrossed in this awesome story from the beginning to the end.
Lady Eve Thorne has all the characteristic I enjoy in a heroine. She is strong, independent, charming, and is just a little bit sassy. I admired this young lady for all that she has been through and for being brave enough to deal with all the gossip about her. Just when she is ready to give up on Ben Hillary and move on with her life, he arrives in town.
Benjamin Hillary is charming, handsome, entertaining, and creative. He is also very remorseful after having left Eve the day of their wedding. He knows what he wants and what he wants is forever with Eve. Now he just has to figure out how to convince her that is what she wants too.
I really enjoyed reading about Eve and Ben. Their story is full of drama, some humor, really sweet romance, and touch of mystery. There is a dramatic It's a lovely second chance romance story with a touch of friends to romance feeling.
The Best of Both Rogues is part of the Rival Rogues series. I have not read the other books in the series and I had no problem reading it as a stand alone. I didn't feel like I was missing any pertinent information at all. After reading this book thought I would love to read the first two books in the series. I am sure they are just as wonderful as this book.
I love books that involve interaction with the families. It just seems to add more to the storyline and I feel it lets me get to know the characters a little better.
Samantha Grace has created a very unique storyline that kept me flipping pages to see what could possible happen next. She added a few interesting twist to the story that I certainly did not see coming. She has a lovely writing style that I found very enjoyable. I know I will certainly be on the look out for more stories by this talented author.
I was given the opportunity to read this great book so that I may share my thoughts with you. As always it has been my great pleasure to share my thoughts with you on The Best of Both Rogues.
Lady Eve Thorne has all the characteristic I enjoy in a heroine. She is strong, independent, charming, and is just a little bit sassy. I admired this young lady for all that she has been through and for being brave enough to deal with all the gossip about her. Just when she is ready to give up on Ben Hillary and move on with her life, he arrives in town.
Benjamin Hillary is charming, handsome, entertaining, and creative. He is also very remorseful after having left Eve the day of their wedding. He knows what he wants and what he wants is forever with Eve. Now he just has to figure out how to convince her that is what she wants too.
I really enjoyed reading about Eve and Ben. Their story is full of drama, some humor, really sweet romance, and touch of mystery. There is a dramatic It's a lovely second chance romance story with a touch of friends to romance feeling.
The Best of Both Rogues is part of the Rival Rogues series. I have not read the other books in the series and I had no problem reading it as a stand alone. I didn't feel like I was missing any pertinent information at all. After reading this book thought I would love to read the first two books in the series. I am sure they are just as wonderful as this book.
I love books that involve interaction with the families. It just seems to add more to the storyline and I feel it lets me get to know the characters a little better.
Samantha Grace has created a very unique storyline that kept me flipping pages to see what could possible happen next. She added a few interesting twist to the story that I certainly did not see coming. She has a lovely writing style that I found very enjoyable. I know I will certainly be on the look out for more stories by this talented author.
I was given the opportunity to read this great book so that I may share my thoughts with you. As always it has been my great pleasure to share my thoughts with you on The Best of Both Rogues.
June 14, 2015
I received an ARC through NetGalley.
The Best of Both Rogues is another enjoyable addition to this unconventional series. This time we're following Sebestian Thorne's younger sister, Eve, and the man who broke her heart two years prior, Ben Hillary. I was excited for them, because my favorite scene from In Bed With a Rogue was when she got to choose the duel weapon for her ex and brother! It was seriously too funny! But now Eve is engaged, but Ben isn't giving up on her so easily. And Eve is starting to have doubts about her fiance, since he's kind of a strange fellow.
I absolutely loved the first half of The Best of Both Rogues. Ben desperately wants Eve back and she still harbors feelings for him, but there's the matter of the contract of her upcoming marriage. She's not one to run off from her responsibilities, and Jonathan is a nice, caring man, if a bit absent-minded and obsessed with drums. Well, it turns out that Jonathan isn't so unobservant that he doesn't realize Eve's heart lies elsewhere, so he teams up with Ben in order to get her to call off the wedding and spare her the embarrassment of getting jilted twice! This is a horrible plan with hilarious results! But then there's a twist!
The Best of Both Rogues kind of lost me a bit after the twist. Not because it wasn't a good twist. I really liked it! But it just kind off dropped off after awhile. Ben and Eve are together, so there's really nothing left there, which seems to be a general problem with second chance romances. The development has already happened, so now they're just a happy couple doing married people things. There was one plot thread revolving this that never got resolved. It was like "oh, it happened! Let's tell the Bow Street Runners!" Then nothing.
I did enjoy The Best of Both Rogues, although not as much as the previous books. The humor and charm of the first part were lost in the second, and the plot didn't keep me engaged until the end since it all but disappeared.
Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.
The Best of Both Rogues is another enjoyable addition to this unconventional series. This time we're following Sebestian Thorne's younger sister, Eve, and the man who broke her heart two years prior, Ben Hillary. I was excited for them, because my favorite scene from In Bed With a Rogue was when she got to choose the duel weapon for her ex and brother! It was seriously too funny! But now Eve is engaged, but Ben isn't giving up on her so easily. And Eve is starting to have doubts about her fiance, since he's kind of a strange fellow.
I absolutely loved the first half of The Best of Both Rogues. Ben desperately wants Eve back and she still harbors feelings for him, but there's the matter of the contract of her upcoming marriage. She's not one to run off from her responsibilities, and Jonathan is a nice, caring man, if a bit absent-minded and obsessed with drums. Well, it turns out that Jonathan isn't so unobservant that he doesn't realize Eve's heart lies elsewhere, so he teams up with Ben in order to get her to call off the wedding and spare her the embarrassment of getting jilted twice! This is a horrible plan with hilarious results! But then there's a twist!
The Best of Both Rogues kind of lost me a bit after the twist. Not because it wasn't a good twist. I really liked it! But it just kind off dropped off after awhile. Ben and Eve are together, so there's really nothing left there, which seems to be a general problem with second chance romances. The development has already happened, so now they're just a happy couple doing married people things. There was one plot thread revolving this that never got resolved. It was like "oh, it happened! Let's tell the Bow Street Runners!" Then nothing.
I did enjoy The Best of Both Rogues, although not as much as the previous books. The humor and charm of the first part were lost in the second, and the plot didn't keep me engaged until the end since it all but disappeared.
Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.
June 19, 2015
On the day of their wedding, Lady Eve Thorne was left abandoned at the altar by Benjamin Hillary. In the throes of a panic attack, Ben ran from the church, out to the docks, and off to India. Now, several years later has returned with the intent of reclaiming his bride. Except she is engaged to another man! Eve keeps telling herself that Ben is a good for nothing rogue and to stay strong, denying her feelings for him. Because despite the pain and humiliation he caused, Eve never stopped loving Ben. Ben picks up on her hesitancy at marrying her current beau and enters into a scheme with Eve’s fiancee to make Eve admit her true feelings for Ben and break off her current engagement.
I struggled with this novel. The characters were okay – not brilliant, just okay. Though I didn’t dislike them, I found them to be a little flat, particularly Ben and Eve’s new beau. Eve wasn’t too bad. She had quite an aggressive personality for the time period and didn’t put up with shenanigans from Ben and her beau. But what really got to me was the lack of plot. The synopsis I wrote above? That’s essentially the whole novel, minus the HEA ending. I spent long portions reading wondering when something exciting was going to happen. Instead, it was a lot of back-and-forth jumping from Eve’s head to Ben’s head with the characters having essentially the same internal monologue the whole time. The action finally started in the last quarter of the novel, but by then the book was almost over so it seemed very, very rushed.
To be clear, THE BEST OF BOTH ROGUES is not a bad book. I remained interested enough to keep reading, just not enough to rave about it. I did enjoy Ben’s tenacity at convincing Eve to marry him and there were some laugh-out-loud parts with Ben and the beau working together with their match-breaking hijinks.
THE BEST OF BOTH ROGUES is part of a series, but you do not need to read the other novels to fully enjoy this one.
Originally posted at Plot Twist Reviews [dot] Com
I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
I struggled with this novel. The characters were okay – not brilliant, just okay. Though I didn’t dislike them, I found them to be a little flat, particularly Ben and Eve’s new beau. Eve wasn’t too bad. She had quite an aggressive personality for the time period and didn’t put up with shenanigans from Ben and her beau. But what really got to me was the lack of plot. The synopsis I wrote above? That’s essentially the whole novel, minus the HEA ending. I spent long portions reading wondering when something exciting was going to happen. Instead, it was a lot of back-and-forth jumping from Eve’s head to Ben’s head with the characters having essentially the same internal monologue the whole time. The action finally started in the last quarter of the novel, but by then the book was almost over so it seemed very, very rushed.
To be clear, THE BEST OF BOTH ROGUES is not a bad book. I remained interested enough to keep reading, just not enough to rave about it. I did enjoy Ben’s tenacity at convincing Eve to marry him and there were some laugh-out-loud parts with Ben and the beau working together with their match-breaking hijinks.
THE BEST OF BOTH ROGUES is part of a series, but you do not need to read the other novels to fully enjoy this one.
Originally posted at Plot Twist Reviews [dot] Com
I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
April 21, 2018
Actual rating: 2.5 stars. I struggled with what rating to give this book because it wasn't bad, per se, it just wasn't handled well. The book starts off with Ben already back in Town and the reader learns that if they want to read in detail how Eve responded when he sets foot on English shores again, they'll have to pick up the previous book. And while Grace explains it enough so you're not lost, I felt like it was a missed opportunity to connect emotionally with these characters. I know that Romance authors like to seed things in prior books to draw readers into the next book in the series, and that's totally fine. I just think that maybe that scene should have been included in this book as well. Especially considering Eve has been basically ostracized from society for the past 2 years because of this, but we don't get to sympathize with her about this since in this book, she's already back in society's good graces. It's another missed opportunity that Grace didn't mine here since it's rarely brought up. Similarly, Grace sets up a lot of stuff concerning Jonathan that was really interesting, but took too much time away from our main characters. To make matters worse, I know she was setting up his story for the next book (which I probably would've read), but it looks like there's no more Rival Rogues books coming so it ended up being detrimental. Also, the whole plan of just never sat right with me. It seemed very manipulative. Grace also could have done so much with Ben's . Instead, it's just treated as flavoring (poor fridged Charlotte) and a flimsy excuse for why he left. If that's the reason why he left Eve, it should take center stage in the book. I think Grace just tried to do too much here.
July 4, 2015
As screw-ups go, Mr. Benjamin Hillary probably made the biggest mistake of his life – he left his bride-to-be on their wedding day. Now the hardest thing he will ever do is to see her marry another. After two years abroad, Ben has returned finding Eve as enticing as ever and moved on to be betrothed to another. Ben doesn’t know quite what he can do in so little time but has vowed to right this wrong.
Lady Eve Thorn waited and waited for two long years, for word, a missive, anything that could possibly explain the reason Ben ran away from her. Nothing! Eve has moved on and her new fiance is a wonderful man; he would never hurt her the way Benjamin had. Better yet, she is no longer that starry-eyed young woman who melted whenever Ben was near - Eve is sure Benjamin is out of her life. But is he?
Determination abounds and that is just one of the things that made THE BEST OF BOTH ROGUES so very enjoyable. And the other thing is even if this is book #3 in the Rival Rogues series I know this is going to continue because one must find out what Jonathan is really up to! (Who is Jonathan? You must read this to find out!)
Bottom line: I loved the plotting, the fast-pace, the characters, and the beautiful writing that Ms. Grace exhibited in THE BEST OF BOTH ROGUES. A fast and totally super read!
Marilyn Rondeau
Lady Eve Thorn waited and waited for two long years, for word, a missive, anything that could possibly explain the reason Ben ran away from her. Nothing! Eve has moved on and her new fiance is a wonderful man; he would never hurt her the way Benjamin had. Better yet, she is no longer that starry-eyed young woman who melted whenever Ben was near - Eve is sure Benjamin is out of her life. But is he?
Determination abounds and that is just one of the things that made THE BEST OF BOTH ROGUES so very enjoyable. And the other thing is even if this is book #3 in the Rival Rogues series I know this is going to continue because one must find out what Jonathan is really up to! (Who is Jonathan? You must read this to find out!)
Bottom line: I loved the plotting, the fast-pace, the characters, and the beautiful writing that Ms. Grace exhibited in THE BEST OF BOTH ROGUES. A fast and totally super read!
Marilyn Rondeau
September 8, 2015
Doesn’t happen that often but Benjamin Ben Hillary leaves Eve Thorne (aka kitten) standing at the alter on their wedding day.
Eve has moved on & found someone else. Sir Johnathan Hackberry. Or has she?
Warning: This book is for adults only & contains extreme violent or graphic adult content or profanity &/or sexually explicit scenarios. It may be offensive to some readers.
I did not receive any type of compensation for reading & reviewing this book. While I receive free books from publishers & authors, I am under no obligation to write a positive review. Only an honest one.
A very awesome book cover, great font & writing style. A very well written romantic book. It was very easy for me to read/follow from start/finish & never a dull moment. There were no grammar/typo errors, nor any repetitive or out of line sequence sentences. Lots of exciting scenarios, with several twists/turns & a great set of unique characters to keep track of. This could also make another great aristocrat PPL romance movie, or mini TV series. It was just OK for me so I will rate it 4/5 stars.
Thank you for the free Goodreads; Sourcebooks Inc. (Casablanca); paperback book
Tony Parsons MSW (Washburn)
Eve has moved on & found someone else. Sir Johnathan Hackberry. Or has she?
Warning: This book is for adults only & contains extreme violent or graphic adult content or profanity &/or sexually explicit scenarios. It may be offensive to some readers.
I did not receive any type of compensation for reading & reviewing this book. While I receive free books from publishers & authors, I am under no obligation to write a positive review. Only an honest one.
A very awesome book cover, great font & writing style. A very well written romantic book. It was very easy for me to read/follow from start/finish & never a dull moment. There were no grammar/typo errors, nor any repetitive or out of line sequence sentences. Lots of exciting scenarios, with several twists/turns & a great set of unique characters to keep track of. This could also make another great aristocrat PPL romance movie, or mini TV series. It was just OK for me so I will rate it 4/5 stars.
Thank you for the free Goodreads; Sourcebooks Inc. (Casablanca); paperback book
Tony Parsons MSW (Washburn)
August 2, 2015
3.5-4
December 31, 2018
Two years ago Ben left Lady Eve at the alter and it's the biggest mistake of his life. He still loves her and wants to win her back except Eve has moved on with her life, ready to marry someone else. She can't hide her feelings either and is torn between taking a chance on true love or being heartbroken all over again. I jumped in to book 3 of the Rival Rogues series and with only some slight confusion it did read well as a stand-alone. I think I would have felt more of a connection to the characters if I had started at the beginning of the series because I felt I was missing some pull to seeing them through to their HEA. Outside of that it was a light, entertaining historical romance. Fun read!
July 6, 2020
I liked this one quite a lot. You gradually discover more about the characters of Ben and Jonathan and enjoy their unlikely antics together. The villain in this is unexpected, yet fits. I hope Jonathan gets his own book. The only think I disliked was the mysterious man who followed Eve and Jonathan and then Eve and knocked her into the Thames. He was never fully dealt with in the story.
May 12, 2022
I really enjoyed seeing Eve and Ben get back together and overcome Ben’s traumatic memories of the accident which killed his childhood beloved.
I hope that Jonathan gets his own HEA. I have not checked all of Samantha’s books set after this one so would be grateful if anyone can let me know if there is a story involving him.
Gillian
I hope that Jonathan gets his own HEA. I have not checked all of Samantha’s books set after this one so would be grateful if anyone can let me know if there is a story involving him.
Gillian
September 30, 2022
I have finally lost my patience with this book. So the main characters finally got married, and then what? The plot drags and drags and I cannot be bothered to finish reading anymore.
Stopped reading at page 282. Gave 2 stars for effort.
Stopped reading at page 282. Gave 2 stars for effort.
July 15, 2015
Available Now!!!
This is the third book in the Rival Rogues Series. I've read In Bed With a Rogue and reviewed it here.
Ben has returned, at the urging of a friendly vicar who knows both he and Eve. The vicar knows Eve is marrying another, Sir Jonathan Hackberry, and figures if Benjamin comes home, they can both be happy.
Benjamin has always loved Eve, but a panic attack on their wedding day caused him to run. Later we find out her brother sent him on his way when he got his wits back, and the young man left England. Now Eve is marrying a nice guy, Sir Jonathan Hackberry. She doesn't really know him, but he's not Ben, so that should be good. He's actually a bit boring, until, well, he isn't.
Ben decides to fight for Evie and Jonathan decides to let Evie go. Well, that won't work since Evie's been jilted before, Ben is worried that it will break her spirit. He and Jonathan decide that Evie must do the breaking up, to save face and all that. The lengths these two men go to to get her to do that made for some LOL moments. There's a scene with an onion that made me cringe...and then laugh.
Jonathan has his own secrets. He tried to get away from his past by marrying a sweet, lovely woman. He just wants to have a happy home life. But he wants her to be happy, too. That's why he agrees to have her jilt him. Things take a bad turn when his past comes back to haunt him.
This was a bit choppy in places and I was left wondering what was going to happen with Jonathan. Maybe he'll be the star of the next book in the series. This was still a fun little read and the humorous moments were very enjoyable.
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*Thank you, Netgalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for giving me the opportunity to read this book.
This is the third book in the Rival Rogues Series. I've read In Bed With a Rogue and reviewed it here.
Ben has returned, at the urging of a friendly vicar who knows both he and Eve. The vicar knows Eve is marrying another, Sir Jonathan Hackberry, and figures if Benjamin comes home, they can both be happy.
Benjamin has always loved Eve, but a panic attack on their wedding day caused him to run. Later we find out her brother sent him on his way when he got his wits back, and the young man left England. Now Eve is marrying a nice guy, Sir Jonathan Hackberry. She doesn't really know him, but he's not Ben, so that should be good. He's actually a bit boring, until, well, he isn't.
Ben decides to fight for Evie and Jonathan decides to let Evie go. Well, that won't work since Evie's been jilted before, Ben is worried that it will break her spirit. He and Jonathan decide that Evie must do the breaking up, to save face and all that. The lengths these two men go to to get her to do that made for some LOL moments. There's a scene with an onion that made me cringe...and then laugh.
Jonathan has his own secrets. He tried to get away from his past by marrying a sweet, lovely woman. He just wants to have a happy home life. But he wants her to be happy, too. That's why he agrees to have her jilt him. Things take a bad turn when his past comes back to haunt him.
This was a bit choppy in places and I was left wondering what was going to happen with Jonathan. Maybe he'll be the star of the next book in the series. This was still a fun little read and the humorous moments were very enjoyable.
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*Thank you, Netgalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for giving me the opportunity to read this book.
May 26, 2019
Originally posted on Adria's Musings and Reviews.
* A copy of this book was and provided by the publisher via NetGalley for the purpose of an honest review. All conclusions are my own responsibility and I was not compensated for this review.
The Story in 4 Sentences or Less: On the day she was to marry the man she loved, Lady Eve Thorne was left at the alter with no clue as to what went wrong. Benjamin Hillary had his reasons for abandoning Eve but he regrets them all the same, especially as she’s going to marry another man soon. But when Ben finds out that he still has a chance to win Eve back he takes it, and faces a much more mature, stubborn Eve who is determined not to give him another chance to break her heart.
Like It? Hate it? Love it? Why? I struggled a lot with The Best of Both Rogues, not because the plot idea was bad, it was actually a pretty interesting premise. It was the overall execution of the story. And the characters who had all the makings of memorable, relatable characters and instead they all fell flat.
But let’s start off with the fact that, despite the title, there are no rogues in this novel. At all. In fact, both Benjamin and Jonathan are pretty tame for historical romance standards. There’s nothing really interesting about them, though Jonathan is the more engaging of the two men.
Eve is a caring woman but pretty vanilla in everything she does. Again, there’s nothing really remarkable about her as a character. She’s okay, she’s not a shrew but she’s also easily forgotten.
The Best of Both Rogues could have been a highly entertaining novel what with Benjamin engaging Jonathan’s help to win Eve back. It was all there but the author failed to take advantage of what could have been something truly memorable.
Click It or Skip It? Skip It. There’s a lot of nothing interesting going on here and the characters aren’t really that great. I’d be open to reading another book by this author since this one was published almost 4 years ago.
* A copy of this book was and provided by the publisher via NetGalley for the purpose of an honest review. All conclusions are my own responsibility and I was not compensated for this review.
The Story in 4 Sentences or Less: On the day she was to marry the man she loved, Lady Eve Thorne was left at the alter with no clue as to what went wrong. Benjamin Hillary had his reasons for abandoning Eve but he regrets them all the same, especially as she’s going to marry another man soon. But when Ben finds out that he still has a chance to win Eve back he takes it, and faces a much more mature, stubborn Eve who is determined not to give him another chance to break her heart.
Like It? Hate it? Love it? Why? I struggled a lot with The Best of Both Rogues, not because the plot idea was bad, it was actually a pretty interesting premise. It was the overall execution of the story. And the characters who had all the makings of memorable, relatable characters and instead they all fell flat.
But let’s start off with the fact that, despite the title, there are no rogues in this novel. At all. In fact, both Benjamin and Jonathan are pretty tame for historical romance standards. There’s nothing really interesting about them, though Jonathan is the more engaging of the two men.
Eve is a caring woman but pretty vanilla in everything she does. Again, there’s nothing really remarkable about her as a character. She’s okay, she’s not a shrew but she’s also easily forgotten.
The Best of Both Rogues could have been a highly entertaining novel what with Benjamin engaging Jonathan’s help to win Eve back. It was all there but the author failed to take advantage of what could have been something truly memorable.
Click It or Skip It? Skip It. There’s a lot of nothing interesting going on here and the characters aren’t really that great. I’d be open to reading another book by this author since this one was published almost 4 years ago.
July 8, 2015
The first I have read in this series, The Best of Both Rogues brings us a reunited lovers, of sorts, plot. Years ago, Ben and Eve were engaged to be married, but on the day of the wedding, Ben had a panic attack and fled. Eve was not pleased, as you can imagine, and it has left her with some fairly outspoken opinions about Ben, her desires, and men in general. But, she does have a new fiancé and Ben’s return to her life only brings up issues with that relationship.
Ben was loaded with issues when he left Eve at the altar, and he’s managed to rein most of them in: he’s decided that Eve is who he wants, and he’ll go to great lengths (even conspiring with her current fiancé) to get his way.
I’m of two minds with this title: while there was very little action until the last quarter of the book, the pacing was less of an issue for me than the rather undefined characters. Oh, they had all of the “tell me” elements you would look for, but there wasn’t a strong defined emotional element that really had me engaging with them. Perhaps the very frequent (and oft repeated) POV switches between Eve and Ben were to blame: neither seemed to have any real emotional connection to the ‘problems’ they kept raising, and they were frequently lamenting the same issues in repeating POV switches. I wasn’t bored, I just wasn’t compelled to rush through searching for that “aha’ moment that would bring me the emotional breakthrough I wanted.
I was interested and curious to know what would happen, and if a reconciliation was possible, and as I mentioned earlier, the action does increase dramatically in the last quarter of the book, rushing to an ending that will please many readers. Fans of this series should find this book a satisfying installment.
I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.
Ben was loaded with issues when he left Eve at the altar, and he’s managed to rein most of them in: he’s decided that Eve is who he wants, and he’ll go to great lengths (even conspiring with her current fiancé) to get his way.
I’m of two minds with this title: while there was very little action until the last quarter of the book, the pacing was less of an issue for me than the rather undefined characters. Oh, they had all of the “tell me” elements you would look for, but there wasn’t a strong defined emotional element that really had me engaging with them. Perhaps the very frequent (and oft repeated) POV switches between Eve and Ben were to blame: neither seemed to have any real emotional connection to the ‘problems’ they kept raising, and they were frequently lamenting the same issues in repeating POV switches. I wasn’t bored, I just wasn’t compelled to rush through searching for that “aha’ moment that would bring me the emotional breakthrough I wanted.
I was interested and curious to know what would happen, and if a reconciliation was possible, and as I mentioned earlier, the action does increase dramatically in the last quarter of the book, rushing to an ending that will please many readers. Fans of this series should find this book a satisfying installment.
I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.
June 10, 2015
The Best of Both Rogues is the third book in the Rival Rogues series by Samantha Grace. This historical romance is currently scheduled for release on July 7 2015. Lady Eve Thorne was devastated when Mr. Benjamin Hillary left her at the altar. She’s no longer that starry-eyed young woman, and now that he’s back, she wishes he would just stay away. At least that is what she keeps telling herself. Eve has a new man in her life, and Ben is nothing but trouble. The worst thing Benjamin Hillary ever did was abandon his bride-to-be on their wedding day. The hardest thing he will ever have to do is watch her marry another man. But once Ben realizes he might have a chance, he’ll do just about anything to win back Eve’s heart.
The Best of Both Rogues might be the third book in the series, but it can easily stand on its own. Eve is a capable and steady woman and has a new fiance that is smart and a little distracted. When Ben returns he is still in love with Eve, and knows he has to set things right even if it means losing her. When he discovers a chance of still marrying her he is willing to do just about anything to win her back. Thankfully her new beau is much more than he seems, and this brings additional danger and mystery to the mix. The pair go through quite a bit to rediscover each other and find their happy ending. I liked that they were both level headed, capable people. They each had their weaknesses too, which made them more real as far as I am concerned.
The Best of Both Rogues is an enjoyable read and one that left me interested in the rest of the series and how the other characters got, or will get, their happy endings. I did not find the book to be absolutely amazing, but it did fulfill my expectations and left me a happy reader.
The Best of Both Rogues might be the third book in the series, but it can easily stand on its own. Eve is a capable and steady woman and has a new fiance that is smart and a little distracted. When Ben returns he is still in love with Eve, and knows he has to set things right even if it means losing her. When he discovers a chance of still marrying her he is willing to do just about anything to win her back. Thankfully her new beau is much more than he seems, and this brings additional danger and mystery to the mix. The pair go through quite a bit to rediscover each other and find their happy ending. I liked that they were both level headed, capable people. They each had their weaknesses too, which made them more real as far as I am concerned.
The Best of Both Rogues is an enjoyable read and one that left me interested in the rest of the series and how the other characters got, or will get, their happy endings. I did not find the book to be absolutely amazing, but it did fulfill my expectations and left me a happy reader.
July 7, 2015
As a reader there is always a great deal to admire about Samantha Grace as an author and this book was yet another example of what I love about such stories. From the opening sentence I fell in love with this story as it is a delightful, entertaining adventure filled with passion, humor and a romantic plot to match.
By far this is my favorite book in the Rival Rogue series. I have liked the previous books in the series, but there was something extra special about Ben and Eve's story that swept me away. I think it was truly the sense of humor that highlighted this love story. It's rare for me to find such laughable nature in a romance novel and yet Grace did apply the right amount to this book without the humor seeming unnatural.
The romance is also worth applauding as well as the chemistry. Both were equally as strong as the other and I felt like Ben and Eve was really meant to be together despite the fact that they had a bit of a rough start.
My only fault with this story is that I don't believe that Johnathan, the second rogue in the book stood a chance against Ben. I valued John's character from the start though I did suspect that he was not the man that he appeared, he did in fact add mystery and new twists to the story. Still, I would have liked to have seen Eve perhaps consider John more than she did so that the title better represented the actual storyline.
-This review was written as part of my reviewing profile at Night Owl Reviews. Copyrights belong to Night Owl Reviews.
https://www.nightowlreviews.com/v5/Re...
By far this is my favorite book in the Rival Rogue series. I have liked the previous books in the series, but there was something extra special about Ben and Eve's story that swept me away. I think it was truly the sense of humor that highlighted this love story. It's rare for me to find such laughable nature in a romance novel and yet Grace did apply the right amount to this book without the humor seeming unnatural.
The romance is also worth applauding as well as the chemistry. Both were equally as strong as the other and I felt like Ben and Eve was really meant to be together despite the fact that they had a bit of a rough start.
My only fault with this story is that I don't believe that Johnathan, the second rogue in the book stood a chance against Ben. I valued John's character from the start though I did suspect that he was not the man that he appeared, he did in fact add mystery and new twists to the story. Still, I would have liked to have seen Eve perhaps consider John more than she did so that the title better represented the actual storyline.
-This review was written as part of my reviewing profile at Night Owl Reviews. Copyrights belong to Night Owl Reviews.
https://www.nightowlreviews.com/v5/Re...
July 23, 2015
This is book 3 in the Rival Rogues story.
Lady Eve Thorne was devastated when Mr Benjamin Hillary left her at the alter. She has finally given up hope of his return and is about to get engaged when he shows back up in London. She is doing her best to not let his presence interrupt her life, but everytime she sees him she realizes that her love for him has not changed.
The worst thing Ben ever did was to give up Eve. Now he must convince her that he is the right man for her. He even goes so far as to approach her fiancee to help him.
Can Ben win back the love that he walked away from?
LOVED this story! I have read any of the other Hillary stories (Beau Monde series), but after reading this one I'm going to have to go back and read about Ben's brothers and sisters.
While reading In Bed with a Rogue, I felt so sorry for Eve. I hoped that Grace would give Eve her HEA because Ben was such a fiend for leaving her. So having read the previous book in the series, I didn't like Ben much at the beginning. But he quickly grew on me as I saw his love for Eve shine through in everything he did.
Throughout the book, we see Eve struggle with what she knows she should do and what her heart is telling her she needs to do. It's hard to give up that first love!
I kinda fell in love with Jonathan (Eve's fiance) toward the end of the book and hope that Grace gives up his story in the future! He deserves his HEA too!
Can't wait to see what Grace gives up next!
Thanks go out to Sourcebooks for a copy of the book in exchange of an honest review.
Lady Eve Thorne was devastated when Mr Benjamin Hillary left her at the alter. She has finally given up hope of his return and is about to get engaged when he shows back up in London. She is doing her best to not let his presence interrupt her life, but everytime she sees him she realizes that her love for him has not changed.
The worst thing Ben ever did was to give up Eve. Now he must convince her that he is the right man for her. He even goes so far as to approach her fiancee to help him.
Can Ben win back the love that he walked away from?
LOVED this story! I have read any of the other Hillary stories (Beau Monde series), but after reading this one I'm going to have to go back and read about Ben's brothers and sisters.
While reading In Bed with a Rogue, I felt so sorry for Eve. I hoped that Grace would give Eve her HEA because Ben was such a fiend for leaving her. So having read the previous book in the series, I didn't like Ben much at the beginning. But he quickly grew on me as I saw his love for Eve shine through in everything he did.
Throughout the book, we see Eve struggle with what she knows she should do and what her heart is telling her she needs to do. It's hard to give up that first love!
I kinda fell in love with Jonathan (Eve's fiance) toward the end of the book and hope that Grace gives up his story in the future! He deserves his HEA too!
Can't wait to see what Grace gives up next!
Thanks go out to Sourcebooks for a copy of the book in exchange of an honest review.
July 26, 2015
Samantha Grace's The Best of Both Rogues is part of her Rival Rogues series. It works well as a standalone because each book focuses on a different couple. The rogue this time is Benjamin Hillary. Ben is trying to win back Lady Eve 'Evie' Thorne, the girl he jilted two years previously - the problem? Evie is marrying somebody else!
I really liked Evie because although she was devastated by Ben's desertion she tries hard to move on with her life. She remains strong even when faced with potential ruin and the scandal of being jilted.
I liked the banter between Evie and Ben, which was unusual considering the setting. Evie is very modern at times and I often forgot she was a woman living in Regency England.
Ben has a lot of explaining and redeeming to do if he's going to stand any chance of winning Evie back. He goes on a massive learning curve throughout the story and discovers honesty is far better than excuses and half truths.
I enjoyed their story and the crossovers with the previous books, although I would have liked a little more explanation about Ben and his past.
3 - 3.5 Stars in my Sky!
More at Zili in the Sky
I received a copy from the publisher Sourcebooks (via NetGalley) in exchange for an honest review!
July 10, 2015
...a second chance!_______3.5 stars
Lady Eve Thorne never forgot the man who'd left her on her wedding day and fled to India. One Mr. Benjamin Hillary. Eve never stopped loving him. Now, two years later, the time had come for her to take her life back, marry and have the family she'd always wanted. Scandal had stalked her after being left at the altar. Now engaged to Sir Jonathan Hackberry, Eve is shattered to find Ben returned and her love for him undiminished.
Ben is determined to win her back. All he has to do is persuade her fiancé to do all he can to have Eve break the engagement, convince Eve to marry him instead and to persuade her brother Sebastian that everything would be right and proper. Oh, and then there's the reasons behind why Ben fled in the first place.
Jonathan however is more than he seems and through him danger stalks Eve.
The glimpses of Jonathan so fascinated me that I felt this story is merely the avenue for Jonathan to take centre stage at some time. He's an enigma. There's shrouded secrets and dark sides glimpsed in the character of Jonathan.
Eve and Ben's story is fraught with the tension revolving around Ben's ability to win Eve back and Eve's ability to forgive. Eve is a stalwart, loving young woman who deserves happiness.
A NetGalley ARC
Lady Eve Thorne never forgot the man who'd left her on her wedding day and fled to India. One Mr. Benjamin Hillary. Eve never stopped loving him. Now, two years later, the time had come for her to take her life back, marry and have the family she'd always wanted. Scandal had stalked her after being left at the altar. Now engaged to Sir Jonathan Hackberry, Eve is shattered to find Ben returned and her love for him undiminished.
Ben is determined to win her back. All he has to do is persuade her fiancé to do all he can to have Eve break the engagement, convince Eve to marry him instead and to persuade her brother Sebastian that everything would be right and proper. Oh, and then there's the reasons behind why Ben fled in the first place.
Jonathan however is more than he seems and through him danger stalks Eve.
The glimpses of Jonathan so fascinated me that I felt this story is merely the avenue for Jonathan to take centre stage at some time. He's an enigma. There's shrouded secrets and dark sides glimpsed in the character of Jonathan.
Eve and Ben's story is fraught with the tension revolving around Ben's ability to win Eve back and Eve's ability to forgive. Eve is a stalwart, loving young woman who deserves happiness.
A NetGalley ARC
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