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No Better Angels #4
The Young Blood
He's a rake. She's his reckoning.
Sabine Banchory is a sensible, intelligent, and unhappily married woman. She was once a dutiful young lady but years spent trying to curb her husband’s excesses have hardened her heart.
She’ll have no trouble resisting the charms of the notorious rake, the Earl of Kingston. One despicable wastrel in her life is quite enough, thank you very much.
Seducing the coldly beautiful Sabine won’t be a challenge for Kingston. It’s true that she slaps him on the face soon after they’re introduced but all relationships have to start somewhere. With the right attention, she’ll fall into his bed and insist she’d come up with the plan.
A terrible crime interrupts this game of cat and mouse. Caught in its wake, Sabine and Kingston are forced to rely on one another. To trust one another. And, if they dare, to build a loving future together.
Sabine Banchory is a sensible, intelligent, and unhappily married woman. She was once a dutiful young lady but years spent trying to curb her husband’s excesses have hardened her heart.
She’ll have no trouble resisting the charms of the notorious rake, the Earl of Kingston. One despicable wastrel in her life is quite enough, thank you very much.
Seducing the coldly beautiful Sabine won’t be a challenge for Kingston. It’s true that she slaps him on the face soon after they’re introduced but all relationships have to start somewhere. With the right attention, she’ll fall into his bed and insist she’d come up with the plan.
A terrible crime interrupts this game of cat and mouse. Caught in its wake, Sabine and Kingston are forced to rely on one another. To trust one another. And, if they dare, to build a loving future together.
310 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 27, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
October 11, 2016
What a beautiful read this was! It’s like getting a wonderful present when just a little above average gift was expected.
I read and liked the other 3 books in the series but this one –this one is truly remarkable. The author’s intelligent and imaginative writing reminds me (dare I say it? Yes, I do!) of Meredith Duran and Cecilia Grant.
Although linked, each book can be read as a standalone. The hero of this story, the Earl of Kingston, is featured throughout the entire series and, to get a true appreciation of his growth and change, you would want to read book 1 through 3.
Simply put, this is a “rake redemption” story but the way it went from here:
There are picnics, house parties, contests, grisly crimes, murder, and fleeing. There are making windmills from ingredients found in the kitchen, flying on the hot air balloon, painting, and intelligent conversations. But most of all, it’s a beautifully told love story between two people who see each other clearly for what they are and challenge each other to be better.
I love the romance progression. It felt natural, not forced. The author did an outstanding job with the protagonists’ characterization. There was not a single faulty note from their witty repartee to beautifully written sex scenes to complexity of their feelings and reactions to events and to each other.
The only drawback for me was the epilogue. It felt too long and anticlimactic but not enough to deduct even half of a star.
Some of my favorite quotes (and there are more):
I read and liked the other 3 books in the series but this one –this one is truly remarkable. The author’s intelligent and imaginative writing reminds me (dare I say it? Yes, I do!) of Meredith Duran and Cecilia Grant.
Although linked, each book can be read as a standalone. The hero of this story, the Earl of Kingston, is featured throughout the entire series and, to get a true appreciation of his growth and change, you would want to read book 1 through 3.
Simply put, this is a “rake redemption” story but the way it went from here:
Kingston had a strange way of arming himself against the world, converting the tools of trust – honesty and intimacy- into weapons.
to here:”I’m at your mercy,” he said, solemn as she’d ever heard him. “Use me as you wish. When you leave, I won’t know what to do.”
is what makes the book a truly outstanding read.There are picnics, house parties, contests, grisly crimes, murder, and fleeing. There are making windmills from ingredients found in the kitchen, flying on the hot air balloon, painting, and intelligent conversations. But most of all, it’s a beautifully told love story between two people who see each other clearly for what they are and challenge each other to be better.
I love the romance progression. It felt natural, not forced. The author did an outstanding job with the protagonists’ characterization. There was not a single faulty note from their witty repartee to beautifully written sex scenes to complexity of their feelings and reactions to events and to each other.
The only drawback for me was the epilogue. It felt too long and anticlimactic but not enough to deduct even half of a star.
Some of my favorite quotes (and there are more):
In his opinion, men who reserved their admiration for acknowledged beauties were simply putting the paucity of their imaginations on display.
"If someone here is rude to you, then look at me." look at me. Because she would see what she always did: admiration, approval, desire.
July 19, 2024
My first book by this author, and I really liked it. A fresh and original HR with a really different feel than the usual cliches. The plot is very dramatic actually, with the first section partly a whodunnit, but the whole book is strongly threaded through with a lovely romance. I'm definitely going to try more from this author.
I liked both Alfie, the rake who fell deeply in love, and Sabine, who during a horrible marriage she had been forced into by her family, had been able to retain her own integrity and self-worth. Alfie and Sabine were lovely together, I thought. They drew out the best in each other. Well worth the read.
I liked both Alfie, the rake who fell deeply in love, and Sabine, who during a horrible marriage she had been forced into by her family, had been able to retain her own integrity and self-worth. Alfie and Sabine were lovely together, I thought. They drew out the best in each other. Well worth the read.
September 23, 2021
I had to give this book 4 stars. How can you not to a story that has so much detail about making windmills out of foodstuff or a homemade flying machine with discussion of paper vs. silk as a component? You can see the care Satie has taken in writing this. Each little detail designed to tell you something about a character and with such great tie-ins of the beginning house party events to the rest of the story. This book appealed to me very much cerebrally. Unfortunately, as a romance it did not grip me much emotionally so it's not getting 5 stars.
On her website, Erin Satie says of this book: "I think it's my best book, my most romantic book. It's my funniest book and probably also my darkest book. I think it brings the series to an end in a satisfying way." Of these statements I agree wholeheartedly with the last sentence. This is a good conclusion to the series and it even brings in all the couples of the first three books. They have useful, meaningful roles and aren't just silly cameo appearances. But as for this being her most romantic, maybe not, IMO, and as for it being funny, not so much (or maybe I'm losing my sense of humor lately).
But this is clever and intelligently written. (And has good grammar for the most part, which is always a plus for me. Except for her overuse of "like" as a conjunction instead of "as" and "as if", and a "lay" in a sentence that needed a "laid", but my mentioning this just confirms my status as a pain in the patootie, doesn't it?)
Alfie, the Earl of Kingston, has been around since the first entry of this No Better Angels series. He has been quite intriguing and yet also a bit off-putting, as a true rake should be. And that's what Satie wanted. Again, to quote her: "So that's how Alfie started. Careless, cruel...no filter, says anything he wants to any one who catches his attention, intense and charismatic but also repellent." This fourth book is to be the story of his redemption. But if I hadn't read the first 3 books, I wouldn't have gotten that "repellent" vibe, even at the beginning of this book. The charisma is here, the intensity, the charm, the general rakishness, but he doesn't come across at any moment as repellent, not like Hoyt's hero in DUKE OF SIN, or Kerrigan Byrne's heroes in THE HIGHWAYMAN and THE HUNTER, or the heroes you can find in old Edith Layton Regencies, such as THE DUKE'S WAGER. This makes his redemption less of an achievement, if the only book you have read is this latest one.
And who is to accomplish this redemption and along the way to find her own happiness and peace? That would be heroine Sabine Banchory, described as "sensible, intelligent and very unhappily married" for, I believe, some 10 years. I also found her to be, especially at the beginning, a bit cold and lacking in humor and friendliness. She has a reason for these personality defects. After the death of her parents, in the guardianship of her self-interested uncle, the Duke of Something-or-Other, she is married off to husband Banchory, a horrid, dissolute, cruel man. What is there for her to be happy about? Her life has been pretty miserable for years now.
The H and h meet at a house party, where Sabine catches Alfie's eye but rejects his advances. He then arranges for Sabine and her husband to be invited to a second house party where he and she become better acquainted when in the same group of players in a very creative competition among the house guests. The game has each group charged with coming up with their own versions of a list of required items, points to be awarded based on originality and execution. Sabine takes this seriously to an unhealthy extreme and we get a very detailed accounting of her group's activities. Almost to the point of being tedious, but it's also to lay the foundation for an understanding of Alfie's and Sabine's personalities and the beginning of their "learning" each other.
Yes, there's a husband here. I won't tell you what happens to him. There's a mystery. There are some murders. There's a roadtrip/escape-flight-from-danger. There are lots of little, exquisitely detailed tangents. One thing this book is not is predictable. I had no real idea what was going to happen from one moment to the next. The only thing I was certain about is that it would have an HEA.
The HEA is satisfactory. The romance was not all that I had expected. I could not warm up much to the heroine, in spite of my understanding why she was the way she was. I could not understand why Alfie was so attracted to her. And Alfie here wasn't the dissolute, almost irredeemable rake I was expecting, nor were the tragedies and losses in his background sufficient motivation, IMO, for having become the one he appeared to be in the first three books.
I am, however, a Satie fan and follower and am going to read whatever she publishes next. There's a novella to come, I believe. I hope she has a new series in the works too.
On her website, Erin Satie says of this book: "I think it's my best book, my most romantic book. It's my funniest book and probably also my darkest book. I think it brings the series to an end in a satisfying way." Of these statements I agree wholeheartedly with the last sentence. This is a good conclusion to the series and it even brings in all the couples of the first three books. They have useful, meaningful roles and aren't just silly cameo appearances. But as for this being her most romantic, maybe not, IMO, and as for it being funny, not so much (or maybe I'm losing my sense of humor lately).
But this is clever and intelligently written. (And has good grammar for the most part, which is always a plus for me. Except for her overuse of "like" as a conjunction instead of "as" and "as if", and a "lay" in a sentence that needed a "laid", but my mentioning this just confirms my status as a pain in the patootie, doesn't it?)
Alfie, the Earl of Kingston, has been around since the first entry of this No Better Angels series. He has been quite intriguing and yet also a bit off-putting, as a true rake should be. And that's what Satie wanted. Again, to quote her: "So that's how Alfie started. Careless, cruel...no filter, says anything he wants to any one who catches his attention, intense and charismatic but also repellent." This fourth book is to be the story of his redemption. But if I hadn't read the first 3 books, I wouldn't have gotten that "repellent" vibe, even at the beginning of this book. The charisma is here, the intensity, the charm, the general rakishness, but he doesn't come across at any moment as repellent, not like Hoyt's hero in DUKE OF SIN, or Kerrigan Byrne's heroes in THE HIGHWAYMAN and THE HUNTER, or the heroes you can find in old Edith Layton Regencies, such as THE DUKE'S WAGER. This makes his redemption less of an achievement, if the only book you have read is this latest one.
And who is to accomplish this redemption and along the way to find her own happiness and peace? That would be heroine Sabine Banchory, described as "sensible, intelligent and very unhappily married" for, I believe, some 10 years. I also found her to be, especially at the beginning, a bit cold and lacking in humor and friendliness. She has a reason for these personality defects. After the death of her parents, in the guardianship of her self-interested uncle, the Duke of Something-or-Other, she is married off to husband Banchory, a horrid, dissolute, cruel man. What is there for her to be happy about? Her life has been pretty miserable for years now.
The H and h meet at a house party, where Sabine catches Alfie's eye but rejects his advances. He then arranges for Sabine and her husband to be invited to a second house party where he and she become better acquainted when in the same group of players in a very creative competition among the house guests. The game has each group charged with coming up with their own versions of a list of required items, points to be awarded based on originality and execution. Sabine takes this seriously to an unhealthy extreme and we get a very detailed accounting of her group's activities. Almost to the point of being tedious, but it's also to lay the foundation for an understanding of Alfie's and Sabine's personalities and the beginning of their "learning" each other.
Yes, there's a husband here. I won't tell you what happens to him. There's a mystery. There are some murders. There's a roadtrip/escape-flight-from-danger. There are lots of little, exquisitely detailed tangents. One thing this book is not is predictable. I had no real idea what was going to happen from one moment to the next. The only thing I was certain about is that it would have an HEA.
The HEA is satisfactory. The romance was not all that I had expected. I could not warm up much to the heroine, in spite of my understanding why she was the way she was. I could not understand why Alfie was so attracted to her. And Alfie here wasn't the dissolute, almost irredeemable rake I was expecting, nor were the tragedies and losses in his background sufficient motivation, IMO, for having become the one he appeared to be in the first three books.
I am, however, a Satie fan and follower and am going to read whatever she publishes next. There's a novella to come, I believe. I hope she has a new series in the works too.
December 26, 2017
3.7 stars
"If someone here is rude to you, then look at me."
Look at me. Because she would see what she always did: admiration, approval, desire.
"Look at me," Kingston repeated, "because I will remind you of the truth."
Such complex characters with nuanced story telling. A true rake and an "unlikeable" heroine, who managed to come together in such a compelling way. Definitely going back to start at the beginning of this series; writing that escapes the usual historical romance mold.
"If someone here is rude to you, then look at me."
Look at me. Because she would see what she always did: admiration, approval, desire.
"Look at me," Kingston repeated, "because I will remind you of the truth."
Such complex characters with nuanced story telling. A true rake and an "unlikeable" heroine, who managed to come together in such a compelling way. Definitely going back to start at the beginning of this series; writing that escapes the usual historical romance mold.
September 23, 2021
I love this book. In the Afterword to The Young Blood Erin Satie succinctly describes it as her tale of a "rake redeemed". True. The redemption of Alfie, the Earl of Kingston certainly comes close (but only close) to dominating this story.
Alfie begins this story as a wearied rake, sick of his easy conquests, first chosen to deaden pain and loss, but nowadays boring and even sickening (despite the momentary ease of sexual release, the lure of warm skin-on-skin, the scent of another body, the mild satisfaction of a successful "hunt").
Like many HR fans, I have read this theme so often that I now usually share the predictable "ennui" of the various rakes. Additionally, I have come to feel an increasing disquiet. In coming to admire the "rake", I worry that I am endorsing what is, at best, rank hypocricy/double standards (irrespective of the era) and, at worst, abuse of women.
Mike Randell, in his blog on the Georgians, puts it well when he says that "for some people the word ‘rake’ is applied almost as a compliment – a recognition of hard-living and hard-drinking, with an almost heroic life spent on gambling and fornicating." As he continues, this admiration disguises an ugly truth: "The reality was that there was nothing heroic about many rakes" in Georgian/Regency, or any other times.” (As just one example, he gives details of the disgusting life of Georgian, Francis Charteris, who "was not just a rake, he was a rapist, and a serial one at that".)
Given these reservations how could I give this story five stars and consider it the best HR I've read in absolutely ages?
In regard to Alfie, because:
*Despite behaviour that is appalling, self indulgent and callous (while he takes no particular pleasure in having wrecked a marriage, he refuses to accept any blame, musing instead that he couldn't be expected to have known the husband would be that jealous) in this story he always chooses, or is chosen by willing (albeit manipulated) partners of his own class.
*Satie provides, in Alfie, the best description of the skills of a rake that I have ever read in an HR. As he explains to the h, Sabine, he understands that women want to feel heard, understood and appreciated, as well as being lusted over and judged as wildly desirable. Alfie realises that they see him as pain-filled, and grieving, waiting to be saved by their "love". He cleverly exploits their vulnerability and then boasts that he delivers the best sex they'd ever had (the revelation of how he lost his virginity partly explains that anxiety). It is a repetitive dance. When he doesn't get "saved", his sex partners are likely to become angry and even vengeful, usually ashamed and then disgusted. So Alfie's rakish relationships are more complicated than just a villain and victim - and that makes The Young Blood much more interesting than most stories in this genre.
*As an extension of this exploration, Satie is very clever, as she contrasts Alfie's raking with that of a true monster, who is evil personified.
* Alfie's final encounter with that monster is gripping. Despite his self-deprecation, as he bumbles forward, and his self-loathing afterwards, Satie cleverly provides Alfie with the chance to demonstrate selfless heroism, to be offered redemption and a true turning point in his life (in more ways than one). And she does so convincingly.
So far, so good. Alfie is not, however, the whole story. The Young Blood, is, in my view, a great HR because of the main female protagonist, Sabine Banchory (aka Mrs Green). She is everything that Alfie describes when he tells her why he loves her. Sabine leaps from the pages. In my view, she is the star of the story. I love her intelligence, her loyalty, competitiveness, courage and ability to read Alfie. I appreciate the relationships from childhood that taught her about love, as well as what she learns from loving Alfie. I could go on and on, but this review would be even longer.
Further reasons for the five stars:
* Satie's writing is, as always, excellent.
* She has a knack for conversation unrivalled in contemporary HR land, beautifully executed in this story. I re-read repartee between Alfie and Sabine, Alfie and his valet, Alfie and his ducal friend, Alfie and his female painter friend, Alfie and Mrs Banks etc etc.
* Satie's character development is superior to almost every other HR writer. Within pages she made Alfie and Sabine mesmerising and the complex way in which each changes throughout the story is enthralling. Ditto Mrs Banks, Helen, the valet and so many more.
* She understands exactly what I want to read in an HR. She delivers a great balance between lust and physicality and angst and romance and the final delivery of a HEA.
* She knows when to keep the minute details of the sex private ( the scene in the attic - with the soiled sheets, the splinter in Alfie's posterior/his skinned knees and the easily seduced wife who becomes ashamed and angry with him only when she realises her husband will discover she has been faithless - is, in my mind, delivered just as it should be. There is no pretence that this has not been vigorous and sneaky sex, with a betrayed husband under the same roof, but Satie feels no need to describe what went where. She doesn't need to. The reader can fill in or forget the gaps.)
* Because she shows restraint, her descriptive sex scenes (with Alfie and Sabine) are moving and don't seem voyeuristic. She makes them passionate and earthy. I can't count how often I've seen reader comments about how they skim past the sex scenes in HRs, not because they are prudish, but because the scenes are mechanistic, repetitive and boring. Not so with Satie.
* Satie's intelligence, sense of humour and erudition are splendidly exemplified in her use of art to display the differences between Alfie and Sabine. She uses art to demonstrate Alfie's finer qualities (not just his aesthetics - which any tyrant could share - but also his kindness and generosity and mentoring of others). Conversely, I laughed out loud when she uses art to demonstrate Sabine's non-appreciative practicality. Finally, Satie uses art, in Belgium, to demonstrate oneness between Alfie and Sabine in a way that I found emotionally intense. (Not since Lord of Scoundrels have I read of a better use of an artistic object in a HR.)
I have only one reservation with this book. The Epilogue. Although parts of it were great (especially when Sabine realises how children of their union can be protected by establishing a parallel life to the stuffy "ton" - which I know did happen in real life) I found parts of it to be anti-climactic. Not enough, however, to reduce the number of stars.
In the Afterword, Satie says that this is the end of this series. A shame. I'm confident, however, that the next one will be even better.
PS I bought my copy of The Young Blood.
PPS I love the cover. Whoever designs the covers for all of Satie's books deserves a pat on the back. They are interesting and passionate and moody and different. Without even reading the author's name the reader knows this is a Satie title. What more could an author hope for?
Alfie begins this story as a wearied rake, sick of his easy conquests, first chosen to deaden pain and loss, but nowadays boring and even sickening (despite the momentary ease of sexual release, the lure of warm skin-on-skin, the scent of another body, the mild satisfaction of a successful "hunt").
Like many HR fans, I have read this theme so often that I now usually share the predictable "ennui" of the various rakes. Additionally, I have come to feel an increasing disquiet. In coming to admire the "rake", I worry that I am endorsing what is, at best, rank hypocricy/double standards (irrespective of the era) and, at worst, abuse of women.
Mike Randell, in his blog on the Georgians, puts it well when he says that "for some people the word ‘rake’ is applied almost as a compliment – a recognition of hard-living and hard-drinking, with an almost heroic life spent on gambling and fornicating." As he continues, this admiration disguises an ugly truth: "The reality was that there was nothing heroic about many rakes" in Georgian/Regency, or any other times.” (As just one example, he gives details of the disgusting life of Georgian, Francis Charteris, who "was not just a rake, he was a rapist, and a serial one at that".)
Given these reservations how could I give this story five stars and consider it the best HR I've read in absolutely ages?
In regard to Alfie, because:
*Despite behaviour that is appalling, self indulgent and callous (while he takes no particular pleasure in having wrecked a marriage, he refuses to accept any blame, musing instead that he couldn't be expected to have known the husband would be that jealous) in this story he always chooses, or is chosen by willing (albeit manipulated) partners of his own class.
*Satie provides, in Alfie, the best description of the skills of a rake that I have ever read in an HR. As he explains to the h, Sabine, he understands that women want to feel heard, understood and appreciated, as well as being lusted over and judged as wildly desirable. Alfie realises that they see him as pain-filled, and grieving, waiting to be saved by their "love". He cleverly exploits their vulnerability and then boasts that he delivers the best sex they'd ever had (the revelation of how he lost his virginity partly explains that anxiety). It is a repetitive dance. When he doesn't get "saved", his sex partners are likely to become angry and even vengeful, usually ashamed and then disgusted. So Alfie's rakish relationships are more complicated than just a villain and victim - and that makes The Young Blood much more interesting than most stories in this genre.
*As an extension of this exploration, Satie is very clever, as she contrasts Alfie's raking with that of a true monster, who is evil personified.
* Alfie's final encounter with that monster is gripping. Despite his self-deprecation, as he bumbles forward, and his self-loathing afterwards, Satie cleverly provides Alfie with the chance to demonstrate selfless heroism, to be offered redemption and a true turning point in his life (in more ways than one). And she does so convincingly.
So far, so good. Alfie is not, however, the whole story. The Young Blood, is, in my view, a great HR because of the main female protagonist, Sabine Banchory (aka Mrs Green). She is everything that Alfie describes when he tells her why he loves her. Sabine leaps from the pages. In my view, she is the star of the story. I love her intelligence, her loyalty, competitiveness, courage and ability to read Alfie. I appreciate the relationships from childhood that taught her about love, as well as what she learns from loving Alfie. I could go on and on, but this review would be even longer.
Further reasons for the five stars:
* Satie's writing is, as always, excellent.
* She has a knack for conversation unrivalled in contemporary HR land, beautifully executed in this story. I re-read repartee between Alfie and Sabine, Alfie and his valet, Alfie and his ducal friend, Alfie and his female painter friend, Alfie and Mrs Banks etc etc.
* Satie's character development is superior to almost every other HR writer. Within pages she made Alfie and Sabine mesmerising and the complex way in which each changes throughout the story is enthralling. Ditto Mrs Banks, Helen, the valet and so many more.
* She understands exactly what I want to read in an HR. She delivers a great balance between lust and physicality and angst and romance and the final delivery of a HEA.
* She knows when to keep the minute details of the sex private ( the scene in the attic - with the soiled sheets, the splinter in Alfie's posterior/his skinned knees and the easily seduced wife who becomes ashamed and angry with him only when she realises her husband will discover she has been faithless - is, in my mind, delivered just as it should be. There is no pretence that this has not been vigorous and sneaky sex, with a betrayed husband under the same roof, but Satie feels no need to describe what went where. She doesn't need to. The reader can fill in or forget the gaps.)
* Because she shows restraint, her descriptive sex scenes (with Alfie and Sabine) are moving and don't seem voyeuristic. She makes them passionate and earthy. I can't count how often I've seen reader comments about how they skim past the sex scenes in HRs, not because they are prudish, but because the scenes are mechanistic, repetitive and boring. Not so with Satie.
* Satie's intelligence, sense of humour and erudition are splendidly exemplified in her use of art to display the differences between Alfie and Sabine. She uses art to demonstrate Alfie's finer qualities (not just his aesthetics - which any tyrant could share - but also his kindness and generosity and mentoring of others). Conversely, I laughed out loud when she uses art to demonstrate Sabine's non-appreciative practicality. Finally, Satie uses art, in Belgium, to demonstrate oneness between Alfie and Sabine in a way that I found emotionally intense. (Not since Lord of Scoundrels have I read of a better use of an artistic object in a HR.)
I have only one reservation with this book. The Epilogue. Although parts of it were great (especially when Sabine realises how children of their union can be protected by establishing a parallel life to the stuffy "ton" - which I know did happen in real life) I found parts of it to be anti-climactic. Not enough, however, to reduce the number of stars.
In the Afterword, Satie says that this is the end of this series. A shame. I'm confident, however, that the next one will be even better.
PS I bought my copy of The Young Blood.
PPS I love the cover. Whoever designs the covers for all of Satie's books deserves a pat on the back. They are interesting and passionate and moody and different. Without even reading the author's name the reader knows this is a Satie title. What more could an author hope for?
September 29, 2021
3.5 stars.
Well, how to review a book like this? It put me strongly in mind of Cecelia Grant's A Lady Awakened, and that was also a book I wasn't sure I really enjoyed.
It could have been the detached quality of the MCs, whose motivations I felt I never quite got to know.
It could have been the story arc, which included some rather gruesome murders, that seemed a bit random and even unbelievable.
It could have been the repugnant nature of the promiscuous Alfie and his life choices, with his complete disassociation from any consequences his seductions might have had.
It could have been the ambivalent heroine, who took the stiff upper lip to ridiculous extremes in the way she simply put up with the abject misery of her marriage and the horrible family members on both sides. (No doubt, she might have felt there was little she could actually do, but even her emotional response to all this seemed lacking.)
I did warm to the book and Alfie's behaviour did make more sense in the end, but despite the way he finally became aware of the damage he had been doing for years, all because he wallowed in a grief he refused to acknowledge, and was truly remorseful and regretful, I could not excuse him. If he were able to make reparations in some way for any of his callous, disinterested actions, and spent time doing that, then I might reconsider! He was generous and very supportive of people he wanted to help succeed, so in that regard he was very forward thinking. He also loved art and I could appreciate that. But as it was, I never felt he truly deserved happiness. Yes, I guess I am a bit of a meanie!
Sabine, on the other hand, was someone I could respect, even while I initially found her character very cold.
I have read one other in this series, and it happened to be the book where Alfie is first introduced. The Secret Heart. He was awful in that one, and if I do read books two and three, I will probably find him just as repulsive. Perhaps it's a good thing that I have read book 4- it might make me react a little less aggressively to his character than I otherwise might! People make mistakes. They realise it and are sorry. I can forgive that.
But when you do the same thing, over and over, and hurt people, without ever making the effort to look at the fall-out of your actions, that is much harder to forgive.
There were some truly meaningful moments, and some of Alfie's thoughts when he was indulging in bouts of self-loathing were almost poetically expressed:
Every time he looked at her, every time she spoke- want, want, want. He really was a monster, wasn't he? Trailing his lusts across the stage of life the way a snail trailed slime.
OR:
While he shambled on, hollow as ever. Forever wanting something he couldn't have and unable to move on, no matter how hard he tried. He'd learned something during the long years when he'd believed Lily to be dead and loved her anyhow: real love was like a parasite that burrowed so deep into a man's heart that it could not be dug out without killing the host.
Very evocative and almost surreal imagery that gave me a much better idea of the man underneath the consummate seducer. Certainly, the self-loathing is starkly evident.
Summing up, a really well-written book, with unusual and difficult characters so very different from your run-of-the-mill HR. The rake in this one truly is a horrible person, the heroine often stiff and remote. While not always enjoyable, it was an interesting and challenging read.
Well, how to review a book like this? It put me strongly in mind of Cecelia Grant's A Lady Awakened, and that was also a book I wasn't sure I really enjoyed.
It could have been the detached quality of the MCs, whose motivations I felt I never quite got to know.
It could have been the story arc, which included some rather gruesome murders, that seemed a bit random and even unbelievable.
It could have been the repugnant nature of the promiscuous Alfie and his life choices, with his complete disassociation from any consequences his seductions might have had.
It could have been the ambivalent heroine, who took the stiff upper lip to ridiculous extremes in the way she simply put up with the abject misery of her marriage and the horrible family members on both sides. (No doubt, she might have felt there was little she could actually do, but even her emotional response to all this seemed lacking.)
I did warm to the book and Alfie's behaviour did make more sense in the end, but despite the way he finally became aware of the damage he had been doing for years, all because he wallowed in a grief he refused to acknowledge, and was truly remorseful and regretful, I could not excuse him. If he were able to make reparations in some way for any of his callous, disinterested actions, and spent time doing that, then I might reconsider! He was generous and very supportive of people he wanted to help succeed, so in that regard he was very forward thinking. He also loved art and I could appreciate that. But as it was, I never felt he truly deserved happiness. Yes, I guess I am a bit of a meanie!
Sabine, on the other hand, was someone I could respect, even while I initially found her character very cold.
I have read one other in this series, and it happened to be the book where Alfie is first introduced. The Secret Heart. He was awful in that one, and if I do read books two and three, I will probably find him just as repulsive. Perhaps it's a good thing that I have read book 4- it might make me react a little less aggressively to his character than I otherwise might! People make mistakes. They realise it and are sorry. I can forgive that.
But when you do the same thing, over and over, and hurt people, without ever making the effort to look at the fall-out of your actions, that is much harder to forgive.
There were some truly meaningful moments, and some of Alfie's thoughts when he was indulging in bouts of self-loathing were almost poetically expressed:
Every time he looked at her, every time she spoke- want, want, want. He really was a monster, wasn't he? Trailing his lusts across the stage of life the way a snail trailed slime.
OR:
While he shambled on, hollow as ever. Forever wanting something he couldn't have and unable to move on, no matter how hard he tried. He'd learned something during the long years when he'd believed Lily to be dead and loved her anyhow: real love was like a parasite that burrowed so deep into a man's heart that it could not be dug out without killing the host.
Very evocative and almost surreal imagery that gave me a much better idea of the man underneath the consummate seducer. Certainly, the self-loathing is starkly evident.
Summing up, a really well-written book, with unusual and difficult characters so very different from your run-of-the-mill HR. The rake in this one truly is a horrible person, the heroine often stiff and remote. While not always enjoyable, it was an interesting and challenging read.
October 26, 2022
Yay great book! I think my rating is amped up due to the author being new to me and having a very distinctive voice unlike anyone I’ve read.
But the book truly held my interest on the background of many unfinished and dull HR I’ve been reading lately that I sometimes don’t even bother to mark as DNF.
The characters of Sabrina or Alfie are not types anyone would like straight from the beginning. But they are both oh so human in their faults and their preconceptions. Alfie is a true rake and Sabrina is highly strung up lady. Throughout the book they find a way towards each other in the most exiting, adventurous set of circumstances. And not one scene is overly sweetly saccharinated. Their ballon ride and adventure in France is simply pleasure and left me with a smile on my face hours after reading it.
Is it a perfect ideal HR? God, no. The writing is definitely unique and the reality of life might not be for everyone. However I am a fan.
Will read more.
But the book truly held my interest on the background of many unfinished and dull HR I’ve been reading lately that I sometimes don’t even bother to mark as DNF.
The characters of Sabrina or Alfie are not types anyone would like straight from the beginning. But they are both oh so human in their faults and their preconceptions. Alfie is a true rake and Sabrina is highly strung up lady. Throughout the book they find a way towards each other in the most exiting, adventurous set of circumstances. And not one scene is overly sweetly saccharinated. Their ballon ride and adventure in France is simply pleasure and left me with a smile on my face hours after reading it.
Is it a perfect ideal HR? God, no. The writing is definitely unique and the reality of life might not be for everyone. However I am a fan.
Will read more.
September 7, 2016
First, the covers for this series are just so pretty. I love all four of them.
This was my favorite of the series. We get an actual rake, Alfie, who truly is only out for finding his next pleasure. He does not care one whit that the heroine is married. He sees her, he wants her, so he pursues her. The heroine is lovely. I like smart heroines and Sabine is very smart. I love the play, the back and forth between these two.
The path to their happily ever after isn't easy - she's married and he's a rake. It's heart-wrenching and beautifully done.
ARC provided through Netgalley.
This was my favorite of the series. We get an actual rake, Alfie, who truly is only out for finding his next pleasure. He does not care one whit that the heroine is married. He sees her, he wants her, so he pursues her. The heroine is lovely. I like smart heroines and Sabine is very smart. I love the play, the back and forth between these two.
The path to their happily ever after isn't easy - she's married and he's a rake. It's heart-wrenching and beautifully done.
ARC provided through Netgalley.
October 27, 2022
Man, I tried hard! I really did. However, I gave up at 70% and have no intention of going back.
I’ve read other Erin Satie books, and some I have thoroughly enjoyed, but the last two were exhausting. This is a well-loved book according to other reviews, but I find Erin’s writing too ornate and a little excessive. I’m forever wondering what the hell is going on! It’s quite possible that Erin’s writing is simply too clever for my pea-brain, but I lean towards it being too fragmented and rambling.
It also doesn’t help that I did not in any way, shape, or form like the heroine. If I was a better person, I maybe could conceded that she had a shit life and was a product of her environment, but someone once told me “just because your life sucks doesn’t mean you get to be an asshole to everyone all the time.” That has stuck with me for years and I give no room for people to be continually rude, mean, or disrespectful. This heroine wasn’t just rude one time, she was nasty all the time! One example was her criticism of the painters/artwork. She didn't enjoy it so instead of be graceful about it she would voice her distaste for those who did! Very demeaning! She was still being a full-time shit at the 70% mark, and I felt 30% wasn’t enough time for resolution.
The hero was just ok, nothing special. He was a rake, but wanted to change, but then couldn’t help himself. I didn’t understand him. BUT Erin really is an gifted woman because every book she writes she has clearly researched her subjects and that alone deserved stars for commitment!
I’ve read other Erin Satie books, and some I have thoroughly enjoyed, but the last two were exhausting. This is a well-loved book according to other reviews, but I find Erin’s writing too ornate and a little excessive. I’m forever wondering what the hell is going on! It’s quite possible that Erin’s writing is simply too clever for my pea-brain, but I lean towards it being too fragmented and rambling.
It also doesn’t help that I did not in any way, shape, or form like the heroine. If I was a better person, I maybe could conceded that she had a shit life and was a product of her environment, but someone once told me “just because your life sucks doesn’t mean you get to be an asshole to everyone all the time.” That has stuck with me for years and I give no room for people to be continually rude, mean, or disrespectful. This heroine wasn’t just rude one time, she was nasty all the time! One example was her criticism of the painters/artwork. She didn't enjoy it so instead of be graceful about it she would voice her distaste for those who did! Very demeaning! She was still being a full-time shit at the 70% mark, and I felt 30% wasn’t enough time for resolution.
The hero was just ok, nothing special. He was a rake, but wanted to change, but then couldn’t help himself. I didn’t understand him. BUT Erin really is an gifted woman because every book she writes she has clearly researched her subjects and that alone deserved stars for commitment!
September 28, 2016
... an unlikely pairing!
I must admit to really enjoying Young Blood. The interplay between the two leads is fraught and delightful. This has it all. Mystery, romance, a somewhat OCD heroine and a rake who's so much more. Sabine Banchory must control all, in doing so she controls her unhappy life and marriage to a weakling cad. Alfred Lamb, the Earl of Kingston is a rake. He loves and leaves. Yet the unattainable Sabine holds an attraction for him, perhaps the challenge, perhaps something else. Sabine is having nothing to do with him. Years of husband Godfrey has made her immune. I enjoyed the byplay between during the day long games challenge. Godfrey is definitely a 'loose fish.'
But when murder disrupts things events move at a startling pace. Sabine and Alfie find themselves in situations they'd not thought possible.
I now have to find the other novels in the series to catchup.
The title is interesting and as events move along becomes more and more fitting.
A NetGalley ARC
I must admit to really enjoying Young Blood. The interplay between the two leads is fraught and delightful. This has it all. Mystery, romance, a somewhat OCD heroine and a rake who's so much more. Sabine Banchory must control all, in doing so she controls her unhappy life and marriage to a weakling cad. Alfred Lamb, the Earl of Kingston is a rake. He loves and leaves. Yet the unattainable Sabine holds an attraction for him, perhaps the challenge, perhaps something else. Sabine is having nothing to do with him. Years of husband Godfrey has made her immune. I enjoyed the byplay between during the day long games challenge. Godfrey is definitely a 'loose fish.'
But when murder disrupts things events move at a startling pace. Sabine and Alfie find themselves in situations they'd not thought possible.
I now have to find the other novels in the series to catchup.
The title is interesting and as events move along becomes more and more fitting.
A NetGalley ARC
October 8, 2016
When I started reading Young Blood, I didn’t realize it was the fourth book in a series, or I might not have read it. I had a mixed response to this novel, but it was interesting enough that I’m going to try out some of Satie’s earlier books.
The book was certainly well-written, with a rather unique plotline featuring a series of murders of young women tied into the development of the central romance. I liked Alfie, the hero, too. He’s a typical rake in need of redemption, who believes he can’t really love and shouldn’t be loved. I’m a sucker for a repentant rake who falls hard when he falls in love, so that part of the book worked for me, even though I wasn’t familiar with the character’s backstory from the earlier novels in the series.
What didn’t work for me, sadly, was the heroine, Sabine, who I found almost completely unlikeable. I understand that the character has been disappointed by life and has almost no one she can love and trust, including her husband. (Don’t worry, he gets disposed of—there’s no cheating here.) She’s has reasons for being cold and standoffish. Still, that’s no excuse to be rude and dismissive of other people, including people she just met and barely knows. Sabine doesn’t care about art—which fine, not everybody does—but she sneers at people who do, which isn’t fine at all. Late in the book the character starts to redeem herself a bit by becoming more sympathetic to others, but I didn’t understand why Alfie was so drawn to her at the beginning of the story. She comes across as intelligent and strong-willed (and beautiful, of course), but that’s about all that can be said of her.
With the unlikeable heroine, this was only a middling book for me. Still, it was well-written and very much not your typical romance, so I’m going to give Satie’s books another try.
An eARC of this novel was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
The book was certainly well-written, with a rather unique plotline featuring a series of murders of young women tied into the development of the central romance. I liked Alfie, the hero, too. He’s a typical rake in need of redemption, who believes he can’t really love and shouldn’t be loved. I’m a sucker for a repentant rake who falls hard when he falls in love, so that part of the book worked for me, even though I wasn’t familiar with the character’s backstory from the earlier novels in the series.
What didn’t work for me, sadly, was the heroine, Sabine, who I found almost completely unlikeable. I understand that the character has been disappointed by life and has almost no one she can love and trust, including her husband. (Don’t worry, he gets disposed of—there’s no cheating here.) She’s has reasons for being cold and standoffish. Still, that’s no excuse to be rude and dismissive of other people, including people she just met and barely knows. Sabine doesn’t care about art—which fine, not everybody does—but she sneers at people who do, which isn’t fine at all. Late in the book the character starts to redeem herself a bit by becoming more sympathetic to others, but I didn’t understand why Alfie was so drawn to her at the beginning of the story. She comes across as intelligent and strong-willed (and beautiful, of course), but that’s about all that can be said of her.
With the unlikeable heroine, this was only a middling book for me. Still, it was well-written and very much not your typical romance, so I’m going to give Satie’s books another try.
An eARC of this novel was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
February 4, 2018
This is not a perfect book. However, it features perhaps the most realistic rake I have read in romance fiction, and that merits 5 stars. Alfie is not a cuddly-wuddly bunny with a few too many girlfriends. He is bad news. He seduces women, ruins some of their lives and is despised by many. The best part is that he knows he's scum but he rationalizes his wrongdoings to make himself feel better. He is also a nice guy. He helps people in trouble; he can empathize. All the different facets of his personality come together as they do in a real person.
“Do you want to know the true secret to success, for a rake?”
“Go ahead and tell me.”
He held up his index finger. “No pride.” His middle finger. “No standards.” His fourth finger joined the first two, thumb and pinky folded into the center of his palm. “No scruples.”
What some readers might struggle with is the development of the plot and, with it the characters. The second half is unremarkable action-wise. Most of the changes are happening in the characters' heads. There is nothing dramatic about the final declarations. I call it understated, but some might call it anti-climactic.
Sabine is my favorite kind of heroine - smart, capable, moral, and a bit prickly. She adds as much to the enjoyment of the story as does Alfie.
The Young Blood is definitely my favorite historical romance book of the year.
“Do you want to know the true secret to success, for a rake?”
“Go ahead and tell me.”
He held up his index finger. “No pride.” His middle finger. “No standards.” His fourth finger joined the first two, thumb and pinky folded into the center of his palm. “No scruples.”
What some readers might struggle with is the development of the plot and, with it the characters. The second half is unremarkable action-wise. Most of the changes are happening in the characters' heads. There is nothing dramatic about the final declarations. I call it understated, but some might call it anti-climactic.
Sabine is my favorite kind of heroine - smart, capable, moral, and a bit prickly. She adds as much to the enjoyment of the story as does Alfie.
The Young Blood is definitely my favorite historical romance book of the year.
November 3, 2016
I was loving this until the last quarter or so. Interesting characters, fun (if somewhat implausible) adventure, lovely writing.
And then things went to hell. Not too satisfying at all.
And then things went to hell. Not too satisfying at all.
October 7, 2016
The first 2/3 or so was terrific. An actual rake, a terrifically cool and logical heroine, problem-solving, and just enough crazy; I was totally on board.
But where is the rest of the story? The setup was all there, and I was eagerly anticipating the development of the actual relationship - then, boom, they're married and back in England. The End.
I feel like we missed all of the good stuff, where Alfie and Sabine figure out HOW to have an actual relationship, not just THAT they want one. The development up until that point was lovely but very subtle; at the end it feels unfulfilled and I am not convinced they love each other. Disappointing, because I was really on board for this relationship.
But where is the rest of the story? The setup was all there, and I was eagerly anticipating the development of the actual relationship - then, boom, they're married and back in England. The End.
I feel like we missed all of the good stuff, where Alfie and Sabine figure out HOW to have an actual relationship, not just THAT they want one. The development up until that point was lovely but very subtle; at the end it feels unfulfilled and I am not convinced they love each other. Disappointing, because I was really on board for this relationship.
July 16, 2018
Alfie looked up from the bottle of champagne he’d just speared with his corkscrew and gave her a wide, openmouthed smile.
“Your teeth are crooked!”she cried. The smile disappeared.
“You’re vain as a peacock, you know.”
“Peacocks are handsome animals.”
“But very stupid, so I’d avoid imitating them. Alfie, you’re revoltingly handsome—it’s a relief to find something about your appearance that hasn’t been specially designed to make women swoon.”
Alfie scowled down at the champagne.
“It’s not that bad,”she added, belatedly. “Hardly noticeable.”
“Your teeth are crooked!”she cried. The smile disappeared.
“You’re vain as a peacock, you know.”
“Peacocks are handsome animals.”
“But very stupid, so I’d avoid imitating them. Alfie, you’re revoltingly handsome—it’s a relief to find something about your appearance that hasn’t been specially designed to make women swoon.”
Alfie scowled down at the champagne.
“It’s not that bad,”she added, belatedly. “Hardly noticeable.”
October 4, 2016
If you love Cecilia Grant, you'll like this. I apparently have a thing for starchy heroines and the rakes who appreciate them. Nice blend of banter/angst - made the fairly preposterous plot worth it!
November 19, 2020
3.5 stars, actually. Some interesting bits about a house party scavenger hunt, a short murder mystery, and a hot air balloon trip, but mostly its about the rake of the series, Alfie, and how he falls in love. The falling in love part was....so-so. The steamy bits not as exciting as in prior books. Sabine was a hard sell for me as a character so didn't enjoy her combined utter cluelessness with her supposed practical logistical strengths.
November 9, 2016
This title completes Satie's No Better Angels' series by coming full circle to a character we met in the first book, Alfie, the Earl of Kingston. Alfie, an art connoisseur, sensualist, and seducer of women, is still grieving for his mother and sister who had died in a fire. He meets his complete opposite, Lady Sabine Banchory, who is practical and disciplined, but unhappily married. The action starts early in the book with the unmasking of a serial killer, a chase across England, escape to France, and ending with a meeting with the characters from the other books in the series. To me the protagonists in this book did not have the emotional/psychological conflicts that were the hallmarks of the other books in the series; worst of all was the ending--too pat, too boring, too rushed.
January 31, 2019
This reminded me a lot of Black Silk by Judith Ivory, which may be a good thing or a bad thing. It was refreshing to see that Kingston was depicted as a true rake and not a fake one, but I didn't really believe his redemption arc. I wanted to like Sabine, but she started out as an extremely capable character to one that seemed a bit reckless. I couldn't quite get into the changes in character and the romance felt very rushed to me as a result. I also thought the plot like with Sabine's husband Banchory seemed very far-fetched given how difficult it was to find any moments of privacy at those big house parties. But, the writing grabbed my attention and kept me up late to finish reading.
December 22, 2016
This book is one the best books I read all year. It's basically my favorite kind of historical romance wrapped around amazing characters and vivid writing. And there's hot air balloon travel. And possibly the best scavenger hunt party that has ever been imagined. Actually the more I think about it, the more I want to read it all over again.
SO GOOD YOU GUYS.
The heroine makes a windmill out of vegetables, because she's just that committed to winning the scavenger hunt. That's pretty much everything you need to know about the book, right?
SO GOOD YOU GUYS.
The heroine makes a windmill out of vegetables, because she's just that committed to winning the scavenger hunt. That's pretty much everything you need to know about the book, right?
July 26, 2021
Exhausting and Intelligent
Cynicism and grief rule the two main characters in this novel and it is exhausting. However, the author makes getting to know them and what causes them to connect makes for a real page turner.
Alfred/Alfie is crippled by grief and guilt so he approaches the world in a very transactional way as a love’em-and-leave’em rake who leaves a trail of sexual and romantic destruction in his wake and has, therefore, amassed a truly horrid reputation. Despite his title and wealth, most marriage-minded mama’s make sure their darling daughters skirt a wide berth around him.
Sabine is a marriage-hardened cynic married to a spoiled, self-centered man who trades on her beauty and connections to further his own interests and wastrel ways. There is no love lost between the two of them and Sabine’s chosen coping mechanism is control. What she can’t control in her marriage—her husband—she controls in her personal life with haughtiness, acerbic observations, and manipulation. She can run mental rings around her not-too-bright spouse, but he still controls the purse strings and pretty much every aspect of her life. Because she still has very tenuous ties to her uncle who is a Duke, her relationship with her husband is also very much transactional. Her husband needs her to further his interests.
The hardened rake and the standoffish, cynical wife are often-used period romance novel tropes. In the hands of Erin Satie, the author, they are fully realized, often not likable characters whose coming together is anything but a certainty. How Ms. Satie brings them together in this book is a unique and unexpected plot element.
Bottom line, I found this book intelligent and believable as well as frustrating and wearying at times. Despite that, I heartily recommend this book.
Cynicism and grief rule the two main characters in this novel and it is exhausting. However, the author makes getting to know them and what causes them to connect makes for a real page turner.
Alfred/Alfie is crippled by grief and guilt so he approaches the world in a very transactional way as a love’em-and-leave’em rake who leaves a trail of sexual and romantic destruction in his wake and has, therefore, amassed a truly horrid reputation. Despite his title and wealth, most marriage-minded mama’s make sure their darling daughters skirt a wide berth around him.
Sabine is a marriage-hardened cynic married to a spoiled, self-centered man who trades on her beauty and connections to further his own interests and wastrel ways. There is no love lost between the two of them and Sabine’s chosen coping mechanism is control. What she can’t control in her marriage—her husband—she controls in her personal life with haughtiness, acerbic observations, and manipulation. She can run mental rings around her not-too-bright spouse, but he still controls the purse strings and pretty much every aspect of her life. Because she still has very tenuous ties to her uncle who is a Duke, her relationship with her husband is also very much transactional. Her husband needs her to further his interests.
The hardened rake and the standoffish, cynical wife are often-used period romance novel tropes. In the hands of Erin Satie, the author, they are fully realized, often not likable characters whose coming together is anything but a certainty. How Ms. Satie brings them together in this book is a unique and unexpected plot element.
Bottom line, I found this book intelligent and believable as well as frustrating and wearying at times. Despite that, I heartily recommend this book.
June 10, 2023
This is my second book by this author, after the lighter-hearted but equally gorgeous Book of Love. I am truly blown away by her talent. Her characters are complex, and, to some, harder to “like” than the average Historical Romance Heroes (actually, scratch that—the heroines are more complex. Because let’s be honest, the stereotypical Romance Heroes include the callous rake who’s betrayed women and abandoned children in the past, and the cruel-because-he’s-emotionally stunted-by-a-tortured-past alpha male. The only reason this series’ complex, dark characters are striking to anyone is because the females are also brusque and hardhearted, or calculating and mercenary, instead of plucky or gentle ingenues.) But for someone like me, who is more interested in reading about realistic, complicated people falling in love—the kind of love that confounds them and transforms them—than in one-note “likeability” this was an engaging, satisfying read.
Satie’s characters are unique, and beautifully drawn.
And her prose is lovely. I look forward to continuing this series, and I wish she had been able to keep writing in this genre. I gather from her website she could not afford to keep going. I hope buying her books helps!
Fans of Meredith Duran, Liz Carlyle, and Sherry Thomas should appreciate this book.
Satie’s characters are unique, and beautifully drawn.
And her prose is lovely. I look forward to continuing this series, and I wish she had been able to keep writing in this genre. I gather from her website she could not afford to keep going. I hope buying her books helps!
Fans of Meredith Duran, Liz Carlyle, and Sherry Thomas should appreciate this book.
March 24, 2024
4.5 stars
I stand corrected. Just when I thought I would finish this series and write it off as an interesting but not very successful experiment, along came this little gem. The first book was unpleasant but intriguing, the second book was unpleasant AND baffling, the third book merely bland.
This last one, however, featured fully explored characters, an engrossing—and briefly horrifying—plot with twists and turns and a rather magical hot air balloon ride, and a love story that saves the life of one character and fulfills the life of another. The ending dragged a bit and felt anticlimactic, but did pull all the characters from the four novels together.
While the series as a whole wasn’t my cup of tea—primarily because of unpleasant people living joyless existences—the writing was lovely through out. From this book:
She could picture him as a schoolmaster. He’d keep his charges effortlessly in hand without ever raising his voice. They’d mock him initially—he dressed like a fop and had that odd way of walking, as though he were a stalking cat; and like a cat earnestly stalking a bit of string, he often seemed ridiculous—but they’d worship him by the end, and fear him a little, too.
I stand corrected. Just when I thought I would finish this series and write it off as an interesting but not very successful experiment, along came this little gem. The first book was unpleasant but intriguing, the second book was unpleasant AND baffling, the third book merely bland.
This last one, however, featured fully explored characters, an engrossing—and briefly horrifying—plot with twists and turns and a rather magical hot air balloon ride, and a love story that saves the life of one character and fulfills the life of another. The ending dragged a bit and felt anticlimactic, but did pull all the characters from the four novels together.
While the series as a whole wasn’t my cup of tea—primarily because of unpleasant people living joyless existences—the writing was lovely through out. From this book:
She could picture him as a schoolmaster. He’d keep his charges effortlessly in hand without ever raising his voice. They’d mock him initially—he dressed like a fop and had that odd way of walking, as though he were a stalking cat; and like a cat earnestly stalking a bit of string, he often seemed ridiculous—but they’d worship him by the end, and fear him a little, too.
October 30, 2021
Erin Satie is one of the very few historical romance writers I'm still reading. I love her fresh characters and plots and the way her settings are always richly imagined, with details that make them come alive. That said, this one was not as successful with me as others have been. Mainly, I felt that the plot got away from her, and became a bit OTT. The setup was great, but then boom! The story changes and we're just running from one place to another. And the characters' process of falling in love didn't completely work for me. There are a bit too many sudden changes that felt like they came out of nowhere.
So, a B- for me, which makes it 3* here on goodreads. It's probably more of a 3.5*, I guess.
So, a B- for me, which makes it 3* here on goodreads. It's probably more of a 3.5*, I guess.
June 3, 2021
The first 2/3 of it alone puts it clear into the ranks of into those 'greats' (think Black Silk), but then it just tapers off. Perhaps Erin Satie isn't as into angst, big reveals, great misunderstandings as I am (we all know that's been done to death) but how I wish there was much more at the end... but I can't really think of what it should be.
November 22, 2024
I put this one up there with Carolyn Jewel’s SCANDAL as two of my favorite *Reformed Rake* romances. Lovely.
February 10, 2017
Too often I find I don't write up reviews for books that I really enjoyed but were not life-alteringly fabulous, as it's sometimes hard to articulate more than, "ooooh, yeah." But well, oooooh, yeah, Satie's getting added to my list of Trusted Romance Authors. (Am not an autobuy sort of gal, but these are the authors I would not hesitate to pick up. Other authors on the list: Courtney Milan, Cecilia Grant, Anna Cowan, KJ Charles. Close but not quite on the list are Sherry Thomas and Loretta Chase. Just to show you what I'm working with.)
Anyway. I digress. I like Satie's writing. I like the unusual predicaments she puts her characters in; I like the genuine problems she puts in the way of her heroes and heroines, especially that these problems don't default to One Of Them Is Wrong.
I like that all of her protagonists are a little off-plumb, from themselves or from society, and falling in love doesn't change or pretend to fix that. I especially like that several of her heroines are bad with emotions and/or people in believable ways but that are also not problems to be fixed. Yes, there is a bit of wish fulfillment in how nicely things turn out for everyone (i.e. everyone's happy endings are a bit less complicated than those in Cecilia Grant's books), and especially the last bit of this book is particularly end-of-series storybook, but, spoiler, that's kinda why I read romances. I like nice things happening to people I've been rooting for throughout an entire book/series.
Do things occasionally get a little histrionic? Sure! Do people have sex in unusual and probably improbable locales? Absolutely! Do the villains twirl moustaches like a boss? The bossest! Do deuses ever machina? Machtastically! But there's enough meat on these bones to make them a really satisfying read.
I do find that the titles don't stick with me; The Secret Heart is The One With Boxing And Dancing; The Lover's Knot is The One With Printing and Misunderstandings; The Orphan Pearl is The One With International Intrigue, and this one is The One With The Rake And Mutual Emotional Constipation. Alternatively, I think of them by the trope they dissect/reimagine: #1 is The Fortune Hunter Redeemed; #2 is Childhood Sweethearts Separated By A Big Misunderstanding; #3 is A Slightly More Realistic Good English Girl Ends Up In A Harem But Comes Back; and #4 is A Rake Redeemed. Daaaaang but I love a good play-on-trope.)
Anyway. I digress. I like Satie's writing. I like the unusual predicaments she puts her characters in; I like the genuine problems she puts in the way of her heroes and heroines, especially that these problems don't default to One Of Them Is Wrong.
I like that all of her protagonists are a little off-plumb, from themselves or from society, and falling in love doesn't change or pretend to fix that. I especially like that several of her heroines are bad with emotions and/or people in believable ways but that are also not problems to be fixed. Yes, there is a bit of wish fulfillment in how nicely things turn out for everyone (i.e. everyone's happy endings are a bit less complicated than those in Cecilia Grant's books), and especially the last bit of this book is particularly end-of-series storybook, but, spoiler, that's kinda why I read romances. I like nice things happening to people I've been rooting for throughout an entire book/series.
Do things occasionally get a little histrionic? Sure! Do people have sex in unusual and probably improbable locales? Absolutely! Do the villains twirl moustaches like a boss? The bossest! Do deuses ever machina? Machtastically! But there's enough meat on these bones to make them a really satisfying read.
I do find that the titles don't stick with me; The Secret Heart is The One With Boxing And Dancing; The Lover's Knot is The One With Printing and Misunderstandings; The Orphan Pearl is The One With International Intrigue, and this one is The One With The Rake And Mutual Emotional Constipation. Alternatively, I think of them by the trope they dissect/reimagine: #1 is The Fortune Hunter Redeemed; #2 is Childhood Sweethearts Separated By A Big Misunderstanding; #3 is A Slightly More Realistic Good English Girl Ends Up In A Harem But Comes Back; and #4 is A Rake Redeemed. Daaaaang but I love a good play-on-trope.)
September 23, 2021
I cannot believe that I have not written a review for this book until now. I'm pretty sure that this is my favorite of the books I've read this year. I cannot praise this book enough.
If we reduce this to tropes, this is a rake redemption, forced proximity, and enemies to lovers romance. So often in historical novels, we're told that the hero is a rake but authors rarely engage with what that fully means. There's a level of seediness, selfishness, cruelty, and nihilism missing in many romance novel rakes. Erin Satie fully incorporates these elements into Alfie over the course of the 4 books in the series. At the core of his behavior is a deep loneliness that he tries to alleviate through sex. He ties his self worth to sex and ultimately cannot emotionally satisfy any of his partners. So he stops trying and inhabits the role of a seducer fulfilling whatever his target desires.
Sabine, in contrast is highly pragmatic, snarky, and protects herself by keeping a low profile presence. She's the MVP of the group project who takes it super seriously. She doesn't know how to half-ass it. Her priority is taking care of her aunt through manipulating her husband. It's dangerous and her husband seems to be on his way to physically abusing her in addition to the emotional abuse.
Sabine and Alfie together force each other to confront the stagnant parts of their lives. Sabine has a deep sense of personal ethics that Alfie is drawn to, while his rejection of petty societal rules clarifies what really matters to Sabine. Her sense of honor keeps her near Alfie when she fears for his life even though it means dealing with unwanted attraction. Alfie has such deep respect for Sabine, that it motivates him to not disappoint her. She treats him like a worthy person and he stands by her with support no matter what.
I've seen people complain about the uneventful last quarter of the book. I thought it was absolutely perfect. The changes in Sabine and Alfie come to a head and they communicate that to each other. After the life threatening conflict in the beginning, I was glad to see that there wasn't any petty drama at the end. It takes strength to be honest with yourself and another person. I was touched to see Satie give those moments the spotlight they deserve. I have reread everything after Alfie confesses his love so many many times.
If we reduce this to tropes, this is a rake redemption, forced proximity, and enemies to lovers romance. So often in historical novels, we're told that the hero is a rake but authors rarely engage with what that fully means. There's a level of seediness, selfishness, cruelty, and nihilism missing in many romance novel rakes. Erin Satie fully incorporates these elements into Alfie over the course of the 4 books in the series. At the core of his behavior is a deep loneliness that he tries to alleviate through sex. He ties his self worth to sex and ultimately cannot emotionally satisfy any of his partners. So he stops trying and inhabits the role of a seducer fulfilling whatever his target desires.
Sabine, in contrast is highly pragmatic, snarky, and protects herself by keeping a low profile presence. She's the MVP of the group project who takes it super seriously. She doesn't know how to half-ass it. Her priority is taking care of her aunt through manipulating her husband. It's dangerous and her husband seems to be on his way to physically abusing her in addition to the emotional abuse.
Sabine and Alfie together force each other to confront the stagnant parts of their lives. Sabine has a deep sense of personal ethics that Alfie is drawn to, while his rejection of petty societal rules clarifies what really matters to Sabine. Her sense of honor keeps her near Alfie when she fears for his life even though it means dealing with unwanted attraction. Alfie has such deep respect for Sabine, that it motivates him to not disappoint her. She treats him like a worthy person and he stands by her with support no matter what.
I've seen people complain about the uneventful last quarter of the book. I thought it was absolutely perfect. The changes in Sabine and Alfie come to a head and they communicate that to each other. After the life threatening conflict in the beginning, I was glad to see that there wasn't any petty drama at the end. It takes strength to be honest with yourself and another person. I was touched to see Satie give those moments the spotlight they deserve. I have reread everything after Alfie confesses his love so many many times.
October 10, 2016
Rake Redeemed
What a wonderful outcome for Alfie. A damaged human being we saw in previous books who felt unworthy of inspiring love in someone else but so very able to exploit the needs and wants of others to engage in meaningless sexual encounters. Lovely to see him fall hard for the buttoned up and apparently unobtainable Sabine Banchory . Just lovely and a scandal/ mystery as well!
What a wonderful outcome for Alfie. A damaged human being we saw in previous books who felt unworthy of inspiring love in someone else but so very able to exploit the needs and wants of others to engage in meaningless sexual encounters. Lovely to see him fall hard for the buttoned up and apparently unobtainable Sabine Banchory . Just lovely and a scandal/ mystery as well!
October 10, 2016
Good story...will have to re-read the end bit as when the author included all the previous characters I got a bit confused.
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