Bouncing the Bustle

Victorians Unlaced #1

by Maryanne Ross

Lilwen Jones bounces her bustle down the stairs—she is finally free! But her father has gambled away her plant nursery, her sole livelihood. She has one chance to save her fortunes and her dreams: to seek the legendary white waratah in Australia's wild southern island of Tasmania.

Sawyer Thane is a wildlife hunter, explorer, and a man with secrets. He organizes a luxurious ship journey to remember. He plans their expedition to the last detail. He doesn't lose his temper—not totally—when lovely Lilwen insists on her own way. And he absolutely won't fall for a contrary, plant-loving witch in trousers, as he is not the marrying kind.

As Lilwen and Sawyer scour the wilderness for the elusive plant, rules are optional, danger mounts, and their scorching attraction threatens to set the entire forest ablaze.

344 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 15, 2021

About the author

Maryanne Ross is totally addicted to reading. She adores writing historical romance laced with adventure, sparkle and spice, featuring active heroines and flawed heroes who eventually get their happy ending.
Maryanne has a science degree in horticulture, and many of her stories are set in wild landscapes.
Victorians Unlaced series: Pitching the Petticoat, Crushing the Corset and Bouncing the Bustle.
Visit the Wild West with Wylder Opal, and enjoy a contemporary rom-com How (Not) to Make a Grandchild.
Her multiple awards for short crime and romance stories include Romance Writers Australia, Southern Cross Literary, Thunderbolt Crime and Sisters in Crime.
She works as a public relations consultant for a major Aboriginal organization, and prior to that indulged her love of nature while working as a communications advisor with National Parks.

Reviews

[Neeha]

‘Bouncing the Bustle’ was an immense pleasure to read. The storytelling, characters and vivid descriptions are really captivating. Both Lilwen and Sawyer have their flaws and make mistakes, but with every slip-up, they learn and make amends, which brings them closer to their happy ending. Lilwen is lively, bold, and adventurous with a heart of an explorer; it was delightful to see her breaking free and creating a life for herself on her terms. At the start, Sawyer was charming yet domineering towards Lilwen and her plans. But it was satisfying to see him learn how to meet her halfway and conquer his own set of problems. 

Though predominantly a romance, it also heavily focused on the societal change, its constraints, dangers and struggles women faced in Victorian times, which is artfully woven into the story. While I liked the pacing of the first half of the book and thought it was gripping, the second half was relatively slower, with certain themes recurring often. All in all, I loved this story and look forward to reading more of Maryanne Ross’s work.

I received an ARC from Reedsy in exchange for my honest review.
Full Review originally posted on Reedsy

[KES]

Yes - read it.

Good story, interesting characters, and a subplot made me cry but I'm a wimp.

One of the biggest attractions for read this was that it wasn't set in the US or UK. I love when it's set someplace new. The setting of Australia & Tasmania certainly didn't disappoint.

The story didn't follow a predictable sequence of events. Maybe this was the setting or the author being from down under but it was a very refreshing change!

I received an ARC from Netgalley to help me prepare my honest review.

[Nurul Hani]

I received a free copy via Netgalley and voluntarily leaving an honest review.

Lilwen Jones is taking care of her late father's nursery but dreams to be a plant collector and enjoy freedom by traveling to different places. Unfortunately, she has to pay her father's debts to be able to do what she wants. The money lender's son, Sawyer Thane is a hunter that hunts animal to be put in a zoo. Their first encounter is very funny and thrilling. Soon, Lilwen and Sawyer travel to Tamasnia to search for white waratah and Tamasnian tiger.

I like Lilwen's personality. She's outgoing and a feminist, even though it's a bit irritating when she rejects some of Sawyer's advances. It is still tolerable since she doesn't want to feel trapped by marriage. It would be great to know more about the relationship between Lilwen and her father. That way, we could understand why Lilwen dislike him so much. Nevertheless, Lilwen and Sawyer are very cute together.

Overall, I enjoyed it. I would definitely recommend this to my friends.

[Moony (Captain Mischief) MeowPoff]

I did not care much for the characters and felt they had this very boring and meh interactions, it was no chemistry, no heat... nothing. Wich was a shame, because the premise sounded interesting.

I got this eARC from Netgalley

[Dee Deacon Foster]

Wow! A fantastic story to begin this journey with a new-to-me author. I love the way Lilwen Jones takes charge of her life and the way she upends Sawyer Thane's life ... oh my. Now off to buy the second book in the series!

[Alanna]

They say you should never judge a book by it’s cover, but you should never judge a book by it’s title either. Free-spirited Lilwen races off on an adventure to find a rare plant in order to help save her nursery from a debt collector. In order to protect his investment, the money lender sends his son along to keep an eye on her. Both strong willed and prone to assuming things about the other, Lilwen and Sawyer clash, but also have fiery passion for each other. This adventure takes you to the wilderness of Tasmania where Sawyer and Lilwen have many adventures together. This is very well written with a lot of adventure in it and a little spice. It is definitely one you should read if you like historical romance.

This book was given to me as part of an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Sophie Reads Stories]

I received a free ARC, for an unbiased review.

Bouncing the Bustle by Maryanne Ross took me on a wild ride with so many turns that I did not see coming, but that I ultimately thoroughly enjoyed!


The story revolves around Lilwen Jones, a single, young, female business owner and passionate botanist, in a time when such a thing was still very frowned upon, and Sawyer Thane, a wildlife hunter, adventurer and not-what-he-seems protector and guide to Lilwen. 


This is most definitely a slow-slow-burn love story with the author taking her time to show how and why the characters find each other. The flirty banter between Lilwen and Sawyer start immediately when they meet each other - Sawyer describes an orchid in Chapter 3 in such an erotic way that he was definitely trying to seduce her - but the path of love never did run smooth, and despite their immediate attraction and understanding of each other, these two just seem to keep misunderstanding and misjudging each other until the (almost) end. 


The two embark on a trip to wild, untamed Tasmania seeking the legendary white waratah. Along the way Lilwen meets interesting locals such as the matchmaking, and less concerned about propriety, Dolly and her husband Rory Fraser; Edna Heathorn, who makes Lilwen realise that her dreams of being a plant hunter can be fulfilled; the River brothers, with their fountain of knowledge regarding indigenous bush medicine and Dolly's sister Sinead Kelly, a nun running an orphanage in Hanoi who teaches Lilwen that freedom can be found in places other deem restrictive. 


Lilwen's adventures (and a LOT of misadventures) in Tasmania teach her, not only what her physical and mental strengths are, but also what kind of New Woman she wants to become, and on what terms. It also teaches Sawyer that strength often lies in times of vulnerability, and that he can be both a strong AND supportive partner. 


This was my first book set in Australia, and specifically Tasmania, and I absolutely loved how the island was almost another character in both the love story, and the main characters' character development. The pieces of bush medicine and Tasmanian slang that the River brothers taught Lilwen, the way that the landscape and flora were described - it made me feel like I was right there with Lilwen, and Sawyer and it made for a richer reading experience. As a person living in a country with a colonial history and background, I also appreciated the sensitivity and respect that the author showed the land, the local inhabitants and the indigenous knowledge and customs. 


I really enjoyed the book and would recommend it!


 Spice level:  🌶🌶
Heat: 🔥🔥🔥
Orchid description: 🔥🔥🔥🔥

[Elizabeth Connor]

Another amazing book from Maryann Ross. After reading Crushing the Corset (and loving it), I was thrilled when the author offered me an ecopy of this book. I think I may have even liked it more than the last one. The writing is just as good, but there was something about the setting of this one that was so immersive and so beautiful. Truly, I never would have imagined falling in love with Tasmania, but it was described with such loving detail I couldn’t help myself. Prepare yourself. I’m about to go into way too much detail, gushing about how much I loved this story.

Lilwen Jones, a plant nursery owner, and Sawyer Thane, a wildlife expert who hunts endangered species (generally, to save those who are injured), meet under unusual circumstances. Lilwen is observing a tiger in a cage and when she takes a step back, Sawyer is there behind her. From that point on, his movements are often referred to as tiger-like. He’s untamed, an apex predator, and he decides that Lilwen is the catch he wants more than any other. She will be the most difficult prey he has ever encountered.

Lilwen recently lost her controlling, miserly father and is determined to never again be controlled by a man. “Men, even a lovely one, just meant compromise, duty, and a narrowing of one’s horizons.” She doesn’t want anyone telling her what to do. But she can’t shake her attraction to Sawyer. She tenaciously hangs onto her dream to explore and find an elusive flower in Tasmania to bring to her nursery in Australia, and through events better described through the story, Sawyer joins her on her journey.

Lilwen spends a good portion of her time trying to lose Sawyer because he is domineering and bossy. He is constantly tracking her down, and repeatedly saving her from harrowing mishaps. She begins to realize that when she’s with him, she feels both free and safe—until he opens his mouth and says something bossy again. He struggles within himself because he wants her more than anything but he thinks his lifestyle won’t allow him to marry her. She proves to be as much of an adventure-lover as he is, and when he realizes he does want to marry her, she refuses. Repeatedly. Sawyer needs to figure out how to convince Lilwen that she won’t give up her independence if she marries him. She needs to figure out that marrying him doesn’t mean giving up herself.

An early exchange between Sawyer and Lilwen is a window into their general banter. Sawyer tells Lilwen. “There is very little difference between ‘shrewd’ and ‘shrew,’ you know.” The next time she contacts him it’s through a short note reading: “As little difference between ‘friend’ and fiend.’”

They need to take a boat from Melbourne to get to Tasmania. Sawyer takes Lilwen on deck to the front point of the vessel. “They huddled together as sheets of spray and rain drove horizontally into the night, the wind a high-pitched banshee scream. Enormous glass waves reared and crashed on the ship, which rocked and shuddered against the strain. Lightning flashed. Lilwen yelped and laughed. Every part of her sang and roared in the wild storm. She wanted to leap off the boat and fling herself into its center, to be whirled and smashed and suffocated. She was the storm.” Sawyer observes her delight and eventually convinces her they need to warm up. He walks her back to her room and insists she take a bath to warm up. Then, he waits in the next room imagining her. “Tantalizing images of her rising from that perfumed bath, clad only in smooth, slippery froth sliding from her body in lacy trickles, tormented him.”

Lilwen makes a new friend on the ship, Dolly. Dolly invites her to accompany her and her husband back to their home in Strahan, a remote part of the southwest of Tasmania. Dolly assures her that she can search for her elusive flower there. On the train ride, they pass a mining town and Lilwen comments on how bare and rough these towns look. “Like horrid cold sores on the skin of the earth,” Dolly answered crisply. “Don’t make eye contact with any of the men that board the train.” What a wonderful simile!

The interactions between Sawyer and Lilwen are heavy with emotion and carnal attraction. Sawyer addresses her: “‘Lilwen.’ Her name was the shape of wanting in his mouth. The sound of need.” Later, he observes her and thinks, “She was a creature of color in a monochrome landscape…” There are so many wonderfully poetic descriptions. “Sawyer spoke, and his voice was the ripple of thunder in the distance, the heavy drone of a bee replete with nectar, the crash of an ocean wave in the wild sea.”

Lilwen is adamant that she will not submit to anyone’s control and is angry with Sawyer because she thought he was different. “...Orders, orders, orders, morning, noon, and night. Don’t break the mold, don’t let your behavior stray. Stay in the corset, wear your long skirts to ensure you trip instead of stride. Stay in rooms, like a decoration, don’t run and breathe the free air, don’t have ideas, or dreams, or desires!”

Lilwen’s first experience traveling through the wilderness is described like this. “It was like traveling through a poem, as each emotion, each individual experience, each moment was pure, perfect, and sublime. Tears of wonder and happiness dampened her cheeks.”

She’s emotional and passionate and lives life to the fullest. She wears her heart on her sleeve, cries when she hurts, and doesn’t hold back her feelings. And she drives Sawyer crazy because he can never seem to predict how she’ll react. He approaches her hesitantly. “Don’t kill me.” “You kill me every day. It would be nothing but what you deserve.” And he laughs. She brings out the best in him, something he didn’t think he had.

During a particularly stressful time for Lilwen, “It went on for years. She moved like a snail, a sloth, a congealing drop of blood from a wound.” And shortly after that, a description of her trying to find her way through the dark is intense. “In the dark, her sense of self blurred; she lost her edges between skin and night. Always, people built protective shapes around them: houses, gardens, fences, walls, even tents and campfires, caves. The frantic urge hammered in the old part of her brain: hold back the dark, hold away the wild things. Instead, she walked right amongst them.” When she finally finds a safe place, “sleep reached out sticky hands and pulled her down into mindless oblivion.”

I feel like I could go on and on, listing the various parts of the book that spoke to me, or impressed me, or made me see something in a new way. Or made me feel something new. I have many more sections highlighted in my own copy. I’m just so very impressed with anyone who can produce a lengthy book chock-ful of poetry. No, it’s not like Shakespeare; it doesn’t conform to the rules of iambic pentameter and the need to rhyme. This is ethereal and utterly magnificent. It offers something esoteric and so rare. It’s filled with passionate, vivid descriptions and so much emotion. It’s a story with characters and a place that will stay with me for a long time.

[Anna]

Very Disappointed.
I was very disappointed with this book. It looked very interesting and the plot seemed intriguing. From the very beginning, I was confused. I had to read the sample from the description to see if I was missing something. From the first page, the book is filled with the idea of sex. The two main characters, Lilwen and Sawyer bump into each other. Immediately the sexual tension was a little much. I was a bit disturbed by Sawyer. he was very predatory and was watching Lilwen from afar. It was creepy. I understand this is a romance but in my opinion, this was borderline erotica. From grinding on each other to the constant talk of each other bodies, it never stopped. More romance than an actual story. This makes me very sad because I really liked the idea of the plot.

[Lee]

This is an era and setting that really excited me, but unfortunately I could not get into the story at all. The writing was purple in places, and the conflcit felt contrived. Some moments of lustiness between characters was good, but it was not enough to sustain the story.

[Dee]

I received this ARC copy of Bouncing the Bustle for review.
What a lovely story line and characters, Marryanne doesn't disappointment with her story telling.
Brought back wonderful memories to me of living in the wilds of Tasmania, so almost felt like I was there.
Great read.
Dee Quinn

[Maryanne]

Hope you all enjoy!