USA Today bestselling author Julie Anne Long continues her Palace of Rogues series with a brand-new romance about an ambitious American and a headstrong British heiress.
He’s the battle-hardened son of a bastard, raised in the wilds of New York. She’s the sheltered, blue-blooded darling of the London broadsheets, destined to marry a duke. Their worlds could only collide in a boardinghouse by the London docks…and when they do, the sparks would ignite all of England.
Nothing can stop Hugh Cassidy’s drive to build an American empire…unless it’s his new nemesis, the arrogant, beautiful, too-clever-by-half Lady Lillias Vaughn. The fascination is mutual. The temptation is merciless. And the inevitable indiscretion? Soul-searing—and the ruination of them both. Hugh’s proposal salvages Lillias’ honor but kills their dreams for their futures…until they arrive at a plan that could honorably set them free.
But unraveling their entanglement inadvertently uncovers enthralling truths: about Lillias’ wounded, tender heart and fierce spirit. About Hugh’s stunning gentleness, depth, and courage. Soon, Hugh knows that as surely as he’d fight a thousand battles to win her…the best way to love Lillias means breaking his own heart.
Review:
Every time I read a Julie Anne Long book it’s like discovering the magic of reading again after being trapped on a bookless desert island for decades. I honestly forget in between just how much her books make me feel. I am not exaggerating when I say that I sobbed while reading this one–the last 12% or so was one long sob fest (at least they were happy sobs at the very end–and she somehow made me laugh through my tears during the last bit of it, too!) I can’t even begin to tell you how glad I was I was reading that entire portion from the solitude of my room, because I was not fit for public places at that point.
The dog may have been mildly concerned, but he bounced back nicely once I managed to collect myself.
I’m Only Wicked with You is a lovely (mild) antagonists-to-lovers, close proximity story featuring a hero and heroine who are fairly certain they know what they want their futures to be, though one of them has already (beautifully, as befits a heroine) despaired of ever achieving hers. Either way, they’re both 100 percent certain that those futures are headed in opposite trajectories no matter how maddeningly drawn they may be to each other. Surely it’s only a passing…infatuation?
Ha. We know better, don’t we? As will they…eventually. 😉
Though the sparks between Lillias and Hugh positively light up the book, it’s really all of the relationships here, romantic and otherwise, that make the story brilliant. Lillias’s relationship with her family feels delightful and true, as does Hugh’s love for his. Once again the motley little family of the Grand Palace on the Thames proved to be one of my favorite found families in existence–yes, even Mr. Delacorte with his bag of dodgy potions and potent backside.
I love that even when the characters are doing the exact opposite of what any reasonable reader would want them to, Ms Long is able to make us believe that *they* believe they’re doing the only thing that they possibly can…and eventually she also manages to get them to do exactly what they need to in a way that feels just as genuine. Even if it makes me cry.
Especially when it makes me cry.
I’m Only Wicked with You is the third book in Ms Long’s The Palace of Rogues series, and though technically it *could* be read as a standalone, why would you do that to yourself? The entire series–dare I say all of Ms Long’s books?–should be read and savored.
Rating: 5 stars / A+
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.