Title: The Earl I Ruined
(Secret of Charlotte Street #2)
Author: Scarlett Peckham
Date of publication: 11 Dec 2018
Genre: Historical Romance
Author's links:
My rating: 2.5 Stars
Blurb
She’s beautiful, rich, and reckless…
When Lady Constance Stonewell accidentally ruins the Earl of Apthorp’s entire future with her gossip column, she does what any honorable young lady must: offer her hand in marriage. Or, at the very least, stage a whirlwind fake engagement to repair his reputation. Never mind that it means spending a month with the dullest man in England. Or the fact that he disapproves of everything she holds dear.
He’s supposedly the most boring politician in the House of Lords...
Julian Haywood, the Earl of Apthorp, is on the cusp of finally proving himself to be the man he’s always wanted to be when his future is destroyed in a single afternoon. When the woman he’s secretly in love confesses she’s at fault, it isn’t just his life that is shattered: it’s his heart.
They have a month to clear his name and convince society they are madly in love…
But when Constance discovers her faux-intended is decidedly more than meets the eye—not to mention adept at shocking forms of wickedness—she finds herself falling for him.
There’s only one problem: he can’t forgive her for breaking his heart.
Review
This is the second book in the series but can be read as a standalone. I requested an ARC following the glowing praise for the debut book of Ms Peckham and first in the series, The Duke I Tempted.
I expected a diverse historical with interesting characters, exploring the emotional and physical connection between them but I got a messy, superficial story that left me disappointed.
I know female readers of romance often come as much more unforgiving of the heroine than of the heroes and while I try hard not to be that kind of reader, i really, really disliked the heroine here. My problem is not that she started as spoilt, well-meaning but careless, oblivious to her privilege. She is really young and acted in an attempt to help other women, protecting them from men who could use/abuse them. My problem is that I didn't really see her grow into a better person through the story. I don't feel she became a more sympathetic and understating person. Yes, there is some journey exploring her sexuality and desires which I liked though I think it could have used more depth and detail.
I didn't get a good reading of the hero either. He was presenting as strict and adhering to laws and conventions, while he was completely different on the inside. He acted so to protect himself and those he cared for. Yet, we didn't see much of his real self, moments when he was himself were few and far between and left me wanting more. For most of the story, both MCs kept their pretense even when they were together making the whole story feel more like a comedy comedy of manners of sorts. The plot relied too much of gossip, pretense and disguise. I wanted more honest and open discussions between the MCs, exploring their desires.
I had other issues with the plot as well, it was overcrowded, there was too much going on with side character and their stories, much of it not adding adding significant. I felt there was not enough depth and detail. The hero's past as a dom for hire, his whole secret life in the illegal sex club was vaguely alluded too, we never got to see him (or both of them) there. It was just something in the background while it was central to the character's personality.
In short, the story had the potential to be something new and refreshing but instead it felt messy, superficial and not as good as expected it to be.
