Book Review: The Earl and The Reluctant Lady by Robyn DeHart

Title: The Earl and the Reluctant Lady

Author: Robyn DeHart

Series: Lords of Vice #3

Genre: Historical Romance

Publisher: Entangled Publishing

Pub Date: November 12th 2018

Pages: 249 

My Copy: Courtesy of NetGalley and Entangled Publishing

Book Summary:

Rakish playboy, Fletcher Banks, Earl of Wakefield has wanted Agnes Watkins since the first time he saw her. But her older brother is his direct supervisor and makes it very clear that Agnes is off limits. Fletcher does his best to forget her and instead focuses on his spying assignments that have him seducing women for needed information. 

But when Agnes corners him at a ball and proclaims she’s going to reform his scoundrel ways, Fletcher knows he can ignore her no longer. Initially he considers this an opportunity to rid himself of his fascination with her. But the more time he spends with her, the more he realizes that what he feels for her isn’t a passing infatuation, but real love. He uses her goal as an excuse to pursue her full throttle despite warning glances from her brother. But can he convince her that he’s mended his scandalous ways?

Book Review:

A fun historical romance that makes you smile from start to finish. Agnes Watkins and Fletcher Banks are two people who are so different from one another, yet they find themselves exploring an attraction that neither of them expected.

Agnes has decided that she doesn’t want to have a husband because she has seen terrible things that happen to people who decide to get married. Her parents marriage is a sham since her mother is always sleeping around and having affairs. So she thinks people can’t be faithful and then her brother, Christopher got engaged and the woman he was engaged to cancelled it and left his brother heart broken. Fletcher Banks is a man who seduces women to get information because of his job for the government. His boss is Christopher Banks, Agnes brother. So at a party these two meet. Fletcher is smitten with this women who he sees and knows she is the woman for him. Things are going to get complicated for him as he is warned by her brother to stay away from her or he will regret it. So he does for a period of three years.

We are then fast forwarded three years later, which is a good amount of time and Agnes still has not married. Also Agnes is part of a group of women called the Ladies of Virtue and they fight crime in a different way because they are women. This is important because these ladies also have become friends to Agnes and give each other advice to do so. Then Agnes finds out that she has a stalker who very much wants her to be his and hence begins something she is not used to. Also Fletcher sees her again and realizes that he only wants this woman he has desired for so long. So then Agnes finds herself doing something she never thought possible and they find themselves pursuing a relationship and agree to fake courtship to lure out her stalker.

This book took some very interesting directions and twists. I like the fact that Agnes and Fletcher decide to publicly court one another, but Agnes knows its a fake courtship to draw out her attacker/stalker. She feels like he is a rake and will never reform. Fletcher knows that he will be able to protect her and do whatever is necessary to make her fall in love with him. He knows that she is in danger. What happens is a real relationship develops and I like that this happens in a way. Plus we get to see some of the other things that are happening around Agnes mostly. Her admirer gets even more bolder and does some pretty weird and terrifying things.

At a party things get more intense as an old lover of Fletchers comes on to him and he tries to turn the woman away and she is very determined. The lady lays a kiss on him and Agnes sees this, but gets very jealous and tries not to  show it, but you can tell she is. She tells herself that this is not real and he is being a typical man. Yet, Fletcher tells Agnes later about what happened and that he is not interested in this woman. The only woman he is interested is in her. This makes Agnes see Fletcher in a new light.

Things escalate as we learn who is the admirer and it’s someone that we didn’t see coming. It is one of her mothers former lover who realizes that her mother was just a cheap imitation and that she is the only one for him after a party and finds that she needs to find a way out of this situation and then Fletcher comes to her rescue. Plus both Agnes and Fletcher realize that there will never be anyone else for them. 

I like the book because these were two characters who had to fight for the things that they wanted and needed. I really enjoyed reading this book and hope to read more books in this series. 

Rating:

4.5 Hearts