“Rich with subplot, historical detail and beautifully descriptive writing that keeps the pages turning until the delightfully unconventional happy ending.”—NPRAn Indie Next/LibraryReads pick!An Apple Must Listen Audiobook for September!A lady must have money and an army of her own if she is to win a revolution—but first, she must pit her wits against the wiles of an irresistible rogue bent on … irresistible rogue bent on wrecking her plans…and her heart.
Lady Lucie is fuming. She and her band of Oxford suffragists have finally scraped together enough capital to control one of London’s major publishing houses, with one purpose: to use it in a coup against Parliament. But who could have predicted that the one person standing between her and success is her old nemesis and London’s undisputed lord of sin, Lord Ballentine? Or that he would be willing to hand over the reins for an outrageous price—a night in her bed.
Lucie tempts Tristan like no other woman, burning him up with her fierceness and determination every time they clash. But as their battle of wills and words fans the flames of long-smoldering devotion, the silver-tongued seducer runs the risk of becoming caught in his own snare.
As Lucie tries to out-maneuver Tristan in the boardroom and the bedchamber, she soon discovers there’s truth in what the poets say: all is fair in love and war…
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Miss Dunmore is a literary force to be reckoned with. She’s single handedly forging a new historical romance era and I am here. For. It.
An independent heroine who is as intelligent as she is feisty meets her match in an irresistibly wicked hero. A Rogue of One’s Own is everything I wanted it to be and more. Evie Dunmore has delivered another winner that is smart, fierce, and satisfyingly romantic.
I simply cannot say enough wonderful things about this historical romance that charmed me and made me swoon. The writing is top notch, the romance is beautiful, and I laughed out loud with some scenes. I can’t wait until the next in the series and consider myself SO lucky to have scored an ARC!
4.5 STARS!
“I do not wish women to have power over men, but over themselves.” – Mary Wollstonecraft
Evie Dunmore has once again bewitched my heart with her writing! A Rogue of One’s Own was passionate, heartfelt, and truly empowering. It had just the right amount of longing and angst that I crave in romance!
Lady Lucinda “Lucie” Tedbury has known Tristian since they were in their teens. She is irritated by his mere presence but she can’t help feel attracted to the carrot-head (her words not mine). Everyone thinks of her as a spinster and a shrew but she’s a free thinker, and someone who wants to give women a voice in a world dominated by men.
Tristian enjoys watching her squirm… Anything to provoke a reaction. Lord Tristian Ballestine was instantly smitten with the girl riding a horse and he would never forget the time she slapped him. Presently, they’re older. Tristian is a veteran and a known rake and rogue. His main goal is to get away from his father’s control, and Tristian will stop at nothing to gain his financial freedom. In doing so, he becomes co-owner of the publishing house Lucie has been fighting for.
Their back and forth banter was a definite highlight in this novel and had me giddy like a kid in a candy store! You can practically feel Lucie’s attraction through the pages but she fights it every step of the way. Not only was the chemistry between Tristian and Lucie palpable but I loved being front and center of the formidable suffragist movement. It was an empowering time in history to say the least. I was also swept away by the beautiful country sides and the rich details of that time period; really makes me wish I could experience that era just once.
A Rogue of One’s Own is just the story you want to read if you’re a fan of historical romance. It has the love story, but because of the issues this novel covers it can easily be classified as women’s fiction, too.
Once I reached the end of this book I just knew which character would get the spotlight next and I’m so excited for her story to unfold!!
*I received a complimentary copy of this book from Berkley through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.*
A modern romance in a Victorian dress, sans the corset.
Evie Dunmore is a phenomenon!… Breathtaking, high stakes romance, with one of the loveliest endings I’ve read in years.
A Rogue of One’s Own
A League of Extraordinary Women Series #2
Evie Dunmore
https://www.facebook.com/EvieDunmoreAuthor/
Release date 09/01/2020
Publisher Berkley
Blurb
A lady must have money and an army of her own if she is to win a revolution—but first, she must pit her wits against the wiles of an irresistible rogue bent on wrecking her plans…and her heart.
Lady Lucie is fuming. She and her band of Oxford suffragists have finally scraped together enough capital to control one of London’s major publishing houses, with one purpose: to use it in a coup against Parliament. But who could have predicted that the one person standing between her and success is her old nemesis and London’s undisputed lord of sin, Lord Ballentine? Or that he would be willing to hand over the reins for an outrageous price—a night in her bed.
Lucie tempts Tristan like no other woman, burning him up with her fierceness and determination every time they clash. But as their battle of wills and words fans the flames of long-smoldering devotion, the silver-tongued seducer runs the risk of becoming caught in his own snare.
As Lucie tries to out-maneuver Tristan in the boardroom and the bedchamber, she soon discovers there’s truth in what the poets say: all is fair in love and war…
My review :
With each one having its own special goal to reach, do they have room for an affair …
During the early half of my reading I was unsure of my feelings about this second book. I liked Tristan but had more reservations about Lucie.
She is not an easy person to love, she is brash, impertinent, jaded and quite bitter. Then slowly like someone peeling an oignon, layer after layer she is explained, dissected under Mrs Dunmore’s inked scalpel. Each side of her character is explained and makes sense. She is a warrior, a fighter, the soldier battling an enemy’s army with the sole purpose of winning, not for herself but on behalf of a cause she deems right. She takes no prisoners but is as harsh with herself.
While Tristan is presented in a brighter light at first until his flaws are displayed along the storyline, what some of his personality’s traits were endearing him in everyone’s eyes, in fact they also enhanced his faults and failings. He is an engaging and charming character but his carelessness at time hurt many people.
Sure his lasting infatuation for Lucie showcases him as a victim, wrongly faulted by her ire, and in some way, he was her fall guy, the public image of everything she loathed in a man. And even if he never caused her true harm until he is, he also hurt others because he is someone who enjoys then discards.
Mrs Dunmore narrates a wondrous and wholesome tale of two very different persons, each with its own agenda but who meet halfway. Until it is not enough. But trust must be earned, and when it is challenged, can forgiveness be won.
5 stars
I was granted an advance copy by the publisher Berkley, Here is my true and unbiased opinion.
https://www.facebook.com/429830134272830/posts/689244861664688/
Evie Dunmore’s debut novel Bringing Down the Duke was the perfect blend of romance, history, and extraordinary women. I wouldn’t have thought it possible, but A Rogue of One’s Own lifts that banner even higher, with a whip-smart suffragette heroine and a charming scoundrel of a leading man, this fresh take on historical romance is definitely one of my favorite reads of the year!
Continue to love and enjoy this smart series of books by the talented Evie Dunmore So smart and sexy, too!
A ROGUE OF ONE’S OWN is the second in Evie Dunmore’s outstanding series, A League of Extraordinary Women. (If you haven’t read her debut, treat yourself and buy both books.)
Set in Oxford and London during the suffragette era, this novel is rich with Victorian color and filled with savvy women, including Lady Lucy, who are scheming to amend the Married Property Act.
Fierce, smart, driven, and opinionated, Lucie has given up everything—including her family—for the Cause. She’s far too busy rescuing women and fighting for their rights to care about frivolous pursuits such as fashion, flirting, or her old nemesis, Lord Ballantine (Tristan).
Tristan, the second son of a cruel earl, has returned from war in Afghanistan with a diamond ear stud and the Victoria Cross for bravery. The epitome of male beauty, he appears to be devoting himself to hedonism, which is exactly what Lucie would expect from the boy who once tormented her. Unbeknown to Lucie, however, the infamous rake always found her fascinating and bewitching. He’s also a successful poet who cares little for society’s opinions. In many respects, they’re both outcasts—he just hides it better.
Everything changes when Tristan unexpectedly becomes heir to the earldom. His father demands Tristan change his ways, marry, and ensure the line of succession. Tristan devices a counter plan … only to have it complicated by Lucie. They both need ownership of a London publishing house—for very different reasons—but end up as partners. Sparks and banter fly, until Tristan proposes a sinful solution, which Lucie accepts.
Lucie is my favorite kind of romantic heroine: a spunky woman who takes no prisoners. Tristan is my favorite kind of romantic hero: damaged to the core. The result is a beautifully-written historical romp. Meeting Oscar Wilde was a bonus, and I especially enjoyed the subplot about Tristan’s mother (and the implication that she suffered from bipolar disorder).
I finished A ROGUE OF ONE’S OWN in a single day—rare for me—and want more of Lucie and Tristan!
There are few things I love more than a committed rogue… and better yet, his delicious comeuppance at the hands of the only woman who could ever possibly tame him! What a marvelous ride!
Evie Dunmore’s second book in The League of Extraordinary Women is great fun as well as being informative about the way these young trail blazing women of the 1880s lived. She’s taken as her setting the first women accepted into Oxford University, young women with a natural inclination for seeing women’s rights advanced. Mix that with romance and you have a potent situation for conflict and passion…
Lady Lucie is disowned by her family because of her political activities, which they consider a disgrace to the aristocratic name. Tristan, Lord Ballentine, is a contemporary son of family friends who’s been a thorn in her side since childhood. When she discovers he’s her new partner in a magazine she’s intent on buying and turning into a vehicle for “the cause” the stage is set for a showdown, because Tristan intends to look after his investment. He doesn’t want the readership decimated by radical politics.
Evie handles the balance of personal ambition, romantic attraction, and idealogical values beautifully, never letting the history overwhelm the fun, but integrating a lot of fascinating fact into the story along the way.
It’s a great follow up to the first in the series. Bringing Down The Duke, Evie talks about what drew her to the suffragist period for her romance in the book Joys of Binge Reading podcast. A Rogue of One’s Own is excellent entertainment, as well as being highly informative. Five stars!!!
I was so excited for the second installment in this series and it did not disappoint! Evie Dunmore creates complex and real characters in a fictional world that seems very real. The book is easy to read and although it takes place in the 1800s many themes and issues women face are still relatable to today’s society. Can’t wait for Portrait of a Scotsman.
I think I loved this one even more than the first.
Fantastic read!
This is the second book of the series (there are different main characters, so they don’t have to be read in order), and while I loved the first book, I might like this one even more. Lucie and Tristan are fantastic characters, multi-layered, more than they seem on the surface.
Their HEA seemed impossible, so of course, I devoured the pages to see how they’d managed it. However, besides the romance, learning more (because I read the first book and it takes place in the same time period within the same group of suffragists) about the strict rules of society during this time and also their fight for rights (not even equal rights, just rights to there own property!)
I highly recommend this book. The romance and history are weaved together expertly.
Originally it felt slower pacing than Bringing Down The Duke, but Tristian absolutely stole my heart towards the end. This book has stayed in my mind since I read it.
When I started reading A Rouge of Ones Own I wasn’t sure I if would like it or not. Bringing Down the Duke drew me in instantly but this book was more of a slow burn. The character of Tristan is introduced in the previous novel and I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to see past his portrayal in the previous book and beginning of A Rouge of Ones Own. The book takes it’s time building the relationship between Tristan and Lucie but is it ever worth the wait. I also enjoyed how the story focused on the friendship between Lucie and Annabelle. While Annabelle and Lucie are both passionate about Women’s rights they each have their own ways of addressing the Cause. Lastly, this book has quite possibly one of the all-time best endings I’ve ever read.
I love that the female characters in Evie Dunmore’s books are not simpering, ninnies who are only out to catch a husband. The main characters have modern opinions and actions but not to the point of impossibility. The author is able to strike a balance between the period in which the stories take place and the time in which we currently live. In many romantic novels the love scenes only serve to sensationalize the reader but add nothing to the story. This is not the case in either of Evie Dunmore’s novels. She takes the time to develop the character’s and their stories instead of just throwing them into bed at the first opportunity.
I can’t wait to read Hattie’s story in Portrait of a Scotsman and I hope after that we will get Catriona’s story followed by a new series of characters.
Evie Dunmore is a new-to-me author but I already predict a future of great reads. She writes strong, unique heroines. I love that.
The narration really turned me off, which is very subjective, but I couldn’t listen enough to ignore it. I had higher expectations for the story.