Wahh- such a cute story and ending!
I absolutely adored Evie! She's just so charming and endearing. As for Sebastian, he didn't quite win me over entirely, but his flaws made him feel more real and added depth to his character, even if they did irk me at times.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book and am eager to delve into more of Kleypas's work. ( )

May 2023 partial re-read, downgraded to three stars: errr, this did not hold up - for me - on reread. I borrowed the audiobook from the library to listen to something while I worked on home projects and 1. the narrator really doesn't work for me. St Vincent's voice kept reminding me of how Toni Collette voiced Bryce, the antagonist of season 3 of The United States of Tara. . . iykyk because ICK! HISS! hate him! and 2. wow LK writes sex work/ers terribly. I got about 45% thru before I decided to move on with my life; there are other Sebastians to read about.

original 4 star (lol cringe) review: Anyway, St. Vincent is hot. ( )

Eve is nice, but the MC is kinda generic. She doesn't have almost any agency in this book and I was expecting more from her. Overall I think it's a nice read, so perfectly valid for a cozy afternoon, just not the best in this saga. ( )

I think the reason this book is a "classic romance" is because it features the trope of a man so lost that only the right woman saves him, and readers want to believe they're that woman. I'll admit, I was one of those people getting swept up in the story. I relished in St. Vincent's and Evie's growth as more confident individuals. This book really fleshed out their characters, and their romance truly brought redemption for everyone. It almost made me forget about the horrible things St. Vincent did in the previous novel. Almost but not quite, and that's why I gave this book 4/5. Deep down, he is capable of some dastardly things that not even the perfect woman could sweep under the rug. ( )

I absolutely bloody loved this – emotional growth, foot warmers, back massages… this is my love language! �

Devil in Winter is the book I first came across in this series, and its one of the most highly rated books in the historical romance genre, plus it focuses on Evie – the only true Wallflower in the group – so I was super excited to get stuck into this one. I had also really enjoyed St Vincent in It Happened One Autumn until he took his bewildering turn into pantomime villainy (what were you thinking Kleypas?).

I enjoy this so bloody much that I have read it twice in 3 months. Partly because crammed it into my brain within 48 hours the first time around, and then sped onto the final book, and consequently my memory was a little faded by the time I came to write the review up and really wanted to make sure I did Sebastian justice. You can read a fuller review full review on on my blog.

I am not a person that re-reads books unless it has been about a decade and I’ve entirely forgotten it. So, if I do reread something in a short time after finishing it that means I really loved it (also see [book:Bunny|42815544]!), and this I equally loved on my second read-through.

Plot Summary
This one is a real departure from the previous two books which I have to say felt very welcome, as I was getting very fatigued by the forced kisses and ‘bullish’ men after two books. It picks up right from the final scene of the previous book, as Evie proposed to St Vincent that they get married. They are both desperate – she needs the protection marriage will offer her from her abusive family, and he needs the money she’ll inherit when her father dies. It is an insane plan – after he kidnapped and threatened to rape her friend – but she has no other options.

I would say that most of the plot remains comfortably predictable as a romance, but it does go little nuts towards the end. I am now recognising a familiar formula to these books where at least one of the lovers (but ideally both, at different times) will face some form of mortal peril that the other will sacrifice to rescue them from. In this one, we have a disturbed assassin.. and it is rather clumsily written! But, let’s be honest.. we are all here for Sebastian St Vincent!

Characters
Evangeline Jenner
Evie is the real wallflower of the group, the only genuine wallflower that will hesitate to get involved due to her own anxieties and insecurities rather than social circumstances (though she has those against her too). I would go as far as to say that she is even a wallflower within the book series, as she has up until now gotten by far the least amount of scene time in comparison to the others.

She makes a nice change of pace for me as a quieter character that takes more care and consideration before she acts. This does not mean she is a pushover, she has her own strength but it’s just not as overt (or loud about it) as Lillian or Annabelle.

Evie grew up in a life of neglect, cruelty and outright abuse and now has a reasonable fear that if they once her family force her to marry her cousin they will murder her for the money she will inherit when her wealthy, dying father finally passes away. The desperation and lack of any other options make her bold enough to take a crazy risk, which also buys her freedom for the first time.

I really enjoyed seeing Evie have some excitement, and ultimately find her strength. I could empathise with many of her anxieties, especially the ones that surface later in the book after things finally start to go well for them both.

I can get on top of my anxieties if I am in a one-on-one situation with someone, especially somebody I felt comfortable with and supported by but as soon as you get me into any kind of group social setting it can all unravel. It is these vulnerabilities that make me love Evie so much as a character, she feels real to me – much more than Annabelle, Lillian or even Dasiy.

Sebastian St Vincent
Oh, man. Sebastian.

As much as I had enjoyed his introduction in the previous book, the way he ended things in that book does make the start of this one something of a struggle to get on board with. I will never understand why Kleypas went as far with him as she did. I also think she could have written the start of this one to more clearly communicate how wracked with guilt and shame he is over his actions. We only get a very short mention before he is thrust into the romantic lead. There is also an exchange with Evie where we are meant to believe that he wouldn’t have really raped Lillian, he was just a desperate threat… so what, are we meant to believe that if Westcliff hasn’t found her he’d have not forced her into marriage, and let her go?

‘Go on, then,’ she challenged coolly. ‘Force me.’ She saw the flicker of surprise in his eyes. His throat worked, but he remained silent. And then … she understood. ‘You can’t,’ she said in wonder. ‘You would never have raped Lillian. You were only bluffing. You could never force a woman.’ A faint smile rose to her lips. ‘She was never in a moment’s danger, was she? You’re not nearly the villain you pretend to be.’

This is all a real shame because otherwise, once you can put that mess out of your mind (which if you can, I urge you to just put it down to ill-judged writing!), Sebastian St Vincent is an absolute delight. Be still my heart!

He’s acerbic and funny, but also demonstrates a quiet depth of kindness and care that outstrips either Westcliff or Simon Hunt. These are things that he does very early on that seem to come from an innate desire to make her comfortable, as well as self-restraint, which is at odds with his outward persona of a thoughtless hedonistic rake. Over time the gap between the things that he says and his actions starts to close, as he reconciles that he might not be as bad as the reputation that he wears like a cloak.

I loved how both he and Evie come to get strength from each other, once they let down their walls and allow themselves to rely on another person’s support, for the first time in both their lives. Both characters have real, meaningful growth that is actually based on an emotional connection and that makes this easily the most romantic book of the series.

Evie knew perhaps better than anyone what it was like to live in desperate solitude … yearning for connection, for completeness. And she understood, too, the depths that his loneliness had driven him to.

Writing
I love all the little romantic subtleties in this book as affection grows between the pair, Kleypas is a master at this. I am not one to my blown over by grand romantic gestures – I don’t trust them – I need the small, everyday actions that show me you care. This book is full of those, which is what makes it such a soft and romantic read for me.

Of course, we do again have some horrendous writing of dialogue for the lower class, I guess cockney, characters by an American author but at this point, I find it part of the “charm!�

‘You’re not so tangled in the gob as you were,’

And this …

‘’E gave it all to you, the damned bastard – ’e only wanted an ugly little tangle-tongue, when I was ’is son. ’Is son, an’ I was ’id away like a filthy chamber pot.’ His face contorted. ‘I did whotever ’e asked … I’d of killed to please ’im … but it never mattered. It was allus you ’e wanted, you bleedin’ parasite!’

And of course

Not a word. Or I’ll slit you open from neck to muff.

Beautiful.

Themes
I discuss themes more in my full review on my blog.
- Again, working people are better than lazy posh people
- Women have no choices
- Don’t judge a book by its cover, as both main characters break out of the boxes society, and their friends, have placed them in.
- Acts of Service are HOT

Recommendation: All The Hearts 5/5!
The best one in the series, and if you can overlook the events of Book 2 there is so much to be enjoyed in both St Vincent and Evie. I mean, this is a romance book and I wrote this long review of it with way too many quotes… (I think I have 47 kindle highlights!)… It is worth reading! If you are already a romance genre fan I am sure that you have already read it – but if you’re like me, and sometimes dip in and out, give it a go. If you liked the Julia Quinn Bridgerton books (especially Romancing Mr Bridgerton, the best one – obviously) you will love this. ( )