The Perfect Rake

3.5 - 4 stars?
I really liked that the MMC did not call the FMC ugly, plain and stupid over and over. He was smitten pretty much right away. Like, low fucking bar I KNOW but some of these histroms really think they are doing something when characters constantly call the others ugly until they bang and then SUDDENLY the person is not longer ugly but ugly and fucked.

Anyway. There were some really dark themes in here - child abuse, sa of underage person, trauma from abuse, gaslighting, robbery, etc. but I swear I laughed so often - there were some truly hilarious parts. I loved Prudence and her schemes that just would not go right.

Prudence Merridew and her four sisters (all named for virtues) are prisoners of their abusive grandfather who beats them for imagined faults and makes their young lives miserable. When he falls down the stairs in one of his rages, Prudence seizes the opportunity to take her sisters to town and help them find true love and marriage which will bring them into their inheritance.

Prudence is the plain one in a group of beauties, so her great-uncle Oswald refuses to let her sisters come out before Prudence is happily married off so as not to spoil her chances. But Prudence is already engaged to a young man who went to India to seek his fortune - though she hasn't heard from him in months - and time is of the essence. So Prudence fabricates a show more betrothal to the hermit Duke of Dinstable, then mistakes his younger cousin - the notorious rake Gideon, Lord Carradice- for him.

Gideon hasn't had this much fun in years. Where all others are entranced by her sisters' beauty, Gideon only has eyes for Prudence. He finds her utterly irresistible and is quite enchanted by her continued efforts to free him from any obligation to marry her - no matter the damage to her reputation.

A lovely story, heartfelt and funny, about true love and the beauty that comes with it. Gideon truly is the most perfect rake. He's funny, flippant and charming and enjoys nothing more than teasing his Miss Imp, with the most serious and apologetic looks of course. He was just the sort of hero the serious Prudence needed, and he's wonderful to read about. I would have up and married him myself. The love scenes - from kisses to the more intimate - are beautifully handled. I positively tingled while reading them.

Deeply emotional, uproariously funny, and well worth owning. I don't know if I have ever read a better romance. show less

This is a charming book! Witty and yet tender at the same time, plot devices that would usually bother me are made fresh and interesting. The characters are warm and alive, and the reader finds herself truly caring what happens to them. Prudence's honor and loyalty, set against Gideon's past of dishonor and licentiousness is a fascinating paradox. Despite the differences in their character, though, they are a wonderful pair - a real complement to each other. They fall in love with each other slowly enough that it is realistic, and the misunderstandings and conversations they have at the beginning were enough to make me laugh out loud. Truly charming!

Plain/not conventionally attractive heroine? Check. Abuse/trauma storyline? Big check. Endearing second romance? Check. I loved this one. (4.5 stars)

Stands up to the test of time! I laughed out loud repeatedly. While there is not quite enough insecurity on the heroine's part to land this on the angst shelf (largely due to the hero's obvious devotion), I love this story!

3.5 rounded up to 4 stars. I really enjoyed how the hero was just absolutely convinced that the heroine was gorgeous even when no one else seemed to think so. It made me smile. And it was fun when others could tell he was a goner over her long before he realized it himself. I also liked how the heroine was capable and looked after her sisters. There were also lots of smaller things that were nice. How the hero handled the jewels, how he won over her little sister, that he didn't judge the heroine over her past, or leap on her at the first opportunity. The 'other man' and villain drama could have been more nuanced, but I was still entertained.

1st read: June 2021
2nd read: March 2023

This book is super sweet and I love it, but it has some annoying parts.

Gideon is really funny in the first half of the book and he's really sweet in the second half. Prudence is awesome, but she hasa lot to deal with throughout the book and has some insecurities.

Prudence's family bugs me a lot of the time. They mention a few times in the beginning that Prudence is "plain" and that no one will want her if they meet her sisters because they are so beautiful. (Gideon thinks that Prudence is gorgeous and that everyone who calls your "plain" is an idiot).

The fact that Prudence is "betrothed" when she kisses Gideon is bit problematic (but Philip is horrible, so it's not that big of a deal).

Gideon only show more has eyes for Prudence from the moment that he meets her, but his "Rake-ish" past isn't great.

And there's a scene when Gideon is holding Prudence and she tells him to let her go, but he keeps holding her until she hits him.

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Original review:
The Perfect Rake is really good! The plot had a lot going on and was interesting throughout. The main characters, Gideon and Prudence, are great.

Gideon is funny, sweet, and very in love with Prudence. He's tried to live a shallow life, but realizes that he wants more with Prudence. Prudence is strong for those that she cares for, but she's insecure. She falls in love with Gideon, but worries that she is misinterpreting his intentions. She also has some things from her past to deal with.

There were a couple things that I didn't like about The Perfect Rake. Some of the writing didn't flow well for me, but the plot and the dialogue were great, so it worked out fine. I also didn't love some of the secondary characters, but maybe they get better in later books. show less

I even stayed up late multiple nights in a row to finish reading this story. I found the pace nice and the premise engaging. I am not normally a fan of romance novels as I find them too mushy and cutesy, but this one had a sense of humor about it that I really enjoyed. The story was a bit predictable, but not bad and was very engaging. The heroine was very independent and snarky and the main romance was full of comedic situations with a smattering of seriousness that made it seem fairly realistic for the genre. It was a book that was absorbing and fast to read.