cheerfullrain's review against another edition
5.0
This is probably my favorite romance of all time because it showcases love in a non-traditional way. If you like long declarations of love, this book won’t be for you. It paints love as something that’s quantifiable through logic and action and it makes my little demiromantic heart go pitter pat. The dialogue is also fantastically witty which scores it a ton of points in my opinion.
tsenko2's review against another edition
4.0
Funny quotes about Don Quixote and Les Miserable slipped into an enjoyable historical romance.
Lovely analogy of marriage to Euler’s infinity symbol.
“But that would mean it was originally a sideways number eight. That makes no sense at all. Unless..." She paused as understanding dawned. "You think it was the symbol for infinity?"
"Yes, but not the usual one. A special variant. Do you see how one line doesn't fully connect in the middle? That's Euler's infinity symbol. Absolutus infinitus."
"How is it different from the usual one?"
"Back in the eighteenth century, there were certain mathematical calculations no one could perform because they involved series of infinite numbers. The problem with infinity, of course, is that you can't come up with a final answer when the numbers keep increasing forever. But a mathematician named Leonhard Euler found a way to treat infinity as if it were a finite number- and that allowed him to do things in mathematical analysis that had never been done before." Tom inclined his head toward the date stone. "My guess is whoever chiseled that symbol was a mathematician or scientist."
"If it were my date stone," Cassandra said dryly, "I'd prefer the entwined hearts. At least I would understand what it means."
"No, this is much better than hearts," Tom exclaimed, his expression more earnest than any she'd seen from him before. "Linking their names with Euler's infinity symbol means..." He paused, considering how best to explain it. "The two of them formed a complete unit... a togetherness... that contained infinity. Their marriage had a beginning and end, but every day of it was filled with forever. It's a beautiful concept." He paused before adding awkwardly, "Mathematically speaking.”
― Lisa Kleypas, Chasing Cassandra
Lovely analogy of marriage to Euler’s infinity symbol.
“But that would mean it was originally a sideways number eight. That makes no sense at all. Unless..." She paused as understanding dawned. "You think it was the symbol for infinity?"
"Yes, but not the usual one. A special variant. Do you see how one line doesn't fully connect in the middle? That's Euler's infinity symbol. Absolutus infinitus."
"How is it different from the usual one?"
"Back in the eighteenth century, there were certain mathematical calculations no one could perform because they involved series of infinite numbers. The problem with infinity, of course, is that you can't come up with a final answer when the numbers keep increasing forever. But a mathematician named Leonhard Euler found a way to treat infinity as if it were a finite number- and that allowed him to do things in mathematical analysis that had never been done before." Tom inclined his head toward the date stone. "My guess is whoever chiseled that symbol was a mathematician or scientist."
"If it were my date stone," Cassandra said dryly, "I'd prefer the entwined hearts. At least I would understand what it means."
"No, this is much better than hearts," Tom exclaimed, his expression more earnest than any she'd seen from him before. "Linking their names with Euler's infinity symbol means..." He paused, considering how best to explain it. "The two of them formed a complete unit... a togetherness... that contained infinity. Their marriage had a beginning and end, but every day of it was filled with forever. It's a beautiful concept." He paused before adding awkwardly, "Mathematically speaking.”
― Lisa Kleypas, Chasing Cassandra
smuttymcbookface's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I found, in the past, I've been uncomfortable with the way Lisa Kleypas writes men as being beyond reason when placed close to a woman they desire. Very much the epitome of "boys will be boys".
So, you can imagine how overjoyed I am to have Kleypas' intelligent and witty writing, a grouchy MMC, and a FMC who does most of the initiating.
I enjoyed reading about Tom, with his neurodivergent personality, and his black and white view of the world. I think Kleypas did a brilliant job of showing who he is, and why it wasn't callousness or cruelty that led his past actions. It's always enjoyable to read about critical and thought-out main characters suddenly losing their ability to reason, and I found this book no different.
Cassandra was sweet, but a little too Mary Sue for my liking. She was willing to be patient for Tom, overlooked so much cruelty in the other characters, and dealt with Tom's rejection in her stride.
I liked how they resolved their differences through the marital contract, and how it showed both characters understanding the trust required from a marriage by knowing it wasn't enforceable. I thought it was a brilliant way to voice Tom's understanding of what was expected, balancing his lack of understanding of his emotional state with his hope for Cassandra and himself.
Overall, I really did enjoy this book, and didn't find their time to be tedious or drawn out.
So, you can imagine how overjoyed I am to have Kleypas' intelligent and witty writing, a grouchy MMC, and a FMC who does most of the initiating.
I enjoyed reading about Tom, with his neurodivergent personality, and his black and white view of the world. I think Kleypas did a brilliant job of showing who he is, and why it wasn't callousness or cruelty that led his past actions. It's always enjoyable to read about critical and thought-out main characters suddenly losing their ability to reason, and I found this book no different.
Cassandra was sweet, but a little too Mary Sue for my liking. She was willing to be patient for Tom, overlooked so much cruelty in the other characters, and dealt with Tom's rejection in her stride.
Overall, I really did enjoy this book, and didn't find their time to be tedious or drawn out.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual harassment, Fatphobia, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Classism
wildwolverine's review against another edition
3.0
The final installment of the Ravenels series is a most unusual romance. While the hero Tom falls madly in lust with Cassandra on sight, the two actually take several months before ending up together. This is because Tom truly doesn't believe he's capable of loving, so the book spends an inordinate amount of time on him as he learns to grow a heart, only switching to Cassandra when the reader needs something swoon-worthy. That said, it's an understated, slow burn of a romance.
The conflicts presented in this book aren't nearly as dramatic as its predecessors, but it's also a lot more real. While Tom learns to explore and accept his emotions, Cassandra deals with a misogynistic society that treats her more harshly than her entrepreneur sister Pandora. While Pandora was aware of what would happen to her wealth and status when she married, no one treated her different for it, at least nobody noteworthy. Her twin experiences a very different and a much more realistic Season as men objectify and manipulate her by giving her what she thinks she wants (flowers equating as romance), which helps her to reject the society she thought she wanted for true love.
As sweet and mature as the book is, it's a little too understated. I won't lie: since I'm writing this review several months after reading the book, I had to skim through it to even remember what it was about. Now that I've done so, I recall its merits, as well as its faults. It's not groundbreaking, but it's still fun.
The conflicts presented in this book aren't nearly as dramatic as its predecessors, but it's also a lot more real. While Tom learns to explore and accept his emotions, Cassandra deals with a misogynistic society that treats her more harshly than her entrepreneur sister Pandora. While Pandora was aware of what would happen to her wealth and status when she married, no one treated her different for it, at least nobody noteworthy. Her twin experiences a very different and a much more realistic Season as men objectify and manipulate her by giving her what she thinks she wants (flowers equating as romance), which helps her to reject the society she thought she wanted for true love.
As sweet and mature as the book is, it's a little too understated. I won't lie: since I'm writing this review several months after reading the book, I had to skim through it to even remember what it was about. Now that I've done so, I recall its merits, as well as its faults. It's not groundbreaking, but it's still fun.
mollymemes's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Very cute. Took a while to get started but fun once it did.
sri_savita's review against another edition
5.0
“Troubled are they who want the world, troubled are they who have it.”
Maybe if he read enough novels about the problems of fictional people, he might find some clue about how to solve his own.
"I want a few minutes of infinity with you."
Okay, here I am, again, to say, no surprise, Severin and Cassandra are ALSO my favorites. This book definitely had more of that fairytale feel that I loved in Pandora and Gabriel's story, and it was so CUTE without being trite or overdone (I mean there's a moonlight waltz in a conservatory, and a shoe rescue, along with the obviously Cinderella-esque cover and references in the story, come on).
Tom and Cassandra's dynamic also reminded me of Raven and Clara's banter in another one of my favorite historical romances, Dukes Prefer Blondes by Loretta Chase.
You're talking about your feelings. It's me, remember?
In fact, Mr. Severin possessed a kind of contained energy that reminded her a little of Pandora. One could see it in the eyes, the quicksilver workings of a mind that ran faster than those of other people.
It's endearing how these scientific, logical, and mathematically inclined minds put their emotions into simple direct language, even before they recognize it as such, and it just means so much more, knowing how much of their tortured backstory was necessary to overcome to do so. were highlights of both stories, so I won't say more on the subject here; you'll just have to read both for yourself.
Tom's character seems to be modeled slightly on Sherlock Holmes, in my opinion; though in my mind I interpreted his character as slightly like Tom Ellis's Lucifer , minus all the flirtation/innuendo/seduction and other qualities that plague alpha heroes. This was perfect for a reader like me that hates aggressively alpha dudes and their cringe-worthy dialogue. Tom's backstory of making his own way in the world is compelling and heartbreaking. It really gives you a sense for his insecurities and anxieties. That makes his character seem believable even though he's supposed to be this ruthless negotiator, brilliant engineer, and business magnate.
You’re laughing at me.
No, I’m laughing with you, but in a slightly superior way.
At first I thought this meant that we were going to get more character depth with Tom at the expense of Cassandra and she would just be a device to let us see all his good qualities, but I'm happy that wasn't the case. I liked the way she was direct and sharp enough to see when he wasn't truly saying what he meant and that she called him out on obfuscating or being oblique, especially in terms of Bazzle's character and what that meant for him. I do think we could have done with a bit more of that famous Ravenel temper from Cassandra's character to really make her more three-dimensional and not just the calmer counterpart to Pandora. After all, it's been talked about so much in these books that it should have been a prominent trait for Cassandra as it is in all the other Ravenels. She does reference it in terms of Ravenels not knowing when to stop arguing, but we don't really see that in any of her interactions in the book. She's usually very put together.
I also thought the pace of Cassandra and Tom's relationship was realistic too. They both grew to be each other's even matches, and I loved that element of it. Their frank dialogue added a grounding element of reality that made this story compelling and three-dimensional. I especially enjoyed that Tom and Cassandra started as friends first, over books, and then confidants, and this was nice. I kept waiting nervously for that "big misunderstanding" to happen but it didn't, so in that way the unpredictability of this novel's pacing was refreshing too.
Of course, we also have our stellar characters from previous novels in the series back, and I loved all of these top-notch family dynamics:
Pandora and Gabriel: "Do men really talk about women that way?" "Men, no. Arsewits, yes."
Pandora and Cassandra, so many touching sister moments: "If you felt pain, I wanted to share it with you. That's what sisters do." I loved Pandora's instant support and kinship with Severin too.
I loved Phoebe's wise counseling moments to Tom.
West is still the best too, and how sweet was it when Justin:
"I'm older than him on the inside, by decades. My soul is a raisin."
West rolled his eyes and gave Devon a reassigned glance.
"He's always had it," he said flatly. "That thing women like."
"What thing?" Devon asked.
"The secret, mysterious thing I've always wished someone would explain so we could pretend to have it too."
“There's no such thing as an old maid."
"Wh-what woould you call a middle-aged lady who's never married?"
"A woman with standards?”
“I didn’t think you were superstitious,” Tom protested. “You believe in science.”
West grinned at him. “I’m a farmer, Severin. When it comes to superstitions, farmers lead the pack."
"You're going to start a town?" Kathleen asked blankly.
"For the love of God," West said, "don't name it after yourself."
"I'll leave the two of you to your negotiating. If that's what we're calling it."
Maybe if he read enough novels about the problems of fictional people, he might find some clue about how to solve his own.
"I want a few minutes of infinity with you."
Okay, here I am, again, to say, no surprise, Severin and Cassandra are ALSO my favorites. This book definitely had more of that fairytale feel that I loved in Pandora and Gabriel's story, and it was so CUTE without being trite or overdone (I mean there's a moonlight waltz in a conservatory, and a shoe rescue, along with the obviously Cinderella-esque cover and references in the story, come on).
Tom and Cassandra's dynamic also reminded me of Raven and Clara's banter in another one of my favorite historical romances, Dukes Prefer Blondes by Loretta Chase.
You're talking about your feelings. It's me, remember?
In fact, Mr. Severin possessed a kind of contained energy that reminded her a little of Pandora. One could see it in the eyes, the quicksilver workings of a mind that ran faster than those of other people.
It's endearing how these scientific, logical, and mathematically inclined minds put their emotions into simple direct language, even before they recognize it as such, and it just means so much more, knowing how much of their tortured backstory was necessary to overcome to do so.
Spoiler
Raven's trial and Severin's contractTom's character seems to be modeled slightly on Sherlock Holmes, in my opinion; though in my mind I interpreted his character as slightly like Tom Ellis's Lucifer , minus all the flirtation/innuendo/seduction and other qualities that plague alpha heroes. This was perfect for a reader like me that hates aggressively alpha dudes and their cringe-worthy dialogue. Tom's backstory of making his own way in the world is compelling and heartbreaking. It really gives you a sense for his insecurities and anxieties. That makes his character seem believable even though he's supposed to be this ruthless negotiator, brilliant engineer, and business magnate.
You’re laughing at me.
No, I’m laughing with you, but in a slightly superior way.
At first I thought this meant that we were going to get more character depth with Tom at the expense of Cassandra and she would just be a device to let us see all his good qualities, but I'm happy that wasn't the case. I liked the way she was direct and sharp enough to see when he wasn't truly saying what he meant and that she called him out on obfuscating or being oblique, especially in terms of Bazzle's character and what that meant for him. I do think we could have done with a bit more of that famous Ravenel temper from Cassandra's character to really make her more three-dimensional and not just the calmer counterpart to Pandora. After all, it's been talked about so much in these books that it should have been a prominent trait for Cassandra as it is in all the other Ravenels. She does reference it in terms of Ravenels not knowing when to stop arguing, but we don't really see that in any of her interactions in the book. She's usually very put together.
I also thought the pace of Cassandra and Tom's relationship was realistic too. They both grew to be each other's even matches, and I loved that element of it. Their frank dialogue added a grounding element of reality that made this story compelling and three-dimensional. I especially enjoyed that Tom and Cassandra started as friends first, over books, and then confidants, and this was nice. I kept waiting nervously for that "big misunderstanding" to happen but it didn't, so in that way the unpredictability of this novel's pacing was refreshing too.
Of course, we also have our stellar characters from previous novels in the series back, and I loved all of these top-notch family dynamics:
Pandora and Gabriel: "Do men really talk about women that way?" "Men, no. Arsewits, yes."
Pandora and Cassandra, so many touching sister moments: "If you felt pain, I wanted to share it with you. That's what sisters do." I loved Pandora's instant support and kinship with Severin too.
I loved Phoebe's wise counseling moments to Tom.
West is still the best too, and how sweet was it when Justin
Spoiler
called him Dad?! Just lovely."I'm older than him on the inside, by decades. My soul is a raisin."
West rolled his eyes and gave Devon a reassigned glance.
"He's always had it," he said flatly. "That thing women like."
"What thing?" Devon asked.
"The secret, mysterious thing I've always wished someone would explain so we could pretend to have it too."
“There's no such thing as an old maid."
"Wh-what woould you call a middle-aged lady who's never married?"
"A woman with standards?”
“I didn’t think you were superstitious,” Tom protested. “You believe in science.”
West grinned at him. “I’m a farmer, Severin. When it comes to superstitions, farmers lead the pack."
"You're going to start a town?" Kathleen asked blankly.
"For the love of God," West said, "don't name it after yourself."
"I'll leave the two of you to your negotiating. If that's what we're calling it."
yoopiedoopie's review against another edition
3.75
good comfort hes so gone for her and it's a pleasure to see him give in to it
what_karla_reads's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
red_steele's review
3.0
1. Mary Jane Wells was excellent as the voice actor (5stars).
2. Cassandra and Tom’s story was cute, however, there wasn’t much creativity and it didn’t go anywhere. There wasn’t much “chasing” involved.
3. Overall I enjoyed the story, however, I expected more...
2. Cassandra and Tom’s story was cute, however, there wasn’t much creativity and it didn’t go anywhere. There wasn’t much “chasing” involved.
3. Overall I enjoyed the story, however, I expected more...