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pagesfromhome's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Okay, I really enjoyed the first book in this series but this one was a no go.
I can see how the plot is interesting, but it just had too many of my least favorite things to want to recommend it (seemingly real hate between main characters, a “first time” happening under the influence, and then kidnapping/threat of rape), just very much not my thing.
I can see how the plot is interesting, but it just had too many of my least favorite things to want to recommend it (seemingly real hate between main characters, a “first time” happening under the influence, and then kidnapping/threat of rape), just very much not my thing.
chasecassandra's review against another edition
4.0
Not a 5 star solely because I was a little bewildered that the original library scene was edited to be more acceptable (which I'm fine with) and yet the very overt kidnap/forced marriage/rape intentions from St. Vincent weren't altered given that he is meant to be THE HERO OF THE NEXT BOOK!???!! By comparison, the library scene is forgivable within the context of historical romance.
licensetoshelbs's review against another edition
emotional
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
4.0
konvineo's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 stars
And so my experiment continued with the second installment in the Wallflower series.
In comparison to the first book, this one was a bit better. I felt that there was this uncomfortable unbalance between Annabelle and Hunt, and several instances of dub-con type events between them. On the other hand, I feel like Lillian and Marcus felt more like they were on even ground, despite the fact that the book makes it clear that their social status is not equal. I think it's the way they interact with each other, their chemistry. They were so good together, that I actually laughed at their banter.
That being said, it seems that I might be doomed to have at least one Problem™ with each of the books in this series. I still feel that there are consent issues, though they aren't as bad (I can't believe I just wrote that), as in the first book.
I also continue to have some serious problems with Kleypas's understanding of how the hymen and vagina works. In the case of Lillian Bowman, it's the case that she's described as having bled after her sexual debut with Marcus, and I'm assuming that that is in reference to the fact that her hymen was... torn? Which, sure, that does happen in real life. But at the same time, Lillian is described as being an avid rider, and she seems to be really into the hurdle jumping thing. Now, unless Lillian has/had an uncommonly thick hymen, that thing would torn way, way before because of the horseback riding. That is what normally happens because of how rigorous this type of activity is, and, to my understanding, if this isn't the case with Lillian... then she probably wouldn't have enjoyed her time with Marcus, and also might've needed some medical help. So like, this is a Problem™ for me. Also, I'm not a fan of how the intimate scenes are described, as was the case with the first book. They're sometimes boring, sometimes annoying and headache inducing and just way too flowery, without actually being super flowery in the language. And, also like the last time, the Danish translation is extremely bad, and the translator still didn't look into, or understood, context in relation to what Danish word to use to get the most authentic translation.
Then there was this one scene, that just gave me the absolute creeps, and part of me just wishes I heard this wrong, but I refuse to go back and listen to it again, because my spine will forcebly eject from my body. So in this scene, we have the Wallflowers sitting down, talking/gossiping, and Lillian is observing Annabelle. Based on her observation, she concludes (from what I heard) that: Annabelle doesn't look a day over 12 years old.
Then the book follows up with some very adult information about Annabelle, and I just noped out for a couple of hours. I'm about the same age as the character Annabelle, and if someone told me I looked like a 12 year old, I'd flip my shit. I'm a grown-ass person, it would be creepy. Honestly, I'm not even sure what Kleypas was going for here. Is it that Annabelle, looks youthfull, vibrant, excited, full of life? Like, what? Why not use one of those words, or something similar. Yeah, hard nope to this whole thing.
I'm also highly sceptical of the fact that St. Vincent is going to be the "hero" of the next book. I'm so not here for trying to excuse gross behaviour. Not so much his very open attitude towards sex (though the going after married women is another nope), but what he did at the end of this book. It's gross, and I have a feeling it's going to be excused as being a reaction to some super tragic past, to which I say:
So, was this better than Fifty Shades? Slightly yes, so I'll put it on my list. However! It won't be a book I'll be super excited to recommend to others.
And so my experiment continued with the second installment in the Wallflower series.
In comparison to the first book, this one was a bit better. I felt that there was this uncomfortable unbalance between Annabelle and Hunt, and several instances of dub-con type events between them. On the other hand, I feel like Lillian and Marcus felt more like they were on even ground, despite the fact that the book makes it clear that their social status is not equal. I think it's the way they interact with each other, their chemistry. They were so good together, that I actually laughed at their banter.
That being said, it seems that I might be doomed to have at least one Problem™ with each of the books in this series. I still feel that there are consent issues, though they aren't as bad (I can't believe I just wrote that), as in the first book.
I also continue to have some serious problems with Kleypas's understanding of how the hymen and vagina works. In the case of Lillian Bowman, it's the case that she's described as having bled after her sexual debut with Marcus, and I'm assuming that that is in reference to the fact that her hymen was... torn? Which, sure, that does happen in real life. But at the same time, Lillian is described as being an avid rider, and she seems to be really into the hurdle jumping thing. Now, unless Lillian has/had an uncommonly thick hymen, that thing would torn way, way before because of the horseback riding. That is what normally happens because of how rigorous this type of activity is, and, to my understanding, if this isn't the case with Lillian... then she probably wouldn't have enjoyed her time with Marcus, and also might've needed some medical help. So like, this is a Problem™ for me. Also, I'm not a fan of how the intimate scenes are described, as was the case with the first book. They're sometimes boring, sometimes annoying and headache inducing and just way too flowery, without actually being super flowery in the language. And, also like the last time, the Danish translation is extremely bad, and the translator still didn't look into, or understood, context in relation to what Danish word to use to get the most authentic translation.
Then there was this one scene, that just gave me the absolute creeps, and part of me just wishes I heard this wrong, but I refuse to go back and listen to it again, because my spine will forcebly eject from my body. So in this scene, we have the Wallflowers sitting down, talking/gossiping, and Lillian is observing Annabelle. Based on her observation, she concludes (from what I heard) that: Annabelle doesn't look a day over 12 years old.
Then the book follows up with some very adult information about Annabelle, and I just noped out for a couple of hours. I'm about the same age as the character Annabelle, and if someone told me I looked like a 12 year old, I'd flip my shit. I'm a grown-ass person, it would be creepy. Honestly, I'm not even sure what Kleypas was going for here. Is it that Annabelle, looks youthfull, vibrant, excited, full of life? Like, what? Why not use one of those words, or something similar. Yeah, hard nope to this whole thing.
I'm also highly sceptical of the fact that St. Vincent is going to be the "hero" of the next book. I'm so not here for trying to excuse gross behaviour. Not so much his very open attitude towards sex (though the going after married women is another nope), but what he did at the end of this book. It's gross, and I have a feeling it's going to be excused as being a reaction to some super tragic past, to which I say:
So, was this better than Fifty Shades? Slightly yes, so I'll put it on my list. However! It won't be a book I'll be super excited to recommend to others.
sara11_reads's review against another edition
2.0
Oh, this book...where do I start? The story is fine, the main characters are fine, but the end was terrible. The kind of terrible that turns me completely off an author. An incident involving the heroine and a secondary character was just so stupid and out of character that it ruined the book. I'm mad at the author about the whole situation. It's not just stupid for the character himself but it ruins the whole world she's so carefully built - aristocrats going slowly broke and rich American heiresses buying titles.
bethbock27's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
serenyty's review against another edition
2.0
Every so often I get the urge to read a straightforward cheesy historical romance. There’s a specific formula that’s very appealing (the progression from hate to love is catnip to me I swear) while the best novels have well written, likable characters that make you forget the formula and genuinely wonder in the will they won’t they of it all (spoilers, they will.) After doing a quick rundown of authors I hadn’t read yet, decided to read Lisa Kleypas’ Wallflowers series, and I think these books fall somewhere as a well written example of the genre, though also falling victim to some of the formulaic tropes that remind you that this is firmly in the genre in its best and worst.
This is the second book in the Wallflowers series, which follows four London women joined together by being unlucky in love while also working together to avoid spinster status. Simple enough premise, but one that works by creating a likable bunch of protagonists off the bat and some sweet female friendships. The first book was largely enjoyable, but I was mainly waiting on subsequent novels to see where the characters would go. Lillian was a particular favorite, and the subject of this second novel.
As I mentioned that hate to love is a romance trope I dig, so I was immediately invested in Lillian and Marcus’ established animosity towards one another blooming into love. It worked largely well, but I would have liked a bit more development of their friendship in addition to their physical attraction. We got some of that but a whole lot of them just being horny, and I get that a little spice is wanted for a romance but aggressively making out in a garden isn’t a replacement for a genuine conversation.
Speaking of the aggressive making out, man the consent in this is not always great and that is the biggest bummer. The first kiss and first sex scene both have questionable consent involved, and while Marcus acknowledges that the sex was taking advantage of Lillian good god that doesn’t mean I liked it. “They’re in love so it’s okay” doesn’t make me feel better, nor does any lamp shading on it. “He couldn’t control his desire” or any excuse doesn’t make me like it more, and honestly soured my experience with this novel.
The ending in general got unbelievably tropey in not a good way either, where it felt like characters became caricatures and things got heightened beyond belief. Which felt entirely unnecessary - the rest of the book was engaging and entertaining, you don’t need to throw in the kitchen sink if you don’t have to!
The flaws in this book can be read past if you are savvy to romance and accepting of certain tropes, but it’s a shame because the rest of this book was really very good. The characters were fun, the conflict was solid, and I was rooting for the main couple. It just felt like having to throw in certain elements made it worse, which is a shame when most of the book worked.
I’ve heard almost nothing but good things about the next book in the series, so I’ll read that next, but the romantic lead in that one did some pretty heinous shit in this one so no promises I’ll actually like it as well as I liked this one.
This is the second book in the Wallflowers series, which follows four London women joined together by being unlucky in love while also working together to avoid spinster status. Simple enough premise, but one that works by creating a likable bunch of protagonists off the bat and some sweet female friendships. The first book was largely enjoyable, but I was mainly waiting on subsequent novels to see where the characters would go. Lillian was a particular favorite, and the subject of this second novel.
As I mentioned that hate to love is a romance trope I dig, so I was immediately invested in Lillian and Marcus’ established animosity towards one another blooming into love. It worked largely well, but I would have liked a bit more development of their friendship in addition to their physical attraction. We got some of that but a whole lot of them just being horny, and I get that a little spice is wanted for a romance but aggressively making out in a garden isn’t a replacement for a genuine conversation.
Speaking of the aggressive making out, man the consent in this is not always great and that is the biggest bummer. The first kiss and first sex scene both have questionable consent involved, and while Marcus acknowledges that the sex was taking advantage of Lillian good god that doesn’t mean I liked it. “They’re in love so it’s okay” doesn’t make me feel better, nor does any lamp shading on it. “He couldn’t control his desire” or any excuse doesn’t make me like it more, and honestly soured my experience with this novel.
The ending in general got unbelievably tropey in not a good way either, where it felt like characters became caricatures and things got heightened beyond belief. Which felt entirely unnecessary - the rest of the book was engaging and entertaining, you don’t need to throw in the kitchen sink if you don’t have to!
The flaws in this book can be read past if you are savvy to romance and accepting of certain tropes, but it’s a shame because the rest of this book was really very good. The characters were fun, the conflict was solid, and I was rooting for the main couple. It just felt like having to throw in certain elements made it worse, which is a shame when most of the book worked.
I’ve heard almost nothing but good things about the next book in the series, so I’ll read that next, but the romantic lead in that one did some pretty heinous shit in this one so no promises I’ll actually like it as well as I liked this one.
emilysedlacek's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75