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A review by mamamelreads
England's Perfect Hero by Suzanne Enoch
5.0
When I pick up historical romances I am generally looking for one thing ... escape. I just want a sweet, romantic story that brightens my day and entertains me. I don't expect any real depth or any life changing messages. So many of these stories are exactly alike, and I'm okay with that because that is exactly what I am looking for when I pick them up. But every once in awhile a historical will jump off the page and reach a depth that truly touches me in a way that most of these stories do not. That is what happened with England's Perfect Hero, the final book in the Lessons in Love trilogy.
This book turns its attention to Lucinda, the last of the women who had made a pact to teach roguish men of the ton the right way to treat ladies. Lucinda has set her sights on Geoffrey Newcombe, a returned from war soldier who seemed to be a hero from the war with France. He really doesn't seem all that roguish, especially compared to the two heroes in the previous books of this series. He does seem like a perfect match for Lucinda, and it seems as if the true goal she holds has she goes after Geoffrey is marriage. After all, it worked out for her two friends. Why not her? A wrench is thrown into her plans, however, when she bumps into the reclusive Robert Carroway, Dare's (book one's hero) brother. Robert does not go into society. He barely talks to anyone, including members of his own family, after returning three years ago from fighting in France. Almost everything sends him into a blind panic attack these days, everything but Lucinda. With Lucinda he finds peace, and he decides that he will help her in her quest to teach her lessons to Geoffrey. No conflicts of interest there, right?
Robert is what sets this story above and beyond others in this generally fluffy genre. He is dealing with some intense PTSD after spending seven months in a French interrogation prison. He has been tortured to the point of death, and no one knows. Not his family. Not his friends. And for a little while, not Lucinda. He never talks about his experience with anyone. PTSD is not really an accepted condition in the England of the 1800s. The things that Robert has to do just to mentally endure his capture and torture are not things that society will appreciate or support. He may have gotten away from his prison hell, but he is experiencing a whole different sort of hell in his "freedom." His struggle is agonizing, and he has had to endure it all alone ... until he meets Lucinda. What I love about Robert and his struggles is that it is not glossed over. He doesn't magically awaken one day, in love and all better. Lucinda helps Robert to find hope and a reason to truly live his life rather than to simply exist. However, he still daily has to deal with the after effects of his torturous experience. Even to the last page of the book he has to fight back the emotional toll of his nightmare. I love how this book portrays the struggle with heart. Robert may be the most courageous hero of any of the stories in this genre I have ever read. I adored him. So many of the rogues portrayed in these stories choose to be cads in the midst of the luxury of their lives. They are heartless or without morals because they can be. They are rich and powerful. What's anyone going to do about it? But Robert's struggles to have solid relationships come from deep psychological wounds. You can feel them as you read, and I couldn't help but root for him to find a way into the light after so many years of darkness. Loved him!!!!
I also ADORED Robert's family relationships. His family could be ruined if Robert's story gets out. England could find him to be a traitor, and everyone would suffer for it. They could choose to distance themselves, but they instead circle the wagons and stand together. His brothers were absolutely wonderful. This story does the best job of pulling together all the previous characters of a series that I have ever seen in a series. Usually in series such as this, old characters will show up here or there just so we as readers can have a quick reunion with beloved characters, but those characters do not take central roles in the current story. However, in this story Dare and Georgiana from book one and Saint and Evie from book two are strong supporting characters. They are involved in almost all pivotal scenes in some way. It was a wonderful way of weaving all three stories together without seeming like a gimmick. The strength of the family and friend relationships of this story were an important highlight of the book.
The romance of this story was a sweet one. I'll admit that Lucinda was seriously ridiculous as she tried to work through her feelings about Geoffrey and Robert. Her head had already decided that Geoffrey was the perfect one for her, but all of her actions said otherwise. It was clear from almost the beginning that she was falling in love with Robert, but she was so incredibly obtuse that she couldn't see it for herself. Still, I really enjoyed her relationship with Robert, especially her ability to understand him and his struggles. She didn't treat him as an object of pity. She treated him as a wounded man who just needed someone to see him as whole. Their relationship really was touching and rewarding to read.
I'm happy to read a historical with a hero who is genuinely good and finds his way back to humanity through the love and devotion of another genuinely good heroine. I couldn't put this one down. Five stars!
This book turns its attention to Lucinda, the last of the women who had made a pact to teach roguish men of the ton the right way to treat ladies. Lucinda has set her sights on Geoffrey Newcombe, a returned from war soldier who seemed to be a hero from the war with France. He really doesn't seem all that roguish, especially compared to the two heroes in the previous books of this series. He does seem like a perfect match for Lucinda, and it seems as if the true goal she holds has she goes after Geoffrey is marriage. After all, it worked out for her two friends. Why not her? A wrench is thrown into her plans, however, when she bumps into the reclusive Robert Carroway, Dare's (book one's hero) brother. Robert does not go into society. He barely talks to anyone, including members of his own family, after returning three years ago from fighting in France. Almost everything sends him into a blind panic attack these days, everything but Lucinda. With Lucinda he finds peace, and he decides that he will help her in her quest to teach her lessons to Geoffrey. No conflicts of interest there, right?
Robert is what sets this story above and beyond others in this generally fluffy genre. He is dealing with some intense PTSD after spending seven months in a French interrogation prison. He has been tortured to the point of death, and no one knows. Not his family. Not his friends. And for a little while, not Lucinda. He never talks about his experience with anyone. PTSD is not really an accepted condition in the England of the 1800s. The things that Robert has to do just to mentally endure his capture and torture are not things that society will appreciate or support. He may have gotten away from his prison hell, but he is experiencing a whole different sort of hell in his "freedom." His struggle is agonizing, and he has had to endure it all alone ... until he meets Lucinda. What I love about Robert and his struggles is that it is not glossed over. He doesn't magically awaken one day, in love and all better. Lucinda helps Robert to find hope and a reason to truly live his life rather than to simply exist. However, he still daily has to deal with the after effects of his torturous experience. Even to the last page of the book he has to fight back the emotional toll of his nightmare. I love how this book portrays the struggle with heart. Robert may be the most courageous hero of any of the stories in this genre I have ever read. I adored him. So many of the rogues portrayed in these stories choose to be cads in the midst of the luxury of their lives. They are heartless or without morals because they can be. They are rich and powerful. What's anyone going to do about it? But Robert's struggles to have solid relationships come from deep psychological wounds. You can feel them as you read, and I couldn't help but root for him to find a way into the light after so many years of darkness. Loved him!!!!
I also ADORED Robert's family relationships. His family could be ruined if Robert's story gets out. England could find him to be a traitor, and everyone would suffer for it. They could choose to distance themselves, but they instead circle the wagons and stand together. His brothers were absolutely wonderful. This story does the best job of pulling together all the previous characters of a series that I have ever seen in a series. Usually in series such as this, old characters will show up here or there just so we as readers can have a quick reunion with beloved characters, but those characters do not take central roles in the current story. However, in this story Dare and Georgiana from book one and Saint and Evie from book two are strong supporting characters. They are involved in almost all pivotal scenes in some way. It was a wonderful way of weaving all three stories together without seeming like a gimmick. The strength of the family and friend relationships of this story were an important highlight of the book.
The romance of this story was a sweet one. I'll admit that Lucinda was seriously ridiculous as she tried to work through her feelings about Geoffrey and Robert. Her head had already decided that Geoffrey was the perfect one for her, but all of her actions said otherwise. It was clear from almost the beginning that she was falling in love with Robert, but she was so incredibly obtuse that she couldn't see it for herself. Still, I really enjoyed her relationship with Robert, especially her ability to understand him and his struggles. She didn't treat him as an object of pity. She treated him as a wounded man who just needed someone to see him as whole. Their relationship really was touching and rewarding to read.
I'm happy to read a historical with a hero who is genuinely good and finds his way back to humanity through the love and devotion of another genuinely good heroine. I couldn't put this one down. Five stars!