Review: Lydia Drake's THE WRITER AND THE ROGUE

 

THE WRITER AND THE ROGUE
Historical Romance

 

 

 

AUTHOR:
Lydia Drake

RELEASE DATE:
April 14, 2025

PUBLISHER:
Entangled Publishing, LLC

ISBN/ ASIN NUMBER :
9781649375025

RATING:
4.5

 

Miss Caroline Devereux knows she does not measure up to the ton’s expectations of a gentlewoman. She provides food for her family and staves off her profligate father’s creditors by writing Gothic stories. When their situation turns dire, Caroline is forced to try her hand at blackmail. However, the Earl of Rockford refuses to comply with her extortions. Will Caroline follow through with her blackmail? Or will she have a change of heart?

Gabriel Kane, the Earl of Rockford, has promised his late brother to keep the Rockford legacy secure. However, an impoverished baron’s daughter threatens to expose his family’s secrets to their peers. He has no intention of submitting to her demands, but Caroline is not what Gabriel expected. The woman’s peculiarities surprises and seduces him. Will Gabriel find a way to escape Caroline’s blackmail? Or will he become a willing participant?

Caroline is a woman after my own heart! She does not quite fit in amongst her peers. And Caroline is fine with that. She is happy with the way she is with any intention of becoming what she is not. I like the fact that Caroline uses her passion for writing to help provide for her family. It saddens me that the only people who appreciated her contribution were her two brothers – who were such a delight. Her father’s behavior, on the other hand, made me so angry.

Gabriel won me over instantly. He is a little rough around the edges, but he has a good heart. I love how Gabriel notices how different Caroline was to the other debutantes. And he found that he liked her individuality and eccentricity. What I adore the most about Gabriel is how angry he got over their peer’s treatment of Caroline. He did not follow the status quo but instead stood up for her. It is always fun when a hero shares one of my sons’ names (though I have only ever seen my oldest boy’s name in a paranormal book or as a last name). Some mothers get weirded out about it but not me.

SERIES:  Yes, it is the second book in Lydia Drake’s historical romance series, DEBUTANTES OF LONDON. The story can easily stand alone. I have not read the first book, THE DUCHESS AND THE WOLF. Luckily, there is no on-going plot spilling over into this story from the first. The hero of TDTW (Rafe) does make a brief appearance, but he does not play a major role.