Review: The Rebel and the Rake

✩✩✩✩

Rafe Davies might seem like just another charismatic rake, but in reality, he is one of the crown’s most valuable agents. As relentless as he is reckless, Rafe has never come upon a mission he couldn’t complete. But when he encounters the intriguing-yet-prickly lady’s companion Miss Sylvia Sparrow while on assignment at a Scottish house party, he finds himself thoroughly distracted by the secretive beauty.

Though most women would be thrilled to catch the eye of a tall, dark, and dangerously handsome man, Sylvia is through with that sort of adventure. She trusted the wrong man once and paid for it dearly. The fiery bluestocking is resolved to avoid Rafe, until a chance encounter between them reveals the normally irreverent man’s unexpected depths—and an attraction that’s impossible to ignore. But when Sylvia begins to suspect she isn’t the only one harboring a few secrets, she realizes that Rafe may pose a risk to far more than her heart. 

Genre: historical romance

Publication date: December 2021

Mature content: yes

Review: I very much loved the romantic part of this book. Rafe and Sylvia make a wonderful pair and their interactions, especially the first ones, made me smile a lot. Even though they are clearly attracted to each other, their love story unfolds slowly and you can't help but root for them along the way.

The suspense side of the story, unfortunately, is slightly lacking in my opinion (hence the 4 stars instead of 5). There are interesting twists and turns and I have to say the final culprit was not who I expected, but the starting point - what leads Rafe to Scotland and the reason for Sylvia's blackmail - is a bit silly when you take the time to think it through. I didn't find Rafe that much of a spy and since the story takes place at the brink of the 20th century and not in the middle ages, Sylvia's beliefs, while for sure usual for a woman at that time, somehow didn't seem to justify such a scandal. 

In any case, if you love historical romance you still should give The Rebel and the Rake a try. And while this is book two in the League of Scoundrels series, I read it as a stand alone and had no issues. 

Happy readings!

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