The Hellion and the Hero
BY EMILY SULLIVAN
Rating: 5/5 Genre: Historical Romance Steam: Explicit! Publisher: Forever Romance Pub Date: August 23, 2022 Thank you Forever Romance for my Advanced Copy! You're the best! Available: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | BookShop
The Hellion and the Hero Synopsis:
Lady Georgiana Arlington has always done what’s best for her family—even when it meant marrying a man she didn’t love to save her father. Her husband’s death has left her stronger and bolder—a hellion, some would even say. When a mysterious enemy jeopardizes her livelihood and reputation, there’s only one person she can trust to help her uncover the threat: the same man she left heartbroken years ago.
Captain Henry Harris is no longer the penniless fortune hunter he was when they first met. Now a decorated naval hero, he could have his choice of women, but no other woman has Georgie’s allure, nor the tenacity he can’t help but admire. Assisting Lady Arlington will put both his body and his heart in danger—and yet, he can’t resist a second chance with the one woman he’s never been able to forget.
The Hellion and the Hero Review
First, thank you so so so much Forever Publishing for letting me read this book early as an eARC. All opinions are that of my own.
Y’all this book. My heart. I cannot. I feel as if Emily Sullivan wrote this book with me in mind and added all of my favorite things. There is no explanation for how absolutely perfect it was. I even went through and highlighted sections because my heart couldn’t take it. I never do this, but I couldn’t help myself with all the sweetness.
Let me just do a quick recap of why you need to read this before getting into more details: THE PINING, uptight mmc who is the sorta bodyguard, government secrets/spying, longing, badass widowed fmc, “doing the right thing is not to be applauded,” repression, Monte Carlo with a fabulous bed scene (iykyk) and a bath scene, sorta enemies-to-lovers with the pent up emotions of second chance romance. Obviously, I know I am missing things but this book has everything and the emotional depth it goes to. I do not know how Sullivan does this, but it does not matter. I will be shoving this into every single person’s hands that I can. Everyone must enjoy this book.
CW: infertility, PTSD, panic attacks, and discussion of previous emotional abuse.
Loves:
Captain Henry Harris captured my heart from the first chapter. He’s an incredibly starchy, uptight man with a haunted past. Just how I like them. I loved watching how Henry grappled with his emotions and overcame the feelings over the past to live in the present. Plus he is so smitten even when he doesn’t want to be.
Georgiana is one of those characters you’d probably hate in real life because they appear to be so perfect. But she’s not. She’s been hurt and taken advantage of on multiple occasions. Her transformation was lovely. I especially loved the scenes with her family as they were so important. Georgiana is strong willed and honestly deserves the world. I love her.
The dual POV of the story is what really pulls it off. If I had access to only one of their minds I’d probably dislike the book because there’s so much hidden between these two characters. While there’s some “miscommunication” (idk if I’d even call it that because it’s more pride not letting you speak/hurt), it feels natural to the story and not a thrown in plot device.
The settings of the book were also phenomenal. You spend the first half of the book in London setting things up and creating the ghosts of their pasts, but when you get to Monte Carlo things take off and it becomes a completely different story in the best way. I loved the previous characters from Sullivan’s earlier novels coming back. The mood that Monte Carlo set was excellent with the change in the characters. Everything was so balanced.
Because I am only human I will say that the steamier scenes in the book hit just right. I love when historical romance gets a little *ahem* steamier than normal. Like I said there is a fabulous bed scene that is everything, carriage action, a bath scene, and another traveling scene. But the moments of intimacy outside of the physical are what really get me. That ending was *chef’s kiss* amazing.
Meh:
It ended? I really don’t know. I think that some might have problems with the beginning as it is a little drawn out to set the tone for everything and give snippets of the past. However, I feel without those slower moments you’d lose necessary characterization.
Long Story Short:
Do I recommend this book? Yes. A thousand times yes. I’ve reread The Hellion and the Hero too many times to say and I’ve only just gotten it. So freaking sweet. Honestly I felt like Sullivan had sat down with me and asked for my preferences in a romance novel then wrote this book. If you want a historical romance with good steam, solid voice, traces of modernity that feel true, and perfect second chance romance this book is for you. I will be suggesting (totally not shoving) this book to everyone I know.
If You Liked This One…
If you like Elizabeth Everette’s The Secret Scientists of London series (A Lady’s Formula For Love and The Perfect Equation) or Harper St. George’s The Gilded Age Heiresses series ( The Heiress Gets A Duke, The Devil and the Heiress, and The Lady Tempts an Heir) then this book would be absolutely perfect for you ! This book feels like a combination of all 5 of those books.
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