I cannot be trusted to write a review at this moment. All I want to do is gush and squee and squeeze a unicorn so it poops rainbows.
Right before this book, I had started reading one that had a similar premise. Girl needs job and finds a job as the secretary of a very moody man. That other book was completely unreadable to me (I even DNF’ed it) while The Raven Prince soared.
I was glued to The Raven Prince. To the point that I did nothing else but read the entire day (work who?) and gave absolutely no fucks about it.
What I loved:
• The heroine Anna Wren. OMG. Anna was perfection. There’s no other way to describe her. I fell for her immediately and wanted her to have all the happiness in the world RIGHT THIS SECOND. She is funny, kind, insecure as to her place in life, daring, brave, resourceful. She’s described as a plain Jane but her personality is what makes her truly come alive.
• The hero, Edward de Raaf, Earl of Swarthingham. I will be the first to admit that I am very vain and that I am used to having handsome men populate the books I use as escapism. Guilty as charged. When you start the book, you meet Edward and he’s described as really ugly. I even thought he was the villain at first. Big nose, holes in his face, eyes so dark and all that jazz. I was afraid I wouldn’t like it. SO NOT THE CASE. I fell for him, for his incredibly horrible temper (he barks at everyone and grumps and frumps and roars and I don’t know why but I laughed every time he did), his pockmarks were transformed from ugly to endearing. He cares passionately about his tenants, about his estate and his legacy. His past is so sad. I also wanted him to be completely and utterly happy.
• The heroine and the hero together. their chemistry was undeniable, their sexual chemistry was through the roof and they just genuinely complimented each other. No instalove here. It’s a gradual yet very real development of genuine feelings. There is a lot of baggage on either side to sift through. Seeing them work at it is nothing short of a joy.
• The sex scenes. I’ll just this one thing: it had been a long while since I’ve read such a creative set up for sex in a historical romance. They were STEAMY. Like douse-me-with-ice-water steamy.
• THE DOG. I love dogs all shapes and sizes but this mastiff mix won me over by his ability to give a certain air of goofiness to what might’ve been very tense scenes. His loyalty to both Edward and Anna gives me the absolute warm and fuzzies.
• A character named Coral. I have no idea why this woman captivated me so but damn I wish at least one of the next books in the trilogy would’ve been about her.
• It made me feel. I laughed, I raged, I cried. It was nothing short of an emotional rollercoaster.
What I didn’t love:
• Can’t think of anything at the moment…?
Add this to your To Be Read list. You won’t be sorry.
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