What’s that you say? The second Jane Austen-themed book that I’ve read and reviewed this year? Without having read a single Jane Austen book? Listen, I’m not perfect. But this book was delightful, and I’m very pleased to be part of the Fantastic Flying Book Club tour!
In Dangerous Alliance, Lady Victoria Aston has a life that she loves – her family has a nice estate, her older sister is in a happy marriage, and she’s able to help out with things when her father needs her. But everything changes when she finds out that she has to get married in order to keep her family from ruin. All she has to arm herself with are her Jane Austen novels, and they, sadly, don’t have the type of exact guidance that she needs. Will it be Mr. Carmichael who wins her hand? Or the poorly dressed Mr. Silby? Or even her childhood friend Tom Sherborne, whom has been ignoring her entirely for the past five years?
And aside from the fact that she suddenly needs to find a husband, what’s going on with all the accidents that are taking place all around her? It’s as if someone is trying to keep her from her wedding day! And maybe… maybe they are?
3 Things I Loved
- The mystery! When I signed up for this blog tour, I thought I was looking purely at a historical romance. But it turned out to be a really fun mystery too! It really made Vicky’s story more fun to have a dash of intrigue included as well.
- Vicky. Okay, Vicky is super fun. I found her relatable (I too try to learn how to live my life from books sometimes) and funny and headstrong. She was a great narrator, and I loved trying to figure out the mystery with her.
- Tom. I didn’t like Tom at first, I’m not going to lie. But he grew on me as I learned what happened between Vicky and Tom as kids, and what his life has been like since his father threw him out. In the end, I thought he was a great character… especially in the ways that he and Vicky played off each other.
Dislikes/Problematic Content
Okay, so this is a historical romance set in England in the 1800’s… meaning it’s super white and super heteronormative. This is the most common complaint that I always make with romances set in these times. It’s pretty feminist and all that, but still – diversity is important.
Rating
A reminder of the rating scale:
- Red = DNF, I hated everything
- Orange = Ugh, no thank you
- Yellow = I mean, I’ve read worse, but there were problems
- Green = This was good!
- Blue = Oh my gosh, I loved this book!
- Purple = This is the unicorn of books and I will be rereading it until the binding falls apart and EVERYONE should be reading it!
I really enjoyed this book! It was a fun little romp in the English countryside. I’m going to give Dangerous Alliance a GREEN rating. I recommend it, especially if you love Jane Austen.
Huge thank you to the publisher, NetGalley, and the Fantastic Flying Book Club for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Giveaway!
Enter to win one of two finished copies of Dangerous Alliance in this Rafflecopter giveaway!
Snark & Squee 