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I haven’t read about the law of attraction in so long, but I believe I read somewhere that it basically means when you come into contact with something – or even just think about it – you suddenly start seeing it everywhere.
I think that’s what’s happening to me. I read one single-parent historical romance a couple of weeks ago, and now it feels like every book I pick up is touching on the same theme.
If you know me, you know I generally don’t read the synopsis of books before I dive in. That’s the total opposite of how I interact with movies, by the way – I usually like to know the ending or even the plot before I commit my time to a film.
But with books, I just jump in, and I’m always so surprised when it turns out to be a single-parent romance. More often than not, the single parent is the male lead.
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If you read historical romances, you probably know how rare single-mother storylines are – especially in the British-set ones.
It’s mostly because of the period in which these books are set. You’re more likely to find single-mother plots if the story takes place in the Caribbean, Africa, or the Americas. But in books set in the British Isles, it’s quite rare. I don’t believe I’ve read any as a matter of fact.
I landed on this book and absolutely loved it. What made it so special to me was that the male lead genuinely loved his first wife.
In a lot of single-parent books, it turns out the man didn’t really like his first wife – maybe he married for duty or family alliances, not love.
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But here, Edmond made a conscious decision to marry her, and he truly loved her. Their life together made him happy, and he never regretted being with her.
His children are already a little grown – one is seven, I believe, and the other is five.
When the story begins, he comes to London with a clear goal: to marry a woman who is a family friend so he can give his eldest daughter what she asked for – a mother for her birthday. And yes, that’s where all the drama begins.
Somehow, he ends up being mistaken for the female lead’s boyfriend – the one who’s been wanting to marry her, but whose proposal her father hasn’t agreed to.
When the ton catches them together, the male lead (who is a very honorable man) decides to step in and proposes to marry her instead.
Adeline quickly realizes she has been shunned by society, abandoned by her family, and let down by her supposed boyfriend – so she agrees to the marriage. Then she’s whisked away to his estate, and that’s when their life together truly begins.
As for our female lead, she originally wants to marry her boyfriend. But her father – who, mind you, started neglecting her the minute he remarried and had more children – doesn’t want her to marry him because he believes the young man is below her station.
The whole situation becomes really difficult for her, so she and her best friend decide that the best option is to trap her man into marriage. And no, I’m not judging her morals – sometimes, things just have to be done.
The plan was to have members of the ton – including her besty’s mother – catch them alone in a room together, which would be scandalous enough to force a marriage.
You know how in that era, just being seen in a room with a man could ruin a woman. But somehow, she ends up in our male lead’s room instead.
I’m going to leave that little twist for you to discover because, trust me, you’re going to be pissed when you find out how that happened.
By the way, the male lead is a Duke.
And I should mention that I knew I was in good hands from the beginning even if I had no idea what the book was about. This author is one of my all-time favorite historical romance writers.
I feel like I’ve read dozens of her books – even though it’s probably not up to ten – because each one leaves such a strong impression.
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If you want to check out more of her backlist that I’ve read and loved, head over to this page.
I know I’ve been bad at reviewing books, but I’m trying to fix that – even though I’m in law school and don’t have as much free time as I’d like.
Anyway, like I mentioned, Edmond truly loved his first wife, and she thought she loved her boyfriend.
But as the story goes on, they start building a family unit together, which, if you’ve read my previous reviews, you know is very important to me. It’s key to really feeling the romance in single-parent stories.
Watching him and his two daughters create this bond with the heroine was beautiful. They all met each other at different emotional levels, and they supported and complemented one another so perfectly.
Over time, his daughters go from treating her like a visitor to seeing her as a mother who genuinely loves them. That transition was so touching. Maybe I’m biased because I love this author so much, but I think this was the best execution of a single-parent romance I’ve ever read.
I won’t spoil anything more, especially how Adeline ended up in Edmond’s room, but let’s just say the side characters were definitely interesting. In fact, I’m rather curious about one of them.
I don’t think I’m rushing to read their book though, especially because the hint we got about their love interest? Not great. He wasn’t just grumpy – he was actually offensive and rude.
I’ve read and loved grumpy characters, but this one? He insulted the female lead in a way I just can’t get past. Maybe we’ll get a sob story about why he’s like that, and yes, he’s a significant figure in the story, so maybe there’s hope, but I’m not holding my breath.
Then again, I don’t read blurbs before I start books anyway, so we’ll see what happens. It’s rare for me to read an entire series all at once, but I did that with Ice Planet Barbarians (which, I just remembered – I still haven’t reviewed! I’ll fix that soon.)
Anyway, all that’s to say: this was a pretty amazing read. I really, really enjoyed it. If I were to reread it, I wouldn’t mind at all – even if not right away.
I want to make a conscious effort to read less of this trope for now because, even though I seem to be naturally drawn to it, it’s always fun to shake up your reading list a little.
So, if you’ve read any books by this author, have recommendations, or recently read a single-parent romance you swear everyone would love – let me know in the comments!
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