The unapologetically Romantic, Bisexual, and Polyamorous fantasy love story I did not realize was missing from my life.
Click for Content Warnings for the Book and the spoiler section of this review
The book deals with the survival of SA, forced labor, & human sex trafficking as well as the associated trauma. There is also fantasy violence and other mature themes.
This review is #SFW but the book contains mature themes.
Spoiler Free Review
Medium Used: 75% hardcover, 25% audiobook.
Ratings out of 5
Sweetness Level:
🍫🍫🍫🍫🍫 (5/5)
Steam Level:1
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 (5/5)
Spice Quality:1
🔥🔥🔥🔥 (4/5)
Spice Quantity:1
🔥🔥🔥 (3/5)
MMC (Warrior) Likability:
🗡️🗡️🗡️🗡️🗡️ (5/5)
FMC (Princess) Likability:
👸🏻👸🏻👸🏻👸🏻👸🏻 (5/5)
MMC (Assasin) Likability:
🥷🥷🥷🥷🥷 (5/5)
Plot Engagement:
💥💥💥💥 (4/5)
Was there a Bad Dad?:
💯(yes...how bad and how many TBD)
Overall Rating:
💜💜💜💜💜 (5/5)
1 I use Steam to refer to the tension, yearning, and/or build up to the Spice i.e. sexual intimacy
Medium Used: 40% audiobook via Hoopla | 60% ebook via Kindle
Ratings out of 5
Overall Rating:
💜💜💜💜 (4/5)
Sweetness Level:
🍫🍫🍫 (3/5)
Spice Heat Level:
💧 (0/5)
Slow Burn Steamy Tension Quality:
🥵🥵🥵 (3/5)
FMC Likability:
👗👗👗👗👗(5/5)
MMC Likability:
🎩🎩🎩🎩 (4/5)
Plot Engagement:
🗡️🗡️🗡️🗡️ (4/5)
At least 1 bad dad (pass/fail):
💯 (pass)
BONUS audiobook narration:🔉🔉🔉
Spoiler Free Review
Murder at the Seven Dials is the first book in the Bow Street Duchess Mystery series. It (presumably) begins a slow burn romance between Audrey Sinclair, the Duchess of Fournier and a Bow Street Detective, Hugh Marsden. Their paths cross when Mr. Marsden finds Her Grace's husband, The Duke of Fournier covered in the blood of a murdered opera singer Ms. Lovejoy.
This is a fun read, an intriguing mystery, and cute start of a love story. I appreciated that its pace and brevity. I loved the subtlety of the paranormal fantasy that is woven into this story. Her Grace has a gift that allows her to see other's memories when she touches objects or people. A gift that she considers a curse and keeps a secret. For me, this 'light' fantasy in an otherwise grounded world was novel. I am interested to see if the paranormal aspects of the world will grow at all as the fantasy continues.
The unique circumstances surrounding the meet (not so) cute of Her Grace and Mr. Marsden and their differences in station made their growth in admiration for each other both humorous and endearing. I look forward to seeing where this series goes. Consider me hooked.
Content Warning: At First Spite deals with depression and past trauma directly on the page. I discuss these topics vaguely in the spoiler free section and in more specificity in the spoiler section. It also includes a scene with one of the MCs administering vaccines as part of their job as a physician. As a Trypanophobe myself, I was able to listen to that scene but it did make me anxious. There's enough warning to skip it. The foreword of the book includes a more detailed CW warning.
There are rare reads for every romance fan when they pick up the right book at the right time. When they see so much of themselves in the book's story that the fiction stops being escapism and starts being therapeutic. When this happens, it is hard for the romance reader to do anything but love that book. It's why I love Roll for Romance.
Content Warnings for this Review (Items in Spoiler Text only appear in the Spoiler Section.)
– The Spoiler Section of this review contains references to the sexually explicit material in Knot My Type and may be considered #NSFW by some.
– References to Low Self Esteem / Low Self Worth
– References to Consensual Bondage
– References to Foster Care
– References to Alcoholism
– References to Cheating
– References to Toxic Exes / Gas Lighting
