⭐⭐⭐⭐ Was I hooked by that book? Yes. Another Davies and Montgomery finally go after what they want in this delightfully fun romance.

Charming bachelor Rhys Davies has absolutely no intention of falling for anyone with the surname Montgomery. The rivalry between their two families is legendary, after all, and despite all three of his siblings succumbing to the fatal attractions of the enemy, Rhys is convinced he’s immune. Until one night, when he meets Lenore Montgomery, and promptly loses his wits.

Lenore Montgomery has wrestled a giant water snake in Brazil, chased a panther with a shoe, and survived an unfortunate shipwreck off the coast of Madagascar, but none of those things has been as difficult as seducing Rhys Davies. The stubborn man’s been ignoring her all season, so when she hears they’ll both be attending a week-long family party at his country estate, she enlists the help of her meddling relatives to prove there’s nothing as irresistible as forbidden fruit, especially when it might lead to true love.

MY THOUGHTS

A Scandal in July is the seventh book in The Rake Review series, one book for each month of the year written by different authors. And reminiscent of Bridgerton, it comes complete with its own scandal sheet, The Rake Review, penned by the Brazen Belle. Mr. July in our calendar of rakes is Mr. Rhys Davies.

This novella also continues the Ruthless Rivals series by Kate Bateman, showcasing the ongoing feud between the Davies and Montgomery families. It is a charming, playful series that sees various members of the two warring families spectacularly fall in love.

Lenore was a remarkable and resourceful woman who lived a very interesting life. For all that she had set her sights on Rhys from the moment they met, she didn’t pursue him in an overly aggressive way. In fact, he had no idea how she felt about him. Granted, he did his best to stay out of her way, so that explained how he missed the signals. I thoroughly enjoyed their antics on the treasure hunt and how their families colluded to throw them together. Rhys and Lenore made falling in love seem effortless and exciting.

There were editing issues with the wrong characters’ names being used, which had me going back a few times to try to sort through it, but that didn’t take away too much from appreciating the story.

The Rake Review is a diverse and interesting series and I can recommend it if you like steamy historical romance.

Were you hooked by that book? Let me know in the comments below.

Genre: Historical Romance
Published: July 1, 2024
Sensuality Rating: Warm
Series: The Rake Review
Other books in the series: Jilted in January, The Fake February Rake, Mad Duke March, It’s Raining Rakes in April, One Fine May, The Scot Who Made June Hot