Review: When a Rogue Meets His Match (Greycourt #2) by Elizabeth Hoyt

 

Print Length: 496 pages

Publisher: Forever (December 1, 2020)

From Goodreads.com:  Ambitious, sly, and lethally intelligent, Gideon Hawthorne has spent his life clawing his way up from the gutter. For the last ten years, he's acted as the Duke of Windemere's fixer, performing the most dangerous tasks without question. Now Gideon's ready to quit the duke's service and work solely for himself. But Windermere wants Gideon to complete one last task, and his reward is impossible to resist: Messalina Greycourt's hand in marriage.

Witty, vivacious Messalina Greycourt has her pick of suitors. When Windermere summons Messalina to inform his niece that she must marry Mr. Hawthorne, she is appalled. But she's surprised when Gideon offers her a compromise: as long as she plays the complacent wife, he promises to leave her alone until she asks for his touch. Since Messalina is confident that she'll never ask Gideon for anything, she readily agrees. However, the more time she spends with Gideon, the harder it is to stay away.

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My Rating: 2 stars out of 5

I know I'm likely to be in the minority with my thoughts on this one, but I really just couldn't get into the story. A lot of it seemed to move at a snail's pace with emphasis on dialog that told instead of showed the reader what was happening.

I also felt disconnected from the characters. They were hard to like (especially Messalina who not only seemed more naïve than a woman her age should be about the workings of the world, but also because more than once came across as being worked up and overreacting over nothing). 

However, I thought the beginning started off well enough, with the bargain struck between these two, and I had high hopes for their romance (especially when you learn that Gideon has been in love, or at least infatuated with, her for years). However, despite the author's best attempts, I never bought into them actually falling in love with each other. 

It also seemed as though the ending was rushed through leaving loose ends (which I detest), although considering there is an overreaching arc that will presumably continue into future books, it makes sense. It's just not my cup of tea. 

That being said, I actually also have book one in this series sitting on my kindle as well (oops I misread the published date and thought it was the second instead of the first), hopefully I have better luck with that one! 

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel from Amazon First Reads. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.

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                                                        When a Rogue Meets His Match is available from Amazon.com