The Window Seat on a Rainy Day

I never want to close a door on a romance series. I figure I’ve invested the time to learn about the extended cast of characters and I get myself invested in the story arcs that play in the background of all the books. Since I had read the previous four books of the Regency Rogues series I was willing to get over my disappointment in Book Four and give it one last chance to recapture my attention. Unfortunately, while The Scoundrel Takes a Bride itself was alright it did nothing to really spark a renewed interest in the franchise.

Lady Sofia Afton has dedicated her life to solving the case of her mother’s murder. Using her clout as a peeress she has wormed her way into the records of the Bow Street Runners as well as dug deep into the classified files of the Young Corinthians. She knows that the answers are there for the taking if only she had the resources to get into the darker sides of London’s streets. She befriends fallen women and spends time at a halfway house to try to glean more information about the organized crime syndicates, but manages to balance that against attending balls and teas with the cream of the ton. From an accuracy standpoint, there is almost no way that a woman of this age could have gotten access to most of the information Sophia does in her investigations, yet the reader is asked to believe that just because of her charm and personality that no one would question her. I understand that all of these efforts illustrated Sophia’s dedication to solving the crime and her intelligence as compared to the magistrates and super-spies who allowed the case to go cold. However it just seemed like too much; like she couldn’t fail at anything if it related to her mother’s death. This all might have worked within the constraints of a Contemporary book, but didn’t work as well within the historical timeframe.

For the full review, please go to http://www.thewindowseat13.com/2012/12/stefanie-sloane-scoundrel-takes-bride.html