The Vibes:

—dislike to FWB to lovers

—reproductive freedom

—he wants to prove society wrong; she’s outside society

—the rake to stupid in love pipeline

The Basics:

Controversial duke Apollo has never gotten along with doctor (and secret women’s health provider) Aurora—though this doesn’t stop them from wanting each other. But when he offers to help Aurora care for her patients—a task that puts her life at risk—their attraction gives way to an emotional connection that could be the ruin of both…

The Review:

Adriana Herrera’s Las Leonas series has been quite strong throughout, and she saved the best for last(?). There’s been this steady build to Apollo, the (understandably) embittered, seductive heir to a dukedom and Aurora, a strident do-gooder who wants nothing and everything to do with him. And trust me when I say they don’t take long to throw themselves at each other.

Which is a very, very good thing.

But Herrera gets exactly what makes my beloved “fuck first, feelings later” trope so good. Apollo and Aurora jump into bed together quickly, but then there’s all the emotional melting that needs to happen—and that takes a bit longer, in a sizzling tension of words left unsaid. All in all? This is a pretty damn romantic book. He’s smitten; she’s resistant. (And she has her reasons, very valid.)

The emotional piece here is really a web of character development, and Herrera makes each beat heartfelt and believable. It’s a feeeeeeelings book. But there’s a good chunk of plot in here as well. A lot of what has Apollo going—a chip on his shoulder, as he’s the son of a white, horrible duke and a Black woman who was essentially tossed aside by his father—was covered in A Caribbean Heiress in Paris, and I do recommend reading that book in particular first. (Though An Island Princess Starts a Scandal is extremely worth reading as well.) He wants to conquer English society because he hates it, wants to make them feel stupid and lesser. Again, totally valid.

But it’s not as much of a centerpiece as I expected—which isn’t a bad thing. Because the centerpiece, aside from the love story, is Aurora’s dedication to her calling as a doctor and a women’s healthcare provider. This novel deeply deals with reproductive freedom and the importance of a woman’s right to a safe and legal abortion. And I won’t lie—that aspect is pretty emotional, now more than ever.

One thing I loved as well was Apollo’s progression. Initially, he’s really just worried about Aurora’s safety and the risk of her getting in legal trouble. In other words, he’s a progressive man of his era, but he’s still a man of his era—and he isn’t vilified for that, but instead given the opportunity to grow and really come through for Aurora, providing himself.

This has all the things you want from an Adriana Herrera book—it’s funny, it’s scorching hot, it’s smart. But it’s also perhaps the most emotionally resonant book I’ve read by her, wherein I was just dying for these two to make it work. And that made it my favorite novel she’s released so far.

The Sex:

But also, this was super hot.

There’s honestly a lot of sex on the page here. Maybe 6ish full scenes, I think? And a lot of very, very well-written oral. You get no-strings sex, you get passionate hookups, you get in loooooooooooove sex. It’s all deliciously written, it’s all great, thank you for your service Adriana Herrera.

There was ONE thing she hinted at but didn’t go into (haha) that I wish would’ve been expanded on a bit…. But hey, I can’t complain too much.

Conclusion:

Right now, a lot of historical romances feel very safe. Very tame. They lack a punch. This not only packs a punch—it goes straight for your heart. Highly recommend.

Thanks to NetGalley and Canary Street Press for providing me with a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.