The Rogue Not Taken (Scandal & Scoundrel, #1)

by Sarah MacLean

[stacey_is_sassy]

Aristocrats be damned...unless you fall in love with one.

In The Rogue Not Taken we see how awful the aristocrats acted. With their belief that they are better than others and the lazy way they live their lives, they do not sound nice. I do love reading historical romance, but get very frustrated with them too. In this case, my eye was twitching when a Duke had the power to ruin a whole family because his pride was hurt. Obviously, these things happen in modern times too...maybe not with a Duke, but in this particular case the Duke was an ass and I wish more than his pride was hurt.

Sophie is the youngest daughter of a very scandalous family. Her father, a newly made Earl, was a coal miner by trade. The gossip is that he acquired his position in a game of cards. Not even his five daughters know the truth. Besides the questionable inheritance, the daughters also seem to attract gossip. One of the daughters supposedly trapped a Duke into marriage, and three are betrothed to unsuitable men. Sophie is the plain, boring and unfun one who doesn't want anything to do with London and the aristocracy. At a party, Sophie defends her sister...but upsets the town and the spoilt Duke. She decides to escape the party and on her retreat, a man falls practically in her lap.

King has a reputation. He's quite happy with it and it serves his purposes well. While escaping from a Lady's bed-chamber...through a window, he lands with boots in his hands at Sophie's feet. After introductions are made and insults have been flung, King declines Sophie's requests for help and thinks that's the end of it. It's only the beginning.

For quite a lot of the story, both Sophie and King butt heads. They don't particularly like each other and King has a very bad habit of insulting Sophie and then regretting it. The first half of the story dragged for me a little. I wasn't sucked in like I normally am with a Sarah MacLean novel. There were funny parts and interesting parts, but I started to get impatient with the couple. I wanted to get to the bottom of their issues and understand their history.

The second half was much better. My emotions were all over the shop. One moment there was a tear in my eye because Sophie's feelings were hurt, then I kept crying because King does something extra sweet and then two pages later (give or take), I wanted to punch his head in. These were all great though because my heart was pumping and my feelings were engaged. The second half also had some steamy scenes too.

I really enjoyed The Rogue Not Taken especially the characters and the scenes depicted. The love story ended up being sweet and I smiled at the twist that came when King is at home visiting his father. I can't wait to see what's next in the series.