A Lady's First Scandal (The May Flowers, #1)

by Merry Farmer

[celinenyx]

This historical romance had a lot of good things (pleasant writing style, period-appropriate aristocratic feminist ladies), but ultimately the problematic elements became too intrusive.

The hero Rupert's biggest flaw is that he doesn't listen to the heroine and just assumes that he knows what's best for her. This barely changes throughout the story, and the final sex scene only cements it. (show spoiler)[Rupert decides to shave the heroine's pubic hair without asking her, claiming "you'll like it". Ugh. It was weird as hell and not cute - imagine someone coming at your genitals with a straight razor??? The entire scene was so problematic on so many levels.] (hide spoiler)

Aside from the hero, the story has a very awkward relationship to colonialism. Witnessing a hate crime in England, Rupert comments on how that was more vicious than anything he ever saw in the several years of soldiering in South Africa. What? Just.... what? All the butchering and pillaging and cruelty was somehow less bad than when your white friend got clobbered?

I'm not sure whether to read a book by this author again. I liked some aspects, but others were very, very bad.