Cyrus Ptolemy Ravensthorpe is a cousin of the Duke of Pole. His mother had been a member of the aristocracy. However, she caused a scandal when she followed her heart and married a solicitor. Having been schooled at Eton like other members of the aristocracy, Cyrus made his fortune by using his wits. But his greatest ambition is to regain the family’s spot in society. At school, the other boys looked down on him so he learned to get by without letting them know what he was thinking. He has even made a list to help him attain his goal. He has already succeeded at finding a bride from the aristocracy. There had been two daughters of dukes, but they did not attract him for one reason or another. When he started looking at the daughters of earls, he saw Lucy sitting with the wallflowers and knew she was the one. HE was not looking for love, avoided scandal by all means and was just looking for a placid, acceptable union that benefited both parties. Cyrus and his cousin, the duke, did not get along at all.

On the night of the ball, Lucy was not looking forward to breaking it off with Cyrus. She did not look forward to being a wallflower again and thought of defying her mother. Even though he had only visited her once a week since they became engaged, had never kissed her and always had a stoic expression like he didn’t care, she was happy being engaged to him. Lucy even considered forcing the engagement to proceed by compromising herself with Cyrus and having her best friend’s mother find them in an intimate situation.

As soon as Cyrus arrives at the ball, he discovers that Lucy now has money and will be breaking off their engagement. When she leads him to a private setting, he figures he knows what she is doing. But as she begins asking him questions, he sees her in a different light and finds it hard to keep his hands off of her. She makes it plain that she will only settle for love. After sharing a kiss with her, he knows that she is definitely the one. But how does he convince her to give him another chance when her mother is so adamantly against him?

A delicious read, WINNING THE WALLFLOWER is a sensual, witty historical romance novella. I thoroughly enjoyed it! Even though there is not always as much chance to fully get to know the characters in this shorter format, author Eloisa James did a wonderful job. I rooted for Cyrus and Lucy through the entire story. Filled with wit, sexual tension, steamy situations, engaging characters, delightful banter, second chances and true love, this is a story you will want to read more than once. A definite keeper! Ms. James has been one of my favorite authors for some time, and I was delighted to find this novella. A quick read and a great escape, don’t miss it! I also look forward to reading her next book, THE DUKE IS MINE, due out later this month. WINNING THE WALLFLOWER also includes four bonus excerpts from four of Ms. James’ other works.

This book was reviewed using a digital galley via Netgalley.com. It’s free for professional readers! Check it out: www.Netgalley.com

By Romance Junkies Reviewer: Dottie Click here to Buy this Book Now!   Romance Junkies Content Editor: Wendy Romance Junkies Publishing Editor: Dottie   Top of Page