About the Book:
Title: A Rogue’s Rules for Seduction
Author: Eva Leigh
Series: Last Chance Scoundrels #3
Page Length: 384
Publication Date: April 25, 2023
Publisher: Avon
Synopsis: After Dominic Kilburn left Lady Willa Ransom at the altar, she vowed never to reveal how badly she was hurt. Following a year abroad, Willa wants to move on with her life, so she accepts an invitation to a house party. She’s determined to leave her humiliation behind, as well as the scorching attraction she still feels for the man who jilted her.
When dark secrets from his past surfaced right before his wedding, Dom knew he didn’t deserve Willa. So, he bolted. But he still burns for the only woman who ever claimed his heart. To escape the memories of all he lost, Dom heads to a friend’s estate on an isolated Scottish isle. Yet one of the other guests is the very woman who haunts his every thought and makes him wish for the impossible.
Thrown together by well-meaning family and friends, Willa and Dom try to resist the fiery pull between them. Soon the line between love and loathing begins to blur, and their attraction explodes. But Dom’s past lurks on the edge of their rekindled passion and Willa fears she’ll be devastated all over again. Can these star-crossed lovers find their happily ever after, or will everything detonate a second time?
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My Review:
This is the third book in the Last Chance Scoundrels series, and I’ve been curious about what happened between Willa and Dom since the first book. Their breakup was the catalyst for all of the men looking for wives, and I was eager to see what broke this pair apart and ended so badly that Willa left the country.
The story takes place on an isolated island in Scotland. Dom, the protagonists from the first two books, Willa, and a sprinkle of other characters are guests at a house party, though Dom and Willa didn’t know the other was attending. Though their loved ones meant well by arranging for the pair to be together in hopes they will repair their very broken relationship, Willa and Max are not thrilled to be on a remote island with no way of leaving.
I enjoyed learning more about Willa and Dom. The story delves into what happened between them in the past, but it also offers a glimpse into their painful upbringings. Willa is not the “princess” Dom continuously calls her, and Dom’s haunted past includes a secret that could ruin him. It was interesting to see this pair slowly learn more about each other and see beneath the masks they have in place.
When Willa and Dom were first engaged, they did it for the wrong reasons. Even though they cared for each other, they didn’t really know each other, and they kind of used each other too. I think being together on the island forces them to face some hard truths about themselves. They begin to own up to their selfish reasons for wanting to marry and have found a deeper and more meaningful connection. I love how honest they are with each other and that they both let their facades fall. Their enemies-to-lovers, second-chance romance has a ton of tension, especially since Willan loathes Dom at the start of the book, and Dom feels such deep regret for hurting her when he loves her so much and tries desperately to avoid her. But this changes pretty quickly. At one point in the story, it says they are like kindred souls who keep gravitating toward each other even when they don’t want to, and that happens time and again, much to their dismay and my delight.
I really enjoyed this story. Willa and Dom have a heated and tempestuous romance filled with longing and tons of chemistry, the secondary characters are fantastic, and the house party island setting sounds wonderfully fun. Special thanks to Avon and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.
Rating:
Favorite Parts:
- The romance.
- The setting – I always love a house party, and this one is on a remote island.
- The meddlesome secondary characters.
Favorite Line:
In their bachelor days, the Ransome brothers had been infamous, and now that they had both found love matches, they seemed randier than ever, always fondilng their brides and whispering things that made their wives blush. It was enough to make a man want to swallow rocks.
Tropes:
- second chance romance
- forced proximity
- house party
- enemies to lovers
Omg, this sounds soo good! 😍 I love the “they’re here too?!’ micro trope in romances with enemies-to-lovers/hate-to-love romance cos it brings the angst up a lot and it’s a more natural confrontation when they finally meet again. And it sounds like this author did it well! I’ll definitely be adding this to my wishlist. Great review, Julie!
Ahh – Dom and Willa have soooo much angst! lol