The Wicked Wallflower - Maya Rodale

The Wicked Wallflower by Maya Rodale
Series: Bad Boys & Wallflowers #1
Publisher: Avon
Publication Date: October 29, 2013
Source/Format: Gifted from Heidi || Paperback

Lady Emma Avery has accidentally announced her engagement—to the most eligible man in England. As soon as it's discovered that Emma has never actually met the infamously attractive Duke of Ashbrooke, she'll no longer be a wallflower; she'll be a laughingstock. And then Ashbrooke does something Emma never expected. He plays along with her charade.

A temporary betrothal to the irreproachable Lady Avery could be just the thing to repair Ashbrooke's tattered reputation. Seducing her is simply a bonus. And then Emma does what he never expected: she refuses his advances. It's unprecedented. Inconceivable. Quite damnably alluring.

London's Least Likely to Misbehave has aroused the curiosity—among other things—of London's most notorious rogue. Now nothing will suffice but to uncover Emma's wanton side and prove there's nothing so satisfying as two perfect strangers…being perfectly scandalous together. (from Goodreads)

If you’ve been following this blog for a long time, you’ll know that I’m very fond of historical romances! While I usually stick to my favorite authors (Garwood, Kleypas, Quinn), I do take chances on other authors sometimes. This book, The Wicked Wallflower, however, is one I picked up on a whim. It wound up being really enjoyable – and it’s not very hard to see why!

(Sidebar: Bonus points for you if you sang the last part of that last sentence. Just saying.)

Honestly, I really just want three things when I’m reading a romance – fascinating characters, amusing plot points (even better if the humor is really present!) and a swoony romantic relationship. It’s rare that a novel hits all three points, but The Wicked Wallflower certainly came close.

Plot: Honestly, the story is where majority of The Wicked Wallflower’s appeal lies. It helps tremendously that I’m fond of wallflower tales! But really, what I liked about it is that it was so darn entertaining. There were moments that made me giggle, and moments that had me smirking. Really, the combination of banter, awkward situations and sweet, sweet moments just created the perfect romance reading cocktail for me!

Romance: I was really rooting for this romance, right from the extremely awkward start. Seriously, there is nothing more fun than seeing how two characters can work out their relationship when they began on such false pretenses (and not intentionally). Plus, their conversations and encounters just amped up my feels for them, until there was no doubt in my mind that Blake (Ashbrooke, if you want to be so formal) and Emma were meant to be! 

Characters: Blake’s a handsome fellow, complete with all the male pride and innate stubbornness that usually entails in romance heroes. Emma’s a clever, witty girl who acts as I would imagine any girl in her (awkward) position would. But, seriously, these characters are where the novel fell a wee bit flat. While both are normally the type of characters I’d really fall for, I lacked a real connection with them as individuals.

Still, I found The Wicked Wallflower fun. There’s nothing quite like reading about a wallflower heroine (since I usually identify with them well) who gets her happily ever after, even in circumstances like Emma and Blake’s. If you’re looking for a new romance author to try out, or just want more wallflower heroines to read about, I’d definitely suggest giving this a try.