Book Review: Chasing Cassandra

When the approval for access to an early e-galley copy of Chasing Cassandra hit my inbox, I basically knocked everything on my TBR down a notch in order to pick this up as soon as possible. (I also ended up buddy reading this with Lacey from Booklovers for Life, which was so fun and I hope we get to buddy read more in the future!) This is the latest novel in The Ravenels series from Lisa Kleypas, and it is a pleasure to report that I ended up enjoying it.

The novel centers around two characters we’ve seen in the previous books – Cassandra Ravenel and Tom Severin. The family’s business dealings have ensured that Severin has a relationship with the men in Cassandra’s family, and their paths first cross at a special familial occasion. Unexpectedly, sparks fly between them. But Cassandra is determined to marry for love, which Tom does not believe in, and so they find themselves at an impasse. Can love help them overcome the obstacle(s) between them?

I’ve enjoyed every single installment of The Ravenels series in varying degrees, and Chasing Cassandra ranks high on the list for me. It’s not a perfect book (and more on that momentarily), but it had many of the hallmarks that make a Kleypas read so wonderful. This includes:

• lovable main characters | Cassandra is a spunky, capable and bookish heroine who has a great sense of humor and style. She’s always dreamed of falling in love and starting a family of her own. Tom, on the other hand, is a practical, driven man who stands at the head of an entire empire that he built up on his own from pretty much nothing. He regulates feelings and makes choices based on what would garner the best gain, but underneath, he’s also a well-meaning man who cares deeply for those in his inner circle… even if he can’t put that into words most days.
• a romance to root for | I didn’t think I could be convinced to want Cassandra and Tom to be together, since Tom is a frustrating force of a man. But I forget that Kleypas is also the author who convinced me to fall in love with difficult men via Devil in Winter and Blue-Eyed Devil. Once she showed the sparks flying between these two, I was a goner for their romance. And there were a lot of moments where something happened or was said that had me swooning!
• cameos from beloved characters | Whether indirectly (a mention in conversation about, say, a Wallflowers series lead) or directly (the other couples in this series), it made me so happy (and it totally had me fangirl squealing) whenever we saw a familiar face.
• plot shenanigans | I’m always interested in seeing what entertaining additions are in any of Kleypas’ novels in addition to the romance, and this one didn’t disappoint. I was amused at a lot of the events that transpire in this story, and it definitely made me laugh (or groan).

There are two things worth pointing out about this one that I didn’t necessarily love. One that felt super noticeable was the constant reference to Cassandra’s weight, which just didn’t sit entirely well with me even though I’m sure it would have been a concern and topic of discussion for a young marriageable woman of that time. The other is that the timeline was a bit skip happy at the start, showcasing moments from a few different months.

Despite those two reservations, I still really liked Chasing Cassandra. It was an enjoyable addition to The Ravenels series! I’d recommend reading it (though I’d caution that if you don’t want any series spoilers, you’ll have to read all the other titles first).

Chasing Cassandra (The Ravenels #6) is out today, February 18, 2020, and published by Avon.

I received an e-galley via Edelweiss from the publisher for review.