The book started out on a great note, but about one third into the story it took a lot of turns into ridiculous land, leaving me thinking the hero should have deposited the heroine back to her father's house and then left her for someone else. All those plot twists hinged on the heroine's impulsive, TSTL actions and all revolved around kidnapping - So. Much. Kidnapping. Seriously, after the third time, shouldn't everyone in this damn story keep one eye out for possible stalkers? No? Okay then.

Alex is a captain in the Royal Navy when he inherits the marquis estate from his late uncle and cousin. He is a member of this group of gentlemen who bring criminals to justice using spy and detective methods. Charlotte helps her father run their carriage shop; her father has made a lot of money and connections, but wants a title in the family, so he is shopping Charlotte around the marriage mart. Alex would rather keep his captain persona rather than take on the public persona of a marquis. But there is fun banter and a nice chemistry between the two. Charlotte is the victim of an attempted kidnapping (here we go) one morning in Hyde Park; luckily, Alex is there to thwart the kidnapping and extracts a promise from Charlotte to be a crap ton more cautious. Which she then breaks (over and over again).

While her father is away in Oxford on business, Charlotte is kidnapped again and held for ransom. The ransom is just for show, because the kidnappers' boss wants Charlotte (read: her dowry, which her father has made quite public) to be his wife. The father calls in Alex, who with his valet/buddy/muscle Davy go undercover and succeeds numerous times to rescue Charlotte, just for her to do something else stupid. Charlotte is on a boat headed to Lisbon to pick up her "suitor" and then onward to India for a honeymoon, leaving enough time to pass for her to be forced to marry her captor to keep her reputation in society's good side. The more she falls in love with Alex, the stupider her actions become. Lisbon is full of easily-bribable people as it turns out. Finally, after Alex proposes to Charlotte a second time on their way back to England and she says yes does he announce his title. Also the father isn't exactly all that smart either; the impulsiveness of Charlotte can also be seen in her father. The British ambassador to Portugal wasn't much help, thankfully his wife was as well as the nuns....yeah, this book had a lot of crazy sauce to it.

Alex is a good guy, and pretty smart. Charlotte was a smart woman until she fell in love. I hate this in romance. I read this for RB Bingo "person in uniform on the cover."

Free Friday BL-opoly Read: Heat Wave by Merry Farmer, in honor of the heat wave the UK is facing this weekend and into next week. This is one of 30 novellas that RT convention 2017 commissioned for its Magnolias and Moonshine campaign for Atlanta; it is also part of her Nerds of Paradise series. It is a contemporary romance with interracial couple. 104 pages = $2.00.

BL-opoly Read (pre-shake up): Trying to get through His Very Own Girl by Carrie Lofty. It's boring me at the 20% mark, so if it doesn't improve by the 50%, I am going to DNF. I can't wait for D-Day so at least something happens.

Pop Sugar Read: The Silent Governess by Julie Klassen. This is so boring and a bit unrealistic. Christian romance set in rural Regency England. I'm giving it until 50% to get better before I pull the DNF card.

COYER Summer Vacation Reads: Midnight Unbound (Midnight Breeds #14.5) by Lara Adrian, because I wanted something different than historical romance. Since it is a short book, I am also going to try and knock out Midnight in Legend, TN by Magdalena Scott as well.

Ripped Bodice Bingo Read: The Captain's Kidnapped Beauty by Mary Nichols. I just finished this one for the "person in uniform on the cover" square. A Georgian-era romance that takes place in Lisbon and London. I borrowed from the library, so a Library Love Challenge book to boot.

So my son's last day of Kindergarten was yesterday. I can't believe my little boy is going to be a 1st grader already. I forgot how much energy little boys can have, lol.

I hate to do this to y'all, but the most important thing I think you need to know about this story is also a spoiler. It's hinted at but you don't learn the truth until around the 70 or 80% mark, but I MUST say it because, well, if you read the spoiler you'll understand.

Moving on, the spoiler basically just put a cherry on what I would call a meh book. If you're looking for a clean read, this would be for you but also be aware the romance is slow and meandering. I liked the heroine and hero together but while at times they had chemistry, their dialogue could also be a bit stiff. This is a Mills & Boon and it comes with the more stiff upper lip reserved story and characters.

Pierwsza połowa XX wieku to czas, kiedy pobrzmiewały jeszcze echa surowej epoki wiktoriańskiej. Obowiązujące wówczas konwenanse i zasady moralne wykluczały wiele kobiet z towarzystwa. Fakt ten szczególnie dotyczył tych pań, które dawały się ponieść chwili słabości i w konsekwencji zachodziły w ciążę z mężczyznami, z którymi nie miały ślubu. Generalnie musiały wtedy radzić sobie same, ponieważ nawet rodzina nie wahała się ich wyrzec. Taki stan rzeczy uzależniony był również od tego, z jakiej warstwy społecznej pochodziła dana kobieta. Chyba najgorzej sytuacja przedstawiała się w przypadku arystokratek, za które odpowiedzialni byli przede wszystkim ojcowie albo bracia, pomimo że niewiasta miała już swoje lata i mogła o sobie decydować. Niemniej brak własnych środków finansowych potrzebnych na utrzymanie sprawiał, że nie miały wyjścia i musiały bez słowa sprzeciwu wykonywać wolę swojego rodziciela, bo to przecież on łożył na ich utrzymanie. A wola ojca niejednokrotnie była okrutna. 

Decyzja głowy rodziny bardzo często rzutowała na całe dalsze życie „zhańbionej” córki czy siostry, a czasami nawet żony. Ważniejsza od stanu emocjonalnego kobiety była chęć uniknięcia skandalu obyczajowego. Strach przed tym, co ludzie powiedzą był znacznie większy niż na przykład dobro córki, bo przecież damie za nic w świecie nie wypadało urodzić nieślubnego dziecka albo spłodzić potomstwo z mężczyzną, który nie był jej mężem. Ta druga kwestia dotyczyła w głównej mierze mężatek, bo przecież zdarzało się, że również kobiety zamężne wikłały się w związki pozamałżeńskie. Generalnie seks przedmałżeński czy pozamałżeński nie był niczym złym. Złe były tylko konsekwencje, które temu towarzyszyły, a które prędzej czy później były widoczne również dla innych. 

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