Earls Just Want to Have Fun
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4.5 • 112 Ratings
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- $7.99
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- $7.99
Publisher Description
A 2016 RITA Finalist for Historical Romance!
"a lively pace, wonderful repartee, colorful dialogue, a marvelous cast of characters and, most of all, emotional depth with just enough humor to make you smile and cry."—RT Book Reviews, 4 ½ Stars, TOP PICK!
When Marlowe, a pickpocket, is kidnapped off the streets, she discovers she's actually the lost daughter of the Marquess of Lyndon. Lord Dane doesn't know what to do with the fiercely beautiful hellion, but can he turn her from sassy thief to society lady…before she steals his heart?
Maxwell, Lord Dane, is intrigued when his brother ropes him into an investigation of the fiercely beautiful thief who is believed to be the lost daughter of the Marquess of Lyndon. He teaches her how to navigate the dangerous waters of the ton, but Marlowe will not escape her past so easily. Instead, Max is drawn into London's underworld, where the student becomes the teacher and love is the greatest risk of all.
Covent Garden Cubs Series:
Earls Just Want to Have Fun (Book 1)
The Rogue You Know (Book 2)
I Kissed a Rogue (Book 3)
What readers are saying about Earls Just Want to Have Fun
"Just the right amount of mystery, adventure and attraction to draw you in and keep you satisfied."
"A fast-paced, well-written story with characters that you can't help but fall in love with."
"A tale of adventure, passion, danger and fascinating twists and turns that will enthrall you completely. Entertainment and laughter on every page. A PURE DELIGHT!!"
"I didn't just like this book, I ADORED it!"
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Galen (Love and Let Spy) launches her latest Regency series with a pleasant but predictable story spiced with a touch of social conscience. Marlowe is the best pickpocket of the Covent Garden Cubs, a gang of young thieves under the thumb of the ruthless Satin. Cold, hunger, and the threat of prison are the only life Marlowe's ever known, but when she learns that she might be the missing Lady Elizabeth Grafton, she dares to believe she could escape the slums. Maxwell Derring, Earl of Dane, is unhappy about being the keeper for his brother's latest find, no matter how intriguing she is under all that grime. Still, within a few days their spark is undeniable, and Maxwell finds he's willing to risk his own life to free Marlowe from Satin's grip even if she isn't a marquess's daughter. Good chemistry, solid writing, and an interesting plot are all present, but the stakes never get high enough to build tension.
Customer Reviews
Awesome
Loved the storyline and the characters! Love a happy ending too!!
Earls just want to have fun
Page turner. Enjoyed. Humor, romance, intrigue.
A fun, captivating and satisfying read.
I love my historic romances that show the clash of class divisions, and all too rarely the upper echelon never deigns to or acknowledges the denizens of the lowest rungs in society’s ladder. While mentions of Whitechapel or the Seven Dials are made as areas ‘too dangerous’ to contemplate, rarely do we see characters that are surviving the various dangers of neighborhoods deemed too deadly and treacherous for any law or order to reach. Shana Galen has brought a taste of the Seven Dials to light in this story.
Marlowe is a member of the Covent Garden Cubs, a group of young thieves, pickpockets and others, struggling to survive in the dangerous world: banding together for safety and security. While not in any way an ideal life, Marlowe has managed to become something of a legend to the others, with her skills and talent. Far from the life she could imagine, Marlowe claims to know nothing else, but occasionally she remembers moments of a quiet, cared for life when she was always well fed, warm and comfortable.
Brook Derring is a bow street runner, searching out the case of a missing child, the daughter of the Marquess of London. While wanting to keep tabs on this girl, he also has other cases and issues to attend to. And the life of a Bow Street runner, no matter what his origins, are not exactly perfect for keeping the girl. So he turns to his elder brother, Maxwell, Lord Dane to ‘reacquaint’ the chit to the finer things in life while he continues to unearth her true origins.
What a fun concept, and an interesting choice of characters. Marlowe is headstrong, independent and utterly self-assured in her current life, but the one being offered her and her trials and errors of navigating society and the affluence that may be in her grasp are wonderfully written. And Maxwell comes to learn and change his long-held beliefs about the ‘poor’ and the people of the Seven Dials, learning that choice isn’t always afforded everyone in London.
Their chemistry is fairly bouncing off the pages, from Maxwell’s snobbery to Marlowe’s unwillingness to be seen as less than capable or worthy of notice the animosity slowly changes for a grudging admiration that eventually develops into more. Both are being treated to the slights, prejudices and hastily arrived at opinions of their respective positons in society, and they are both learning to be more open, accepting and aware of difficulties that each group faces.
Pacing and development worked beautifully to bring these characters around and allow them to grow and change as their relationship morphed from animosity to more. With world-building and descriptions that capture the areas as well as they contrast and then become more “real’ to each character. A fun, captivating and satisfying read.
I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.