As The Governess Affair and The Duchess War are Victorian romances by Courtney Milan, you can simply assume that, after providing the standard review content, I am going to encourage you to read them and virtually everything else she has published. Thematically, her stories focus on the questions of identity: Who are you? Who does society say you are? Who do you want to be? Romance tropes are flipped or shaken and Milan crafts lovely and heartfelt stories. Moreover, they contain social commentary and an […]
A Feminist Treatise Wrapped in a Romance Novel
The Countess Conspiracy made me cry. I have read scores romances in the past two years. I have laughed, swooned, scoffed, gasped, cackled, writhed, and sighed, but I have NEVER cried. What’s more, I did not cry over the romance, I cried over the gender politics. Once again, Courtney Milan has upended the tropes of the genre and crafted something tremendously entertaining that rises above the theoretical limitations she works within. Violet, Countess of Cambury, and her dearest friend, Sebastian Malheur, have been keeping secrets […]
Scientists in Love
Sebastian Malheur is one of the most revered naturalists of his day… and one of the most reviled men in England. After all, he gives public lectures about reproduction and genetics and that is simply Not Done in polite company. Imagine how much more scandalous it would be if word got out that his pioneering discoveries about inherited traits were actually made by a woman!
Misfits in Love
One of the comforting things about reading romance novels is knowing that they’re going to have a happy ending. The Heiress Effect was interesting because for a while there, I honestly wasn’t sure whether Jane and Oliver would actually be able to put aside their differences long enough to find their “happily ever after” together.