I don't know why you can't have a tragic love affair and stare into the abyss of your hopes like everyone else.
The Gentle Art of Fortune Hunting
by K. J. Charles
Genre: LGBTQ+ Romance
About: Robin and Marianne want to steal from the rich to give to themselves, the poor. The siblings are nobodies in London, but they have beauty and charm to recommend themselves and in the Marriage Mart, that can go a long way. Only the two marks they've set their eyes on marrying come with complications. Marianne's suitor is far above her station, and a bore to boot. Robin's is clever at least, but her uncle is suspicious and Robin finds he can't escape the brute's glare and, worse, that he doesn't want to.
The Good
The characters are fun. Yes, they are predictable but there's an ease to reading them, like sitting back and watching a good period drama. There are some funny lines too and I do overall like K. J. Charles's writing style, it has a really nice flow to it. And definitely there are some very sexy scenes: it gets STEAMY.
The Bad
Some descriptions feel a little repetitive, especially as characters will notice the exact same things about each other as though they've read the previous POV. There's also not much happening plot-wise. The story is purely the romance between Robin and Hart with not much room for anything else. I would have been interested in having some other POVs as that would have made the other characters not seem so secondary in nature. Marianne has quite a bit going on, but she doesn't feel important because we hardly see her and Alice feels like she's just there to make for a tidy ending.
The Somewhat Iffy
I don't know why sexy romance books are so hesitate to have morally shady characters in them. The bad guys have no personality other than being arseholes, and the good guys spend a large chunk of the book apologising for anything that could vaguely be seen as offensive. It felt so forced turning Robin and Marianne from scheming fortune hunters into hearts of gold victims. When Robin is gifted a fortune on a plate, he turns it down without missing a beat. Or how Hart is in the clear position of power over Robin but we have to have several chapters telling us how he is loathed to exploit Robin in that way. Sure, I don't want toxic relationships on the page or selfish bastards with no hearts, but can't we have characters who do bad things and learn from them? Do they all have to have the instincts of Jesus? Also power plays in sex can be complicated and I understand the importance of showing both parties consent, but come on, it's an adult book, I think we can understand the difference between the fantasy of subservience, and the reality of someone forced to have sex.
Overall
I enjoyed reading this. The romance is sexy and the characters are very likeable. It's a modern period drama that's cosy and comforting to read if a little bit too sunshine and rainbows in some areas.
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