Such a lovely book! Gentleman Jim brought all the feelings and emotions that you'd want and expect when reading a good romance between two people who are soul mates.

A very clean romance, only a few chaste kissing scenes.  But the steam and connection between Maggie and St Clare will have you fanning yourself.  I loved Maggie and St Clare so much.  I wish we could have seen more flashbacks into their childhood together to get a better grounding in this great love they have. 

Interesting plot that moved along at a good pace, well written dialogue and action scenes.  

I wish the villains suffered a bit more in the end, but that's me being a bit more bloodthirsty.  There is the case of hidden identity, but luckily it doesn't last too long.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy to review, all opinions are my own and freely given.

As always is the case with Mimi Matthew’s books I absolutely adored this story! She is truly in a class of her own and I’m convinced she can’t write a bad book if she tried. 
I loved Maggie’s character, she had the class and softness of a true lady but knew how to stand her ground and could give as good as she got-the perfect blend of feistiness and femininity. 
St. Clare was a forced to be reckoned with, I admired his calmness under pressure, though sometimes he was pushed too far and his temper reared it’s head it was always well justified in my opinion. I felt for all the hardships he’d been through but was impressed with the man he’d become in spite of it all.
They had a romance for the ages and I was absolutely swept away. I could have happily been lost in their love story for many more pages. 
Everything about this story was well done from the intriguing storyline, to the romance, to the sniveling villains! Mimi Matthews has done it again and her fans are sure to be enthralled with this amazing tale!

Gentleman Jim by Mimi Matthews caught my attention simply because it is a historical romance novel whose title doesn't include the words Duke, Earl, Viscount, or Lady. And there's not even a woman on the cover! In case you're wondering if this is truly a historical romance novel based on the above information let me assure you that it definitely is and it is positively wonderful.

I was sold on this book from the very first chapter.  I'm not usually into the whole soul mates trope, but there's something so sweet about hero and heroine loving each other since they were children.  Nicholas and Margaret believed they were soul mates from the moment they met and those feelings never dulled, even after being torn apart and separated for over a decade.  I cannot think of a single thing more romantic than watching the innocent love of children blossom into the passionate love of adults.  That's the truest form of love right there.

Margaret is, like many heroines, a kind-hearted, good-natured, wonderful person.  And we love her for it.  I'll admit that even though the perfect, innocent heroine trope is a little overdone, I still adored Maggie as a main character.  She was just loud enough and bold enough and crass enough to stay interesting.  Nicholas, or shall we say St. Clare, was utterly fabulous.  I can't even explain how much I love that we got to see a hero who, right from the start, was madly in love with Maggie, wanted to pursue her, and didn't care who knew about it.  So refreshingly romantic.

The excitement stemmed from the plot to undercover Nicholas' true birth right and keep Maggie free from the clutches of Fred, the man in charge of her fortune...and the man who wants her for himself.  Who doesn't love the excitement of the main characters out-maneuvering the bad guy at every turn? I can't get enough of it, that's for sure.

This would be a wonderful read for historical lovers who enjoy: fake and/or mistaken identities, mysteries, bossy heroines (who says bossy has to be a bad thing?), and enamored, sexy heroes who don't mind pretending to be a highwayman if it means keeping a creep's hands off their lady.  Well-written, captivating, and incredibly sexy.

Oh my word, this was everything delectable in a story. Mimi Matthews is already one of my favourite historical romance authors, but this is now one of my favourite novels of hers to boot. That makes it a favourite of a favourite! It has intrigue, a bit of derring-do, a hero and heroine I absolutely adore, and oh, so much passion—and I don’t mean the explicit kind. It’s a restrained and carefully controlled passion more often than not, both in the characters and the writing—though it’s certainly given free rein when the time is right. But it’s that sense of leashed energy that gives this story its potency. Oh, the potency!

Do I even need to say anything else after that gushing opening? The plot was wonderfully engaging, because even if you were sure of one element of the plot, it only raised more questions in its place. And I truly did have a jaw-drop moment at about fifty percent of the way through the novel, which was when I began to see how the pieces may fit together. But even then, there was a question as to how everything would turn out and a vastly enjoyable journey to get there.

Much like in the novel Rebecca, the eponymous Gentleman Jim plays his central role posthumously, but make no mistake, it is certainly a central role. Also, while Matthews’ writing style differs somewhat from Heyer (to neither author’s detriment), there was a very Heyer-esque feeling to the overall story.

Truly, Matthews is an historical romance author par excellence!

Gentleman Jim
A Tale of Romance & Revenge
by Mimi Matthews
Back of the Book: “She Couldn't Forget...
Wealthy squire's daughter Margaret Honeywell was always meant to marry her neighbor, Frederick Burton-Smythe, but it's bastard-born Nicholas Seaton who has her heart. Raised alongside her on her father's estate, Nicholas is the rumored son of notorious highwayman Gentleman Jim. When Fred frames him for theft, Nicholas escapes into the night, vowing to find his legendary sire. But Nicholas never returns. A decade later, he's long been presumed dead.
He Wouldn't Forgive... 
After years spent on the continent, John Beresford, Viscount St. Clare has finally come home to England. Tall, blond, and dangerous, he's on a mission to restore his family's honor. If he can mete out a bit of revenge along the way, so much the better. But he hasn't reckoned for Maggie Honeywell. She's bold and beautiful--and entirely convinced he's someone else. 
As danger closes in, St. Clare is torn between love and vengeance. Will he sacrifice one to gain other? Or, with a little daring, will he find a way to have them both?”
Impressions: This was as it says on the back of the book, a tale of romance and revenge. It was quite exciting although a bit coarser than the Christian romances I am typically reading.
Liked: I enjoyed all the excitement of this book. I was most curious to see how things worked out.
Disliked: I actually did not care for the romance of these characters. I’m sure that sounds crazy. They were so clingy to one another. It seemed childish to me. 
Learned: I think that my take-home was where we put our value. Do we base our value and worth on other's opinions? I should hope not. Nicholas Seaton struggled throughout the book with his worth. He let the importance of society dictate his value. He then hid himself away while those who loved him were pushed away. I don’t think this is uncommon. With social media, and media, in general, being the guiding light to many, our value and worth have been distorted to their command. I take great encouragement from these verses when I’m questioning my worth: Ephesians 2:10 "For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do," 1 John 3:1 "See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!" What a friend we have in Jesus; that He should call us His own. We are His handiwork and likeness. What worth do I have? A great deal to our Father.
I received a copy of this book via the publisher in exchange for my honest review shared here.

Gentleman Jim was another novel that I picked up and had a hard time putting down.  The story was rollicking good fun and riveting.

Margaret Honeywell is a fearless teenager.  She was overindulged by her father as his only child.  She loves two things, their estate and young Nicholas Seaton, a servant.  Her mean-spirited neighbor, Fred Burton-Smythe loves Margaret and is jealous of Nicholas.  One day he frames Nicholas for a theft, and Nicholas is forced to flee into the night.  He vows to find his father, the legendary highwayman, Gentleman Jim. Margaret vows to wait for Nicholas to return and she does.  

Year later firmly on the shelf at age twenty-six, Margaret has spent the last two years mourning her father and her aunt.  Alone in the world, her father has decided to force his hand with his will stating that Margaret must marry two years after his death to inherit the estate, and that Fred has to approve the match.  Until then, odious Fred serves as her guardian.  Margaret arrives in London to visit a friend and runs across the mysterious Viscount St. Claire who has recently returned from Europe.  Margaret instantly recognizes her long lost love Nicholas.  St. Claire denies any knowledge of her or of Nicholas, but Margaret is not convinced.   What happened to Nicholas and what is the mystery behind St. Claire?

I loved this book. The characters were brilliant.  I loved the Regency England setting.  The dialogue and writing were wonderful and really drew me into the story.  This is a clean romance, but the passion and love between the two main characters leapt off the page.  I loved the secondary characters as well, especially Margaret’s friend Jane.  I loved the swashbuckling adventure that occurred at different points of the novel.  I also loved that revenge was a large part of the plot as well as St. Claire tries to control his own desires for revenge.  It reminded me of The Count of Monte Cristo. I also loved that Margaret was a strong character and no shrinking violet.  The story kept me guessing throughout and I once again stayed up too late as I just couldn’t put this book down.

The book was a five-star historical romance.  My only complaint is a rather strange one.  I LOVED the cover, but it made me think I was going to read the story of someone with African heritage in Regency England and I was excited on that prospect.  I was disappointed when the hero was a tall blond man, and no one appeared that matched the cover.  I am still waiting for that story!

Favorite Quotes:
“The fact is, he and I were more than friends.  More even than lovers.  We were soulmates.  As essential to each other as light or air.”

“I’m not some damsel in distress for you to rescue.”

Overall, Gentleman Jim is a perfect Regency romance with intrigue, love, revenge and swashbuckling adventure.  It’s another book that I couldn’t put down!

Book Source:  Review Copy for being a part of the Blog Tour.  Thank-you!

Amazing! A lovely historical romance that kept me up late at night. I have read a few of Mimi Matthew' novels and I find her to be a talented author. I can't wait to read more of her books!

Maggie Honeywell found the love of her life as a kid. Nicholas Seaton was a servant but her very best friend. Unfortunately Maggie was meant to marry Fredrick. Fredrick was mean and rude and had it out for Nicholas. One night he set Nicholas up and Nicholas had to run. He promised he'd come back for Maggie. Years later Maggie meets John Beresford who looks a lot like Nicholas but is he? I haven't read a historical romance in ages. Honestly the title drew me first and then the blurb seemed interesting so why not give it a try. Wonderful book with exciting characters with a tough leading lady who through everything stayed sassy even though she might have been dimmed for a while. Maggie and Nicholas seems so cute together and teenagers you find yourself rooting the John is Nicholas. Great wrap up from a new to me author.

Find out more about this book and author here www.mimimatthews.com

I’m a big fan of Mimi Matthews’s historical romances.

I love how her novels and novellas seem to effortlessly combine those two elements. I’m not a big reader of outright romance novels, so the fact that her characters have always won me over completely (s individuals and with the chemistry within the relationships) says a lot. The historical side is always meticulously researched but the little details and tidbits are woven in so that it never feels like a lecture or info-dump.

GENTLEMAN JIM is fun and fast-paced. Because of the hidden-identities and secret pasts storyline Matthews manages to combine both the depth of character chemistry and fun you get from established relationships with the will-they wont-they tension of a courtship. This is a second-chance romance story with a wonderful, rogueish twist.

I really enjoyed the mystery of Nicolas’ mother and father and how dynamic Maggie is as a heroine, jumping right in to uncover St Clare’s secret and to stake her claim on the future of her family estate. She’s spunky and bold, with enough flaws to make her incredibly likable. Likewise, St Clare is charming: suave and awkward in turns.

You’ll be rooting for them both.

I really enjoyed GENTLEMAN JIM, especially the dramatic duels, fistfights, and Count of Monte Cristo vibes.

It’s fast-paced with vibrant characters and would make a perfect introduction to Matthews’ writing. Fans of her writing won’t be disappointed either, but that’s really no surprise at this point, is it? When are we ever?

On the shelf. Ten years and multiple offers of marriage. Yet Margaret Honeywell remained single, and is for all intents and purposes, a spinster. She promised her heart to Nicholas Seaton when they were teens, but he has been gone for years. There is no one else that Maggie could possibly love, not even her guardian and ardent pursuer, Frederick Burton-Smythe.

A woman knows her heart. when John Beresford, Viscount St. Clare arrives on the scene after years spent away, Maggie's heart beats a familiar drum. THIS is why she waited. This is why she is alone. Her Nicholas is back. But, is he? Why is St. Clare claiming to be someone else, a man with prospects, and not the troubled Nicholas who has been long thought dead.

In a battle between love and vengeance, St. Clare has something to prove, even if looking into the beautiful eyes of Maggie brings tears to his own eyes. He has a mission, and that mission might keep them apart forever, making those ten years away ever more painful to consider.

What a great story by Mimi Matthews! I loved Maggie. Strong and determined from beginning to end, not willing to take no for an answer, no matter how steep the difficulties. I also enjoyed St. Clare, and his history ad reasonings, all the while hoping this couple could overcome the major obstacles facing them to find their forever happiness. This delightful story was an easy read, one that made my heart leap for joy and comes highly recommended. 

Many thanks to Perfectly Proper Press and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

I started reading this as a serialized novel on Mimi Matthews website.  Every month a new part would be released and I had such a hard time waiting because I always wanted MORE.  Finally, I got it.  Right here in a whole entire book to devour at once.

It's no secret that I adore all that Mimi Matthews writes.  She really hits my sweet spot as a reader.  Her characters come to life for me bringing with them emotion and struggle that I connect with.  I always feel so lucky to be reading her books.

As I said before, I've been anticipating this book for awhile since I started with it in a serialized format.  My heart has loved both Nicholas and Maggie from the beginning.  I loved the tension in this book between all the characters.  It grew as the story progressed and it led to some explosive and satisfying scenes.  Think duels, bar room brawls, secret rendezvous, and yes, some revenge.  The story and the characters were well developed.  I loved it all.  It was so, so good.

Content:  some profanity (God, Lord used as exclamations), mild peril, mild violence.  Kissing.

- I received a complimentary copy of this book.  I will be buying my own copy as soon as it is available.  All opinions expressed are my own.

Totally loved this story it had you questioning who Gentleman Jim really was and if St. Clare was legitimate or not to the very end. The story with Maggie & St. Claire is so dynamic with all the other characters. Maggie's a women who was raised to be as good as any other man and it causes her to get into some mischeif.
Reccommended read to anyone who likes a writer who walks the line with out giving too much detail.

I received a free Copy from Netgalley and this review is my own opinion.

This review will appear at All About Romance later this month.

Gentleman Jim
Mimi Matthews
November 10, 2020, HR (1800-1850)
Perfectly Proper Press, 376 pages, Amazon ASIN B0842YLCNF
Sensuality:  Kisses
Grade:  B+

Earlier this year I reviewed Fair as a Star by Mimi Matthews, and said it might be my favorite book of 2020.  But guess what?  Gentleman Jim might be even better.  I loved everything about this story - the set-up, the second chance romance, the principal characters, the pacing and tension, the swoony romance (le sigh) - and I was prepared to give it another DIK.  Until I read the epilogue.  Oh dear.  Ms. Matthew makes casual reference to the happy ever after of a villainous secondary character, and it nearly ruins the pleasure of this wonderful book.   I found this wholly unnecessary plot point deeply disturbing, and because of it, I’m unwilling to give Gentleman Jim the A it otherwise deserves. 

In a prologue we meet a bloodied and beaten Nicholas Seaton, a groom, locked in a loose box in the stables at Beasley Park.  Accused of stealing three pieces of heirloom jewelry, Nicholas is convinced no one will believe he’s innocent.

It made no difference that Nicholas hadn’t stolen anything.  What good were his protestations of innocence?  He was nothing but a lowly groom in Squire Honeywell’s stables.  A servant.  Even worse than a servant, in fact, for he was the bastard son of Squire Honeywell’s scullery maid, Jenny Seaton.

Jolly Jenny, as she was known, who - before arriving at the kitchen door of Beasley Park eighteen years ago, big with child and begging for scraps of food - had plied her trade at a hedge tavern in Market Barrow.  A hedge tavern that had once been a favored haunt of the notorious highwayman Gentleman Jim.

“The mother a whore and the father a villain,” the vicar’s wife, Mrs. Applewhite, was fond of telling anyone who would listen.

Before his accuser, Frederick Burton-Smythe, horsewhipped him into the loose box, Nicholas had spent the afternoon happily whiling away the day with his best friend in the whole world, Margaret Honeywell.  He laughed when Maggie told Fred to piss off after he happened upon them laughing and dancing in each other’s arms, but knew Freddy would later find a way to make him pay for the insult.  Instead of worrying, he spent the afternoon lying in the sun, laughing and talking to Maggie.  Nicholas knew Squire Honeywell and his neighbor, Sir Rodrick (Fred’s father), had hopes Maggie and Fred would one day marry and join their two great estates (as did Fred!), but Maggie was his.  A blood oath taken years ago had bound them together forever . . . But he needed no ritual to bind himself to Maggie Honeywell.  She was everything to him.  

Hearing a noise outside the locked box, Nicholas fears Fred has returned with the local magistrate.  But it’s Margaret.  After unlocking the door and explaining how she found him, she tries to convince him to stay.  Her efforts are in vain; when the prologue ends, Nicholas has fled Beasley Park and the love of his life, vowing to find his father and someday return to her.

When Gentleman Jim picks up ten years later, Margaret has only recently come out of mourning after the death of her father and then her aunt, and she’s still recovering from a near-death bout of influenza she caught while nursing a dying Jenny Seaton.  She’s en route to visit a close friend in London, and lamenting the quick passage of time.  Her father died hoping she would one day marry Fred, and left Fred executor of the estate in his will.  Fred holds her money and property in trust until she marries, but Margaret knows he’ll never approve of a marriage to anyone but him.  With only six months of the allotted time left for her to marry before the estate reverts to him, Margaret is reconciled to a future at Beasley Park as his wife.  

When Margaret finally arrives, she’s exhausted but happy to see her good friend Jane Trumball.  When Jane suggests they go shopping for new dresses, Margaret reluctantly confesses why she’s wearing such a dowdy dress (she hates asking Fred for money).  But then Jane remarks that Fred is due for a comeuppance of his own, revealing that he’s challenged another man to a duel the following morning.  The news scares her.  If Fred were to die, she isn’t sure who will control her trust or Beasley Park.  She sends a note requesting Fred pay her a visit, but he refuses to discuss the duel or what will happen should he die.  The visit does nothing to assuage her fears and so, with help from Jane, she makes plans to pay a late night visit to the man he’s challenged, John Beresford, Viscount St. Clare.

Oh friends!  You know who he is don’t you?  Well, Margaret does too - but when he turns around to greet his visitor, Mrs. Ivey (a fake name used in case servants gossipped about her late night visit), Margaret promptly faints in surprise.  When she awakens in his arms, she’s confused.  Is it Nicholas?  Lord St. Clare, visibly startled when she finally confesses her true name, quickly masks his reaction.  He appears amused by her request not to kill Fred, but agrees not to kill him in return for three forfeits to be collected at a time of his own choosing.  Still reeling from her certainty that Lord St. Clare is in fact Nicholas Seaton, the love of her life, Margaret agrees to the deal.

Much to my surprise, despite knowing John is Nicholas, I enjoyed watching this deceit play out in Gentleman Jim.  In Ms. Matthew's clever hands, John’s deception made sense, and I empathized with his struggle to keep himself at a remove from Maggie, while remaining true to his grandfather and his commitment to Allendale.  And anyway, from the moment they’re reunited in his home, it’s clear their love for each other has only grown more intense with the passage of time, and that it’s only a matter of time before they’re confessing it.  I was willing to wait.  Ms. Matthews slowly and irrevocably winds up the tension between them, and the wait is delicious torture.  Yes, he’s Nicholas to Maggie; but by the time we meet up with Nicholas again, he’s shed his past and its shackles; he’s no longer Nicholas, a lowly stable boy.  He’s John Beresford, only heir to the Earl of Allendale, and he’s spent a decade abroad under his grandfather’s stewardship, refining this new role in life.  Margaret’s visit comes at a precipitous time for him  - a distant relation has cast doubts on his legitimacy and threatens to strip him of his title; he has much to lose admitting to his past.  But his love for Maggie is all-consuming; her love derails all his good intentions and plans, and fills him with a happiness he can’t resist.  We know she feels the same, and it’s a treat watching and waiting for them to finally confess it to each other.

While I loved Maggie and Nicholas/John from the moment we met them in the prologue, who, you might be asking, is Gentleman Jim, and why does he matter to this story?  That, my friends, is for you to discover!  Although Gentleman Jim is primarily a second chance love story, it also features an engrossing parallel plot related to St. Clare’s origins - and that story is equally engrossing.   The secondary characters - Fred, and the treacherous Beresford relations - make for wonderful villains, and their shenanigans kept me turning pages, waiting for their well deserved comeuppance.  Yes, the love story is swoony and wonderful, full of lovely sexual tension, but the secondary plot is excellent, too.

The release of a new book by Mimi Matthews is always cause for celebration.  It's like hitting the lottery...on Christmas!  Each one is an absolute joy to read.  Haven't read any of her work?  Why not?  Seriously, what is wrong with you?!  Of course I jest (kind of).  If you love romance in general and historical romance in particular, you will get lost in the beautiful stories created by this talented writer.  If she is new to you, this is the perfect book with which to start, as it is a stand-alone story.

Margaret Honeywell is the daughter of a wealthy squire, said squire wanting his daughter to marry neighbor Frederick Burton-Smythe when she is grown.  Maggie, however, wants nothing to do with him.  Her heart and soul belong to Nicholas Seaton, a bastard who works for her father.  Fred frames Nicholas for stealing Maggie's jewelry in order to get rid of him.  Nicholas escapes with Maggie's help, and he's determined to find his reputed father, an infamous highwayman known as Gentleman Jim.  Ten years later Maggie presumes that her love has died.  Enter handsome and dangerous John Beresford, Viscount St. Clare.  He is recently returned from Italy and is helping his grandfather restore family honor; a little revenge wouldn't go amiss, either.  When Maggie meets St. Clare, she believes him to be someone else.  St. Clare wants his revenge, but he cannot help but be drawn to fiery Maggie.  Will they find the love they each crave, or will danger tear them apart?

SO.  DARN.  ROMANTIC.  I'd swoon if I was the swooning type.  This was such a beautiful story!  Both the heroine and hero were strong characters, and neither overshadowed the other.  Maggie was incredible - she was in mourning for two years and suffered from frail health after a dreadful bout of influenza, yet she never lost her boldness and strength.  No withering wallflower was our Maggie!  St. Clare was so focused on revenge and helping his grandfather keep his estate from falling into the hands of an odious cousin, yet Maggie's beauty and strength called to him.  He was a hard man, but allowed Maggie to soften his heart.  Besides passionate kisses, intimacy was behind closed doors.  However, the passion was real; it was tangible and permeated the story.  The romance was perfect, but we also had the excitement of a mystery, fisticuffs and even a duel.  Dive into this divine book, and I guarantee you will be a fan of Ms. Matthews for life.

I received an ARC of this book courtesy of the publisher and NetGalley.  I received no compensation for my review, and all thoughts and opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Mimi Matthews ventures into the Regency era rather than her usual Victorian with this romance, but as usual, the book is filled with period details and characters that are easy to root for. The overall plot is modeled after one of my favorite books as a teenager, The Count of Monte Cristo, a book that is rarely the inspiration for a romance but which is used to good effect here. I loved Maggie, a heroine who is physically weak due to a bad case of influenza, but whose mind and spirit are strong. She's determined to seize as much happiness as she can in spite of the way her deceased father tried to use her love for her estate to tie her into the marriage he desired for her with the obnoxious, bully who is heir of the neighboring estate. She also doesn't hesitate to come right out and confront Viscount St, Clare with her suspicions of his "real" identity, that of her long-lost love, Nicholas. I'm not going into spoiler territory, I'll just say that her hero is definitely worthy of her love. The author even had a brief highwayman scene just to get a few extra Regency trope points. After all, Nicholas'' father was rumored to be a famous highwayman, so the scene made perfect sense. It was also refreshing to read a standalone romance for once. Instead of dealing with sequel bait in the form of Maggie's best friend, she was given a resolution to her own romance in the epilogue. I would recommend this romance to anyone who enjoys historicals.

Is there anything more satisfying than reading a gripping novel from start to finish is one sitting?! I absolutely loved being able to binge read Gentleman Jim and felt totally immersed in the story. I loved the depth of friendship in Nicholas and Maggie's youth, and they practically jumped off the page. They both changed drastically over time, but their core personalities are the same, allowing them to reignite that connection. The author skillfully reveals the most vulnerable parts of Nicholas that only Maggie can soothe, bringing layers to both characters that make them soulmates. Complex family relationships work to keep them apart, making it seem as though they cannot have a future together without sacrificing everything. I enjoyed the elements of intrigue, revenge, and the plot twists that kept me glued to the page, as well as the passionate romance. One of my favorites of 2020 for sure. Highly recommend!

Disclosure statement: A complimentary copy of this book was provided from a tour group, publisher, publicist, or author, including NetGalley, OR was borrowed from the library, including OverDrive, OR borrowed from Kindle Unlimited, OR purchased. A review was not required and all views and opinions expressed are unbiased and my own.

Oh this was a good book. There were a few times I had to read ahead because I just had to know what was going to happen. I loved Maggie's character. She was so strong and determined. I also loved her friend Jane and her aunt. She was funny. Jane was a good friend and support to Maggie. There were a few villains in this story that were very well written. I didn't like any of them from the beginning. This was a great mystery and romance and I really enjoyed it.

I found this to be rather different from Mimi Matthews' previous books. Not better or worse, just a different change of pace. I loved it! It had me up late into the night reading page after page.
The start is jarring and had me worried for Nicholas. Frederick Smythe-Burton plays the slimy villain well, a typical bully who uses his superior position to browbeat Margaret. She has declined after illness and mourning her father; her seemingly unavoidable future further dampening her spirit.
Enter John Beresford, Viscount St. Clare to inadvertently draw Margaret out of her stupor. Is he Nicholas or is it just an uncanny resemblance to the love of her life?
I read a free advance copy I received from NetGalley; the thoughts expressed are my own.

—‘Wait and hope.’ Alexandre Dumas

I found myself enchanted by the delicate yet determined Margaret Honeywell from wealthy landed gentry stock and the wonderful John Beresford, Viscount St. Clare.
As St. Clare reflects, "a shapely scrap of femininity—altogether too weak and frail." He'd had an overpowering urge to protect her.
A tale of lost love, of lost identity and an eventual HEA Victorian romance to be reckoned with.
We begin with an illegitimate stable boy, rumoured son of highway rogue Gentleman Jim,  Seaton and a young mistress of the house separated by the dastardly  accusations of a jealous youthful neighbor, Frederick Burton-Smythe.
That neighbor grows into the bully he already was, placed by her father's will as Maggie's guardian. Determined to marry her, Smythe makes her life miserable and then St .Clare arrives in London from the continent, a man in whom Maggie sees a whisper of her beloved youthful companion Nicholas. Will Nicholas come to the fore or is this truly St. Clare?
Smythe is a ghastly man, absolutely convinced of his own worth and his right to order both Maggie and her holdings around in any way he sees fit. Associated villains, particularly St. Clare's aunt are suitably underhanded.
A rewarding tale of true love, with a full measure of danger and pitfalls along the way.

A Victory Editing ARC via NetGalley 
Please note: Quotes taken from an advanced reading copy maybe subject to change
(Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.)

Mimi Matthews is one of my go-to-authors when I'm itching for a good romance with an exciting storyline. I think Gentleman Jim is her best yet! Matthews grabs our attention from the first scenes and manages to create a story filled with romance, longing, revenge, swashbuckling fun and a satisfying ending.
Margaret Honeywell is a spunky young teenager when she falls in love with Nicholas Seaton. But Nicholas is a servant in her household and she is a wealthy squire's daughter. Frederick Burton-Smythe is her intended and he sets Nicholas up to get caught for stealing, a crime punishable by hanging. Nicholas manages to escape and Margaret is left heartbroken and waiting for him for years. He is her soulmate and she will not forget him. Ten years later she meets Viscount St. Clare who she believes to be Nicholas, even though he is quite different in character. Could he be the young man she fell in love with so many years ago?

We are kept guessing throughout the novel, while Matthews builds the tension between our two protagonists. This is a clean romance, but Matthews heats up the passion between our two lovers. The emotions are real and heartfelt. I could feel Margaret's years of longing for her lost first love, of wanting to be able to make her own decisions when it comes to her inheritance or who she wants to marry. She experiences losses and comes to a certain acceptance without ever losing hope that one day Nicholas will return to her. I could feel Viscount St. Clare's anger at the injustice he has seen and lived. He is swoonworthy for sure, but he is not someone to cross. Years of training on the Continent has made him tough, but he is falling hard for Margaret, and circumstances get in the way of their desire to be together.

This was such a good read! Both the main characters and the secondary character are fleshed out. I loved the loyalty of Margaret's lady's maid and also her friend Jane. The pacing is perfect, the dialogue witty, the plot well executed and the romance heartfelt and beautiful. 

If you like proper historical romances filled with emotions that are a little more bold than the usual clean romances, this one is sure to please.