A Rogue to Ruin (The Pretenders #3). By Darcy Burke. 2021. Darcy Burke Publishing (ARC eBook).

A Rogue to Ruin is the first book of the series I’ve read and it read well enough to be read as a stand-alone. I liked the trips that Rafe and Anne go on in the beginning when they were keeping their identities secret. The two had believable chemistry, but Rafe was definitely confused in how to proceed with finding the truth, muddying his motivations toward Anne that was a bit worrisome for the romance. Overall, Rafe’s redemption and rebirth storyline was engaging and Anne was indeed a believable “Miss Dazzling.”

I enjoyed this book much more than the previous one I read by Darcy Burke. It wasn’t quite so melancholy. I do wish there would be been more emotion, the love between Rafe and Anne didn’t seem fully fledged out. For Anne it seemed to be insta love and for Rafe it didn’t feel quite real. The sex scenes were good and descriptive. I enjoyed the story line, I just wish the romance would have been more front and center and more detailed.

I just love the characters is this book. This book is full of fun and second chances. It's plenty steamy too. I finished it in a day just couldn't put it down.

[Note: I just realized I posted a review for a different book here, and I apologize for the inconvenience. I have removed it, but am not sure how to delete this post. Instead, I will update with a review of A Rogue to Ruin soon.]

A wonderful end to The Pretenders (or is it?), with characters from The Spitfire and Untouchables making guest appearances. At last Rafe and Selina find out who they really are and what happened to them. But before that, before Ann Pemberton's almost disastrous wedding to Gilbert Chamberlain, before the season began, she found solace in reading at Hatchard's, a bookshop and a friend in "Lord Bodyguard", a man who had rescued her from some obnoxious young men. To him she was Mrs Dazzling, not revealing their true identities, he escorted her to places she was never able to go and she found herself falling in love with him. But then her parents basically put her on house arrest and without knowing his identity, could not let him know that she was unable to meet him. Heartbroken, she agree to Chamberlain's proposal, but was rescued at the last minute, by his arrest. But as the woman, she is the one who is held in shame by society. Meanwhile, Rafe, Selina and Beatrix find clues to the folly that Rafe remember, which leads Rafe to being reunited with Anne. As much as he tries to push her away because of his past, she knows who she wants and is not going to be pushed. Some twists and danger, but they finally do get their HEA.

I read an ARC provided by NetGAlley.com. This is my unbiased and voluntary review.

How is it that Darcy Burke's Untouchables series keeps getting better and better? Rafe and Anne have an amazing story. Rafe is driven for revenge and feels he can't love and wants to keep Anne from his cold heart. Anne has had enough. Her fiance' was arrested at her wedding no less. She's stronger and more determined. Rafe isn't going to know what hit him.

Thank you so much NetGalley for a chance to read and review this book! I'm sorry to say I didn't really care for it and it really bored me. Even the whodunnit thing really didn't interest me.

Darcy Burke writes purely enjoyable books. Even if you're reading something that you know has been done and done before, she still finds a way to breathe fresh life into her words.

This is another completely fun read.

I received an eARC from Darcy Burke Publishing through NetGalley in exchange for my review. All opinions shared are mine and are influenced by nothing other than my own reading experience.

The connection between Anne and Rafe is instantaneous at the beginning of the book. I loved Anne’s character especially in the beginning of the book where she is fearless and someone that takes control of her own life. Even Rafe’s characters (yes, it does seem like he is playing many different characters during the course of this series) are intriguing. I feel like a lot of information was packed in this book and that created some confusion or at least whiplash. I also would highly recommend this as part of the series because you will miss certain parts of the story arc if you read it as a stand-alone. The sex scenes were a little boring and tepid. I especially didn’t find the kind of connection in them that Rafe and Anne had in the beginning of the book.

I received this ARC from NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review*

Anne was a desperate girl who desperately wanted to get acknowledged by Rafe.
It's safe to say that I didn't like it. I was excited to read this book after reading the synopsis. But alas! And not-so-uncommon. All I got was disappointment. Whatever! I wouldn't suggest this book to anyone who love a strong female character. The choice is totally yours.

Another winner. Has all the components of a great story. Bad boy trying to be good, mystery and a determined women. Rafe has his own little kingdom in London’s shady side of town. He has decided to turn the leaf and try to discover who his parents were. He has little memories of when he was 5 years old and his nurse had taken him and his sister away from a burning building that his parents had died in.
Trying to make amends to his sister, Selina, who he hadn’t seen in many years. Buying a mansion in London elite section, leaving behind his criminal past is where the story starts.
In a chance meeting he finds himself giving aid to a mysterious woman wearing a veil in Hatchard’s. Intrigued by the mystery women, they decided not to introduce themselves and nicknamed themselves Lord Bodyguard and Mrs. Dazzling. They had a few sightseeing adventures, but then life intruded and they hadn’t seen each other in months.
Anne has never forgotten Lord Bodyguard, but didn’t know how to contact him. Hiding out at her sister after a broken engagement, she meets Lord Bodyguard again when he visits her brother in law.
The roller coaster ride begins, a fast paced well written read.

 I am voluntarily posting an honest review after reading an Advance Reader Copy of this story.

3.5 stars.
This was an enjoyable historical romance, it was also great to have a well written mystery as part of the plot too.
I loved how open and honest Anne was, she was a brave and kind main character without being over the top or unbelievable. All the characters were well written, and believable.

Thank you to Netgalley and Darcy Burke Publishing for this digital copy. All thoughts are my own.

Lots of questionable choices made throughout, but it was a fun read. 3/5 stars.

I've come to realize that as long as I like the characters within the story, more often than not I'll lean towards a 3 star rating even though the plot itself could be a little baffling at times. That was definitely the case for this book. I really liked Rafe and Anne. I thought they were excellent characters. I also appreciated the characters that they surrounded themselves with, their loved ones and their found family. However, I do wish that we got to see more of them as a found family.

Let's get into those questionable choices now though, because oh boy were there a lot. I wish the prologue was expanded upon more. Rafe and Anne's love story (at least the part where they meet and come to care for one another) is shoved into the opening prologue. I hate when authors do this. I want to see the relationship develop. I want to witness those burgeoning feelings of care into love. Because it was so short, it felt so much like insta-love (and to be honest there was a little bit of that going on from Anne's side). It just would've been more satisfying to see them meet again if we had that time to get to know the two of them and their love beforehand. Then, when the two finally do meet, they're basically consumed by their attraction to one another - which usually I love - but if you have your two leads have sex right after a life altering fight instead of talking things through first, I'm gonna have some issues. Other than a few gripes through, I did like Rafe and Anne separately and together.

Something else this book suffers from is lots of telling and not a lot of showing. Much of the main plot threads are told to us from side characters, which is fine... but if you're trying to give us a murder mystery, at least make the hunt for the killer compelling. This happens a lot throughout the book, which becomes incredibly frustrating to read through.

The first 30% of this book was also like a rollercoaster. I felt like I kept getting whiplash because there was new information thrown at me every few pages. Most historical romances that are part of a series can act as standalones with minor Easter eggs thrown in to reward readers who have stuck with the series, but for the most part you're not missing anything substantial if you don't read the other books. I went into this book thinking that was the case. However, this really felt like the ending of a series and I was missing all the important pieces and had to fill in the gaps myself. Just know that if you want to read this story, it'd probably be a good idea to read the first two books as well.

So overall, was the plot the best thing I have ever come across? No. But I had a good time.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars because historical romances with a healthy dose of drama and intrigue make me happy.

The first thing that drew me to this book was the title and the cover was a close second. After reading the description I believed I had a good idea of what to expect but boy was I wrong! This story kept me delightfully engaged and had me constantly guessing at what the outcome would be (yes, I do that).

I enjoyed Rafe and Anne's banter and the way their relationship developed over time. I loved how Anne did not allow the rules of society and/or propriety to dictate how she should behave or live her life. Anne is free-spirited and daring and challenged Rafe at every opportunity, he had no choice but to fall in love with her.

Rafe is the type of man that catches your eye because he is so beautiful to look at but ends up keeping your attention because of how beautiful his soul is. I loved how he did not try to dissuade Anne from embarking on her various adventures, rather he became her guide and bodyguard. He is hardworking, ambitious and compassionate.

I truly enjoyed the adventures of Mrs Dazzling and Lord Bodyguard

thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the free copy in exchange for an honest review! all thoughts and opinions are my own.

historical romances can be a hit or miss for me, so i had some trepidation heading into this novel. to my surprise, it was amazing and i loved it!

i really the main characters, anne and rafe. they were fantastic, kind people who deserved the love. anne is a lady, who had become the subject of rumors due to the failure of her engagement, while rafe is a commoner who worked hard to become known as a gentleman.

i loved the part where anne and rafe met in the bookshop and continued to meet each other. you could see their friendship slowly bloom into love, which rafe tries to block and anne tries to nurture. they don't know each other's names, and when anne doesn't show up one day, rafe stops coming to their spot. anne has no way of contacting rafe to apologize, but she keeps going to the bookshop, hoping that she could see rafe there.

thankfully, they accidentally meet up again and learn each other's identities. the romance progresses, and anne is frustrated that rafe tries to avoid her advances. nevertheless, she's strong and brave and doesn't back down.

there was a lot of cute scenes as well as family drama, which proved to be difficult for anne to handle, because she didn't want to hurt any of the men involved. rafe learns about his true heritage, and digs deeper into the mystery that is of his dead parents, as well as the fire that they were involved in. rafe was presumed to be dead, but he is actually supposed to be a duke.

anne and rafe's relationship became stronger throughout the book and they find solace and relief in each other. they were truly meant for each other, and i enjoyed watching their romance blossom. this was overall a great read, and i really enjoyed all aspects of it! i would definitely recommend for anyone looking for a great historical romance read!

3.5 Stars because Heroes with Heterochromia Make Me Swoon.

Thanks to Darcy Burke Publishing and NetGalley for this copy. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Darcy Burke is one of those authors that I tend to really enjoy because even when she writes to a trope, it always feels a little different. I think that A Rogue To Ruin is yet another in a long list where she pulls this off. I am rather adamantly NOT a fan of the ‘lost lord/street-urchin-turned-peer’ trope because it always feels implausible, a little silly, and a little ignorant of the circumstances of nobility in the past. I also rarely enjoy the execution of this trope in general. Here? I thought it was extremely well plotted and executed in terms of how this story should unfold to make it feel more believable.
Why do I feel the need to give this a rather middling rating? Well, while I adored the character descriptions of our hero and heroine here and their meet-cute was utterly brilliant… I found the execution of their roles and relationship to be 1) suffering from an imbalance of feeling and 2) rather one-dimensional. It is all well and good to have this push and pull between the main characters, and I find nowadays (and very lately) heroines are the ones pushing heroes away. SO, I really enjoyed that Anne was totally committed from the get-go. What I took issue with was, when Rafe was… actually kind of mean to her? And a little mercurial?... it would have been interesting to see this fierce side to Anne where she stood up to him, called him out, that sort of thing. Instead, the litany of, “I will love you no matter what, and be with you however you will have me,” got a little tired after a while. Mainly, because Rafe from around 30-60% doesn’t show much affection beyond attraction. His internal dialogue wasn’t empathetic or interested in Anne, it was directed to his ‘brokenness’ and his grief over his first wife. As a result, I never felt Anne’s devotion melded with Rafe’s ambivalence toward her. It wasn’t until he admits to loving her, which came slightly out of left field, that I started to believe he returned her feelings. I think there was a lot of potential that is almooooostt fulfilled in their relationship dynamic but slightly missed the mark. The thing that had me rooting for Rafe, even in the face of his confusion motivations and inconsistent behaviour, was honestly how handsome he was. Which sounds terrible, but I am a sucker for blonde heroes. Add in that Henry Cavill-esque heterochromia and I was like, “I don’t care what you do, you hunk.”
No but really though, all other aspects were great. I liked the adventures Anne and Rafe went on, I liked that execution of the family dynamics. I liked the dynamic with Ludlow Mallory, the Usurping Lord Stone. It was only aspects of Rafe and Anne’s love story that fell a little flat for me. I think it would have been as simply as a slightly different inner dialogue and adjusting the dialogue and it would have been a *Chef’s Kiss*
That said, I really enjoyed this book and will happily consume any series spinoffs from this one. Lorcan (Rafe’s cousin) falling in love with an Irish beauty perhaps? That would be cool. Evil female character Deborah (Rafe’s other cousin) getting a redemption book, maybe reconnecting with her husband? Even better. And these are both stories I know Darcy Burke could deliver with aplomb.
There were some things I’d tweak, but only a little! Recommend especially if you love this trope and like lots of steam. Oulala, the steam. Many love the MC’s dynamic so give this a go!

This was my first read by Durke. I was pleasantly surprised as it was a good book.

The only problem I had was that the book seemed so rushed. I would have preferred to see the MCs actually falling in love with each other but it was all very fast and hence seemed to lack a real connection.

There were many plot points and the book seemed to rush through all of them.

Overall, it was a good read. The writing flowed well and the characters were well written. Overall, recommended.

3.5 stars out of 5 rounded up

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley. It doesn't impact my opinion in any way.

While I enjoyed this book, and a little bit of the mystery, and the romance between Anne and Rafe, I feel like it relies too much on other books for any other characters. It's a somewhat interconnected detailed story that just seemed like it was missing something.

If you need a fun historical romance to lose a couple of hours, this would be my pick! Burke is known for her mysterious heroes and their vulnerable heroines.. but this takes it to another level. Her characterization of Rafe makes him a dashing character even with his villain past and grotesque scar.. yet she gives him a character arch worthy of an earl. *wink*

I would recommend Darcy Burke’s novels for the sheer enjoyment, but this added a bit more emotional gravitas.

rating: 3.7

cons: mostly subjective so bear that in mind.
First of all, I did not feel a lot of chemistry between the MCs. I found that we should have spent more time with them together before they realized that they are in love.
I was disappointed to see that there was not much drama in the book. There were several revelations in the story but the descriptions were not as I wanted. I mean there was a lot of things that are very historical romance like dramatic, like the many identities of the hero and him finding he is a noble. However, there is not much drama in the writing. I did not feel the characters emotions. Of course I think its related to the fact that I did not feel chemistry between them.

pros:
I liked that the villain of the story is not a typical villain. He is not crazy, vengeful or evil. he is a normal man who did something horrible. It shows that you cannot judge a person based on how they treat you alone. That is also unfortunately a characteristic of abusers. To Anne, her god-father and even Deborah were good, but not to Jane, Rafe and Selina. I am glad Anne saw that when presented with the evidence.
I liked that Rate loved his 1st wife and after he met Anne it was about letting her go and heal himself instead of saying he loves Anne more than Eliza.