Oh! My! Goodness!! When you have - A desperate, but smart, brave, and determined governess; a sweet, lovely, delightful, but abused orphan; a gaming-club owner who disdains society and certainly has no desire to ever be an aristocrat; and a sinfully rich and powerful villain who is reviled by all of society – you also have a wonderful story to tell. This excellently written, well-paced book is the result of that combination and I definitely recommend it.

Our desperate governess, Emilia (Millie) Green, is just that – desperate. Desperate to keep a roof over their heads and desperate to protect her young charge, Lucinda (Lucy) who was woefully abused and neglected by her father, Viscount Sydenham. Lucy’s father has even managed to abuse her from the grave by naming Baron Fitchley as her guardian. Emilia will do anything to protect Lucy and that is why she has spent the last several months desperately researching the lineage of Viscount Sydenham hoping – praying – to find an heir as there are currently no known descendants of the line. The title will go into abeyance and the properties to the crown if an heir isn’t found. Emilia has finally found the only heir and she intends to share her research with him. Surely, someone in his circumstances would leap at the chance to become a member of the peerage. Wouldn’t they?

Nicholas (Nick) Dashwood is a rich, handsome, self-made man who owns a gaming club and thoroughly disdains aristocrats. He’s seen them gamble away their fortunes and their homes as well as being involved in all sorts of debauchery. Why in the world would that little termagant who breached the protected walls of his club ever think she could convince him, of all people, that he was, or would want to be, an aristocrat? Never going to happen in his lifetime!

As I started to read, I immediately became invested in the characters, their lives, and the desperate circumstances of Lucy and Emilia. I have long been a fan of Nick who has been so instrumental in helping others in the series find their HEAs, so I was just tickled pink to have him find his own. With such awful families to overcome, it is hard to see how both Nick and Emilia became the caring individuals they are. The attraction was immediate, but the romance was a bit of a slow burn – which was perfect for the situation. The vile and nasty villain got his proper punishment and I was so happy to see that. Then, there were some lovely cameo appearances by characters from some of those previous books and it was nice to have a visit with them.

Yes, it was a lovely read and I can definitely recommend it. It is part of a wonderful series, and I highly recommend that as well, but this can be read as a total standalone should you wish to do so. I had thought this was the last book in the series, but with the way a certain character was shown, I have to wonder if maybe there will be more books in this series – or if that character will begin a new series. I guess we’ll just have to wait to find out.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. ( )