4.5 rounded to 5

Cord, Cord, Cord. Who wouldn’t want this brooding hunk of man to defend their honor?? (No one.)

I don’t usually read romances set in this time period or in the US and was surprised by how much I liked it. The real charm of this novel are the characters. O’Connell’s world building is impressive here. The Bennett’s are a family full of character and will. Anne gets fleshed out in 3D and it’s a pleasure to watch her develop her own identity. And of course, Cord. He’s so easy to root for, with such depth of character and appeal.

A minor shortcoming in my opinion: As a longtime romance reader who has probably read hundreds of intimate scenes by this point (!!), I will say that I think the intimate scenes here should have been fleshed out more (no pun intended). They’re not closed door scenes where you don’t expect details. These are open door scenes with minimal detail. In romance novels, these scenes aren’t just for the pleasure of the reader, they’re often part of the characters’ development and the plot in some way. I think more fully seeing Anne and Cord’s physical intimacy grow alongside their emotional intimacy would have added additional depth to the story. While some of that is there, more would have been better.

Overall, I found this to be a unique and enjoyable book, and recommend it!