Review: “Going Rogue” (Rogues and Ribbons Book 1), by Jessica Jefferson



I received this book from the author in exchange for my honest review.
 
“Going Rogue” is a romance set between 1811 and 1817 in London.  Meredith Castle is a young woman who is not in control of her own destiny.  Her mother sends her away to live with her widowed aunt, Lady Cynthia Browning, who wishes to give her a better life than can be expected in the county side of Middlebury.  What Meredith doesn’t realize is that her aunt is bringing her to London for the sole purpose of leading a group of socialite women called the, “Ribbons,” who are failing under improper leadership.  Lady Cynthia refuses to let the organization that she created to help young women find wealthy husbands and attain high-ranking titles, fail without a fight.  Meredith is unwittingly thrust into the world of parties and social events geared toward securing a well off husband, at any cost.

One day, her childhood friend Derek arrives to tell Meredith that he wants her to marry him.  He doesn’t have much to offer her, except for love.  Meredith coldly refuses him.  Derek is heartbroken and runs to join a shipping company that deals in overseas transportation and tries to forget about Meredith.  A few years later, Meredith has wasted her years in the Ribbons and must find a husband quickly before her damaged reputation sees to it that she will never find a good husband.  When a mysterious Earl arrives in town all the women begin vying for his attention, but who is the Earl?  And why is Meredith so upset by his presence?

I personally loved the interaction between Meredith and Derek.  Their heated arguments and heated relations make the book interesting and exciting to read.  The romance between them is enticing and I couldn’t get enough of them.

The one thing that I thought was strange was the fact that the ladies in the “Ribbons” were nowhere to be seen.  We only see Meredith’s friend Alexandra, or “Alex,” but we don’t see the gaggle of women whose primary mission is to find a husband.  I liked that Ms. Jefferson opted not to slow down the story by inserting silly girls talking about silly things and instead focused the book on Meredith’s abhorrence of the society’s goals.

Ms. Jefferson infuses the story with intrigue, wit, and sexual tension while commenting on the despicable social trend of marrying for wealth and status, rather than love.  I had trouble putting the book down and am curious to see if there is a planned series.  I gave this 5 stars and look forward to future books from Ms. Jefferson.

 If you love a good romance, than this book is perfect!


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