A very sweet story that doesn't really get bogged down in the time period (also doesn't ignore it either). But I really loved the romantic moments, you could really tell this was written by a romantic because there are some beautiful lines here. I really enjoy the fact that Tommy and Philippa get involved in hijinks with each other and that they make a really good team in their heists. Tommy's flexibility and ease with which she takes on characters is pretty neat too. The passion was pretty nice, I wasn't really expecting some light power dynamics from a historical fiction, so I was pleasantly surprised. Definitely a book I'm going to suggest to others.

The rest of the series seems to be straight, but this book by itself was interesting enough I might go check out the other books. No triggers that come to mind either, a real comfy, romantic read. ( )

In the previous book in this series, which I haven't read, Miss Philippa York was betrothed to a duke who fell in love with that book's heroine instead, and married her. Thankfully, Philippa wasn't in love with him and doesn't mind, and she and Chloe, the woman the duke married, are friends. However, Philippa understands that she does still need to marry someone. Because of an inheritance, she doesn't need money, but it would help her father's political ambitions a great deal if she married someone with a title. The problem is that Philippa is a bluestocking who'd much rather host her reading circle than moon over some duke, and she's well aware that marriage could spell the end of all the activities she enjoys.

Thomasina Wynchester is a master of disguise who regularly assists with the cases her family takes on. Although she previously never had trouble charming ladies into her bed, now there's only one woman who interests her: Philippa. Unfortunately, she can't even bring herself to have a normal conversation with her. The best she's managed is to attend Philippa's reading circle disguised as Chloe's slightly senile "great-aunt." With some encouragement from her family, however, she does finally manage to talk to and flirt with Philippa...disguised as Baron Vanderbean.

As the Wynchesters help Philippa with a case involving an old manuscript and a man taking credit for the work done by one of Philippa's reading circle friends, Tommy wonders if she can somehow win Philippa's heart as herself and what will happen to the two of them if she succeeds.

This was an impulse purchase, inspired by a random trip to my local Walmart and spotting it in the tiny books section that's sadly the largest source of new books in my town. The cover is inaccurate in multiple ways, but this is one of those times when the message is more important than accuracy. It doesn't matter that Tommy, the brunette, never dressed as a young lady on-page as far as I can remember (I don't count the one brief flashback that I assume happened in Book 1). What matters is that, generally, when two people are depicted on the cover of a romance novel aimed at adults, those two people are the couple, and in this case that couple is a pair of women. On the cover of a physical book sold in a Walmart in my conservative Texas town. Kudos to whoever made that happen.

I went into this wanting to love it, but I was initially frustrated at the way Philippa was depicted. I don't know how often Philippa thought about her "cold, dead heart," but it was a lot. I got really tired of it, especially since Philippa's behavior didn't seem to match up with her assessment of herself - she certainly seemed to enjoy Baron Vanderbean's company and think about him a lot. I assumed the author was setting up for a clumsy scene in which Philippa discovered that the Baron was actually a woman, at which time her heart would miraculously cease being cold and dead and she'd realize she was a lesbian. In reality, although the word was never used, the author actually intended to indicate that Philippa was demisexual. I'm not the best person to judge how well that was accomplished, but I can at least say that it didn't really work for me.

Tommy was fun - very charming, particularly when she was pretending to be Baron Vanderbean and indicating her interest in Philippa. I loved the scene where Philippa attempted to bat her eyelashes flirtatiously, and Tommy was delighted even though she failed miserably. Tommy adored Philippa, which could be both nice and annoying. I winced at one scene in which Tommy allowed Philippa to accompany her on a mission and they almost messed everything up because they were too into kissing each other.

Oh, FYI, it would probably be more accurate to call this a nb/f romance rather than f/f romance - same as "demisexual," the word "nonbinary" was never used and Tommy didn't mind being referred to as "she," but a couple conversations made it clear that she didn't really consider herself to be either a woman or a man.

I could definitely tell that I was missing out on some events and character info by starting this series with Book 2, but Tommy and Philippa's story still worked fine on its own. More than likely, every Wynchester is going to get their own book, and the ones I'm most looking forward to are Graham and probably Jacob, although his hordes of expertly trained animals of all kinds might be a bit much in a full novel. In general, some of the Wynchester quirkiness was almost too much for me. This is the sort of series I'd have to save for when I'm in the right mood.

I wasn't sure how the romance could possibly work out. Philippa needed to marry a man with a title. Tommy could pretend to be Baron Vanderbean, but she didn't want to spend her entire life as someone else. In order to solve this problem, the author did something I thought was very interesting, although I was a bit disappointed that she didn't completely follow through. Major spoilers from here on out.

Like me, Philippa assumed that her and Tommy's HEA would be accomplished by her marrying Baron Vanderbean. "Baron" wasn't as good as "duke" in her parents' eyes, but she figured it'd be good enough. However, instead of going through with it because she adored Philippa, Tommy refused. Temporary disguises were fine, but she didn't want to have to become Baron Vanderbean for the rest of her life.

Philippa then realized that if she wanted to be happy and live her life with Tommy, she'd have to risk disappointing her parents and being cut off by them. In many, many other LGBT romances I've read, this would be the point where Philippa's parents would discover she was a lesbian and maybe initially be shocked and disappointed but then become accepting. Ridley didn't exactly subvert this, but she did do something that got me to thinking about the expectations for stories like these.

Philippa's parents never actually found out the truth about the Baron, or Philippa's relationship with Tommy, but they accepted that she wouldn't be following the path they'd hoped she'd take and let her go. They didn't cut her off, but there was no mention of them in the book's "several months later" final chapter. Even though it would have upset Philippa, I kind of wished that Philippa's parents had been harsher in their final scene, because it's so rare to read (or watch) romance stories in which characters with toxic parents realize that sometimes the only way to achieve their own happiness is to move on and accept that they will never make their parents happy. Philippa did this, in a way, but it was softened by her parents' mild reaction.

Overall, I enjoyed this and would like to read more of the series. Also, here's hoping that spotting clearly LGBT romances on the New Books shelves at Walmart will become a more regular occurrence.

(Original review posted on A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions.) ( )

This is the romance between a Wynchester sibling and a character that appeared in the first full book of this series. Tommy has had a crush on Lady Philippa, whom ends up being the new client for the Wynchester. As the story progresses, the two become closer and fall in love. How will they get their happy ending when they are faced with obstacles?

This is a solid addition to The Wild Wynchesters series. The author's distinctive style is prevalent throughout the book. I enjoyed the strong familial bond that the Wynchester siblings and in-law shared in this book. Tommy and Philippa were strong characters and they really were made for each other. This book has some parts that needed more details but it also has parts that could have been shorter. Overall, it's an enjoyable read and I look forward to more Wynchester books in the future.

**Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy. All opinions and thoughts in the review are my own.** ( )

The Perks of Loving a Wallflower by Erica Ridley
The Wild Wynchesters #2

The Wynchester family are not blood relatives but closer than most siblings connected by blood. They were adopted by Baron Vanderbean and became a family that has a purpose. Eccentric, wealthy, skilled in a variety of arts and abilities…they are enchanting and intriguing, and this book is the story of Tommy Wynchester and the woman she loves.

What I liked:
* Thomasina “Tommy” Wynchester: chameleon ability to take on characters, comfortable in her own skin as Tommy, loves Phillipa, cartographer, tongue-tied at times, her own person, able to state what she wants.
* Phillipa York: only child, lonely, raised with the expectation of elevating her family by marrying a titled gentleman, bluestocking, not interested in men, wants to do “the right thing” to the disadvantage of herself.
* The Wynchesters: Jacob with his affinity to animals, Graham with acrobatic and a desire for information, Marjorie with her skills as an artist and forger, Elizabeth and her penchant for swords and wanting to use them, and Chloe who is now settled with the man she loves
* That I laughed many times during the story
* The story spoke to me
* The topic of sapphic love in the early 1800’s and how difficult it must have been with social expectations as they were
* The costumes and cpers
* Phillipa’s reading group
* The comeuppance of Northrup
* The love story as it played out
* The awareness of what was important that was arrived at by both Phillipa and Tommy
* That even though it took me a few chapters to get into the story…once INTO it, I was hooked
* Knowing that Graham is probably up next and looking forward to him “finding the parcel”

What I didn’t like:
* Phillipa’s mother: controlling, self-centered, impolite, social climber, annoying
* Phillipa’s father: aloof, self-contained, probably hiding out from his wife…but perhaps more aware of his daughter’s needs than his wife was
* Northrup…

Did I enjoy this book? Yes
Would I read more in this series? Definitely

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for the ARC – this is my honest review.

5 Stars ( )