1st read: June 2021
2nd read: March 2023

This book is super sweet and I love it, but it has some annoying parts.

Gideon is really funny in the first half of the book and he's really sweet in the second half. Prudence is awesome, but she hasa lot to deal with throughout the book and has some insecurities.

Prudence's family bugs me a lot of the time. They mention a few times in the beginning that Prudence is "plain" and that no one will want her if they meet her sisters because they are so beautiful. (Gideon thinks that Prudence is gorgeous and that everyone who calls your "plain" is an idiot).

The fact that Prudence is "betrothed" when she kisses Gideon is bit problematic (but Philip is horrible, so it's not that big of a deal).

Gideon only has eyes for Prudence from the moment that he meets her, but his "Rake-ish" past isn't great.

And there's a scene when Gideon is holding Prudence and she tells him to let her go, but he keeps holding her until she hits him.

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Original review:
The Perfect Rake is really good! The plot had a lot going on and was interesting throughout. The main characters, Gideon and Prudence, are great.

Gideon is funny, sweet, and very in love with Prudence. He's tried to live a shallow life, but realizes that he wants more with Prudence. Prudence is strong for those that she cares for, but she's insecure. She falls in love with Gideon, but worries that she is misinterpreting his intentions. She also has some things from her past to deal with.

There were a couple things that I didn't like about The Perfect Rake. Some of the writing didn't flow well for me, but the plot and the dialogue were great, so it worked out fine. I also didn't love some of the secondary characters, but maybe they get better in later books. ( )

3.5 - 4 stars?
I really liked that the MMC did not call the FMC ugly, plain and stupid over and over. He was smitten pretty much right away. Like, low fucking bar I KNOW but some of these histroms really think they are doing something when characters constantly call the others ugly until they bang and then SUDDENLY the person is not longer ugly but ugly and fucked.

Anyway. There were some really dark themes in here - child abuse, sa of underage person, trauma from abuse, gaslighting, robbery, etc. but I swear I laughed so often - there were some truly hilarious parts. I loved Prudence and her schemes that just would not go right. ( )

ok a handful of moments really did make me laugh aloud. it has the funniest meet cute i've ever read or seen. that said, this is still a gd mess.

i also have to mention that this man is NOT a rake. charm and humor does not a rake make. where is the debauchery?!

-.5 stars for pretending to be a rake! 2.5/5!! ( )

Too drawn out but charming. ( )

3.5 rounded up to 4 stars. I really enjoyed how the hero was just absolutely convinced that the heroine was gorgeous even when no one else seemed to think so. It made me smile. And it was fun when others could tell he was a goner over her long before he realized it himself. I also liked how the heroine was capable and looked after her sisters. There were also lots of smaller things that were nice. How the hero handled the jewels, how he won over her little sister, that he didn't judge the heroine over her past, or leap on her at the first opportunity. The 'other man' and villain drama could have been more nuanced, but I was still entertained. ( )