2021 Regency romance, third and last in a loose series. Sophie
Roseingrave's family lost their money, and she lost her musical
confidence, to a swindler; now she wants to make sure that doesn't
happen to anyone else. Maddie Crewe didn't set out to be a thief, but
her fellow weavers are depending on her…
There's a lot of historical atmosphere in this one, particularly
the effect of the Combination Acts in driving reformers underground,
and the asymmetrical profits to be made as home weaving was gradually
supplanted by machine work. And maybe that pushes out other things,
but I found myself rather less convinced by this romance than by those
in the two previous volumes; both the principals have had some
experience and prior relationships, but they fall instantly in lust
with each other, and there's never really any room for doubt that they
both want to be together. The problems they face are essentially
disconnected from their romance.
So while I still enjoyed it I didn't enjoy it as a romance; rather,
it was an historical novel with a female focus and a thread concerning
a growing relationship. That's not a bad thing, but neither is it what
I was expecting. Then it developed a caper subplot, which fit
awkwardly and felt as though it should have had a (perhaps
non-romance) book of its own. I was never sufficiently carried away
not to notice small details like a passing reference to chickadees
(though perhaps Waite thought "bluetits" might be misinterpreted).
It's quite fun, indeed it's better than many romances, but for me at
least it doesn't reach the heights of the two earlier books.