London Trilogy Series by Sherry Thomas / Historical Romance Book Series

The London Trilogy by Sherry Thomas is a loosely connected series that takes place in Victorian England. These books each read pretty well as standalone. They all feature manipulative characters who are motivated by their own self-interests, which makes for a compelling story. I enjoyed reading them, but I don’t recommend a binge read, because the manipulative angst can get a bit much.

The Luckiest Lady in London by Sherry Thomas (2013)

Historical romance. Victorian England. Book 1 of the London Trilogy series. So I picked up this book because it’s this month’s book club pick from Felicity Niven and Alexandra Vasti’s new Facebook group. In this one, we have Felix, a marquess with a tragic upbringing who has an amiable and popular reputation, and Louisa, an impoverished lady with four sisters who need a financial cushion. For Louisa’s first (and likely only) Season in London, she’s set out a strategy for catching a reasonably financially stable fellow without overreaching. When she’s introduced to Felix, they both can see right through each other’s facades: Louisa sees that he’s not truly the polished gentleman that he presents, and Felix sees that Louisa aims for financial security more than anything. These two keep bumping into each other, likely from Felix’s maneuvering, to the point where Felix offers for Louisa to be his mistress… and she continues to refuse, until Felix ultimately offers marriage. Neither are willing to face emotional rejection, so they each only admit to a carnal attraction for each other, and the practicalities of a marriage of convenience. The wedding takes place about halfway through this book, so we get to see this odd courtship for the front half, and an emotionally bumbling slow burn on the back half.

Ebook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

Private Arrangements by Sherry Thomas (2008)

Historical romance. Victorian England. Book 2 of the London Trilogy series. This one is an estranged marriage story told in non-chronological order. We learned in the last book that marchioness has an arrangement with her husband allowing her to dally with affairs. In this book, we learn how their marriage starts, becomes fractured, and how they might find their way back to each other. In the non-chronological storytelling, it takes awhile for the reader to uncover what happened ten years ago and all the intervening years since. When we start the story, Gigi has requested a divorce from Camden so that she can be free to marry another man. He comes back to town from abroad to demand that she gives him an heir before he’ll grant the divorce. We get to learn all the dirty angsty history of how Gigi and Camden ended up married in the first place and how they both acted immaturely along the way. In reading this book, I could tell that something terribly manipulative was going to happen and not at all looking forward to the fallout. Meanwhile, in the background, Gigi’s mother is trying to cultivate a backup plan for Gigi to meet a neighboring duke, but falls for him herself.

Ebook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

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His at Night by Sherry Thomas (2010)

Historical romance. Victorian England. Book 3 of the London Trilogy series. This one is the romance (sort of) between two people who are the best manipulative actors around. Lord Vere is a secret agent to the crown and plays the part of the bumbling fool while Elissande is desperate to escape her cruel uncle’s home and plays the part of his the poised and cordial niece. When Lord Vere and a whole house party scheme to impose on Elissande’s household while her uncle is away, she knows it’s her only opportunity to compromise a man into marriage. Initially, Elissande has her sights set on Vere, but when he starts to talk as the idiot he protrays, she quickly switched targets. However, Vere is onto Elissande’s schemes and aims to protect his younger brother from being compromised. When Vere and Elissande are caught together, they must marry. While it’s quite obvious why Elissande has done something so cruel and selfish, she starts to see the cracks in Vere’s facade and asks him to drop the pretense of his idiocy. However, he continues to play his role and uphold his duties to the crown. Most of the book is spent disliking each other, even though brief moments of tenderness peak through. There’s also a nice secondary romance with Vere’s brother Freddie (who was rejected in Book 2) and his childhood friend. I did like how the elements of the mystery were tied together and the big reveal at the end of the book.

Ebook borrowed from my local library via Libby.