Book Review – Dangerous Alliance by Jennieke Cohen

The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue meets Jane Austen in this witty, winking historical romance with a dash of mystery!

Lady Victoria Aston has everything she could want: an older sister happily wed, the future of her family estate secure, and ample opportunity to while her time away in the fields around her home.

But now Vicky must marry—or find herself and her family destitute. Armed only with the wisdom she has gained from her beloved novels by Jane Austen, she enters society’s treacherous season.

Sadly, Miss Austen has little to say about Vicky’s exact circumstances: whether the roguish Mr. Carmichael is indeed a scoundrel, if her former best friend, Tom Sherborne, is out for her dowry or for her heart, or even how to fend off the attentions of the foppish Mr. Silby, he of the unfortunate fashion sensibility.

Most unfortunately of all, Vicky’s books are silent on the topic of the mysterious accidents cropping up around her…ones that could prevent her from surviving until her wedding day.

My rating:

I knew going in that this book was probably not for me, and sadly I was right – I’m just not a big fan of historical or romance. I did like Victoria’s sensible nature relating to the farm house, but not the way *everything* related to Austen. I mean, I’m not one to talk, as I talk about books a lot, but it was a little much even for me.

The threat was a little much, not enough tension – it was almost a relief from the romance – and the thought behind it was mildly ridiculous.

As always, I was not a huge fan of the men. Her dad was okay, but Thomas was just ugh through most of it and frankly Carmichael was vile, and his change of character towards the end didn’t help him stop being so. Basically they very much spend the book making the women feel weak, and the abuse storyline and kidnapping subplot definitely lean into that – so despite Victoria being a relatively feminist woman, it’s definitely far from a feminist book.

I do feel like it was well written if you like this sort of book, so don’t be put off by my review. Just very much not for me.

Buy Dangerous Alliance from Amazon UK.