Book Review
Apr. 20th, 2026 07:25 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kenjariA Scandalous Deal
by Joanna Shupe
This historical romance takes place in New York during the Gilded Age. Lady Eva Hyde is the daughter of a brilliant and famous British architect, and has become a very talented architect in her own right. With her father descending into dementia, Eva has been executing his commissions under his name and overseeing the projects in his stead in order to preserve his legacy and keep them solvent. She has just arrived in New York for a hotel project for the wealthy and driven Philip Mansfield. Still wondering whether she'll ever see the handsome stranger she dallied with on the voyage, Eva arrives at Mansfield's offices to find that he is that stranger. He is reluctant to let a woman oversee the construction, but nonetheless agrees to it. As they work together, their attraction simmers and they start an affair that grows into something much more.
This romance had some nice touches. I liked Eva's determination to establish an independent career. She's also quite clever at problem solving. I liked the way Philip came to realize the contradictions in his views of women and his treatment of them. He really grows into a true believer in equality due to his relationship with Eva. And not because she does the emotional labor of educating him, but because his experiences with her caused him to have some real introspection about it. I did think that their relationship came together a little too quickly. I would have liked a little more banter, flirting, and tension.
by Joanna Shupe
This historical romance takes place in New York during the Gilded Age. Lady Eva Hyde is the daughter of a brilliant and famous British architect, and has become a very talented architect in her own right. With her father descending into dementia, Eva has been executing his commissions under his name and overseeing the projects in his stead in order to preserve his legacy and keep them solvent. She has just arrived in New York for a hotel project for the wealthy and driven Philip Mansfield. Still wondering whether she'll ever see the handsome stranger she dallied with on the voyage, Eva arrives at Mansfield's offices to find that he is that stranger. He is reluctant to let a woman oversee the construction, but nonetheless agrees to it. As they work together, their attraction simmers and they start an affair that grows into something much more.
This romance had some nice touches. I liked Eva's determination to establish an independent career. She's also quite clever at problem solving. I liked the way Philip came to realize the contradictions in his views of women and his treatment of them. He really grows into a true believer in equality due to his relationship with Eva. And not because she does the emotional labor of educating him, but because his experiences with her caused him to have some real introspection about it. I did think that their relationship came together a little too quickly. I would have liked a little more banter, flirting, and tension.
