A Perfect Rake is perfectly fun and I was rooting for Pru and her sisters from the very start. Even the meeting between Pru and Gideon was so funny. She very much was trying to save him from a debacle of her making and he was having far too much fun just playing with her. It was entertaining and I was thinking the entire book was going to be so much fun. And it was at times but there is a lot of down time when nothing is really happening and so some of this book moved very slow for me.

Gideon is completely fun. An unapologetic rake who has a few scruples like no innocents and only will bed partners. He is great at teasing and cajoling Pru who is full of rules and is so busy taking care of everyone else she has little time for her own desires. Some of their banter was terribly fun though.

“Do you think ladies’ eyebrows can communicate as well?” she asked.
“No, they don’t have sufficient thicketry,” he said with authority.
“Thicketry?”
“Yes, that is the official term.”

Of course as soon as the infamous rake meets the damsel in distress it is an instant infatuation with her and he becomes pretty besotted rather quickly. Still Gideon was the high point for me in the book. The way he sees Pru is really something and I liked how he saw her past for what it was and didn’t care about it a smidge.

Pru has a lot to overcome, including and MIA fiancé that wandered off to India without her. That isn’t going to stand in the way of Gideon though. Pru is the prize and his eye is on her no doubt.

This is an easy read that could have been trimmed a little around the edges but had some nice characters and a fun strangers falsely engaged story.

This is such a sweet story. Gideon really shines as a trying-to-reform rake who only has eyes for his beautiful Prudence, who we know is quite plain (as commented on by practically every other character in this book.)

I liked this one because the rake hero falls hard and fast - to the point when everyone else makes mention of the heroine's "plain" looks he thinks they're all blithering idiots and obviously blind. Who doesn't love a hero like that? Anyway, while this screams "light historical" and it's humorous for the most part - it opens with some heavy angst (Evil Grandfather beating the stuffing out of the youngest sister, Grace) and granddad gets even more monstrous when a Big Secret comes to light at the end. Heavy, heavy angst mixed with light, fluffy humor is an odd mix - and one that doesn't always work for me. Gracie makes it work better than most authors who have trod down this garden path - but there's an off-kilter feeling in "tone" during specific chapters. Good, not great - and I wasn't all that enamored with the younger sisters, so probably won't continue on with the series. A B rating on my non-GR rating scale.

4.5-5 Stars!

Wow that was delightful. The first chapter or two was a little rough to get through, gosh the grandfather is an evil bastard. But when Prudence gets herself in a funny little situation, Gideon is all to happy to let her talk herself into circles. The scene with him, Edward, Prudence(obviously), and Great Uncle Oswald at the beginning is hilarious! I read it at least 3 times because it made me giggle like a dork.

Another reason I thoroughly enjoyed this book is that there is no giving away of the nookie right away. YAY! Sometimes it annoys me in romances, when only after knowing each other for a week, the couple sleeps with each other. Not always, but I really enjoy a slow build up to that moment when they finally get it on. I am not crazy, right? I also LOVED the little sisters. Between them, and everything with Phillip, what a LOSER he turned out to be, this romance hit all the right notes for me. I just would have enjoyed if the grandfather hadnt been so harsh, but then, I am no author.

It was an okay read. There were moments in the story that I was very eager to read, laughing out loud, and deeply interested. While other parts seemed to lag. There were some annoyingly old words that I had to look up (and I haven't had to look up the meaning of a word since I was in high school). So the writing has a bit of an old time feel to it. The romance at times was wonderful but I felt it was stagnant near the middle of the story.

It wasn't a bad book but neither was it an amazing book. If you want a historical romance to fill up your time between books, then this would be a good one.

You know I love historical romances and I’m loving learning about new authors and books.

This story kept me interested. I loved the first scene between Prudence and Gideon. I loved his humor and him. The sub stories were interesting but I felt as though I was an observer. I never felt totally engaged and a person of the emotion like I have with others.

That being said, I’d read another to see if I felt the same way.

I hated the way Prudence was compared to her sisters and found lacking - except with the person who counted!

Almost great.

3.75-started off awesome, lagged at about the 70% mark. Good story and characters. Loved all the humorous episodes and dry wit, but that all seemed to practically disappear late in the novel. This was my first book by this author, liked her writing and have another of her books (different series) in my library that I'll try later.