Some romances are just plain adorable, and A Lady’s Formula for Love is somehow both adorable and action-packed, a delightfully fun romp that brings the reader the best of both worlds.
Widowed Violet Hughes, Lady Greycliff, created Athena’s Retreat as a secret social club for women to develop their scientific knowledge without scrutiny. They’re very close to putting on their first public exhibition, and Violet wants them all on their best behavior. Violet is also working on a confidential and clandestine mission for the government.
Bodyguard Arthur Kneland works with a secret group where Violet’s stepson William (aka Grey) also works as an agent. Arthur yearns for solitude, and he plans on retiring to the Highlands to get it, but William asks Arthur for one last favor as he heads out the door; Violet has begun to receive threats, and he asks Arthur to watch over Violet for a month while she launches the Retreat and finishes her mission. Nothing could be simpler. Except that they meet when he tackles her to the ground after someone throws a chair through a window at her head.
As Arthur spends time with Violet, he begins to learn about her passion for science – and develops a passion for her. They are drawn together, but professional and personal lines should not be crossed… should they?
Well, It’s a romance, so you know they’ll be kissing before long! But A Lady’s Formula for Love has fun getting there. You want older leads having a steamy, tension-filled relationship in which they slowly become lovers? This novel has it in spades, and it has great action scenes, brainy characters and an interesting plot to boot.
I liked Violet’s grown-up practicality and her staunch feminism. Arthur, and his wonderfully serious starchiness, compliments her perfectly. They had both been different people in their youths – idealistic, heedless – and both experienced disappointments, she in marriage, he in duty – but now, in the second act of their lives, they’re trying to figure out who they are. The narrative doesn’t fear allowing them to express regret and longing in the same long, deep breath. Violet and Arthur are so good together that it’s impossible not to root for their glorious union.
There is wonderful yearning here – and a great mystery. There is genuine suspense as we try to figure out who wants to stop Violet’s foundation in its tracks, and Everett milks it for every last drop.
I definitely enjoyed Violet’s fellow chemists, and Grey is both roguish and gently fond of his stepmother. They’re quite close in age, and have a certain amount of life experience between them, but they’re willing to try again with each other.
This is simply a great little romance novel, with genuine suspense and style, and two leads who are likable and absolutely wonderful to root for. A Lady’s Formula for Love is a beautifully written book with a swoonworthy romance that makes the heart sing. It comes highly recommended.
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Grade: A
Book Type: Historical Romance
Sensuality: Warm
Publication Date: 02/2021
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