“But wonderful things didn’t happen because one was cautious. They happened because one dared.” Mimi Matthews, The Siren of Sussex
This is book one in Mimi Matthews’ The Belles of London series and it gets the series off to a great start. Evelyn Maltravers comes to London knowing her odds of success in the marriage mart are low. Her family is quickly approaching financial ruin, she is a blue stocking, and she wears glasses. Her only hope for success is to make a name for herself in the one things she excels at–horseback riding while wearing a fantastic riding habit. She is determined to find a cutting edge tailor who is not afraid to take risks–and that can work on a budget. She places her hope in Ahmid Malik, a half-Indian tailor who has slowly been making a name for himself by outfitting some of Rotten Row’s infamous Pretty Heartbreakers. Sparks fly between Evelyn and Ahmid but pushing boundaries is never easy and they must decide how much they are willing to sacrifice to reach their goals.
I am a big fan of Mimi Matthew and this book does not disappoint. It is a dual point of view book which works well, especially with the audiobook. I really enjoyed the characters of both Evelyn and Ahmid. Ahmid was introduced in an earlier series by Matthews–Parrish Orphans of Devon. If you are interested, you can read about Ahmid in Book 2, A Modest Independence. You can’t help buy cheer for Evelyn and Ahmid in this book and hope that things will work out for them in the end. This is a clean romance with a lot of heat between the two main characters–definitely swoon worthy!
If you liked this book, you are in luck as there are three additional books in the series: The Belle of Belgrave Square, The Lily of Ludgate Hill, and The Muse of Maiden Lane.
Content Advisory: racism, colonialism