I totally loved this book. I highly recommend this book.  ♡♡♡♡♡ rating.

When it comes to historical romances Christi Caldwell never disappoints to provide me with heartfelt romance and sizzling physical connections of her featured couple. When the writing muse leads Caldwell to darker London I see her writing shine even brighter. The heroes who are dark are the ones that have the most to gain from opening up their hearts to love, and Caldwell writes these with deep inner turmoil. Her latest dark character Ryker Black, and I was surprised that Caldwell wrote about the leader of the Sin and Hell club in book two of the series. As a reader of series I did expect the other brothers to be featured and a build up to Ryker. In saying this I am thrilled to have Ryker's story. He is paired with Penny Tidemore younger sister of an Earl. Penny is young, naive and brilliant; I absolutely adored this character. I adored the book, but the ending left me wanting Ryker to grow a true connection with his brothers, other than wealth and trust. I know they are close from their past, but their present seemed lacking in connections. I loved the end of the romance but I need to see Ryker grow in his love of his siblings which I hope I see in future books, as I know Caldwell is not done and there is more to come.

This is part of a series. I read the previous book and enjoyed seeing the characters from that book participating again in this one. Light and enjoyable reading.

The author is one of my favorites and her books are fun to read.  The relationship in thi book is a stretch because of who the people are and their roles for that time period. A marriage like that would would have been extremely rare.  I like Penny's spunk and many of the H/h interactions but how they got caught in a compromising position was hard to picture.  Thanks Christi for such enjoyable books.

This book was so fraught with emotions. I fell in love with the anti-hero, Mr. Black. And Lady Penelope,  she was amazing. The author did a wonderful job making me care about these two as well as Black's friends. One of the best historical romances I've ever read.

Adorable indeed.

I loved the novel, first of all because this type of storyline is probably my favourite (or anyway very high on the list), I have a weird fascination for historical gaming hells and especially the owners of them. It's Kleypas' "fault" I believe.
Honestly there's not much to say, except that it is a great reading; Caldwell is a masterful author, with perfect timings and able to shape passionate and complete characters.
I don't know her works that much but I'm sure that our friendship is going to be a solid one from now on. Next on the list is the first in the series, The Rogue's Wager.

I can only find three "issues" with this novel, two of them of a very personal preference, therefore discardable.
1. I'm not a fan, at all, of forced marriage, especially if in the middle of the plot.
2. The ending, although extremely sweet, (view spoiler).
3. At eighteen years old I certainly was not that mature, and I find that a bit unrealistic, especially if grown up in a situation quite free from hardship.

Anyways, this is lovely. You should really read it.

I really loved this book.  Ryker and Penny were great characters, I thoroughly enjoyed reading about these two and how their story develops.  I did find Penny very immature in the beginning but you see how she grows and her spirit really makes you root for her.  Ryker was a great bad-boy who you wanted to see find happiness.  Overall, it was well written story that was enjoyable from the beginning to the end.

I downloaded this book via NetGalley for a review. 

Some people who have read this book state you need to read the first book to understand some things that happen in this story. I admit I did not read the first book and yes, some things were unclear. However, I was able to enjoy the story without having to read the first book. 

I enjoyed how the author did not allow/show/tell that Penelope was a female with sexual knowledge. This female knew almost nothing about what happens between a husband and a wife. This was refreshing in a historical read where so many authors put the female in a different light. A light that tells readers the female knows all about sex because she has seen it on the farm or has watched the animals and knows what happens. Or a female who is willing to allow a male character to take liberties that should not happen. With that being said I enjoyed the book but felt it lacking on some stuff. 

Why didn't Penelope's brother make sure she had a house to live in and not the gaming hell? Why didn't he make sure she had pin money? It does not seem like any brother or parent would allow a sibling or a child to live in a gaming hell. Seems like they would make sure there was an actual house for them to live. 

Then we get to the lack of details. This is a big take away a star for me. I love details, especially when reading historical books. I want to know what the character is wearing. I want to know what others are wearing. I want to know what the ballroom looked like. I want to know everything possible. Readers do not see any information about how the clothes people are wearing. What the ballroom looked like or anything. Nothing wrong with this just what I enjoy. 

I guess my main problem is I read too may of the old bodice rippers where everything was different. 

Nothing wrong with this book. It was a light refreshing read. I will probably read others by this author.

Omg I loved the relationship between Penelope and Mr Black! I just didn't like the ending very much :/

First, I was not aware that this book was the second in a series of three books.  I read it first and then located the first book.  I really wanted to like this book and its characters but cannot say that I wholly enjoyed the book or the people in it.  The premise of the story was interesting, with the brooding hero and the independent heroine.  The book presented an ensemble cast of the hero's "brothers" and sister but did not delve into the personalities of these characters in a thorough manner, at least to my liking.  Ryker's relationship with his sister also lacked enough backstory and details to truly bring these people to life.  I did not enjoy Ryker's treatment of his wife, Penelope, as he was emotionally detached, and sometimes, cruel to her.  I did not believe that a gently reared young lady would happy accept living in a gaming hell surrounded by people who did little to welcome her.  Also, I did not appreciate the manner in which their marriage was consummated, on the old furniture.  That was another example of Ryker's absolute disrespect for his wife.  He did not consider her feelings about anything.  

When Penelope rescued one of the brothers from a street fight, it bordered on the ridiculous.  She had never been exposed to society's evils and all of a sudden, she wielded a knife in such a manner that she saved the day.  The story lacked a much expected, and well deserved, scene between Penelope and the brother, in which he apologized for his rude treatment of her prior to the incident.  

Finally, the story ended abruptly after Ryker maintained a bedside vigil and Penelope recovered from her injuries.  All of a sudden, he "loved" her and wanted to be the man that she deserved.  It was too little, too late for me.  I did not believe his expression of feelings, as it seemed rushed and left many questions unanswered.  An epilogue was needed to answer the following questions:  Did they remain living in the hell?  Did society accept them?  

Overall, I was moderately entertained by the book and would recommend it to others who enjoy this author.  It see,ed like she was trying to portray an old-style alpha male character but it just did not feel right in this book.  Also, I know that I was supposed to feel sympathy for Rkyer's inability to read but, again, without more development, that line also fell short.  I understood how he used his lack of reading and communication skills to keep people at bay, along with his blustery demeanor.  However, his issue was not an excuse to mistreat his wife for all but the last pages of the book.

I loved Christi's last book, and thought it was the absolute best yet- but this one stretched to new heights! The story of Penelope and Ryker is fabulous! I found Ryker to be a hero with the silver lining. Not only is he a great hero- but he really figured out how to love - and live!  liked Penelope and Ryker's story even more than the prior book in the series, The Rogue's Wager. Penelope and Ryker are caught in an unwitting compromising position at the beginning of the book, and Penelope decides that she must marry him to save her younger sister, so that she is not shamed and will be able to find a suitable husband when the time comes. Penny is romantic and has always dreamed of a love match.

I've loved the entire series and this book is no different!  While I don't think the hero and heroine are my most favorite, I do like to see the mixing of levels of society in Ms. Caldwell's novels.  My only notes would be that I thought the ending was a bit rushed.  I would definitely read other books by this author.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story. Penelope is an adventurous spirit trying to fit into the ton. She wants to be different than the rest of her family. She flees the taunts only to find herself in a compromising position with Ryker. Ryker believes that he is irredeemable but Penelope sees beneath his pain and loneliness. Tempers flare, secrets come out, passion arises until hearts are laid bare. The honesty of the writing, the descriptions, the danger pulled me into the story, and I needed a couple tissues at the end. I highly recommend this book.

I received a copy of this story through Netgalley, and it is a Book Obsessed Chicks Star Review selection. This is my unsolicited review.

Lady Penelope Tidemore is determined to avoid the scandals that have plagued her family.  It took one night to ruin that plan when, being in the wrong place at the wrong time, led to a compromising situation with gaming hell owner, Ryker Black.  Having anything to do with Society is unacceptable to Ryker, so he is upset over the position he is caught in. It will take a lot out of Penelope to change his long standing feelings but if anyone can do it, she can.

A nice follow up in this series. I love when a flawed hero is written so well. Ryker's anxiety in social situations made perfect sense with his upbringing and it really went along with the walls he had built up around himself.  His insecurity in another area (avoiding spoilers) was also masked by his rough demeanor.

Penelope was a perfect match being she had an adventurous spirit and was full of compassion for all people. The courage she showed with Naill was a perfect example of this and I loved what that brought out in Ryker. Oh, how I would have enjoyed an epilogue with this story though.

Lady Penelope Tidemore is no stranger to scandal. Lady Penelope is determined to behave as an exemplary young debutante, but she is innocently caught in a compromising position with the darkly enigmatic viscount Ryker Black.  Ryker is no gentleman, he own one of the most notorious gaming hell in London and taking a society wife was not part of his plan, but he can’t see her suffer the pain of London’s society and their rules of society. Ryker has a few hidden issues he had a horrible childhood and Lady Penelope discovers he hide a surprising vulnerability. You’ll find yourself rooting for these two as the passion sizzles between them; they are both fiercely loyal with hearts of gold. 
I received an ARC copy from Net Galley and this is my honest review and opinion.

OH MY GOSH. The tension in between Penny and Ryker is so cute because it's super reluctant lust at first that devolves into incredibly sweet love and romance and affection for one another. Ryker is the stereotypical tall, dark, and handsome character just on the right side of shady and Penny is the virginal blushing bride that somehow clumsily manages to seduce him. I absolutely loved it!

Lady Penelope is determined to have a proper husband. There will be no scandal for her, however when at a party when the other women are talking about her she runs outside and ends up in a scandal.
Mr. Black just wanted to get out for a minute he never expected to be in a scandalous position with a women from the ton. 
Now the choice is not up to them they have to get married in order to save her name and his club. He is determined to keep his reputation up but she sees right through it.
You will love this story it is quirky yet serious at the same time. you will fall in love with Penelope and her spirit really keeps the story light. 

** I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review**

I love it kept me up all night to finish , can't wait for the next one