Notorious is a charming regency romp. It isn’t reinventing the genre, but the love-hate chemistry is sweet and the plot works.

While I love the banter between the two leads, my biggest complaint is that neither truly seem to grow by the end. Yes, they’re in love, but it doesn’t seem that Gabe has really learned to respect women beyond any normal standards of the time. I was fine with the story and how it ended but the summary did seem to intone that the plot would be a little more... feminist? Than it ended up being.

Bluestocking wallflower Drusilla has been carefully guarding a secret--she's in love with her best friend's stepbrother, the charming womanizer Gabriel. Instead of simpering in his presence, she argues with him to hide her feelings. When Drusilla is compromised at a ball and it looks like Gabriel is responsible, he does the honorable thing and offers for her. Drusilla is torn; she's being given her heart's desire, but he has no idea how she feels, and will likely never return those feelings. But both of them will be ruined if she says no.

Gabriel is an interesting character--his mother is English, but his late father was a sultan in the Mideast, and he was brought up in the (fictional) country. He faces prejudice on English soil, but it also makes him freer-thinking about certain aspects of British life.

An enjoyable read. The two leads are well-matched in wits and passions, and it was a joy to watch them navigate their relationship and one another. The end of this book sets up the next one in a very intriguing way, and I hope Spencer writes quickly!

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for the ARC to review.

Gabriel Marlington was raised in a harem as the son of a Sultan. He is the grandson of an English Duke. It is never explained how his mother, the daughter of an English Duke, became part of this harem. He has been in England for six years, leaving his home country when a civil war and power struggle with his older brother forced him out. After meeting two actresses who are lovers themselves, he joined them in a long-term threesome arrangement. The actresses are also caring for a five-year-old boy who may be his or possibly his brother's son. Drusilla Clare is best friends with Gabriel's step/half? sister Eva. Eva's mother went mad so no man wants to marry her. Drusilla has been crushing on Gabriel for five years but she is plain, prickly, and a proponent of women's rights which also makes her a wallflower no matter that she is extremely rich. There is a scene where the two are compromised even though nothing happened and Gabriel is forced to ask for her hand in marriage. Drusilla jumps at the chance even though she is a follower of Mary Wollstonecraft and has vowed never to marry. It does mention even she knows she is a hypocrite. What follows is a lot of anger, tension, and anxiety. Drusilla has no self-esteem. Her plainness is mentioned frequently. She will endure any treatment by Gabriel - thinking he's out with his mistresses, secrets (she doesn't know about the child) etc. just because she is so lucky to be his wife! His anger and her anxiety make for a dreary 2/3 of the book. It picks up when some intrigue is added toward the end. Maybe I just need something more cheerful these days?

I'm sure I'd like this book just fine but knowing the books that Minerva Spencer wrote before this I found it really boring. Also, the book is set in 1817 at the beginning and there is a woman with a bustle dress on the front. I flipped through it to see if there was a time skip to tie that in. Nope, no time skip. Kensington, do better on that.
I still Love Minerva Spencer and will still read her books

I'm giving this 4 stars because I couldn't put the book down. I loved the main characters Dru, Gabe, and Gabe's sister Eva which is Dru's bestfriend. The author really goes into details when the characters are in deep thoughts. This plot is well played out for this genre but the author makes it unique because of the heroine feelings toward the hero. Usually when this happens in a book it's usually two people who hate eachother or complete strangers who get caught etc.

Dru on the inside is in love and infatuated with Gabe but on the outside she's all attitude towards her. He is completely oblivious about her feelings for him. My honest opinion, her attitude does get a little irritaing and so does his but the author makes it work out great. The way they act towards eachother proves how opposites are attract.

This book falls into the wallflower and marriage of convenience trope category with a little feel of forced marriage. Lmao I dont make any sense but once you read it you'll understand.

I loved how Dru stepped up with open arms and offered for her hand in marriage after a unforeseen incident that was planned out by a person who hated him. Together Dru and Gabe gets to know eachother, make thier marriage work, and fall in love.

The steam level is a slow burner but when it finally happens and the deed is done it's absolutely hot! I love how he tells her what he wants to do to her. I love how she let's her guard down and it's so hot.

Well with all this being said I do recommend this book. This was my first time reading this authors work and I'll continue to. I really hope Eva has her own book too! When and if that one comes out I'll definitely be reading it.

What a wonderful start to a new series. Strong women and sexy men. You think you know how it will end and and will be surprised. I can't imagine what next book will be but I will definitely be reading it! Sexy fun and little mystery to this series.

Okay. I don't think I have the words to express how much of an elevated writer this author is. She is phenomenal. And I now want to read all of her books. Thank You, Minerva Spencer, for writing such a wonderful book.
So, back to this book. I really felt that this story had so many wonderful parts that came together in a cohesive and normal way. The heroine has loved the hero for YEARS. He is the older step-brother of her best friend. The hero is a mixed heritage of Arab/Berber and British. The heroine feels that she is a handsome woman, but doesn't dress to show herself off, so she comes across as rather plain. This story was a little slow in the first chapter, but quickly jumped into high gear. The love scenes were explicit, but not cringey. I felt comfortable reading them. I won't go into details of the story and plot, but it was such a good intrigue/danger addition to the story. I felt that this book was very well written and yet, I do not want to give away any of the details because I want the reader to have the same experience that I did. I will say that this story has some plot twists and formulations that work well together. It was not just some bits and pieces thrown together like other authors that I have read, who do throw crap together and call it a story. This book is well worth every penny that it will be priced at. This story makes sense and has the correct amount of angst and drama and humor. The characters work well against and with each other. The one thing I had problem following was that the hero's mother is pregnant and he is 24 years old. So how old is she? It said she was very young when she was kidnapped and became pregnant. But, I can't wait for the next installment. 5 stars!!!!!☆☆☆☆☆

This is a 2,5 review rounded.
I didn't know the author and based on the synopsis and the first couple of chapters I confess I expected something different, more of a regency romp, instead this went deeper. That was not necessarily bad, but it was a bit misleading.
I really liked the heroine; she is an heiress, of commonbirth, and a marquess daughter's best friend (I was expecting this to feel misplaced, but it is explained well enough). Somewhat of a wallflower, Drusilla had a massive crush on her friend's step brother Gabriel and, thinking he would never care for her (he was courting someone else as the book begins) whenever they are together, she uses discussion and sarcasm as a shield; it all felt like nice witty banter to me, (even though the hero seems to think she hates him). When another man tries to abuse her, Gabriel goes to defend her, and instead they're tied in a compromising position, forced to be wed, and Gabriel forced into a duel with the duke who abused Drusilla.
Drusilla devotes much of her time and money to charitable work. Most of the time, when heroines of regency do this, it tends to feel cheap or unexplicable, but hers was well made. It was a shame only that, after marriage, this part of her was not showcased (but then again, there was a LOT going on)
Okay, that is done. Now I have to deal with it and talk about Gabriel I guess. Oh my God, he must have been the hero with the most stuff going on that I've ever seen. Gabriel (or Jibril) was the son and heir of the former sultan from Oran and a duke's daughter (who was abducted and forced into the marriage, after the sultan's passing, she later married a marquess and her story can be found in another book). In exile in England for the past five years, Gabriel let's go of his culture, his name and his language to adopt to his new life. He is very young (younger than most regency heroes at least), at 24. He is supposedly a bit of a rake, his name connected with much gossip as he is seen as somewhat exotic. He has two lovers in London, and his relationship/friendship with them is well shown. Normally, mistresses are mentioned, and not taken as a person, and I would have liked the gesture if there weren't SO much going on already.
okay, focus... As a foreigner, as a bastard (in the eyes of the ton), as the grandson of a duke and the step-son of a marquess, as someone connected to a child, Gabriel was so heavy... He understood and was driven by duty, acted like a jerk sometimes...but he was doing his best, I think.
As for their relationship - it was really sweet actually... The steamy scenes worked really well for me. They are both trying to make the best of their situation - Drusilla forced to be with someone she loves, but who does not love her and seems to keep visiting his mistresses even after married. And Gabriel, married to someone he thought hated him. Drusilla takes some things too personally (though she was mostly on the right side) and Gabriel's pride is not the best thing ever... but mostly it felt good. The only problem was, in order for the book to happen, that is, the problem that keeps them apart is ann utter LACK of communication, and it grew tiring...
I kept reading, the same way you would keep watching a trainwreck;
There was so much happenning - there was a duel, a lover, the mistresses, a kid, kidnapping, a villain, two villains, a spy, a mob of bandits, a clash of cultures, fight for power, ransom, betrayal, the prejudice (both for Gabriel's origin's and bastardy and for Drusilla's origin as a cit), the expectations that come from being forced into marriage - I said this before but there was SO MUCH going on, that the couple falling apart due to not sitting down and talking like human beings felt misplaced.
The last thing I want to talk about is a bit more sensitive. As probably expected from the fact that the hero was arab, from Oran in the middle of regency England, we need to talk about culture. Gabriel is often refered to as someone who is "good" because of his mother's (white) blood. From that can we infer that if not for that, his culture is "bad"? As a man said to have abused his mother and other women, I am not indulging Gabriel's father as someone who should have been acclaimed. Throughout the book, Drusilla defends Jibril when someone mention his 'barbaric' heritage, and Gabriel is written as someone proud of where he came from and sad to have to let it go. I don't think (or at least I hope not) that the author meant for it to be hurtful per se, but I believe the book could have thrived if other characters from Oran, from Gabriel's past, could have been shown, or at least mentioned, as examples of good people.
I kept thinking about the '9 to 5" movie from 1980. It's a feminist masterpiece and I adore it, but, in the end, the bad guy, the abuser, the villain, his punishment is to receive a promotion and work from Brazil (which he finds terrifying). I don't think anyone else noticed or cared. I don't think the writer thought twice about this, and wanted to make me feel bad. But, as a Brazillian, this hurt me somewhere south of my pride. I am not familiar with Oran culture, with their history, but it is important to remember someone is. Gabriel's representativeness is refreshing for the genre, but he is not much of a representative if white-washed and only seen as good as his mother's blood. These are waters to tread with care.

The cover is defiantly eye catching. I liked that there was a different background for Gabriel. I think the story focused on his background more than the heroine which was interesting, because I still wanted to know about her background. I liked that Dru was supposed to be this forward thinking woman but I think that aspect of her life was glossed over. I like the enemies to lovers trope which is the basic of this story. I however do not like the misunderstanding by not communicating. I did not start liking the couple until about 70% into the story. The ending where things in the story were getting interesting, seemed to end too abruptly. I wanted that part fleshed more. Dru was supposed to be the times feminist but she does not act like that for a majority of the story. Still I did end up liking Dru’s and Gabriel’s ending and I am quite curious about the next installment of the story.

Notorious by Minerva Spencer is an intriguing story of two people with starkly differing views on men and women and marriage. Drusilla and Gabriel are both compelling characters. I cheered for them and grew frustrated with them just like dear friends. Their starkly different viewpoints clash in their early days of their quick marriage, yet each tries to bridge the gap and achieve a compromise. Gabriel and Drusilla's vulnerabilities provides a dramatic background to their happily ever after. Their love story felt real and personal. The secondary characters add a depth and humour to Gabriel and Drusilla's tale (especially the tie to Minerva Spencer's Dangerous). I encourage others to take time and dive into this wonderful tale.

Another brilliant book by Minerva Spencer! She never lets her readers down.

Notorious takes off from Dangerous of the Outcast series. GABRIEL Marlington is the son of Mia, Marchioness of Exley, (if you have missed her book, DANGEROUS, historical romance fans, need to grab it) and her Sultan of Oran where she was held as his captive at the age of 14 until she escaped him 16 years later and entered polite British society, and she is the daughter of the powerful Duke of Carlisle, and brother to the bookish Marquess. After her marriage to the Adam de Courtney, the Marquess Of Exley (who has a significant past as revealed in their story, Dangerous), together they rescue Gabriel heir to the throne of Oran, from his murderous step brother, and he, after 7 years in England, is accepted by London ton, albeit grudgingly because of his powerful connections. Gabriel is considered a libertine (and yes, he has two French mistresses, and they have a cozy relationship which is based on strong friendship). He has a close relationship with his mother, and his half siblings. They story has many great moments of familial togetherness, we see the role of his step sister Eva Exley, who is also the close friend of the heroine Drusilla (a lonely, intelligent, heiress, albeit one who is in constant turmoil with her appearance esp when compared to the handsome Gabriel, whom she loves, but cannot seem to express it). She is brilliant heroine, but most of the time she mocks herself and Gabriel to hide her insecurities and vulnerability. Due to the machinations of the Visel, (who has his own story coming up next with Eva) Gabriel and Drusilla marry and the journey of verbal sparring, a hidden child, french mistresses, Intrigue from past betrothal and betrayals, and the story takes off by Ms. Spencer’s vivid narrative and characters that just grow on you. It’s hard to put the book down, although I had to, and caught up after dinner and went to bed late. [tg to wfh, and no rush hour Boston traffic:)].

There is Drusilla’s passion for philanthropy towards women and children. She strongly believes in women’s Independence, education, children and healthcare. Neatly woven in the narrative, is her mentor Mary Wollstonecraft and at one instance the authors brilliant witticisms shines through when she both evokes the best and worst of MW, when Gabriel cannot seem to get the last name right! Drusilla has her group of benefactors who run several homes for the improvement of women and children and amongst this group of devoted philanthropists nests the villain of the book..... there is a lot of good stuff in the book.

I am a huge fan of MS Spenser and her writing. She is not a frivolous author, who writes formulaic books. Her story telling is gripping because her characters are strong intellectuals who bind the narrative well. Go grab the book and enjoy!

Bon Appétit to great reading!

Minerva Spencer’s “Notorious” is another winner. This first book in her new series, “Rebels of the Ton,” follows the children of the delightful characters in “The Outcasts” series. (Dangerous. Barbarous. Scandalous.) Known for her unusual story lines, juicy characters and their witty banter, Spencer takes on Regency life with gusto, instilling it with fresh twists, taking Gabriel and Drusilla on their journey back and forth, from angst to devotion. “Notorious” can be read as a stand-alone, but I love it when characters from the previous series pop up. It was a one-sitter/all-nighter with popcorn and an obscene amount of chocolates novel, and I was excited to get a pre-published copy, and a chance to review it.

Absolutely brilliant!
Notorious is a great romance with completely relatable plot and dialogue for the time it was set in. A lovely masterpiece, showing the lives of married women in the past and today.

I enjoyed it. I can't wait to read more of Minerva Spencer's works

I'm not sure how I became so endeared by straight-up romances, but here I am! Spencer writes dialogue so well I makes me feel kind of bad about myself! A likable lead couple which is really all I can ask for.

Thank you netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Unfortunately I did not enjoy this historical romance novel. The back and forth with Claire and Gabriel left me feeling restless and exhausted. They just kept talking in circles with barely any sexual chemistry between them. Although Claire had a huge crush on Gabriel,her actions and constant demoralizing comebacks lead him to believe she hated him. He barely tolerates her. How is this romance? Disappointed.

Drusilla Clare is best friends with Lady Eva de Courtney. Both are most noteworthy as
Wallflowers. Drusilla has loved Eva's half brother Gabriel Markington ever since he came to England five years ago. Gabe was born in a harem, the son of the former sultan and the current Marquess of Exley's wife (Dangerous /The Outcasts Book 1). Drusilla considers herself unattractive and never imagines anything romantic from someone like Gabe. When he comes to Dru's rescue they find themselves quickly married, but it's a rocky start. Drusilla is afraid of rejection. but Gabe starts to really see his wife and understand her insecurities. These two definitely have no problem in the bedroom. An emotional rollercoaster with jealousy, kidnapping and a ransom that will bring to light what they will sacrifice for each other.

A very well written, steamy, slow burn Historical Romance with lots of internal and external drama. It does start out quite lighthearted with some witty banter between the H/h whilst at a ton Ball, but that stopped once they got to know one another and we get into the story. Our hero Gabriel is the son of Mia from 'Dangerous', so if you've read that book, then you have a better idea of his background as the son of a Sultan and an English mother. (She and her husband make brief appearances). This book, however, can be read as a stand-alone. Having read 'Dangerous' though, I feel it gave me a better understanding of Gabriel's personality, back-story and his place within his family and society. Our H/h are in their early 20's.

Due to an 'incident', (trying not to give spoilers), Gabriel and Drusilla have to marry. They don't know each other intimately at all, but wallflower Dru has held a torch for Gabe for about five years and his step-sister is her best friend. There's a lot of dramatics involving the marriage and misunderstandings between the H/h. There is a kidnapping and some bad guys. Drusilla is supposed to be active in helping poor children and charities, but we don't really see that - it's only referred to. Gabriel is used to have several mistresses at once after living in a harem, so he has that problem to deal with. The romance is slow burn and the sex scenes are tastefully written and very steamy. Their relationship is push/pull. Yes. No.

There were a few scenes I was looking forward to, especially the one when Drusilla was about to go visit Samil by herself, but it ended with her leaving the house, then the story cut to later, when she reflected on the meeting briefly. I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall, so that was a bit disappointing. Several scenes were like that in fact and some problems were dealt with in a speedy fashion that seemed a bit like bow wrapping to me.

Eva vanished from the story too, which was strange, but I gather the next book is about her, so I'd really like to read that book and find out where she went. I felt I knew lots about Gabriel, but not a lot about Drusilla. Certainly it was duel POV, but I didn't get the feel of her personal life before the book began, apart from the feminist thing, which was not expanded upon.

I read an e-ARC, so my thanks go to NetGalley and the publisher for gifting it to me in return for my honest opinion. Overall I really did enjoy reading this book and I needed to finish it asap because I wanted to know what happened, so that's always a good thing. I would recommend it to lovers of historical romance, Ms Spencer is an excellent writer and the Historical details were good. In fact, I'm slowly reading through her back list as I find time.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A Sultan’s son ... a rich merchant’s daughter ... lesbian mistresses ... kidnappings ... a best friend’s brother. ... a not so convenient marriage ...

Needless to say this book seems to have everything - too many things ...

Although I generally enjoyed the story, I found that Drusilla’s character just didn’t live up to my expectations. She is introduced as feminist but all that seems to go out the door as soon as she gets married and into bed with her hot husband - what happened to the strong willed woman we were introduced to ? Gabriel was deceptive ( an illegitimate son ?!) that he doesn’t mention to his Drusilla until much too late in my opinion; and that’s one of my several problems with him.

I would definitely give this series another chance with the second book - hoping the characters are a bit more likeable and the story not so convoluted !

Spoilers ahead!

The first Minerva Spencer book I read, Dangerous, was absolutely dull and had so much sex and no plot that I gave up not even halfway through.
This book, by some twist of NetGalley fate, was about the son of the heroine of Dangerous. Strangely, I actually really enjoyed this book, and Gabriel & Drusilla.
I did have a lot of complaints too though: I feel like there wasn't enough mention of Gabriel's heritage and not enough focus on the fact that he was raised as a Muslim and then had to convert to Christianity in order to be accepted. In fact, it was only briefly mentioned that he was raised in an Islamic community and then it seemed his religion was forgotten about for the rest of the book although there was a large focus on the fact he grew up in a harem. I also didn't really see the point of Samir, or of Maria and Giselle, other than to give the villain of the piece someone to kidnap.
As for Drusilla, she was a member of a Wollstonecraftian activist group although she didn't actually seem to participate in anything other than to throw money at charitable causes and seemed to completely forget about her principles as soon as she married, almost as if she wasnt the great feminist she had been portrayed to be at the beginning of the book.

That said, I enjoyed the relationship between the two and the way it developed.

I'm curious enough to want to read the next book in the series although the small excerpt I had did bother me slightly by the fact that Visel had a change of heart from ultimate vengeance to ultimate remorse in the space of a short walk. I also found Eva, who was obviously supposed to be rebellious and impulsive, to just be irresponsible, immature and vapid without any thought for hers or anyone else's safety or feelings.

However, on the whole, I enjoyed the story although it lacked the depth it could have had and I look forward to the next book to hope it proves my views from the excerpt wrong.

This was an okay read for me. The writing style was nice and kept me going, but some parts of the story and all of the background information about certain characters went completely over my head because of how little they contributed to the story itself. (This is apparently because it's a callback to other works by the author? I don't really know)

I think the characters were interesting, but I didn't completely understand the main characters and the development of their relationship because it just didn't seem intuitive to me how they got closer throughout the book? Like hello, we'll be married now. Suddenly, we're on good terms?

Certain elements of the book were genuinely fun to read, like the main female character's relationship with her best friend, but others felt like they didn't contribute so much to furthering the plot of the novel itself.

I think I would probably just describe this book as lukewarm? Not bad to read, but not something I feel like really made the hugest impact on me, even though reading historical fiction is kind of rare for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and Kensington Books for the ARC opportunity!