Received an advanced copy from the publisher.

I love me some Eloisa James. I love the worlds she creates and the characters that inhabit them. I love reading her books in order and seeing the world grow. This new series was no exception.

At first, it seems like How to Be a Wallflower will be a standard issue "competing interests oh no we caught feelings" enemies to lovers romp but James avoids all of the expected tropes. There aren't avoidable secrets and backstabbing. Jake decides fairly early "Oh I'm not competing anymore, she's great, I am marrying her, now how to convince her..." and he then reveals THAT to Cleo much earlier than I expected! It's two complicated people with trust issues being kind and growing together. The third act conflict makes sense and also doesn't get dramatically overblown. They're mature adults who pretty quickly TALK TO EACH OTHER about it, which is a trend I'm seeing more and more in romances and it is a breath of fresh air.

I cannot WAIT for the next couple, I'm pumped. So glad to have new Eloisa.

How to be a wallflower is really a misnomer. Cleo is never a wallflower. She goes to a costume emporium for drab dresses to wear to her debut. She has no intention of marrying but promised her deceased mother she would attend a season so she plans to draw no male attention. While there, the owner is extremely upset. A wealthy American investor tricked her and wants her to move to America to design costumes for his theaters. As they hear him coming down the corridor, Cleo quickly makes a hand-shake agreement to buy the shop. She is the wealthy owner of Lewis Commodes. Jake, one of THE American Astor family, has changed his name to Addison in protest of his family's dealing in the opium trade that killed his father. He moves into the hotel suite opposite Cleo's determined to get the costume emporium back. All of this plot is quickly dropped. As is the plan to order each others clothing to somehow ruin the shop for each other. Jake is quickly in love, changing his mind from wanting an obedient calm wife to an independent Cleo. He has to overcome her aversion to marriage and the emotional damage caused by her (possibly bi-polar?) mother. A woman who had a new man almost daily with no regard for her marriage or her daughter's well-being. Merry, from My American Duchess, is Jake's friend in this book. Another plot point that had nothing to do with being a wallflower. Cleo was an interesting character, bold, ran her company, had her own money, but with trust issues from her difficult childhood. Overall though, the story was more a getting-to-know-you with insta-love on his part. I received an ARC of this title from the publisher via NetGalley for an honest review.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. It was on par with all of the author's previous books, which I really enjoyed as well.

The Gilded era. American royalty. A water closet heiress. They initially butt heads over a costumier emporium—they both see it as a great investment opportunity—but soon Jacob’s aims switch from winning a business arrangement to winning Cleo’s heart.

A companion novel to My American Duchess, Eloisa James’ How to Be a Wallflower easily stands on its own, a wonderful romance between two people who have more in common than they think, even though they come from different sides of the ocean. (And I loved spending a little bit more time with Merry and Trent! Seeing them happily married with kids was awesome!) I loved it; I would definitely recommend it to anyone who loves to read historical romance…or romance in general. Or anyone who likes to read…period.

I had a blast recreating this gorgeous cover in @procreate. Thank you to @avonbooks and @netgalley for my advance reader copy.

How to Be a Wallflower is about Cleo, an heiress to a toilet company who has been travelling around England for her entire life with her recently deceased mother who was a theater patron, taking a different lover every few days. She definitely has some mommy issues the overcome, and has come to London while still in half-mourning to get to know her estranged grandfather, a viscount her mother regretted no longer having a relationship with. Cleo will haver her Season, but wants to remain a wallflower. She has no desire to marry because that means her company will be owned by her husband. When the costume company of a friend gets bought up by Jake, and American, who plans to take the company overseas, Cleo buys it instead and the two become business rivals.

Just writing this I'm scratching my head and laughing as I remember how the absolutely bonkers plot meandered. For some reason that makes no logical sense, Jake and Cleo agree to have wardrobes made for one another. Cleo's new wardrobe will show the merits of the costume company as a designer in general while Jake will be forced to wear colorful and foppish clothing. I genuinely have no idea if this was to make the company look bad, to make Jake look silly, or to make the company look good. It's really poorly explained. Jake is just going alone with everything because he falls in love at first sight with Cleo. The chemistry is certainly undeniable, and Jake is willing to play the long game, though the two are staying in the same hotel and spend lots of time together.

Then there's another subplot about jealousy and potential engagements and prior relationships but who even cares? I'm glad these two finally got together, but the convoluted way they went about it was totally strange. The author could have written three books out of the dozens of mini-plots she threw into this one. Nonetheless, I loved the whimsical charm of the characters. My only gripe is that Jake's birth name was John Jacob Astor, who was an actual person. (Well, a few persons, as it was a family name.) Eloisa James is clearly writing about the Astor family and talks about it in the afterward, but it just felt strange to me. Authors make up members of the British aristocracy all the time when in reality there weren't 200 dukes out there during the 1800's. Why couldn't she just create her own fictional American aristocracy? Readers familiar with history would've been able to see the similarities between Jake's family and the Astors without it being so on the nose.

While the romance was fabulous and I adored Cleo and Jake as two non-traditional historical main characters, I just could not get over the soap opera style of this one. All in all, it was a 3 star read.

Like James' other works, I found this book to be delightful and exciting without bending to convention too much. I love a good playful antagonism in my protagonists, and enemies to friends to lovers is a great trope. I also found the FMC to be delightful and sweet without being too obliging. She savors her independence but values her loved ones, and that's a hard balance to strike in a world where women's power was very limited. I also enjoyed Jacob, who had principals without being dull, and was clever without being cruel.

Cleopatra Lewis might be the granddaughter of a viscount but she had a very unusual upbringing. She's also been lucky enough to have inherited a fortune, one that she is using to help others in need (while also growing it larger). The book opens with Cleo buying a costume company out from underneath the nose of Jacob Astor Addison, an American. He wants to move the company to America and the current owner, Martha, really prefers that not to happen.
Jake is fairly incensed that the company was stolen out from under him so he devises a plan to put it out of business. He denies an interest in Cleo; he wants a restful wife. Someone like practically-his-fiancee Frederica. So what if she seems overly interested in cows?
Cleo isn't interested in being presented but her grandfather would like to acknowledge her. She does have fun with Lady Yasmin, another woman on the fringes of society but that doesn't mean that she wants to be a success. She strikes a bargain with Jake that they will order each other's wardrobes. She will get half-mourning and he will get outlandish colors. It's too bad that they are so attracted to each other otherwise this might be a great friendship.
This was an okay story but didn't feel like it had the depth that a James story usually has.

Three stars
This book comes out March 29, 2022
ARC kindly provided by Avon and Harper Voyager and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

Miss Cleopatra Lewis is the daughter of a wealthy businessman and an unconventional aristocratic mother. Having inherited her business smarts from her father, she has taken over the Lewis Commodes business and runs it with innovative verve. When she comes to the rescue of a proprietress of a clothing emporium, she pits her wits against rich American Jacob Astor Addison.  What a wonderful romp this story turns out to be. 
Jacob of the wealthy American Astors has changed his name to Addison when his uncle the "Astor" goes into the Opium business that killed Jacob's father. Looking to set up a theatrical company in America, Jacob is busy hiring actors and actresses and buying out costuming businesses.  The person who is managing his offer to the clothing emporium is less than honest and before Jacob can rectify this Cleo has already beaten him to the punch.  This man, determined to marry a meek, mellow woman for whom he has already bought a ring changes his entire life plan when he meets Cleopatra. 
Soon he's ensconced in the same hotel where Cleopatra is, making friends with her as well as an outrageous bet that sees him clothed like a popinjay and her in all her gory. Cleopatra who has been hurt her entire life by a mother who chased the next handsome leading man, fell in and out of love as often as she changed her dresses has a resistance to love, marriage and relationships. Jacob definitely does a fine job navigating his way to Cleo's heart and bringing down her walls. 
This is a great period romp with a happy ending.

VERDICT James’s (“Desperate Duchesses” series) newest series won’t disappoint, with her signature abundance of banter, humorous situations, and strong-willed characters determined to have their way, creating sizzling sexual tension. The author’s fans will also enjoy seeing characters from My American Duchess in this series starter.

A delightful novel with two sparking protagonists. Reading this book was a joy and I was loathe to put it down until Cleo and Jake had gotten their well deserved HEA.

The heroine, Cleo, constantly thinks in her mother’s voice or literally what her mother would have said about nearly any situation. It was extremely distracting and annoying and brought me out of the story every time. It’s a shame Jake had to be paired with such an irritating heroine because I loved him.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I'm just a little confused about what this book was trying to do. When I tell you I felt nothing reading this...I felt nothing. Not even boredom. This book just didn't make me feel anything at all. It felt like it took me forever to finish because I just had no motivation to pick it back up. There may be some mild spoilers below, so beware.

Cleo: There's so much potential for her to be a cool character with an interesting backstory and personality. But I don't think it was executed well. The only things I know about her are: she was named after Cleopatra, she has fiery red hair and a "witchy" nose and chin, she stands out in a crowd, she owns a toilet company, and her mom was a theatre groupie who got down with a bunch of actors. That's it. I don't actually know anything about her personality other than she doesn't want to be like her mom and she likes selling toilets.

Jake: Overall gave me the creeps most of the time. What I know about Jake: He's a rugged American who most people would find unattractive because he has a strong jaw and muscles. He changed his last name because he doesn't want to be associated with his father's family's past with the opium trade. (His family is based on real people, more on this later), he is rich because of this family and now he owns some theatre, he has a girl back home he is planning on marrying who is docile and likes cows and he got attacked by a bear.

So this starts out incredibly slow and takes a few chapters for the conflict to even be introduced. But essentially Jake wants to buy Cleo's friends costume shop and have her make costumes for his theatre and move her to America. Cleo steps in and buys the costume shop before he can so that she can save her friend from a bad business deal. Jake and Cleo have an irritable first encounter and ultimately decide that Jake will wear outfits designed by Cleo and vice versa so as to see who will sway the public perception of the costumier more? So that if Cleo wins, then she is making beautiful gowns for the ton and if Jake wins then he can take this laughable costumier and have her make him costumes. It's bizarre.

But accepting all of that, what ensues are a series of meetings where they design clothing and parade around these outfits. But that pretty much ends right after it starts because Jake is obsessed with Cleo and decides this is the woman he is going to marry and we never hear anything else about that except just descriptions of the clothes they continue to wear. I was already dangling by a thread, but I really was lost at this point.

All of the interactions between Jake and Cleo made me slightly uncomfortable. They felt awkward. I didn't get a connection there. Jake tells Cleo she looks like a witch and her friend is prettier than her and a bunch of other weird stuff. (I'm not even getting into the whole kippers thing lol) Cleo is not receptive to the relationship and Jake is obsessed with her. And a lot of the latter part of the book is them not being on the same page because Cleo doesn't communicate her feelings and Jake is so open about his and they happen to be that he is madly in love. There was more kissing than talking and there's only so many times you can read about a kiss before you don't care. I felt awkward reading the steamy scenes which is rare.

Cleo not wanting to be like her mom got real old real quick and I just didn't care. It didn't feel like a legitimate conflict. There were too many side characters that didn't add anything and I couldn't keep track of them. There were things that got introduced and never resolved or even mentioned again. For example. Cleo's grandpa plays a big part in the beginning of the book and then is never heard from again. And the entire plot related to the costumes and the costume shop fizzled into nothing. It felt like the first and second halves were different stories.

And finally. I didn't really like that Jake was part of an actual family related to the opium trade and that was just mentioned, but not dealt with in any meaningful way. It was danced around so much, but ultimately didn't matter at all. He's rich because of the opium trade, and clearly doesn't like being part of that family and changes his name. This could have been achieved with him not being part of a real family or with him actively trying to do something positive other than disassociation.

Overall, I think this book was just missing a solid direction. There was too much going on and nothing felt like it got the correct amount of attention and the characters and connection suffered for it.

[(Spoiler) The whole second half I was dreading the dumb conflict that was going to come up when Cleo found out Merry had the opal ring. But it actually ended up being even worse with the cow girl showing up and Jake acting so DUMB about it. For one, he didn't seem to care about this girl, her reputation, or the perception of this stuff at all. Which I guess he is an American. But his reaction and actions at that dinner made me dislike him. That was not the way to handle it and he made Cleo feel bad and then was just happy she was jealous. and he called her a goose for thinking he would marry the girl who shows up acting like their wedding is next week. No sir.
(hide spoiler)]

Eloise James is one of my favorite historical romance authors. I loved having an American hero for this one. The couple had such great chemistry and banter. It was fun, romantic, and sexy!

I received an ARC for my honest review. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher.

I love the new trend in historical romance of making the leads nontraditional members of The Ton and opening up the story to great opportunities. James takes that idea and runs with it in this book, creating a romance between a seemingly uncouth American who is best friends with a dutches and the daughter of a Lady who ran away from home who happens to own a very successful commode company. They aren't the typical leads in a historical, but we get to enjoy familiar sceneries due to the relationships that both characters have.
I loved how decisive Cleo is from the moment we meet her and that Jake admires that in her from the very beginning. Theirs is a relationship that begins as competitors and slowly becomes a deep friendship full of respect and love, even if they're both a little wary of even thinking of it as a possibility.
You know that they will no doubt have their happy ending, but seeing them clash over the course of the story before slowly developing a relationship that can weather the storms that James throws their way is a delight to read.

Happy thanks to NetGalley, Avon, and Harper Voyager for the romantic read!

I am voluntarily posting an honest review after reading an advance reader copy of this story.

Jake and Cleo turned out to be very interesting people. Since Cleo is older than the usual debutant she has a grown woman's attitude about life, love and work. She's been the responsible one since she inherited her father's company and has a good business sense. Boy does she have money to burn. Jake begins as a wealthy American business man, too outspoken and forward for most English people and never really becomes anything else. The twist was his idea of marriage, very English ton, quiet wife with womanly pastimes and won't bother him. Their romance was almost modern in the way it played out. I came to like them very much. Now if only I knew if Lady Yasmin married the stuffy Earl. Curiosity is killing me.

#Netgalley #Eloisa James #HowToBeAWallflower #historical romance #Avon

Cleo Lewis’s goal is to be a wallflower. She walks into Quimby’s for WF-esque dresses and finds out that the proprietor has to move to America because of a stipulation in a contract. Being in business herself, Cleo realizes that the unsigned contract allows her to become the savior of Quimby’s.

Jake Astor Addison cannot deny the talent he sees in Martha Quimby and offers her more than Cleo did to ensure she becomes a part of his investments back home. He goes as far as moving into Cleo’s hotel to convince her to give Quimby’s up.

I love the wager the enemies cook up because it meant they can make each other look a fright. However, the wager allows as much close proximity between the two who keep having to set boundaries denying their desire for each other.

I love how kippers play a role in this book. It is unexpected and hilarious. Who knew kippers would create a connection, allowing a friendship and romance to bloom.

If you love reading about independent women and men who know the value of letting go for something more valuable, then you will enjoy this book.

I stopped a couple of times during my read to appreciate and just be in awe of EJ’s writing, so if you are a fan or seeking a new author to read, you will not be disappointed.

Thank you to Net Galley, Avon, and Harper Voyager US for the ARC in exchange for a honest review.

one of my favorite historical romances of the year ! eloisa james returns with a unique take; a reverse wallflower trope :0000

Cleo Lewis is an heiress to a thriving family business and inheritance but knows that, if she's to wed, all of that will be handed over to ... A MAN BLEGHHDGH (fuck the patriarchyyy, keychain on the ground 🎶). To ensure this never happens, she takes on the task of transforming into a wallflower! Parallel to this endeavor, Cleo is also hoping to expand her accolades by buying a theatre costume shop in London ... until a very errr ~sexy American businessman~ by the name of Jacob Addison comes in and tries to buy it too - the cheek! Sucks for him because Miss Lewis got her bag already 😌 That doesn't stop him from negotiating with her and striking up a deal where they both design a wardrobe fit for one another ... may the best wardrobe ?? win??????

ANYWAYS, this quickly turns from an enemies to friends storyline as our hero becomes BEWITCHED by our fiery, beautiful, intelligent Cleo 🥰 there is an element of instalove in this book but IDK YOU GUYS, it just worked for me so much !! the way he talks about her 🥲 SOBBING ,, it was only 30/40% of the book and he was GONE. down so bad for this woman. I WAS DOWN SO BAD SEEING HIM DOWN BAD FOR CLEO BYE.

the pining in this book was no joke. it was a slow burn type of romance as the hero definitely falls first for the heroine early on and spends pretty much the rest of the book wooing her and trying to make her his. due to her own past trauma with her mother being not-the-best-role-model-for-love, she has guarded her heart and emotions for a long time against men, especially against the prospect of marriage (since it ties in with her independence/inheritance, etc.). this book did something quite refreshingly different than a majority of things i've read .. COMMUNICATION FRIENDS. COMMUNICATIONNNNN 🥳👏🏽 can you believe HOW GOOD it feels to have MC's that can communicate and be patient with one another instead of having a super angsty conflict that doesn't resolve anything ??!?! and ask for consent the entire way through??!?! Jake constantly reassuring Cleo and never making her feel shitty for her past was just.. everything to me. it's so refreshing to see the heroine being the one whose more guarded and pushy-away type thing as usually we see that with the hero in most romances .. my cold, cold heart needed to know that there are men who can be as good as Jake is towards Cleo as well🥲

in general, i just loved how much Jake was head over heels for Cleo - his small gestures of bringing her flowers all the time, FEEDING HER 😭, THE KIPPERS DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED ON THE BLOODY KIPPER😭😭 - i just,,, ugh. immediately book bf material. i literally am gonna just put the quotes of the moments i was screaming into my pillow because reading about how much he loved her and her vulnerability to it.. disintegrating.

LOVED THIS. cannot recommend it enough people if you want something with: low angst, slow burn, pining, hero falls first, heroine is an independent bad b, class difference, an American/British romance, and enemies to friends to lovers 👏🏽🌟

P.S: cannot wait for the next book .. hoping it's Yasmin and Lilford (ALSO I SEE U ELOISA WITH THE TEASE IN THE EPILOGUE👁)

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to the publishers Avon Books and Harper Voyager for sending me an eARC via Netgalley for review!

[quotes that had me melting into the earth's crust]

- "You need to trust me, Cleo. I'm not your mother, moving from one lover to another without thought. I've never wanted anyone the way I want you. Which doesn't mean I'm going to push you into something you're not ready for."
"I don't know why I feel so shaken. I'm very independent."
"You are independent and confident, and I love that." ---- crying, absolutely bf material - if i don't get a man like Jake Addison, I don't freaking want it.

- "To him, she was more important than kippers."

- "It's gone beyond kippers, Cleo. I think about you in the bath. While dressing. I accompanied Merry to church last Sunday, and the Almighty would have been very dismayed if he could see the object of my worship. In short: I'm bloody well in love with you."

- "Don't you love America?"
"Not the way I love you." --- dead, gone. bye.

- "This is love and war, Cleo. We've already had the war." --- THE MAN.

I loved Cleo’s independent and strong personality and how she outwits Jake right at the beginning of this book. This sets of a wonderful and fun story of two rivals that are trying to best each other. I really enjoyed their antics and loved their love story. This was a really fun and enjoyable read and I recommend it.

I received this ARC from NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review*

This wasn’t my favorite Eloisa James.

Brash American wants to purchase costumer to improve his theater business but is stymied by British heiress, almost immediately falls in love with her despite their competition.

Mind you, he was attempting to facilitate all this to set his fortune up so he could propose to a family friend back home but he just could not resist Cleo.

This felt super low stakes and didn’t have quite enough chemistry for me.

This cover. This dress. This story. Regal, transporting, romantic. Loved it. Since Bridgerton I’ve wanted to find other books that fully transported me to this era and eloisa James is the best