A mystery, a rake, and a historical romance. This book was meant for me. It was love at first title-read.

The banter is top-notch. I am always enticed by a strong female lead, and this delivered. The writing is lovely, and the story is beyond compelling. Highly recommend.

Fair warning: this is a S L O W burn

This was one of my favorite books that I read this year, definitely in my top 3 for 2022. The book had a big element of mystery, with Giles searching for answers throughout the book. He finds an unexpected ally in Diana, who he is usually verbally sparring with. There is a slow build up to Diana and Giles’ relationship that finally comes towards the end of the book. I really enjoyed Giles character in this book, we got to see a different side of him than what we saw in Never Fall for Your Fiancé. The ending was perfect, and everything that I hoped for. I’m so excited for the next installment in the series, and have a feeling I know who Vee’s love interest will be!

Disclaimer: I have received a free e-ARC through NetGalley from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Diana and Giles: the daughter of a forger and the son of a Duke. Each vexing the other constantly with their witty banter while pretending to not hear their family and friends observations around the way they keep stealing glances at each other.
Giles has his own family troubles that have left him on the hunt to solve a mystery from his past, something that Diana excels at from her work at the newspaper. We LOVE a working woman in historical romance.
I didn't love the pacing and the romance definitely took a backseat to the mystery solving.

But I did find my new favorite pet name: Fungus

CW: attempted SA in the past reviewed, child neglect/abuse in the past reviewed, infidelity, sexual content

Diana and Giles make the perfect enemies to lovers. Both have secrets, and it is those secrets that bring them together. Watching the progression as they realize that they are better together is a delight.

Thank you netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This was a decent romance with a dash of intrigued. Guile and Diana had a tentative friendship that slowly unravels into romance as they try to navigate the mystery of his past and her job as a reporter. I enjoyed reading their interactions and cantor. It was an overall charming romance.

I absolutely adored this book. Never Rescue a Rouge is exactly what I needed to continue getting me out of the reading slump I’ve been in. It’s the second book in Virginia Heath’s Merriwell Sisters series, It follows the middle sister, Diana aka Giles’ Goddess of Hunt and Hunter of Truth. The build up in chemistry between these two was everything. It felt perfectly paced and had me squealing. I love how they both come to the realization of their feelings and just how they mesh. Adding Giles to my list of book boyfriends. I also enjoyed the small love kernels that we got for the third book of the youngest Merriwell sister and her special someone, thank you NetGalley, Virginia Heath, and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC of this book.

Ahh this was a fun book. It reminded me of the Evie Dunmore series and I loved that. I did not read the first book so I feel like I miss out on some character development with Diana's sister. Giles was a great main character and I enjoyed the banter differences between Diana and then the way he was with everybody else. The story was a slow burn but I enjoyed seeing how everything with his Uncle Gervais played out and the successful outcome. I'll definitely read more by this author. The only part I would change was the italicized "dark secret" piece. It felt a little strange in this setting and I was confused by the secrecy in the first 50 or so pages.

A fun continuation of the Merriwell sister’s tale. They banter was fun and the mystery kept everything lively. Can’t wait for the third book that was hinted at.

I received a copy from NetGalley and this is my freely given opinion.

This is the second book of the Merriwell Sisters by Virginia Heath, about the Diana, the younger sister of Minerva, and Giles Sinclair, the good friend of Hugh.

Diana had a very troubled youth with a terrible father, a felonious villain willing to use his daughters in any way to further his gain, and who abandoned them. She has no trust in men and no desire to marry, and every desire to be an independent woman. To this end, she has a job working for a paper, despite being in Society through her sister's marriage to a peer. She encourages her family's belief that her involvement is merely in superficial gossip pieces and editing, and hides the fact that she is behind more journalistic, expose pieces which could put her in danger.

Giles Sinclair, the heir to a dukedom, also has a cold, fraught, contentious relationship with his father. To the point where his father actively prevents Hugh from being allowed on the estates including the home he grew up in. He puts up a facade of being a licentious, libertine rake to goad and rebel against his father, but deep down, he is nothing like he portrays. But he also is the keeper of a deep family secret. When he inherits the dukedom, he works to find find the truth because he wants to be able to save the estates and the tenants he cares deeply for from the harm his father did through neglect, and to protect them from future harm. But it seems an overwhelming task for him, so he turns to someone he knows is capable of ferreting out secrets and truth, and whom he trusts with his secrets, Diana.

Diana and Giles have an interesting contentious relationship, where they are attracted to each other, but because of their own secrets and histories, they suppress and deny the attraction and instead bait, and tease each other. But, probably because of their own secrets they are keeping, they seem to see each other for more than the images they project, and this seems to a contribute to a deeper understanding, and trust in each other that fosters a deeper relationship that develops into more.

I enjoyed the banter between Giles and Diana. There were some quite funny lines, like Diana stating "I barely tolerated him to begin with - but he grew on me. Like a fungus." To which Giles says, "And now I am the victorious champignon of her heart." That tickled my funny bone, and I loved their relationship. But I really liked the development and revealing of Giles' character. In the first book, he seemed quite the superficial rake, friend of Hugh, and I was ready to dismiss him as a bit of an uncaring jerk. I also wondered about when he took off for over a week or so, putting a bit of a wrench into the spoke of Hugh's fake fiancee plan, where he was supposed to stage a fake elopement between Minerva and Giles. I thought perhaps his secret was he was a spy or something, since he was so secretive about why he was gone... but both he and Hugh have this desire to hide the fact that they have a care for others and his leaving likely had something to do with helping people on his father's estates on the sly.

I enjoyed to some extent the continuation of the relationships of the secondary characters and how Hugh's mother took on a mothering role for all of them, and the sense of being part of a large family when both the main characters did not have that growing up. But the matchmaking of Giles and Diana by the secondary characters was quite cloying. I can see how they would find it overbearing, because reading about it was too much!

But overall, I enjoyed the story, and the dialogue. I an intrigued by the introduction of the cousin and how that will play out with Vee, the younger sister.

3.75 stars out of 5.

Never Rescue a Rogue is Virginia Heath's second in this series. I LOVED the first, and was super excited to read this one. I wasn't disappointed with this one. I loved Diana and Giles so much. I felt just as connected and excited to get to the end (but didn't really want to finish, ya know?) as the first.

Diana and Merriwell and Giles Sinclair are thrown together due to the marriage of his best friend to her sister. They barely tolerate each other and tend to throw witty insults at each other all of the time. The rest of the family believes they truly love each other and are always matchmaking.
After a tough childhood with a criminal father, Diana loves the freedom of working at the newspaper. Unwilling to tie herself to another terrible man, she doesn't see marriage in her future.
Giles would love to marry and have a family, but after being raised to believe that family reputation and line come above all else by a father who rarely saw him Giles refuses to continue the line.
When Giles' father dies, the big family secret regarding the truth of his birth threatens to come to light. Giles must discover the truth of his birth first, and Diana's sleuthing skills will be invaluable during the search. As they dive into his past, the witty insults become a little bit more. Can they save Giles' in time for their relationship to truly be more?
This was a fun regency romance. Diana and Giles have a fun relationship and they are both great characters. You root for them the whole time. I recommend this book for a fun romantic comedy read.

“Good grief, this garden is like Piccadilly Circus!”

Never Fall for Your Fiancée may have been charming, but Never Rescue a Rogue was perfection! I absolutely loved how determined, independent, and resourceful Diana was. Diana and Giles had a ton of chemistry in the previous book, so it was fantastic to see their interactions, angst, and certain embarrassing situations unfold. This book was definitely a slow burn, but between the humor, and the fantastic secondary characters (#TeamDalton), the story went by quickly. I also loved how this story introduced new plot points and direction for where the third book will go. Definitely looking forward to reading Vee’s story next!

Pals, I am here once again (v-happily) with my review of Virginia Heath’s historical romance Never Rescue a Rogue. Book 2 in her Merriwell sisters series, featuring the headstrong, grammar forward, and independent Diana and the not-at-all-who-he-seems rogue, turned Duke, Giles Sinclair.

As always a huge thank you to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the advance copy, thoughts below are my own.

I started this book with zero expectations, having never (gasp incoming) read a Virginia Heath story, and wow was I pleasantly surprised. This slow-burn, friends to lovers historical was so sweet and featured some completely swoon (sorry Diana) inducing moments for me.

The depth of chemistry and connection Giles and Diana have is wonderful to read. And friends we have HUGE boy-falls-first energy and actions throughout, that were chef’s kiss perfect for me. I knew the moment when she reached for his hand under the table, to offer her physical support that these two were going to really beat the sh*t out of my heart.

I LOVED THE ROMANCE, OF COURSE, BUT I LOVED SO MUCH OF THE STORY THAT UNDERPINS THESE TWO FINALLY FIGURING OUT THEIR FEELINGS FOR EACH OTHER. THE ADVENTURE, WIT, AND SUSPENSE WILL APPEAL TO FANS OF TESSA DARE’S WEEK TO BE WICKED AND AMANDA QUICK’S RAVISHED.

The found family, and roasting you is my love language, so deeply appealed to me. Especially in watching how Giles not only connected and cared for Diana but also Dalton, who my lord really just stole so many scenes. BUT friends, I think what really stood out for me is how the declaration of love unfolded.

So often in hist-roms we have the love-bomb coming after the smushing / aligning of body parts, and its 99% of the time the declaration of the FMC. So to not only have Giles openly, vulnerably and repeatedly give her the words that just cracked my heart open, was a refreshing change of scenery.

However, friends if you are looking for a book with high steam or many sex scenes I would encourage you to not expect that here. While there are many moments of intimacy (hand holding, face touching, kisses) there is one culminating bedroom scene that while I found poetic and not overly descriptive, may have folks feeling a little let down. Especially after reading 80% of the way through the book to finally get to this point.

For me though, it didn’t detract or hinder my ability to enjoy the crap out of this funny, heartfelt, exciting and deeply romantic trip to Shropshire. And we can ALL agree its going to be Venus and Galahad for the next book right (insert padme anakin meme)?

Grab your copy of Never Rescue a Rogue wherever you get your books when it lands in store and online November 2, 2022.

Author Virginia Heath has written another delightful romance in the Merriwell sisters universe. This book centers around Diana Merriwell, the independent, cynical, and hilarious sister. Her best friend is Giles Sinclair, whose father has just died, plunging him into the role of Duke. When questions arise about the legitimacy of his birth, he asks his best friend, Diana, to help him uncover the truth. Along the way, their friendship quickly transitions into something deeper and steamier.

This was such a fun book to read! Not only was it good to revisit old characters, but the chemistry between Diana and Giles was believable and enjoyable. I look forward to reading the next book in Heath's series! Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

Going into this book, I wanted to love it. Just the title alone had me. I love the dashing regency rogues who fall in love with the prim and proper ladies. However, Diana is not that. She is a gossip columnist who also goes after the bad guy stories.

So, I wanted to love this book, but I just could not get there. The beginning was slow for me and I think not having read the previous book hindered me.

I do love the chemistry between Giles and Diana. I love how Diana is strong and independent but she is willing to bend to make room for Giles.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this advanced copy! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is turning out to be a very entertaining series! The entire cast of characters is so integral and makes the plot more interesting and exciting. The chemistry and tension between Diana and Giles was definitely present in the first book and continues on for their story. I love getting a deeper look in Diana and Giles characters and true passions. I thought the plot was also very creative relating to succession and lineage. The only difficulty I had was that the story seemed so long. There were so many subplots going that were delved into with such detail and everything dragged. Maybe it was just because I wanted to get to the ending, but it seemed a tad drawn out. Despite that I do love this series and will continue to read more!

This excellent slow burn romance between Giles Sinclair, the heir and then Duke of Harpenden, and Diana Merriwell is full of teasing banter and mysterious twists and turns.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and found all the characters to be well developed. I haven’t yet read the first book in the series, but based on my reading it isn’t required.
Diana is a great heroine. I love her development and relationship with her sisters.
Giles is the perfect counter to Diana’s ambition and stubbornness. He always tries to protect her from harm while still being supportive.

ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

What a fun read! Adventure, secrets, regency hijinks, and a slow burn romance. Diana is a fiercely independent and very smart character with layers, secrets, and pressures she feels. Her history informs her desire to remain unwed forever and causes her to resist simmering feelings. I enjoyed learning about her job and seeing the family dynamics play out on the page. Her relationship with Giles could be considered enemies to lovers, but I feel like "enemies" is loosely defined here - perhaps frenemies to lovers is more like it? He, too, has layers and a complex family history that informs his public persona - that of a rouge and playboy intent on spending all his father's money in the most frivolous of ways.

I also really appreciated that this storyline didn't fall into some common traps to keep the tension moving. Namely, there is an absence of fake issues created by a lack of communication. The slow burn makes sense, the characters are honest with each other, and even the side characters are well developed. A fun read end to end, would recommend. I have to go read the first in the series now.

Giles and Diana are such a perfect couple! You could feel the chemistry between these two off the pages!
Giles and DIana are both keeping secrets from those they love. Diana is secretly The Sentinel and Giles is trying hard to keep his status as a bastard child a secret. These two already feel attracted to one another, but when they figure out they can help each other, the sparks begin flying.
Diana and Giles are such a lovable couple. They tend to find themselves in some kind of trouble constantly (which usually ends up being either spicy or funny so I'm not mad about it!)

This slow-burn, enemies to lovers Regency romance is fun, steamy, and full of adventure!

Thanks to Netgalley for an ARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own!

The banter, the escapades, the mystery, oh my!

Real talk.. I haven’t read a historical romance in a hot minute. It was super cute! I loved the dialogue between Diana and Giles and how witty and funny it was. I think that the time period was loosely played.. sometimes they were able to kiss in front of someone (not married, what a scandal!) and sometimes it was all about propriety, which threw me off a bit. I think as well the ending was all the loose ends wrapped up quickly vs. the beginning dragging a bit.

All in all, I had fun with this one! I enjoyed the characters quite a bit and would read more from this author. The storyline and the mystery were very well done.

**I received an ARC from netgalley for an honest review**

🐝🐝🐝/5 for the hornet’s best
🌶/5