There’s definitely an audience for this one, but unfortunately it’s just really not for me. It’s an overdone trope in my opinion and the characters weren’t interesting enough to keep my attention for long.

I absolutely loved this book. It hooked me and kept me turning pages until I was done. Finished it in two days! The character development was strong, and the premise was unique enough that it didn't feel like anything else I've read.

Thank you NetGalley and Xpresso Book Tours for the chance to read and review The Worst Woman in London by Julia Bennet!

“You could never be unwomanly. Impractical perhaps, but then ideals are rarely practical.”

When Francesca decides to file for divorce she knows that she'll be removed from polite society! After all, her husband, is no worse than most men of the ton and she should know better than to have her own indiscretions, or at least be more discreet. With her family abandoning her, no money, and her divorce at risk (at a time where a woman had to be faultless and prove desertion and abuse to given the right to divorce and remarry) she's still willing to go through it all, if only to have her freedom. When James is sent by her husband to try and negotiate a more informal separation instead of a divorce, sparks fly. But that would put it all at risk.

The Worst Woman in London is the first regency romance I've read with this premise. And it's also got a woman facing the very real things that happened in society at the time. Her husband hasn't bothered to see her in 8 years. but if she has an affair she won't have a full divorce. He can flaunt his mistress openly and give her expensive diamonds, but can withdraw financial support, and keep all of the money she may have inherited. If a woman has a more "stimulating" interest, her parents can refuse to indulge her (like how Sylvia Randle could only read for an hour on certain days" and marry her off to the highest bidder. Even with a happy ending, which is a necessary part of a regency romance, we aren't sure what the happiness will be and will it be only a certain measure of happiness. We don't see a reconciliation with the family and we don't see material wealth, even if we do see love. We also know that the happy ending was entirely due to another mans power.

I had trouble getting into this book, I don’t read historical romance frequently and the language kept tripping me up. The first few chapters were a struggle for me, but once I found a rhythm I quite enjoyed reading. The language was the main thing to get used to. Felt for Fran and how women were treated back in the day, I loved James and his growth as a man.

Serving a story with the stereotypical traits against women especially back in the 80s. Fran wanting a divorce is like a dishonored choice to the people around him. Her husband, her in-laws, her aunt and uncle and so does the society. A wife should be faithful to her husband even if the husband has an affair outside their marriage. Pretty cruel isn't it? Fran had to encounter being thrown out by her aunt. She had to survive by living off her savings with arent much since she never thought of saving before and needed to spend on lawsuits. But for the sake of freedom, she needs to be tough and ignore all the side-eye from people around her.

I like how easy it is to read the story even though it was historical fiction. They still implied the 80s way in the dialog but keeping it light in the storytelling. Easy for those who want to start reading historical fiction.

Overall the story was okay. The story wasn't draggy at all and I enjoyed reading it. All the characters serve its purpose very well. Its an enjoyable read and please give this book a try if you want to devour into the love life of a divorcee.

The Worst Woman in London has a great book blurb and an interesting premise, but it just dragged on a bit much for my tastes. There's a lot packed into this book that clocks in under 300 pages.

The premise is somewhat fresh for this genre and gives an interesting insight into the societal mores of the time period.

Thorne and Francesca have been married for 10 years. They've lived apart for 8, since Thorne is a serial cheater. Francesca wants a divorce, which was a very complicated process for a Victorian woman. She wants her freedom, even if that impacts her future.

James Standish is a long time friend of Thorne's. He told Thorne before his wedding that he didn't think Thorne and Francesca suited. James of course held a little torch for Francesca all those years, and came back into her life when Thorne asked him to convince Fran to give up her quest for a divorce and embarrassing the family and just take money and leave.

Of course, Fran and James are attracted to each other and begin to explore their feelings. We also get a secondary "romance" between Thorne and Sylvia, an 18 year of diamond of society.

Thorne was not a likable character, so a lot of time was spent on him and his HEA, that I felt it was detrimental to building James and Fran's relationship.

Overall, interesting premise, but I didn't love the book or really like or feel connected to the characters.

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC of this book. The thoughts and opinions are my own and freely given.

Francesca has been trapped in loveless marriage with a cheating of a man for years. And finally, she's had enough and decides to get a divorce. But unfortunately, the profoundly sexist London society of her time chastise her and give her a big scarlet letter.

This book quite surprised me! This is the sort of historical fiction that I enjoy. The one that questions the way everything was done back then, that decides it's not okay to continue writing sexist stories in this day and age with the pretense that "it's how it was back then". The author brought us a powerful story about a woman who fights for herself and for her chance at true happiness, in a world that considered her less than.
It did take a while to get into the thick of the story but it was definitely worth it.
The writing was really well done, the main and side characters deep and intriguing.
The love story was exquisite to follow, and I was so happy about how everything unfolded in the third act. It did wrap up a bit too fast but the ending was definitely worth it.
All in all, a great historical romance, with an amazing moral.

Thank you NetGalley and Julia Bennet for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a first time read for me by this author and I found it to be quite interesting and entertaining. It's different than the typical historical romance novels that I've read in that the topic of divorce is addressed, which was very much frowned upon during that time. It was considered quite the scandal to get divorced. But divorce is exactly what Francesca wanted from her husband Edward. They have been married for ten years but it didn't take them long in their marriage to realize they were wrong for each other. They have been living separate lives to the point where Edward has had many conquests while married to Francesca and makes no effort to hide the fact. Despite all his cheating, he refuses to give her the divorce she asks for because of the terrible scandal it would create. James is Edward's best friend and Edward asked him to negotiate with Francesca on his behalf. All those years ago, when they first married, James was certain they had not been a good match, turns out he was right. He reluctantly agrees and talks with Francesca , agreeing with Edward that she should drop the idea of divorce. But when he meets with her, they both realize how fiercely they are attracted they are to each other. James is torn, as she is not only married, but married to his best friend. How can he possibly pursue a relationship with her?
James and Francesca have some major obstacles to overcome before their relationship can really take root. This was definitely a unique storyline, and it kept me intrigued and interested all the way through. The writing was captivating and definitely kept me entertained. I would love to read more books by this author.
I received a complimentary copy from Netgalley and am voluntarily leaving my review.

A fun premise that was hindered by an inability to relate to the characters at hand. I really wanted to like this book, but I found myself floundering every time I made an honest try. I am going to give it a go again in the fall, as I do my pre-holiday historical binge. Thank you to both Netgalley and the publisher for an opportunity with this title.

this was such an incredible read!! i absolutely adored this and i am so grateful to netgalley for letting me read this book early!! it was fun and lovely and sweet and precious. pick it up!!

Thank you to NetGallery, the author and the publisher for this advance copy of the book in exchange for my honest opinion. I love this one so much. I loved it got me back to a time I wasn’t even born. I loved we saw how hard was for women back then. And it made me mad how unfair everything was. The writing is so good and I’m so excited to read more of this author.

The Worst Woman in London is a wonderful read! I enjoyed the fresh perspective on a situation that was rampant at the time in this bygone era.

Francesca and James are such a treat. Francesca is strong and sticks up for herself when others urge her to fade into the background. James is an unlikely friend as Francesca challenges the norms of what is acceptable and proper.

Bennet does a wonderful job in making the reader hate the antagonists as well. I really enjoyed the multiple perspectives and thought it really rounded out the story.

Thank you NetGalley and Xpresso Book Tours for the ARC. The thoughts expressed are my own.

I liked it and i didn't like it, I am torn because the story between the main couple is kind of nice, the way the author decided to solve the conflict kind of didn't do it for me.

This was a bit all over the place for me: I liked the two main characters, the writing, and the themes it explored, but I just hated the addition of the secondary couple! Well, not necessarily the addiction of it to the story, but Edward was a prick.

How are we supposed to root for this couple when he’s an asshole saying he has changed and is falling for this younger debutante (when his friend of the same age thought he himself was too old for her, like, that was a topic in this book), while still calling his then-wife a whore and a trollop until the last possible opportunity, having no respect for women? Get in the bin!

But besides that, I really liked the characterisation of the two main leads. And I enjoyed the writing.

Thank you Netgalley and Xpresso Book Tours for this arc.❤️

Fran, our heroine, seeks divorce in an attempt to regain her freedom. We meet her when she's at a point in her life where she doesn't care about other's opinions of her and her life, and being not afraid to speak her mind and going after what she truly wants.
Jemmy, her husband's best friend, tries to convince her her divorce is a lost case. However, what they don't expect is to build a tender friendship that blossoms into the most wonderfully endearing relationship.
Throughout the story we see Fran struggling to battle traditions and is being trapped by society's standards and her husbands infidelities. While her resolve of getting a divorce is unwavering and confident, Jemmy's has had more conflict and was a bit reluctant to leave the customs and traditions he was raised to live by. Both their arcs, individually and together, were satisfying.

With a side story for a secondary couple, and between the steamy scenes between our lovely MCs and they way they were constantly immersed with each other The Worst Waman In London keeps you very entertained. We reach the end of the story with Fran and Jemmy getting their much deserved happy ending.

i liked this for the most part but a large chunk of it felt a bit too slow for my taste and i had trouble coming back to it because of that

Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Plot/Storyline: 📖📖📖📖
Feels: 🦋🦋
Emotional Depth: 💔💔💔💔
Sexual Tension: ⚡⚡
Romance: 💞💞💞
Sensuality: 💋💋💋💋
Sex Scene Length: 🍑🍑🍑
Steam Scale (Number of Sex Scenes): 🔥🔥🔥
Humor: Not much
Perspective: Third person from both the hero, Jeremy, and heroine, Fran, as well as some random scenes from the heroine’s husband, Thorne, and his love interest, Sylvia.

Basic plot:
Thorne doesn’t want a divorce from his wife, Fran. He sends his friend to talk sense into her, but Jeremy finds a side of Fran that makes him feel protective and supportive of her instead of his friend Thorne.

Give this a try if you want:
- Victorian time period (1882)
- Taboo – best friend’s wife
- You’re all right with events of infidelity (to be clear, the marriage has long been over, but technically there is relations while the marriage is still intact, and the hero cheated right from the beginning and this is remembered by the heroine)
- Childless HEA
- Nicknames (Fran and Jemmy – but only they use them for each other and it’s really sweet!)
- Friends to lovers
- Medium steam – 3 full scenes (details at end of my review)
- Experienced heroine

Ages:
- Hero is 36, heroine is 30

My thoughts:
I think a lot of people will really appreciate this story! It features a lot of things that aren’t usually found in historical romance and I love that Bennet featured those struggles and overcoming the obstacles. Sadly, this one didn’t work the best for me at this time.

I’m not sure if it’s because it’s a bit of a heavy book, but I was left without any feels and just generally depressed after reading it. (could totally be my mood too as I have had few dud reads lately). I generally enjoyed the characters a lot and was really rooting for them. But I didn’t love anyone and I was a bit relieved to reach the end.

I did really dislike getting time in Thorne and Sylvia’s perspective. To me, they were utterly unlikable and to think of them in a more empathetic light just left a bad taste in my mouth. I hated that they got their HEA (or whatever form of ‘after’ Thorne was able to give her).

I also disliked the ending and how it was left for so long without either party resolving their lack of communication. I always struggle with that though so I think a lot of these things won’t really bother others.

Francesca has been married for 10 years and having been abandoned by her philandering husband for the last 8, has demanded a divorce. Her husband, Edward, refuses to give it to her and sets his best friend James to talk some sense into Francesca and pass along that he will give her a settlement to stay married. She insists on being free of his grip and decides to proceed with the divorce. James, ever the bachelor, is being encouraged by his aunt (who's fortune he is the heir to) to find an eligible debutante to settle down with. He and Francesca strike up a friendship but they are unable to deny their chemistry, and it evolves into a passionate secret affair that must stay hidden to help protect Fran's reputation for her divorce.
I loved Francesca, she was flawed but determined to stand up for herself and fight for what she wanted, especially after the way that her husband consistently treated her. I loved James and how he realized that money and his position weren't everything that he needed to be happy, especially when it came to Fran. Edward was just a jerk but I'm glad he figured out his happiness in his own way as well. Overall I really enjoyed reading this book even if at times it was frustrating to read because the characters reflected what was once the societal norms, especially in regard to how woman should behave and what men could get away with that they could not. It was hard not to feel frustrated for Fran and just despise her husband's actions, but overall I really enjoyed the story and how her relationship with James developed.
Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my review, all thoughts are my own. 4.5 stars/5

I received this book from NetGalley and the publishers to read and review. All statements above are my true opinions after fully reading this book.
The plot was very interesting! I did not love the book as much as I thought I was going to. The plot and book felt dragged out towards the end and I found myself continually loosing interest.

as someone who is a huge fan of forbidden romance and friends to lovers, i wasnt as in love with this book as i had hoped. it didnt feel fully fleshed out. it felt like a surface read, which is fine if thats what youre looking for! not my fave but not my least fave either!