I found this book to be as enjoyable as the other Jess Everlee books. I liked how the characters were sassy and intelligent. Lots of twists and turns in this one and it was a really enjoyable read.

Rating overall - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice level - 🌶️🌶️

A bluestockings guide to decadence by Jess everlee is a charming, sweet sapphic historical romance that everyone who enjoys the genre will love!

I read this as a stand-alone with no issues but it is a third book in this series!

I really enjoy how realistic this romance is, it doesn’t fictionalize the struggles people would’ve had in a same-sex marriage or relationship in this time period.

Jo and Emily have amazing chemistry that practically jumps off the page and you really begin to fall in love with the characters as they do!


The storyline is a bit complicated , but all is worth it trust me!

Genre: historical romance
London, 1885

Jo Smith has been married for nearly twenty years, but she and her husband, while one-time lovers, are now business partners and roommates. Divorce isn’t really a possibility for either of them. Her husband’s lover is pregnant, which, while cause for some joy is also cause for worry as Vanessa is advanced in age and suffering from complications. A friend of Jo’s has a sister in the country who is a doctor, and Emily Clarke may be the solution to all of their worries. Except Dr Clarke wants respect from her colleagues at the hospital, and not refuses to be pigeonholed into private practice obstetrics. And yet, there’s more than just a spark between Jo and Emily, and as Emily grows more attached to Jo, it’s apparent that treating Vanessa is important as well.

I was initially pretty skeptical going into this - the setup made me nervous - but I shouldn't have been. Emily and Jo’s story ended up being tender with what is likely a very realistic HEA. There's a lot of navigation of societal responsibilities in an insightful and careful way that really works. While I can’t say I spent the book swooning, I truly loved the chemistry between Jo and Emily. They go from short-tongues adversaries to sensing a spark to pen pals to lovers in a way that feels so entirely natural and comfortable for characters all around forty-ish. Gentle and relatable; even if a reader hasn’t found themselves in a lavender marriage with a sapphic lover specifically, the emotional complexity is familiar.

I did read the first book, A Gentleman’s Book of Vices, but haven’t read book two, A Rulebook for Restless Rogues, so I can confirm this can be read out of order, even though the book two characters are prominent (and in fact, provide the introduction between Jo and Emily).

Oh! This was a very very very lovely romance that left me feeling warm and cuddly inside. I have not read the previous books in the series, but I guess that Jo is friends with the men in books 1 and 2, and Emily is the sister of one of the men in book 2.

Jo is a butch lesbian bookseller who realizes she needs to find a doctor when her husband's girlfriend Vanessa gets pregnant. Unfortunately, their 1880s irregular family is going to make it hard to find a doctor. Enter Emily, the very prim and proper country doctor whose wild brother runs a gay gentlemen's club in London. Emily is underpaid and working at the hospital with her father, and she is terrified that if she delivers one baby, the medical establishment will force her to only ever deliver babies. But Vanessa needs Emily, so Dr. Emily agrees to care for her patient while developing a flirtatious epistolary relationship with Jo. Slowly, Jo and Emily each learn to let down their guard, and these opposites fall in love.

I am always iffy about historical fiction and historical romance because much of history was actually pretty terrible for anyone who wasn't a cisgender, heterosexual, white Christian man. This is a book that acknowledges the social inequalities and homophobia in Victorian England, yet finds a way to give us an HEA and found family. I was very pleasantly surprised that this included found family.

The only thing that annoyed me was that we were told that Jo was too busty for her clothes when clothes at that time would have been made for a person. Her buttons on her waistcoat should not have been straining, though it does make for some very flirty scenes.

Tropes: hurt/comfort, found family, grumpy/sunshine, opposites attract

CW: death of a mother during childbirth before the beginning of the story

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin for this ARC.

A charming romcom somewhere between grumpy/sunshine and enemies-to-lovers. This one may not beat the either-lesbians-or-electricity allegations, but Emily and Jo and their community will win over readers who love light historical fiction and found families. The perfect light and fluffy queer chaser to the latest season of Bridgerton.

I love this series!
This one includes some new characters and Noah’s sister who is a physician like their father.
Love the very interesting marriage of convenience that Jo has. Love reading different types of relationships. Her husband and her are married but lead happy intertwined yet unromantic lives. She prefers females but the marriage makes it so she can do what she want. But then his girlfriend gets pregnant. Jo attempting to be useful finds Dr Emily to treat her.
Emily is very proper and attempting to be a proper doctor but society isn't ready. Jo is a very tempting person and Emily can't seem to stay away from her.
This is a charming sapphic romance.

After reading the previous two books in this series, I was so excited to get one about Jo! This is the fun historical sapphic romance I have been looking for.

As soon as Jo was introduced in the first book, I knew I would love her. Her fears about being replaced in her family felt so real, and made her such a relatable character. I also felt like Emily was really well done and I loved seeing her go from Noah’s sister to a fully fleshed out character of her own.

If this series continues, I really hope we get to see more about Warren or Miss Withers.

This sapphic historical romance tells the story of Emily, a buttoned up bluestocking doctor who makes her own chess pieces, and Jo, a city bookseller who runs with a fun crowd (including Emily’s brother) in a lavender marriage.

Initially brought together to help with Jo’s husband’s lover’s pregnancy*, the two don’t start off on the best foot. Eventually attraction and interest get the better of them both and they find themselves writing letters back and forth over weeks. At an eagerly anticipated visit Emily and Jo add physical intimacy to their relationship and it’s hot.

There are some tense moments over the months that make up this story but mostly it is a cozy, joyful, sexy, love story between two women figuring out their careers and families and how best to live well.

Also they make apologies and give second chances.

*Yes, this is complicated but it works so well in this story and makes for a great found family.

Jo and Emily were such intriguing side characters in the first books that I couldn't wait to check out the first sapphic book in this series. While Jess Everlee does great with extremely socially conscious period premises, addressing specific ways queer folx and women had to make their tentative place in society, I remain unimpressed with her actual writing pacing. The insta-attraction between the leads felt like such a contrived false step. The characters themselves are interesting enough, as is their found family dynamics. But the heavy topics addressed here of grief and trauma and marginalization needed a more masterful hand. As it stands, the book made me like Emily and Jo even less than I did going into it. Emily's extremely un-doctor-like focus on the optics of her clientele, and Jo's unnecessary mental gymnastics about her martial situation just made them kind of insufferable with a side of horny. That said, still grateful for the drop in the desert of regency sapphic romance.

LOVES:
- It’s nice that so many of the main characters don’t fit the “typical” mold
- The necromancy joke ⁉️😂😳🥴
- That dang button 😂
- I like how Jo likes to rile Emily up
- Their letters are adorable 🥰

CRITIQUES:
- I wanted the beginning to move just a little bit faster
- Personal preference: cigarettes 🤢 - though I like Jo’s choice about how to handle them

This is short and sweet. Very cute.

Thanks to @netgalley for the eARC.

Another trip to the historical setting of Jess Everlee’s universe and a chance to learn more about Miss Jo. She’s been an interesting character when meeting her in previous books and there was always a feeling that there was more to her story. When we meet with her in the beginning of book 3 of the Lucky Lovers of London, she’s found herself smack in the middle of quite the predicament. She is involved in a lavender marriage and her husband, Paul, has a pregnant mistress, actress Miss Vanessa Garcia.

That is where the tight bun wearing Dr. Emily Clarke comes into the story. She is the sister of Noah from book 2 and is currently practicing medicine alongside her father at the hospital. The time being what it is, she doesn’t get the pay she deserves nor the respect she deserves from her patients and their families so she is at a difficult place in her career. This opposites attract romance partners her up with bookshop seller/illegal printmaker Miss Jo who is more comfortable wearing trousers than corsets and they butt heads at the very beginning. Their banter and back and forth letters spark an interest on both sides.

These opposites grow to compliment one another and both come to truths about themselves and the situations that they are currently dealing with or actively not dealing with and I enjoy seeing that in a book. Given the Victorian time frame, there are limitations that these characters come up against and with one another’s support, Emily and Jo find themselves at a much different place than where they started.

I can’t speak for how close the details for historical accuracy were but I felt the ending was fitting for the all the characters involved under what my understanding of the time period was and I enjoyed reading Emily and Jo’s story.

If it’s a historical romance by Jess Everlee, I’m reading it. A Bluestocking’s Guide to Decadence is the third book in this series and the third I’ve read, and I enjoy her unique voice and ability to bring a modern lens to long ago eras.

This third story is a departure from the MM romances of previous books, exploring the sapphic love story of Dr. Emily Clarke & Jo Smith. If you haven’t read those books, don’t worry. You can still enjoy this story for its sweet, feisty romance, but reading them in order is ideal to set the stage for these female protagonists.

Emily’s a doctor and the aforementioned bluestocking dedicated to her career and working to prove her value to the field of medicine. Her plight is consistent with workplace inequality and a harsh reminder of how far we’ve come in respecting the roles of women in our world.

Jo is, well…Miss Jo. She’s a bit devilish and daring, although she knows her place and how to make waves without upsetting the ship. She’s smart and has worked hard to build a life of content and stability, one where she’s able to balance the marriage society expects with her true self and innermost desires.

Both women are at a crossroads when their paths collide. Delightfully opposite in every way, it’s fun to see their annoyance at war with their attraction when they so obviously wish it could be any other way. Uncertainty and vulnerability are tough emotions for such strong characters, and Everlee uses both to build the foundation for their relationship. Her use of epistolary elements to share Jo & Emily’s growing connection is brilliant, adding excitement and just a dash of naughtiness to the tale.

If you’re a fan of historical romance, I highly recommend taking a chance on this mixed romance series. Its entertaining stories and unique characters bring Victorian London to life, and I can’t say enough how much I’ve enjoyed it.

this was a sweet sapphic historical. it took me a while to get into, though. for like the entire first half, I just didn't . . . care. part of this was probably because I didn't feel like the reader got to know jo very well at all through the entire book. the premise was not my favorite either. when I requested the arc, I didn't fully understand how stressful the circumstances of the story would be, much more stressful than I prefer the plots of my romances to be. the vibes weren't tense, but the situations were, and I didn't like that. one thing I did really like was the lack of a third act breakup.

This book was great, just not what I expected! I'm not sure what I was anticipating going in based on the cover - a sillier, less real, less intimate (but maybe spicier) version of this book? Its serious but not entirely, sweet without being too cliche, and filled with humor that feels like a whispered innuendo rather than laugh out loud funny.

Enemies to lovers is of course peak queer romance. But debauched x prim and proper (is there an official term for this?) takes the trope cake here. I truly loved watching Emily slowly unfold and Jo begin to soften and mature to face her problems. Their relationship was too cute and its development was especially helped along by adorable letters and surrounded by a strong cast of secondary characters. Definitely recommended!

Thank you to Harlequin and Netgalley for a free eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Cozy and quaint historical romance mainly preoccupied with settling down. I found there to be too little tension and too little plot to really keep me engaged, so it was a little on the dull side for my taste.

This is my third book in this series and the third book that was just okay for me. Literally this series should be my catnip, but I struggle each time. I always find myself enjoying the side characters more than the main couple. Like the previous books I struggled to find the chemistry between Jo and Emily. I really wish I could have gotten into it more.

This book missed the mark for me, which is a bummer because I really did love the first two in the series.

My main problem is that I found one of the main characters, Emily, completely unlikeable. She is uptight and condescending and thinks of herself as martyr, so I really couldn't root for her. It was hard to see her as a romantic lead, given how she comes across almost frigid. And her love interest, Jo, has been present through the first two books, so I found myself thinking that she deserved better. It wasn't until about 70% of the way through that I started seeing why they might enjoy each other's company.

The other problem I had was with some of the historical details. I couldn't really figure out what "nonconformist" and "bluestocking" meant within the confines of the story. At times, it implied that she was a conservative religious woman, like with the "rational" dress. But then at other times it seemed to imply that they were more liberal than most of society, like with their support for queer friends and family. I found myself confused here, even after doing quite a bit of googling for the historical context.

I found this kind of hard to get through for the first like 60%, but the story did begin to catch my attention later on. I found myself mostly invested in Jo's side of the story, particularly the parts that didn't include Emily.

I really wanted to like this book, given how much I liked the earlier books and Jo's character going in. Here's hoping there will be more books in the series that I will love like the first two!

The Decadent and the Dissenter... Is how the world sees Jo Smith and Dr. Emily Clarke, but they discover they can be so much more. Miss Jo has been an enigmatic figure in the series and it was so interesting to dig deeper into who she truly is, and who she wants to be. This book was a great character study of both MCs and how they want to adapt to circumstances changing. It was quite introspective vs the other books. The beauty of the found and actual family coming together, and how one finds or changes their place within those dynamics was a loud theme throughout. This was not a book with a lot of action and steam, and it is more of self-discovery and how to create lives and relationships outside of society's norm. I was surprised to see how vulnerable you get to see Jo, and one of the biggest surprise characters has been her husband, whom we all affectionately know as the Beast. Emily also has her share of "ghosts" to deal with, which weren't evident in the last book with Noah, but definitely come to a head here. The Clarke's relationship has been quite an interesting one to read for books set in this time period because they also sit outside the norm of the characters that go to the Curious Fox, and it gives the author a chance to show family and relationship dynamics outside of the typical secrecy. It was all in all a good way to end the series, and keeps you guessing on how the HEA will truly look.

Steam: 🔥
Heart Flutters: ❤️

DNF at 31%. I like the premise, and the characters are alright, but I’m just not feeling much of a “spark” between the characters.

This is a charming, sexy, touching sapphic historical romance, and I loved it.

Emily is the bluestocking: she's a doctor who feels like she's spent her whole life doing the hard jobs that need doing, whether you like it or not. She's a doctor because her brother wouldn't take up the family business; she's still living with her father because no one else will take care of him; and she's working at the hospital for pennies on the dollar to what a male doctor would make because someone needs to take care of the ill. Jo is the decadent: she's a typesetter and bookseller who wears men's clothes and belongs to a sapphic club. When her husband's mistress falls pregnant, Jo decides to make herself useful and find a doctor who will assist a mother in such an irregular situation ... and ends up finding Emily.

The interpersonal relationships might be messy, but this is a low angst romance between two adult women who know how to give each other second chances. There's some steam for those who want it, too! The book does not present a fantasy past where two women or two men can live together as spouses, or even a fantasy past where a woman can sell smutty books, but within those constraints the HEA is appropriate, earned, and really sweet. Check this one out.

This objective review is based on a complimentary copy of the novel.