If Emily writes it, I will read it! I loved her Pucking Around series and when I saw she was writing a why choose regency romance, I had to read this right away! Thank you to Hambright PR for a copy of the e-arc. I also can't wait to own the deluxe edition of this book!

I love Rosalie so much. I love her independence and that she is out there looking for marriage. I love her sass and that even though she doesn't want to marry, she isn't afraid to flirt right back. I mean who wouldn't be flattered and want to flirt back with multiple men?! I love all of the men in this book. Emily always does a fantastic job of making you fall for all of them. It's also hard to pick my favorite. I mean why choose right?!

With how the book ends, I immediately need to read book 2!

“I’ve waited twenty-seven years to find one single person who could hold my attention the way you do, love.’ He replied. ‘I’m a patient man. It will make it all the sweeter when you set aside this ludicrous notion of restraint. We are inevitable.” 😭🤧😍

Absolutely LOVED this book! Beautiful Things is a regency era why choose romance that follows Rosalie, a lady with no title or money, and the three men (Burke, Tom, and James) that slowly fall in love with her.

The slow burn in this book was torture!! The characters danced around each other and held their feelings back for soooo long that I thought they would never get together BUT let me tell you the torture was worth it! Once they finally gave in to each other, you were able to feel all of their bottled up emotions explode. Simply put it was hotttt 🔥

I couldn’t get enough of Burke. He was definitely my favorite of the three men. He loved Rosalie fiercely and he wasn’t afraid to claim her even when society fought against them.

I can’t wait to find out how their relationship will develop in the next book.

"To any lady, the most dangerous animal in England was wolf or the bear. It was the entitled English gentleman with an excess of charm and nothing to lose."

♡ Regency Romance
♡ Why-Choose/Polyamorous
♡ MMMF
♡ No money, no title
♡ A lady unwilling to marry

Regency Romance is decidedly not my go-to genre; however, make it a slow-burn, forbidden polyamorous romance, and apparently, I'm going to gobble it up.

This book has all of the wit and humor of a Jane Austen novel, while also featuring the scandalous dirty talk and passionate yearning of Bridgerton. But the lady doesn't have to pick just one of her suitors!

If you're looking for an overly serious drama, this isn't the series for you. Rosalie can come off a bit selfish and petulant with her refusal to enter into marriage while also wanting to have her cake and eat it too. However, given her background, I can give her a tiny bit of grace for not wanting to give in to societal expectations.

The men? Let's just say that I'm so glad we don't have to choose, and I am chomping at the bit to get to the polyamorous part of this romance.

"Rosalie Harrow was not the shore. She was the moon. There would be no escaping her pull for either of them... any of them. The moon is everywhere - always coaxing, always claiming. Even when she cannot be seen, she is felt."

Thank you to Hambright PR for a gifted copy of this ebook!

This was a wild start to this series. I love this time period and the drama! The storyline follows our FMC Rosalie who has to navigate the rules of society as a women with nothing. She ends up at the home of a Duchess who was a friend of her mother’s. She finds out some secrets and live along the way… with multiple men. They all want her but there’s rules to relationship in high society and she doesn’t meet the requirements. That doesn’t stop them from all loving her in their own way… but things get interesting at the end when announcements are made that shatter everything.

One of my favorite highlights was this: “All women live their lives in a cage, sir. It is our blessing and our curse. A blessing when men fill the cage with comforts and sweets and place the cage with a goodly view of the outside world . . . a curse when we are left beating our wings against the bars, isolated and alone . . . with no way out.”
It shows the difficulty of being a woman at that time… or any time really. Most rules of society change but still have the same themes!

I definitely plan to finish this series!

Going into this book I knew little to nothing other than I love Emily Rath and I love historical romance so let’s see if the two will mix.

Who doesn’t love a summer house party in the countryside where trouble and debauchery are on the agenda.

Rosalie is a modern day woman trapped in the wrong era. She doesn’t want a man, doesn’t need a man but cannot help attracting the attention of not 1, not 2 but 3 handsome second sons!

This was a fun read but I have to warn you the burn is SLOW and the tension is palpable to the point that I damn near through my kindle across the room on more than one occasion.

Burke is loyal to a fault, carrying the sins of his father on his shoulder with a jealous streak that likes to come to play every so often. He very much grabs your attention from the offset and while I have an inkling of where this is going in the second book, I await confirmation if I am in fact correct.

James, the Viscount, second son of the late Duke who is a Duke in everything but name. Honestly, I just want to protect him at all costs and spoon him, stroke his hair and allow the poor man to take a well earned nap!!

Then there is the Tom, Lieutenant in the Navy on his way to the rank of Captain. There is something about him that I just cannot put my finger on.

Spoiler Alert this does end on a Cliffhanger thanks to meddling members of the family so I look forward to seeing if our quartet will get their HEA….

🔥Slow Burn
💐 A decadent summer house party
🎶 Sultry piano duets
💋 Brooding in stairwells
🦢 An angry swan
💕 The OG storage closet 😉
🎩 Three best friends…and the lady who *comes* between them 😏

[Beautiful Things]

Think Bridgerton- but she doesn't want to get married and she refuses to choose! Is it getting hot in here or is it just me?? I love how Emily Rath gave us all the regency era vibes but somehow kept it feeling modern enough to relate easily. I couldn't put this book down and devoured every second of it!

I absolutely loved Rosalie! She was so sassy and strong willed and I loved how she wasn't going to let anyone push her around. She finds herself right in the middle of a wealthy families home while the Duke is looking for a wife. Even though she has no intentions of marrying anyone, she finds herself tangled up with not one, not two, but THREE suitors.

Burke, James and Tom are all best friends and I absolutely loved their 'us against the world' dynamic. They also each have such different relationships with Rosalie. I don't even know how to choose which one is my favorite!

This was Book 1 in the Second Son's Series. This is a true series and should be read in order. I felt like it ended at a very appropriate stopping point even though it left me desperate for more. I am so excited to continue on and see what happens next!

Grab this one if you love:
✨ Regency Era
✨ Why Choose
✨ All the Love Triangles
✨ Forced Proximity
✨ Secret Relationship
✨ Family Drama

📚 Book: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🔥Spice Rating: ❤️ (but with multiple people)

Thank you Emily Rath, Hambright PR, and Kensington Publishing for the gifted ebook.

Spice Rating
🤍 clean romance
💗 closed door/ fade to black
❤️ spicy content (a few detailed scenes)
❤️‍🔥 explicit, play-by-play (major part of the plot)
🖤 graphic, more than vanilla

Book one in the Second Sons series

TROPES:
🦢A decadent summer house party
🦢Sultry piano duets
🦢Brooding in stairwells
🦢An angry swan
🦢The OG storage closet
🦢Three best friends...and the lady who
*comes* between them

If you love Bridgerton but crave a why choose twist, Beautiful Things is for you!

This story pulled me in with its layered drama and rich social hierarchy! I couldn’t stop flipping pages.

Rosalie is such a strong FMC, and her journey to uncover her mother’s past turns into a powerful discovery of her own identity. I also loved the use of multiple POVs, it added so much depth and heat 🤭 I can't wait to read more because that ending left me yearning for more of Rosalie, Burke, James and Renley.

Emily Rath's first ever self published book and I can't wait to read the next book. Thank you so much Hambright PR and Net galley for this arc.

Wow. Emily Rath can write a why choose! I ate this book up. It gives Bridgeton vibes and I was here for it. I related so much to the FMC, Rosalie, when she said she didn’t want to be a caged bird. Funny how the books you read sometimes hit you in the right moment.

Now when it comes to the 3 men she can’t choose between struggled choosing also. I am starting to understand why choose is such a fun genre. I can’t wait to continue this series because it definitely leaves you wanting more.

Thank you Hambright PR, Kensington Publishing, and Emily Rath for the eARC and beautiful physical ARC!! I felt so lucky when it showed up at my door 🥹

👍🏻𝑳𝑰𝑲𝑬𝑫 / 💗𝑳𝑶𝑽𝑬𝑫: 💗

𝑹𝑬𝑨𝑫 𝑰𝑭 𝒀𝑶𝑼 𝑳𝑰𝑲𝑬:
♡ historical romance
♡ why choose
♡ secret stairwells
♡ family secrets
♡ only one horse

𝑻𝑯𝑬 𝑻𝑯𝑶𝑼𝑮𝑯𝑻𝑺:
This was my first historical romance and I think Emily Wrath sold me on the genre 😍 I loved the countryside setting, the regal clothes, and the sharp tongues. Who knew people were so passive aggressive while holding the correct soup spoon? LOL

Rosalie was a headstrong FMC who vows to never marry and she has a past that really cements that decision. I loved her; she struggled with a choice to make a life for herself that she never could have imagined or love. In that time, that isn’t an easy decision when everyone judges you off titles and status.

Burke, James, and Renley were swoon-worthy MMCs. James is the ultimate “I shouldn’t; I can’t” MMC, Burke is the possessive type, and Renley is just head over heels for Rosalie. I actually loved that Burke was possessive because most RHs are brothers who are all cool with sharing and this felt a little more realistic.

This is the first book in a trilogy so I felt like we saw a lot of Burke’s love for Rosalie and we’ll see more from Renley and James in the following books. Which I totally plan to read because the TENSION in this book was at an all time high. I didn’t realize brushes of fingers on necks could be SO HOT 🥵

It's not overstating things to say that book and the ones that followed it rewired my brain. This was the first thing I ever read by Emily Rath, and I was so excited for the opportunity to reread ahead of its traditional publish date. This is excellent for people who love historical romances, particularly ones set outside of London. The whole series features heroines who you will root for, and heroes who will make you blush and swoon. Pick it up!

4.5⭐️ 2.5🌶️
Thank you to Hambright PR and NetGalley for an early copy of this re-released novel. Regency romance with a why-choose twist was not something I thought I’d be interested in, but boy did Emily prove me wrong. The FMC Rosalie is strong, independent, and full of wit and charm; what she doesn’t have is money or social status. That doesn’t keep her from staying true to herself while falling in love with not one but two men! I cannot wait til book two is released because that cliffhanger about ended me.

In Beautiful Things, Rosalie receives an unexpected invitation to the prestigious Alcott Hall. She does not come from money and has no title of her own, so she feels like an interloper at this house party meant to find a wife for the Duke. The Dowager Duchess takes Rosalie under her wing, only asking that she stay away from the attention of the available men and that she help her spy on the potential suitors for her son.

I really enjoyed this one! I thought the “why choose” aspect was unexpected when combined with the regency romance genre. I loved the slow burn chemistry throughout. And the jealously between the men just added to that tension in the best way! It was super entertaining, a bit unhinged, and so fun. I laughed at their antics the whole way through! It ended on a bit of a cliff hanger and I am so ready to read what happens next.

Give Beautiful Things a read if you like :
🌸 Why choose romance
🌸 Regency romance
🌸 Lots of chemistry and spice
🌸 Jealousy from the MMCs

Thanks to @hambright_pr for the ARC and yeah, you want to read this one. I'm currently waiting for my beautiful limited edition to arrive so I can add another trophy to my shelf

I'll read Emily's grocery list so it was a no-brainer to request this. A regency why-choose full of mystery, shenanigans and some very very slow burn romance. Sometimes a girl just doesn't want to choose which of the gorgeous three suitors to make out with in the woods in the rain and really, who can blame her?

Beautiful Things was just fun to read and full of everything I expect from an Emily Rath book. For my KU fans, the book is available now or you can get the limited edition from wherever you buy books. If you're looking for a new historical romance series to obsess over, pick this one up now.

If you’ve ever caught yourself thinking, “I love Pucking Around*, but I wish it took place in the Regency era,”* then you’re in luck, Emily Rath has written exactly the book you didn’t know you needed.
Beautiful Things is the first in a steamy, “why choose” Regency-era duet that brings all the charm, chemistry, and clever banter fans loved in her hockey romances but now it includes cravats, country estates, and slow-burn tension under candlelight.

Rosalie, is fierce, witty, and completely uninterested in marriage. But when she arrives at Alcott Hall, she finds herself entangled with three very different, irresistible men none of whom society would consider a proper match. But when has that ever stopped Emily Rath?

✨ Tom: the handsome naval officer nursing a broken heart until Rosalie turns his world upside down.
✨ James: the dutiful second son of a duke, burdened by family expectations and torn between obligation and forbidden desire.
✨ Burke: the charming, sharp-tongued, illegitimate son of a duke who hides vulnerability behind smirks and scandal.

It has it all; chemistry, banter and romantic tension I was ready to combust myself.

Set against the backdrop of a house party brimming with secrets and stolen glances, this book channels all the best parts of Bridgerton—but with a bold, modern twist.

If you’re a historical romance lover craving something smart and scorchingly hot or if you simply trust Emily Rath with your entire TBR like I do then Beautiful Things is an absolute must-read. It’s not your grandmother’s Regency romance… and that’s exactly the point.

My first Emily Rath book! This is a regency, slow-burn, why choose romance, and the writing and the swoon and the steam were soo fun to read!

Also, I didn't know this was book 1 of a series?? 😭 I'm dying at the cliffhanger, I need the second book and the hea so bad 😭

-- ty to the author, the publisher and @hambright_pr for an advanced copy!

Why choose, indeed. This is the regency romance that I didn’t know I needed.

I devoured this over two days - the plot, the characters, the slow burn, the *spice*. All of it.

Recommended!



Thank you to Kensington and NetGalley for the DRC

4.25*

This was so fun and messy. I crave this drama. Bridgerton inspired but make it why choose? Yes please… sign me up! It did start off a tad slow but when it picks up it doesn't stop. Rosalie Harrow gets invited by the Duchess to the Alcott House. Rosalie and the Dutchess come up with a plan to help Georgie find a wife. The only problem with this is that he doesn't want to get married at all making it a tad difficult. Rosalie finds herself being captured by James, Burke and Tom. The only problem is she made a deal with the duchess to not get involved with anyone. This was so fun. I will be diving into the next one immediately.

“Rosalie Harrow was not the shore. She was the moon. There would be no escaping her pull for either of them . . . any of them. The moon is everywhere—always coaxing, always claiming. Even when she cannot be seen, she is felt. And James felt her everywhere. Damn it all to hell.”

Bridgerton vibes meets Regency romance… but make it a why choose love story??!!
I AM IN. I AM OBSESSED.!!!!!

I devoured this book.
I love all the characters.
I love the setting and the courtship and the ode to regency romance but make it SO HOT AND SPICY AND FORBIDDEN
The drama, the tension, the SPICE🔥🔥🔥🔥 it’s everything I love about historical romance turned up to eleven

Yeah I am straight diving into book 2 head first no question about it.
Emily is making my dreams come true with this series
Nobody quite writes why choose romance like Emily Rath does 🥵 🔥

Thank you to Hambright PR, NetGalley, Kensington, and Emily Rath for the copies of Beautiful Things.

5 lovely stars!

At 22, Rosalie Harrow faces a bleak future: marry for money or become a governess — neither of which appeals to her. When she receives a mysterious invitation to Alcott Hall, she expects a quiet meeting with her late mother’s old friend, but instead finds herself at a house party filled with ambitious debutantes hoping to win over a newly single Duke. Rosalie wants no part of the competition, but soon finds herself entangled in a whirlwind of suitors. As the grand Michaelmas ball approaches, Rosalie must balance her desire for freedom with the unexpected thrill of romance.

I need to know what Emily Rath put in this book because I could not put it down. My eyes were GLUED to those pages! This book has everything: moving plot, lovable characters, and spice to put Bridgerton to shame. This is a slow burn that starts with an ember and then grows into a flame so hot that you won’t get away unscathed.

I loved Rosalie. She spoke her mind and wasn’t satisfied being a pretty wallflower. She understands the way she must behave in society, but knows that she can fight against it if she is discreet. Now…we need to talk about these men who honestly might be at the top of my book boyfriend list. Each has a backstory that pulls at your heartstrings and it was hard for me to pick which one was my favorite. I mean, really. It was an impossible choice.

Beware: Beautiful Things ends on a cliffhanger. So, please excuse me while I lock myself in my room to read the next book!

3.5/5

a why-choose regency romance?!? sign me up ✍🏼

this book was so unserious and gives the same ridiculous vibes as the bridgerton show, but I cannot deny its entertainment value! I flew through this 400+ page romance book in 2 days 🫣

my fav part of a regency romance is the tension and yearning, there’s nothing as fun as the characters finally touching SHOULDERS after 200 pages and this book delivered on that!! bonus points that it was 3 MEN 🤭🫣

also side note - george may be an ass and the most useless duke I’ve ever read about, but some of his one liners and shenanigans were so hilariously ridiculous that he may have ended up my fav character in this book 🤣

my only complaint is that I don’t think this book needed to be as long as it was, especially with the super long descriptions of how london society looks and the inner workings of this estate. there is also a sequel so I’m curious what else these characters will be up to! other than that, it was a fun time and if you’re looking for a fun spicy take on a typical regency romance, Emily Rath has provided 😌

thank you to Hambright PR, Kensington Publishing, and Emily Rath for the e-ARC and physical copy in exchange for an honest review.