When I first browsed the bookstore and saw this book I almost didn't pick it up. Luckily, I was in the mood for a historical and ended up reading the blurb anyway. It seemed like I might enjoy it, but still I hesitated. The title and cover all seemed too cutesy and light. I wasn't really in the mood for a fluffy book. I decided to take a chance anyway, and am so glad that I did. This book is a lesson to me. Don't judge a book by its cover.

The set up of this story is a familiar one. A girl gets tired of being "good" and starts trying to experience life while assisted by a rake. I have seen that storyline multiple times before. But this author really managed to make it fresh and new for me. I never felt like a part of it was tired and overused.

When Callie has her moment of clarity about her life I couldn't help but feel bad for her. At the same time I'm also very pleased that the author set up the moment like that. It wasn't anything malicious, it was just brutal honesty. What made it so much worse was that's how they thought of her when she wasn't around. In one moment of overheard raw honesty, Callie saw herself through the eyes of the world. No wonder "passive" became a dirty word to her. I felt her brother's disappointment when his urging for her to break free a little was turned down. It was a realization that Callie had to come to all on her own.

Callie was so much more than she first appeared. She was not a stagnant character throughout the book. She grew and became more than even she ever thought she could be. She was a dreamer who ruthlessly made herself face reality. She was plain and retiring, and her sister had the life that she always wanted.

Every step of the way Callie had to force herself to step out of her comfort zone. She had grand plans of what she would do if only she could, but when it came time to actually do them, she had to struggle against herself. It was a conscious act of will that made her carry through with her list. Callie would force herself to be more than what she had let herself become. I had to admire her for that.

Gabriel seemed like an easy man to peg, but he, too, broke the mold. He was kind, for one. When Callie first meets him he shows her great kindness for no other reason than to make her feel better. He doesn't have a disdain for women either. He doesn't avoid the matchmaking mamas because he thinks all the virgins are tedious. No, he avoids them because he's afraid he'll actually end up liking one of them. Gabriel had a genuinely damaging event take place when he was a child. It colored his whole view of marriage and love. I was glad that his issues were there, but not overwhelming.

I found myself very intrigued by Juliana and the Duke of Leighton. I'm very curious to discover why exactly he's so hot and cold. I strongly suspect that he is the real reason she stayed. I think he said something at that ball that got her back up. Now she's determined to show him how wrong he is.

I'm also interested in seeing what this author has planned for Nick. I really liked his character. Gabriel, Nick, and Juliana all had a very warm relationship with each other. They actually seemed like a family which was very nice.

The only things that I didn't really enjoy were the friend-maid and the occasional descent into too much sappiness. At times I felt it was straying too close to the mushy line. Luckily the author always pulled it back in time.

I'm very pleased that Gabriel never recalled their first meeting. It made it seem more realistic. Also, I loved that Callie gained more self respect and self worth and decided to cut Gabriel off. I love that she wasn't willing to settle anymore.

Before I end this review I'll leave you with one of my favorite quotes. It was a wonderful period of clarity for Callie:

Pg. 380

That was perhaps the hardest truth of all-that Ralston, the man she'd pined over for a decade, had never been real. He'd never been strong and silent Odysseus; he'd never been aloof Darcy; never Antony, powerful and passionate. He had only ever been Ralston, arrogant and flawed and altogether flesh and blood.