The Unsuitable Secretary by Maggie Robinson (Ladies Unlaced #4)
Released: September 16, 2014
Historical Romance
Penguin

Reviewed by Mandi

Harriet “Harry” Benson has to supplement her father’s banking income to make sure her father has enough income to support her two younger brothers. After having surgery to remove her appendix, Harry needs time to recover and can’t quite keep up with her strenuous duties at the Evensong Agency (an employment agency of sorts). Her employer comes up with the perfect solution – work a few hours a week for a Baron who is in need of a secretary/assassinate Knowing her father wouldn’t approve but desperate to keep income coming in, Harry agrees.

Thomas Benson doesn’t have any worries in the income department. His passion is art, and he has grand dreams to open an artist colony – a place where artists could live, create and perform all under one roof. Thomas has an eye for art and talent, and wants to be able to showcase it to the public, but he is having trouble finding a building for sale that would accommodate his dream and keeping everything organized, which is where Harry comes into play. While Thomas has  a reputation for being a bit wild, he actually isn’t. Being tutored at home through his teen years, Thomas missed out on the social scene, which he blames for still being a virgin at twenty-seven.

I quite enjoyed the premise of Thomas wanting to open this art house/gallery – I found the idea unique and fun. I wish it had played a larger role in the book. I’m not sure I ever quite understood Thomas. He is supposed to have more of a ladies man reputation and is secretly still a virgin. I never really grasped this outlandish side of him. He is a dreamer for sure, but he came across bumbling and awkward at times. He had trouble speaking to Harry without blushing but I’m not sure I would classify him as a beta. Definitely not an alpha, but somewhere in between. He is a super nice gentleman I guess is what it comes down to. Harry lives with her father who turns abusive, and she runs to Thomas for help. He helps her with no questions asked. This is the point where their working relationship turns romantic. I found the transformation a bit abrupt. I would have enjoyed more sexual tension or build up to the big night.

I like Harry and her resilience. She stands up for herself, as much as a woman could at the turn of the century, and works hard. I got a little frustrated at how she turned down Thomas’s marriage proposals, but I guess it was her stubbornness coming through.

Overall an okay romance. Not my favorite by this author though.

Rating: C+

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