Warning Review: The Work of Art

An Uncommon Beauty…

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Author: Mimi Matthews

Genre: Regency

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About

An Uncommon Beauty…
Hidden away in rural Devonshire, Phyllida Satterthwaite has always been considered more odd than beautiful. But in London, her oddity has made her a sensation. Far worse, it’s caught the eye of the sinister Duke of Moreland — a notorious art collector obsessed with acquiring one-of-a-kind treasures. To escape the duke’s clutches, she’s going to need a little help.

An Unlikely Hero…
Captain Arthur Heywood’s days of heroism are long past. Grievously injured in the Peninsular War, he can no longer walk unaided, let alone shoot a pistol. What use can he possibly be to a damsel in distress? He has nothing left to offer except his good name.

Can a marriage of convenience save Philly from the vengeful duke? Or will life with Arthur put her — and her heart — in more danger than ever?

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Review

Rating: 2.5 stars

I so desperately wish I’d been able to give this book a higher rating. I usually can’t tolerate regency books, as I find them dry and bland at best, if not insufferable, but The Work of Art’s blurb and the promise of a clean, wholesome read drew me in.

And it really did draw me in from the first sentence. Matthews possesses an exceptional writing style, and unlike most regencies I’ve tried, this book’s plot kept me reading. Literally. It was the only reason I kept reading–I wanted to know what happened. And I rarely care enough to finish a regency book.

I enjoyed the characters. Arthur was delightfully protective and Philly is a darling. Their arcs are so well-crafted. The slew of secondary characters, from the empty-headed cousins to Evil Eliot, from the servants to the surprising villain, are well done.

The plot, as I mentioned, captured my interest from the beginning. Marriage of convenience? Yes, please. He’s doing it to save her? Sounds great. And the plot was good. I really did enjoy it.

My issue is that this book is not really clean and wholesome, as the Amazon categories and everyone else’s high ratings led me to believe.

While the majority of romance between Philly and Arthur was adorably sweet, the book contains a few passionate makeouts, a fade-to-black with the next scene indicating, and I quote, “the marriage was thoroughly consummated” and that Arthur had, “taken her a second time”. There are also more heavily-indicated bedroom activities. It is told that as they’re hugging, Arthur can feel Philly’s curves beneath her thin nightgown, which, frankly, I don’t need to know.

There are also numerous instances of profanity. While “what the devil” isn’t considered profane, it is unnecessary, and there are 17 instances of it. There are 13 occurrences of “damn” and its variations, six of “by God”, three of “my God”, five of “good God”, and one “my Lord”.

I would have readily rated The Work of Art a five if not for the numerous instances of the Lord’s name being ill-used and the unnecessary sexual themes.

I was so excited to have found an author–a regency author, of all things–whose writing I genuinely enjoy, because I was hooked on this book from the first sentence. Unfortunately, the content wasn’t as clean and wholesome as expected, and I was unable to thoroughly enjoy it due to that.