Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Plot/Storyline: 📖📖📖📖
Feels: 🦋🦋🦋🦋
Emotional Depth: 💔💔💔💔
Sexual Tension: ⚡⚡⚡⚡
Romance: 💞💞💞💞
Sensuality: 💋💋💋💋💋
Sex Scene Length: 🍑🍑🍑🍑
Steam Scale (Number of Sex Scenes): 🔥🔥🔥🔥
Humor: Yes, a bit
Perspective: Third person from both hero’s perspectives


“You’d better start making love to me if you’re going to make blasphemous jokes.”
“I started making love to you when I took your boots off.”


Should I read in order?
It’s not necessary but I did find myself wishing I had read book 2 (I did read book 1 of the series).

Basic plot:
William is a member of the Society of Beasts where Josiah is the administrator. William has never really looked at Josiah, as he’s just a servant, but all that changes when suffering from a claustrophobic episode, Josiah is able to calm him like nothing else has. They end up striking a bargain to work together – Josiah helps William overcome his fear if William will help Josiah get information about a rival club.

Give this a try if you want:
- Regency time period (1820)
- Much of this story takes place in Bath, which I thought was fun! The rest in London.
- Unrequited love – Josiah has been pining for William from afar
- A bargain struck – William requests Josiah to help him get through his claustrophobic episodes and Josiah agrees if he helps him infiltrate a rival club
- Fake relationship trope – yay!
- One bed – even more yay!!
- M/M relationship
- Disability featured - William suffers from claustrophobia due to trauma
- Mid to high steam -
- Lots of focus on the relationship – there is just a touch of mystery going on here and the two work together on a common goal but so much of the page time is them spending time together and getting to know each other deeper
- Class difference – William is a snobby 3rd son of a nobleman and Josiah is a servant

Ages:
- Didn’t see them mentioned – would guess mid/late 20s?

My thoughts:
I enjoyed a lot about the first story in this series but I LOVED this one. So, so much. I am definitely going to go back and read book 2. This book gave me so many feels and butterflies of falling in love!

William is described as a bit of a snob. This makes his falling in love with Josiah, a servant, that much sweeter. And as you get to know him, and his judgment eases it’s just so rewarding to experience. The walls he’s erected fall and while I didn’t know how I would feel about William in the beginning, I ended up absolutely loving him.

Josiah takes pride in his position with the Society of Beasts and everything runs smoothly as a direct result of his care. His fascination with William is double edged – he drives him insane with his temper and careless remarks but has also caused a longing in him so he can’t think of another.

These two together were pure perfection. It gave small vibes of sunshine and grump and I loved seeing Josiah take control and William experience vulnerability with him. There was just so, so much sweetness in this book. So many little things I adore in romance. Whispers against lips when you’re feeling so unsure. Thinking of them when they aren’t with you. The uncertainty of how a gift will be received. A simple holding of a hand making me breathless. It was lovely. So, so lovely.

Some random parts I noted:

So, so hot

Standing together, separated by buckskin, linen and little else, the thought of exploring what lay beneath had Harley reaching for the wasitband of Josiah’s breeches.
“Now, now.” Josiah’s soft laughter in his ear was intensely frustrating. “I’m leading. Remember?”
“Then hurry up and lead, damn it.”
“If you’re impolite I’ll have to open the door. We can’t make progress if you’re too exciteable.”
“You know very well we can.”
“Then let me.”


And this is a way to make consent even hotter

“I want to-”
“Yes. You can. Don’t ask if you’re going to take charge.”
“Ah. Now that’s what men in charge don’t understand.”
“What do you mean?”
“You can get so much more if you ask nicely. Didn’t you know that?”
“I didn’t ask for a treatise on class in the middle of – oh, Jesus.”
“You see? I asked. Or half asked, before you interrupted, and now I have this.” Josiah’s hand was hot against his cock; the man had undone Hartley’s breeches so quickly that he hadn’t noticed.


How sexy when buying gifts for his lover

Hartley opened one of the drawers, treasures glittering through the glass under his fingers. “Well? What do you think?”
“All of those look far too extravagant.”
“I assure you, they’re not. Hartley’s voice had changed. Now it was a low, intimate murmur of such unexpected softness that Josiah blinked. “Give me an inch, and I’ll drape you in diamonds. These little cameos look modest enough – what about that one?”


And this utterly endearing event

It was only then, staring at the pin, that he realized he was going to purchase it for Hartley. Even if he never actually showed it to the man, even if the pin lived out the rest of its days tucked deep in a handerkerchief and shoved in a vase or card box somewhere in his office, he was going to buy it for him – buy it as a small, deeply ineffectual gesture of his sentiments.


Swoon

“I’m not laughing.” Hartley’s smile made Josiah ache. “Would you like me to?”
“No.” Not true; he wanted everything of Hartley’s, his laughter, his touch. Anything he saw fit to give him. “I...I...”


Keeping a part of you special and only for each other

“Because I won’t wear my new pin until I see you again. I don’t want it cheapened by other eyes. So do the same, please.”

Content Warnings:

Drinking and brief mention of prior opium use
Scenes of terror suffered from claustrophobia
Remembrance of being trapped in a house on fire

Locations of kisses/intimate scenes:

20% - kiss
33% - 🔥 kisses and Joseph gives William a blow job
39% - kiss
50% - kisses in an alley
54% - kiss
60% - 🔥 kisses, fingering, William gives Josiah a hand job, W penetrates J (all this takes place in a greenhouse)
80% - William gives Josiah a blowjob, mostly fade to black
81% - 🔥 kisses, W penetrates J
94% - 🔥 kisses mutual hand jobs