Steamy, searing, sexy, and utterly emotional and unrelentingly feminist. This might be my favorite book of 2020 so far.

I honestly don't even know where to start with this review. I am still processing the emotional toll of this story and the growth that MacLean masterfully wrote. It is honestly unbelievable. I had never seen such a character evolution on both their parts. The level of pining, groveling, and epic speeches deserve awards alone. The side characters are - as always - an absolute treat. (Nik and Nora are legit the cutest.) The family dynamics and support network makes my heart happy. (Seeing the past Bareknuckle Bastards characters gives this a whole new level of awesome.)

Grace is a legit queen and her court is the entirety of Covent Gardens and the cost of that is being rather alone - and watching her deal and maneuver chess pieces is just awesome. But also searingly hard to watch her struggle with the past, her independence and the idea that maybe she deserves some modicum of pleasure in her life too. Ewan is a Man. He grows up, he takes his penance and he changes so that he is worthy of Grace and I am here for it. I adored everything about this and cried more than once. The groveling and pining in this book are beyond anything I have ever seen and as far as grand gestures go - this book takes the cake.