One Good Earl Deserves a Lover: The Second Rule of Scoundrels (Rules of Scoundrels Book 2)

I rarely give five star ratings to historical romance books. Why? Well ... to be honest, they are all pretty much the same, a dime a dozen. When I enjoy one I will freely hand out the four star ratings, but it takes a special kind of book to rise to a five star rating. One Good Earl Deserves a Lover by Sarah MacLean is one that hits this mark perfectly. On the surface the elements of this story are similar to a thousand other books in this genre. Unconventional, nonconformist heroine? Check. Rogue of a hero with a tortured past who also happens to have a heart of gold? Check. Fight against the conventions of society? Check. Giant problem that will keep the two lovers apart? Check. So like I say, this story doesn't seem much different than much of what is out there. BUT ... it is the execution of the writing that makes the difference. Somehow, even though I'm reading a story so much like many others, it always felt fresh to me. I found myself flying through the pages, desperate to see these two find their happily ever after. I read it all in one sitting. And then, the true mark of a five star book ... I couldn't stop thinking about the story after I had finished. I dreamed about it. I immediately wanted to pick this book up and re-read my favorite scenes. I loved it.The details:Pippa is the highly intelligent, very odd younger sister of Penelope, the heroine of the first book in this series. She is engaged to be married to the very conventional Lord Castleton, a kind, but somewhat dull man who does not match her intellect at all. But Pippa doesn't really believe in love since it is something that her scientific mind cannot understand or quantify. However, her scientific mind requires her to understand everything that marriage will require ... everything. Unlike talking to her sisters, or maybe a friend, or even her mother, Pippa decides that the best course of action is for her to head over to her new brother-in-law's business partner, Cross, and enlist him as a "research partner" in her quest for knowledge about the more carnal and sensual parts of marriage. She wants to learn about temptation and ruination. Now I have to admit that as I read the setup for this in the opening chapters of this book I had to roll my eyes. The idea seemed soooooo ridiculous to me. Who does this? It seemed like such an idiotic plan, one that an author has to cook up in order to create a story. But, as I read on I found the premise for this story easier and easier to believe. Pippa really was an odd duck. She never did things that made much sense, and her proposition to Cross seemed exactly like something she would have done. So after an initial hesitation to embrace this story, I found myself totally wrapped in it. Needless to say, Cross is not enthusiastic about helping Pippa with this project. He's not so excited about encountering the wrath of Bourne when he learns that Cross has "schooled" Pippa in the art of seduction. So he balks. Again and again and again, no matter how much it kills him to push her away. It turns out that Cross has a brilliant mind of his own, and he matched Pippa quite well, but he has some major demons in his life to overcome, and for much of the book it seems as if these demons are too strong for him to conquer. But he never factored Pippa into his plans, and she is not one to allow these demons to rule the day.My thoughts:I loved Pippa. She was unconventional in every way. There might be some out there who find her scientific observations about EVERYTHING to get a bit tiresome. But I never did. I thought her attempt to put aside her growing passion for Cross by trying to label all of the bones in his arm or leg or whatever was kind of cute. I liked how she was a good mix of strength and vulnerability, and I especially appreciated how, even in the face of disappointment, she didn't go off to wallow in her own misery. She stopped to face things head on. That is extremely rare in these sorts of novels. People never communicate. Pippa does. She sees a prostitute in Cross's office. It looks bad. She could run, but she doesn't. She hangs around and confronts Cross directly, mostly avoiding too much unnecessary angst. Brilliant. Refreshing.Cross was wonderful as well. He appears to have a very hardened exterior. He has a carefully cultivated reputation as a rogue and a ladies man, but it is all an act to protect himself from society. He actually has a heart of gold, caring for others as much as he can in order to atone for the sins of his past. He is smart enough to understand all of the random references that Pippa is constantly throwing out. He appreciates her quirkiness, the only other person on earth to do so. He is in a mess of a situation, and solving his problems only seems to make things worse. But I rooted for him. He was an easy hero to love. My favorite scene? When he climbed three stories to see Pippa and explain something that he had done that hurt her greatly. What a great hero for this story! Loved him!The pacing of this story was perfection. So much sexual tension throughout this story. In this day and age authors don't place enough emphasis on that tension. They are too quick to throw couples right into sexual situations from the beginning. But this book was perfect. Cross would not touch Pippa, and that lack of touch was more enticing and more exciting than any sexual scene could have been. It was mouth watering. Cross showed more of the strength of his character in those scenes than he could have in any other way. Perfectly done! And I loved the ending so, so much. What an excellent scene. I could picture it in my head as if I was watching a movie. It still makes me smile to think of Cross on his knees in that situation (which I won't spoil by sharing). It was just wonderful!So I highly recommend this book for fans of historical romances. It's a gem, and I'm super excited to read Temple's story later this year. Something tells me that it is going to be a winner as well!

ONE GOOD EARL DESERVES A LOVER is the second book of Sarah MacLean’s Rules of Scoundrels series.I will make a confession before I begin the review of ONE GOOD EARL DESERVES A LOVER. I read this book for the first time four months ago and I’ve read it at least 6 times since then. It is already one of my favorite romance books of all time. The book makes me laugh and makes me cry. I absolutely love the characters and while I understand the complaints that some have about the plot or the motivations of the characters, I don’t agree.To me the romance between Lady Philippa (Pippa) Marbury and Jasper Arlesey, Earl Harlow aka Cross is magnificent. I love how Cross is just baffled by Pippa. She is a unique character and he is enthralled and bemused by her. Their first meeting, Pippa arrives at Cross’ office while he is asleep and she proceeds to inspect his books and criticize his calculations is so amusing. Pippa is “odd” and Cross is simultaneously fascinated and horrified by her.Cross is a wonderfully tortured hero. He is a man who was a second son who was happy living dissipated life; a young man who did not take anything seriously. He is tortured because his older responsible brother is killed in a carriage accident while traveling to an event that Cross at first promised and then reneged on attending. Cross then gains his brother’s title. Cross, however, believes that he should have died instead of his brother and thus refuses to take up that life because he does not feel worthy of it.Pippa is amazing. She is clever and strong and quirky. She is a scientist and looks at the world in a curious manner. She is engaged to marry an earl (who is nice enough but no match for Pippa’s intellect) because she is settling because she believes that no one could really want her because of her odd nature.I love this book. The dialogue is the best part. The conversations are so fascinating that I could just continue to read them again and again. Cross and Pippa are both intellectuals and they discuss things in such an unusual manner. I am both fascinated and amused by their conversations. I especially like the fact that Cross is so bemused in Pippa’s presence. He is a man who has denied his passions and yet has such incredible passion inside him.MacLean always has such vivid characters, but I find Pippa and Cross to be incredible examples of her expertise. They are unusual people and I understand their motivations because MacLean does such a great job of bringing the reader into their minds. I know that Cross’ actions are the subject of some confusion and criticism by some readers. I feel, however, that Cross has made a life for himself of denying himself. He refuses to be happy because he feels unworthy. Eventually, he concludes that he is not worthy but that he is enough of a scoundrel to take what he wants anyway. Thus, the HEA. It doesn’t bother me when characters make swift changes in decisions because I find that realistic in that Cross is so used to denying himself happiness that he does so by habit until he is shaken from his routine.I also really enjoy all the secondary characters. Chase and Temple have important roles in the story and I enjoy the interaction between the partners. My only small complaint is that Penelope and Bourne only have a small role here. I would have liked to have seen what their reaction to Pippa and Cross was, and I missed that payoff.While you don’t have to read A ROGUE BY ANY OTHER NAME first, the story certainly gains from having the background from that story – plus, any reader of ONE GOOD EARL DESERVES A LOVER must read the Epilogue of A ROGUE BY ANY OTHER NAME where Pippa and Cross meet. While their meeting is summarized in the first chapter of this book, the Epilogue is so amazing that for me I always read that before I start to read ONE GOOD EARL DESERVES A LOVER.I recommend this book highly!

Absolutely excellent story. I love both the heroine (Pippa) and the hero (Cross) Odd Pippa may have been but she is an indomitable female, and an absolute joy, it was just a shame her family didn't appreciate her. I did feel for Pippa's betrothed (Castleton) he was such a sweet person, but he was definitely inferior mentally to Pippa and had they married they would have been greatly mismatched. The banter between Pippa and Cross was excellent and they definitely were made for each other. Pippa's sister (Olivia) was a witch and I found it hard to believe that their mother (silly woman) would plan a double wedding when the sister's were as different as chalk and cheese. It proved without a shadow of a doubt that Pippa was a selfless and lovely young woman as I wouldn't have blamed her if she had 'strangled' Olivia.I would thoroughly recommend this book, and look forward to the other books in the series.

I've read the first book and loved it, and this one doesn't not disappoint, either. I loved the story between Pippa and Cross. "I shall ruin you, Pippa. I shall show you pleasures you've never known..." It's a great book, so witty! I have bought the third book in the series with high hopes. It's ready, and waiting. I had not read this author before I started the series, but now I'm a great admirer, she writes beautifully.

What a great book. I loved every minute of it. I also read a few comments from other readers about Lady Philippa which were less than flattering. I'm unsure as to whether the author meant this but Lady Philippa strikes me as someone with mild autism. And I liked that. Why should our heroes be perfect. Autism must have existed for ever and people with the condition will have been considered a bit odd or strange, which is exactly what Philippa is and she has no compunctions about stating this fact and quite often stating things that are glaringly obvious. They also struggle with shades of grey, something else which Lady Philippa does. Also he inability to really see the danger she is in every time she turns up at the fallen angel point to a mild autistic streak.As I say, I may be wrong and this may never have been Sarah MacLean's intention but for me, it made Philippa (or Pippa) all the more adorable and not your average heroine. It made the fact that Cross saw through her oddness all the more interesting and made him a better man for it.The story itself kept me riveted and Fallen Angel has fast become my favourite place in Mayfair, even though it does not exist in real life. Any way, I got through this book quicker than I have any book in a long long time. In fact I was up until 7am this morning reading it. It's that good.

I liked Cross and Phillipa but there were too many science references and explanations for me, almost like it was just to fill in the pages.Very expensive ebook for what you get. I also bought the next two books in this series but if they also have irrelevant pages I won’t be buying from this author again.

The second of Sarah mclean's series about the aristocratic owners of a notorious London gaming hell and the women they love is an entertaining treat. Hero Jasper Cross is an earl who has fallen from grace after the death if his brother and believes himself unworthy of love but the delightful blue stocking heroine Philippa Marbury soon disrupts his notorious life when she decides to request his help as a research partner. What is she researching? Um, well, the intricacies of the marriage bed!