The Rogue You Know by Shana Galen
Series: Covent Garden Cubs #2
Sourcebooks Casablanca
Publication Date: September 1, 2015
Date Read: September 17, 2015
She’s beyond his reach…
Gideon Harrow has spent his life in London’s dark underworld-and he wants out. A thief and a con, he plans one last heist to finally win his freedom. But when everything goes wrong, he finds himself at the tender mercies of one of Society’s most untouchable women-Lady Susanna Derring.…and out of her depth.
Susanna has spent her life in London’s glittering ton, under the thumb of a domineering mother-and she wants out. When a wickedly charming rogue lands at her feet, she jumps at the chance to experience life before it’s too late. But as she descends into London’s underworld, she finds that nothing- not even Gideon-is as it seems. As excitement turns to danger, Susanna must decide what price she’s willing to pay…for the love of a reformed thief.
I really liked this book even though my initial reaction was that it was a bit predictable. After giving it some thought, I have decided that being predictable isn’t always such a bad thing, especially when it comes to historical romance. I like to read historical romances that are historically accurate so that adds some predictability to the equation. I am not an expert on this time period by any means but based on other books that I have it read, it did seem to be at least somewhat accurate. I also like to see a happy ending. I not only like it….I demand it. There is almost nothing worse that a romance novel that does not have a happy ending. I could have told you that the two main characters would end up with their own happily ever after before I read the first word. That means that during the entire book, I knew that they would overcome any problems because they had to end up together. You know what…it doesn’t even matter because I enjoyed the journey. This is the kind of predictability that works for me. It is the little things that make a book a little different than the rest that makes all the difference.
I love the fact that this series is focused on a group of thieves. One of the main characters in this story, Gideon, is one of those thieves. It quickly becomes apparent that Gideon is really much more than a thief. He is really quite honorable and a genuinely good man who happens to be a thief simply because it is a means to survive. For me, Gideon was really the star of this book. I did like Lady Susanna more as the book progressed but at the beginning of the story she seemed overly spoiled and I have to admit that I wanted to slap her a couple of times. Of course, as the daughter of an Earl that would probably be quite realistic. I enjoyed the chemistry between Gideon and Susanna. I found that I really liked them as a couple and their willingness to sacrifice for each other was well-done.
I really liked the pacing of the story. There was a surprising amount of action for a historical romance which I think really sets this series apart from many others. The dog, Beauty, was fantastic and stole more than a few scenes. The dog was able to get the pair out of a couple of nearly impossible situations that did stretch the imagination a bit but I enjoyed every scene that featured Beauty. The balance between action, romance, and a bit of humor made this novel very enjoyable.
I would recommend this book to fans of historical romance. This is only the second full length book written by Shana Galen that I have read but I plan to continue reading works by this very talented author. I can’t wait to see what else is going to happen in this series.
About the Author
I can't wait to read this one. I do love historical romance, and I don't mind it when its predictable, as long as the story keeps me entertained.
I just love historical romances every once in a while. I agree that sometimes predictable works. I just need to be entertained by a book.