Magnetic and educated, Marianne Simpson has the manner of a lady and the looks of a lover, not a fighter. Neither of which explains her occupation as a boxer in her uncle’s circus, Farnham’s Fantastical Female Fayre. Nonetheless, when St. John Powell, the exquisitely handsome Duke of Staunton, begins turning up at her shows, she finds herself dangerously distracted by the powerful peer’s mysterious presence. With her safety at stake, Marianne’s days in the ring are numbered. But how long can she fight her attraction to the man the ton calls Lord Flawless?
 
St. John Powell doesn’t just want Marianne Simpson; he needs her … to rescue his brother, who is being held for ransom by a treasonous English baron—the man all of Britain knows as the Rake of Rakes. No matter how little Marianne wants to see her duplicitous ex-lover, the man responsible for the humiliating nickname of the Boxing Baroness, St. John must convince her. Even if it means climbing into the ring with the beautiful boxer and taking everything she’s got . . .

Titles in the Wicked Women of Whitechapel series include— The Boxing Baroness —♥— The Dueling Duchess —♥— The Cutthroat Countess —♥—

This is an adult 18+ story that may contain language, possible violence, and/or sexual situations geared to an adult audience.

NetGalley ARC

Title:  The Boxing Baroness
Series:  The Wicked Women of Whitechapel #1
Author:  Minerva Spencer
Genre:  Historical Romance
Published:  October 25, 2022
Publisher:  Kensington Books
My Rating:  3.5

The Boxing Baroness is the beginning story in the Wicked Women of Whitechapel series.  We are introduced to Marianne, who is part of her uncle’s traveling circus,’Farnham’s Fantastical Female Fayre’… a very female-oriented production with a definite feminist slant to each woman’s story.  If I had to define this one it would fall into the more modern take on Historical Romances but with definite vibes of the old bodice-ripper antics at times.

Unfortunately, this story simply wasn’t for me, and this review will be very brief.  Everyone has different styles of romance that they enjoy, and when I open a book, I expect to walk into someone else’s world and be entertained for a bit of time.  I found the plot of this story to be so convoluted and beyond my capability of stretching my imagination to accept some plot twists.  I read a lot of Paranormal Fiction, and even I could not pretend to believe in one plot line, at all.  It’s taken a long time to finish this one as I’d put it down, walk away and come back to it weeks later, only to do the same thing again.  There are readers who will love this story, especially as this author has a huge fan/reader base.  And there are readers who simply won’t enjoy themselves… and the latter was my experience.

I’m not bashing Marianne and Sin’s story; I just saying that it wasn’t for me…  with the addition that you should make up your own mind about this book.  This is one reader’s opinion, so you won’t know if you’d love this story unless you take a chance on it and read it for yourself.

*I received an e-ARC of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley. That does not change what I think of this story.  It is my choice to leave a review giving my personal opinion about this book.*

Available in print or for the Kindle as this title is currently in KU