The Very Definition of Love by Sophia Benoit: Book Review

I wanted to read this book not because of the cover — though it’s cute — or the synopsis or the title, but because of something entirely different. Its release date. You see, almost every historical romance I’ve read so far had been published at least a decade or so ago. This is not to say that I mind, of course; I loved them and will continue loving them and being grateful for the wealth of reading material available. 

But there’s something about getting a new title in a genre that doesn’t produce that many anymore. There’s something about seeing how this world I’ve read so much about would function from a very modern perspective. 

And so, I decided to give it a try. 

Verdict: This book was such a fun time! I’m so glad I read it and even more glad it exists for other readers. It’s a thoroughly funny and romantic book, with a fantastic hero (obsessed, pathetically in love) and a smart, capable heroine. The only thing I dislike, really, is the third act conflict but other than that, I enjoyed  this book so very much. I hope the author makes this a series because I’d like to get love stories for all of the side characters!

What is this book about?

Harriet is working on a dictionary of lewd, vulgar words and when she’s left alone at yet another ball, she slips into the library to do some research. She’s interrupted by the handsomest, most rakish rake of the ton, Lord Alexander. They barely get to speak when someone sees them, which means it’s either marry or perish. 

Alexander really doesn’t want to marry so he flees the scene. But Harriet is the problem-solver of her family, so she finds him and kidnaps him (with the help of his mistress) so they can go to Gretna Green and get married. 

Along the way, they agree: their marriage will be in name only, they’ll show up together for the ton but otherwise lead separate lives, no children will be produced, and so, Harriet announces, there will be no sleeping together. Only, both are burning with secret passion for each other, and this part of the deal (or any) will not be so easy to maintain.

Spoiler-Free Review

Even though I have high praise for this book now, when I first started reading it, it was not quite that positive. Sure, I liked the prose and the snappy dialogue, the sisterhood and Harriet, but then the whole thing started to feel a little too much like Devil in Winter (which I loathe). And the premise is similar, I’ll give you that. But everywhere Devil in Winter fails, this book triumphs. 

The biggest difference is the book’s hero, Alexander. At the start, he’s very much alike Sebastian St. Vincent — a rake with mommy and daddy issues, charming pants off everyone, never noticing our wallflower, overly confident in his skills. But where Sebastian is cruel and self-serving (because he is, no matter how many blankets he gave to Evie or whatever), Alexander is kind and funny and warm.

He wants Harriet, and yet he doesn’t impose his want on her. He’s happy to listen to her, happy to give her anything she wants, even if it pains him. He’s protective of her without making her miserable. Of course, he’s still a flawed character, so you’ll find him doing stupid things, but this is where Harriet’s character steps in.

Instead of being a doormat for this dude, she does what she thinks is best for herself and her sisters and isn’t a damsel to be rescued. She doesn’t lose interest in them or her previous work and she certainly holds her own against Alexander (and everyone else). 

The romance works so well because they’re well-matched, and you never feel like anyone has all the control over anyone else. 

As I mentioned, the only thing that bothered me about this book is the third act conflict (which you can learn about in the spoilers below if you want), but I’d say it’s not too bad, and it gets resolved relatively easily.

Spoilery Thoughts

So, let’s get into some spoilers. 

I really liked that there’s no woman on woman hate. Alexander has a mistress named Guilianna (they never do anything on-page, just talk; sometimes she’s naked), but neither she nor Harriet say anything bad to or about each other, ever. Giulianna is the biggest shipper of Alexander and Harriet from the moment she meets her, and she even helps kidnap Alexander and force him into marriage. I really hope we get a book about her, she’s brilliant. 

Then there’s the fact that there’s no forced marriage consummation. Since Alexander doesn’t want children — for the reason most of these misguided dukes do, to spite his father — Harriet says there’s no need to sleep together at all. And instead of being all “men have needs, you belong to me, grr”, he actually respects her wishes, no matter how attracted he is to her.

He even helps her learn how to please herself (if you catch my meaning). He’s always happy to listen to her talk, and he simultaneously loves and hates helping her learn new dirty words. He doesn’t forbid her from seeing Mr. Dawkins (whom Harriet planned to marry before), even though it pains him to see them together. I know it’s a low bar, but this is a historical romance, after all, so it’s a big deal. 

And then Harriet is so awesome too. When Alex leaves her at some inn (with money, and his carriage and footman, no worries) because he can’t stand to be around her anymore, she doesn’t whine about it or go to him like a lap dog. Instead, she gives everyone she meets hefty tips and then goes back to her own house. She continues with her life as normal — cooks for her sisters, balances the budget, dispatches her abusive, gambling father, and so on. For six days! She doesn’t even think to contact Alex and doesn’t expect she’ll ever see him again. True, she pines a little, but it does nothing to dissuade her from what she intends to do.

Meanwhile, our man over here is losing his mind. And then he has to convince her to move in with him. He gets so nervous, it’s adorable and funny and one of my favorite scenes of the whole book.

Plus, the spicy scenes actually worked for me in this one, and that’s a rarity. They aren’t over the top, and most of the time there’s some comedic aspect to them, which is probably why I liked them. 

Now, a bit of what I disliked. 

First of all, Harriet’s lack of self-worth gets tiring. I understand that she doesn’t think she’s beautiful based on solid evidence of five seasons without a husband and her father being a horrible man — but! One, I would have liked more of a character arc here, with her learning to love herself. Two, everyone tells her she’s stunning. And three, Alexander is very obviously salivating over her the whole time. So it would have been really great if she got to grow in that sense throughout the book. 

Then there’s the third-act conflict which is one of the stupidest scenes I’ve ever read. Let me paint a picture: Harriet’s just come back from her sisters’ house, where she had to give her father the wedding ring to make him go away. Her sister Philippa says that Alexander visited her and Harriet automatically assumes he visited her for some spicy times. Which, what?! What makes her think that her own sister (who adores her) would do or encourage such a thing, and what makes her think Alexander (who’s been a saint the entire time) would do such a thing with her sister?!

Ridiculous!

So, she starts packing her things to leave. Alexander sees this, but he thinks she’s mad because he made Mr. Dawkins go away and never come back (because Mr. Dawkins said some really bad stuff about Harriet). 

And then neither one of them lets the other finish a sentence. So they just. Assume.

I hated it.

I mean, first of all, Harriet makes a lot of assumptions about Alex for no good reason. The entire time they’re together, he’s really great to her, devoted, utterly besotted, but she thinks he’s sleeping around and that there’s no way he could be into her. Because of the rumors she heard about him. Come on, Harriet! It made no sense for such a smart woman to believe such nonsense. 

Thankfully, this all gets resolved relatively quickly, but it still made me mad. The ending is cute though!

Bottom Line

Overall, I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a great marriage of convenience romance. It’s funny and swoony, with some actually good spice, I won’t lie. For now, this book is a standalone, but I do hope the author writes more books in this world. I would love to get stories for Philippa, Caroline, Giulianna, Frances (once she’s older) and definitely (please, please) John. What a wonderful book!

If you liked The Very Definition of Love try…

• I’m loath to say it, but if you’ve never read Devil in Winter by Lisa Kleypas, give it a try. So many people absolutely adore it, so you might too. 
• If you want less spice and a bit more suspense, The Matrimonial Advertisement by Mimi Matthews is a good choice. 
• If you want more angst and a slower burn, try Ravishing the Heiress by Sherry Thomas. It’ll make you cry, but the spice is great.
• If you want a contemporary take on marriage of convenience, you can try An Academic Affair by Jodi McAlister.