Review: A Gentleman and a Rogue by Stephanie Burkhart

A Gentleman and a Rogue 

by Stephanie Burkhart

(The Windsor Diaries Book 2)

Steampunk Romance

Review:

This is my first read of Stephanie Burkhart’s work and I thought it was great. Although this book is book two in the series I thought it could be read as a standalone, however there were times where I got lost because I haven’ read book one and didn’t understand what was happening or what did happen and changed from the previous book but it didn’t take me away from the storyline much.

As you know from the synopsis, this is a time-traveling story from the present of 2011 back to the past of the reign of Queen Victoria in 1855. Lady Keira is the creator of the compressor of natural gas that is used in the future as the main energy source and Edmund has returned to help her win the competition so that the future, his future, won’t be altered like how it did when he first ventured to the past in the first and previous book in the series.

But this time they have some help, Edmund’s brother Richard. He has been named the Guardian of the Time Machine and is there to help stop any wrong decisions in the making that will effect the future. But things get kind of off course when Richard becomes an assistant to Jocelyn Dunkirk and starts to fall for the strange girl against his determination to not be enamored in the past.

As Edmund makes his way back to the past, Lady Keira is hesitant to accept his help because the last time that happened she fell in love and got her heart broken when he left. But he’s hopeful this time their love will hold the test of time and he’ll have to make a decision; she’s not willing to leave the past for his future and he’s not sure if he wants to stay in the past. So is it worth staying for or losing her forever?

There was also some great secondary characters in the form of the previous couple that shows up and gives some helping hand.

Edmund and Lady Keira were both very strong characters that were very intelligent. They fitted well with each other and made for a fun and great couple. Because of their past acquaintance, their relationship started off rocky and the banters between them were highly enjoyable and fun. Though the romance between the two were beautifully written and gets you engaged, there could be times where the emotion aspect of the story could get lost in the fast pace action but it really depends on the reader I suppose.

This was a fun fast paced story full of intrigue and action as we follow the couple through time to fix and put the future to right and solve some crimes. I found it fascinating being set during the Victorian era and super loved it more when there were Steam Punk involved. The romance in this story was fabulously executed which I highly enjoyed and made up most of the excitement in the story and may have even been the main point that drove it. Burkhart’s writing can really get your blood pumping with all the descriptive scenes and action and she did a really great job at it. She also did a great job at working with so many different themes and fitting them together to create this compelling story of love and romance through time.

Rating: 3.5