Book Review #17: Prince of Ravenscar by Catherine Coulter

Hello Dear Reader!

Welcome to another book review! This one isn’t an indie read, but it’s a really good one with aspects of both mystery and romance masterfully interwoven in this amazing novel. Before I get into that, here’s the back-cover summary (copied from the cover flap):

In April 1831, her grace Corinne Monroe wants her widowed son, Lord Julian, to marry her best friend’s daughter, Miss Sophie Wilkie. Julian last saw Sophie when she was twelve years old, silent, skinny, and always staring at him. However, his mother is nothing if not persuasive, and Julian reluctantly accompanies her to London to meet the young lady.

And he knows that whatever happens isn’t going to be good.

Lord Devlin Monroe, Julian’s nephew, is very fond of his intriguing reputation in society: he delights, he frightens, he brings on delicious shudders. He’s enjoying an extraordinarily pleasant bachelor life until Miss Roxanne Radcliffe and her niece, Miss Sophie Wilkie, appear in London society, and he suddenly finds himself wondering how he could have enjoyed midnight alone.

Julian and Devlin must discover what really happened three years earlier when Julian’s first wife, Lily, was found dead. If they don’t find out the truth, their lives could be ruined. And there is another, even more perfidious, danger that lurk in the shadows, waiting.

That’s the end of the back-cover summary. Let’s get into the review!

Prince of Ravenscar focuses on four main characters: the “prince” himself Lord Julian, the young and bold Sophie Wilkie, the vampiric Devlin Monroe, and the witty Roxanne Radcliffe. This cast of main characters are amazingly well-developed, and the supporting characters surrounding them also have distinct personalities of their own. Each and every character introduced seems like a real person I could meet in real life, which helped keep me in vested in the story.

The story itself is a mix of the mystery and romance genres, more specifically the slow-burn romance genres. The story is a bit slow-paced and consists mainly of dialogue, which is why it feels slow. Still, some of the best scenes in this book revolve around the dialogue, which, depending on the characters in the scene, are full of fantastic roasts, jokes, and insults all worded in the old 19th-century way of speaking. It’s the dialogue that builds up the personalities of the characters the most, and it was always fun to see a bold female character roasting and subtly insulting another character with class.

The only criticism I have isn’t even a criticism since it concerns the style of writing. The writing of Prince of Ravenscar is definitely characteristic of the 19th-century way of speaking. When I first started reading the book, the style hit me like a brick wall because of how long it’s been since I last read a book in this particular style, so it took a little bit to get used to it and truly understand what the characters were saying and what was going on in the story. It can be overwhelming for someone who hasn’t read a book in this style before. There also isn’t much description compared to other books I’ve read, which didn’t take away from the reading experience for me personally, but it might for a reader who loves more description.

So, Prince of Ravenscar rating:

9/10 and would definitely recommend if you’re looking for a great mix of mystery and slow-burn romance! Though slow-paced, the scenes dedicated to moving the plot forward are always pretty intense and keep you interested in the story, which is what makes it a great read in addition to having such great characters.

That’s all for this book review!

Thanks for reading!