A Seditious Affair

My faith in KJ Charles is fully restored after the somewhat disappointing A Fashionable Indulgence. The love story between Dominic and Silas is passionate, angsty, occasionally laugh-out-loud hilarious, and basically everything I look for in a good romance novel. Frankly, I could only read a few chapters of the book at a time because the feels were so incredibly strong and often painful. The D/s theme made me a little uncomfortable but it was such an important part of the dynamic between the two MCs that I don't see how KJ Charles could have skipped it. And it's obvious that the emotional attachment between them (based largely on a shared love of books sigh) is just as important as the physical side.

I expressed my discomfort with Indulgence, which seemed to celebrate upper class excess while paying lip service to the working class concerns. A Seditious Affair, however, goes all in, portraying two men - Tory and Brute - on the front lines of opposite sides of the struggle. While I'll always sympathize strongly with the oppressed party, Charles does a credible job of presenting Dominic's aristocratic views in a way that don't detract from his appeal. Plus by the end of the book, both men realize that the issue isn't completely black and white.

Along with the beautifully kinky star-crossed love story, Charles also incorporates a full arc about the transformation of Dominic's relationship with his former lover and best friend Richard, which emotionally frees up Richard to be featured in Society of Gentlemen book #3, due in April (so far away!).

There are so many great KJ Charles books that it's hard to rank them, but I'd put A Seditious Affair right up there with Think of England as one of her absolute best.

ARC received from Net Galley in exchange for honest review.