I have never liked Romance novels. Period. And I chose this book believeing it was historical fiction, although the title should have clued me in right away. While it was historical, it was way more romance than I was expecting. To me, all romance novels are the same, with the heroine of the story claiming she is free and independent, only to be enamoured by a man that has uncharacteristically good looks and manages to say the right thing. That was the basis of this entire book, and it was quite difficult to read. Maybe if I liked Romance novels better, my opinion of the book would be higher, but suffice to say, if you are looking for a different, refreshing romance novel, this is not it.